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WO2001027740A1 - Systeme ameliore de livraison de paquets - Google Patents

Systeme ameliore de livraison de paquets Download PDF

Info

Publication number
WO2001027740A1
WO2001027740A1 PCT/US2000/028415 US0028415W WO0127740A1 WO 2001027740 A1 WO2001027740 A1 WO 2001027740A1 US 0028415 W US0028415 W US 0028415W WO 0127740 A1 WO0127740 A1 WO 0127740A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
locker
package
customer
physical location
address code
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Ceased
Application number
PCT/US2000/028415
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
John K Stevens
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Individual
Original Assignee
Individual
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Individual filed Critical Individual
Priority to AU13331/01A priority Critical patent/AU1333101A/en
Publication of WO2001027740A1 publication Critical patent/WO2001027740A1/fr
Priority to US09/681,654 priority patent/US6480758B2/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Priority to US10/293,521 priority patent/US6725127B2/en
Ceased legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
    • A47G—HOUSEHOLD OR TABLE EQUIPMENT
    • A47G29/00—Supports, holders, or containers for household use, not provided for in groups A47G1/00-A47G27/00 or A47G33/00 
    • A47G29/14—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels
    • A47G29/141—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels comprising electronically controlled locking means
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07C—TIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE
    • G07C9/00—Individual registration on entry or exit
    • G07C9/20—Individual registration on entry or exit involving the use of a pass
    • G07C9/27—Individual registration on entry or exit involving the use of a pass with central registration
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
    • G07F17/00—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services
    • G07F17/10—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for means for safe-keeping of property, left temporarily, e.g. by fastening the property
    • G07F17/12—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for means for safe-keeping of property, left temporarily, e.g. by fastening the property comprising lockable containers, e.g. for accepting clothes to be cleaned
    • G07F17/13—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for means for safe-keeping of property, left temporarily, e.g. by fastening the property comprising lockable containers, e.g. for accepting clothes to be cleaned the containers being a postal pick-up locker
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
    • A47G—HOUSEHOLD OR TABLE EQUIPMENT
    • A47G29/00—Supports, holders, or containers for household use, not provided for in groups A47G1/00-A47G27/00 or A47G33/00 
    • A47G29/14—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels
    • A47G29/141—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels comprising electronically controlled locking means
    • A47G2029/145—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels comprising electronically controlled locking means the receptacle comprising means for identifying a deposit; Deposits carrying identification means, e.g. a bar code
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
    • A47G—HOUSEHOLD OR TABLE EQUIPMENT
    • A47G29/00—Supports, holders, or containers for household use, not provided for in groups A47G1/00-A47G27/00 or A47G33/00 
    • A47G29/14—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels
    • A47G29/141—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels comprising electronically controlled locking means
    • A47G2029/146—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels comprising electronically controlled locking means the receptacle comprising identification means, e.g. a bar code

