Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
SYSTEM FOR PARCEL TRANSPORT AND TRACKING
OPERATED RESPONSIVE TO DATA BEARING RECORDS
DAN-023 CA
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to a depository apparatus and system that operates to
control and record the
receipt and removal of deposit items in response to data bearing records.
Exemplary arrangements relate to
systems that facilitate the pickup and delivery of items.
BACKGROUND
Depositories that operate to accept deposit items from users have been
implemented in a number of
different business environments. Commonly depositories are implemented for
receiving items that are to be
provided to an owner of the depository. For example, depositories have been
implemented to receive financial
deposits, utility bill payments or other items of value which are to be
provided only to the bank, utility
company or other entity that operates the depository. Generally the
depositories are implemented so that once
an item has been deposited therein by the user, only an authorized
representative of the depository operator is
enabled to access the deposited items and remove them from the depository for
further processing.
Various endeavors have been made to improve depositories and the processes
associated with the
receipt and removal of deposit items. However, depositories and depository
systems may benefit from
improvements.
SUMMARY
The exemplary arrangements described herein relate to a depositories and
associated systems that
operate to accept and make available deposit items such as parcels to
authorized users responsive at least in
part to data read from data bearing records. Each exemplary depository
includes a body that bounds an interior
area which is configured to hold deposit items. The exemplary interior area
includes one or more
compartments each of which is accessible through a respective opening. Access
through the opening to each
compartment interior area is controlled by a respective door that is mounted
in connection with the body and is
movable between open and closed positions. An electronic lock is associated
with each door. The lock is
selectively changeable between locked and unlocked conditions. In the locked
condition the lock is operative
to hold the door in the closed position preventing access to the compartment.
The exemplary depository is in operative connection with at least one sensor
comprising a reading
device. The reading device is configured to read indicia on items such as
parcels that are positionable within
the interior area. The exemplary embodiment further includes at least one
input device. The at least one input
device is usable to input data which enables authorized users to access the
interior area of the depository.
In the exemplary arrangement the depository includes control circuitry. The
control circuitry is in
operative connection with the at least one reading device, the at least one
input device, each of the locks and at
least one wireless communication device. Responsive to the receipt of user
identifying information from data
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bearing records through the at least one input device, the control circuitry
is operative to cause an access
determination to be made that the received user identifying information
corresponds to stored data associated
with an authorized user that is authorized to access the interior area of the
depository. Responsive at least in
part to the determination that the data bearing record data corresponds to an
authorized user, a lock associated
with at least one compartment is changed from the locked condition to the
unlocked condition such that the
authorized user can open the door and access the compartment interior area.
The exemplary control circuitry is further operative to receive from the at
least one reading device
item indicia from a deposit item that is either being placed in or removed
from the interior area. The
exemplary control circuitry is further operative responsive to the at least
one reading device to determine an
action status indicative of whether the deposit item is removed from or placed
into the interior area. An item
determination is made through operation of the control circuitry concerning
whether the item indicia that is
read from the deposit item corresponds to stored data associated with a
deposit item to be placed into or
removed from the interior area of the depository by the authorized user.
Once the deposit item has been placed in or removed from the interior area of
the depository, the door
is closed and the control circuitry is operative to return the lock to the
locked condition. A system in operative
connection with the exemplary control circuitry is operative to track the
status of the deposit item. This may
include for example, tracking transport of the deposit item to another
depository into which the item can be
deposited by the authorized user who removed it from the first depository, so
that the item may then undergo
further processing activity. Alternatively, the system may enable a further
authorized user to access and
remove a deposit item that had been previously placed in the depository, and
track the receipt of the deposit
item by an authorized user that is the authorized recipient of the item.
Depositories may include one or a
plurality of interior areas the access to each of which is selectively
controlled by a respective door and a
respective lock.
Exemplary embodiments of the control circuitry associated with the depository
enable determining the
available space in the interior area. This enables evaluating whether the
depository or a compartment therein
has space available to accept a further deposit item prior to a user who is
seeking to deposit an item being
directed to the depository. Other exemplary arrangements include one or more
indicators which operate
responsive to the control circuitry and the at least one reading device, to
provide indications to users that they
have placed or removed proper deposit items from the interior area. Other
exemplary arrangements include the
ability for the depository to provide audit information that includes
identifying indicia associated with deposit
items currently positioned in the interior area, as well as data regarding
items previously placed in or removed
from the depository. Exemplary arrangements may also capture and store images
of users and deposit items to
further provide records of activities conducted at the depository. Further
exemplary arrangements provide
information to item carriers that transport items between depositories and
that pickup and deliver deposit items
at customer locations
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Numerous other features and arrangements may be used in exemplary systems to
provide reliable,
cost-effective deposit and item tracking capabilities.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a depository of an exemplary embodiment with
access to the interior
area thereof closed, and a portable wireless device which may be used in
conjunction with operation of the
depository.
Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 but with the interior area of the
depository accessible from
outside the depository.
Figure 3 is a schematic view of exemplary control circuitry used in connection
with the depository.
Figure 4 is a schematic view of a network in which the exemplary depository
may be operative.
Figure 5 is a plan view of a portable wireless device that is usable by an
authorized user of the
depository in connection with obtaining access thereto for placing items into
or removing items from the
interior area of the depository.
Figure 6 is a schematic view of the circuitry associated with the device of
Figure 5 and an associated
system for producing data bearing records that can be associated with deposit
items.
Figure 7 is a plan view of the portable wireless device that may be used by an
authorized user to
access the interior area of a depository for purposes of taking deposit items
therein for transport.
Figure 8 is a schematic view of circuitry associated with the device of Figure
7, including the
capabilities for tracking the device and deposit items associated with the
user thereof
Figure 9 is a schematic view of types of data bearing records included in an
exemplary system related
to authorized users who transport deposit items between depositories.
Figure 10 is a schematic view listing types of data bearing records included
in an exemplary system
associated with depositories related to authorized users who place deposit
items in depositories for subsequent
transport and/or who remove items from depositories for purposes of receiving
such items.
Figure 11 is a schematic view listing types of data bearing records included
in an exemplary system
which relate to entities that are the owners of the exemplary depositories.
Figures 12 through 28 are a schematic representation of logic flow carried out
by the control circuitry
of the exemplary depository, associated central system circuitry and devices
operated by authorized users who
place deposit items into and/or remove deposit items from the depositories.
Figures 28 through 30 are a schematic representation logic flow carried out by
the control circuitry of
an exemplary depository, associated central system circuitry and devices
operated by authorized users in
connection with removing a deposit item from a depository.
Figures 31 through 34 are a schematic representation of logic flow carried out
by the control circuitry
of the exemplary depository, associated central system circuitry and devices
operated by authorized users in
connection with delivery and payment associated with a deposit item placed in
the depository.
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Figure 35 is a block schematic overview depicting the modules in association
with the controller and
sensor/actuator array.
Figure 36 is a perspective view of a repository embodiment according to
aspects of exemplary
systems.
Figure 37 is an exploded perspective view of the repository depicted in Figure
36.
Figure 38 is perspective view of the repository shown in Figure 36, with a
parcel delivery chute door
in a partially opened position.
Figure 39 is a perspective view of the repository shown in Figure 36, with a
parcel delivery chute door
in a fully opened position.
Figure 40 is a block diagram representation of a controller board according to
an exemplary
arrangement.
Figure 41 is a diagrammatic representation of a controller board
processor/memory and peripherals
interface.
Figure 42 is a block diagram representation of control, data, and address
messaging between a
processor, a peripherals interface and peripheral I/O devices.
Figure 43 is a block diagram of a controller board according to an exemplary
arrangement, showing
various peripherals, interface bus examples, power supply and a number of
examples of peripherals.
Figure 44 is a detailed layout of an exemplary embodiment showing a controller
board with
connections to various peripherals, a connection to a delivery lock box and
its associated peripherals.
Figures 45-48 are views of an alternative item repository including a
plurality of selectively accessible
interior areas for housing delivery items.
Figure 49 is a schematic view of a system for the delivery of delivery items.
Figure 50 is a schematic view of system circuitry associated with a delivery
item system.
Figure 51 is a perspective view of an exemplary repository that may be used in
a system for parcel
transport and tracking in an exemplary arrangement.
Figure 52 is a front view of the repository.
Figure 53 is a left side view of the repository.
Figure 54 is a perspective view of the exemplary repository with the
compartment doors open and
including a solar panel mounted to the top thereof.
Figure 55 is a perspective view of the exemplary repository interior with the
top and a door removed
to show interior components.
Figure 56 is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary channel used in the
exemplary repository.
Figure 57 is a front view of an exemplary repository door.
Figure 58 is an exploded view of a portion of the repository including
components used in the
mounting of an exemplary door.
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Figure 59 is a perspective view showing a front side of an exemplary mounting
strip used in the
mounting of a repository door.
Figure 60 is a further perspective view showing a rear side of the exemplary
mounting strip.
Figure 61 is a view showing the exemplary mounting strip within a track of a
channel.
Figure 62 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 12 ¨ 12 in Figure 61.
Figure 63 is a perspective view of an exemplary shelf of the repository
showing a top portion thereof
Figure 64 is a perspective view showing the underside of the shelf
Figure 65 is an enlarged view of the exemplary shelf showing the tapered ramp
surfaces on a frame
piece of the exemplary shelf.
Figure 66 is a perspective view of a vertical divider used to separate
compartments in the exemplary
repository.
Figure 67 is a further perspective view of the exemplary divider.
Figure 68 is a perspective view of a further exemplary shelf used in the
exemplary repository.
Figure 69 is a perspective view of an exemplary electronic lock that is used
in the exemplary
repository.
Figure 70 is a perspective view of an exemplary bolt that is releasably
engageable with the electronic
locks of the exemplary repository.
Figure 71 is a perspective view showing an interior side of a right side
exterior wall and a channel of
an exemplary repository in engaged relation.
Figure 72 is a perspective view showing engagement of a wall end of the
exterior wall shown in
Figure 71, with the channel.
Figure 73 is a perspective view showing an interior side of a left side
exterior wall and a channel of an
exemplary repository in engaged relation.
Figure 74 is a perspective view showing engagement of a wall end of the
exterior wall shown in
Figure 73 with the channel.
Figure 75 is a perspective view showing the interior side of the left side
exterior wall.
Figure 76 shows an enlarged view of the rear portion of the left side interior
wall.
Figure 77 shows an exemplary back wall of the repository.
Figure 78 shows an enlarged view of the interior face of the back wall.
Figure 79 is a perspective view showing the upper side of an exemplary
repository bottom portion.
Figure 80 is a perspective view showing the lower side of the exemplary bottom
portion.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring now to the drawings and particularly to Figure 1, there is shown
therein an exemplary
depository generally indicated 10. A depository is alternatively referred to
herein as a repository. The
exemplary depository shown includes a body 12 which bounds an interior area 14
(see Figure 2). The interior
area 14 is accessible from outside the body 12 through an opening 16. A door
18 is movably mounted in
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operative connection with the body through hinged connections. The door 18 is
sized for closing the opening
16 when the door is in a closed position as shown in Figure 1. The door 18 is
movable to an open position
shown in Figure 2 in which at least a portion of the door is disposed from the
opening 16 and the interior area
14 is accessible from outside the body 12.
The exemplary depository 10 further includes at least one input device 20. In
the exemplary
embodiment the at least one input device includes a manually accessible input
device that is operatively
accessible when the door is in the closed position. In some exemplary
embodiments the at least one input
device 20 includes a keypad through which codes can be manually input. Further
in exemplary arrangements
the at least one input device includes a radio frequency (RF) input device
such as a wireless transceiver that is
operative to communicate wireless signals with a portable wireless device 22.
In some exemplary
arrangements the RF input device may include a wireless communication device
that is operative to
communicate signals via a Bluetooth, NFC, cellular or other wireless
communication method.
In other exemplary embodiments input devices may include other types of
readers or devices that are
operative to receive or read indicia. Exemplary input devices may include
without limitation, card readers,
.. token readers, barcode readers, infrared readers or other types of devices
that may receive inputs that are
usable to determine whether access to the depository should be provided. Of
course it should be understood
that multiple different types of input devices may be used in operative
connection with a single depository
depending on the access requirements thereto.
The exemplary depository further includes at least one electrically actuated
lock 24. In the exemplary
.. embodiment the lock is changeable between a locked condition in which the
door 18 is held in a closed
position, and an unlocked condition in which the door is enabled to be moved
from the closed position to the
open position. The exemplary depository is in operative connection with at
least one sensor which comprises a
reading device 26. In the exemplary embodiment the at least one reading device
may include one or a plurality
of image capture devices including at least one camera. In other arrangements
the reader may comprise a
portable wireless device. The at least one reading device of the exemplary
arrangement is usable to read
machine readable indicia 28 that is included on deposit items 30. In exemplary
arrangements the reading
devices 26 are operative to read indicia such as bar codes (including without
limitation two-dimensional bar
codes and QR codes) that are included on deposit items. Further in exemplary
arrangements the at least one
reading device is operative to capture information usable to make a status
determination that a deposit item is
removed from or placed into the interior area of the depository. It should be
understood however that although
in the exemplary embodiment the sensors comprising reading devices operate to
read visible indicia and
capture images, in other arrangements other types of reading devices that read
different types of signals or
indicia may be utilized. This may include for example, card readers,
fingerprint readers or other types of
biometric readers including cameras or microphones, LIDAR image capture
devices and readers that are
capable of communicating using wireless signals such as the wireless input
devices previously discussed.
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The exemplary depository 10 further includes at least one indicator 32. As
later discussed, the
exemplary at least one indicator may include an output device operative to
provide an indication as to whether
a deposit item that is being placed in or removed from the interior area of
the depository is a correct item to be
removed by the particular user who has accessed the depository. In other
exemplary arrangements the at least
one indictor may include an output device in operative connection with the
depository, such as an output
device of a user's portable wireless device. The exemplary depository further
includes at least one sensor that
comprises a weight sensor 43. The at least one weight sensor is usable to
determine the weight of one or more
items that are within an interior area of the depository. The exemplary
depository further includes a wireless
communication device 34. The wireless communication device which is
alternatively referred to herein as a
wireless communication portal or a wireless communication interface is
operative to enable the control
circuitry associated with the depository to communicate with one or more local
or remote systems or devices
as later discussed. In some arrangements the wireless communications device
may include a wireless input
device 20. Exemplary depository 10 further includes solar panels 36. The
exemplary solar panels 36 are in
supported connection with the door 18 and are suitable for providing
electrical power to the depository from
exposure of the solar panels to sunlight. In the exemplary arrangement a
manually engageable handle 38 is in
operative connection with the door 18 to facilitate the manual opening and
closing thereof by authorized users.
Of course it should be understood that these depository devices and
configurations are exemplary and in other
embodiments other configurations may be used.
As shown schematically in Figure 3 the exemplary depository is in operative
correction with control
circuitry 40. The exemplary control circuitry includes one or more circuits
which are operative to
communicate electrical signals and control the operation of the devices of the
depository. The control circuitry
may be located proximate to the depository or may have some portions remotely
located therefrom. In the
exemplary arrangement the control circuitry 40 includes at least one circuit
including at least one processor
schematically indicated 42 and at least one data store schematically indicated
44. In exemplary arrangements
the processor may include a processor suitable for carrying out circuit
executable instructions that are stored in
the one or more associated data stores. The processor includes or is in
operative connection with a non-volatile
storage medium including instructions that include a basic input/output system
(BIOS). For example, the
processor may correspond to one or more of a combination of a CPU, FPGA, ASIC
or any other integrated
circuit or other type of circuit that is capable of processing data and
instructions. The one or more data stores
may correspond to one or more of volatile or non-volatile memories such as
random access memory, flash
memory, magnetic memory, optical memory, solid state memory or other devices
that are operative to store
computer executable instructions and data. Processor executable instructions
may include instructions in any
of a plurality of programming languages and formats including, without
limitation, routines, subroutines,
programs, scripts, threads of execution, objects, methodologies and functions
which carry out the actions such
as those described herein. Structures for processors may include, correspond
to and utilize the principles
described in the textbook entitled Microprocessor Architecture, Programming
and Applications with the 8085
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by Ramesh S. Gaonker (Prentice Hall 2002), which is incorporated herein by
reference in its entirety.
Exemplary arrangements may include processors made by Intel Corporation,
Advanced Micro Devices or
other suitable processors. Of course it should be understood that these
processors are exemplary of many types
of processors that may be used.
The exemplary data stores used in connection with exemplary embodiments may
include one or more
of several types of mediums suitable for holding circuit executable
instructions and data. Such instructions
and data may be non-transitory. These may include for example, magnetic media,
optical media, solid-state
media or other types of media such as RAM, ROM, PROM, flash memory, computer
hard drives or any other
form of media suitable for holding data and circuit executable instructions.
Exemplary control circuitry may
include other components such as hardware and/or software interfaces for
communication with devices within
the depository or for communication with external devices and systems. The
exemplary control circuitry 40
further includes a clock 46. The clock is operative to provide time functions
in connection with operation of
the depository and associated systems as later discussed.
As represented in Figure 3 the control circuitry 40 is in operative connection
with the at least one
input device 20, the lock 24 and the at least one sensor including the at
least one reading device 26. The
control circuitry 40 is further in operative connection with the at least one
indicator 32, the at least one weight
sensor 43 and the at least one wireless communication device 34. In the
exemplary arrangement the devices of
the depository and the control circuitry are powered by a battery 48. The
battery 48 is in operative connection
with the solar panels 36. The control circuitry is operative to control the
delivery of power to the battery such
that the battery maintains a suitable power level for operating the depository
during both light and darkness.
However other embodiments may include other power sources, including the
ability to connect to a suitable
available supply of household current or other power for purposes of operating
the depository.
While the exemplary depository includes a single interior area for holding
deposit items, other
depositories may have other configurations. Such other configurations may
include a plurality of interior areas
or compartments, each of which are accessible via a respective opening, each
of which openings has an
associated closable door, drawer or other closure member, each of which is
referred to herein as a door for
brevity. Exemplary arrangements of depositories including a plurality of
interior areas are discussed hereafter
in this detailed description.
Figure 4 shows schematically an exemplary network 50 in which depository 10
may be operated. It
should be understood that this exemplary network arrangement is shown
schematically and in exemplary
arrangements the network may include a plurality of interconnected networks.
In the exemplary arrangement a plurality of depositories 10, 52, 54, 56 and 58
are in operative
connection with the network. In exemplary arrangements all these depositories
may be similar to depository
10 previously discussed. The control circuitry associated with each of the
depositories is operative to
communicate in the network through the respective wireless communication
device associated with the
depository which may be alternatively referred to herein as a wireless
transceiver. Of course it should be
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understood that in other arrangements the depositories may be in operative
connection with one or more
networks via other wired or wireless communication methods. Further it should
be understood that exemplary
embodiments may include a much larger number of depositories than is
represented in Figure 4.
The exemplary network 50 is in operative connection with central system
circuitry 60. The exemplary
central circuitry includes one or more processors and data stores of the types
previously discussed. In some
arrangements the central system circuitry 60 which is alternatively referred
to herein as central circuitry, may
include one or more servers with associated data stores 62 that perform the
functions hereinafter described.
Exemplary arrangements may include central system circuitry located at a
single location, or central system
circuitry in a distributed arrangement of control circuitry which operates in
a cloud environment, virtual server
environment or other suitable environment for performing the functions
described herein. Numerous different
types of central system circuitry arrangements may be utilized in connection
with exemplary embodiments.
The exemplary network further includes a plurality of portable wireless
devices that are operated by
users who wish to send deposit items to others or to receive deposit items
from others through the use of the
depositories and associated system. Devices 64, 66 and 68 in Figure 4 are
representative of devices associated
with individuals who send and/or receive deposit items.
In exemplary arrangements the devices may comprise portable wireless devices
associated with users
who are registered users of the system. In some exemplary arrangements the
registered users may have stored
in at least one data store associated with the central system circuitry, user
identifying data such as an ID token
that uniquely identifies the registered user, contact data associated with a
device of the registered user such as a
communication address such as a phone number or network address associated
with a user's portable wireless
device, funds source data that corresponds to a source of funds such as a
credit or debit card account or similar
monetary account which in exemplary arrangements may be credited or debited
through operation of the
system, as well as other associated data. Of course it should be understood
that this data that is associated with
registered system users is exemplary and in other arrangements other types of
registered user information may
be utilized.
Figures 5 and 6 show an exemplary portable wireless device 64 that is used by
such users in the
exemplary network. Device 64 in some exemplary arrangements may include a
portable smart phone, tablet or
other portable wireless device which includes user input devices and user
output devices such as an associated
touchscreen 70. The exemplary device 64 may include other input devices such
as a camera 72, as well as an
audio input device such as a microphone 74 and an audio output device such as
a speaker 76. A biometric
reader such as the camera, the microphone or other reader such as a
fingerprint reader may also be included.
