Remote signing for a delivery from anywhere

• US 9,940,601 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2014
• Issued: 04/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/14/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Hubner, Paul V., Archer, Steven T., Clavenna, II, Robert A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tomaszewski, Michael
• Application Number:
  US14/193,778
• Publication Number:
  US 20150199643A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,502 Days
• Field of Search: 705333
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0833 Tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/60 Business processes related to postal services shipping G06Q10/083; franking apparatus G07B17/00

Abstract

A system may obtain courier location information associated with a package to be delivered, by a courier, to a delivery location associated with a customer. The courier location information may indicate that the customer is not available at the delivery location. The system may obtain delivery location information associated with the delivery location. The system may determine that the courier location information matches the delivery location information. The system may provide, to a customer device associated with the customer, a delivery notification based on determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information. The system may receive a customer signature based on providing the delivery notification. The customer signature may be associated with the customer. The system may provide the customer signature. The customer signature being provided to inform the courier to deliver the package while the customer is not available at the delivery location.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

one or more devices to;

obtain, from a courier device associated with a courier, courier location information associated with a package to be delivered to a delivery location by the courier,

the delivery location being associated with a customer, and

the courier location information indicating that the customer is not available at the delivery location;

obtain, from a delivery location device, delivery location information associated with the delivery location based on the delivery location device detecting the courier device,

the delivery location device being associated with the customer and located at the delivery location,

an application associated with the courier being installed on the delivery location device,

the application detecting the courier device when the courier device is within a particular distance, and

the delivery location information being generated after the application detects the courier device,

the delivery location device being located at a fixed location prior to delivery, and

the delivery location device comprising a wireless transceiver;

compare the courier location information and the delivery location information;

determine, based on comparing, that the courier location information matches the delivery location information;

authenticate a customer device associated with the customer;

provide, to the customer device, a delivery notification after authenticating the customer device and based on determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information;

receive, from the customer device over a network, a customer signature based on providing the delivery notification,

the customer signature being associated with the customer; and

provide the customer signature to inform the courier to deliver the package while the customer is not available at the delivery location.

2. The system of claim 1, where the courier location information is detected by the courier device.

3. The system of claim 1,

where the courier location information includes information that identifies a first geographic location;

where the delivery location information includes information that identifies a second geographic location;

where the one or more devices, when comparing the courier location information and the delivery location information, are to;

compare the information that identifies the first geographic location and the information that identifies the second geographic location; and

where the one or more devices, when determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information, are to;

determine that the courier location information matches the delivery location information based on comparing the information that identifies the first geographic location and the information that identifies the second geographic location.

4. The system of claim 1, where the one or more devices are further to:

determine a threshold distance associated with determining whether the courier location information matches the delivery location information;

where the one or more devices, when comparing the courier location information and the delivery location information, are to;

determine that the threshold distance is satisfied based on comparing the courier location information and the delivery location information; and

where the one or more devices, when determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information, are to;

determine that the courier location information matches the delivery location information based on determining that the threshold distance is satisfied.

5. The system of claim 1, where the one or more devices are further to:

generate the delivery notification based on determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information; and

where the one or more devices, when providing the delivery notification, are to;

provide the generated delivery notification.

6. The system of claim 1,

where the one or more devices, when receiving the customer signature, are to:

receive information that identifies an instruction associated with delivering the package; and

where the one or more devices, when providing the customer signature, are to;

provide the information that identifies the instruction along with the customer signature.

18. The system of claim 1, where the one or more devices, when obtaining the delivery location information associated with the delivery location, are to:

obtain the delivery location information associated with the delivery location based on the wireless transceiver of the delivery location device detecting the courier device at the delivery location.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions, the instructions comprising:

one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to;

obtain, from a courier device associated with a courier, courier location information associated with a package to be delivered to a delivery location by the courier,

the delivery location being associated with a customer, and

the courier location information indicating that the customer is unavailable at the delivery location;

obtain, from a delivery location device, delivery location information associated with the delivery location based on the delivery location device detecting the courier device,

the delivery location device being associated with the customer and located at the delivery location,

an application associated with the courier being installed on the delivery location device,

the application detecting the courier device when the courier device is within a particular distance, and

the delivery location information being generated after the application detects the courier device,

the delivery location device being located at a fixed location prior to the delivery, and

