Centralized lost and found system

• US 9,367,527 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Issued: 06/14/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Chargerback, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Chargerback, Inc.
• Inventors: Colodny, Brian, McLaughlin, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Maikhanh
• Application Number:
  US13/842,768
• Publication Number:
  US 20140281857A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,187 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/90335 Query processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/134 Hyperlinking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/174 Form filling; Merging
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/016 After-sales
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/12 Hotels or restaurants

Abstract

In one embodiment, a system and method for reporting lost items includes presenting a lost item reporting link associated with an entity having a plurality of different physical establishment locations; receiving a user selection of the lost item reporting link; presenting at a website, in response to the user selection of the lost item reporting link, a graphical user interface configured to solicit lost item recovery information, the website being associated with the entity having the plurality of different physical establishments; receiving the lost item recovery information via the graphical user interface; and transmitting the lost item recovery information to a third party online lost and found system.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for reporting lost items, comprising:

receiving, via one or more computing devices, a user selection of a lost item reporting link, the lost item reporting link being presented on a display associated with another computing device and being associated with an entity having a plurality of different physical establishment locations;

initiating, via the one or more computing devices, presentment on the display, in response to the user selection of the lost item reporting link, a graphical user interface to solicit lost item recovery information;

receiving, via the one or more computing devices, the lost item recovery information via the graphical user interface, the lost item recovery information concerning a lost item and including at least (i) a designation of one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations, (ii) description of lost item, (iii) contact information, and (iv) shipping information for the lost item;

transmitting, via the one or more computing devices, the lost item recovery information to a third party online lost and found system, which operates to prepare a lost and found report based on the lost item recovery information; and

initiate electronic transmission of the lost and found report to the designation of one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations; and

initiate electronic transmission of a notification concerning the lost item to the customer based on the contact information,

wherein the presenting of the lost item reporting link is at the website associated with the entity having the plurality of different physical establishments.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the method comprises:

retrieving a messaging address associated with the designation of one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations; and

wherein the initiating electronic transmission comprises preparing and initiating sending of an electronic message to the messaging address, the electronic message comprising at least a portion of the lost and found report.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the notification concerning the lost item electronically transmitted to the customer comprises the lost and found report.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the presenting of the lost item reporting link is within an electronic mail message sent to a recent customer of at least one of the different physical establishments of the entity.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the entity is a hotel provider or broker, vehicle rental provider or broker, or a reservation provider.

6. A non-transitory computer readable medium including at least computer program code stored thereon for reporting lost items, comprising:

computer program code for presenting a graphical user interface to solicit lost item recovery information, the graphical user interface being presented via a website associated with an entity having a plurality of different physical establishment locations;

computer program code for receiving the lost item recovery information submitted via the graphical user interface, the lost item recovery information concerning a lost item and including at least (i) a designation of one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations, (ii) description of lost item, (iii) contact information and (iv) shipping information for the lost item;

computer program code for transmitting the lost item recovery information to a third party online lost and found system;

computer program code for preparing a lost and found report based on the lost item recovery information;

computer program code for initiating electronic transmission of the lost and found report to the designation of one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations; and

computer program code for initiating electronic transmission of a notification concerning the lost item to the customer based on the contact information,

wherein the graphical user interface includes a list of the plurality of different physical establishment locations, and

wherein the computer program code for receiving the lost item recovery information submitted via the graphical user interface receives a user selection of one of the plurality of different physical establishments as the designation of one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations.

7. The non-transitory computer readable medium as recited in claim 6, wherein the notification concerning the lost item electronically transmitted to the customer comprises the lost and found report.

8. The non-transitory computer readable medium as recited in claim 6, wherein the computer readable medium comprises:

computer program code for retrieving a contact email address from the third party online lost and found system, the contact email address being associated with the designation one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations.

9. The non-transitory computer readable medium as recited in claim 8, wherein the computer program code for initiating electronic transmission of the lost and found report to the designation of one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations comprises:

computer program code for initiating electronic transmission of an email message including the lost and found report to the contact email address associated with the designation one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations.

10. An online lost and found system, comprising:

a memory to store computer program code;

a database to store lost item information for a plurality of different establishments; and

at least one computing device including at least one processor for executing at least a portion of the computer program code,

wherein the computer program code includes at least;

computer program code for receiving a lost item report concerning a lost item, the lost item report including a lost item transaction identifier associated with a transaction associated with a person that has lost the lost item, the lost item report including at least a description of the lost item, contact information for the person, and shipping information for the lost item;

computer program code for retrieving customer transaction data associated with the lost item transaction identifier;

computer program code for recording data for the lost item in the database;

computer program code for determining a particular establishment from the plurality of establishments based on the lost item transaction identifier; and

computer program code for initiating notification of the particular establishment of the lost item;

computer program code for initiating electronic transmission of a notification concerning the lost item to the person based on the contact information;

computer program code for preparing a lost and found report based on the data for the lost item recorded in the database and at least a portion of the customer transaction data;

computer program code for initiating electronic transmission of the lost and found report to at least a designated one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations; and

computer program code for facilitating recovery of the lost item to the person that lost the item.

11. The online lost and found system of claim 10, wherein the customer transaction data includes at least an indication of one of the plurality of different physical establishment locations were the customer was recently a customer.