The exemplary device 64 further includes at least one wireless communication
device 78. The at least one
wireless communication device may include a device suitable for Wi-Fi or
cellular communications. The at
least one wireless communication device 78 may also include a local RF
communication device for providing
Bluetooth or NFC communication. Of course these devices are exemplary.
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The exemplary device further includes control circuitry 80. The control
circuitry is similar to that
previously discussed and may include at least one processor 82 and at least
one data store like those previously
described. The exemplary control circuitry is in operative connection with the
component devices of the
device 64 as shown. In addition to communicating in the network 50, the
exemplary device 64 is also enabled
to communicate with other devices in other networks such as network 86.
Network 86 may include a printer
88 or other device that is operative to produce data bearing records 90. Such
data bearing records may include
labels bearing parcel identifying indicia or other data suitable for use in
connection with the exemplary
embodiments later discussed.
The exemplary network 50 is also in communication with the plurality of
portable wireless devices
associated with individuals who are item carriers that transport deposit items
between depositories. These
portable wireless devices schematically indicated 92, 94, 96, 98 and 100 may
be used by authorized and/or
registered system users to access depositories for purposes of placing deposit
items therein or removing
deposit items therefrom. Deposit items are alternatively referred to herein as
delivery items or parcels.
As represented in Figures 7 and 8 the exemplary portable wireless devices such
as device 92, that is
operated as a carrier contact device by an individual user who is an item
carrier that transports deposit items,
may include mobile phone devices including an input output device such as a
touchscreen 102. Exemplary
device 92 may further include a camera 104, as well as a microphone 106 and a
speaker 108. It may also
include other types of biometric readers and other devices. The exemplary
device 92 further includes at least
one wireless communication device 110. The at least one wireless communication
device 110 may include a
Wi-Fi interface, cellular phone interface, Bluetooth, NFC or other wireless
interface of the types previously
discussed. Further in the exemplary arrangement device 92 includes a wireless
communication interface
suitable for providing tracking of the device via a global positioning system
(GPS). The GPS capability
enables tracking the device as well as the item carrier user and deposit items
associated therewith in a manner
that is later discussed. Alternatively, cellular tracking systems or other
tracking systems may be used. The
exemplary device further includes control circuitry 112. The control circuitry
112 includes at least one
processor and at least one data store of the types previously described. The
control circuitry 112 enables
operation of the device 92 in the manner later discussed.
The exemplary network 50 is also in operative connection with portable
wireless devices which are
operated by entities that are owners of respective depositories or other
entities having responsibility for
depositories, which are also referred to as owners herein. Such owners are
registered system users in the
exemplary arrangement. These portable wireless devices schematically
represented 114, 116 may be similar in
exemplary embodiments to wireless device 64 previously discussed. However such
devices may further
include circuit executable instructions that additionally provide capabilities
for the owner of the depository to
receive payments from the operator of the system for the use of their
depositories in connection with the
storage and transport of deposit items. In exemplary arrangements such
payments are made for the receipt,
storage or delivery of deposit items that are placed into the depository by
third parties for purposes of having
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
the deposit items transported to an entity other than the entity associated
with the particular depository into
which the item is deposited or received into the repository for purposes or
pick up by another delivery item
recipient.
It should be understood that the network configuration 50 and the devices in
operative connection
therewith are exemplary. Numerous other types of devices, network
configurations and arrangements may be
utilized in connection with exemplary embodiments. Further while the exemplary
devices operated by users of
the system have been generally described as portable wireless devices, it
should be understood that other types
of stationary or portable computer devices may be operated in connection with
the system to carry out the
functions described herein.
In exemplary arrangements the central system circuitry 60 is operative to
include in at least one or
more associated data stores 62, data records related to devices that are
utilized in connection with the
exemplary system. For example in exemplary arrangements the data stores
include identifying data regarding
each depository and its respective location. Data stores may include data
regarding registered system users of
the types previously discussed. The stored data regarding depositories in
exemplary embodiments also
includes data regarding the entity that is the owner of the depository, and
restrictions that the entity who is the
owner of the depository may have placed on the use thereof. For example in
some arrangements the owner of
the depository may restrict use solely to receiving therein or having removed
therefrom deposit items that are
received or sent by the owner of the depository. Other depository owners may
establish rules which allow
other entities to provide deposit items into the depository for transport
elsewhere, or to receive items in the
depository that can be taken from the depository by the authorized recipient
entities.
Other exemplary rules that may be established in connection with depositories
may include only
having the depository available to be accessed by certain transport users,
such as users who have achieved a
certain security level or performance rating. This may include for example
transport users for deposit items
who have achieved above a certain rating based on background checks and/or
measured metrics for
performance, reliability and dependability. Other rules associated with
depositories may include restrictions
on days of the week and/or times during particular days when entities other
than the depository owner, is
permitted to access the depository. Numerous different restrictions may be set
for depositories by depository
owners or the central system circuitry operator for purposes of operating the
depository in connection with the
system.
In addition stored data regarding depositories may include information related
to security features or
other features associated with the depository. For example in order to provide
secure communication between
the central circuitry and each depository, the depository and the central
circuitry may have respective public
and private key pairs and digital certificates that enable secure
communication between the central circuitry
and the control circuitry of the respective depository. This enables the
control circuitry of the depository and
the central circuitry to identify the system originating messages and to be
assured of the origin of received
messages. In addition the central circuitry and the control circuitry of each
depository may include respective
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programming that enables the sending of instructions or other messages which
enable the operation or
performance of certain functions. For example the control circuitry of the
respective depository may include
programming from the central system that is operative to cause the locking or
unlocking of the respective lock
of the depository in response to the receipt of certain messages and/or data
by the depository from the central
system. Further in exemplary arrangements the central system may be operative
to cause the control circuitry
of a respective depository to operate the plurality of reading devices therein
for purposes of determining the
amount of space that is currently available in the interior area of the
depository. Such functionality may enable
the central circuitry to determine the ability of the particular depository to
accept therein a deposit item having
a particular size that may be available for deposit into the depository.
Further in exemplary embodiments the central circuitry may operate in
accordance with its
programming to maintain data corresponding to the indicia associated with
deposit items that are currently
positioned in the interior area of each depository. Further, in exemplary
arrangements the central system may
communicate with a respective depository so as to cause the control circuitry
thereof to deliver to the central
circuitry, data corresponding to activities that have been conducted at the
depository. This may include not
only the indicia usable to identify deposit items currently therein, but also
historical record data related to
deposit items placed into the depository and/or deposit items removed
therefrom, and data associated with the
users and times associated with each respective activity that has occurred. In
exemplary arrangements each
depository may also operate to have its control circuitry store images
associated with activities that occur at the
depository. This may include images of each user who places a deposit item
into or removes a deposit item
from the interior area of the depository. Such image data may also include
item identifying indicia included on
each item that is placed in or removed from the depository by the authorized
user as well as other data
associated with each event or activity that has occurred. Instructions
communicated from the central circuitry
may be operative to cause the control circuitry of a respective depository to
send image data corresponding to
the captured images associated with the activities that have occurred at the
depository. This may further
enable documenting the deposit or removal of deposit items as well as
facilitate resolving any discrepancies
which may occur. Of course these functions and capabilities, and stored record
data of the central circuitry and
each depository is exemplary, and in other embodiments other approaches may be
used.
Further in exemplary embodiments the central system circuitry 60 is operative
to include in the at least
one data store 62 information regarding the devices and authorized and/or
registered users who utilize the
depositories included in the system. For example in an exemplary embodiment
the central circuitry is
operative to include the information shown in Figure 9 for the devices such as
devices 92, 94, 96, 98 and 100
that are operated by the authorized users who access the depositories and
transport deposit items. In the
exemplary arrangements each of the authorized and/or registered users has
included in the data store associated
with their portable wireless device, identifying data that is usable in
conjunction with the depositories to
indicate that the user of the device is an authorized and/or registered user.
Such data may include for example,
ID token information which can be utilized to identify the user as an
authorized and/or registered user. Such
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token information may include digital information that can be correlated
through operation of the central
circuitry with the identity of the particular individual that is associated
with operation of the particular device.
In addition such token information may include other types of data which can
be used for identification
purposes. Such other types of data may include for example, user biometric
data such as fingerprint data, iris
scan data or other data that comprises record data that is uniquely associated
with the user.
Further in other exemplary arrangements stored data regarding users may
include other record data
which may be utilized in connection with operation of the system. For example
in systems that utilize card
data for purposes of accessing depositories, the record data maintained by the
central circuitry may include the
data corresponding to the respective user's card data and other associated
data for the respective user. This
enables the system to compare the data received through the at least one input
device of a depository, to stored
data so as to identify the person seeking access to the depository as an
authorized user who is appropriately
authorized to have access thereto. Of course the approaches described in
connection with the authorized users
are exemplary, and in other embodiments other approaches may be used.
Further as described in connection with Figure 9, the record data associated
with devices operated by
users who transport items may include information regarding payments to such
users. In the exemplary system
the users who transport items between the depositories are paid for the
transport services. The payment for
services may be based on certain information regarding the particular
depository item that is transported such
as, the size of the item, the weight of the item, the distance and timing
associated with such transport and other
factors. The exemplary data that is stored by the central circuitry further
includes data regarding payments that
are made to the individuals who perform the transport services. Such payment
data may also include data such
as account data associated with a funds source of the user which enables the
making of the payments to the
user for the services provided. Alternatively such funds source data may be
associated with an account that
can be credited for amounts payable or refundable. This may include for
example, information regarding a
PayPal account, a Venmo account, a bank account, an electronic stored value
account or other accounts into
which appropriate payments to such users may be made.
Further in the exemplary arrangement the central circuitry is operative to
include data regarding the
activities that are performed by each respective user who is an item carrier
that transports deposit items in
connection with the system. Such data may include contact data for the mobile
wireless carrier contact device
of the item carrier such as a communication address of the carrier contract
device. Such data may include
metrics which include information on the timeliness and reliability of the
particular individual. For example as
later discussed, transport activities associated with particular deposit items
are assigned by the system to the
particular authorized user, and the activity is reserved to the user for a
particular time. In cases where the
particular user that is initially assigned to the activity does not perform
the activity within the allotted time, the
system is operative to reassign the activity to another item carrier user.
Such events where an activity is not
performed by a user is considered significant to the user's performance.
Likewise in situations where an
authorized user has taken longer than would normally be expected to accomplish
the transport of the deposit
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item to a depository destination, such factors would also be significant in
terms of the user's associated
metrics. Losses of items and cases of misdirected deposit items are also
significant metrics. These and other
metrics are recorded through operation of the central system circuitry with
regard to each authorized item
carrier transport user.
Further the exemplary central system circuitry is operative to apply ratings
to each authorized user
based on the metrics that are associated with the user's performance. Such
user ratings may be utilized in
connection with screening authorized users for purposes of accessing certain
depositories and/or handling
certain types or values of deposit items. Such ratings may also be utilized in
connection with determining the
rate that is paid to the user for the transport activities that are performed.
Of course these categories that are
represented in Figure 9 are exemplary and in other embodiments other or
additional information regarding
such users may be stored and evaluated through operation of the central
circuitry.
Figure 10 shows exemplary records and data items that may be associated with
shipper and recipient
users and their associated devices that place items into depositories for
purposes of requesting deliveries to
other depositories and/or that receive items from depositories. In the
exemplary network arrangement this data
would be associated with devices 64, 66 and 68 of registered users. As is the
case in connection with
individuals and devices that provide transport services, the data associated
with these devices include ID
tokens or other identifying record information that can be utilized to
reliably identify the user or device is one
that is authorized to access the depository. As the individuals that provide
the functions of providing deposit
items to be transported to the depositories will generally be required to pay
for the transport services, the
central circuitry includes data for such users that include a fund source such
as account data for assessing
charges associated with payments for shipments. This may include credit card
accounts, bank accounts,
PayPal accounts or other suitable accounts from which payments may be made.
Further in the exemplary system individuals in this category may choose to
travel an extended
distance to a depository in order to receive a deposit item that would
otherwise be handled by an item carrier
user that is paid to transport the item to a destination depository
substantially closer to the recipient or to a
designated delivery address that is not a depository. In the exemplary system
if the recipient chooses to
conduct a substantial portion of the transport by taking the item from a
depository that is remotely located from
the destination that the person arranging for shipment has paid to have the
item delivered to, then the central
circuitry is operative to compensate the recipient for the transport activity
associated with picking up the item
from the remote destination. As such the exemplary central circuitry includes
data regarding account
information which can be credited for pickup amounts to which the authorized
user receiving an item may be
entitled. This account information may include account information for
accounts which can be credited with
value to the recipient for transport and pick up of deposit items. Of course
it should be understood that the
data types shown for this category of authorized user and their associated
devices in Figure 10 is merely
exemplary of some items of information which may be included in records of the
central circuitry.
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Figure 11 shows exemplary record data that is associated with owners of
depositories and their
associated devices. The data shown in Figure 11 would generally be associated
with the devices 114, 116 that
were previously discussed in connection with the exemplary network 50. Similar
to other devices, the devices
associated with depository owners would include the identifying information
which identifies the user as an
authorized or registered shipper or recipient user. In addition in the
exemplary arrangement the records
associated with the depository owner includes data regarding the restrictions
on the depositories such as those
previously discussed. The exemplary central circuitry is operative to
associate the depository owner with the
respective depository that is owned by the depository owner and to cause the
restrictions set by the owner for
the depository to be applicable to the records associated with the depository
in the one or more data stores of
.. the central circuitry.
Further in the exemplary arrangements the depository owners are generally
entities that engage in
sending deposit items for transport and receiving deposit items. As such the
data associated with the
depository owners includes a funds source such as account information
corresponding to accounts which can
be assessed for charges associated with transport of deposit items to remote
depository destinations. Further in
exemplary arrangements the central circuitry is operative to compensate
depository owners for deposit items
that are placed in the depository of the depository owner by other authorized
user individuals for purposes of
transport to other depositories. In the exemplary arrangement the depository
owner is compensated for the use
of their depository by such third parties. The exemplary system is operative
to include in the data associated
with the depository owners, account information concerning accounts that are
credited through operation the
central circuitry for the use of the depository by other authorized entities.
Of course the types of record data shown as maintained by the central
circuitry for the different types
of devices and users associated with the system, is exemplary. Additional
types of information will generally
be stored in association with the various types of devices and users to
facilitate operation of the system and to
provide record-keeping and tracking for the activities that are carried out in
connection therewith. Further as
can be appreciated, the central circuitry is operative to store data
associated with the whereabouts of deposit
items that are moving through the system at all times, and to track the status
of depositories, and individuals
who provide transport for the items, such that the whereabouts of each deposit
item throughout the term of its
inclusion in the system can be determined at all times. In exemplary
arrangements the central circuitry is
operative to estimate arrival times for depository items at destination
depositories and makes such data
available to users responsible for sending the items and recipients. Further
historical information on each
deposit item is also maintained for a programmed time. To assure that any
errors or loss situations can be
tracked, investigated and remedied, tracking and image data can be accessed
through the central system
circuitry as well as from each of the respective depositories.
A schematic representation of the logic flow that is carried out through
operation of the central system
circuitry, the depositories and the portable wireless devices of entities that
provide, transport and receive
deposit items, is shown in Figures 12 through 27. This exemplary logic flow of
each of the devices involved is
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
exemplary and is described in connection with an example that is intended to
be representative of the operation
of the various devices. Deposit items are alternatively referred to herein as
delivery items or parcels. Of
course numerous other features and operations may be utilized in connection
with exemplary embodiments.
The example of the logic flow commences with an authorized user of the system
who wishes to have a
deposit item transported to a remote destination operating their respective
portable wireless device such as
wireless device 64. In the exemplary logic flow the entity wishing to have the
deposit item transported may be
referred to as a shipper for purposes of simplicity in connection with this
particular example.
As represented in a step 118 the individual wishing to have a deposit item
transported operates their
associated device such as device 64 to provide inputs which indicate that they
wish to have an item
transported. In a next step 120 the user operates the device to provide inputs
which are usable to identify the
user as an authorized and/or registered user of the system. In a next step 122
the user is operative to provide
inputs to their device which indicates the payment method that will be
utilized to make payment for the
transport of the deposit item. In exemplary arrangements this may include
selection from a menu to indicate
the type of payment or account that the user wishes to utilize in connection
with the deposit item. The user
may also be required to provide information or respond to certain questions
regarding the item. These
questions may include providing information regarding whether the item is
flammable or otherwise hazardous.
The individual may also be required to indicate whether the item contains
perishable or fragile material. The
user may also be required to provide information regarding the dimensions of
the item, the weight of the item
and/or the value of the item. Of course these queries are merely exemplary.
In a step 124 the user operates the device to indicate a delivery item
originating address which
corresponds to the origin for the transport of the deposit item. This may
include the user's business address or
other address. In some arrangements the originating address may include a
business address associated with
the particular depository into which the deposit item will eventually be
placed for purposes of initiating the
transport activity. In a step 126 the user inputs to the device the address
information for the delivery item
destination location which corresponds to a point or area of delivery of the
particular deposit item. This may
include an address associated with a remote depository that is associated with
the entity that will receive the
deposit item. Alternatively in other arrangements the delivery address may
include an address or area
associated with an entity that does not have a dedicated depository. In such
cases the delivery address may
include information regarding an authorized user of the system that is enabled
to access a depository is located
in proximity to them for purposes of receiving the deposit item to be
transported. In other arrangements the
delivery location may be a commercial or residential address which is the
address of the recipient.
In the exemplary arrangement the user wishing to arrange for transport of an
item may wish to pay an
incentive fee in order to have the item delivered more promptly or under
certain circumstances. In the
exemplary arrangement the programming associated with the user device enables
the user arranging for
transport to apply an incentive for particular delivery parameters or timing
that is associated with the particular
deposit item. This is represented in a step 128. This may be a payment for
delivery within a set time such as
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within one day, for example. Of course if the user does not wish to apply an
incentive, the programming
associated with the device will cause the standard rates set through operation
of the central circuitry to apply.
The exemplary programming associated with the user's device may include the
capability to capture
images of the deposit item such that the size of the deposit item can be
assessed. In some exemplary
arrangements the user device may require the user to input dimensions of the
deposit item and/or the weight
thereof via a touch screen or other input device. This is represented in a
step 130. Assessing the size of the
deposit item is useful for purposes of enabling the central system circuitry
to determine depositories where
sufficient space is available in the interior area for purposes of receiving
the deposit item therein at the present
time. This may be done in the manner previously discussed using the reading
devices that are included in the
respective depositories. The size as well as weight can also be factors in
determining the charges for transport
of the deposit item.
In some exemplary arrangements the user may have circuit executable
instructions on their mobile
device or other computer that guides a user to provide the necessary
information for shipment. In other
arrangements the central circuitry may provide an online portal which the user
may access to receive the
prompts to input necessary information, and to which the information may be
supplied.
In the exemplary arrangement, once the information has been input by the user
to the device, the
information regarding the request to transport the deposit item is submitted
to the central system circuitry as at
least one transport request message represented in a step 132. The central
circuitry is then operative to verify
the identifying information associated with the user that has submitted the
request. This is represented in a
step 134. This may include comparing user identifying data stored in the user
device such as a ID token that is
included in the at least one transport request message, with stored data
associated with authorized users by the
central circuitry. The central circuitry is also operative to verify that the
user who has submitted the request
has indicated a suitable funds source which provides a payment method
associated with the central system in
order to make payment for the transport of the deposit item. The central
system circuitry may also analyze the
delivery item size data and/or weight data included in the at least one
transport request message to determine if
the delivery item is suitable or transport through the system. This is
represented in a step 136.
The central circuitry then operates to assign a parcel ID to the particular
deposit item as represented in
step 138. The parcel ID is alternatively referred to herein as a delivery item
identifier. The data provided by
the user regarding the originating location and destination location for the
transport of the deposit item is also
stored in at least one data store associated with the central circuitry as
represented in step 140. The central
circuitry is then operative responsive to the originating location information
to resolve an originating
depository that is considered the most suitable for receipt of the deposit
item. This is represented in a step 142.
Generally the originating depository will be the depository located in closest
geographical proximity to the
user wishing to have the deposit item transported. However, in order to assure
that space for the deposit item
is available in the nearest depository, the central circuitry operates as
represented at a step 144 to determine if
the delivery item is of a suitable side and/or weight to be transported and
communicate with the initially
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selected depository to verify that sufficient space is available to accept a
deposit item of the size that was
determined at step 130. If such space is not available, the central circuitry
operates to determine an alternative
available originating depository that has the space available to receive the
deposit item therein. The central
system circuitry is operative to evaluate at least one of the size and/or the
weight of the deposit item to
determine if it is within at least one size or weight limit. If the deposit
item is not suitable for transit due to
size, weight or space factors the request is flagged to be declined or be
processed in a manner that provides
special handling.