the delivery location device comprising a wireless transceiver;

compare the courier location information and the delivery location information;

determine, based on comparing, that the courier location information matches to the delivery location information;

authenticate a customer device associated with the customer;

provide, after authenticating the customer device, a delivery notification, associated with the package, based on determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information,

the delivery notification being provided to the customer device;

obtain, from the customer device over a network, a customer signature, associated with the customer, based on providing the delivery notification; and

provide the customer signature to instruct the courier to deliver the package while the customer is not available at the delivery location.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, where the courier location information is detected by the courier device.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7,

where the courier location information identifies a first geographic location;

where the delivery location information identifies a second geographic location;

where the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to compare the courier location information and the delivery location information, cause the one or more processors to;

compare the first geographic location and the second geographic location; and

where the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to determine that the courier location information matches the delivery location information, cause the one or more processors to;

determine that the courier location information matches the delivery location information based on comparing the first geographic location and the second geographic location.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, where the one or more instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to:

determine a threshold associated with determining whether the courier location information matches the delivery location information;

where the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to compare the courier location information and the delivery location information, cause the one or more processors to;

determine that the threshold is satisfied based on comparing the courier location information and the delivery location information; and

where the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to determine that the courier location information matches the delivery location information, cause the one or more processors to;

determine that the courier location information matches the delivery location information based on determining that the threshold is satisfied.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, where the one or more instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to:

generate the delivery notification based on determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information; and

where the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to provide the delivery notification, cause the one or more processors to;

provide the generated delivery notification.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7,

where the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to receive the customer signature, cause the one or more processors to:

receive information that identifies an instruction associated with delivering the package; and

where the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to provide the customer signature, further cause the one or more processors to;

provide the information that identifies the instruction along with the customer signature.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, where the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to obtain the delivery location information associated with the delivery location, cause the one or more processors to:

obtain the delivery location information associated with the delivery location based on the wireless transceiver of the delivery location device detecting the courier device at the delivery location.

13. A method, comprising:

obtaining, by one or more devices and from a courier device associated with a courier, courier location information associated with a package to be delivered to a delivery location by the courier,

the delivery location being associated with a customer, and

the courier location information identifying a first geographic location associated with the courier device;

obtaining, by the one or more devices and from a delivery location device, delivery location information identifying a second geographic location as the delivery location based on the delivery location device detecting the courier device,

the delivery location device being associated with the customer and located at the delivery location,

an application associated with the courier being installed on the delivery location device,

the application detecting the courier device when the courier device is within a particular distance, and

the delivery location information being generated after the application detects the courier device,

the delivery location device being located at a fixed location prior to the delivery, and

the delivery location device comprising a wireless transceiver;

comparing, by the one or more devices, the courier location information and the delivery location information based on comparing the first geographic location and the second geographic location;

determining, by the one or more devices and based on comparing, that the courier location information matches the delivery location information;

authenticating, by the one or more devices, a customer device associated with the customer;

providing, by the one or more devices after authenticating the customer device, a delivery notification based on determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information,

the delivery notification being provided to the customer device;

obtaining, by the one or more devices and from the customer device over a network, a customer signature, associated with the package, based on providing the delivery notification,

the customer signature being associated with the customer; and

providing, by the one or more devices, the customer signature, to inform the courier to deliver the package.

14. The method of claim 13, where the courier location information is detected by the courier device.

15. The method of claim 13, where determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information further comprises:

determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information based on the first geographic location being within a particular distance of the second geographic location.

16. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

determining a threshold distance associated with determining whether the courier location information matches the delivery location information;

where comparing the courier location information and the delivery location information comprises;

determining that the threshold distance is satisfied based on comparing the courier location information and the delivery location information; and

where determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information comprises;

determining that the courier location information matches the delivery location information based on determining that the threshold distance is satisfied.

17. The method of claim 13,

where obtaining the customer signature comprises:

obtaining information that identifies an instruction associated with delivering the package; and

where providing the customer signature comprises;

providing the information that identifies the instruction along with the customer signature.

20. The method of claim 13, where obtaining the delivery location information identifying the second geographic location as the delivery location includes:

obtaining the delivery location information identifying the second geographic location as the delivery location based on the wireless transceiver of the delivery location device detecting the courier device at the delivery location.