Fuel Redemption Volume Derivation for Price-Stable Commodity Accounts
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Solution Overview
Problem
Consumers in retail markets face volatile commodity prices due to supply and demand dynamics, geopolitical events, and currency fluctuations, leading to inflated prices with no effective alternatives for price stabilization, and existing solutions like fuel cards are supplier-specific, logistically burdensome, and lack security.
Innovation Solution
A commodity management system allows users to purchase commodities for later delivery, autonomously determining redemption volume and location, ensuring real-time transactions without seller integration, and incorporating fraud detection to secure user accounts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If consumers purchase commodities through retail markets, then they have access to commodity supply, but they face inflated prices due to volatility and pay a premium compared to wholesale buyers
Solution Approach 1:
The system allows consumers to purchase commodities in advance at fixed wholesale prices before market volatility affects retail prices. The commodity is bought and stored in the user's account, and redemption occurs later when needed, eliminating exposure to price fluctuations between purchase and consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a intermediary system that connects retail consumers to wholesale commodity markets. This intermediary platform enables consumers to access wholesale pricing and direct commodity purchases that would otherwise be unavailable through traditional retail channels.
2Reliability
If supplier-specific fuel cards are used to mitigate price fluctuations, then consumers can access discounted fuel prices, but logistical burdens increase due to supplier restrictions and limited usability
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates a universal commodity purchase platform that works across multiple suppliers and commodity types. Users can redeem their purchased commodities at any participating retailer rather than being restricted to specific supplier locations, providing both price stability and operational flexibility.
3Extent of automation
If manual reporting of commodity purchase quantity is implemented, then buyers can report purchased volume, but accuracy decreases due to potential fraud or mistakes
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically derives commodity consumption data from transaction information without requiring manual user input. The autonomous derivation process eliminates human error and fraud while maintaining accurate tracking of commodity volumes through automated calculations based on transaction amounts and commodity prices.
4Productivity
If real-time transaction processing is implemented without seller integration, then transaction speed increases and retailer experience is maintained, but system complexity increases to autonomously determine purchase details
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses feedback from transaction data (transaction amounts, commodity prices, and redemption patterns) to autonomously derive consumption information. This feedback loop enables the system to automatically calculate and track commodity volumes without manual intervention while maintaining real-time processing speeds.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems, apparatuses, methods, and computer program products are disclosed for autonomously deriving consumption of fuel. An example method includes receiving a transaction request and determining a fuel pump location associated with a fuel pump identifier. The example method further includes determining a current price of a fuel type at the fuel pump terminal based on the fuel pump location and deriving a total fuel redemption volume based on the current price of the fuel type. The example method further includes updating a fuel availability data structure associated with a user account.