As represented in a step 146, once the originating depository for receiving
the deposit item is resolved,
the central circuitry operates to generate a one-time code to be input by the
authorized user for purposes of
accessing the depository. The one-time code is alternatively referred to
herein as an item depositor access
code. The central circuitry is operative to correlate stored data
corresponding to at least two of the authorized
user identifying data, the delivery item identifier and the depository which
receives the item from the user
and/or a respective interior area thereof, in the at least one data store. In
a step 148 the central circuitry is then
operative to send the originating depository location information and the code
data to the user's device. In
exemplary arrangements the depository identifying data for the originating
depository may include GPS
coordinates, address data or other information that can be used to locate the
depository.
As represented at step 150 the user's device is operative to receive the data
from the central circuitry.
In situations where the transaction is not accepted due to an invalid funds
source or a parcel size or weight
outside a set limit, the user is notified the transaction is denied, or
alternatively the user is provided with
instructions to obtain special handling. If the transaction may proceed the
user may then operate their device
in the manner represented in Figure 6 to produce a data bearing record which
includes data representative of
the origin and destination address as well as indicia corresponding to the
delivery item identifier which
uniquely identifies the deposit item. The delivery item identifier is
alternatively referred to herein as a parcel
identifier. This is represented by a step 152. In the exemplary arrangements
the delivery item identifier may
be encoded in identifying indicia that may include a machine readable bar
code, a QR code or other suitable
machine readable indicia which comprises record data which can be read for
purposes of identifying the
deposit item. As represented in a step 154 in the exemplary arrangement the
user may operate their device in
association with a label printer to produce a label which is then applied to
the deposit item. In the exemplary
arrangement the label that is applied to the deposit item is externally
visible such that the machine readable
indicia thereon that corresponds to the delivery item identifier can be read
through operation of the reading
devices such as a reader included in the depository or a user's portable
wireless device. The label may also
include human readable indicia so that the particular deposit item can be
visually identified by item carrier
users or other users who access the depository. Of course it should be
understood that in other exemplary
arrangements other types of indicia may be utilized for purposes of providing
identifying indicia. Such indicia
may include for example, programmable RFID tags, QR codes, a signature or
other manually made indicia, an
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image of the deposit item, or other indicia that may be placed in operative
connection with a deposit item for
purposes of enabling the identification of the item through operation of the
system.
As represented in a step 156 the user seeking to have the deposit item
transported may utilize their
device to guide their travel to the GPS location or other location as
identified to the device, so that the user
.. may place the item into the originating depository. In the exemplary
arrangement the user operates their
device to cause data corresponding to a data bearing record which identifies
the user, to the at least one input
device on the depository. This is represented by a step 158. In the exemplary
arrangement the user device is
operative to send user identifying data such as the user token data to the RF
input device included in the
depository. The depository receives the user identifying data as represented
in step 160. The control circuitry
.. of the exemplary depository is operative to enable the keypad of the
exemplary embodiment to receive a
manually input code therethrough from the user as represented at step 162. The
input code may correspond to
the one-time depositor access code. Alternatively, in some arrangements the
one time access code may be
delivered wirelessly from the user's device to the RF input device. Further in
some arrangements user
identifying data and the one time code may be replaced by a single code string
or object. As represented at
step 164 the control circuitry of the depository is operative to wirelessly
transmit at least one message
including data corresponding to the received user identifying data and the one-
time code as well as depository
identifying data to the central circuitry. This may be done in a suitably
encrypted manner or using other
suitable security techniques to assure that the data is not compromised.
The central system circuitry is operative to receive the data from the
depository as represented at a
.. step 166. The central circuitry then operates as represented at step 168 to
verify that the received user
identifying information corresponds to the authorized user, and that the one-
time code corresponds to the code
provided to the user in connection with the request to transport the deposit
item. In the exemplary arrangement
the central circuitry is operative to assign to the user an item depositor
access code that can be utilized only on
one occasion for purposes of opening the central system assigned interior area
of the depository. This prevents
the authorized user from opening other depositories or other interior areas of
the same depository, or opening
the depository on multiple occasions using the provided code. Of course it
should be understood that this
approach is exemplary and in other arrangements other approaches may be used.
Responsive to the central circuitry making a determination based on stored
data that the data received
by the depository from the user is the appropriate data for the user accessing
the depository in connection with
receiving the deposit item, the central circuitry is operative to send one or
more messages to the depository as
represented in step 170. The messages include instructions and/or data which
are operative to cause the
repository control circuitry of the depository to unlock the lock which holds
the designated depository door in
the closed position. At a step 172 the control circuitry of the depository
operates to verify that the received
message data corresponds to an authorized message from the central circuitry
to unlock the lock. This may be
.. done by an analysis of the received message data including decryption of
the instructions and other data
included in the message which verifies the instructions as appropriately
authorized by the central circuitry.
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If the control circuitry of the depository determines that the message data
from the central circuitry is
genuine, the circuitry operates to cause the lock associated with the
appropriate door and compartment to be
changed from the locked condition to the unlocked condition. This is
represented at a step 174. The
exemplary control circuitry then operates to detect the opening of the
depository door. In some arrangements
the control circuitry causes the plurality of reading devices to operate to
capture images including the indicia
corresponding to the delivery item identifier included on the depository item
as represented at step 176. The
control circuitry also operates to capture images showing the user as well as
the deposit item as it is being
placed into the interior area of the depository. These images are stored in
the data store associated with the
control circuitry of the depository along with time data to indicate when the
activity occurred. In other
exemplary arrangements the user may be instructed to operate their portable
wireless device to have a camera
thereon capture an image of the item identifying indicia on the deposit item,
identifying indicia on the
depository, or both. This is represented by a step 178.
Further in exemplary arrangements data from the at least one weight sensor may
be captured to verify
placement of the item in the depository and/or to detect the weight of the
item. The additional weight added to
the depository may be used to verify that the weight indicated for the item by
the shipper is accurate. If the
item is substantially heavier than specified in the at least one transport
request message, the person requesting
the shipment may be assessed an additional charge. Sensors such as image
capture devices such as cameras or
LIDAR sensors may be used to capture data that is used to determine the size
of the item. This may be done so
that the central system circuitry can verify that the parcel size is
consistent with the parcel size data included in
the at least one transport request message. Image sensors, sonic sensors or
other sensors may operate to
capture other properties such as color, sound absorption, reflectivity of
light or sound waves, or other types of
signals as well as combinations thereof. Further the weight, size and/or other
property (or a combination of
properties) associated with the item may be used by the central system
circuitry as an additional identifying
feature and tracking identifier for the item. Of course these approaches are
exemplary.
In the exemplary arrangement the control circuitry associated with the
depository is operative to send
at least one message including data corresponding to the indicia read,
detected and/or sensed from the deposit
item to the central circuitry as represented at step 180. The central
circuitry receives the data as represented at
step 182 and verifies that the received data and read indicia corresponds to
the identifying information
associated with the deposit item and the authorized user who is authorized to
place the deposit item in the
depository. This is represented by step 184. The central circuitry is then
operative to send one or more
messages to the depository indicating that the deposit item is acceptable into
the depository. This is
represented by a step 186. It should be understood however that if the central
circuitry determines that
received data or the indicia associated with the deposit item is incorrect
and/or does not correspond with the
authorized user who has accessed the depository, the central circuitry will
send at least one message including
data which is indicative of this discrepancy to the depository.
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
In the exemplary logic flow as represented at step 188 the wireless
communication portal of the
depository receives the data indicative of whether the deposit item and its
receipt into the depository is
acceptable. The control circuitry of the exemplary depository then operates to
provide an indication if the
acceptance of the deposit item is authorized. This is represented by a step
190. In the exemplary arrangement,
the control circuitry of the depository is operative to cause operation of the
at least one indicator 32 to provide
an indication as to whether the acceptance of the deposit item is authorized.
For example in an exemplary
arrangement the indicator may be operated to provide a green color light
output when the deposit item is
acceptable and a red color light output when the deposit item is not
acceptable. In addition an audio
annunciator output or other indicator output may be output by the depository
to indicate the acceptability or
unacceptability of the deposit. In other arrangements an indication of the
acceptability of the deposit item may
be sent to the user's mobile device so as to cause at least one output from an
output device thereof. In other
arrangements the door of the depository may be spring loaded so that the door
at least partially opens
responsive to the deposit item being acceptable. Of course these outputs are
exemplary and in other
arrangements other types of outputs may be provided.
Further in exemplary arrangements at least one message indicative of a
determination as to the
acceptability or unacceptability of the deposit item or the associated
circumstances may be sent by the central
system circuitry to the portable device of the authorized user. Such
information may be sent in the form of a
text message or other suitable output to indicate to the user the
acceptability or unacceptability of the deposit
item or activity. Such approaches may be useful in some exemplary systems for
purposes of preventing users
from making mistakes in placing incorrect deposit items into depositories.
Such features may be particularly
helpful in situations where an authorized user may be handling multiple
deposit items, some of which may be
intended for placement in a particular depository while others are not. Of
course these approaches are
exemplary and in other embodiments other approaches may be used.
In the exemplary arrangement the control circuitry associated with the
depository is operative in a step
192 to evaluate the image data captured by the reading devices and/or the
weight sensors to make an action
status determination. The action status determination includes evaluating the
image data and/or weight data
for purposes of determining whether the deposit item has been placed in or
removed from the interior area of
the depository. In alternative arrangements the user may be prompted to
provide at least one input to their
mobile wireless device to indicate the deposit item has been placed in the
interior area. The wireless device
sends at least one message indicative of the input. In this exemplary logic
flow the determination of action
status by the control circuitry is indicative that the deposit item has been
placed in the depository. After the
action status determination that the deposit item has been received, the
control circuitry of the depository
senses for the door of the depository being closed. This is done through
appropriate switches, detectors or the
reading devices in operative connection with the control circuitry and is
represented in a step 194. In some
exemplary arrangements the repository control circuitry will cause at least
one output device of the depository
to provide outputs which instruct the user to close the depository door in the
event that such action is not taken
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within a calculated time of the deposit item being received. In other
exemplary arrangements the user's
portable wireless device may receive messages from the central circuitry that
are caused to be sent responsive
to messages from the depository in the event that the user is detected as not
taking appropriate steps towards
closure of the door after the deposit item has been deposited in the interior
area.
Once the depository door is in the closed position, the control circuitry
operates to cause the lock to be
changed to the locked condition as represented in a step 196. The control
circuitry of the depository then
operates to send one or more item received messages to the central circuitry
indicating that the interior area of
the depository has been made accessible responsive at least in part to the
item depositor access code, token
data and/or other input data and the deposit item has been received in the
depository as indicated at step 198.
Responsive to receiving the at least one item received message from the
depository and/or from the user's
mobile wireless device, the central circuitry is operative to update the
record data stored in its associated data
store to reflect the status of the deposit item as being within the particular
depository as represented at step
200. The central circuitry may also operate to determine the remaining
available volume of space in the
compartment or interior area in which the deposit item has been placed.
The central circuitry then operates to take the actions necessary to arrange
for the deposit item to be
transported from the originating depository into which it has been received,
to a depository associated with the
destination location for the item. In some circumstances the central circuitry
is enabled to arrange for single
authorized user of the system to transport the deposit item from the
originating depository into which it is
received to another depository which is a destination depository that
corresponds to the delivery item
destination, such as a final destination address for the deposit item. In
other arrangements the system is
operative to arrange for delivery to a recipient address rather than a
depository. However, in many situations
the central circuitry must arrange for the transport of the deposit item to an
intermediate location which
corresponds to a destination depository which is only part way to the delivery
item destination. This occurs
because the individuals available to transport the deposit item are available
only to transport the item to the
intermediate destination. The central circuitry will then later arrange for a
different authorized user to
transport the item from the intermediate destination to the depository at the
final destination depository for the
deposit item. Of course it should be understood while this example indicates
that the deposit item is
transported through a destination depository at one intermediate destination,
other exemplary deposit item
transport situations will involve transport through multiple intermediate
destinations. This is particularly true
when the transport of the deposit item is over a long distance. In some
exemplary arrangements the incentive
payments which the system user arranging for the transport can make, will help
to reduce the number of
intermediate depository destinations and result in delivery of the deposit
item to the final destination more
quickly.
As represented at step 202 an authorized system user that is willing to
transport deposit items may
operate their portable wireless device, such as carrier contact device 92, to
indicate their availability to
transport deposit items by initiating operation of an application on the
device. Such system users are
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alternatively referred to herein as item carriers. In the exemplary
arrangement the device application requires
that the user sign onto the carrier contact device and provide appropriate
carrier contact device data such as a
telephone number or email address and user identifying information which
identifies the particular user to the
central circuitry, as represented at step 204. In exemplary arrangements the
item carrier contact device data and
.. other user identifying information as well as credentials such as token
data for the item carrier that may be
stored in the user device and in the central circuitry, will have been
previously established through a
registration process applicable to authorized users. In the exemplary
arrangement the circuit executable
instructions associated with the user's device 92 also require that the user
provide location information such as
through GPS data associated with the current carrier contact device location
to the central system circuitry
.. through at least one driver data message. This is represented at step 206.
In the exemplary system a user may choose to transport deposit items based on
planned travel for
other purposes. This may include for example, the user having a daily commute
to a job that is substantially
remote from where they reside. Alternatively user may have planned travel for
personal or other purposes to a
destination, and is willing to transport deposit items in the course of their
personal travel. Alternatively a user
may be willing to perform transport services of deposit items to any local
location to receive compensation for
the transport services. As represented in step 208 the user inputs to the
carrier contact device their available
delivery location such as, for example destination information related to
their current travel plans, or if the user
is willing to travel to any location within a set distance range for purposes
of making deliveries of deposit
items. In some arrangements the user may also indicate that they have
specialized capabilities such as
handling fragile or perishable items, handling large and/or heavy items,
and/or may be bonded or insured for
handling high value or legally controlled items. As represented at step 210
the control circuitry associated
with the user's portable wireless carrier contact device is operative to send
the data regarding the available
item carrier transport user in at least one driver data message to the central
circuitry for purposes of
determining if the item carrier user will receive transport job assignments
which will result in compensation
.. being paid to the user.
As represented at step 212 the central circuitry receives the data from the
item carrier contract device
and conducts an analysis of the received data as represented at step 214. The
central circuitry is also operative
to recover the stored data regarding the rating information associated with
the user as represented in step 216.
The central circuitry is then operative to compare the data associated with
the available transport user received
.. in driver data messages to the data associated with available transport
jobs that need to be conducted. This is
represented at step 218. Of course as can be appreciated, this activity is
carried out by the central circuitry for
each authorized item carrier transport user that indicates availability to
participate in providing transport
services for deposit items at the current time. The central circuitry is
enabled to match available authorized
item carriers with transport jobs in a manner that causes the deposit items to
be moved to either a respective
final delivery address, a final delivery depository destination of the deposit
item, or an intermediate delivery
depository location at a depository that causes the deposit item to move
closer to its final delivery destination.
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As represented in step 220 the central circuitry operates to match the
authorized transport item carrier
current location and the associated item carrier available delivery location
data to originating depository,
destination depository and deposit item delivery requirements. The central
circuitry is then operative to
determine the destination depository which is the endpoint destination for the
available item carrier as
represented in step 222. In other arrangements the end point for the delivery
may be the address of the
recipient. In this particular example the endpoint destination for the initial
item carrier is an intermediate
destination depository that is not the final destination for the particular
deposit item. The central circuitry is
then operative to calculate the rate information for the transport user as
represented in step 224. In an
exemplary arrangement this calculation reflects an amount that the item
carrier will receive for taking the
deposit item from the current depository in which it is located, transporting
it to the designated intermediate
destination depository, and placing the deposit item in the intermediate
destination depository for subsequent
transport towards its final destination. In some exemplary arrangements the
central circuitry may operate to
determine multiple parcels that can be transported together by the item
carrier as a bundle to a destination.
As represented in step 226 the central circuitry operates to send one or more
opportunity messages to
the carrier contact device which is the portable wireless device of the item
carrier. The messages include the
originating depository for pickup, parcel route for transport of the deposit
item (or a bundle of items), end
point destination depository (or end point delivery address) and monetary rate
to be paid to the item carrier for
transport of the deposit item. The messages may also provide an indication of
the size and weight of the
deposit items. The exemplary messages may also include data to indicate to the
item carrier how far the
transport job will require the item carrier to go off their currently
indicated planned travel route to the input
destination at the originating depository and/or at the destination
depository. In operation of the exemplary
system the carrier contact device receives the data regarding the transport
assignment in at least one
opportunity message as represented at a step 226. The control circuitry of the
carrier contact device is then
operative responsive to the received data in the at least one opportunity
message to provide one or more
outputs to the item carrier user indicative of the available transport
assignment. The output data is then
available for review by the item carrier user as represented at step 228. If
the item carrier user finds the
transport assignment details to be acceptable, the user operates the carrier
contact device to provide one or
more inputs as represented at step 230 which indicates that the user accepts
the transport assignment. The
carrier contact device then operates in accordance with its programming to
send one or more item transport
acceptance messages to the central circuitry as represented at step 232,
indicative of the user acceptance and
willingness to transport the delivery item from the delivery depository to the
destination depository (or other
end point location) in accordance with any other conditions specified in the
at least one opportunity message.
The central circuitry receives the at least one item transport acceptance
message data from the user's
carrier contact device indicating acceptance of the transport assignment as
represented at step 234. The central
circuitry then operates to reserve the transport assignment for the item
carrier as represented at a step 236. In
the exemplary embodiment the central circuitry operates in accordance with its
programming to reserve the
24
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
transport assignment for the particular item carrier user only for a limited
period of time. This helps to assure
that the deposit item is transported in a commercially prompt manner. In the
event that the item carrier to
which the transport assignment has been reserved does not act to obtain the
deposit item from the depository
within the time period for which the transport assignment has been reserved,
the central circuitry operates in
accordance with its programming to reassign the transport assignment to a
different designated authorized item
carrier. As can be appreciated such a reassignment would generally require
analysis of available transport
carrier information and may change the route or other information to which the
deposit item is next
transported. Of course these approaches are exemplary and in other embodiments
other approaches to be used.
Also in an exemplary embodiment a transport item carrier may send transport
acceptance messages to
accept a plurality of opportunity messages corresponding to transport
assignments associated with the item
carrier's planned or available delivery location travel. This may include a
plurality of different deposit items,
each of which may have a respective different pickup originating depository or
shipment location and delivery
destination depository or delivery location. The communication between the
user device and the central
circuitry enables storing the data related to each deposit item and transport
job on the user carrier contact
device to facilitate the activities that the item carrier is to perform in a
proper manner and sequence.
In the exemplary arrangement once the transport assignment has been reserved
for the authorized
transport user by the central circuitry responsive to the at least one item
transport acceptance message, the
central circuitry operates in a step 238 to generate the one-time designated
carrier access code that will enable
the authorized user to access the originating depository in which the deposit
item is currently located. At step
240 the central circuitry then operates to send the at least one transport
assignment message to the carrier
contact device. The at least one transport assignment message includes data
corresponding to one-time
designated carrier access code and location data for the originating
depository to the item carrier. The user's
carrier contact device operates to receive the data such as in the at least
one transport assignment message
represented at step 242. The exemplary central circuitry is operative to
correlate the stored data corresponding
to at least two of the item carrier identifying information, the delivery item
identifier, and the depository from
which the item carrier will receive the item and/or a respective interior area
thereof, in the at least one data
store such that they are stored in correlated relation. The exemplary central
circuitry is further operative to
store in correlated relation the stored data regarding the one time carrier
access code and at least one of the
item carrier identifying information, the delivery item identifier, and the
depository/interior area in which the
delivery item is housed. The contact device then operates in accordance with
its programming to guide the
item carrier such as through the use of GPS data, to the originating
depository location at which the deposit
item is to be picked up.
Once the item carrier has arrived at the originating depository, the carrier
contact device is operated by
the item carrier to wirelessly send their user identifying information from
the carrier contract device to the at
least one input device of the depository. In the exemplary arrangement as
represented at step 244, the user's
wireless token data is sent from the carrier contact device of the user item
carrier to the RF input device such
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
as the wireless portal associated with the depository. The control circuitry
of the depository is operative to
receive user identifying data as represented at step 246, and is also
operative to enable the keypad of the
depository to receive an input access code which may correspond to the one-
time design carrier access code as
represented at step 248. In other arrangements the designated carrier access
code may be received through
other input devices of the depository, such as for example, the wireless
portal. The control circuitry is then
operative responsive at least in part to receipt of the input access code to
send at least one repository access
request message as represented at step 250. The at least one repository access
request message includes data
corresponding to the user identification data, the input access code value and
depository identifying data to the
central circuitry. The central circuitry operates to receive the data in the
at least one repository access request
message from the depository as represented at step 252 and makes an authorized
access determination
responsive to verifying based on the stored data that the user identifying
data corresponds to the authorized
user who is to receive the deposit item, and that the input access code value
corresponds to the designated
access code appropriate for accessing the depository. In some arrangements the
central circuitry is also
operative to carry out the authorized access determination responsive to the
identifying data for the depository
receiving the input access code value and/or the user identification data
corresponding to the origination
depository for the transport of the deposit item. The authorized access
determination is represented by step
254.
Responsive to the authorized access determination that the user identifying
data and the one-time
designated access code received at the originating depository is appropriate
for accessing the deposit item, the
central circuitry then is operative to send at least one repository access
approval message to the originating
depository as represented at step 256 to enable the interior area holding the
deposit item in the depository to be
accessed. As represented step 258 the control circuitry of the originating
depository is operative to receive and
verify the genuineness of the message data from the central circuitry.
Responsive at least in part to receipt and
verification of the at least one depository access approval message, the
control circuitry is operative to cause
the lock to be changed to the unlocked condition as represented at step 260.
The deposit item in the interior
area of the depository thereby becomes accessible to the item carrier. The
exemplary control circuitry
associated with the originating depository is then operative to detect the
opening of the door and to operate the
sensors comprising reading devices to capture the indicia such as machine
readable bar code for example,
included on the deposit item that is removed from the interior area of the
depository as represented by step
262. Alternatively in some arrangements the item carrier may capture an image
of the item identifying indicia
using their portable wireless device. The exemplary control circuitry is also
operative to capture a plurality of
images including the user and the deposit item, and to store the image data
along with time data in the data
store associated with the depository control circuitry. The weight sensor is
also operative to indicate the
change in weight associated with the removed item. This is represented by step
264.
The exemplary control circuitry and/or portable wireless device is then
operative to send at least one
parcel removal message to the central system circuitry, at step 266. The at
least one parcel removal message
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
includes parcel removal data corresponding to the identifying indicia read by
the at least one sensor from the
deposit item and the weight data. In other exemplary arrangements the parcel
removal data may include other
data that can be detected or read by one or more readers/sensors of the
originating depository and/or through
operation of the item carrier's portable wireless device. The central
circuitry receives the parcel removal data
in the at least one parcel removal message at step 268 and is operative at
step 270 to verify that the parcel
removal data corresponding to the read indicia corresponds to the deposit item
identifying data for the delivery
item that is to be taken by the identified item carrier that has accessed the
depository based on the correlated
stored data. The central circuitry may also verify that the weight removed
and/or the size and/or other property
of the item removed corresponds to removal of the proper delivery item. The
central circuitry then operates at
step 272 to send one or more correct parcel removal messages to the
originating depository, that indicate that
the deposit item identification indicia and user indicia is appropriate.
Alternatively or in addition the at least
one correct parcel removal messages may be sent to the carrier contact device.
The control circuitry of the
depository may receive the message data from the central circuitry as
represented at step 274 and is operative
to provide an indication to the user that the removal activity is appropriate
as represented at step 276. As
previously discussed this indication may be given through visual and/or
audible indication output by one or
more output devices such as indicators on the depository. Alternatively such
indications may be provided as
outputs from the carrier contact device. Of course if the deposit item removal
activity or user data is not
appropriate, then negative indication outputs are provided either through the
depository indicators and/or
through messages that are sent by the central circuitry to the user's portable
wireless carrier contact device.
The control circuitry of the exemplary originating depository is then
operative responsive to the
captured image data from the sensors such as reading devices, and/or the
detected change in weight, to make a
determination of the action status that has been carried out by the item
carrier with regard to the identified
deposit item. Alternatively or in addition the determination may be carried
out responsive at least in part to a
wireless message from the carrier contact device responsive to an input from
the user indicating that they have
removed the parcel. This determination which is represented by step 278, is an
action determination that the
deposit item has been removed from the interior area of the depository. The
control circuitry associated with
the originating depository then senses for detection that the depository door
has been closed as represented in
step 280. As previously discussed the control circuitry of the depository
either alone or through
communication with the central circuitry, may operate to prompt the user to
close the depository door in the
event that closure is not detected within a programmed time. The control
circuitry then operates to cause the
lock to be changed to the locked condition once the door is closed as
represented by step 282. The control
circuitry then operates to send one or more delivery item parcel removal
messages to the central circuitry
indicating that the deposit item has been removed and taken from the
depository by the item carrier as
represented by step 284. As can be appreciated this process may be carried out
for multiple parcels that are to
be transported by the item carrier.
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
Responsive to the central circuitry receiving the one or more delivery item
parcel removal messages
from the depository and/or the carrier contact device that the deposit item
has been taken by the item carrier,
the exemplary central circuitry operates as indicated at step 286 to update
the status data for the deposit item in
the associated data store to indicate that the deposit item is with the
authorized item carrier. In some
exemplary arrangements the central circuitry then operates to cause at least
one pick up request confirmation
message to be sent to the portable wireless carrier contact device of the item
carrier who has taken the deposit
item to confirm that they have the item. This is represented by step 288. The
portable wireless carrier contact
device of the item carrier operates in accordance with its programming to
cause one or more outputs that
prompt the item carrier to confirm that they have received possession of the
deposit item. This is represented
at step 290. As represented at step 292, the user's portable wireless carrier
contact device operates responsive
to at least one confirmation input from the item carrier to send one or more
wireless delivery item possession
confirmation messages to the central circuitry to confirm that the user
received possession the deposit item. Of
course it should be understood that in other exemplary arrangements the
central system circuitry may omit the
confirmation steps 286 through 292. This is particularly true in situations
where the user indicates that they
have the item by providing an input to their carrier contact device indicating
they have taken the item and/or
the user scans the parcel identifying indicia using the camera on the device,
which results in wireless messages
to the central system circuitry.
Responsive to the central circuitry receiving the delivery item possession
confirmation messages from
the user's portable wireless carrier contact device at step 294, or in some
arrangements more directly
responsive to one or more parcel removal messages, the central circuitry
operates to recover from memory or
otherwise resolve the destination depository for the item carrier to deliver
the deposit item. This is represented
at step 296. The exemplary central circuitry further operates to generate a
one-time access delivery code to be
input by the item carrier to the destination depository into which the item
carrier is to place the deposit item.
This is represented by step 298. The exemplary central system circuitry is
further operative to store in
correlated relation the data corresponding to at least two of the delivery
item identifier, the item carrier
identifying information, the one time access code, and the depository/interior
area into which the delivery item
is to be placed. The exemplary central circuitry is next operative to send at
least one item transport delivery
message including data corresponding to the one-time item carrier access code
and the location information for
the destination depository to the user's portable wireless carrier contact
device. This is represented by step
300. The exemplary central circuitry continues to monitor the location of the
portable wireless carrier contact
device of the item carrier through GPS as the deposit item is transported
toward the destination depository.
This is represented by step 302.
As represented by step 304, in the exemplary system the portable wireless
device of the transport user
is operative to receive in the at least one item transport delivery message
the data regarding the depository
location and the one-time item carrier access delivery code. The portable
wireless carrier contact device
operates in accordance with its programming to direct the item carrier through
use of the GPS data or other
28
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
location data to the destination depository or other location at which the
deposit item is to be deposited. This
is represented by step 306. Upon arrival at the destination depository the
item carrier operates their portable
wireless device to cause the user identifying data including the user ID token
to be sent from the user's device
to the RF input device of the depository. This is represented by step 308.
The control circuitry associated with the destination depository is operative
to receive the wireless
user identifying information as represented by step 310. The control circuitry
is also operative to enable
receipt through the keypad or in some arrangements the wireless portal of the
destination depository, of the
input access code value corresponding to the one-time item carrier access
delivery code from the item carrier.
This is represented by step 312. The control circuitry associated with the
destination depository is operative to
send the received user identifying data, the input access code value, and
depository identifying data to the
central circuitry in at least one repository access message as represented by
step 314. The exemplary central
circuitry is operative to receive the data in the at least one repository
access message as represented by step
316, and operates to verify that the received user data corresponds to the
item carrier and that the input access
code value corresponds to the one-time item carrier access delivery code as
represented in step 318. The
exemplary central circuitry is then operative to send at least one repository
access approval message to the
depository which includes data indicative that the received user data and the
code data are appropriate based on
the corrected stored data, and that the central system circuitry determined
interior area of the destination
depository should be unlocked so as to make the designated interior area of
the destination repository
accessible. This is represented by step 320.
The control circuitry of the exemplary destination depository is operative to
receive the repository
access approval message data from the central circuitry as represented by step
322. Responsive to the at least
one repository message from the central circuitry being received and verified,
the control circuitry associated
with the destination depository is operative to cause the lock thereof to be
changed to the unlocked condition
as represented in step 324. As a result the designated interior area of the
destination repository is externally
accessible so that the delivery item may be placed therein by the item
carrier. Responsive to detecting that the
depository door has been opened, the exemplary control circuitry is operative
to cause the reading devices to
capture the machine readable indicia including the identifying indicia on the
deposit item being placed in the
designated interior area of the destination depository as represented by step
326. Alternatively the item carrier
may use their portable wireless device to capture an image of the parcel
identifying indicia and/or the
depository to document placement of the item. The control circuitry is also
operative to cause images from the
reading devices and the change in weight detected by the at least one weight
sensor to be captured and stored
in the at least one data store along with the data corresponding to the
captured identifying indicia on the
deposit item, to document the accessing of the depository and the placement of
the deposit item therein. This
is represented by step 328.
The exemplary control circuitry associated with the destination depository is
next operative to send at
least one parcel insertion message which is alternatively referred to herein
as a parcel placement message, to
29
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
the central system circuitry as represented in step 330. The exemplary at
least one parcel insertion message
includes data corresponding to the indicia read and/or sensed from the deposit
item including the machine
readable indicia. Alternatively in some arrangements the parcel insertion
message may be sent by the carrier
contact device responsive to using the device to read the parcel identifier
and receiving at least one input
indicative of placement in the depository. The central circuitry receives the
data included in the at least one
parcel insertion message at step 332 and verifies that the indicia read and/or
sensed from the deposit item (size,
weight or other information or properties) corresponds to the correlated
stored data for deposit item to be
deposited in the destination depository. This includes verifying that the read
machine readable indicia read
from the deposit item placed in the destination depository corresponds to the
delivery item identifier. The
central circuitry also verifies that the identifying data associated with the
user corresponds to the user that is
authorized to place the delivery item into the depository. This is represented
by step 334. The central circuitry
is then operative to send one or more correct parcel placement verification
messages to the control circuitry of
the destination depository to indicate that the received identifying indicia
on the deposit item is correct.
Alternatively or in addition the at least one correct parcel verification
message may be sent to the carrier
contact device. This is represented by step 336. The exemplary control
circuitry of the depository receives the
at least one correct parcel placement verification messages from the central
circuitry as represented in step 338
and provides one or more outputs to the user to indicate that the indicia read
and/or sensed from the deposit
item is appropriate as represented in step 340. The at least one output may be
provided by at least one output
device of the destination depository and/or through an output device of the
carrier contact device. The
exemplary control circuitry associated with the depository may then be
operative to analyze the captured image
data and/or weight data to determine the action status associated with the
deposit item. As represented in step
342 the control circuitry is operative to determine an action status that the
deposit item has been received into
the interior area of the depository.
In other exemplary arrangements the control circuitry associated with the
depository may operate in
an alternative manner to provide the authorized user with access to the
interior area so that the deposit item
may be placed therein. In such alternative arrangements the control circuitry
may operate to receive the user
identifying data wirelessly from the mobile wireless device associated with
the user in a manner like that
previously discussed. This may be done for example through a wireless input
device such as a wireless
transceiver in operative connection with the control circuitry that is
operative to control access to the
depository. Further in this alternative arrangement, a camera of the portable
wireless device associated with
the item carrier may be utilized as the reading device which is operative to
read the item identifying indicia on
the deposit item. The mobile carrier contact device may then operate to
wirelessly communicate the item
identifying indicia to the control circuitry. This may be done through the
same or a different wireless
communication path as the user identifying information. The control circuitry
may then operate in accordance
with its circuit executable instructions to make a determination based on the
correlated stored data that the
user identifying information corresponds to an authorized user, as well as a
determination that the read item
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
indicia corresponds to a deposit item that is authorized to be placed within
the depository. The control
circuitry may then operate in accordance with its programmed circuit
executable instructions to cause the
corresponding lock associated with the depository door to be changeable to the
unlocked condition responsive
at least in part to the user identification determination, the determination
that the deposit item indicia
corresponds to previously stored data indicative that the item is authorized
to be placed in the respective
interior area of the depository, or both. Further in some alternative
exemplary arrangements, the control
circuitry may operate responsive at least in part to the read item identifying
indicia, which may include
additional information about the item, to operate to cause the corresponding
lock to be able to be placed in the
unlocked condition. For example in some exemplary arrangements the item
indicia included on the deposit
item may correspond to a destination repository or a location in which the
deposit item is to be delivered. In
some exemplary arrangements the control circuitry may operate to determine if
the item indicia includes data
corresponding to the GPS determined location and/or identifying information
for the depository in which the
item is sought to be positioned. Responsive at least in part to the
determination, the control circuitry is
operative to enable the depository lock associated with the interior area in
which the item is authorized to be
placed, to be changeable to the unlocked condition. Further although in the
exemplary arrangements the data
regarding item carrier contact information and/or one-time access code, the
delivery item identifier or other
information may be received from a carrier contact device through an input
device such as a wireless portal
that is located at the particular depository, in other arrangements such
information may be received through at
least one wireless transceiver located remotely from the depository. For
example, in such arrangements
.. location data, such as GPS data associated with the location of the carrier
contact device, may be provided to
the central system circuitry in the messages from the carrier contact device.
Such location data may be usable
by the central system circuitry to determine that the carrier contact device
is in proximity to a particular
depository. Thus in such alternative arrangements it is not necessary for the
local circuitry associated with the
particular depository to receive the messages from the carrier contact device
for purposes of assuring that the
carrier contact device is in proximity to the depository and the item carrier
is positioned to place the delivery
item in or remove the delivery item from the depository. Of course it should
be understood that these
approaches are exemplary and in other arrangements other approaches may be
used.
The exemplary control circuitry then operates in accordance with its
programming after the deposit
item is placed in the interior area to sense for closure of the depository
door. This is represented by step 344.
.. As previously discussed the exemplary control circuitry may provide
different forms of prompts to the user in
the event that the depository door is not sensed as closed within a programmed
time. Responsive to detecting
the closure of the depository door the control circuitry of the destination
repository operates to change the
condition of the lock to the locked condition as represented by step 346. The
exemplary control circuitry is
then operative to send one or more delivery completion messages from the
depository to the central system
circuitry to indicate that the deposit item is within the designated interior
area of the depository as represented
by step 348. Alternatively or in addition a delivery completion message may be
sent by the carrier contact
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device responsive to at least one input thereto by the item carrier. The
exemplary central circuitry responsive
to receiving the delivery completion messages, operates to update the status
related to the deposit item in its
associated data store to indicate that the deposit item is located within the
particular destination depository.
This is represented by step 350.
In situations where the delivery completion message is not sent from the
carrier contact device, the
exemplary central circuitry is next operative to send one or more delivery
confirmation request messages to the
portable wireless carrier contact device of the item carrier requesting
confirmation that the deposit item has
been placed in the destination depository. This is represented by step 352.
The portable wireless carrier
contact device of the item carrier operates responsive to the received
messages to provide outputs which
prompt the user to confirm the placement of the deposit item in the
destination depository. This is represented
by step 354. Responsive to receipt of at least one input from the item carrier
the portable wireless carrier
contact device is operative at step 356 to provide one or more delivery
confirmation response messages to the
central circuitry confirming that the user has placed the deposit item in the
interior area of the destination
depository. In other exemplary arrangements the confirmation steps 352 through
356 are not carried out.
The central circuitry of the exemplary embodiment is operative responsive to
at least in part receipt of
the delivery confirmation response messages from the transport user at step
358 or more directly responsive at
least in part to the at least one delivery completion message, to determine
that the item carrier has completed
the transport assignment and to calculate a payment that is due to the item
carrier as represented at step 360.
The exemplary central circuitry is then operative to credit the item carrier
for a payment amount corresponding
to the payment that is due as represented at step 362. This may include
crediting an account associated with
the item carrier for the amount payable. Alternatively it may include a
financial transfer to an account
associated with the item carrier. Various payment forms may be accomplished
depending on the arrangement
that has been set up by the central system circuitry for making payment to the
particular item carrier. The
exemplary central circuitry then operates to send one or more messages to the
carrier contact device of the item
carrier indicating the payment as represented at step 364. The item carrier
receives the notice of the payment
through the portable wireless carrier contact device which outputs appropriate
messages to the item carrier user
as represented at step 366. Of course it should be understood that these steps
are representative of only some
exemplary payment transactions that may be carried out responsive to operation
of the central circuitry.
In this example the initial item carrier was available only to transport the
deposit item to a destination
depository at an intermediate destination, and not to the final destination
depository for the deposit item.
Therefore responsive to the determination that the deposit item has arrived at
the intermediate destination
depository, the exemplary central circuitry is operative to determine a next
destination depository for the
deposit item. This is represented by step 368. As previously discussed the
central circuitry will try to have the
deposit item reach its final destination depository with a minimum number of
intermediate destinations.
However if it is not possible with the available item carriers to move the
deposit item to its final destination
with the next transport assignment, the exemplary control circuitry will cause
the deposit item to be moved to
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another intermediate destination depository that is closer to its final
destination. However for purposes of this
example the next transport assignment will result in the deposit item reaching
its final destination depository.
Of course it should be understood that in other arrangements delivery may be
made to a recipient's address
rather than to a destination repository.
The exemplary central circuitry conducts a similar analysis to that previously
discussed with regard to
available item carriers for purposes of determining the next transport
assignment which can be made for the
deposit item. The central circuitry conducts an analysis of the available item
carrier information at step 370.
The central circuitry also reviews the rating data and other information for
the available item carriers as
represented at step 372. As represented at step 374 a comparative analysis is
done of the available item carrier
data to pending transport jobs to produce a match as represented at step 376.
The exemplary central circuitry
will then operate to determine the destination depository endpoint (or
delivery location endpoint) for the
deposit item delivery to be made by the available item carrier as represented
at step 378. In this example the
next destination will be the destination depository which is the final
delivery destination for the deposit item.
The exemplary central circuitry is further operative to calculate the rate
information to be paid for the
transport by the available item carrier. This is represented at step 380. In
some exemplary arrangements the
central circuitry may operate to provide item carriers with incentives to
transport particular deposit items. For
example, if an item is not moving toward the final destination at an
acceptable rate, the central circuitry may
offer a premium to an available item carrier to transport the item. Of course
this approach is exemplary.
The exemplary central circuitry is then operative at step 382 to send one or
more opportunity
messages to the portable wireless carrier contact device of the selected item
carrier which describes the
transport job that is available. In the exemplary arrangement the data
included in the at least one opportunity
message includes information regarding the pickup originating depository,
deposit item parcel, transport route,
endpoint destination depository and monetary amount or rate to be paid to the
available item carrier. Of course
in some cases additional or different information may be provided. Further in
some arrangements an item
carrier may be offered an opportunity to transport multiple parcels to the
same destination or to multiple
destinations along a common route. The portable wireless carrier contact
device of the item carrier receives
the at least one opportunity message as represented by step 384. The portable
wireless carrier contact device
of the item carrier operates responsive at least in part to the received data
included in the at least one
opportunity message to provide at least one an output which indicates the
details of the available transport job
which the item carrier can then review as represented at step 386. If the item
carrier wishes to accept the
transport job, the item carrier provides one or more inputs to their portable
wireless carrier contact device as
represented at step 388, and the carrier contact device operates to send one
or more item transport acceptance
messages indicating a willingness to accept the transport job as represented
at step 390.
As represented by step 392 the central circuitry operates to receive the item
transport acceptance
messages including data indicating that the item carrier is willing to perform
the transport job, and reserves the
transport assignment for the item carrier as represented at step 394. The
central circuitry operates to generate
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
one-time designated carrier access code for the item carrier as represented at
step 396. The central system
circuitry operates to store the correlated data corresponding to at least two
of the authorized user identifying
data for the user who has accepted the item transport assignment, the delivery
item identifying data, the one
time access code, and the interior area/depository where the item will be
placed in a manner like that
previously discussed. The central circuitry operates to send at least one
transport assignment message
including data corresponding to the one-time designated carrier access code
and the location data for the
originating depository to the user's portable wireless carrier contact device
as represented by step 398.
The portable wireless carrier contact device of the item carrier receives the
access code and location
information in the at least one transport assignment message as represented by
step 400. The portable wireless
carrier contact device operates in accordance with its programming and the
originating depository location
information to guide the user to the depository as represented by step 402. As
in the previous example the
carrier contact device may be tracked via GPS, cell phone data or other
methodology. Once arriving at the
depository the item carrier operates the portable wireless carrier contact
device to send the wireless identifying
information such as the ID token data that identifies the item carrier, to the
RF input device of the originating
depository as represented by step 404. The control circuitry of the depository
receives the item carrier user
identifying information as represented at step 406. The circuitry associated
with the originating depository
also receives an input access code that may correspond to the one-time
designated carrier access code from the
item carrier as represented by step 408. The depository control circuitry is
then operative to send at least one
depository access request message including data corresponding to the user
identifying information, the one-
time designated carrier code and the depository identifying information, to
the central circuitry as represented
by step 410.
