Hide customization systems and methods

• US 10,480,040 B2
• Filed: 05/28/2015
• Issued: 11/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/28/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: National BEEF Packing Company LLC (Marfrig Global Foods SA)
• Original Assignee: National BEEF Packing Company LLC (Marfrig Global Foods SA)
• Inventors: Hein, Robert Horst, Press, Kenneth Graham
• Primary Examiner(s): Hayles, Ashford S
• Application Number:
  US14/724,643
• Publication Number:
  US 20150348154A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,636 Days
• Field of Search: 705 265
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/16 Sorting according to weight sorting eggs A01K43/00; weighing apparatus per se G01G
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/34 Sorting according to other particular properties material testing per se G01N; quality control G07C3/14
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/38 Collecting or arranging articles in groups
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 57/00 Stacking of articles B65G60/00 takes precedence; feeding, piling or stacking sheets B65H
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 57/02 by adding to the top of the stack
• CPC Class Codes: C14B 1/14 using tools cutting the skin in a plane substantially parallel to its surface
• CPC Class Codes: C14B 17/005 Inspecting hides or furs
• CPC Class Codes: C14B 17/02 Blading cylinders or other working cylinders, e.g. slicking or scraping cylinders
• CPC Class Codes: C14C 1/06 Facilitating unhairing, e.g. by painting, by liming
• CPC Class Codes: C14C 15/00 Apparatus for chemical treatment or washing of hides, skins, or leather
• CPC Class Codes: C14C 3/00 Tanning; Compositions for tanning
• CPC Class Codes: C14C 3/06 using chromium compounds
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4189 characterised by the transport system
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/39106 Conveyor, pick up article, object from conveyor, bring to test unit, place it
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0621 Item configuration or customization

Abstract

Methods and systems for customizing hides are provided. In particular, one or more embodiments comprise a tanning control system that improves profitability and customer satisfaction by facilitating the customization of hides according to customer orders. Furthermore, one or more embodiments enable the tanning control system to improve efficiency and responsiveness by producing packages of hides that exactly match customer orders. Additionally, one or more embodiments enhance the traceability of hides by capturing data related to the customization of hides.

Claims

1. A method of customizing hides comprising:

accessing, from customer data storage of a tanning control system, electronic customer order information associated with a first customer order;

identifying, using a customer order manager of the tanning control system, one or more hide characteristics within the electronic customer order information;

selecting, using a hide manager of the tanning control system, a group of hides that corresponds to the one or more hide characteristics, the group of hides located at one or more hide inventory sources;

identifying, using the customer order manager of the tanning control system, a specification within the electronic customer order information that indicates one or more customizations to perform with respect to one or more hides of the group of hides; and

performing, based on the identified specification and using a customization manager of the tanning control system, the one or more customizations to transform the one or more hides of the group of hides by providing a specification communication to a customization controller of a customized processing system, wherein the customized processing system further comprises at least one of a wetting drum, a wringing device, a splitting device, a trimming device, or a folding device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

comparing, using the hide manager of the tanning control system, one or more characteristics associated with the group of hides to the one or more hide characteristics within the electronic customer order information; and

determining, using the hide manager of the tanning control system, that the one or more characteristics associated with the group of hides match the one or more hide characteristics within the electronic customer order information.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting, using the hide manager of the tanning control system, one or more additional groups of hides that correspond to the one or more hide characteristics within the electronic customer order information; and

performing, based on the identified specification and using the customization manager of the tanning control system, the one or more customizations onto transform one or more hides of the one or more additional groups of hides by providing an additional specification communication to the customization controller of the customized processing system.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

identifying, using the customer order manager of the tanning control system, a hide count indicated by the electronic customer order information; and

selecting, using the hide manager of the tanning control system, the one or more additional groups of hides based on a determination that the hide count indicated by the electronic customer order information exceeds a hide count of the selected group of hides.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

accessing, from customer data storage of the tanning control system, additional electronic customer order information associated with a second customer order;

identifying, using the customer order manager of the tanning control system, an additional specification within the additional electronic customer order information that indicates one or more additional customizations to perform with respect to one or more additional hides of the group of hides; and

performing, based on the identified additional specification and using the customization manager of the tanning control system, the one or more additional customizations to transform the one or more additional hides of the group of hides by providing an additional specification communication to the customization controller of the customized processing system.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

