Switch network of containers and trailers for transportation, storage, and distribution of physical items
First Claim
1. A method comprising:
- identifying a logistic request to transport, store, and/or distribute a cargo load comprising one or more physical items;
identifying a network address of a cargo container in a transportation network address space, wherein the transportation network address space includes one or more networks and one or more relay terminals;
associating the logistic request for the cargo load with the network address of the cargo container;
recording, to a computer server, a division of the cargo load into two or more cargo portions associated with one or more cargo containers including the cargo container, wherein the division of the cargo load is dictated in the logistic request; and
monitoring geographical information and chain of custody information of the cargo load.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Some embodiments include a transportation system implementing a network for transporting, distributing, and/or storing one or more physical items in one or more cargo containers (herein may be referred to as the “transportation network” for short). The cargo containers and relay terminals may be identified via node addresses in a network address space. The no addresses enables the transportation system to track, route, and monitor the physical items as they propagate through the transportation network. The transportation network can mimic routing protocols of telecommunication systems can facilitate different private transportation, storage and distribution companies and fleets. The transportation network can enable dynamic routing to fulfill logistic requests without wasting transportation and storage resources.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method comprising:
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identifying a logistic request to transport, store, and/or distribute a cargo load comprising one or more physical items; identifying a network address of a cargo container in a transportation network address space, wherein the transportation network address space includes one or more networks and one or more relay terminals; associating the logistic request for the cargo load with the network address of the cargo container; recording, to a computer server, a division of the cargo load into two or more cargo portions associated with one or more cargo containers including the cargo container, wherein the division of the cargo load is dictated in the logistic request; and monitoring geographical information and chain of custody information of the cargo load. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A computer server comprising:
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a processor; data storage memory storing executable instructions to configure the processor, which when configured, is operable to implement a process that comprises; maintaining an association between a cargo load and a logistic request; maintaining an address space of one or more nodes associated with one or more transportation, distribution, or storage terminals; receiving geolocation updates from one or more control units of the nodes directly or indirectly; tracking one or more activities associated with moving at least a portion of the cargo load to a node in the address space; recording a division of the cargo load into two or more cargo portions associated with one or more cargo containers including the cargo container, wherein the division of the cargo load is dictated in the logistic request; and monitoring a location of the portion of the cargo load by matching the activities with the geolocation updates. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A cargo container comprising:
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a chassis to hold cargo load; a passive label capable of identifying the cargo container as a node in a network address space for transporting physical goods; a trailer control unit (TCU) capable of tracking at least one of;
a geographic location of the TCU, identifier of the cargo load, destination of the cargo load, or log information of activity associated therewith; anda network port to communicate with a device outside of the cargo container wherein the TCU and the network port are configured to record, with the device, a division of the cargo load into two or more cargo portions associated with one or more cargo containers including the cargo container. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A computer readable data storage memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause a computer system to perform a computer-implemented method, the instructions comprising:
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instructions for identifying a logistic request associated with a cargo load including a destination address of where to deliver the cargo load; instructions for identifying an immediate relay terminal closest to a cargo load associated with the logistic request; instructions for determining a next node to carry the cargo load based on a network topology of a transportation node network comprising two or more relay terminals based on route delay information associated with one or more of the relay terminals; instructions for, when the destination address is beyond a threshold distance from the immediate relay terminal, generating a trunk route from the immediate relay terminal to the destination address, wherein the trunk route includes a destination and a direction without street-level routing; and instructions for assigning the cargo load to a transportation vehicle destined for the next relay terminal. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification