Categorization of items based on item delivery time

• US 10,366,436 B1
• Filed: 12/31/2014
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DoorDash, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Square Inc (Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.))
• Inventors: Kumar, Abhay Raj, O'Connor, Matthew, Brock, Zachary, Butts, III, James F., Hipschman, Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheikh, Asfand M
• Application Number:
  US14/587,866
• Time in Patent Office: 1,672 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0834 Choice of carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0629 for generating comparisons
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0639 Item locations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/12 Hotels or restaurants

Abstract

A particular item may be categorized based on delivery times of the particular item. In some instances, the particular item may be ranked across multiple merchants that are offering the particular item for acquisition. The ranking may be based on an estimated amount of delivery time to deliver the particular item, for the individual merchants, to a current location of a user. The estimated amount of delivery time may be based on a preparation time for the respective merchant to prepare the particular item, a courier time for a courier to transport the particular item to the current location of the user, and so on. Information regarding the ranking may be displayed or otherwise output to enable the user to identify and order the particular item from a merchant that satisfies the user'"'"'s needs.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

causing display of a user interface via a mobile device associated with a user,

receiving, via the user interface, an order for a specified item;

receiving, by a computing device of a service provider and via the user interface, user input requesting information pertaining to merchants that offer the specified item for acquisition;

determining a current geographical location of the mobile device based on location information of the mobile device received via one or more first location sensors associated with the mobile device;

identifying, by the computing device of the service provider, merchants that offer the specified item for acquisition and that have an establishment located within a threshold distance of the current geographical location of the mobile device to yield identified merchants;

determining, by the computing device of the service provider and for each of the identified merchants, a respective preparation time for preparing the specified item based at least in part on a previous amount of time that was taken for a respective merchant to prepare the specified item;

receiving, by the computing device of the service provider and for each of a plurality of couriers, location data from one or more second location sensors associated with each respective courier device of the plurality of couriers, the location data indicating a geographical location of the respective courier device;

determining, for each of the identified merchants, one or more courier times, each of the one or more courier times being associated with one of the plurality of couriers to travel to the establishment of the respective merchant to retrieve the specified item and transport the specified item to the current geographical location of the mobile device, each of the one or more courier times being based at least in part on a previous amount of time to transport the specified item or another item a distance that is within a range of a distance to be traveled by a corresponding one of the plurality of couriers to transport the specified item to the current geographical location of the mobile device;

estimating, for each of the identified merchants, a respective amount of time to deliver the specified item to the current geographical location of the mobile device based at least in part on the respective preparation time or the one or more courier times;

ranking the identified merchants based at least in part on the respective amounts of time to deliver the specified item to yield a ranked list;

causing display of, via the user interface, the ranked list;

receiving, via the user interface, user input requesting to order the specified item from a particular merchant of the identified merchants; and

causing an order for the specified item to be placed with the particular merchant.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the respective preparation times is determined based at least in part on a previous amount of preparation time that was taken to prepare another item that has a threshold amount of similarity to the specified item.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the respective preparation times is determined based at least in part on a previous amount of preparation time that was taken for another merchant to prepare the specified item, the other merchant having a threshold amount of similarity to the respective merchant.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the one or more courier times is further based at least in part on a previous amount of courier time that was taken to transport the specified item or another item having a threshold amount of similarity to the specified item.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the one or more courier times is further based on a previous amount of courier time that was taken to transport the specified item or another item for the respective merchant or another merchant having a threshold amount of similarity to the respective merchant.

6. A device associated with a service provider, the device comprising:

memory having computer-readable instructions stored therein; and

one or more processors configured to execute the computer-readable instructions to;

cause display of a user interface via a mobile device associated with a user,

receive, via the user interface, an order for a specified item;

receive, via the user interface, user input requesting information pertaining to merchants that offer the specified item for acquisition;

determine a current geographical location of the mobile device based on location information of the mobile device received via one or more first location sensors associated with the mobile device;

identify merchants that offer the specified item for acquisition and that have an establishment located within a threshold distance of the current geographical location of the mobile device to yield identified merchants;

determine, for each of the identified merchants, a respective preparation time for preparing the specified item based at least in part on a previous amount of time that was taken for a respective merchant to prepare the specified item;

receive, for each of a plurality of couriers, location data from one or more second location sensors associated with each respective courier device of the plurality of couriers, the location data indicating a geographical location of the respective courier device;

