Using advanced shipping notification information for supply chain process analysis

• US 20050055237A1
• Filed: 09/03/2004
• Published: 03/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sensitech Incorporated (Carrier Global Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sensitech Incorporated (Carrier Global Corporation)
• Inventors: Schmidtberg, Rupert A., Leshuk, Jeffrey Allen
• Granted Patent: US 7,711,654 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/333
• CPC Class Codes: G01K 2215/00 Details concerning sensor power supply
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063 Operations research, analysis or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0639 Performance analysis of employees; Performance analysis of enterprise or organisation operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0833 Tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/00 Alarm systems in which the location of the alarm condition is signalled to a central station, e.g. fire or police telegraphic systems

Abstract

A product supply chain may be viewed not just as a series of discrete, unrelated shipment transactions, but as a “process” (or pipeline) that can be subject to statistical process control. The present invention is directed to novel systems and methods for collecting data concerning one or more aspects of a supply chain, for performing statistical analysis on the collected data to facilitate the identification of anomalies or inefficiencies in the process, and for communicating the results of such statistical analysis to those responsible for the supply chain so that remedial measures may be taken, if appropriate. Among other things, a method is disclosed that involves storing, in memory accessible to at least one processor, an electronic copy of an advanced shipping notification (ASN) that was transmitted from a shipping location to a receiving location in advance of shipping at least one item therebetween, and also storing, in memory accessible to the at least one processor, data reflecting at least one determined value of at least one monitored aspect of the shipment between the shipping location and the receiving location. The at least one processor uses at least some information from the ASN stored in memory, together with at least a portion of the data stored in memory, to generate at least one report involving the at least one determined value.

Claims

1. A method, comprising steps of:

(a) storing, in memory accessible to at least one processor, an electronic copy of an advanced shipping notification (ASN) that was transmitted from a shipping location to a receiving location in advance of shipping at least one item therebetween;

(b) storing, in memory accessible to the at least one processor, data reflecting at least one determined value of at least one monitored aspect of the shipment between the shipping location and the receiving location; and

(c) with the at least one processor, using at least some information from the ASN stored in memory, together with at least a portion of the data stored in memory, to generate at least one report involving the at least one determined value.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one monitored aspect of the shipment comprises at least one physical or environmental condition of the at least one item during the shipment.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the ASN comprises an identifier that identifies a sensor used to monitor the at least one physical or environmental condition of the at least one item during the shipment.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step (c) further comprises:

using a tracking number included in the ASN to retrieve location event information from the carrier responsible for transporting the at least one item between the shipping location and the receiving location; and

combining the retrieved location event information with the data to generate the at least one report.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the at least one report comprises at least one of a chart and a graph on which information concerning the at least one determined value and information concerning at least one location event identified from the retrieved location event information are displayed together.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the step (c) further comprises:

using a tracking number included in the ASN to retrieve location event information from a carrier responsible for transporting the at least one item between the shipping location and the receiving location; and

using the retrieved location event information to identify at least a portion of the data as having been accumulated by at least one sensor when the at least one sensor was associated with the at least one item.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising a step of:

(d) extracting summary information from the identified portion of the data.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the summary information comprises at least one of a mean temperature, a minimum temperature, a maximum temperature, degree-minutes above a threshold temperature, degree-minutes below a threshold temperature, time above a threshold temperature, and time below a threshold temperature.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the summary information reflects the at least one physical or environmental condition of the at least one item at only a single product location.

10. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one monitored aspect of the shipment comprises a temperature of an environment in which the at least one item was disposed.

11. A database having stored therein an electronic copy of an advanced shipping notification (ASN) that was transmitted from a shipping location to a receiving location in advance of shipping at least one item therebetween, and further having stored therein data reflecting at least one determined value of at least one monitored aspect of the shipment of the at least one item.

12. The database of claim 11, wherein the at least one monitored aspect of the shipment comprises at least one physical or environmental condition of the at least one item during the shipment.

13. The database of claim 11, wherein the ASN comprises an identifier that identifies a sensor used to monitor the at least one monitored condition of the shipment.

14. The database of claim 11, wherein the at least one monitored aspect of the shipment comprises a temperature of an environment in which the at least one item was disposed.

15. A computer-readable medium for use with at least one processor included in a system including at least one memory accessible to the at least one processor that has stored therein an electronic copy of an advanced shipping notification (ASN) that was transmitted from a shipping location to a receiving location in advance of shipping at least one item therebetween, and having further stored therein data reflecting at least one determined value of at least one monitored aspect of the shipment of the at least one item, the computer-readable medium having a plurality of instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform a step of:

(a) using at least some information from the ASN stored in memory, together with at least a portion of the data stored in memory, to generate at least one report involving the at least one determined value.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the at least one monitored aspect of the shipment comprises at least one physical or environmental condition of the at least one item during the shipment.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the ASN comprises an identifier that identifies a sensor used to monitor the at least one physical or environmental condition of the at least one item during the shipment.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the step (a) further comprises:

using a tracking number included in the ASN to retrieve location event information from a carrier responsible for transporting the at least one item between the shipping location and the receiving location; and

combining the retrieved location event information with the data to generate the at least one report.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the at least one report comprises at least one of a chart and a graph on which information concerning the at least one determined value and information concerning at least one location event identified from the retrieved location event information are displayed together.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the step (a) further comprises:

using a tracking number included in the ASN to retrieve location event information from a carrier responsible for transporting the at least one item between the shipping location and the receiving location; and

using the retrieved location event information to identify at least a portion of the data as having been accumulated by at least one sensor when the at least one sensor was associated with the at least one item.

21. The computer-readable medium of claim 20, having additional instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform the further step of:

(b) extracting summary information from the identified portion of the data.

22. The computer-readable medium of claim 21, wherein the summary information comprises at least one of a mean temperature, a minimum temperature, a maximum temperature, degree-minutes above a threshold temperature, degree-minutes below a threshold temperature, time above a threshold temperature, and time below a threshold temperature.

23. The computer-readable medium of claim 21, wherein the summary information reflects the at least one physical or environmental condition of the at least one item at only a single product location.

24. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the at least one monitored aspect of the shipment comprises a temperature of an environment in which the at least one item was disposed.

25. A method, comprising:

transmitting an advanced shipping notification (ASN) from a shipping location to a receiving location in advance of shipping at least one item therebetween, the ASN comprising an identifier that identifies a sensor that will be used to monitor at least one physical or environmental condition of the at least one item as the item is transported between the shipping location and the receiving location.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the ASN further comprises information identifying a location of the at least one sensor with respect to at least one of the at least one item and a vehicle on which the at least one item is to be transported.

27. An advanced shipping notification (ASN) that is transmitted from a shipping location to a receiving location in advance of shipping at least one item therebetween, the ASN comprising an identifier that identifies a sensor that will be used to monitor at least one physical or environmental condition of the at least one item as the item is transported between the shipping location and the receiving location.

28. The ASN of claim 27, further comprising information identifying a location of the at least one sensor with respect to at least one of the at least one item and a vehicle on which the at least one item is to be transported.