Apparatus and method

• US 10,358,259 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2015
• Issued: 07/23/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Castrol Limited (BP PLC)
• Original Assignee: Castrol Limited (BP PLC)
• Inventors: Andersen, Jens, Goodier, Steven Paul, Hellman, Hanna, Leeson, Andrea
• Primary Examiner(s): Saint Surin, Jacques M
• Application Number:
  US15/312,873
• Publication Number:
  US 20170190466A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,524 Days
• Field of Search: 340603
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 19/00 Pallets or like platforms, with or without side walls, for supporting loads to be lifted or lowered in devices for lifting or lowering bulky or heavy goods for loading or unloading purposes B66F9/12
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 19/44 Elements or devices for locating articles on platforms
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2203/10 Transponders
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2519/00815 on the pallet
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 71/0096 the dimensions of the supports corresponding to the periphery of the load, e.g. pallets
• CPC Class Codes: F01M 2011/0483 with a lubricant cartridge for facilitating the change
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0609 by fluid containers, e.g. bottles, cups, gas containers
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/009 the reader being an RFID reader
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/18 Status alarms G08B21/02 takes precedence

Abstract

A pallet comprising: a plurality of container seats wherein each seat is adapted to carry a fluid container; a data obtainer arranged to obtain container data from a data provider carried by a fluid container to be carried; a processor coupled to the data obtainer and configured to provide a signal based on the container data.

Claims

1. A pallet comprising:

a plurality of container seats, wherein each container seat is adapted to carry a fluid container, wherein each container seat is operable to retain the fluid container so as to inhibit removal of the fluid container from the container seat, and wherein each container seat is operable to reject the fluid container so as to inhibit carrying of the fluid container by the container seat;

a data obtainer arranged to obtain container data from a data provider carried by a particular fluid container to be carried by the pallet; and

a processor coupled to the data obtainer and configured to provide a signal based on the container data, wherein the signal comprises an indication as to whether to retain or reject the particular fluid container from which the container data was obtained.

2. The pallet of claim 1 wherein the processor is coupled to provide the signal to a particular container seat of the plurality of container seats to control the particular container seat.

3. The pallet of claim 1 comprising a wireless communication interface coupled to the processor for communicating with a remote device.

4. The pallet of claim 3 wherein the processor is configured to provide the container data to the remote device.

5. The pallet of claim 4 wherein the signal is based on data received from the remote device in response to the container data.

6. The pallet of claim 1 wherein each container seat of the plurality of container seats comprises a seat key to engage with a complementary key of a fluid container that is to be carried by the container seat and the data obtainer is configured to obtain data from the container seat in response to the seat key engaging with the fluid container.

7. The pallet of claim 6 wherein, for each container seat of the plurality of container seats, the seat key is configured to limit at least one of the position and orientation of the fluid container carried by the container seat so that when the seat key is keyed with the fluid container, the fluid container is arranged to provide data to the data obtainer.

8. The pallet of claim 7 wherein the data obtainer is configured to obtain data from a fluid container seated in a particular container seat of the plurality of container seats in response to the seat key of the particular container seat engaging with a complementary key of the fluid container.

9. The pallet of claim 8 wherein the seat key comprises at least one of a latch and an asymmetric geometry of the container seat.

10. The pallet of claim 1 wherein the signal comprises at least one of an audible or visible alert signal.

11. The pallet of claim 1 wherein the data obtainer comprises at least one of a wireless or wired electronic communication interface configured to communicate with a fluid container seated in a particular container seat of the plurality of container seats.

12. The pallet of claim 11 wherein the data obtainer is configured to obtain measurement data indicating at least one property of a fluid carried in the fluid container seated in the particular container seat.

13. The pallet of claim 12 wherein the processor is configured to provide the signal based on comparing the measurement data with container data obtained from a machine readable property of the fluid container seated in the particular container seat.

14. The pallet of claim 1, wherein a particular container seat of the plurality of container seats is operable to retain the particular fluid container so as to inhibit removal of the particular fluid container from the particular container seat in response to the particular container seat receiving the signal comprising an indication to retain the particular fluid container.

15. The pallet of claim 1, wherein a particular container seat of the plurality of container seats is operable to reject the particular fluid container so as to inhibit carrying of the particular fluid container by the particular container seat in response to the particular container seat receiving the signal comprising an indication to retain the particular fluid container.

16. A pallet comprising:

a plurality of container seats, wherein each container seat is adapted to carry a fluid container, and wherein each container seat comprises a seat key to engage with the fluid container that is to be carried by the container seat;

a data obtainer arranged to obtain container data from a data provider carried by a particular fluid container to be carried by the pallet, wherein the data obtainer is configured to obtain data from a particular container seat of the plurality of container seats in response to the seat key of the particular container seat engaging with the particular fluid container; and

a processor coupled to the data obtainer and configured to provide a signal based on the container data.

17. The pallet of claim 16 wherein, for each container seat of the plurality of container seats, the seat key is configured to limit at least one of the position and orientation of the fluid container carried by the container seat so that when the seat key is keyed with the fluid container, the fluid container is arranged to provide data to the data obtainer.

18. The pallet of claim 16 wherein the data obtainer is configured to obtain data from a fluid container seated in a particular container seat of the plurality of container seats in response to the seat key of the particular container seat engaging with a complementary key of the fluid container.

19. The pallet of claim 16 wherein the seat key comprises at least one of a latch and an asymmetric geometry of the container seat.

20. The pallet of claim 16 wherein each container seat of the plurality of container seats is operable to retain the particular fluid container so as to inhibit removal of the particular fluid container from the container seat.

21. The pallet of claim 16 wherein each container seat of the plurality of container seats is operable to reject the particular fluid container so as to inhibit carrying of the particular fluid container by the container seat.

22. The pallet of claim 16 wherein the signal comprises an indication as to whether to retain or reject the particular fluid container from which the container data was obtained.

23. The pallet of claim 16 wherein the processor is coupled to provide the signal to a particular container seat of the plurality of container seats to control the particular container seat.

24. The pallet of claim 16 comprising a wireless communication interface coupled to the processor for communicating with a remote device.

25. The pallet of claim 24 wherein the processor is configured to provide the container data to the remote device.

26. The pallet of claim 25 wherein the signal is based on data received from the remote device in response to the container data.

27. The pallet of claim 16 wherein the signal comprises at least one of an audible or visible alert signal.

28. The pallet of claim 16 wherein the data obtainer comprises at least one of a wireless or wired electronic communication interface configured to communicate with a fluid container seated in a particular container seat.

29. The pallet of claim 28 wherein the data obtainer is configured to obtain measurement data indicating at least one property of a fluid carried in the fluid container seated in the particular container seat.

30. The pallet of claim 29 wherein the processor is configured to provide the signal based on comparing the measurement data with container data obtained from a machine readable property of the particular fluid container.