Delivering ordered items to an appropriate address

• US 7,610,224 B2
• Filed: 11/04/2002
• Issued: 10/27/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Spiegel, Joel R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zeender; F. Ryan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sheikh; Asfand M
• Application Number:
  US10/287,454
• Publication Number:
  US 20030120505A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,549 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705/28
• US Class Current: 705/28
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24 Querying
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0838 Historical data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders

Abstract

A method, system, and computer-readable medium for automatically determining appropriate delivery information for one or more items of an order or potential order is described. A variety of types of information can be considered when determining what delivery information is appropriate for one or more items, such as a type of the items, the particular items, relationships of the items to other items, information about the purchaser, and/or information about the recipient. In addition, the automatic determination of an appropriate address for an item being ordered or potentially ordered by a user can be made in a variety of ways, such as based on inferences from past behavior when ordering items, on inferences from information about the item and from available delivery information for the user, and/or on previous explicit indications from the user.

Claims

1. A method for assisting users by determining appropriate delivery addresses for items, the method comprising:

receiving, at a computer, a potential order from a user for one or more items;

determining, by a computer, a type of one or more of the one or more items;

automatically selecting, by a computer, a delivery address associated with the user, wherein said automatically selecting comprises selecting one from among a plurality of delivery addresses previously specified by the user, wherein the selecting depends upon the determined type; and

identifying, via a computer, to the user the selected delivery address as a delivery address to which to deliver the one or more of the one or more items for the potential order.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determined type is one of multiple item types specific to the user.

3. The method of claim 2, including defining the multiple item types specific to the user based on indications received from the user.

4. The method of claim 2, including defining the multiple item types specific to the user based on analysis of past interactions of the user with items.

5. The method of claim 1, including retrieving indications of multiple delivery addresses that are associated with the user, and wherein the selected delivery address is one of the multiple delivery addresses.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein items of the determined type are deliverable to multiple of the delivery addresses associated with the user, and wherein the selected delivery address is determined to be a most preferable of the multiple delivery addresses to which items of the determined type are deliverable.

7. The method of claim 5, including identifying to the user multiple of the delivery addresses associated with the user as options to which items of the determined type can be delivered.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the determined type is a type able to be delivered electronically, and wherein the selected delivery address is an electronic delivery address.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the user used a client computing device to place the potential order for the one or more items, and wherein the electronic delivery address is associated with an accessible device other than the client computing device.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the one or more of the one or more items is a physical item, and wherein the selected delivery address is a physical delivery address.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein items of the determined type may be delivered as gifts, and wherein the selected delivery address is for a person other than the user.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying to the user of the selected delivery address is performed before an indication to initiate processing for the potential order is received from the user.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the identifying to the user of the selected delivery address includes providing information to enable the user to initiate processing for the potential order in such a manner as to have indicated items delivered to the selected delivery address.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the information is provided as part of a Web page transmitted to the user, and wherein the provided information to enable the user to initiate the processing includes a displayed control that is selectable by the user to initiate the processing.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the potential order has been initiated by the user, but has not been completed.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the identifying to the user of the selected delivery address includes providing information to enable the user to complete the ordering process for the potential order in such a manner as to have one or more of the one or more items delivered to the determined delivery address.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein an ordering process for the potential order will complete without further interaction by the user unless the user intervenes within a limited period of time, and wherein the identifying to the user of the selected delivery address includes providing an indication that the items will be delivered to the selected delivery address unless the user intervenes within the limited period of time.

18. The method of claim 17, including:

receiving an indication of an intervention by the user within the limited period of time to deliver one or more of the one or more items to an alternate delivery address different from the selected delivery address; and

indicating to use the alternate delivery address for the one or more of the one or more items.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the user does not intervene within the limited period of time, and including indicating to deliver one or more of the one or more items to the selected delivery address.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein multiple procurement options that each include at least one delivery address are associated with the user, wherein the selecting of the delivery address includes selecting at least one of the procurement options that includes the selected delivery address, and wherein the identifying of the selected delivery address to the user includes identifying at least one of the selected procurement options.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein multiple of the procurement options include the determined delivery address, and wherein the selecting of the procurement options includes using preference information for the user to select one of the procurement options that include the selected delivery address.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting of the delivery address is additionally based in part on preference information associated with the user.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting of the delivery address includes determining a delivery manner which is appropriate for use when delivering the one or more of the one or more items to the determined delivery address, and wherein the identifying of the determined delivery address to the user includes identifying the determined delivery manner.

24. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting of the delivery address depends upon a defined association between the determined type and the selected delivery address.

25. The method of claim 24, including generating the defined association for the user before selecting the delivery address.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein the defined association was previously specified by the user.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein the defined association is based on items of the determined type being previously delivered to the selected delivery address by for the user.

28. The method of claim 24, wherein the selected delivery address is of a particular type, and wherein the defined association is based on items of the determined type being previously delivered to delivery addresses of the particular type by other users.

29. The method of claim 24, wherein the selected delivery address is of a particular type, and wherein the defined association is based on delivery addresses of the particular type being compatible with the determined type.

30. The method of claim 1, including indicating to order the items for delivery to the selected delivery address.

31. The method of claim 1, including delivering the one or more of the one or more items to the determined delivery address.

32. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying of the selected delivery address to the user includes providing indications to the user of multiple delivery addresses that are associated with the user and of, for each of multiple of the indicated delivery addresses, whether that delivery address is expected to be the preferable for delivery of the one or more of the one or more items.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the provided indications of whether a delivery address is expected to be the preferable for delivery of the one or more of the one or more items includes a determined degree of relevancy to the one or more of the one or more items.

