Systems and methods for replenishment in a freight tethering environment

• US 10,325,233 B2
• Filed: 03/14/2016
• Issued: 06/18/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Inventors: Halbrook, Courtland, Sokolsky, John L., Shock, Lara, Wales, Jeremy, Hendricks, Joseph, Clear, Terry, Hansen, Marv, Ormon, Steve, Parks, Cliff
• Primary Examiner(s): Miller, Alan S
• Application Number:
  US15/069,501
• Publication Number:
  US 20160275428A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,191 Days
• Field of Search: 705 711- 742
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06315 Needs-based resource requirements planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

Systems, methods, and machine readable medium are provided for replenishing product in a freight tethering environment. A pick list is generated at a hub store including one or more items that need to be replenished at a spoke store. It is determined whether the pick list can be fulfilled by the hub store. If the pick list cannot be fulfilled by the hub store, then the one or more items on the pick list is aggregated to a replenishment need of the hub store. The aggregated replenishment need of the hub store and the spoke store is communicated to a distribution center. Product is received from the distribution center based on the aggregated replenishment need, and the pick list for the spoke store is fulfilled from the received product.

Claims

1. A method of coordinating product replenishment for multiple stores in response to separately generated replenishment signals from separate store-specific computing systems, the method comprising:

generating, via a first computing system associated with a hub store and in communication with a second computing system associated with a spoke store, a smart system pick file associated with inventory information of the hub store;

retrieving, via the second computing system, data associated with a set of items from a point-of-sale (POS) system disposed at the spoke store;

generating, via the second computing system, a data file including the data retrieved from the POS system disposed at the spoke store;

in response to processing and analyzing the data in the data file, generating, via the second computing system, a scrub file including the data from the data organized by each item of the set of items;

identifying, via the second computing system, a replenishment method for each item of the set of items in the scrub file;

determining, via the second computing system, one or more items from the set of items are replenished by the hub store;

receiving, at the first computing system associated with the hub store, a transmission from the second computing system associated with the spoke store, the transmission including a product replenishment request identifying one or more items of the set of items to be replenished at the spoke store;

generating, by the first computing system at the hub store, a pick list for the spoke store including the one or more items of the set of items based on the transmission received from the second computing system, wherein the transmission includes data of the one or more items in the set of items retrieved from the POS system;

determining, by the first computing system, whether the pick list for the spoke store can be fulfilled by the hub store based on inventory information associated with the hub store included in the smart system pick list;

in response to determining that the pick list cannot be fulfilled by the hub store, aggregating, by the first computing system, the one or more items on the pick list for the spoke store to a replenishment need of the hub store;

transmitting, by the first computing system, the aggregated replenishment need of the hub store and the spoke store to a third computing system associated with a distribution center;

updating the inventory database by the first computing system in response to receipt of product from the distribution center based on the aggregated replenishment need; and

outputting, by the first computing system, the pick list for the spoke store from the received product to facilitate fulfillment of the pick list for the spoke store by the hub store.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the data retrieved from the POS system includes sales data of the one or more items of the set of items and the pick list for the spoke store is automatically generated based on a sales forecast calculated using the sales data of the one or more items of the set of items for the spoke store.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

determining a rate of sale of the one or more items of the set of items based on the sales data; and

calculating the sales forecast of the one or more items of the set of items for the spoke store based on a rate of sale of the one or more items of the set of items for the previous day, an average rate of sale of the one or more items of the set of items over a year, a seasonal need of the item, and a lead time for delivery of the one or more items of the set of items.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein data retrieved from the POS system includes data associated with determining a presentation metric for the spoke store the pick list for the spoke store is generated based on replenishment need of the spoke store and the presentation metric for the spoke store.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein if the pick list can be fulfilled by the hub store, then fulfilling the pick list for the spoke store from shelves of the hub store or backroom storage at the hub store.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising adjusting an inventory level in the first computing system at the hub store based on fulfilling of the pick list for the spoke store.

7. A system for coordinating product replenishment for multiple stores in response to separately generated replenishment signals from separate store-specific computing systems, the system comprising:

a first computing system at a hub store and in communication with a second computing system, the first computing system configured to;

generate a smart system pick file associated with inventory information of the hub store;

wherein the second computing system is configured to;

retrieve data associated with a set of items from a POS system disposed at the spoke store;

generate a data file including the data retrieved from the POS system disposed at the spoke store;

in response to processing and analyzing the data in the data file, generate a scrub file including the data from the data organized by each item of the set of items;

identify a replenishment method for each item of the set of items in the scrub file;

determine one or more items from the set of items are replenished by the hub store;

wherein the first computing system is configured to;

