System and mechanism for upselling products on autonomous vehicles

• US 10,507,787 B2
• Filed: 07/26/2018
• Issued: 12/17/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/28/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nuro, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nuro, Inc.
• Inventors: Ferguson, David, Zhu, Jiajun, Jirapinyo, Pichayut, Ransohoff, Nan
• Primary Examiner(s): Zeender, Florian M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Buchanan, Christopher R
• Application Number:
  US16/046,978
• Publication Number:
  US 20190034858A1
• Time in Patent Office: 509 Days
• Field of Search: 705 16, 705 261, 705330
• CPC Class Codes: A23L 2/52 Adding ingredients adding preservatives A23L2/44
• CPC Class Codes: A23L 5/00 Preparation or treatment of foods or foodstuffs, in general; Food or foodstuffs obtained thereby; Materials therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A23L 7/109 Types of pasta, e.g. macaroni or noodles
• CPC Class Codes: A23V 2002/00 Food compositions, function of food ingredients or processes for food or foodstuffs
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 37/0658 specially adapted for cooking pizza
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 47/00 Kitchen containers, stands or the like, not provided for in other groups of this subclass; Cutting-boards, e.g. for bread bowls for food processors A47J43/0727
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00364 for caravans or trailers
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00735 Control systems or circuits characterised by their input, i.e. by the detection, measurement or calculation of particular conditions, e.g. signal treatment, dynamic models
• CPC Class Codes: B60P 1/36 using endless chains or belts thereon
• CPC Class Codes: B60P 3/007 for delivery of small articles, e.g. milk, frozen articles
• CPC Class Codes: B60P 3/0257 the object being a vending stall, restaurant or food kiosk
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 19/18 characterised by the cross-section; Means within the bumper to absorb impact
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 19/483 with obstacle sensors of electric or electronic type
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/346 means outside vehicle body
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/34 Protecting non-occupants of a vehicle, e.g. pedestrians B60R19/02 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/36 using airbags
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/25 using biometry
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/252 Fingerprint recognition
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/403 Image sensing, e.g. optical camera
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/408 Radar; Laser, e.g. lidar
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/54 : Audio sensitive means, e.g. ultrasound
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2555/20 : Ambient conditions, e.g. wind or rain
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/40 : High definition maps
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 60/00256 : Delivery operations
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/64 : for parcel delivery or retrieval
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/10 : autonomous, i.e. by navigating independently from ground or air stations, e.g. by using inertial navigation systems [INS]
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 2209/06 : Use of order trucks
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 67/24 : Unloading land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 : Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/343 : Calculating itineraries, i.e. routes leading from a starting point to a series of categorical destinations using a global route restraint, round trips, touristic trips travelling salesman problem G06Q10/04; optimisation of routes G06Q10/047
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3438 : Rendez-vous, i.e. searching a destination where several users can meet, and the routes to this destination for these users; Ride sharing, i.e. searching a route such that at least two users can share a vehicle for at least part of the route
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3453 : Special cost functions, i.e. other than distance or default speed limit of road segments
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0027 : involving a plurality of vehicles, e.g. fleet or convoy travelling fleet control of land vehicles from a control room G05D1/0297; traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/00; for marine craft G08G3/00; for aircraft G08G5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0033 : by having the operator tracking the vehicle either by direct line of sight or via one or more cameras located remotely from the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0038 : by providing the operator with simple or augmented images from one or more cameras located onboard the vehicle, e.g. tele-operation images analyzed by a computer and used for automatic navigation G05D1/0246
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0061 : for transition from automatic pilot to manual pilot and vice versa
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0088 : characterized by the autonomous decision making process, e.g. artificial intelligence, predefined behaviours using knowledge based models G06N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0094 : involving pointing a payload, e.g. camera, weapon, sensor, towards a fixed or moving target
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0212 : with means for defining a desired trajectory involving a plurality of land vehicles G05D1/0287
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0214 : in accordance with safety or protection criteria, e.g. avoiding hazardous areas monitoring the location of vehicles within a certain area, e.g. forbidden or allowed areas, in traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/13
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0223 : involving speed control of the vehicle vehicle fittings for automatically controlling, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator B60K31/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0231 : using optical position detecting means position-fixing by using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves, e.g. optical position detecting means G01S5/16
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0276 : using signals provided by a source external to the vehicle involving a plurality of vehicles G05D1/0287; automatically controlling vehicle speed responsive to externally generated signals B60K31/0058
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0291 : Fleet control monitoring fleets in traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/127, G08G1/127
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0295 : by at least one leading vehicle of the fleet
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0297 : by controlling means in a control room
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/12 : Target-seeking control
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 : using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 : Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 : for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06028 : using bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 : the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10297 : arrangements for handling protocols designed for non-contact record carriers such as RFIDs NFCs, e.g. ISO/IEC 14443 and 18092 cryptographic protocols H04L9/00; network security protocols H04L63/00; real-time communication protocols in data switching networks H04L65/00; network protocols for data switching network services H04L67/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10722 : Photodetector array or CCD scanning
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1413 : 1D bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 20/00 : Machine learning
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 : Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0631 : Resource planning, allocation, distributing or scheduling for enterprises or organisations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06315 : Needs-based resource requirements planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0635 : Risk analysis of enterprise or organisation activities
• 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 10/0832 : Special goods or special handling procedures, e.g. handling of hazardous or fragile goods
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0833 : Tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0834 : Choice of carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0835 : Relationships between shipper or supplier and carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08355 : Routing methods
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0837 : Return transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/00 : Payment architectures, schemes or protocols apparatus for performing or posting payment transactions G07F7/08, G07F19/00; electronic cash registers G07G1/12
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/127 : Shopping or accessing services according to a time-limitation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/18 : involving self-service terminals [SST], vending machines, kiosks or multimedia terminals
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0265 : Vehicular advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0266 : based on the position of the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0631 : Item recommendations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0645 : Rental transactions; Leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/12 : Hotels or restaurants
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 : Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/56 : exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/64 : Three-dimensional objects
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/0092 : for cargo, freight or shipping containers and applications therefore in general
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2209/63 : Comprising locating means for detecting the position of the data carrier, i.e. within the vehicle or within a certain distance from the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/02 : Registering or indicating driving, working, idle, or waiting time only apparatus forming part of taximeters G07B13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/08 : Registering or indicating performance data other than driving, working, idle, or waiting time, with or without registering driving, working, idle or waiting time
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00563 : using personal physical data of the operator, e.g. finger prints, retinal images, voicepatterns
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00571 : operated by interacting with a central unit
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00896 : specially adapted for particular uses
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/28 : the pass enabling tracking or indicating presence
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0057 : for the hiring or rent of vehicles, e.g. cars, bicycles or wheelchairs car rental G07B15/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/12 : comprising lockable containers, e.g. for accepting clothes to be cleaned
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/04 : using optical or ultrasonic detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/202 : Dispatching vehicles on the basis of a location, e.g. taxi dispatching
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/22 : Platooning, i.e. convoy of communicating vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 : specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 : Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/024 : Guidance services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 : for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/688 : for thawing