The central circuitry receives the data included in the at least one
depository access request message
from the depository at step 412 and operates using the stored data to verify
the user identifying information
corresponding to the authorized item carrier and that the input access code
corresponds to the one-time
designated carrier access code as represented at step 414. The central
circuitry is operative to send one or
more depository access approval messages to the depository indicating that the
received item carrier
identifying information and designated carrier access code is appropriate for
accessing the interior area of the
originating depository. This is represented by step 416. The control circuitry
associated with the depository
receives the at least one depository access approval message from the central
circuitry indicating that the
depository is to be opened and verifies the authenticity of the message as
represented at step 418. The control
circuitry associated with the depository is operative responsive at least in
part to the at least one depository
access approval message to cause the lock controlling access to the interior
area or compartment space where
the deposit item is housed to be enabled to be changed to the unlocked
condition as represented at step 420.
The control circuitry is further operative to operate at least one sensor to
sense and/or capture the machine
readable deposit item identifying indicia on the deposit item, image and/or
size or other property data and the
change in detected weight as the item is removed from the interior area of the
originating depository as
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
represented by step 422. Alternatively the item carrier may operate their
portable wireless device to capture
one or more images of the item identifying indicia and the device sends the
image data and/or parcel
identifying indicia to the central circuitry. The exemplary control circuitry
also captures and stores images
associated with accessing the depository including the item carrier user and
the removal of the deposit item as
represented by step 424. The control circuity also associates time data with
the captured images. The control
circuitry is then operative to send at least one parcel removal message
including data corresponding to the
deposit identifying indicia, size, other property data and/or weight
information to the central circuitry as
represented by step 426. Alternatively or in addition one or more parcel
removal messages may be sent by the
carrier contact device.
The central circuitry is operative to receive the data included in the at
least one parcel removal
message as represented by step 428 and verify that the indicia read from the
deposit item, size property data
and/or weight data corresponds to the deposit item to be taken by the user
whose identifying data has been
received as represented at step 430. This may include verifying that machine
readable indicia read from the
deposit item corresponds to the deposit item identifier. The central circuitry
is then operative to send one or
more correct parcel verification messages to the depository indicating that
the information received related to
the deposit item and the user is correct. Alternatively or in addition the one
or more correct parcel verification
messages may be sent to the carrier contact device. This is represented by
step 432.
The depository is operative to receive the data included in the at least one
correct parcel verification
messages from the central circuitry as represented by step 434 and to provide
an indication to the user from an
output device that the identifying indicia for the deposit item being removed
is correct as represented at step
436. Alternatively or in addition the central circuitry may operate to send
the confirmation message to the item
carrier's portable wireless device. Of course as previously discussed, if the
indicia, size, property and/or
weight associated with the deposit item and/or the user data is incorrect, a
warning indication is output from an
output device of the depository and/or the user's portable wireless carrier
contact device to indicate the error.
The control circuitry associated with the exemplary depository is then
operative to determine from the sensors
of the originating repository which comprise reading devices and/or messages
from the carrier contact device,
the action status associated with the deposit item. In this case the action
status corresponds to the deposit item
being removed as indicated at step 438. The exemplary control circuitry of the
depository then operates to
sense the closure of the depository door as represented by step 440 and to
change the condition of the lock to
the locked condition as represented at step 442. The depository control
circuitry is then operative to send one
or more delivery item parcel removal messages to the central circuitry which
are indicative of and give a
notification that the deposit item has been taken as represented by step 444.
The exemplary central circuitry is then operative to update data in at least
one data store to update the
status of the deposit item to indicate that the deposit is with the item
carrier as represented by step 446. In
some arrangements the central circuitry may also cause one or more
confirmation request messages to be sent
to the transport user's portable wireless carrier contact device requesting
confirmation that the item carrier has
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
possession of the deposit item. This is represented by step 448. The portable
wireless device of the transport
user operates to receive these confirmation request messages and to provide
outputs to the item carrier
indicating the request for confirmation. This is represented by step 450.
Responsive to the item carrier
providing inputs which confirm the item carrier has possession of the deposit
item, the portable wireless carrier
contact device sends one or more confirmation response messages to the central
circuitry confirming
possession of the deposit item by the user. This is represented by step 452.
Responsive to the central circuitry receiving the at least one confirmation
response message from the
item carrier's portable wireless carrier contract device at step 454 and/or
the parcel removal messages, the
central circuitry is operative to recover data corresponding to the
destination depository for the deposit item at
step 456 and to generate the one-time item carrier access delivery code usable
by the item carrier to access the
depository at the destination as represented at step 458. The central
circuitry is then operative to send at least
one item transport delivery message including data corresponding to the one-
time code and the location of the
destination depository to the carrier contact device at step 460. The central
system circuitry further operates to
store the correlated data corresponding to at least two of the authorized item
carrier identifying information,
the one time access code, the deposit item identifying data, and the interior
area/destination repository data in
the at least one data store.
The portable wireless carrier contact device of the item carrier receives the
data including the one-time
code and the depository location in the at least item transport delivery
message at step 462. The user operates
the portable wireless carrier contact device to be guided to the destination
depository through GPS or other
location finding methods as represented by step 464. The central circuitry of
the exemplary arrangement
tracks the item carrier through GPS tracking as represented by step 466. Upon
arrival at the destination
depository the item carrier operates their portable wireless carrier contact
device to provide their user
identification data such as the ID token to the RF input device of the
depository as represented at step 468.
The control circuitry is operative to receive the user identifying data as
represented at step 470. The keypad or
the wireless portal of the depository is also operative to receive an input
access code corresponding to the one-
time item carrier access delivery code from the item carrier as represented at
step 472. The control circuitry of
the depository is operative to send data corresponding to the user identifying
data, the input access code
corresponding to the one-time item carrier access delivery code and depository
identifying data to the central
circuitry in at least one depository access request message as represented at
step 474.
The central circuitry receives the data included in the at least one deposit
access request message from
the destination depository as represented at step 476 and operates using the
stored data to verify the user
identifying data and the input access code as corresponding to the one-time
item carrier access delivery code as
authorized at step 478. The central circuitry is operative to send one or more
access approval messages to the
depository indicating that the received data is appropriate as represented by
step 480, and the control circuitry
of the depository is operative to verify the received message data at step
482. Responsive to the received at
least one access approval message indicating that the user data and the code
data is authorized, the control
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
circuitry of the depository is operative to cause the lock controlling access
to the interior area or compartment
space where the central system circuitry has determined the deposit item
should be placed to be changed to the
unlocked condition as represented by step 484. The control circuitry operates
the sensors comprising reading
devices to capture the indicia on the deposit item, size, property and/or
weight data for the deposit item that is
being placed in the interior area of the destination depository as represented
by step 486. Alternatively the
item carrier may capture the item indicia of the parcel placed in the interior
area and send such images and/or
data corresponding to the indicia to the central circuitry. The control
circuitry also operates the sensors
comprising reading devices to capture images including the item carrier access
to the depository and the
placement of the deposit item therein, and to store the image data along with
associated time data in the data
store of the control circuitry. This is represented by step 488.
The control circuitry associated with the depository is operative to send at
least one parcel placement
message including data corresponding to the indicia read and/or sensed from
the deposit item to the central
circuitry as represented by step 490. Alternatively or in addition at least
one parcel placement message may be
sent by the carrier contact device. The central circuitry receives the
identifying indicia at step 492 and is
operative in a step 494 to verify that the identifying indicia, size, property
and/or weight information
corresponds to the appropriate deposit item and that the user identifying data
corresponds to the appropriate
user. The exemplary central circuitry is also operative to verify that the
read machine readable indicia from the
deposit item corresponds to the delivery item identifier. The central
circuitry is operative to send one or more
messages verifying the correctness of the input data and deposit item as
represented at step 496. The at least
one correct parcel verification messages may alternatively or in addition be
sent to the carrier contact device.
The control circuitry of the depository receives the one or more messages as
represented by step 498 and
provides one or more outputs through the indicators or other output devices of
the depository that the deposit
information is correct as represented by step 500.
The control circuitry associated with the depository is operative to determine
the action status of the
deposit item from the data captured by the reading devices. As represented in
step 502 the action status
determination indicates that the deposit item has been received into the
depository. The control circuitry
operates to sense the closing of the depository door in a step 504, and
responsive to sensing the door closure
changes the lock to the locked condition as represented by step 506. The
control circuitry of the depository
then operates to send one or more deposit item received messages to the
central circuitry to indicate that the
deposit item is located within the depository. This is represented by step
508. Responsive to receiving the
messages indicating that the deposit item is within the depository the central
circuitry is operative to update the
stored record data regarding the deposit item in the data store to indicate
that the deposit item is within the
particular destination depository as represented by step 510.
In some arrangements, the exemplary central circuitry then operates to cause
one or more
confirmation request messages to be sent to the portable wireless carrier
contact device of the item carrier
requesting confirmation that the deposit item has been placed in the
depository. This is represented by step
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
512. The portable wireless carrier contact device of the item carrier receives
the messages and provides
outputs to the user indicating the request for confirmation. This is
represented by step 514. Responsive to
inputs by the user to their portable wireless carrier contact device
confirming the placement of the deposit item
in the depository, the portable wireless carrier contact device is operative
to send one or more delivery
confirmation response messages as represented at step 516.
Responsive to the central circuitry receiving the at least one delivery
confirmation message that the
deposit item has been placed in the depository at step 518, the central
circuitry is operative to calculate the
payment that is due the item carrier for transport of the depository item.
This is represented by step 520. The
central circuitry is then operative to credit the transport user a payment
amount for the transport services
provided as represented at step 522. One or more messages are sent to the
carrier contact device at step 524
which are received by the user's portable wireless carrier contact device and
which provide outputs to the item
carrier indicating the payment made for the transport of the deposit item as
represented at step 526.
Responsive to the determination by the central circuitry that the deposit item
has been delivered to the
indicated final destination depository, the central circuitry is then
operative to determine the deposit item
recipient to be notified of the delivery. The recipient data including
recipient contact data may be included in
the at least one transport request message associated with the receipt of the
deposit item. Alternatively in some
arrangements the delivery item delivery location data may correspond to
recipient data. The recipient data for
registered users including contact data for the user's device may be stored in
a data store in operative
connection with the central system circuitry. The determination of the
recipient data is represented by step
528. In exemplary arrangements the recipient of the deposit item may be the
owner of the depository into
which the deposit item has been placed as the final destination. Alternatively
the recipient to be notified may
be a registered user of the system that is not the owner of the depository in
which the item has been placed,
which necessitates notification and providing access for the intended
recipient.
An example where the recipient of the deposit item is the owner of the
depository is represented by
.. the logic flow included in Figures 28 through 30. Responsive to the central
circuitry determining that the
depository owner is the recipient of the deposit item to be notified in step
528, the central circuitry operates to
produce and at least one notification message to the depository owner at step
530.The central circuitry is also
operative to generate a one-time recipient access code for accessing the
depository to retrieve the deposit item
at step 532. The central circuitry then operates to send at least one
recipient notification message including
data corresponding to the one-time recipient access code to the portable
wireless device or other contact device
of the depository owner as represented at step 534. The central system
circuitry further operates store in
correlated relation the data corresponding to at least two of the identifying
data for the deposit item recipient,
the one-time code, the deposit item identifier, and the interior
area/depository in which the deposit item is
stored. The depository owner then travels to the depository and inputs their
identifying data wirelessly to the
RF input device of the depository as represented by step 536. This identifying
data may include an ID token
assigned through a registration process of the central system circuitry. The
control circuitry of the depository
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
receives the wireless messages including the identifying data at step 538 and
also operates to receive the one-
time recipient access code through the keypad, wireless portal or other input
device at step 540. The control
circuitry of the depository is then operative to send at least one depository
access request message including
data corresponding to the identification data, the input recipient access code
and the depository identifier to the
central circuitry at step 542.
The central circuitry operates to receive the data in the at least one
depository access request message
at step 544 and uses the stored data to verify at step 546 that the received
user identifying data and recipient
access code data correspond to the data for authorized access to the interior
area of the destination depository
housing the deposit item. The central circuitry then operates to send one or
more depository access approval
messages to the depository as indicated at step 548. The control circuitry of
the depository receives and
verifies the message data at step 550 and changes the condition of the lock on
the depository to the unlocked
condition as represented by step 552. The exemplary control circuitry of the
depository operates to capture
through sensors and/or input devices the deposit identifying indicia on the
deposit item, size, property and/or
weight data associated with the deposit item being removed from the depository
as represented by step 554 and
also captures images of the recipient depository user and the deposit item
which are stored in the data store of
the depository control circuitry along with time data as represented at step
556. Alternatively or in addition the
user may operate their mobile wireless device to capture images of the item
identifying indicia using a camera
thereof and send it to the central circuitry.
The exemplary control circuitry associated with the depository is operative to
send at least one parcel
removal message including data corresponding to the deposit item identifying
indicia, size, property and/or
weight data to the central circuitry as represented at step 558. The central
circuitry receives the data at step
560 and at step 562 verifies that the indicia, size, property and/or weight
data sent regarding the deposit item
and the user identifying data, corresponds to the authorized removal of the
deposit item from the depository.
Alternatively or in addition the central circuitry receives the parcel
identifying indicia and/or other images or
data from the recipient's portable wireless device. In the exemplary
arrangement the central circuitry is
operative to determine that machine readable indicia read from the removed
deposit item corresponds to the
deposit item identifier. The central circuitry is operative at step 564 to
send one or more correct parcel
removal messages to the depository indicating that the received information is
appropriate. The control
circuitry of the depository receives the one or more correct parcel removal
messages at step 566 and provides
an indication through the one or more indicators or other output devices of
the depository that the deposit item
removal data is appropriate at step 568. Alternatively or in addition the at
least one correct parcel removal
message may be sent to the recipient device.
The exemplary control circuitry associated with the depository is then
operative to determine from the
captured image data, size, property and/or weight data the action status of
the deposit item. This is done in a
step 570 in which the action status that the deposit item has been removed
from the depository is determined.
The control circuitry then operates to sense the closing of the depository
door in step 572 and causes the
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
condition of the lock to be changed to the locked condition in a step 574. The
control circuitry of the
depository then operates to send one or more parcel removed messages to the
central circuitry to indicate that
the deposit item has been removed from the depository at step 576.
The exemplary central circuitry then operates to update the status data
included in one or more data
.. stores of the central circuitry to indicate the deposit item has been
removed from the depository as represented
in step 578. In some arrangements the central circuitry operates to send one
or more recipient confirmation
request messages to the portable wireless device or other device of the
recipient depository owner to confirm
that they have taken the deposit item as represented by step 580. The portable
wireless device or other device
of the recipient depository owner receives the receipt confirmation request
messages and provides outputs
indicating that the confirmation is requested. This is represented by a step
582. Responsive to the depository
owner providing one or more inputs to their portable wireless or other
recipient device confirming receipt of
the deposit item, the recipient device operates to send one or more recipient
confirmation response messages to
the central circuitry as represented by step 584.
The central circuitry receives the at least one recipient confirmation
response message from the
depository owner at step 586. Responsive to receiving the confirmation that
the deposit item has been received
by the intended recipient, the central circuitry operates to send one or more
messages to the user device of the
shipper user who is responsible for causing transport of the deposit item to
the recipient. This is represented
by step 588. Receipt of the information by the shipper who is the originator
of the deposit item is represented
by step 590. The exemplary central circuitry is also operative at step 592 to
calculate the charge associated
with the transport of the deposit item and to assess the charge to the shipper
entity that requested the transport.
The entity requesting the transport is notified of the charge through one or
more messages which are sent at
step 594 and which are received by the user who is the shipper through their
portable wireless device at step
596. In the exemplary arrangement the charges are assessed to the funds source
in the manner as designated
by the user requesting transport at the time that the request was input to the
system. Of course these
approaches are exemplary and in other embodiments other approaches may be
used. For example in other
arrangements the charges may be assessed to a recipient.
The alternative exemplary logic flow when the recipient of the deposit item is
not the owner of the
destination depository is represented in Figures 31 to 34. In this exemplary
arrangement from step 528 the
central circuitry is operative to determine the deposit item recipient to be
notified as represented in step 598.
The recipient and/or recipient contact data may be included in the transport
request message. The recipient
and/or recipient contact data may alternatively be resolved by the central
circuitry from the delivery item
destination location or other data included in the request for transport based
on stored registered user data in
the at least one data store for the recipient. If the recipient is not a
registered system user the central control
circuitry my require additional information from the shipper user as part of
the transport request such as an
invoice number or other data that can be used to confirm the identity of the
recipient. The central circuitry is
further operative to determine the one-time recipient access code to be used
to access the interior area
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
depository in which the deposit item is held at step 600. The central
circuitry is also operative to determine
data stored in the associated data store which corresponds to the applicable
requirements associated with the
depository which houses the deposit item as represented at step 602. This may
include restrictions placed on
operation of the depository by the depository owner, such as limited times for
access or other requirements
which restrict use of the depository by entities other than the depository
owner. The central system circuitry
further operates to store in correlated relation the data corresponding to at
least two of the deposit item
recipient, the one-time code, the deposit item identifier, and the interior
area/depository in which the deposit
item is stored.
The exemplary central circuitry is operative to send data corresponding to the
notification and
recipient access code and other applicable requirements to the portable
wireless device (or other device) of the
recipient in at least one notification message as represented by step 604. The
notification message may include
user identifying data for the recipient that is usable in connection with
obtaining the deposit item if the
recipient is not a registered system user who has an ID token. In some
situations the identifying data may
include an ID token or other identifying data that was provided to the
recipient during a registration process
that is required to participate in the system. The portable wireless device is
operative to provide outputs to the
recipient of the information needed to access the depository to retrieve the
deposit item. As can be
appreciated, in some arrangements the information sent to the recipient may
include GPS or other location data
that facilitates the recipient traveling to the depository to obtain the
deposit item.
In an exemplary arrangement the recipient upon being in proximity with the
depository operates their
portable wireless device to provide the user identifying data wirelessly to
the RF input device of the depository
as represented by step 606. The depository receives the identifying data as
represented by step 608 and also
receives the one-time recipient access code through the keypad, or wireless
portal or other input device as
represented by step 610. In some cases the recipient user may also be required
to input other identifying data.
The control circuitry is operative to cause data corresponding to the received
user identifying data, the code
data and depository identifying data to be sent to the central circuitry in at
least one depository access request
message as represented by step 612. The central circuitry receives the data in
the at least one depository access
request message as represented at step 614 and operates using the stored data
to verify the received user
identifying data and the recipient access code data as represented at step
616. The central circuitry is then
operative in a manner like that previously discussed to send one or more
depository access approval messages
to the depository indicating that the activity is authorized and that the
depository interior area housing the
deposit item should be unlocked. This is represented by step 618.
The control circuitry associated with the depository is operative to receive
and verify the at least one
depository access approval message from the central circuitry as represented
by step 620. Responsive at least
in part to the receipt of the messages the control circuitry is operative to
unlock the lock to the interior area
housing the deposit item as represented by step 622 and to cause the sensors
comprising reading devices to
capture the size, properties and/or weight associated with the item and the
machine readable indicia on the
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deposit item removed from the interior area of the depository as represented
by step 624. Alternatively or in
addition the recipient may be prompted to capture item identifying indicia
from the parcel or other image data
through use of the camera on their portable wireless device and transmit
messages to the control circuitry or
this central circuitry including such image data and/or indicia. The control
circuitry is also operative to capture
images of the recipient user and the deposit item, and store the images and
size, property and/or weight data in
the data store associated with the control circuitry along with time data as
represented by step 626.
The control circuitry associated with the depository is operative to send data
corresponding to the
indicia read and/or sensed from the deposit item such as size, property and/or
weight data to the central
circuitry in at least one parcel removal message as represented by step 628.
The central circuitry receives the
data from the depository and/or the recipient device as represented by step
630 and operates to verify that the
received indicia and weight data corresponds to the appropriate depository
item and the user identifying data
received corresponds to the authorized recipient as represented by step 632.
In an exemplary arrangement the
central circuitry is operative to verify that the machine readable indicia
read from the removed deposit item
corresponds to the delivery item identifier. The central circuitry is
operative to send one or more correct parcel
verification messages to the depository indicating that the information
related to removal of the deposit item is
correct. Such messages may additionally or alternatively be sent to the
recipient device. This is represented
by step 634. The control circuitry of the depository is operative to receive
the correct parcel verification
messages from the central circuitry as represented by step 636 and to provide
one or more outputs through the
indicators or other output devices on the depository that the deposit item
information is correct as represented
by step 638.
The control circuitry of the depository is then operative to analyze the
captured image data, size
property and/or weight data to determine the action status associated with the
deposit item as represented by
step 640. In this situation the control circuitry is operative to determine
that the deposit item has been removed
from the depository. The control circuitry is also operative to sense for
closure of the depository door as
represented by step 642, and responsive to sensing the closure thereof, to
cause the lock to be returned to the
locked condition as represented by step 644. The control circuitry of the
depository is operative to send one or
more delivery completion messages to the central circuitry indicating that the
deposit item has been removed
from the depository as represented by step 646. The central circuitry is
operative to receive the delivery
completion messages from the depository and update the status data in the data
store related to the deposit item
to indicate that the deposit item has been removed from the depository as
represented in step 648.
In a manner like that previously discussed, in some arrangements the central
circuitry is further
operative to cause one or more receipt confirmation request messages to be
sent to the portable wireless device
of the recipient. This is represented by step 650. The messages request
confirmation that the deposit item has
been received by the recipient. The portable wireless device of the recipient
is operative responsive to the
messages to provide outputs requesting such confirmation as represented by
step 652. The recipient then
provides one or more inputs to their portable wireless device confirming
receipt of the deposit item as
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represented by step 654. The recipient wireless device operates responsive to
the recipient inputs to send at
least one receipt confirmation response message to the central circuitry. The
central circuitry is operative to
receive the at least one receipt confirmation from the recipient at step 656,
and to send a notification message
to the user device of the shipper user that requested the transport of the
deposit item to indicate that the item
has been received at step 658. The portable wireless device of the shipper
user that requested the transport
receives one or more delivery indication messages as represented by step 660.
The exemplary central circuitry is also operative to calculate the charge to
be assessed to the shipper
user requesting transport of the deposit item for the transport thereof This
is represented by step 662. The
charge for transport is assessed to the shipper user in the manner designated
at the time of requesting shipment,
and the user is notified of the charge as represented at step 664. The user
receives the charge notifications
through their portable wireless device as represented by step 667.
Further in this exemplary arrangement because the deposit item was delivered
to the recipient through
the depository that is owned by a depository owner other than the recipient,
the depository owner receives a
payment for the associated use of their depository in connection with the
delivery of the deposit item. In the
exemplary arrangement the central circuitry is operative to calculate a
payment that is due the depository
owner as represented in a step 668. In some exemplary arrangements the central
circuitry is operative to send
one or more messages to the portable wireless device or other system device
operated by the depository owner
to indicate the receipt of the payments for the use of the depository.
Alternatively in other exemplary
arrangements, the central circuitry may operate to credit an account of the
depository owner for such use of the
depository by offsetting the amount of credits against charges to the
depository owner for acceptance, transport
and/or delivery of deposit items. Of course it should be understood that these
approaches are exemplary and in
other embodiments other approaches may be used.
It should be understood that while the examples provided discuss users dealing
with a single
depository item, in exemplary systems numerous different deposit items will be
handled by each authorized
user. This may be particularly true of item carrier users that simultaneously
handle a plurality of deposit items
that are being transported as a bundle or group between different
depositories. The exemplary embodiments
help to assure that the proper depository items are removed and deposited in
the proper depository for purposes
of transporting the item to the proper destination. The ability of the
exemplary arrangements to provide an
indication of any incorrect actions and to track the whereabouts of deposit
items within the system at all times
facilitates the prompt and reliable transport and delivery of such depository
items.
Further the exemplary arrangements provide advantages for transport of items
between depositories
by enabling the transport to be made by individuals who often are otherwise
commuting or otherwise traveling
to locations where item transport can be conducted as an ancillary activity
that generates revenue for the users.
Such transport can also be made in incremental steps as previously discussed
based on the available transport
users. The ability to utilize such user resources can also provide more
options for transport of items, while
reducing costs compared to scheduled transport systems.
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
As previously discussed in other exemplary arrangements item carriers may
deliver deposit items to
recipient addresses rather than to an item depository as a final destination.
In such arrangements the item
carrier may use their carrier contact device for purposes of documenting the
delivery to the recipient. This
may include for example, using the carrier contact device as a reader to
capture images of the deposit item,
including the identifying indicia on the parcel, showing the parcel placed at
the delivery location.
Alternatively or in addition an item carrier may utilize the carrier contact
device and the camera thereon to
capture images that show the recipient facility or the individual to whom the
item is delivered. In still other
exemplary arrangements the item carrier device may be operated by the item
carrier to receive audio or
audiovisual acknowledgments from the recipient to document the delivery of the
parcel. Exemplary carrier
contact devices may also include circuit executable instructions that enable
the item carrier to capture a
"signature" of the parcel recipient through signature capture via recipient
finger contact with the touchscreen
of the carrier contact device or through other types of inputs which the
recipient has agreed correspond to their
legal signature. Messages including the parcel identifying indicia, and
delivery documentation are transmitted
to the central system circuitry from the carrier contact device. In some
arrangements the data sent may also
include position data, such as GPS data, which is indicative of the location
and time at which such
documentation was captured. Such information may be imbedded in metadata of
captured images for example.
The exemplary central system circuitry is operative to store in at least one
data store the delivery
documentation in connection with the other data related to the delivery item.
Such record information related
to the delivery of the parcel may be stored in at least one data store in
connection with the central circuitry for
a programmed period of time so that the delivery thereof to the recipient can
be audited and documented in the
event that questions arise as to the delivery or disposition of the particular
parcel. Of course these approaches
are exemplary and in other arrangements other approaches may be used.
Similar approaches may be used in some exemplary arrangements to have an item
carrier pickup
deposit items at an originating shipper address. The item carrier may operate
their mobile device to capture the
item identifying information and other item and shipper information to
document acceptance of the item for
transport.
In exemplary arrangements the central system or other connected systems may be
further operative to
assure that the depositories operate properly and that malfunctions or
anomalies are detected and corrected
promptly. For example in exemplary arrangements the central system may operate
to receive information from
the control circuitry associated with each depository that is indicative of
conditions or statuses associated with
the devices that are included as part of the depository or that are in
operative connection therewith. In some
exemplary arrangements the control circuitry of each depository may be
operative to automatically report
condition and/or status information on a periodic basis to the central
circuitry. Alternatively or in addition the
central circuitry may be operative to periodically poll the control circuitry
of each depository, which polling
messages are operative to cause sending of information by the depository, and
the receipt of the condition or
status information by the central circuitry. Various combinations of such
techniques and alternative
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
arrangements for obtaining condition and status information associated with
depositories may be provided in
exemplary arrangements.
The control circuitry of depositories in some exemplary arrangements may be
operative in accordance
with circuit executable instructions to monitor signals associated with the
devices included in or connected to
the depository. This may include sensors which are operative to detect errors
or malfunctions. For example,
the control circuitry may operate to detect situations where sensors such as
cameras or other image capture
devices associated with the depository are no longer operative to send image
signals or have degraded clarity
so as to indicate a loss of image capture capability. Other signals may be
operative to detect a malfunction of
other sensors, such as switches that are operative to determine the status of
the depository door or other
component monitored by the switch. In other exemplary arrangements conditions
associated with the lock or
locks associated with the depository door may be monitored for purposes of
detecting a malfunction or
possible efforts at tampering. In some exemplary arrangements the circuitry
may operate to monitor the
operation of the one or more sensors, such as property sensors of the types
previously discussed. Property
sensors such as weight sensors, size sensors, image sensors, and other sensor
types are monitored to determine
if a sensor has malfunctioned or has decreased sensitivity. Other sensors may
operate to detect abnormal
conditions such as high or low temperatures which may indicate a problem or a
malfunction. Other sensors
may operate to detect smoke or other particulate matter which may indicate
combustion or other possible
problems. Additional sensors may be operative to detect the temperature of the
control circuitry, a power
supply and/or a battery or other element in connection therewith, for purposes
of determining a possible
malfunction.
In other exemplary arrangements conditions associated with sensors or devices
may be monitored to
determine malfunctions or other conditions indicative of problems or a
probable future problem. For example,
if the depository is located in an environment that needs to be illuminated
such as during evening hours,
sensors may be operative to monitor for the presence of a level of ambient
lighting that operates to illuminate
the area of the depository for security reasons. The absence of a sufficient
level of ambient illumination may
be detected as an unacceptable condition which needs to be remedied by the
replacement of bulbs or other
illumination devices in the area of the depository. Further in exemplary
arrangements the circuitry may be in
operative connection with sensors that are operative to detect the power draw
associated with the operation of
depository devices. For example the control circuitry may be operative to
detect the power draw associated
with the electrical actuation needed for locking or unlocking the lock of the
depository. The values associated
with the power required for such activity may be stored and monitored over
time so that changes indicative of
a developing problem due to changes can be determined. Alternatively or in
addition, conditions associated
with the available power capabilities provided by a battery and/or solar cells
may be monitored to identify
circumstances or trends which indicate that the battery and/or solar power
source has failed or is exhibiting
conditions which correspond to probable upcoming failure. In some exemplary
arrangements such data may
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
be stored and monitored over time. Such data may be analyzed to determine
trends which are indicative of the
particular component nearing an end-of-life condition or a probable future
malfunction.
In other exemplary arrangements the control circuitry may operate to monitor
connectivity associated
with wireless communications or other communication channels for purposes of
verifying that the depository
is maintaining the required communications capability with the central system.
The inability to maintain such
communications capability over a period of time may indicate problems
associated with the control circuitry
and/or the network in which the depository is connected. Further in exemplary
arrangements the depository
may include sensors which may sense conditions that are indicative of a
criminal attack on the depository.
These may include for example conductivity integrity sensors which are
positioned in the walls, a bottom
and/or one or more doors of the depository and which are operative to detect
holes, cutting action or other
attempts to access the depository interior. In other exemplary arrangements
seismic sensors may be included
in depositories for purposes of detecting circumstances under which a
depository may be moved or may be
subject to impacts for purposes of attempting to steal or breach the
depository. Still in other exemplary
arrangements sensors may be provided in or adjacent to the depository for
purposes of determining external
conditions such as fire, smoke, heat, flood or other conditions which are
problematic to the operation of the
depository unit. Of course these conditions which may be monitored and
analyzed are exemplary, and in other
embodiments other conditions may be detected and approaches may be used.
In exemplary arrangements the control circuitry associated with the depository
may operate to analyze
signals or conditions, and send messages to notify the central system
circuitry of the particular condition. In
some exemplary arrangements the depository control circuitry may be configured
to operate so that detection
of the condition may be automatically notified to the central system circuitry
as soon as it is detected. This
may include categories of urgent conditions such as circumstances which
correspond to criminal attacks that
attempt to access the interior of the depository. In other circumstances data
corresponding to other less urgent
conditions may be stored as status data in one or more data stores associated
with the depository control
circuitry. Such status condition information may be sent individually or in
combination with other status
information to the central system circuitry when the depository is polled or
otherwise requested to submit
status data. Of course these approaches are exemplary and in other embodiments
other approaches may be
used.
In some exemplary arrangements the central system circuitry may be operative
to include data
corresponding to acceptable operating parameters and ranges for the operation
of components included in
depositories. Such stored data may correspond to a model, template or other
arrangement of information that
provides suitable ranges for detected readings, parameters or conditions when
a depository is operating
properly. In exemplary arrangements communications between the central system
circuitry and the control
circuitry of each depository may be operative to determine the information
from the depository necessary to
compare the status information associated with the depository to the stored
data. The central circuitry may
operate in accordance with its programmed instructions to identify anomalies
or irregularities in the data from
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
the depository and to determine the condition or conditions indicated by this
data. Further in exemplary
arrangements the central circuitry may be operative to identify the remedial
actions that are necessary in
response to the data that is received from a depository.
In exemplary arrangements in response to determining abnormal conditions,
problems, malfunctions
or developing conditions at a depository, the central system circuitry may
operate in accordance with its
programmed circuit instructions to take programmed actions in response to such
determinations. Such
programmed actions may include for example, sending one or more messages to
other systems to indicate the
need for repair, servicing or other actions associated with the particular
depository. In other circumstances
such actions may include notifying appropriate authorities of the condition at
a depository. For example if the
detected condition includes an attempted theft, breach of the depository or
fire condition, the central system
circuitry may operate to notify appropriate police or fire authorities in the
area where the depository is located.
In other circumstances the central system circuitry may operate in accordance
with its programming to
communicate with other systems to schedule a service call or other remedial or
preventive maintenance at the
particular depository to correct conditions and/or to replace parts that may
be reaching the predicted end of
useful life. Of course these approaches are exemplary and in other embodiments
other approaches may be
used.
In still other exemplary arrangements the central system circuitry may be
operative to communicate
with the depository to attempt remote correction of problematic conditions
which are detected. For example,
in circumstances where the depository or device included therein may not be
operating in a proper manner, the
exemplary system may operate to download to the control circuitry of the
depository, circuit executable
instructions that may correct or reduce the effect of the problem. This may
include for example, downloading
to the control circuitry of the depository a substitute script to be executed
by the control circuitry for purposes
of controlling a particular device. The central system may cause the download
of instructions that cause the
control circuitry of the depository to execute the substitute script and
report the results to the central system.
The results reported may indicate further steps that can be taken by the
central system through detecting
signals from the control circuitry and downloading further scripts or other
instructions for purposes of
remotely determining the problem and/or making corrections. In other
arrangements the central system may
operate to cause the control circuitry of a depository or devices connected
thereto to reboot or otherwise
initialize in an attempt to address problems or correct anomalies. Of course
it should be understood that these
approaches are exemplary and in other embodiments numerous other approaches
may be used.
As illustrated in Figure 35 there is provided an exemplary parcel transaction
monitor 3501, for a
monitored-access parcel depository, which is alternatively referred to herein
as a repository or a lock box.
Deposit items and delivery items are alternatively referred to herein as
parcels or packages. The exemplary
repository (not shown), includes control circuitry including at least one
controller 3502 with sensor/actuator
.. arrays 3503 and 3504 respectively. The control circuitry is operable to
monitor parcel transactions for at least
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
one of parcel delivery or parcel extraction transactions in relation to said
repository, and providing for at least
one of:
= An incipient transaction detection module 3505 for prospectively
detecting an incipient parcel
transaction in relation to the repository of an at least one of a possible
parcel for delivery transaction, or a
possible parcel carrier intent on a repository parcel transaction;
= A parcel transaction characterization module 3506 for differentially
characterizing a parcel
transaction; or,
= A parcel-inventory and transaction-recording module 3507 for sensing a
change in repository
parcel inventory resulting from a repository parcel transaction.
These exemplary modules are adapted to variously employ elements and functions
of said controller
and array for the respective operations thereof, and the elements and
functions of the controller and array may
be variously shared between the modules in the execution of their respective
operations.
An incipient transaction detection module 3505 is comprised of a controller
3502 and sensor/actuator
arrays 3504/3503 for use with a controlled-access parcel repository which
includes an at least one sensor for
detecting proximity (which may involve physical contact with the repository or
something more distant) of a
possible parcel for delivery or a possible parcel carrier intent on a
repository parcel transaction.
By way of example, this module may employ for this purpose, the controller
with ones or
combinations of sensors/actuators of said array, including:
= Accelerometers, or similar repository movement or contact detectors,
(e.g. even something as
simple as a contact switch ¨ such as a button or a keyboard, or the operation
of a parcel repository access door
or chute);
= Ultrasonic, photoelectric, infra-red, exogenous motion or presence
detectors; or,
= Proximity or estimated time of arrival by radio-frequency ¨ e.g. by
tracking a parcel or its
carrier location using a GPS signal through a smart phone or other
communications device (geo fencing, geo
location etc.), or more locally by detecting an RFID or NFC device signal, a
Bluetooth device or the like.
The proximity detection module may, on detection of such proximity, and
presupposing thereby a
possible parcel for delivery or a possible parcel carrier intent on a
repository parcel transaction, may be
operable to further actuate one or both of the other modules. Accordingly
therefore in aspects of exemplary
arrangements the incipient transaction detection module may further operate an
at least one actuator for:
= actuating a parcel transaction characterization module of said
controlled-access parcel
repository for differentially characterizing a parcel transaction.
= actuating a parcel-inventory and transaction-recording module for sensing
a change in
repository parcel inventory resulting from a repository parcel transaction.
In this way the transaction detection module may power-up other repository
modules which may have
been turned off or in a hibernating mode in the absence of a prospective
parcel transaction (as a power
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
conservation measure, or to prepare such modules for use, in order to expedite
the impending parcel
transaction).
In an aspect of an exemplary arrangement a parcel transaction characterization
module is comprised of
a controller and sensor/actuator array for use with a controlled-access parcel
repository, and including at least
one automated sensor operable to facilitate at least one of package or item
carrier identification sensing of a
corresponding at least one of a possible package or possible carrier
presenting at said repository, wherein said
module differentiates sensed identification sensor input thereof to
correspondingly:
= facilitate an impending pre-authorized transaction corresponding to said
identification; or,
= call for a real-time ad hoc user-mediated authorization for an impending
transaction, and
facilitate a call-responsive ad hoc user-mediated authorization for said
impending transaction; or,
= decline (by default, in the absence of at least one of the two above
mentioned "authorizations"
to actively facilitate an otherwise unauthorized impending transaction.
Sensed identification sensor may be a controller and array associated camera
(which may include a
facial recognition facility) or scanner (e.g. bar code, or QR code or the
like), a voice or other acoustic input
recognition sensor, an RFID, Bluetooth or other parcel transaction identifier
for input into said module to
differentiate between and selectively facilitate the above operations.
In the instance of an impending pre-authorized transaction corresponding to
said sensed identification
input, this module may employ a controller/array associated communications
module 3508 to signal specifics
of the impending transaction to, for example, the repositories owner/user
and/or the parcel carrier or carrier
service.
In calling for a real-time ad hoc user-mediated authorization for an impending
transaction the parcel
transaction characterization module may actuate a communications module (which
the controller includes or
provides access to), to contact a user with a request for authorization of the
impending parcel transaction ¨ and
subject to a user's authorizing response thereto, to facilitate the impending
transaction as an authorized one.
In an instance of an identified pre-authorized transaction, or an instance
wherein a real-time ad hoc
user-mediated authorization is received in response to a call therefore, the
parcel transaction characterization
module may signal a latching actuator, as elaborated below in relation to an
accessibility control according to
an aspect of an exemplary arrangement.
Where the module operates otherwise than in facilitating an authorized
transaction, it may be operable
to notify a user (e.g. through said communications module as aforesaid) of an
unauthorized characterization
status of the presumed parcel transaction.
In another aspect of an exemplary arrangement there is provided a parcel-
inventory and transaction-
recording module, for use with a controlled-access parcel repository including
an at least one sensor for
sensing a change in package inventory resulting from a repository parcel
transaction.
Parcel sizes may be employed (scanned or otherwise sensed as for example by
photo-detectors
adapted to detect the presence of parcels through interruption of a light
beam), or recorded images of the
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
parcels may be stored for these purposes, but an exemplary operation senses
parcel weights, by way of a
weight (e.g. load) sensor that measures the accumulated parcel weight secured
within the interior of the
repository. The load or other inventory sensor communicates with a controller-
associated memory to log
changes in the sensed weight in association with changes in the parcel
inventory. In an exemplary
arrangement, such a memory correlates parcel transaction identifications with
the particular weight change
(and time for embodiments where the controller includes a clock facility for
such a purpose) associated with
the sensed change in the repository's parcel inventory.
In an exemplary arrangement, there is provided an accessibility control, for a
controlled-access parcel
repository, and comprised of at least one controller with a sensor/actuator
array operable to selectively control
access to said parcel repository, and comprised of at least one controller
with a sensor/actuator array operable
to facilitate controlled-access parcel transactions for at least one of parcel
delivery or parcel extraction
transactions in relation to said repository, and providing a parcel
transaction characterization module for
facilitating selective locking and unlocking operations of a repository lock
actuator, in association with
authorized parcel transactions characterized by said parcel transaction
characterization module. A latching
mechanism may be operated by an actuator through the controller operation by
the parcel transaction
characterization module.
The accessibility control may be used in association with any controlled
access repository, including
by way of example only, a building's vestibule, a parcel through-wall passage
portal, a garage door, a storage
shed, a chest or lock box or other such providing restricted access to an
interior space serving to secure parcels
reposing therein. Repositories of exemplary arrangements may, in addition to a
secured access thereto, may
also provide an unsecured access for facilitating parcel deliveries ¨ see for
example the provision of a one-way
chute in the repository embodiment depicted in Figures 36 through 39, which
may provide for delivery of
parcels notwithstanding the authorization status associated with any given
delivery. In such cases, the
accessibility control may be used to selectively facilitate authorized access
to restricted areas of the repository
in question.
The accessibility control herein may further provide for at least one of the
incipient transaction
detection module or the parcel-inventory and transaction-recording modules
mentioned elsewhere herein.
In general, including in conjunction with modules 3505 ¨ 3507, communications
module 3508 may be
operated through controller 3505 to communicate sensor-related signals to
parties variously involved in a
parcel transaction; and to receive authorization and to control signals from
such parties, to operate actuators
associated with actuator array 3504. Cellular, Wi-Fi, land line, internet, or
other communications channels may
be employed in this connection. Other exemplary aspects of the controller and
array features relating to an
exemplary arrangement are disclosed in relation to the embodiments of Figures
40 through 44 described
elsewhere herein.
Referring now also to Figures 36 through 39 there is illustrated various views
of an example of a
parcel repository related to aspects of exemplary arrangements.
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
In accordance with an aspect of an exemplary arrangement, there is provided a
parcel repository
comprising a free-standing parcel repository 3601, defining an enclosure
comprised, in part, by a top panel
3602a adapted to cooperate with the enclosure's sides, back and bottom panel
assembly 3602b, and a molded
cabinet face frame 3602c.
This repository includes a one-way delivery chute 3603, providing an access
portal for introduction
and passage of a parcel delivery into said repository, but further including a
gate for interfering with removal
through that chute, of parcels secured within a secured storage bay portion of
the repository. External portions
of the chute which will be considered a door for purposes of this disclosure,
include a delivery chute front
panel 3603a, and a hinge 3603b for facilitating opening and closing of the
panel as well as operation of the
chute 3603 more generally.
This repository further includes a selectively securable (e.g.
locked/unlocked) parcel storage bay 3604
having a hinged storage bay door hinge 3604a and a corresponding hinge 3604b
to facilitate the opening and
closing thereof Storage bay 3604 corresponds to an interior area of the
repository.
Hinges 3603b and 3604b and mounted on respective portions of frame portion of
the cabinet face
3602c.
This repository arrangement (by way of example) provides for two delivery
modalities: one
facilitated through one-way delivery chute 3603; and the other directly into
storage bay 3604 through
selectively secured hinged door 3604a. However, of these two distinct delivery
modalities, only the hinged
door 3604a is adapted to facilitate withdrawal of parcels from the storage bay
3604. This arrangement flexibly
facilitates parcel deliveries to be made without necessarily requiring any
particular pre-authorization or real-
time authorization, but necessitates authorized access to storage bay 3604 in
order to remove delivered parcels
from the secured storage bay 3604.
Repository 3601 also provides for an inner-delivery chute front interior panel
3603c for supporting
parcels for delivery during parcel introduction through delivery chute 3603 on
its way into storage bay 3604.
Chute 3603 is opened for a delivery transaction, by drawing a recessed handle
3603i forward and downwardly,
rotating front panel 3603a and attached front interior panel 3603c outwardly
together, around hinge 3603b.
Pivot anchors 3603f (secured to front interior panel 3603c), in turn draw
outwardly and downwardly through
pivot pins 3603k, pulling tray 3603h to rotate by the pivot pins 3603k which
are connected to connecting arms
3603e to anchor 3603j on the tray. Tray 3603h rotates in response to this
action, around tray pivots 3603g that
connect tray 3603h to enclosure side and back and bottom panel assembly 3602b
¨ and into a position that
provides a generally coplanar delivery chute surface alignment with front
interior panel 3603c. That co-planar
alignment facilitates the transfer of a parcel from the panel 3603c onto the
receiving surface 3603d of tray
3603h.
With a parcel positioned on the receiving surface 3603d of tray 3603h, the
return of front panel 3603a
towards its upright and ultimately re-closed position, rotates tray 3603h from
the coplanar alignment
mentioned above, into an inclined orientation, which induces the parcel to
slide along and ultimately off of
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
supporting tray 3603h, to release the parcel into the repository's interior
area, where delivered parcels
accumulate in storage bay 3604, in supported relation on parcel repository bay
floor 3608.
In the illustrated embodiment, parcel delivery transactions made through the
chute are not restricted
by the operation of the accessibility control.
Parcel bay floor 3608 is connected with a load sensor 3607, which is operable
to sense
increases/decreases in the accumulated weight of delivered parcels stored
within storage bay 3604 on bay floor
3608, as parcels are added by delivery transactions, or removed during pickup
transactions to and from
repository 3601.
Controller 3609 is connected to an array of sensors and actuators, including
latch actuator 3604c an
acoustic transducer 3610, an on-board camera/scanner (not shown), and load
sensor 3607. Controller 3609
also includes a power management connection for selectively powering the
repository operations using a utility
line voltage source (not shown) or battery power from battery 3606, or other
power sources (not shown, but
including by way of example, solar panels) The exemplary controller 3609 is
also in operative connection with
a wireless antenna 3605 to provide wireless communications.
The on-board camera provides for video and/or still pictures, as well as for
bar-code/QR-code scan
sensing. The acoustic transducer 3610 provides for audio signaling, and
optionally for audio pick-up (sound
sensing). Load sensor 3607 senses weight changes reflecting changes in parcel
inventory secured within
repository 3601 interior area ¨ and may further associate weight changes with
particular parcel transactions.
Latch actuator 3604c facilitates locking and unlocking operations of door
3604a to provide selective access to
storage bay 3604.
Referring now to Figures 40 through 44, there are illustrated examples of
aspects of exemplary
arrangements relating to a delivery lock box (i.e. repository) controller (or
controller module) for operating a
delivery lock box, and comprises a controller operable for controlling lock
box peripherals of arrays thereof to
provide discrete modular functionalities variously related to unattended-
delivery lock box convenience as well
as operational and forensic security, but more particularly to providing
combinations of modular functions
variously cooperating for providing augmented, and in some embodiments, real-
time remote user interface
access for such operational/forensic security. In accordance with an exemplary
arrangement there is provided
discrete modular functionalities variously related to unattended-delivery lock
box convenience as well as
operational and forensic security, as well as providing combinations of
modular functions cooperating
variously for providing augmented, and in some embodiments, real-time remote
user interface access for such
operational/forensic security. More particularly, exemplary arrangements
include a (e.g. package) delivery
lock box controller module for operating a delivery lock box having a
controller operable for controlling lock
box peripherals including one or more of: a lock box communications module; a
camera and image recording
module; a proximity detection sensor module; a lock box motion/shock detection
sensor module; and/or a
remote lock actuator module.
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
The lock box communications module is adapted to facilitate RF (radio
frequency) communication of
lock box peripherals data to a lock box user, and may additionally variously
facilitate lock box peripheral
control by the user.
The camera and image recording module is adapted to be selectively operable
for pre-determinedly
capturing and recording at least one image of at least a portion of the lock
boxes surroundings. In an aspect of
the present arrangement, the camera may also serve a scanner/reader function.
The proximity detection sensor module may serve in the detection of a
triggering presence within a
range proximal to the lock box and signaling (buzzer or other acoustical
device, or RF e.g. through the lock
box communications module) a proximity notification of such presence.
The lock box motion/shock detection sensor module, operable for detecting a
triggering lock box
motion or shock and signaling (buzzer or other acoustic or illumination
device, or RF signaling e.g. through
the lock box communications module) a motion/shock detection notification.
The remote lock actuator module operable by an authorized remote user to
operate the lock actuator
module's lock actuator.
A controller module in the context of exemplary arrangements can be, for
example, a chip, an
expansion card, or a stand-alone device that interfaces with one or more
peripheral devices. Preferably, the
controller module comprises a single board implementation comprising a central
processing unit (processor)
that processes data, memory that holds the programs and data to be processed
(although memory may
alternatively be located off-board), and I/O (input/output) devices as
interfaces that communicate with diverse
peripheral devices.
Figure 40 schematically depicts an embodiment of a control module 4001
according to an exemplary
arrangement, comprising a printed circuit board 4002, a processor 4003, a
memory 4004, an I/O processor
interface 4005, and on-board I/O devices 4006 and I/O pin socket 4007 for
connection to off-board I/O devices
(not shown).
In accordance with the exemplary arrangement, computer buses of one form or
another facilitate data
transactions between the processor, memory and these peripherals.
Referring now to Figure 41, a block schematic representation is provided to
illustrate a generalized
relationship between processor 4003, memory 4004, and a plurality of interface
devices 4005a, 4005b and
4005c associated with respective peripherals 4007a, 4007b and 4007c. Memory
bus 4008, address bus 4009
and control bus 4010 are also illustrated in an intermediary relationship with
the processor 4003, the interface
devices 4005a-c.
The control bus is used by the processor for communicating with other devices,
while the address bus
carries the information about the device with which the processor is
communicating and the data bus carries
the actual data being processed, and the control bus carries commands from the
processor and returns status
signals from the devices. Where an address bus is used to specify a physical
address ¨ such that when a
processor or direct memory access (DMA) enabled device needs to read or write
to a memory location, the
53
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
address bus specifies that memory location on the address bus, but the data
value to be read or written to or
from that address, is sent on the data bus. The memory bus typically connects
the main memory to the memory
controller and are often designed to connect directly to DRAM chips.
Referring now to Figure 42 there is depicted a function block diagram
depicting processor 4003
interactions with interface 4005, through the data bus 4008, the address bus
4009, and in the case of the control
bus 4010 as I/O read and I/O write transactions 4010a and 4010b. Interface
4005 in turn, transacts with I/O
devices such as devices 4006 or peripherals 4007a-c, through an I/O bus 4011
including data validation and
acceptance transactions 4012 and 4013.
Referring now to Figure 43, an exemplary embodiment of the controller module
is illustrated.
A main controller board 4002a, includes a general purpose I/O pin socket 4007,
servicing: door
lock/position sensors 4007d, for lock and door position sensors associated
with a deliver lock box locker
door(s); internal lighting control 4007e; external proximity sensor(s) 4007f;
and, a motion detector
(accelerometer) 4007g.
Controller board 4002a further includes a PWM (pulse width modulation) output
4014 for controlling
analog circuits with a microprocessor's digital outputs ¨ in this instance, a
transaction interaction buzzer 4007h
and a theft alarm 4007i.
Also provided on controller board 4002a, is a DSPI serial interface connection
4015 which is a fully
configurable SPI master/slave device, facilitating the microcontroller's
communication with serial peripheral
devices ¨ in this case an SD memory card 4019.
Controller board 4002a also provides for a universal asynchronous
receiver/transmitter (UART) to
serial peripheral interface (SPI) interface connection 4016, which is used for
communication between SPI
slave devices (from a processor) and a UART port ¨ in this instance providing
for a Wi-Fi/Bluetooth radio
peripheral 4020.
MIPI/USB interface connector 4017 enables USB connectivity to any image sensor
which is
compliant with Mobile Industry Processor Interface (MIPI) Camera Serial
Interface standard ¨ connected in
this case to camera/jpeg encoder 4021.
Controller board 4002a also supports an i.MX6 processor 4018. Processor 4018
facilitates high-
performance scalable multimedia processing, and includes integrated power
management based on an ARM
Cortex-A9 processor supporting HD 1080p encode and decode operation and having
integrated I/O for MIPI
CSI-2 camera, Gigabit Ethernet, multiple USB and PCI I/O. Power management is
facilitated in conjunction
with processor 4018, by way of power controller 4022, to control a hybrid
power system based on solar cells
4023 and lithium batteries 4024.
Referring now to Figure 44, an alternative embodiment depicting a controller
board housing 4051,
housing a controller board 4051a. Controller board 4051a can be designed to
support a generic application
processor, however, processor 4052 in this depicted embodiment is a PICO-IMX6
including an ARM Cortex-
A9 NXP i.MX6, Small Footprint, System-on-Module (SoM) having WiFi 802.11ac and
Bluetooth v. 4.1
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
communication interfaces providing a compact form factor optimized for free-
standing applications with IoT
connectedness. Alternative embodiments may employ other processors, such as
ARM core processors, or
ARM Cortex processors, such as for example, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 410e which
is an ARM Cortex A53
processor.
Processor 4052 provides I2C bus connections 4053, 4054 and 4055. The I2C bus
is a serial, half-
duplex - I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit), synchronous, multi-master, multi-
slave, packet switched, single-ended,
serial computer bus for attaching lower-speed peripheral ICs to processors and
microcontrollers in short-
distance, intra-board communications.
Connection 4053 is connected to GPIO expanders 4053a which are TCA5416A I/O
expanders for the
two-line bidirectional (I2C) bus and are designed to provide general-purpose
remote I/O expansion through the
12C interface. Expanders 4053a are in turn connected to a blue tooth wifi
pairing button 4043b; an FET switch
4053c which is adapted to be connected through enclosure 405 lto a connector
405 lb and corresponding
delivery lock box connector 4051c, to delivery lock box external LED lights
4053e; an FET switch 4053d
which is adapted to be connected through connectors 405 lb and 4051c, to
delivery lock box door locks
actuators 4053f; and through connectors 4051b and 40451c to delivery lock box
open door sensors (door
µ`open" contact) 4053g. Connector 4053h connects to delivery lock box internal
LED lighting, and is co-
operable with sensors 4053g.
Connection 4054 supports both an accelerometer 4054a and a motion detection
module 4054b.
Accelerometer 4054a is provided by an L5M303 breakout board which combines a
magnetometer/compass module with a triple-axis accelerometer in a compact
navigation subsystem, and its
two pin I2C interface can be shared by other I2C devices, in this case
including module 4054b.
Motion detection module 4054b provides a motion sensor connection using an
LTC2451 16-bit,
analog-to-digital converter which also communicates through the 12C interface
4054. It includes an integrated
oscillator that does not require any external components and employs a delta-
sigma modulator as a converter
core and provides single-cycle settling time for multiplexed applications. The
LTC2451 includes input
sampling scheme that reduces the average input sampling current several orders
of magnitude lower than
conventional AE converters. The LTC2451 is capable of up to 60 conversions per
second and, due to the very
large oversampling ratio, has extremely relaxed antialiasing requirements. It
connects through pin connector
4054c to motion sensor 4054d.
Connection 4055 connects processor 4052 to a separate, delivery lock box fuel
gauge circuit board
4055a carrying an LTC2943 module which measures battery charge state, battery
voltage, battery current for
battery bank 4055b, as well as its own temperature in standalone applications.
A precision coulomb counter
integrates current through a sensing resistor between the battery's positive
terminal and the load or charger.
Voltage, current and temperature are measured with an internal 14-bit No
Latency ATM ADC and the
measurements are stored in internal registers accessible via the onboard
I2C/SMBus Interface. The LTC2943 is
programmable for setting high and low thresholds for all four measured
quantities. If a programmed threshold
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
is exceeded, the device communicates an alert by setting a flag in the
internal status register. The LTC2943
requires only a single low value sensing resistor to set the measured current
range.
Processor 4052 further includes a PWM (pulse width modulation) output 4056 for
controlling analog
circuits with a microprocessor's digital outputs ¨ in this instance, a buzzer
speaker or other audio transducer
4056a. An SD card connector 4057 and a Wi-Fi Bluetooth connector 4058 are also
provided. Bluetooth
connector 4058 is connected to an active antenna power module 4058a. Connector
4058b provides for the
connection of a Wi-Fi/Bluetooth antenna.
The SD card connector 4057 is interconnected with an SD card slot 4057a,
mounted on controller
board 4051a. An SD card (Secure Digital Card), not shown, is inserted into
slot 4057a to provide reliable data
storage in a small form factor for, inter alia, digital camera images, etc. SD
cards contain an internal controller
interface that handles all internal flash memory operations and data transfer
between the processor 4052 and
the card is done in 512 byte block, clock serial mode ¨ using a selected one
of two bus protocols defined for
SD cards, (the default native SD mode or a slower SPI mode).
Processor 4052 also provides for a UART connection 4059, communicating with a
Debug TTL UART
4059a.
GPIO connection 4060 on processor 4052, supports an LT3651 automatic lithium
ion battery charger
circuit 4060a which functions as a solar charge controller (in conjunction
with power supply module 4060b),
charge regulator and battery regulator to limit the rate at which electric
current is added to or drawn from
battery bank 4055b electric batteries. Circuit 4060a prevents overcharging and
may protect against
overvoltage, which can reduce battery performance or lifespan, and may pose a
safety risk. It may also prevent
completely draining ("deep discharging") a battery, or perform controlled
discharges, depending on the battery
technology, to protect battery life. Connector 4060c provides for the
connection of solar panels or external DC
power supplies.
Processor 4052 provides a camera Serial Interface (CSI) 4061 conforming to
MIPI Alliance
specifications that provide for an interface between a camera and host
processor 4052. Interface 4061 connects
to a MIPI connection 4061a which in turn is connected to an 0V5645 high
performance, 5-megapixel system-
on-chip (SOC) 4061b. This sensor's single MIPI port replaces both a bandwidth-
limited DVP interface and a
costly embedded JPEG compressor, with attendant savings on silicon footprint
and cost.
USB host connector 4062 connects to a USB to SATA bridge 4062a. Bridge 4062a
is a TU5B9261
ARM Cortex M3 microcontroller based USB 3.0 to serial ATA bridge. It
provides the necessary hardware
and firmware to implement a USB attached SCSI protocol (UASP)-compliant mass
storage device suitable for
bridging hard disk drives (HDD), solid state disk drives (SSD), optical
drives, and other compatible SATA 1.5-
Gbps or SATA 3.0-Gbps devices to a USB 3.0 bus. Bridge 4062a connects in turn
to SATA/PWR connector
4062b.
Serial Peripheral Interface bus (SPI) is a synchronous serial communication
interface 4063a for
connecting to an analog to digital converter 4063a. Converter 4063a is an
ADS1148 device providing 16-bit
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
analog-to-digital converter that includes many integrated features to reduce
system cost and component count
for sensor measurement applications ¨ including a low-noise, programmable gain
amplifier (PGA), a precision
delta-sigma (As) ADC with a single-cycle settling digital filter, and an
internal oscillator and a built-in, low-
drift voltage reference, and two matched programmable excitation current
sources (IDACs).
GPIO interface 4064 connects though FET switches 4064a to control LED lights
connected through
connectors 4053e and 4053h.
Referring now to the drawings in general: One aspect of an exemplary
arrangement provides for a
delivery lock box controller module, housed for example in a housing 4051, and
adapted for operating a
delivery lock box (not shown). This aspect of the exemplary arrangement
comprises a controller (such as
controller board 4051a and processor 4052), that is operable for controlling
lock box peripherals. In particular,
the module according to this aspect of the exemplary arrangement provides for
a remote lock actuator module
that is operable by an authorized remote user. The remote lock actuator module
comprises processor 4052 and
12C bus connection 4053, GPIO expanders 4053a, FET switch 4053d and enclosure
connector 405 lb. With
enclosure connector 405 lb engaged with delivery lock box connector 4051c,
processor 4052 may be instructed
by an authorized user, to operate lock box door lock actuators 4053f to in
turn permit access to the lock box
interior and thereby facilitate introduction or removal of lock box contents.
Preferably, the operation of the
lock box door lock actuators 4053f is attended by the operation of lock box
external LED lights 4053e by
processor 4052 acting across the connection of connectors 405 lb and 4051c,
and by way of FET switch 4053c,
GPIO expanders 4053a and I2C bus connection 4053 of processor 4052. This
arrangement can draw a
delivery agent's attention to the lock box and aid in the delivery agent's
completion of the user-authorized lock
box transaction. This can be important since it is often desirable for the
lock box installation to be discretely
placed, and/or to have it fit unobtrusively into the local decor. Note too,
however, that external LED lights
4053e can be operated by processor 4052 independently of the operation of door
lock actuators 4053f. This
facility for independent operation of external LED lights 4053e permits them
to be used simply as a local
source of augmented lighting; or as a flashing light source in the case of an
emergency or security threat
without occasioning the concurrent release of the locks. Moreover lock box
internal LED operation through
connector 4053h is also independent of the operation of external LED lights
4053e, and operate instead in
cooperation with open door sensor 4053g with its connections through
connectors 405 lb and 4051c, GPIO
expanders 4053a, I2C bus connections 4053 to processor 4052. This represents a
power saving in
circumstances where illumination of the lock box interior is not required and
is an important consideration for
lock box installations that function without recourse to the electrical grid.
The lock box controller module comprising controller board 4051a and processor
4052 may make
provision for a camera and image recording module ¨ as for example by way of
camera 40461b, MIPI
interface 4061a, and camera serial interface 4061. This arrangement is
preferably selectively operable to
(optionally pre-determinedly) capture and record at least one image of at
least a portion of said lock boxes
surroundings. The recording may be captured using an off-board storage drive,
using USB host connector
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
4062, USB to SATA bridge 4062a, and USB host connector 4062b, under the
direction of processor 4052.
Alternatively, the recording may be captured on an SD card (not shown) using
SD card connector 4057 and
SSD card slot 4057a. An authorized user may trigger processor 4052 to activate
the camera or the camera and
the recorder to selectively capture images. In one embodiment processor 4052
operates camera 4061b more or
less continuously, and records captured images on a memory device as mentioned
above, but in a short term
first-in-first out over-writing buffer file. Subject then to the occurrence of
a pre-determined triggering event,
the buffer file is transferred to an archive file, preserving images recorded
in advance of the triggering event
and appending recordings of images subsequently captured and recorded to the
archive file, for a
predetermined time or condition. Thereafter, the camera 4061b reverts to said
more or less continuous
.. operation and recording later images into the over-write buffer as
aforesaid.
