Receiving box with electronic locking system with return and dispatch function

Abstract

Method for operating a receiving box (1) which can be closed by a lid (2) and which is associated with an electronically actuated locking device (3) which can be coupled via a radio interface to a portable data carrier (30) which is designed as a portable computer in the manner of a handheld computer (30) or as a smartphone, wherein the receiving box (1) receives at least one parcel (10), and the opening process of the receiving box is only possible by the authorized customer (40) of the receiving box (1) and / or by the authorized deliverer (29), wherein in order to implement a dispatch function for the dispatch of the parcel (10) in a first process step, a shipping label or return label is attached to the package (10), in a second method step, an electronic application (15) is started on the customer's side (40) to open the receiving box, in a third method step, a data record is generated in the electronic application (15) which contains at least parameters of the receiving box (1) and parameters of the dispatch label or return label, in a fourth method step, this data set is sent as a data stream (18) via an Internet connection to a logistics company (22), which in turn in a fifth method step, a further data set (25, 26) is generated and forwarded via an Internet connection to the deliverer (29), who reads the data set (25, 26, 27) onto a handheld device (30), in a sixth method step, the electronic locking device (3) of the receiving box (1) is actuated via a radio interface using the data set (25, 26, 27) stored on the handheld device (30) and the package (10) is removed from the receiving box (1), and in a seventh method step, the receiving box (1) is closed and a data exchange regarding the closing process takes place between the handheld device (30) and the electronic locking device (3), characterized in that in the second method step, on the customer's side (40) via the smartphone, the shipping label or the return label is scanned and its data is read into the application (15), which generates the data set for the third method step and that when the customer opens the receiving box (1), the application (15) assigned to his smartphone sends a request to open the electronic locking device (3) of the receiving box (1) and that he receives an encrypted random number which is sent via an internet connection (20) to an authorization server of the logistics company (22) and that the authorization server generates a new key code from this key and sends this back to the application (15), thus authorizing the application (15) to authorize the operation of the electronic locking device (3).

Description

The invention relates to a receiving box with an electronic locking system with return and transmit function according to the preamble of claim 1.Receiving boxes of this type are provided for receiving mailpieces, in particular packages, in the event that the occupant of a home--closed off by a home door--is not present.Such a receiving box is shown, for example, in DE 10 2017 002 954 A1 and is suitable in particular for multifamily houses in which the residential doors branch off from a common corridor or entrance. In the embodiment of such a receiving box, the parcel or the mail item is to be deposited by the delivery agent into a closed box which is located on the outside of the residential door, i.e. for example in the hallway.Usually, these are connected to the door system by means of an elongate and flexible strap. Such tapes are also known from other applications, such as for example for securing portable electronic devices, as is also described in WO 02 / 059 442 A1.In general, anchoring of locker boxes has long been known. Thus, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,116 A already discloses a safebox which can be fastened to an immovable object by means of an anchor chain or an anchor cable made of hardened, high-strength metal.The box of a receiving box is designed such that it can be closed and can only be opened by the delivery agent and by the owner of the box and thus by the occupant of the home.It is known to use an electronic shutter device using an RFID technique for such a receiving box.The delivery agent and the dwelling occupant each carry a mobile chip card or a comparable portable electronic element with which it is possible to actuate the electronic locking device in order to ensure that only authorized persons can actuate the locking device of the receiving box.Thus, DE 10 2014 017 191 A1 shows a receiving box for receiving, securing and / or providing an object, wherein the box has a flexible band for fastening the box to an associated door system, wherein the band is designed to extend, when the door system is closed, as far as a side of the door system facing away from or opposite the securing device and is thus non-detachable when the door is closed. DE 20 2013 001 359 U1 also shows the use of such a band, which in this case is distinguished in particular by an expansion possibility of a box stack to be secured with the band.If the resident of the home is absent and the delivery agent delivers a package, then he actuates the closure device with his chip card, opens the cover which closes the box and deposits the package there. At the same time, it is noted on its mobile smart card that it has delivered the packet among a variety of other data about time, location, name and other parameters.The dwelling's