Definitions

  • the invention relates generally to package storage and delivery, and relates more particularly to improved systems and methods for package storage and delivery.
  • a related set of problems present themselves when a customer seeks to return mail-order merchandise.
  • the return may be due to a variety of reasons, from incorrect size or color to dissatisfaction with the quality or function of the merchandise.
  • the return can be a nuisance for the customer.
  • Real or perceived difficulty of making returns prompts some would-be mail-order customers to forgo placing the mail order.
  • Still another problem is mail fraud.
  • Many mail-order merchants face problems with fraudulent orders placed using stolen credit card numbers. The losses attributable to such orders are, of course, passed back to merchants (and through them to customers) through the commissions charged for processing payments for such orders.
  • a related but distinct concern is simply the delivery cost of the "last mile " .
  • a substantial part of the price charged by a carrier to deliver a package is due to the "last mile”.
  • Prior-art locker systems include those described in US Pat. No. 5,645,215 for
  • a package storage and delivery system includes electronically controlled lockers disposed at or near customer locations. Each locker is unlocked by a courier, preferably by means of a short-range transceiver or transmitter carried on the courier's person. The customer can unlock the locker and receive the delivered package. Cryptographically signed communications are employed along with nonvolatile usage logs to minimize the risk of loss of a package or fraud by courier or customer.
  • the lockers may be stackable, permitting a delivery courier to add lockers in the event a customer receives too many deliveries to fit into a single locker.
  • Each box has, of course, a physical location, and has associated with it an address code indicative of the physical location, for example by means of a human-readable or compressed representation of the precise latitude and longitude. A package delivered to such a box preferably bears the address code.
  • a merchant can greatly reduce the risk of credit card fraud by requiring the use of such codes for the simple reason that a fraudulent transaction may be traced to a specific physical location.
  • Fig. 1 shows a typical locker 34 attached to a home 35.
  • the home has a location relative to lines of latitude 32, 33 and lines of longitude 30, 31 which define a grid.
  • Lines 36, 37 define the position of the locker within the grid.
  • the location of the locker 34 is determined at the time of installation, for example using a GPS (global positioning system) receiver.
  • the GPS receiver provides the latitude and longitude, expressed in a suitable notation such as degrees, minutes and seconds or degrees and decimal fractions of a degree.
  • SA selective availability
  • the receiver will provide a spatial resolution of typically ten or twenty feet. If SA is on, it is desirable to use DGPS (differential GPS) to provide a position of comparable accuracy.
  • DGPS differential GPS
  • a traditional numerical representation of a location by latitude and longitude is rather wasteful of characters.
  • the only characters used are digits, and many of the digits are not used. Unused digits happen because, for example, the number of minutes in a degree is never more than sixty, so the first digit of a "minutes" value is never 7 or 8 or 9. Unused digits also happen because some combinations of digits correspond to geographic locations (e.g. in the Arctic or the middle of the ocean) that are unlikely to be referred to as a package delivery location. It is a straightforward matter to devise functions which permit expressing geographic locations with far fewer characters than decimally expressed latitudes and longitudes.
  • Letters can be used along with all ten digits to provide locations expressed in perhaps six or eight characters depending on the desired resolution. Some economy of effort can be accomplished by selecting a reference point such as the airport which might be used to deliver a courier package for an address. Once the airport reference point is selected, it is a straightforward matter to define latitude and longitude relative to that point rather than relative to the usual global origin.
  • Fig. 2 shows a package addressed according to the invention.
  • a Zip code 47 may appear on the package but is fundamentally unrelated to the position code just described.
  • the position code may consist of an airport code 45 as well as a character string 46 which conveys the location relative to the airport.
  • the installer will take a GPS reading, and with appropriate software will convert the latitude and longitude information into the character string 46.
  • the customer When a would-be customer places an order for delivery of goods, the customer provides the entire "ebox" code 45, 46 to the merchant.
  • the merchant uses the code 45, 46 to address the package.
  • the courier company will necessarily perform sorts on packages and will also need to load trucks efficiently.
  • a traditional truck-loading approach is to group the packages by Zip code value. This has the advantage of being simple to do, and has the disadvantage that it may pass up opportunities for trucks to be packed optimally.
  • Two destinations might be very near each other and yet have quite different Zip codes, for example. Sorting packages by Zip code in numerical order will not necessarily place packages near to each other that represent delivery locations that are near to each other.
  • the position code 45, 46 offers benefits for the trucking and delivery companies. When a truck is being packed, packages that are intended for locations that are suitably nearby to reach other can be easily identified by visual review of the position codes.
  • a delivery carrier takes the package to the geographic location defined by the location code, and identifies a delivery box 60 (Fig. 3).
  • This box 60 has a lid 61 which locks and unlocks under control of a microprocessor.
  • the carrier transmits a wireless signal to the box that prompts the box to open, and lifts the lid 61 as shown in lifted position 63.
  • the package may then be placed in the box 62.
  • the lid is closed, and the customer is notified that there is a package in the box.
  • the customer causes the box to unlock, preferably by a second wireless signal, and the lid is opened.
  • the package is removed and the lid is closed.
  • a log is kept of the openings and closings of the box, and the log may be stored in nonvolatile memory in the box for later study in the event of some question as to the delivery of a package.
  • a storage locker such as is described above can be an important part of a delivery system that includes delivery trucks dispatched to deliver during off-peak times. In many areas a suitable off-peak time will be late at night, for example between 10 PM and 7 AM. A typical delivery driver and truck operating during off-peak hours and using lockers such as are described above will be able to perform many more deliveries per hour than a driver and truck operating during peak times (such as during daylight hours) and without such lockers.
  • the packages may be addressed with location codes as described above.
  • the addresses may be traditional postal service addresses.
  • some means is required for securely unlocking and locking the lockers.
  • One approach is to receive an order from a customer and to establish a unique identifier in connection with the order.
  • a message is communicated to the locker, preferably by wireless means such as radio or infrared.
  • the locker tests for a predetermined relationship between the message and the identifier, and if the relationship is satisfied the locker unlocks and the lid can be opened.
  • the package is placed in the locker and the lid is closed and locked. The user is then notified that there is a package in the locker.

