Courier management

• US 10,242,335 B2
• Filed: 08/12/2016
• Issued: 03/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Griffith, Charles M., Li, Jinqian, Shakes, Jonathan J., Lai, Jin
• Primary Examiner(s): Wilder, A. Hunter
• Application Number:
  US15/235,911
• Publication Number:
  US 20160350714A1
• Time in Patent Office: 956 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/343 Calculating itineraries, i.e. routes leading from a starting point to a series of categorical destinations using a global route restraint, round trips, touristic trips travelling salesman problem G06Q10/04; optimisation of routes G06Q10/047
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3673 Labelling using text of road map data items, e.g. road names, POI names
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/13 Receivers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0837 Return transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/407 Cancellation of a transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0203 Market surveys; Market polls
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information

Abstract

Disclosed are various embodiments for courier management. For example, in one embodiment, a courier application is executed on a mobile computing device to retrieve a list of stops associated with a courier from a computing device over a network. The list of stops includes a plurality of orders to be delivered, wherein a customer location is associated with each order. The courier application generates user interfaces to facilitate a confirmation that items associated with orders have been delivered, to facilitate an input of a review of the performance of the courier, and to perform other functions.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium embodying a courier application executable in a mobile computing device associated with a courier, wherein, when executed, the courier application causes the mobile computing device to at least:

retrieve a customer location of a shipment order associated with the courier from a courier computing device;

receive system location data associated with the mobile computing device;

render, on the mobile computing device, a user interface that includes a courier route based at least in part on the customer location and the system location data;

cause a rejection of the shipment order from the user interface at the customer location, wherein the user interface is configured to receive a selection of a subset of items among a plurality of items associated with the order to specify the rejection;

communicate, over a wireless network, the rejection at the customer location to the courier computing device in response to causing the rejection, the courier computing device executing an electronic commerce application and communicating the rejection to a merchant computing device associated with a merchant of the item, wherein the merchant computing device causes a refund of a payment associated with the shipment order responsive to the rejection at the customer location;

determine an amount of the refund in response to communicating the rejection and the selection to the merchant computing device, wherein the merchant is a separate entity from the courier; and

initiate the refund in the amount to a customer account at the customer location.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein causing the rejection further comprises receiving an indication of user manipulation of a user interface element in the user interface.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the courier application further causes the mobile computing device to retrieve a list of stops associated with the courier, the list of stops identifying a plurality of orders, the plurality of orders comprising the shipment order.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the courier application further causes the mobile computing device to cause a communication between the mobile computing device associated with the courier and a customer, wherein a contact information of the customer is made anonymous with respect to the courier.

5. A system, comprising:

a mobile computing device associated with a courier; and

a courier application executable in the mobile computing device, wherein, when executed, the courier application causes the mobile computing device to at least;

obtain a customer location of an order associated with a courier from a courier computing device, the order comprising an item;

receive system location data associated with the mobile computing device;

generate a user interface that includes a courier route based at least in part on the customer location and the system location data;

receive a rejection of the order via the user interface at the customer location, wherein the user interface is configured to receive a selection of a subset of items among a plurality of items associated with the order to specify the rejection;

communicate, over a wireless network, the rejection at the customer location to the courier computing device in response to receiving the rejection, the courier computing device executing an electronic commerce application and communicating the rejection to a merchant computing device associated with a merchant of the item to cause a refund of a payment associated with the order;

determine an amount of the refund in response to communicating the rejection and the selection to the merchant computing device, wherein the merchant is a separate entity from the courier; and

initiate the refund in the amount to a customer account at the customer location.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the customer location is represented as a latitudinal value and a longitudinal value.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein receiving the rejection further comprises receiving a rejection type, and the courier application causes the mobile computing device to communicate the rejection type to the merchant computing device.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein receiving the rejection further comprises receiving, by the mobile computing device, an audio input to specify a reason for the rejection.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the courier application further causes the mobile computing device to transmit the audio input to the merchant computing device.

10. The system of claim 5, wherein receiving the rejection further comprises receiving, via the user interface, at least one rejection type, the rejection type indicating a reason for the rejection.

11. A method, comprising:

retrieving, by a mobile computing device associated with a courier, a customer location associated with an order of an item from a courier computing device;

receiving, by the mobile computing device, system location data associated with the mobile computing device;

rendering, by the mobile computing device, on a display a user interface that includes a courier route based at least in part on the system location data and the customer location;

causing, by the mobile computing device, a rejection of the order via the user interface at the customer location, wherein the user interface is configured to receive a selection of a subset of items among a plurality of items associated with the order to specify the rejection;

communicating, by the mobile computing device over a wireless network, the rejection at the customer location to the courier computing device to cause a refund associated with the order, the courier computing device executing an electronic commerce application and communicating the rejection to a merchant computing device associated with a merchant of the item, wherein the merchant computing device causes the refund responsive to the rejection at the customer location;

determining an amount of the refund in response to communicating the rejection and the selection to the merchant computing device, wherein the merchant is a separate entity from the courier; and

initiating, by the mobile computing device, the refund in the amount to a customer account at the customer location.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein receiving the rejection further comprises receiving an audio input to specify a reason for the rejection.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising transmitting, by the mobile computing device, the audio input to the merchant computing device.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the audio input is presented on a network page associated with the item, the network page being rendered by the electronic commerce application.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein determining the amount of the refund is based at least in part on account promotions being rescinded and paid taxes.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the user interface is configured to enable the courier to negotiate a price at the customer location by providing a communication link between the mobile computing device and the merchant computing device.