resident who arrives at the closed box can now open the latter with his own chip card, wherein again it is noted on the chip card-while storing a large number of further data-that an opening operation took place and a mail item was removed.Such receiving boxes with an electronic locking device which is RFID-controlled have proved their worth above all in Austria.However, when using packet receiving boxes, the return and / or adjustment of packets is problematic.Up to now, it was not possible for the customer to be able to return an incorrectly delivered package or an undesired package. There was no method tested which allowed such a return.Likewise, it frequently happens that, although the customer takes the delivered packet from his receiving box, he determines when opening the packet that the articles contained therein do not fall and he wishes to send back the entire packet or some of the articles from the packet with the packet.According to the prior art, it is merely known to add a so-called return ticket to the package, which the customer has to glue on the package and bring the package to the next postal location. It is also known to notify a deliverer who fetches the packet at a fixed time. However, this presupposes the presence of the packet holder.For example, DE 10 2014 105 264 A1 discloses a solution in which a customer opens the container by means of a mobile radio device and inserts the shipment to be sent. The customer then notifies the transport service via mobile radio, wherein a short address is sent to the transport service with the data for identifying the shipment. A messenger of the transport service opens the container with its own mobile radio device and the authorisation from the data previously contained by the sender and removes the shipment.A disadvantage of this is that the customer has to input the data into the application in a complicated manner so that a corresponding data record can be sent to the transport service. In addition, this unsecured communication between customer and transport service no longer meets the current requirements for secure transmission methods.DE 10 2014 103 468 A1 discloses a first solution approach in this respect, wherein a start code is provided by the packet box. This can be effected, for example, after a key press on a keypad of the parcel box. The start code is then transmitted by a mobile input device to a database which, on the basis of the start code, provides an associated opening code which is transmitted to the mobile input device in the next step. As a result, by inputting the opening code, the mailbox can be opened. Here too, for use of the parcel box as a mailing box or return box, registration of the user and individual input of the mailing or return data are necessary.The invention is used here, which has the object of simplifying the return of an delivered package and / or of causing the shipment of a package directly from the residential door.To achieve the object set, the invention is characterized by the technical teaching of claim 1.A feature of the invention is that in a first method step, in a manner known per se, starting from a return ticket which the customer is supplied with the package, he attaches the return ticket to the package.It is now novel that the customer now uses a mobile handheld device, e.g. a mobile telephone, a smartphone, a portable computer or a comparable device, which has a camera function and / or a scanning function. As a generic term for all such devices, the term "smartphone" is used in the following description.According to the invention, it is now provided that it scans the return ticket using this smartphone and reads its data into a specific electronic application running on the smartphone, which generates a data record from it, which contains the packet data, the customer data, the time, the location and other parameters.It is furthermore provided that the application has at least one (virtual or software) return button which the customer actuates when it wishes to return, in order to cause the application to generate a suitable data record which is sent to the Internet via a wireless or wired communication connection.In the Internet, this data record is delivered to the logistics company, which administers a database into which the data records received from the Internet are read, so that the logistics company now generates a data record about the box located at the customer, the package contained there and all other parameters.It now generates a return data record in turn and sends it via a further communication interface into the Internet, which then generates a data record which is sent to a handheld device which is assigned to the deliverer of the packet.The delivery agent receives a message on the screen of his handheld device that a box with a specific number is present at a specific location with a packet contained therein and that the packet is to be removed.In this data record, the address of the receiving box is indicated, among other things, so that the delivery agent is given the order to visit a receiving box at a specific location on a specific staircase and in the area of a specific residential door.After finding the box, it actuates the electronic lock of the receiving box with its handheld device via an NFC or a BLE interface and opens it. After opening the lock, it removes the package and stores it.With a further method step, the packet received by it is delivered to the transmitter in a way known per se. The