Weighted Event Forest for Logistics Planning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current logistics planning tools lack a flexible networked collaboration and change management system, leading to a complicated and time-consuming reconciliation process when multiple network planners work on proposals affecting the same logistics network components, as changes are infrequently and collectively made after a single reconciliation phase.
Innovation Solution
A distributed and collaborative planning tool that allows users to create, enable/disable events, submit proposals, and integrate changes using a weighted event forest framework, which tracks and communicates changes efficiently between remote users, reducing the need for reconciliation and facilitating incremental updates to the production plan.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If multiple network planners work on proposals affecting the same logistics network components, then collaboration and planning capability is improved, but reconciliation complexity and time consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the logistics network into discrete event objects that can be independently tracked and modified. Each event represents a specific change proposal affecting particular network components, allowing multiple planners to work on different events simultaneously without conflicts. The event forest structure divides the overall planning task into manageable event units that can be independently managed, reviewed, and reconciled.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an event forest data structure as an intermediary layer between multiple network planners and the underlying logistics network model. This intermediary automatically tracks dependencies, detects conflicts, and manages reconciliation through weighted event relationships. The event forest serves as a mediator that handles the complexity of multi-user collaboration, automatically managing event interactions without requiring direct complex reconciliation between all planner proposals.
2Stability of the object's composition
If changes are made infrequently and collectively after a single reconciliation phase, then system stability is maintained, but planning flexibility and responsiveness to real-time events decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamic event forest structure that continuously adapts as events are added, modified, or removed. The system maintains stability through the hierarchical event forest structure while enabling flexible, incremental changes at any time. Events can be individually activated or deactivated based on weights and dependencies, allowing the system to respond to real-time logistics events without requiring complete re-planning or large-scale collective changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables preliminary action by allowing planners to create and prepare event proposals in advance within the event forest structure. Events can be defined, weighted, and dependency-checked before activation. This preliminary preparation phase allows changes to be staged and validated against the current network state, ensuring stability while enabling flexible response to emerging requirements. The system processes changes incrementally rather than requiring large batch updates.
3Productivity
If a weighted event forest framework is implemented to track changes in real-time, then collaboration efficiency is improved, but computational and storage resources increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by implementing the event forest structure with selective detail levels. Each event node contains only the specific data relevant to that particular change proposal, rather than duplicating the entire network state. The weighted event relationships store only the necessary dependency and conflict information locally at each node. This localized data storage reduces overall computational and storage requirements while maintaining real-time tracking capability across the distributed planning system.
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to specific, networked, and technological processes and operations. For example, various embodiments are directed to a distributed and collaborative planning tool that allows users to create events based on a presently-approved production plan, enable/disable events submitted by other users, submit proposals, approve proposals, and integrate proposals to update the presently-approved production plan. An event published by a first user is communicated to other users using a single, universal framework that tracks and communicates proposed changes between remote users and their associated client devices during the planning cycle without the need to store multiple iterations of full-size production plans.