receive a transmission from the second computing system associated with the spoke store, the transmission including a product replenishment request identifying one or more items of the set of items to be replenished at the spoke store;

generate a pick list for the spoke store including the one or more items of the set of items based on the transmission received from the second computing system, wherein the transmission includes data of the one or more items in the set of items retrieved from the POS system,

determine whether the pick list for the spoke store can be fulfilled by the hub store based on inventory information associated with the hub store included in the smart system pick list,

in response to determining that the pick list cannot be fulfilled by the hub store, aggregate the one or more items on the pick list for the spoke store to a replenishment need of the hub store,

transmit the aggregated replenishment need of the hub store and the spoke store to a third computing system associated with a distribution center,

update the inventory database in response to receipt of product from the distribution center based on the aggregated replenishment need; and

output the pick list for the spoke store from the received product to facilitate fulfillment of the pick list for the spoke store by the hub store.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the data retrieved from the POS system includes sales data of the one or more items of the set of items and the pick list for the spoke store is automatically generated based on a sales forecast calculated using the sales data of the one or more items of the set of items for the spoke store.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the first computing system is further configure to:

determine a rate of sale of the one or more items of the set of items based on the sales data; and

calculate the sales forecast of the one or more items of the set of items for the spoke store based on a rate of sale of the one or more items of the set of items for the previous day, an average rate of sale of the one or more items of the set of items over a year, a seasonal need of the one or more items of the set of items, and a lead time for delivery of the one or more items of the set of items.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein data retrieved from the POS system includes data associated with determining a presentation metric for the spoke store the pick list for the spoke store is generated based on replenishment need of the spoke store and the presentation metric for the spoke store.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the one or more items of the set of items on the the pick list are disposed on shelves of the hub store or in the backroom storage at the hub store.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein the first computing system is further configured to adjust an inventory level at the hub store based on fulfilling of the pick list for the spoke store.

13. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions executable by a processing device, wherein execution of the instructions causes the processing device to implement a method of coordinating product replenishment for multiple stores in response to separately generated replenishment signals from separate store-specific computing systems, the method comprising:

generating, via a first computing system associated with a hub store and in communication with a second computing system associated with a spoke store, a smart system pick file associated with inventory information of the hub store;

retrieving, via the second computing system, data associated with a set of items from a POS system disposed at the spoke store;

generating, via the second computing system, a data file including the data retrieved from the POS system disposed at the spoke store;

in response to processing and analyzing the data in the data file, generating, via the second computing system, a scrub file including the data from the data organized by each item of the set of items;

identifying, via the second computing system, a replenishment method for each item of the set of items in the scrub file;

determining, via the second computing system, one or more items from the set of items are replenished by the hub store;

receiving, at the first computing system associated with the hub store, a transmission from the second computing system associated with the spoke store, the transmission including a product replenishment request identifying one or more items of the set of items to be replenished at the spoke store;

generating, by the first computing system at the hub store, a pick list for the spoke store including the one or more items of the set of items based on the transmission received from the second computing system, wherein the transmission includes data of the one or more items in the set of items retrieved from the POS system;

determining, by the first computing system, whether the pick list for the spoke store can be fulfilled by the hub store based on inventory information associated with the hub store included in the smart system pick list;

in response to determining that the pick list cannot be fulfilled by the hub store, aggregating, by the first computing system, the one or more items on the pick list for the spoke store to a replenishment need of the hub store;

transmitting, by the first computing system, the aggregated replenishment need of the hub store and the spoke store to a third computing system associated with a distribution center;

updating the inventory database by the first computing system in response to receipt of product from the distribution center based on the aggregated replenishment need; and

outputting, by the first computing system, the pick list for the spoke store from the received product to facilitate fulfillment of the pick list for the spoke store by the hub store.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 13, wherein the data retrieved from the POS system includes sales data of the one or more items of the set of items and the pick list for the spoke store is automatically generated based on a sales forecast calculated using the sales data of the one or more items of the set of items for the spoke store.

15. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 14, further comprising:

determining a rate of sale of the one or more items of the set of items based on the sales data; and

calculating the sales forecast of the one or more items of the set of items for the spoke store based on a rate of sale of the one or more items of the set of items for the previous day, an average rate of sale of the one or more items of the set of items over a year, a seasonal need of the item, and a lead time for delivery of the one or more items of the set of items.

16. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 13, wherein data retrieved from the POS system includes data associated with determining a presentation metric for the spoke store the pick list for the spoke store is generated based on replenishment need of the spoke store and the presentation metric for the spoke store.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 13, wherein the one or more items of the set of items on the the pick list are disposed on shelves of the hub store or in the backroom storage at the hub store.