Event-Based Asset Tracking, Order Adherence, and Rewards Management with NFC-Enabled Electronic Devices

• US 20130222116A1
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Published: 08/29/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Walter Richard Iii Barry
• Original Assignee: Walter Richard Iii Barry
• Inventors: Barry, Walter Richard III
• Granted Patent: US 9,443,276 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.1
• 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: G06Q 20/3278 RFID or NFC payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

An electronic device enabled with a Near Field Communications (“NFC”) reading capability may perform event-based asset tracking and/or order adherence, and/or rewards management in conjunction with a Software Service Platform. Assets may be provided with intelligent Radio Frequency Identification (“RFID”) tags in which such is associated with trackable event and such event may be associated with a master order of one or more such events. The electronic device may be programmable such that the various functions may be provided by application programs which may be preloaded on the electronic device as one or more client applications, provided to the NFC-enabled electronic device as a “software as a service” (“SaaS”) delivery, or provided to the NFC-enabled electronic device in any other desired manner.

Claims

1. A method of furnishing stakeholders with information about a plurality of trackable events having one or more items each equipped with one or more RFID tags associated therewith, comprising:

providing a client software application for installation to a NFC-enabled device to acquire unique data corresponding to the trackable events, the trackable events being evidenced by a bump action between the NFC-enabled device and the one or more RFID tags at specific geo-locations, and the unique data including an individual'"'"'s name and/or identification number, an event name and/or identification number, an item name, and a unique RFID code from the RFID tags, and date, time and geo-location data coincident with the trackable event as determined by the NFC-enabled device;

receiving the unique data over a network from the NFC-enabled device;

preparing from the unique data different forms of reporting content for a plurality of different groups of entities and roles by entity having different uses for the content; and

furnishing the different forms of reporting content respectively to the entities and roles by entity.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the trackable events comprise asset tracking events, and the roles comprise inventory control agent, vendor sales representative, or any combination of the foregoing.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the trackable events comprise order adherence events, and the roles comprise order issuer, order user, associates of the order user, retail locations, vendor, order approver, distributor, or any combination of the foregoing.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein the trackable events comprise order adherence events, and the roles comprise order issuer, order user, associates of the order user, retail locations, vendor, order approver, distributor, or any combination of the foregoing.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining completion by the individual user of the trackable events;

calculating an earned reward based on the individual user completion of the trackable events; and

furnishing the earned reward to the NFC-enabled device.

6. The method of claim 4 further comprising:

determining completion by the individual user of the trackable events;

calculating an earned reward based on the individual user completion of the trackable events; and

furnishing the earned reward to the NFC-enabled device.

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising transmitting to the NFC-enabled device notifications of potential or earned rewards for completion of the trackable events.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the earned reward has a value, further comprising:

administering deduction of the value of the earned reward against an obligation; and

reporting the deduction to the individual user.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising transmitting to the NFC-enabled device notifications of potential or earned rewards for completion of the trackable events.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the unique data receiving, content preparing and content furnishing steps are performed within a time established by customary digital processing delays and cloud latency.

11. A software service platform comprising:

a processor;

a memory coupled to the processor, the memory storing processor-executable instructions in one or more programs to perform a method of furnishing stakeholders with information about a plurality of trackable events having one or more items each equipped with one or more RFID tags associated therewith, the instructions comprising;

instructions for providing a client software application for installation to a NFC- enabled device to acquire unique data corresponding to the trackable events, the trackable events being evidenced by a bump action between the NFC-enabled device and the one or more RFID tags at specific geo- locations, and the unique data including an individual'"'"'s name and/or identification number, an event name and/or identification number, an item name, and a unique RFID code from the RFID tags, and date, time and geo-location data coincident with the trackable event as determined by the NFC-enabled device;

instructions for receiving the unique data over a network from the NFC-enabled device;

instructions for preparing from the unique data different forms of reporting content for a plurality of different groups of entities and roles by entity having different uses for the content; and

instructions for furnishing the different forms of reporting content respectively to the entities and roles by entity.

12. An asset tracking method comprising:

wirelessly synchronizing an NFC-enabled electronic device with a Software as a Service platform comprising a database server, a web and application server, and a security architecture compliant with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act security requirements;

identifying an occurrence of a Trackable Event based on proximity of the NFC- enabled electronic device to an RFID tag containing Unique Data;

accessing the Unique Data with the NFC-enabled electronic device;

associating the Unique Data with the Trackable Event in the NFC-enabled electronic device;

maintaining and storing Trackable Event data including the Unique Data in a memory of either the NFC-enabled electronic device or the database server;

reporting the Trackable Event data with the Software as a Service platform to an authorized user authorized by involvement in Item or Order activation, consumption, increment, transfer, or re-order transactions;

or in compliance with a unique Order;

or in conformity with any regulations or laws; and

pushing an Individual'"'"'s payment data, including insurance eligibility of benefits data, from the Software as a Service platform to a third party NFC payment device to pay for Item or Order(s) relating to the Trackable Event net of earned rewards.

13. An order adherence method comprising:

wirelessly synchronizing an NFC-enabled electronic device with a Software as a Service platform comprising a database server, a web and application server, and a security architecture compliant with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act security requirements;

identifying an occurrence of one or more Trackable Events which are part of an Order Schedule based on proximity of the NFC-enabled electronic device to an RFID tag containing Unique Data;

accessing the Unique Data with the NFC-enabled electronic device;

associating the Unique Data with the one or more Trackable Events which are part of an Order Schedule in the NFC-enabled electronic device;

maintaining and storing Trackable Event data including the Unique Data in a memory of either the NFC-enabled electronic device or the database server;

reporting the Trackable Event data with the Software as a Service platform to an authorized user authorized by involvement in Item or Order activation, consumption, increment, transfer, or re-order transactions;

or in compliance with a unique Order;

or in conformity with any regulations or laws; and

pushing an Individual'"'"'s payment data, including insurance eligibility of benefits data, from the Software as a Service platform to a third party NFC payment device to pay for Item or Order(s) relating to the or more Trackable Events which are part of an Order Schedule, net of earned rewards.