Delivery Management System for Quick Service Restaurants

• US 20090048890A1
• Filed: 08/16/2007
• Published: 02/19/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Stuart G. Burgh
• Original Assignee: Stuart G. Burgh
• Inventors: Burgh, Stuart G.
• Application Number:
  US11/839,751
• Publication Number:
  US 20090048890A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/8
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/04 Forecasting or optimisation specially adapted for administrative or management purposes, e.g. linear programming or "cutting stock problem" market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities G06Q30/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063114 Status monitoring or status determination for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06316 Sequencing of tasks or work
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06375 Prediction of business process outcome or impact based on a proposed change

Abstract

A geographic database of the subject invention interfaces with the Point-of-Sale system in a Quick Service Restaurant to optimize the sequence and pairing of delivery orders based on customer location, driver availability and prioritized real-time information.

The system optionally communicates with GPS-enabled cellular or Wi-Fi communication devices to provide turn-by-turn navigation information to the driver and enable supplementary location information and other communication exchanges between the driver and the dispatch location during the delivery process.

The system may be configured to aggregate a number of local delivery areas into a virtualized delivery system allowing further optimization of driver resources and to enhance capacity utilization across participating order-dispatch locations.

Claims

1. A Quick Service Restaurant delivery management system comprised of a network application that provides the most efficient production sequence, order assignment, and routing for each driver delivery trip and further comprised of a remote network server enabling communication with wireless GPS devices, a plurality of in-store POS systems, and the store'"'"'s customers over the Internet.

2. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises means for providing data services to GPS wireless devices to communicate status information, emergency information, and prompt driver responses.

3. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises means for that communicates with one or more services providing real-time traffic, weather data, and Amber Alerts.

4. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises means for determining the most economical dispatch strategy comprising single or multiple customer orders in a single run based on delivery proximity/route adjacency, driver availability, and store volume using a rules database.

5. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises means for allowing orders on the periphery of the delivery area to be shared with affiliate stores such that order-pairing can occur across an aggregated delivery area.

6. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises means for analyzing the preparation times of multiple-order items to adjust FIFO production order sequence and thereby minimize set-aside time for any order in the delivery batch using bi-directional communication with the POS system.

7. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises means to reduce production bottlenecks based on order volume and item characteristics.

8. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises means for visually displaying detailed route information to drivers prior to their departure, and means to allow drivers to accept dispatch assignments.

9. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises means for enabling a self-learning geographical database to store and recall new addresses using the entry of an approximate delivery location which is then field verified by the driver at the precise delivery location.

10. A delivery management system according to claim 8 wherein said system further comprises means for displaying Verified versus Estimated delivery locations on the driver'"'"'s GPS device.

11. A delivery management system according to claim 8 wherein said system further comprises means for recording, storing, and then subsequently recalling the exact GPS trail from the address latitude/longitude gateway to the actual delivery door which might be some distance away in the case of a campus, apartment or corporate location.

12. A delivery management system according to claim 8 wherein said system further comprises means for providing turn-by-turn navigation to delivery drivers equipped with wireless GPS devices such that instructions during highway driving include verbal instructions and large turn arrows but no map (whose interpretation might distract a driver), but where a map graphic does appear within a short distance of the delivery area showing current location, destination, and GPS trail beyond the address gateway.

13. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises means for displaying on an in-store computer monitor, the delivery status of each driver as a visual ticker bar which updates at frequent intervals to communicate real-time information including the estimated duration of the delivery as represented by the length of the bar, elapsed time as represented by the position of the current time marker, number of total and currently complete deliveries, as well as estimated return time.

14. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises means for providing emergency navigation from the driver'"'"'s current location to the nearest police station, hospital, emergency room, or other point of service.

15. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises the automatic distribution of Amber Alert information to drivers in a manner that requires no human intervention to send, receive, or clear the massage from the device.

16. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises methods to minimize the need for the driver to interact physically with the device.

17. A delivery management system according to claim 1 wherein said system further comprises a method for alerting store managers that order activity is trending at a higher or lower rate that typical and suggests the addition of removal of driver and staff resources in real-time.