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Method and apparatus for presenting supply chain information to a consumer

  • US 10,339,619 B2
  • Filed: 08/25/2015
  • Issued: 07/02/2019
  • Est. Priority Date: 08/25/2015
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. A method for presenting pallet trip data associated with delivering a manufactured product to a retail consumer through a social media application created by a manufacturer and downloaded by the consumer onto a personal smart phone comprising the steps:

  • the product manufacturer affixing a machine readable identifier onto the product,the manufacturer hiring a pallet owner to supply a smart pallet to ship the product through a designated supply chain for delivery to the consumer,the pallet owner supplying the smart pallet with a unique identifier and monitoring and reporting capabilities and a connection to a nation-wide wireless network,the pallet owner using a first e-commerce business application layer to pre-configure the smart pallet for the manufacturer'"'"'s proposed trip in the designated supply chain using the wireless network and thereafter transferring custody of the trip enabled smart pallet together with an access code to a dashboard available through an internet portal to the manufacturer,the manufacturer using the access code to remotely access a second e-commerce business application layer to configure the programmable condition monitoring and reporting capabilities of the smart pallet for the purpose of documenting a pallet trip record and associating product trip data on the dashboard at a remote work station with an internet connection to generate an electronic supply chain pedigree,physically loading the product on the smart pallet and thereafter electronically associating the unique identifier of the smart pallet with the machine readable identifier of the product on the smart pallet through the designated supply chain,the smart pallet monitoring conditions and reporting conditions in response to instructions pre-programmed in the first and second e-commerce business application layers during the pallet'"'"'s trip, and subsequently accessing the condition reports of the second e-commerce business application layer by the manufacturer using the access code to view updates on the dashboard,electronically disassociating the product from the smart pallet when the smart pallet reaches its intended destination and custody of the smart pallet is transferred from the manufacturer to the pallet owner,the pallet owner providing the manufacturer with an invoice for using the smart pallet along with a pallet rental trip file containing information documented through the first e-commerce business application layer used by the smart pallet owner to manage the smart pallet for rental purposes and information documented through condition reports of the second e-commerce business application layer used by the manufacturer to provide an electronic supply chain pedigree of the product,the manufacturer using a third e-commerce business application layer to extract information from aggregated data records of the first and second layers,presenting the extracted information in the social media application sponsored by the manufacturer to influence purchasing decisions of the consumer, andthe consumer bringing the smart phone into communication range of the machine readable identifier on the product to launch a proprietary social media application for displaying the product'"'"'s supply chain pedigree and other useful information of interest about the product to the consumer.

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