34. The method of claim 32, wherein the providing of the indications includes presenting one or more controls that are selectable by the user to specify one of the indicated delivery addresses as a delivery address for the one or more of the one or more items.

35. A computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computing system to determine appropriate delivery addresses for items, by performing a method comprising:

receiving from a user a potential order for one or more items;

determining a type of one or more of the one or more items;

automatically selecting a delivery address associated with the user, wherein said automatically selecting comprises selecting one from among a plurality of delivery addresses previously specified by the user, wherein the selecting depends upon the determined type; and

providing an indication of the determined delivery address as a delivery address to which to deliver the one or more of the one or more items for the potential order.

36. The computer-readable medium of claim 35, wherein the selecting of the delivery address depends upon a predefined association for the user between the determined type and the selected delivery address.

37. The computer-readable medium of claim 35, wherein the computer-readable medium is a memory of the computing system.

38. The computer-readable medium of claim 35, wherein the computer-readable medium is a data transmission medium transmitting a generated data signal containing the contents.

39. The computer-readable medium of claim 35, wherein the contents are instructions that when executed cause the computing system to perform the method.

40. A computing device for determining appropriate delivery addresses for items, comprising:

a delivery address determiner that is configured for;

receiving from a user a potential order for one or more items;

determining a type of one or more of the one or more items; and

automatically selecting one of multiple delivery addresses for the user, wherein said automatically selecting comprises selecting one from among a plurality of delivery addresses previously specified by the user, wherein the selecting depends upon the determined type; and

an output module that is capable of providing an indication of the determined delivery address to which to deliver the one or more of the one or more items for the potential order.

41. The computing device of claim 40, wherein the delivery address determiner selects the delivery address based on a predefined association for the user between the determined type and the selected delivery address.

42. The computing device of claim 40, wherein the delivery address determiner is executing in memory of the computing device.

43. A computer system for determining appropriate delivery addresses for items, comprising:

means for receiving from a user a potential order for one or more items;

means for determining a type of one or more of the one or more items; and

means for automatically selecting a delivery address associated with the user, wherein said automatically selecting comprises selecting one from among a plurality of delivery addresses previously specified by the user, wherein the selecting depends upon the determined type; and

means for providing an indication of the determined delivery address to which to deliver the one or more of the one or more items for the potential order.

44. A method for assisting users by determining preferable delivery addresses for items, the method comprising:

for each user in a group of multiple distinct users,

receiving, at a computer, an indication from the user for one or more items; and

without further intervention by the user,

determining, by a computer, an item type of one or more of the one or more items;

retrieving, by a computer, an indication of an association for the user between the determined item type and one of multiple delivery addresses associated with the user;

selecting, by a computer, the one delivery address as a preferable delivery address for items of the determined item type when ordered by that user; and

indicating, via a computer, the selected delivery address as a delivery address to which to deliver items of the determined type.

45. The method of claim 44, including, before the receiving of the indication, generating for each user the association for the user based on an indication of the association received from the user.

46. The method of claim 44, including, before the receiving of the indication, generating for each user the association for the user based on an analysis of previous deliveries for the user of items of the determined type.

47. The method of claim 44, including, before the receiving of the indication, generating for each user the association for the user based on an analysis of previous deliveries for other users of items of the determined type.

48. The method of claim 44, including, before the receiving of the indication, generating for each user the association for the user based on determining that a type of the selected delivery address is compatible with the determined item type.

49. The method of claim 44, wherein the item types determined for users are specific to the users, such that the determined item type for the one or more items indicated by a first of the users is distinct from the determined item type for the same one or more items when indicated by a second of the users.

50. The method of claim 49, including, before the receiving of the indication, generating for each user multiple item types for the user association for the user based on indications of those item types received from the user.

51. The method of claim 49, including, before the receiving of the indication, generating for each user multiple item types for the user association for the user based on an analysis of previous deliveries of items for the user.

52. The method of claim 44, including receiving an indication from the user to deliver the indicated one or more items to the indicated delivery address, and indicating to deliver the indicated one or more items to the indicated delivery address.

53. The method of claim 44, wherein the indicating of the selected delivery address includes providing indications of multiple delivery addresses that are associated with a user as user-selectable options of a delivery address for the indicated items.

54. The method of claim 53, wherein the indicating of the selected delivery address includes presenting one or more controls that are selectable to order the indicated items for delivery to the selected delivery address.

55. A method for determining delivery addresses expected to be preferable to a user for delivery of items, the method comprising:

receiving, at a computer, a potential order from the user for multiple items, including a first item and a second item;

automatically determining, by a computer, a first delivery address associated with the user expected to be preferable for delivery of the first item, wherein the first delivery address is determined based on a type of the first item;

identifying, via a computer, to the user the determined first delivery address as a delivery address to which to deliver the first item for the potential order;

automatically determining, by a computer, a second delivery address associated with the user expected to be preferable for delivery of the second item, wherein the second delivery address is determined based on a type of the second item; and

identifying, via a computer, to the user the determined second delivery address as a delivery address to which to deliver the second item for the potential order,

wherein the first delivery address and the second delivery address differ.

56. The method of claim 55, wherein the addresses are physical addresses and the items are physical items.

57. The method of claim 55, wherein the addresses are electronic addresses and the items are electronic items.

58. The method of claim 55, wherein the first address and the first item are physical, and the second address and the second item are electronic.