Abstract

Provided herein is an autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicle fleet comprising a plurality of autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicles for containing, securing, and delivering at least one of a first item and at least one of a second item after a customer places an order for a first item, operating autonomously or semi-autonomously, and a fleet management module for coordination of the autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicle fleet.

Claims

1. A platform for autonomously or semi-autonomously upselling an unordered item to a customer, the platform comprising:

a) an autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicle comprising;

(i) a locking compartment configured to contain and secure at least an item ordered by the customer and at least an item unordered by the customer, wherein the locking compartment comprises a sensor configured to detect an absence of at least one of the ordered item and the unordered item;

(ii) an input device configured to receive at least one of a customer verification and a selection of the unordered item by the customer; and

(iii) an autonomous or semi-autonomous propulsion system; and

b) the platform further comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage media encoded with a computer program including instructions executable by a processor to create an application comprising;

(i) an ordering module configured to receive an order from the customer, the order comprising the ordered item and a customer location;

(ii) a delivery module controlling the autonomous or semi-autonomous propulsion system to direct the autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicle to the customer location; and

(iii) a customer verification module confirming an identity of the customer based on the customer verification and unlocking the locking compartment based on the confirmation of the identity of the customer; and

(iv) a release detection module determining that the ordered item has been removed from the compartment based on the absence of the ordered item, determining that the unordered item has been removed from the compartment based on the absence of the unordered item, or both.

2. The platform of claim 1, wherein the sensor comprises at least one of a barcode scanner, an RFID reader, a scale, a pressure sensor, a switch, and a camera.

3. The platform of claim 1, wherein the input device comprises a Wi-Fi input device, a Bluetooth input device, a cellular input device, a button, a touchscreen, a camera, a USB input, a keyboard, or any combination thereof.

4. The platform of claim 1, wherein the application further comprises a database module.

5. The platform of claim 4, wherein the database comprises a customer data associated with the customer, and wherein the application further comprises a prediction module configured to determine the unordered item based at least on the ordered item and the customer data.

6. The platform of claim 5, wherein the prediction module determines the unordered item by a machine learning algorithm.

7. The platform of claim 5, wherein the prediction module is further configured to send a loading instruction to a loading administrator based on the determination of the unordered item.

8. The platform of claim 4, wherein the database module comprises a plurality of unique identifiers comprising at least a first identification and a second identification, wherein the first identification is associated with the ordered item, and wherein the second identification is associated with the unordered item.

9. The platform of claim 8, wherein the ordered item comprises a first indicator associated with the first identification, the unordered item comprises a second indicator associated with the second identification, or both.

10. The platform of claim 9, wherein the release detection module detects that the ordered item has been removed by detecting the first indicator and release detection module detects that the unordered item has been removed by detecting the second indicator.

11. The platform of claim 1, wherein the locking compartment is configured to contain and secure 2 or more ordered items, 2 or more unordered items, or both.

12. The platform of claim 1, wherein the locking compartment further comprises a vending mechanism configured to vend at least one of the ordered item and the unordered item.

13. The platform of claim 1, further comprising a communication device configured to receive an instruction from a fleet management module.

14. The platform of claim 13, wherein the instruction comprises at least one of the customer location, and the customer verification.

15. The platform of claim 1, further comprising at least one of an energy storage device, and an energy collection device.

16. The platform of claim 1, further comprising a screen configured to display a media.

17. The platform of claim 16, wherein the media comprises a media based on the ordered item, a media associated with the unordered item, a price associated with the ordered item, a price associated with the unordered item, the selection, the order, the absence of the ordered item, the absence of the unordered item, the customer location, the customer verification, or any combination thereof.

18. The platform of claim 1, wherein the application further comprises a payment module configured to charge the customer based on the ordered item being removed from the compartment, that the unordered item being removed from the compartment, or both.

19. The platform of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the application is performed aboard the vehicle.

20. The platform of claim 1, wherein the processor resides aboard the vehicle.

21. The platform of claim 1, wherein the ordered item comprises a plurality of ordered items, the unordered item comprises a plurality of unordered items, or both.

22. The platform of claim 1, wherein the autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicle further comprises a vehicle length greater than a vehicle height.

23. The platform of claim 1, wherein the locking compartment comprises an ordered section and an unordered section, wherein the ordered section is configured to contain and secure the ordered item, wherein the unordered section is configured to contain and secure the unordered item.