SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR EVENT-BASED AUTOMATED CONSUMABLE REORDERING
First Claim
1. A method for ordering consumables, comprising:
- monitoring, through a network, consumable levels for a plurality of office machines;
detecting that a first consumable for a first subset of the office machines is at or below a first threshold level;
detecting that a second consumable for a second subset of the office machines is at or below a second threshold level; and
automatically generating a combined order for the first and second consumables.
0 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Reordering consumables for office machines such as computer printers, fax machines, and copiers includes monitoring a consumable level, determining that the consumable level is at or below a threshold, establishing a connection to the Internet and/or opening a web browser, and at least partially completing an online form for the consumable. In one embodiment, a combined order is automatically generated that includes a plurality of different consumables. In addition, or in another embodiment, a consumable management portal searches a plurality of vendor websites for a replacement consumable and presents a price comparison to a user. The user is allowed to selectively place an order with one or more of the plurality of vendors.
111 Citations
64 Claims
-
1. A method for ordering consumables, comprising:
-
monitoring, through a network, consumable levels for a plurality of office machines; detecting that a first consumable for a first subset of the office machines is at or below a first threshold level; detecting that a second consumable for a second subset of the office machines is at or below a second threshold level; and automatically generating a combined order for the first and second consumables. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
-
-
21. A system for ordering consumables, comprising:
-
a monitoring subsystem to monitor, through a network, consumable levels for a plurality of office machines; a detection subsystem to detect that a first consumable for a first subset of the office machines is at or below a first threshold level and that a second consumable for a second subset of the office machines is at or below a second threshold level; and an order generating subsystem to automatically generate a combined order for the first and second consumables. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
-
-
32. A web portal for ordering consumables, comprising:
-
an aggregation component for combining information received through a network regarding consumable levels for a plurality of office machines; a notification component for displaying a summary of the consumable levels to a user; a comparison component for listing prices from a number of different vendors for additional quantities of the consumables; and a ordering component for allowing the user to place a combined order for the consumables used by at least two different office machines. - View Dependent Claims (33)
-
-
34. A method for ordering consumables, comprising:
-
detecting that a consumable in an office machine has been depleted below a predetermined level; identifying a plurality of websites offering the consumable; simultaneously displaying indicia of the plurality of websites offering the consumable to a user through a user interface; allowing the user to select a website from the plurality of websites from which to order the consumable; and automatically generating an order for the consumable from the selected website. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47)
-
-
48. A method for replenishing a local inventory of consumables, comprising:
-
monitoring, through a network, a consumable for an office machine; detecting that the consumable is at or below a first threshold level; searching a database of available inventory for a replacement for the consumable; determining whether, after removing the replacement consumable from the available inventory, the available inventory is at or below a second threshold level; and if the available inventory is at or below the second threshold level, automatically submitting an order for a predetermined amount of the consumable. - View Dependent Claims (49, 50, 51, 52)
-
-
53. A method for ordering consumables, the method comprising:
-
monitoring a consumable level of an office machine; and upon detecting that the consumable level is at or below a threshold level, automatically directing a web browser to a consumable ordering site. - View Dependent Claims (54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64)
-
Specification