return is thus completed.Accordingly, it is important in the invention to make a return of a parcel by the electronic lock of a receiving box being actuatable via a wired or wireless communication interface in order to remove the parcel stored there and, after removal, close the receiving box again, wherein a data exchange takes place between a lock of the box designed as a transponder and the handheld device of the delivery agent.Both the opening process and the closing process are documented electronically and the electronically generated data are read into the handheld device of the delivery agent in order to document that the delivery agent has opened the receiving box, removed the package contained there and closed the receiving box again.This is new and was not known up to now and is particularly secure for the customer, since the receiving box which is arranged outside its home by the customer and belongs to it can now also be used-in the manner described above-for a return function. This is the subject matter of independent claim 1.However, the invention goes beyond the method sequence of a return function, because in a further development of the invention it is provided that the customer operates his receiving box as a transmitting box. The return slip is then replaced by a sending slip. Otherwise exactly the same method steps apply according to independent claim 2.This means that it can insert a package which it has properly franked and labelled into the box and can now cause the delivery agent via the smartphone of his own to remove the package from the receiving box and deliver it to a specific recipient.It is, so to speak, a "customer's own packet office" as the sending location of packets, which is maintained directly at the residential door of the customer.The invention is summarized below in short words:Terms: Terms:Key:A key can be of different types, for example an RFID data carrier (card, key fob, etc.) or a mobile telephone. If the key is not a mobile telephone, at least one such additional key is required, on which the APP is then installed.Interface APP - Lock:Several physical interfaces are possible between the APP and the lock, such as NFC, Bluetooth, WLAN, but also more abstract ones, such as acoustic coupling. Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) is provided for the first variant.Box: Box:There are currently two different boxes, one belonging to a single user, to which he subsequently also has a personal key which authorizes him at all times to open or close this box (private mail box). In the shared solution (mailbox multi user), the box is installed, for example, in the entrance area of a residential house, and the box can be used by all domestic homes. In this way, the users do not have a permanently authorized key, i.e. cannot open or close the box at any time.Procedure:If a user now wishes to release a return, he must start an APP in both cases and input the data required for the return (e.g. recipient, Retourennummer,......). This data is passed to the service provider (e.g. mail, DHL,... ) for general checking. The service provider then responds whether this packet can be abandoned and possibly costs arise for this (which could then be paid for directly in the APP, for example) or whether this return must be sent back via another route (e.g. delivery in the mail station).Opening the box:If the customer (user) has a permanently authorized key (mail box private), he then opens the box with it. If the user has only one mobile phone and wants to open a box, then the APP sends a request to open to the box and obtains an encrypted random number, which is then sent to an entitlement server. The server is independent of the service provider in the first step, but can be operated by the service provider if the box is used exclusively by a service provider (e.g. mail), for example.The server calculates a new key code from this key and returns it to the APP. The method for the encryption can be arbitrary as long as it is known to both subscribers. A possible variant is, for example, that the server decrypts the random number using the box key known to it and then re-encrypts it using its own key. The lock also knows the key of the server and can thus unambiguously identify that the server has "signed" the message. This can be implemented with either symmetrical or asymmetrical encryption methods.If the APP now sends this key to the lock, then this opens. Upon closing, the mobile telephone is now required in all cases and the sequence can be identical to that described above. It is important that the server has now calculated the code for closing and this code (or a code derived therefrom) can then also be used for opening by the delivery agent. If this now arrives at the box, its APP asks the server for the code to open, and if this is then sent to the lock via the interface, it opens and the delivery agent can remove the packet. In the background, the server is informed that the packet has been removed. For closing, no new code is necessary; the delivery agent closes the box simply by pressing it.The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to drawings which represent only one embodiment. In this case, further features and advantages of the invention which are essential to the invention are evident from the drawings and their description.The following are shown: FIG. 1 : Perspective view of a receiving box in the door reveal of a residential door FIGS. 2.1-2.5 show the time-based method