Drive-thru system and method
First Claim
1. A vehicular drive-thru food ordering and delivering system comprising;
- a lot having a vehicular ingress and vehicular egress thereto;
a building for receiving and filling drive-thru customer orders for delivery to customers, the building having a primary food delivery window for passing food orders through the primary food delivery window to a drive-thru customer;
a vehicular drive-thru lane situated on the lot and passing adjacent to the primary food delivery window, the vehicular drive-thru lane accessible from the lot vehicular ingress and having access to the lot vehicular egress;
at least one order station located remote from the building and along the vehicular drive-thru lane and upstream of the primary food delivery window;
an in-line vehicle waiting area located a distance downstream of the primary food delivery window so that a vehicle may enter the in-line vehicle waiting area by driving downstream from the primary food delivery window, the in-line vehicle waiting area including one or more in-line vehicle waiting spaces in which a vehicle can await delivery of a delayed order, said distance being sufficient to allow an upstream vehicle leaving the primary food delivery window to drive forward and around a downstream vehicle waiting at the in-line vehicle waiting area and to the vehicle egress without backing up;
an attendant runway downstream of the primary food delivery window, at least a portion of the attendant runway positioned adjacent to the in-line vehicle waiting area to provide at least a portion of a path from the primary food delivery window to a vehicle waiting in the in-line vehicle waiting area without requiring an attendant to cross over the vehicular drive-thru lane;
a building egress proximate to the primary food delivery window for providing attendant access from the primary food delivery window to the portion of the attendant runway that is outside the building to deliver an order to a vehicle waiting in the in-line vehicle waiting area.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A vehicular drive-thru food ordering and delivering system and method are provided. The system includes a lot, a drive-thru lane and a building for receiving and filling drive-thru orders. The building has a primary food delivery window for passing ready orders to drive-thru customers, and a downstream in-line parking area for drive-thru vehicles having a delayed order. Proximate to and downstream from the primary food delivery window is a doorway for attendant access from the primary food delivery window to the downstream in-line parking area. An attendant runway is proximate and downstream of the doorway and proximate to the in-line vehicle waiting area. A customer with a delayed order can be directed to wait in the downstream in-line waiting area. When the delayed order is ready for delivery, an attendant can deliver the ready order via the proximate doorway and proximate attendant runway to a vehicle waiting in the in-line vehicle waiting area.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A vehicular drive-thru food ordering and delivering system comprising;
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a lot having a vehicular ingress and vehicular egress thereto; a building for receiving and filling drive-thru customer orders for delivery to customers, the building having a primary food delivery window for passing food orders through the primary food delivery window to a drive-thru customer; a vehicular drive-thru lane situated on the lot and passing adjacent to the primary food delivery window, the vehicular drive-thru lane accessible from the lot vehicular ingress and having access to the lot vehicular egress; at least one order station located remote from the building and along the vehicular drive-thru lane and upstream of the primary food delivery window; an in-line vehicle waiting area located a distance downstream of the primary food delivery window so that a vehicle may enter the in-line vehicle waiting area by driving downstream from the primary food delivery window, the in-line vehicle waiting area including one or more in-line vehicle waiting spaces in which a vehicle can await delivery of a delayed order, said distance being sufficient to allow an upstream vehicle leaving the primary food delivery window to drive forward and around a downstream vehicle waiting at the in-line vehicle waiting area and to the vehicle egress without backing up; an attendant runway downstream of the primary food delivery window, at least a portion of the attendant runway positioned adjacent to the in-line vehicle waiting area to provide at least a portion of a path from the primary food delivery window to a vehicle waiting in the in-line vehicle waiting area without requiring an attendant to cross over the vehicular drive-thru lane; a building egress proximate to the primary food delivery window for providing attendant access from the primary food delivery window to the portion of the attendant runway that is outside the building to deliver an order to a vehicle waiting in the in-line vehicle waiting area. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method of servicing customers in vehicles in a vehicular drive-thru food ordering and delivering system including a vehicular drive-thru lane with a vehicular ingress and a vehicular egress, a primary food delivery window for use by an attendant to receive payment for drive-thru orders not previously paid for, and to deliver ready orders to customers comprising,
delivering a first food order to a first customer in the vehicular drive-thru lane from the primary food delivery window if the first food order for the first customer is a non-delayed order and thereafter allowing the first customer to exit the vehicular drive-thru lane at the vehicular egress; -
directing the first customer at the primary food delivery window, if the first order is a delayed order, to move downstream from the primary food delivery window to wait in a downstream in-line vehicle waiting area, the downstream in-line vehicle waiting area also being located proximate to the primary food delivery window; providing drive-thru service to a second customer in a vehicle that is upstream from the first customer while the first customer waits in the in-line vehicle waiting area for delivery of a delayed first order, the continued service for the second customer while the first customer waits for the delayed first order including delivering a second order to the second customer from the primary food delivery window when the second order is a non-delayed order and thereafter allowing the second customer to drive forward and around the first customer without backing up to exit at the vehicular egress; delivering a delayed first order to the first customer waiting in the in-line vehicle waiting area when the delayed first order becomes ready for delivery by an attendant who takes the then ready delayed first order and exits the building through a doorway provided proximate to the primary food delivery window, and thereafter walks along an outside attendant pathway to the first customer waiting in the in-line vehicle waiting area, wherein the attendant pathway from the primary food delivery window to the customer waiting in the in-line vehicle waiting area does not cross the drive-thru lane, and after delivery of the first order to the first customer, allowing the first customer to exit at the vehicular egress. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification