Fulfillment System for In-App Redemption via Aggregated Catalogs
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Solution Overview
Problem
Application developers face challenges in providing rewards to users outside of their applications, requiring significant technical effort and complexity.
Innovation Solution
A system and method for managing and fulfilling in-application redemption requests, which includes a product search API call, aggregated catalog management, and fulfillment API calls to online retail platforms, allowing users to redeem points for physical goods.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If application developers directly integrate with multiple online retail platforms to provide physical rewards, then users can receive real-world products, but the technical complexity and integration effort increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a fulfillment system as an intermediary between the application and multiple online retail platforms. The fulfillment system receives redemption requests from the application, searches across aggregated catalogs from multiple retailers, and fulfills orders without the application developer needing to directly integrate with each retailer. This mediator approach enables physical reward delivery while avoiding complex multi-platform integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The fulfillment system provides universal functionality by aggregating product catalogs from multiple online retail platforms and presenting them through a single interface. The system can search, compare, and fulfill orders across different retailers using standardized API calls, making the reward system versatile without requiring separate integrations for each platform.
2Reliability
If application developers implement custom product search and fulfillment systems, then they can control the reward process, but the development effort and time required increase
Solution Approach 1:
The fulfillment system performs preliminary actions by pre-aggregating product catalogs from multiple retailers and maintaining updated inventories before redemption requests are received. When an application submits a redemption request, the system already has product information, pricing, and availability data ready, eliminating the need for real-time searches and reducing development time while maintaining control.
Solution Approach 2:
The fulfillment system operates autonomously to handle redemption requests, product searches, and order fulfillment without requiring application developers to build custom fulfillment logic. The system self-manages the entire process from receiving redemption requests to placing orders with retailers, reducing development effort while maintaining reliability through automated control.
3Measurement precision
If the system searches multiple online retail platforms in real-time, then product availability and pricing are accurate, but the response time and latency increase
Solution Approach 1:
The fulfillment system performs preliminary catalog aggregation by collecting and storing product information, pricing, and availability data from multiple retailers in advance. This pre-aggregated catalog is maintained and updated periodically, allowing the system to provide accurate product information without performing real-time searches across multiple platforms, thus reducing latency while maintaining precision.
4Manufacturing precision
If application developers manually manage product redemption and fulfillment processes, then they can ensure accuracy, but the productivity and scalability are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The fulfillment system implements automated feedback loops to track redemption requests, monitor product availability, and update order status. The system automatically receives confirmation from retailers about order fulfillment and updates the application and user accordingly. This automated feedback mechanism ensures accuracy through systematic verification while enabling high throughput by eliminating manual intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The fulfillment system automates the entire redemption and fulfillment process, from receiving redemption requests to placing orders with retailers and tracking delivery status. The system self-manages accuracy through automated verification and maintains high productivity by processing multiple redemption requests simultaneously without manual intervention, enabling both precision and scalability.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system for fulfilling in-application product redemption requests is described. A fulfillment system receives a product search application programming interface (API) call from an application. The product search API includes a set of at least one product criterion received from an application. An aggregated catalog is searched based on the set of at least one product criterion. A set of product metadata is returned. The set of product metadata corresponds to at least one product that matches the set of at least one product criterion. A redemption API call that includes product information and a physical address is also received from the application. A fulfillment request is sent to an online retail platform separate from the fulfillment system via a fulfillment API call that includes the product information and the physical address for the online retail platform to deliver a corresponding product to the physical address.