Carrier System for Automated Shipment Tender Date Calculation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Shippers often face challenges in accurately determining the date to tender shipments to carriers to ensure timely arrival at a desired destination, due to lack of complete and accurate information about transportation times.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that automatically initiates the shipping process by generating situation-specific shipping data from a user's to-do list, current location, and device characteristics, providing shippers with timely reminders and notifications to ensure shipments are completed and delivered by a desired date.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If shippers manually estimate transportation time to determine tender dates, then they can initiate shipping tasks, but the accuracy of delivery timing is insufficient due to incomplete information
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a carrier computing system as an intermediary between the shipper and the shipping process. This system automatically provides accurate transportation time information and tender date calculations, eliminating the need for shippers to manually estimate these parameters. The intermediary resolves the contradiction by supplying complete information (reducing loss of information) while maintaining simple user interaction (preserving ease of operation).
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback by automatically calculating and providing tender dates based on desired delivery dates and current transportation time data. The carrier computing system continuously updates transportation time information and feeds it back to the shipper through the task management system, enabling accurate delivery timing without requiring the shipper to have complete information beforehand.
2Reliability
If shippers manually enter all shipping data, then complete shipment information can be provided, but data entry inaccuracies and user effort increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables self-service by allowing the carrier computing system to automatically extract and process shipping data from the task management record. The system autonomously identifies shipment parameters, calculates tender dates, and generates shipping instructions without requiring manual data entry by the user. This resolves the contradiction by ensuring data accuracy through automated extraction while minimizing user effort to simply creating the initial task.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-calculating tender dates and shipping parameters before the actual shipping task is executed. The carrier computing system proactively provides all necessary shipping information in advance, allowing users to review and confirm rather than manually enter data during the shipping process. This ensures accuracy while reducing the operational burden on users.
3Productivity
If the system automatically generates shipping records from task lists, then the shipping process is streamlined, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing the carrier computing system to perform multiple functions: monitoring task management databases, extracting shipping parameters, calculating tender dates, and generating shipping records. This multi-functional approach streamlines the shipping process (increasing productivity) while consolidating complexity into a single integrated system rather than requiring separate tools for each function.
4Loss of time
If tender dates are calculated based on desired delivery dates, then shipments arrive on time, but additional processing steps are required
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary calculation of tender dates based on desired delivery dates and current transportation time data. By calculating these dates in advance and providing them to users before shipping tasks are created, the system ensures timely delivery without requiring complex real-time calculations during the shipping process. This resolves the contradiction by preventing delivery delays through advance planning while keeping the actual shipping process simple.
Data Source
AI summary
Computer-implemented methods, apparatus, and computer program products are provided. In one embodiment, shipment information/data corresponding to a proposed shipment from a customer computing device is received. The shipment information/data may be generated based on a task-management record from user input provided from a shipper. The shipment information/data also identifies a destination location and a desired delivery date for the proposed shipment. In one embodiment, updated shipment information/data is generated and causes the customer computing device to generate updated task-management records via a task-management software application based at least in part on one or more tender dates.