determine, for each of the identified merchants, one or more courier times, each of the one or more courier times being associated with one of the plurality of couriers to travel to the establishment of the respective merchant to retrieve the specified item and transport the specified item to the current geographical location of the mobile device, each of the one or more courier times being based at least in part on a previous amount of time to transport the specified item or another item a distance that is within a range of a distance to be traveled by a corresponding one of the plurality of couriers to transport the specified item to the current geographical location of the mobile device;

estimate, for each of the identified merchants, a respective amount of time to deliver the specified item to the current geographical location of the mobile device based at least in part on the respective preparation time or the one or more courier times;

rank the identified merchants based at least in part on the respective amounts of time to deliver the specified item to yield a ranked list;

cause display of, via the user interface, the ranked list;

receive, via the user interface, user input requesting to order the specified item from a particular merchant of the identified merchants; and

cause an order for the specified item to be placed with the particular merchant.

7. The device of claim 6, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer-readable instructions to determine each of the respective preparation times based at least in part on a previous amount of preparation time that was taken to prepare another item that has a threshold amount of similarity to the specified item.

8. The device of claim 6, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer-readable instructions to determine each of the respective preparation times based at least in part on a previous amount of preparation time that was taken for another merchant to prepare the specified item, the other merchant having a threshold amount of similarity to the respective merchant.

9. The device of claim 6, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer-readable instructions to further determine each of the one or more courier times based at least in part on a previous amount of courier time that was taken to transport the specified item or another item having a threshold amount of similarity to the specified item.

10. The device of claim 6, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer-readable instructions to further determine each of the one or more courier times based on a previous amount of courier time that was taken to transport the specified item or another item for the respective merchant or another merchant having a threshold amount of similarity to the respective merchant.

11. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media comprising computer-readable instructions, which when executed by one or more processors of a device associated with a service provider, cause the device to:

cause display of a user interface via a mobile device associated with a user,

receive, via the user interface, an order for a specified item;

receive, via the user interface, user input requesting information pertaining to merchants that offer the specified item for acquisition;

determine a current geographical location of the mobile device based on location information of the mobile device received via one or more first location sensors associated with the mobile device;

identify merchants that offer the specified item for acquisition and that have an establishment located within a threshold distance of the current geographical location of the mobile device to yield identified merchants;

determine, for each of the identified merchants, a respective preparation time for preparing the specified item based at least in part on a previous amount of time that was taken for a respective merchant to prepare the specified item;

receive, for each of a plurality of couriers, location data from one or more second location sensors associated with each respective courier device of the plurality of couriers, the location data indicating a geographical location of the respective courier device;

determine, for each of the identified merchants, one or more courier times, each of the one or more courier times being associated with one of the plurality of couriers to travel to the establishment of the respective merchant to retrieve the specified item and transport the specified item to the current geographical location of the mobile device, each of the one or more courier times being based at least in part on a previous amount of time to transport the specified item or another item a distance that is within a range of a distance to be traveled by a corresponding one of the plurality of couriers to transport the specified item to the current geographical location of the mobile device;

estimate, for each of the identified merchants, a respective amount of time to deliver the specified item to the current geographical location of the mobile device based at least in part on the respective preparation time or the one or more courier times;

rank the identified merchants based at least in part on the respective amounts of time to deliver the specified item to yield a ranked list;

cause display of, via the user interface, the ranked list;

receive, via the user interface, user input requesting to order the specified item from a particular merchant of the identified merchants; and

cause an order for the specified item to be placed with the particular merchant.

12. The one or more non-transitory media of claim 11, wherein execution of the computer-readable instructions by the one or more processors, further cause the device to determine each of the respective preparation times based at least in part on a previous amount of preparation time that was taken to prepare another item that has a threshold amount of similarity to the specified item.

13. The one or more non-transitory media of claim 11, wherein execution of the computer-readable instructions by the one or more processors, further cause the device to determine each of the respective preparation times based at least in part on a previous amount of preparation time that was taken for another merchant to prepare the specified item, the other merchant having a threshold amount of similarity to the respective merchant.

14. The one or more non-transitory media of claim 11, wherein execution of the computer-readable instructions by the one or more processors, further cause the device to determine each of the one or more courier times based at least in part on a previous amount of courier time that was taken to transport the specified item or another item having a threshold amount of similarity to the specified item.

15. The one or more non-transitory media of claim 11, wherein execution of the computer-readable instructions by the one or more processors, further cause the device to determine each of the one or more courier times based on a previous amount of courier time that was taken to transport the specified item or another item for the respective merchant or another merchant having a threshold amount of similarity to the respective merchant.