Landscapes

  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Food Science & Technology (AREA)
  • Lock And Its Accessories (AREA)
  • Supports Or Holders For Household Use (AREA)

Abstract

Un système de stockage de paquets et de distribution comporte des verrous à commande électronique (34) installés chez les clients ou à proximité. Chaque verrou (34) peut être débloqué par un courrier, de préférence à l'aide d'un émetteur/récepteur ou d'un émetteur de courte portée transporté par le courrier. Le client peut débloquer le verrou (34) pour recevoir le paquet distribué. On utilise des communications à signature cryptographique ainsi que des registres d'utilisation non volatiles pour réduire les risques de pertes de paquets ou de fraude dus au courrier ou au client. Les verrous peuvent être empilables, ce qui permet à un courrier distributeur d'ajouter des verrous au cas où le client reçoit trop de livraisons pour tenir dans un seul verrou. Chacune des boîtes (62) a bien sûr un emplacement physique auquel est associée un code d'adresse par exemple une représentation lisible par l'homme ou comprimée de la latitude (32, 33) et de la longitude (30, 31) précises. Un paquet délivré à une telle boîte comporte de préférence le code d'adresse. Un commerçant peut largement réduire le risque de fraude sur une carte de crédit en requérant l'utilisation de tels codes pour la simple raison qu'une transaction frauduleuse peut être suivie jusqu'à un emplacement géographique spécifique.
PCT/US2000/028415 1999-10-14 2000-10-14 Systeme ameliore de livraison de paquets Ceased WO2001027740A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
AU13331/01A AU1333101A (en) 1999-10-14 2000-10-14 Improved package delivery system
US09/681,654 US6480758B2 (en) 2000-05-25 2001-05-16 Package delivery system
US10/293,521 US6725127B2 (en) 2000-05-25 2002-11-12 Package delivery system

Applications Claiming Priority (10)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US15947999P 1999-10-14 1999-10-14
US60/159,479 1999-10-14
US16005199P 1999-10-18 1999-10-18
US60/160,051 1999-10-18
US16506199P 1999-11-12 1999-11-12
US60/165,061 1999-11-12
US16868599P 1999-12-01 1999-12-01
US60/168,685 1999-12-01
US18137200P 2000-02-09 2000-02-09
US60/181,372 2000-02-09

Related Child Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US09/681,654 Continuation US6480758B2 (en) 2000-05-25 2001-05-16 Package delivery system

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2001027740A1 true WO2001027740A1 (fr) 2001-04-19

Family

ID=27538591

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/US2000/028415 Ceased WO2001027740A1 (fr) 1999-10-14 2000-10-14 Systeme ameliore de livraison de paquets

Country Status (2)

Country Link
AU (1) AU1333101A (fr)
WO (1) WO2001027740A1 (fr)

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2002023426A1 (fr) * 2000-09-13 2002-03-21 First Cube Pte Ltd. Procede et systeme mettant en oeuvre la notification par service de message court (sms) pour faciliter la distribution de marchandises
GB2371832A (en) * 2001-01-25 2002-08-07 Secure Storage Solutions Ltd Lockable container and delivery system
EP1208780A3 (fr) * 2000-10-17 2003-04-02 Henry Chancellor Système de livraison de marchandises
US6820805B2 (en) 2000-06-03 2004-11-23 Ebox Usa Inc. Computerized recording and notification of the delivery and pickup of retail goods
FR2889801A1 (fr) * 2005-08-16 2007-02-23 Saux Herve Pierre Marie Le Procede pour informer par telecommunication le destinataire d'un courrier au moment de la remise de celui-ci dans sa boite aux lettres ou de sa presentation a son adresse.

Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4727368A (en) * 1985-12-30 1988-02-23 Supra Products, Inc. Electronic real estate lockbox system
US5444444A (en) * 1993-05-14 1995-08-22 Worldwide Notification Systems, Inc. Apparatus and method of notifying a recipient of an unscheduled delivery
US5625668A (en) * 1994-04-12 1997-04-29 Trimble Navigation Limited Position reporting cellular telephone

Patent Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4727368A (en) * 1985-12-30 1988-02-23 Supra Products, Inc. Electronic real estate lockbox system
US5444444A (en) * 1993-05-14 1995-08-22 Worldwide Notification Systems, Inc. Apparatus and method of notifying a recipient of an unscheduled delivery
US5625668A (en) * 1994-04-12 1997-04-29 Trimble Navigation Limited Position reporting cellular telephone

Cited By (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6820805B2 (en) 2000-06-03 2004-11-23 Ebox Usa Inc. Computerized recording and notification of the delivery and pickup of retail goods
US7242290B2 (en) 2000-06-03 2007-07-10 Visible Assets, Inc. Testing methods for use with boxes
WO2002023426A1 (fr) * 2000-09-13 2002-03-21 First Cube Pte Ltd. Procede et systeme mettant en oeuvre la notification par service de message court (sms) pour faciliter la distribution de marchandises
EP1208780A3 (fr) * 2000-10-17 2003-04-02 Henry Chancellor Système de livraison de marchandises
GB2371832A (en) * 2001-01-25 2002-08-07 Secure Storage Solutions Ltd Lockable container and delivery system
FR2889801A1 (fr) * 2005-08-16 2007-02-23 Saux Herve Pierre Marie Le Procede pour informer par telecommunication le destinataire d'un courrier au moment de la remise de celui-ci dans sa boite aux lettres ou de sa presentation a son adresse.

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
AU1333101A (en) 2001-04-23

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