System and method for determining delivery time schedules for each of multiple carriers

• US 8,073,723 B1
• Filed: 10/06/2000
• Issued: 12/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Auctane LLC (Stamps.com, Inc.), Iship Incorporated (United Parcel Service Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Stamps.com, Inc., Iship Incorporated (United Parcel Service Incorporated)
• Inventors: Bilibin, Paul, Liu, Jinyue
• Primary Examiner(s): Pats, Justin
• Application Number:
  US09/684,861
• Time in Patent Office: 4,078 Days
• Field of Search: 705/7, 705/8, 705/9, 705/1, 705/401, 705/402, 705/406, 705/7.12, 705/7.13, 705/7.18, 705/7.24, 705/7.25, 705/330, 705/333, 705/334, 705/335
• US Class Current: 705/7.13
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/025 Coordination of plural reservations, e.g. plural trip segments, transportation combined with accommodation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063 Operations research, analysis or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0631 Resource planning, allocation, distributing or scheduling for enterprises or organisations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• 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 10/0834 Choice of carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08345 Pricing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0835 Relationships between shipper or supplier and carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1093 Calendar-based scheduling for persons or groups

Abstract

The present invention provides apparatus, systems and methods for determining from a set of delivery times for each of a plurality of services for each of a plurality of carriers a potential delivery schedule for each of the plurality of services for each of the plurality of carriers in response to a request by each of a plurality of users, according to an input by each particular user of a shipping date, a set of parcel specifications for shipping a particular parcel, a set of shipping requirements for shipping the particular parcel, a particular origin postal code and a particular destination postal code. Each user accesses the present invention over a global communications network using a client computer device, and each user client computer device has an individual electronic connection to the global communications network.

Claims

1. An Internet-based shipping management computer system, said Internet-based shipping management computer system comprising at least one Internet-accessible server computer programmed, alone or in conjunction with one or more server computers, to:

receive from a client computer through an Internet-access by said client computer of said Internet-based shipping management computer system, a request by a particular user to ship a particular parcel, said request comprising a first address, a second address, parcel information, and an indication of a shipping date; and

in response to the request, determine a simultaneous potential delivery schedule and shipment rate cross-comparison, said simultaneous cross-comparison delivery schedule and shipment rate cross-comparison comprising a plurality of respective service-specific, carrier-specific delivery schedules and corresponding shipping rates to ship the particular respective parcel from the first address to the second address according to the parcel information and according to the indication of the shipping date, each respective service-specific, carrier-specific delivery schedule and corresponding shipping rate corresponding to a respective particular delivery service of a plurality of delivery services offered by a respective particular carrier of a plurality of carriers that would ship the particular respective parcel from the first address to the second address according to the parcel information and the indication of the shipping date, each respective service-specific, carrier-specific delivery schedule and corresponding shipping rate comprising an indication of a respective calendar delivery date and a respective delivery time for a corresponding respective particular delivery service of the plurality of delivery services offered by a corresponding respective particular carrier of the plurality of carriers to deliver the particular respective parcel from the first address to the second address according to the indication of the shipping date, said simultaneous potential delivery schedule and shipment rate cross-comparison comprising a respective service-specific, carrier-specific delivery schedule and corresponding shipping rate for each respective particular delivery service of the plurality of delivery services offered by each respective particular carrier of the plurality of carriers that would deliver the particular respective parcel from the first address to the second address according to the indication of the shipping date; and

in further response to the request, generate an online interactive prompt for display to a display monitor configured with said client computer, said online interactive prompt comprising an interactive, two-dimensional, graphic cross-comparison display of each of said respective shipping rates for each said particular delivery service, said interactive, two-dimensional, graphic cross-comparison display of each of said respective shipping rates graphically corresponding to a display of a corresponding graphic indication of the respective calendar delivery date and the respective delivery time corresponding to the respective delivery schedule for the respective particular delivery service to deliver the particular respective parcel, said interactive, two-dimensional, graphic cross-comparison display of each of said respective shipping rates configured to display each respective shipping rate as an interactive field, each said interactive field configured for receiving a selection by the particular user of said respective shipping rate and further configured for responding to said selection with generating a shipping label for print rendering using a print rendering device in communication with said client computer, said shipping label corresponding with shipment of the particular respective parcel using a particular delivery service offered by a particular carrier associated with said respective shipping rate.