sequence for explaining the return functionIn FIG. 1, it is generally shown that a receiving box 1 essentially consists of a box 24, which is closed off, for example, at its top side by a cover 2, to which an electronically actuatable closing device 3 is assigned.This electronic locking device 3 can be opened and locked via a wireless radio interface or also by wire with a corresponding coding function.The locking device 3 is preferably equipped with an RFID reader and the customer has a smartphone and additionally a chip card or another data carrier in which an active or passive transponder is arranged.As a rule, a chip card with a passive transponder is used, because this is particularly simple and a separate battery can be dispensed with.The receiving box 1 is arranged in the door reveal 4 of a living door 5 so as to be secured against removal and, in a manner known per se, the living door 5 has a door latch 6 which can be actuated in the direction of the arrow 7.The security against removal is given in FIG. 1 in such a way that a band, not shown in more detail, is arranged on the receiving box 1, on the wall side closest to the door reveal, which extends through the door gap 8 of the residential door 5 and is secured there against being pulled out.As a result, the receiving box 1 is held securely in the door frame 9, because the securing band becomes accessible only when the receiving box 1 is opened.In the exemplary embodiment shown, the receiving box 1 contains a packet 10.According to the method sequence in FIGS. 2.1 to 2.5, the customer 40 in FIG. 2.1 intends to send back the packet 10 delivered to him in the receiving box 1. In a manner known per se, an address label 11 is attached to the package 10, on which label, for example, a barcode 12 is arranged.It removes the return label from the contents of the delivered package 13 that it applies to the package. This is shown in FIG. 2.2.Instead of removing a return label 13 from the delivered package 10, it can also be provided that the customer 40 prints such a return label 13 itself with his electronic application 15 available to him and applies it to the package 10.After the return label 13 has been applied, the customer starts an electronic application 15 in his smartphone 39, which also has, inter alia, a virtually generated (software) button 17 for returning.The required data can thus be recognized and called up on the screen 16 of the smartphone 39.By actuating the virtual button 17, the electronic application 15 is informed that a return is to be generated, and a data record is generated with the electronic application 15, which data record is fed to the Internet 20 as a data stream 18 via an Internet connection 19.From the Internet 20, this data stream 21 is fed to a logistics company 22, which has a database 23.A database set 25 is arranged in the database 23, in which the data set 26 is read in from the data stream 21, so that the logistics company 22 has all the return data of the package 10, including the data of the customer, the time, the location and all other parameters of the return.The logistics company 22 generates a further data stream 27, which is routed via the Internet and is fed as data stream 27' to a handheld computer 30 of a delivery agent 29.The handheld computer 30 instructs the delivery agent 29 to visit and actuate the receiving box 1 of the customer 40 at a specific address in a specific time frame. As soon as the delivery agent 29 has arrived at the location of the receiving box 1, it controls a data stream 28 via the communication interface 31 onto the electronic closure device 3, which is thus actuated on the basis of the authorisation code, so that the delivery agent 29 opens the cover 2 (in the direction of the arrow 32) and can remove the package 10 from the receiving box 1. This is shown in FIG. 2.4.It closes the cover 2 in the direction of the arrow 32', and all data generated with the removal and the closure of the cover 2 are read into its device in the form of the data stream 28, so that a new data stream is generated with which--among other data--it is electronically documented that the packet has been removed.In a manner known per se, the delivery agent 29 now sends the packet 10 removed from it back to the transmitter 34 according to FIG. 2.5 (arrow direction 35).This shows that a return function for a receiving box can be implemented by means of an electronic application of a smartphone, as was not previously known.Instead of realizing a return function, however, the receiving box 1 can also be operated as a packet sending point on the customer side. The return label 13 is replaced in this case by a sending label.The customer can insert a new label which he meters and labels into the receiving box and close the cover 2 with the electronic closure device 3, whereby the closure produces the corresponding data which are supplied to his smartphone via an electronic communication interface. Instead of a return button 17, another button in the application is now actuated and thus its application 15 is informed that a new packet has been made available for collection in the receiving box 1.The same method steps then follow as were explained with reference to FIGS. 2.3 to 2.5.In addition to the return function, the present invention therefore also relates to a method with which it is possible to deliver packages to a delivery agent on the customer side via a personal receiving box, wherein confidential delivery to the delivery agent takes place using electronic documentation. This is the subject matter of independent claim 2.Drawing Legend1 Receiving box 2 lid 3 locking device 4 door reveal 5 home door 6 door latch 7 arrow direction 8 door gap 9 door frame 10 package 11 address label 12 barcode 13 return label 14 scanning beam 15 electronic application 16 screen 17 button 18 data stream 19 internet connection 20 internet 21 data stream 22 logistics company 23 database 24 box 25 database set 26 data set [DS] 27 data stream 27' 28 data stream 29 delivery device 30 handheld computer 31 communication interface 32 arrow direction 32' 33 arrow direction 34 transmitter 35 arrow direction 39 smartphone 40 customer