identifying, using the customer order manager of the tanning control system, a hide count indicated by the electronic customer order information;

determining, using the hide manager of the tanning control system, that the hide count is less than a hide count of the group of hides; and

identifying, using the customer order manager of the tanning control system, the second customer order based on a determination that one or more hide characteristics within the additional electronic customer order information associated with the second customer order match the one or more hide characteristics within the electronic customer order information associated with the first customer order.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising splitting the one or more hides of the group of hides in accordance with a custom grain type indicated by the electronic customer order information.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising folding the one or more hides of the group of hides in accordance with a custom fold type indicated by the electronic customer order information.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating, using the tanning control system, a custom pallet identifier;

associating, using the tanning control system, the custom pallet identifier with a custom pallet;

stacking, using the customized processing system, the one or more hides of the group of hides onto the custom pallet; and

marking, using the customized processing system, the custom pallet with the custom pallet identifier.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

identifying, using the tanning control system, a hide identifier of each of one or more hides stacked onto the custom pallet; and

associating, using the tanning control system, the custom pallet identifier with the hide identifier of each of the one or more hides stacked onto the custom pallet.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

identifying, using the tanning control system, a device identifier of each of one or more devices used to perform the one or more customizations on the one or more hides stacked onto the custom pallet; and

associating, using the tanning control system, the custom pallet identifier with the device identifier of each of one or more devices.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising verifying, using the customized processing system, that the one or more hides of the group of hides were customized in accordance with the specification.

13. A system comprising:

one or more computing devices; and

a non-transitory storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by the one or more computing devices, cause the system to;

access, from customer data storage of a tanning control system, electronic customer order information associated with a first customer order;

identify, using a customer order manager of the tanning control system, one or more hide characteristics within the electronic customer order information;

select, using a hide manager of the tanning control system, a group of hides that corresponds to the one or more hide characteristics;

identify, using the customer order manager of the tanning control system, a specification within the electronic customer order information that indicates one or more customizations to perform with respect to one or more hides of the group of hides; and

perform, based on the identified specification and using a customization manager of the tanning control system, the one or more customizations to transform the one or more hides of the group of hides by providing a specification communication to a customization controller of a customized processing system, wherein the customized processing system further comprises at least one of a wetting drum, a wringing device, a splitting device, a trimming device, or a folding device.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more computing devices, further cause the system to:

compare, using the hide manager of the tanning control system, one or more characteristics associated with the group of hides to the one or more hide characteristics within the electronic customer order information; and

determine, using the hide manager of the tanning control system, that the one or more characteristics associated with the group of hides match the one or more hide characteristics within the electronic customer order information.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more computing devices, further cause the system to:

select, using the hide manager of the tanning control system, one or more additional groups of hides that correspond to the one or more hide characteristics within the electronic customer order information; and

perform, based on the identified specification and using the customization manager of the tanning control system, the one or more customizations to transform one or more hides of the one or more additional groups of hides by providing an additional specification communication to the customization controller of the customized processing system.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more computing devices, further cause the system to:

access, from customer data storage of the tanning control system, additional electronic customer order information associated with a second customer order;

identify, using the customer order manager of the tanning control system, an additional specification within the additional electronic customer order information that indicates one or more additional customizations to perform with respect to one or more additional hides of the group of hides; and

perform, based on the identified additional specification and using the customization manager of the tanning control system, the one or more additional customizations to transform the one or more additional hides of the group of hides by providing an additional specification communication to the customization controller of the customized processing system.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more computing devices, further cause the system to split the one or more hides of the group of hides in accordance with a custom grain type indicated by the electronic customer order information.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more computing devices, further cause the system to fold the one or more hides of the group of hides in accordance with a custom fold type indicated by the electronic customer order information.

19. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more computing devices, further cause the system to:

generate, using the tanning control system, a custom pallet identifier;

associate, using the tanning control system, the custom pallet identifier with a custom pallet;

stack, using the customized processing system, the one or more hides of the group of hides onto the custom pallet; and

mark, using the customized processing system, the custom pallet with the custom pallet identifier.

20. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more computing devices, further cause the system to verify, using the customized processing system, that the one or more hides of the group of hides were customized in accordance with the specification.