2. The Internet-based shipping management computer system of claim 1, said at least one Internet-accessible server computer further programmed, alone or in conjunction with one or more server computers, to:

receive an indication by the particular user of a selection of a particular respective shipping rate; and

respond to the indication by the particular user of the selection of the particular respective shipping rate with a printing of a shipping label for shipment of the particular respective parcel using a particular delivery service offered by a particular carrier associated with the particular respective shipping rate and the corresponding respective calendar delivery date and respective delivery time.

3. A method using an Internet-based computer system for managing shipping of a plurality of parcels shipped by any one of a plurality of carriers, said Internet-based computer system comprising at least one server computer device, the method comprising:

using the Internet-based computer system, receiving from a client computer through an Internet-access by said client computer of said Internet-based computer system, a delivery schedule information request by a particular user, said delivery schedule information request comprising a first postal code, a second postal code, parcel information and an indication of a shipping date; and

in response to the delivery schedule information request, using the Internet-based computer system to determinea simultaneous potential delivery schedule and shipment rate cross-comparison, said simultaneous potential delivery schedule and shipment rate cross-comparison comprising a plurality of respective service-specific, carrier-specific delivery schedules and corresponding shipping rates for a respective shipment from the respective first postal code to the respective second postal code according to the parcel information and according to the indication of the shipping date, each respective service-specific, carrier specific delivery schedule and corresponding shipping rate corresponding to a particular delivery service of a plurality of services offered by each carrier of a plurality of carriers that would ship the particular respective parcel from the first address to the second address according to the parcel information and the indication of the shipping date, each respective service-specific, carrier-specific delivery schedule and corresponding shipping rate comprising an indication of a respective calendar delivery date and a respective delivery time for a corresponding respective particular delivery service of the plurality of delivery services offered by a corresponding respective particular carrier of the plurality of carriers to deliver the particular respective parcel from the first postal code to the second postal code according to the indication of the shipping date, said simultaneous potential delivery schedule and shipment rate cross-comparison comprising a respective service-specific, carrier-specific delivery schedule and corresponding shipping rate for each respective particular delivery service of the plurality of delivery services offered by each respective particular carrier of the plurality of carriers that would deliver the particular respective parcel from the first postal code to the second postal code according to the indication of the shipping date; and

in further response to the delivery schedule information request, using the Internet-based computer system to generate an online interactive prompt for display to a display monitor configured with said client computer, said online interactive prompt comprising an interactive, two-dimensional, graphic cross-comparison display of each of said respective shipping rates for each said particular delivery service, said interactive, two-dimensional, graphic cross-comparison display of each of said respective shipping rates graphically corresponding to a display of a corresponding graphic indication of the respective calendar delivery date and the respective delivery time corresponding to the respective delivery schedule for the respective particular delivery service to deliver the particular respective parcel, said interactive, two-dimensional, graphic cross-comparison display of each of said respective shipping rates configured to display each respective shipping rate as an interactive field, each said interactive field configured for receiving a selection by the particular user of said respective shipping rate and further configured for responding to said selection with generating a shipping label for print rendering using a print rendering device in communication with said client computer, said shipping label corresponding with shipment of the particular respective parcel using a particular delivery service offered by a particular carrier associated with said respective shipping rate.

4. The method of claim 3, the method further comprising:

using the Internet-based computer system, receiving an indication by the particular user of a selection of a particular respective shipping rate; and

using the Internet-based computer system, responding to the indication by the particular user of the selection of the particular respective shipping rate with a printing of a shipping label for shipment of the particular respective parcel using a particular delivery service offered by a particular carrier associated with the particular respective shipping rate and the corresponding respective calendar delivery date and respective delivery time.