Claims

Method for operating a receiving box (1) which can be closed by a cover (2) and which is assigned an electronically actuatable closure device (3) which can be coupled via a radio interface to a portable data carrier (30) which is designed as a portable computer in the manner of a handheld computer (30) or as a smartphone, wherein the receiving box (1) accommodates at least one package (10), and the opening process of the receiving box is possible only by the authorized customer (40) of the receiving box (1) and / or by the authorized deliverer (29), wherein, in order to realize a sending function for sending the package (10), a sending label or return label is fastened to the package (10) in a first method step, in a second method step on the side of the customer (40) an electronic application (15) is started in order to open the receiving box, in a third method step in the electronic application (15) a data record is generated in which at least parameters of the receiving box (1) and parameters of the sending label or return label are contained, in a fourth method step this data record is sent as a data stream (18) via an Internet connection to a logistics company (22), which in turn generates a further data record (25, 26) in a fifth method step and feeds it via an Internet connection to the delivery agent (29), which reads in the data record (25, 26, 27) to a handheld device (30), in a sixth method step with the data record (25, 26, stored on the handheld device (30), 27) actuates the electronic locking device (3) of the receiving box (1) via a radio interface and removes the package (10) from the receiving box (1) and, in a seventh method step, locks the receiving box (1) and, in the process, a data exchange takes place with respect to the locking process between the handheld device (30) and the electronic locking device (3), characterized in that, in the second method step, the sending label or the return label scans on the side of the customer (40) via the smartphone and the data thereof is read into the application (15), which generates the data record for the third method step therefrom, and in that, when the receiving box (1) is opened on the customer side, the application (15) assigned to its smartphone sends a request for opening to the electronic locking device (3) of the receiving box (1) and in that it receives an encrypted random number, The authentication server is sent to an authentication server of the logistics company (22) via an Internet connection (20), and that the authentication server generates a new key code from this key and returns this to the application (15) and thus authorizes the application (15) for authorized actuation of the electronic locking device (3).Method according to Claim 1, characterized in that, when the sending function is used via the application (15), the data required for sending back are transferred to the service provider for general checking, then responds to whether this packet can be delivered and whether costs are optionally incurred for this purpose.Method according to Claim 2, characterized in that the costs are paid by means of the application (15).Method according to one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the authorisation server of the logistics company (22) also calculates a code for closing the receiving box (1) and this code or a code derived therefrom) is also used for opening by the delivery agent (29).Method according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, when the electronic locking device (3) is actuated in the background, the authorisation server of the logistics company (22) is informed that the package has been removed.Device for carrying out the method according to one of Claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the customer-side and / or delivery agent-side key is an RFID data carrier and / or a mobile telephone.Device according to claim 6, characterised in that the receiving box (1) is associated with a single customer (40) by having a personal key which authorizes him only to open and close the receiving box (1).Device according to claim 6, characterised in that the receiving box (1) is associated with several customers (40) in that all authorized customers have a personal key which is valid only for a single opening and closing operation.Device according to one of Claims 6 to 8, characterized in that the electronic closure device (3) is designed as an RFID reading device.Device according to claim 9, characterised in that the key necessary for actuating the electronic locking device (3) is designed as an active or passive transponder.Device according to claim 9, characterised in that the key necessary for actuating the electronic locking device (3) is designed as a mobile telephone 1.

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