The lock box controller module comprising controller board 4051a and processor
4052 may also make
provision for a proximity detection sensor module comprising motion sensor
4054d, pin connector 4054c,
motion detection module 4054b and FC bus connection 4054 for detecting a
triggering presence within a range
proximal to the lock box, and signaling (e.g. by but not limited to a buzzer
or other acoustical device, or
flashing external LEDs as mentioned above), a proximity notification of such
presence. This signaling may
aid in directing legitimate approaches to the lock box, or deter illegitimate
interest in same, and in either case,
place the authorized user on alert to the motion in proximity to the lock box.
Similarly, the lock box controller module comprising controller board 4051a
and processor 4052 may
also make provision, through accelerometer 4054a and FC bus connection 4054,
for a lock box motion/shock
detection sensor module, operable for detecting a triggering lock box motion
or shock and signaling (again, for
example, via buzzer or other acoustic or illumination device) a motion/shock
detection notification to the user.
Preferably, this notification is of a loud and insistent character that will
assertively deter any attendant theft
attempt or vandalism.
In an exemplary embodiment, the controller board 4051a and processor 4052
provide for a lock box
communications module, in this case by way of a System-on-Module (SoM) having
built in Wi-Fi 802.11ac
and Bluetooth v. 4.1 radios and communication interfaces providing a compact
form factor optimized for free-
standing applications with local RF networks as well as providing for IoT
(internet of things) connectedness.
Processor 4052 is thereby adapted to facilitate RF communication of lock box
peripherals data to a lock box
user ¨ using in this particular case, SPI connector 4063, A/D converter 4063a
as well as Bluetooth connector
.. 4058 and active antenna power module 4058a with its connections through
connectors 405 lb and 4051c to
antenna 4058b. In operation, control module 4001 with a communications module
(e.g. associated with
processor 4052 as per the above) comprises a lock box Bluetooth/Wi-Fi
communications module which
provides for Bluetooth-mediated configuration of Wi-Fi network connections
between the lock box
communications module and an available (e.g. local) user-selected Wi-Fi
network. More particularly, the
Bluetooth facility may be operable to link with a user phone and in turn
enable a user phone to
connect/configure the lockbox to a user selected local Wi-Fi network.
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
Controller module 4001 may also be operable such that a "proximity
notification" includes remotely
communicating a "detected presence" to a user's communication device (or some
other user proxy), through
the communications module. (Note that in general, communications to the user
device are typically mediated
via Wi-Fi or other local RF networks as well as through cellular, internet,
landlines, microwave and all the
-- various modems/gateways or the like that may be variously associated with
those networks). In an exemplary
embodiment, for example, the control module 4001 further comprises a cellular
data modem (not shown)
operable to provide an alternative user notification to a user in the event
that WIFI functionality is not used or
not available for this purpose.
Similarly, controller module 4001 may be operable to convey motion/shock
detection notifications by
-- remotely communicating a detected motion/shock notification to a user's
communication device, substantially
as described in the preceding paragraph.
The operation of the exemplary camera and image recording module is
selectively predetermined to
provide continuous operation and recording and this is facilitated by one or
both of an on-board recording
storage or to Wi-Fi connected storage. (Either or both such storage facilities
can be FIFO (first-in-first out)
.. over write in order to facilitate currency of recordings in the absence of
unlimited storage capacity). Controller
module 4001 may also be employed such that the camera and image recording
module is additionally or
alternatively selectively predetermined to be intermittently operated ¨
subject, for example, to a detected-
event-triggered operation. In one exemplary arrangement for example,
controller module 4001 may be
operable such that a proximity notification comprises triggering the camera
and image recording module to
-- record and/or communicate to a user's communication device (or user proxy),
that at least one image
associated with the proximity notification. Similarly, the control module 4001
may be operated such that the
motion/shock detection notification comprises triggering said camera and image
recording module to record
and/or communicate to a user's communication device (or user proxy), of an at
least one image associated with
the motion/shock detection. In an exemplary arrangement, the intermittent
operation of the camera and image
.. recording module is coextensive with ongoing detection of a detected
trigger event.
In exemplary embodiments where the control module 4001 operates image storage
as a first-in-first
out overwrite storage buffer, the camera and image recording module is further
operable in response to a
detected trigger event, to save the associated at least one image from the
first-in-first out overwrite storage
buffer to a long term storage archival location, and preferably so that when a
detected trigger event so operates
-- the camera and image recording module, that module saves associated images
from the buffer, beginning from
a predetermined time preceding detection of the detected event. Moreover, in
an exemplary arrangement when
a detected trigger event so operates the camera and image recording module, it
is operated so as to save
associated images for a predetermined time following termination of detection
of the detected event.
In the depicted exemplary embodiment control module 4001 is further operable
to manage a hybrid
.. power source power supply module 4060b provided from a primary power source
selected from at least one of
a solar power source and a line power source; and, a secondary battery power
reserve source (battery bank
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
supply 4055b), with the hybrid power source being operable to variously power
the delivery lock box
operations, and employs delivery box fuel gauge circuit board 4055a in that
connection. The control module
4001 also operates power supply module 4060b, using battery charger circuit
4060a to charge the secondary
(battery bank 4055b) source from the primary source(s).
The control module 4001 may further comprise a cellular data modem to provide
an alternative user
notification to a user, (collateral with Wi-Fi functions, or as an alternative
if Wi-Fi is not available).
In an aspect of an exemplary arrangement, there is also provided a weigh scale
peripheral connection
4066. The connection to processor 4052 can be variously facilitated ¨ e.g.
through a general input output
interface. The weigh scale peripheral may be used to signal the
arrival/presence of a package within a
repository enclosure ¨ and also in conjunction with the parcel inventory
module, to track arrival and
withdrawal of one or more parcels from the parcel inventory secured within the
repository.
Figures 45 ¨ 48 show an alternative arrangement of a delivery item repository
670. Repository 670 is
configured to be utilized in a system which includes a plurality of
repositories of the same or similar
configuration, such as one of the repository configurations previously
discussed herein. The exemplary system
is usable to transport delivery items which are also referred to as parcels,
from a respective originating
repository to a respective destination repository so as to achieve transport
of the parcel from one geographic
location to another. Exemplary arrangements may facilitate small-scale parcel
delivery operations in which
item carriers exchange parcels through controlled transfers which occur
through intermediate destination
repositories under the control of one or more servers or other central system
circuitry in a manner like that
previously discussed.
The exemplary systems facilitate the use of crowd sourced item carrier
participation. Such item
carriers may operate to transport parcels between originating repositories and
destination repositories. In other
exemplary arrangements item carriers may further operate to carry out pickup
and delivery activities at points
of parcel shipment origination or endpoints of parcel transport that do not
include repositories. Exemplary
arrangements may provide for a parcel delivery system which is configured to
transport parcels that are
provided from and delivered to diverse locations and at different times by a
plurality of different shipper and
recipient system user types.
In exemplary arrangements the system may include a plurality of geographically
dispersed
repositories such as repository 670. Repository 670 includes a body having a
plurality of separated
compartment interior areas each of which bound a respective enclosed
compartment space that is suitable for
holding one or more parcels. Each of the interior areas is selectively
accessible by authorized users who are
enabled to unlock compartment associated locks and open closure members such
as respective doors that are
movable to provide access to respective compar tment interior areas. Each
respective repository may be
operated as an originating repository as well as an intermediate or final
destination repository. Thus the
exemplary system provides for a fully connected physical topography of
repositories.
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
In exemplary arrangements each of the plurality of repositories is in
operative connection with central
system circuitry like that previously discussed which is alternatively
referred to herein as control circuitry.
The exemplary central system circuitry operates as a control grid to manage
item carrier authorizations and
assignments. The central system circuitry also performs monitoring of the
pickups of parcels from originating
repositories and the delivery of parcels into the destination repositories.
Further in exemplary arrangements
the monitoring functions of the central system circuitry may operate to assure
that parcel items are delivered in
accordance with required schedules and/or other handling requirements that may
be associated with particular
parcels.
Further in exemplary arrangements the central system circuitry which controls
the acceptance,
transport and delivery of parcels, provides useful aspects compared to other
parcel distribution methods. This
is achieved in some arrangements due to the handling, transport and sorting of
a relatively small number of
parcels by each authorized shipping user and item carrier user of the system.
For example in exemplary
arrangements, each item carrier will generally be involved in handling less
than 10 parcels simultaneously at
any given time.
The use of crowd sourced item carriers receiving parcels from originating
depositories and
transporting parcels through intermediate destination repositories,
facilitates the transport and delivery of
parcels. As item carriers act to provide parcel transport generally in
coordination with their other activities
such as commuting or other travel, the ability to move parcels to a final
destination repository is facilitated
even though item carriers may only be willing to carry parcels a portion of
the overall parcel transport path.
Further the exemplary arrangements provide for item carrier compensation for
transport of parcels, which
compensation may be readily obtained by the item carrier in connection with
their normal commuting or travel
activities
The exemplary parcel repository 670 shown in Figures 45 ¨ 48 is configured to
operate as a free
standing device and perform the functions associated with an originating
depository and a destination
repository concurrently for a plurality of parcels. The exemplary repository
670 includes a body which is
alternatively referred to herein as a housing 672. The housing is supported on
a base 674. The base 74
includes a forward extending portion 676. The forward extending portion of the
exemplary arrangement
includes a front to rearward upwardly sloped face 678.
The exemplary repository housing 672 further includes a top or cap 680. The
exemplary top includes
a roof panel 682. Roof panel 682 is sloped downward from front to rear of the
housing 672. The top 680
further includes a forward extending cornice 684. Cornice 684 extends forward
beyond the front of the central
position of the housing 672. Cornice 684 has a sloped face 686 that is sloped
toward the rear of the housing
further downward along the face 686.
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The exemplary face 686 includes a recess 688. Recess 688 includes a lens 690.
The exemplary lens
690 is translucent to enable illumination of the front of the housing by one
or more lamps that are positioned
within the housing. The cornice 684 further includes a port or opening 692
therein. An electronics housing
694 extends in the opening 692. The electronics housing 694 is configured to
hold control circuitry 696 which
may be of the type previously discussed, as well as at least one sensor or
input device 698 such as a camera or
scanner and a wireless portal.
The exemplary housing 672 includes a pair of side panels 700, 702 and a back
panel 704. Panels 700,
702 and 704 bound a partitioned housing interior that includes a plurality of
separated interior areas. Locker
doors 706, 708, 710, 712 714, 716, 718, 720, 722 and 724 are each movably
mounted in operative supported
connection with the housing 762 through respective hinges 726. Each of the
locker doors selectively controls
access to a respective interior area within the housing 672. In the exemplary
arrangement each of the doors is
changeable between a locked condition and an unlocked condition responsive to
a respective electrically
actuated lock in a manner similar to that used in the previously described
repository arrangements.
The exemplary repository 670 is in operative connection with control circuitry
which may function in
a manner similar to that described in connection with repository 10. In
addition repository 670 may include
suitable power sources, sensors, input and output devices cameras, microphones
and wireless portals that
operate in ways like those discussed in connection with the previously
described repositories. In some
exemplary arrangements the repository 670 may operate responsive entirely to
wireless communication with
remote central system circuitry and local portable wireless devices. For
example user identifying information,
access codes and other data that is required to be communicated to the control
circuitry of repository 670 may
be received via a wireless portal, rather than keypads, touchscreens or other
types of manually actuatable input
devices. Further in exemplary arrangements may provide outputs wirelessly that
can be perceived by system
users adjacent to the repository through their portable wireless devices. In
this manner the exemplary
repository avoids having externally accessible components that may be subject
to vandalism or tampering. Of
course it should be understood that these approaches are exemplary and in
other arrangements other
approaches may be used.
It should be understood that the number of separate enclosed compartment
spaces within repository
760 is exemplary, and other repositories may have different numbers of
separately accessible interior areas.
The exemplary repository 670 also includes a pair of smaller sized interior
areas corresponding to doors 720,
722 compared to the other interior areas, and a single large interior area
corresponding to door 714. Other
parcel repositories used in connection with exemplary systems may have
different numbers and sizes of
compartments and compartment spaces so as to accommodate the sizes of parcels
being handled through
operation of the repository. Other exemplary repositories may be comprised of
separate housings that are
positioned in adjacent relation so as to provide larger numbers of
compartments with interior areas for the
acceptance and release of parcels. Such multiple repositories may be
controlled responsive to common control
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circuitry and a single user interface, or may be separately controlled and
operable independent of an adjacent
repository. Further, the exemplary repository is configured to be positioned
in a location that is readily
accessible to ground transportation routes. Such configuration facilitates
access to the repository by shipper
users, item carriers and parcel recipients.
Figure 49 shows a system 728 of an exemplary arrangement and the flow of
parcels which may occur
between repositories in such a system. The exemplary system includes
repository 670 as well as a plurality of
other repositories schematically indicated 730, 732, 734, 736, and 738. In the
exemplary arrangement the
repositories included in the system may be similar to repository 760 or the
other repositories described herein.
In alternative arrangements other repository configurations may be used. It
should be understood that the
exemplary system further includes central system circuitry which may be
similar to the central system circuitry
previously discussed.
As represented by arrows T, parcels may be moved between repositories in the
system by item
carriers. As represented in Figure 49 parcels that are input to the exemplary
system at repository 670 that are
required to be delivered at remote final destination repository 734 may be
transported in numerous different
ways depending on the available item carriers. For example, in some situations
a parcel may be transported by
an item carrier directly from the originating repository 670 to the final
destination repository 734, as
represented by Arrow 740. Such a direct transport from the originating
repository to the final destination
repository may be the result of the fortuitous availability of an item carrier
who is available to make such direct
transport. Alternatively such a direct route for the parcel may be the result
of the shipping user paying an
incentive fee for prompt delivery or other circumstances.
In alternative circumstances a parcel that is received in originating
repository 670 that is determined
by the central system circuitry as required to move to repository 734 as the
final destination repository, may be
moved by item carriers to one or more intermediate destination repositories
before reaching the final
destination repository. For example a parcel may be moved from the originating
repository 670 to
intermediate destination repository 730 by an initial item carrier as
represented by Arrow 742. The parcel may
then be moved from repository 730 to interim destination repository 732 by
another item carrier as represented
by Arrow 744. Finally the parcel may be moved from repository 732 to the final
destination repository 734 by
another item carrier as represented by Arrow 746. Of course as can be
appreciated from the other arrows
shown in Figure 49, the parcel may take a more direct path to the final
destination repository 734 as a result of
.. the availability of other item carriers that can transport the parcel along
the more direct path.
As can be appreciated, the exemplary system 728 may also be operated
responsive to the central
system circuitry to achieve parcel deliveries to a final destination
repository in a more rapid manner than might
otherwise occur based on the availability of item carriers. For example the
programming associated with the
central system circuitry may provide for the consolidation of multiple parcel
transport jobs that can be offered
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to a single item carrier as an incentive to complete the parcel transports
more quickly. For example the
exemplary central system circuitry may operate to accommodate transport of a
collection or bundle of parcels
to an intermediate destination repository that may not be on the most direct
path to a final system repository
for some of the parcels. However, by moving the parcels to an interim
destination repository that is closer to
the final destination repository more quickly via transport consolidation, the
system may achieve delivery at
the final destination repository more quickly than might otherwise occur.
Further the central system circuitry
may take advantage of item carriers who have extended time or delivery
location availability compared to
other item carriers to achieve movement of more parcels to interim destination
repository locations, from
which delivery at the final destination repositories may be more rapidly
achieved. As can be appreciated these
results may be based on the central system circuitry evaluating factors such
as available item carriers and
carrier locations during different dates and times, as well as other factors
that are usable to predict and
optimize parcel transport.
Of course as can be appreciated, from a shipper user perspective, the
operation of the exemplary
system 728 achieves the delivery of delivery items such as parcels from an
initial originating location such as a
first repository to a final location such as a destination repository. As a
result, conceptually the shipment may
be considered to have a universal origin as represented schematically as 748,
and a universal destination as
represented schematically as 750. Although a given parcel may be transported
under the control of the central
system circuitry through numerous different intermediate parcel repositories
by different item carriers, such
system activity does not involve the shipper user or the delivery item parcel
recipient.
Of course it should be understood that exemplary systems may be implemented in
various network
topographies such as a peer to peer network communications environment between
devices included in the
system. Alternatively, the network topography may include a centralized
dedicated network adapted to
cooperatively link the various system components. Of course other arrangements
may include combinations of
different system and network topographies to achieve communications between
the different system
components.
As can be appreciated from the prior discussion in connection with repository
10, the exemplary
system 728 may provide for communication through central system circuitry with
numerous different types of
authorized and/or registered system users who carry out different roles in
connection with the system. For
example in exemplary arrangements network communication may be provided with
the wireless carrier contact
devices of item carriers to determine transport availability and to provide
transport assignments. Further in
exemplary arrangements such carrier contact devices may be utilized for
purposes of tracking parcels in
transport via GPS or other location monitoring systems. In addition camera or
other reader equipped carrier
contact devices may be utilized for purposes of scanning machine-readable
indicia on parcels, determining size
information of parcels or carrying out other actions. Similarly such wireless
devices may include wireless
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
portals which enable communication wirelessly with repositories so as to
communicate information necessary
to access selected interior areas for purposes of receiving or depositing
parcels.
Further as can be appreciated, in exemplary arrangements the network
communications between the
repositories and the central system circuitry may be operative to communicate
status and operational
information of the types previously discussed. Such information may facilitate
the quick repair of any
repository malfunctions and the avoidance of future malfunctions for which
symptoms can be detected in
advance. Similarly such communications may achieve capturing and retaining
documentation regarding parcel
receipt, transport and delivery such as by the capture of sensor data and
other data associated therewith. This
may include for example the capture and retention of image data and other data
that is usable to document and
verify activities related to various parcels. Of course these functions and
capabilities are exemplary and in
other arrangements different or alternative approaches may be used.
Figure 50 schematically represents components utilized in connection with an
exemplary system such
as system 728. In the exemplary arrangement the central system circuitry 752
comprises at least one processor
754 in operative connection with at least one data store 756. As previously
discussed, although in this
exemplary arrangement the central system circuitry may be represented as a
central server or other computer
device, in other exemplary arrangements distributed processing and control of
the system may be provided in a
cloud environment or in a virtual environment within one or more shared
platforms.
The exemplary central system circuitry 752 is in operative connection with one
or more interfaces
schematically indicated 758. The interfaces 758 provide communications
connectivity to other system
components which communicate in the system. One or more communication
interfaces 760 are provided to
enable communication of the central system circuitry 752 in the different
wired and/or wireless networks to
which the components included in the system are connected. Of course it should
be understood that in various
embodiments numerous different types of communications interfaces may be used.
The plurality of parcel repositories are in operative connection with the
system through the network
and send communications through an interface 760. Such repositories are
represented schematically by a
repository 762. Repository 762 may include components similar to repository
760 or the other repositories
that have been previously discussed. As schematically shown, each repository
includes a plurality of
connected components as represented schematically by sensors 764 and actuators
766.
The exemplary system further includes carrier contact devices which are
utilized by item carriers in a
manner like that previously discussed. Such wireless carrier contact devices
such as smart phones are
represented by device 768. Such carrier contact devices include control
circuitry therein. The control circuitry
may include for example a scanner and/or code reader circuitry 770. The
exemplary carrier contact device
may also include a tracking application such as a GPS circuitry 772. Interface
circuitry suitable for
communicating with the central system circuitry 774 may also be included in
the exemplary item carrier
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
contact device. Of course it should be understood that these device components
are exemplary and other
arrangements other or additional components may be used.
As schematically indicated, in the exemplary system devices operated by
shipper users as
schematically represented 776, may also be in operative connection with the
central system circuitry through
interfaces 760. Shipper user devices 776 may operate in a manner like that
previously discussed to provide
communications which enable parcel delivery items to the transported through
the system and delivered into
the interior area of an originating repository. As can be appreciated numerous
different types of shipper user
devices and systems may be operative to communicate in the system. The
exemplary system further includes
one or more administrator devices schematically indicated 778. Such
administrator devices may be utilized for
purposes of monitoring operation of other devices in the system, providing the
mechanism for adding and
removing authorized/registered users of the system, receiving alerts or
problems identified through operation
of system components, generating reports and other information, and providing
other oversight and monitoring
functions. Of course it should be understood that this schematic
representation of system components is
merely a high level representation of those system components that are
included in an exemplary arrangement.
As has been previously described in detailed examples, the exemplary system
enables a shipper user
to utilize the system to ship a parcel from an originating location to a
destination location through operation of
the shipper user device 776. The shipper user device may be operative to
provide to the system information
regarding the shipment such as for example the ID token associated with the
shipper that is recognized by
being registered or otherwise authorized to participate in the system. With
regard to the particular shipment,
the shipping user device may provide information regarding the delivery item
and its transport including the
originating and destination locations, scheduling requirements (if
applicable), item dimensions, weight
characteristics and markings, and other information such as a funds source for
payment for the shipment.
The exemplary central system circuitry 752 may operate in accordance with the
information received
from the shipper device to determine an originating repository and a final
destination repository for the
particular parcel. The exemplary central system circuitry may also carry out
other functions such as checking
for space availability in the originating repository. The central system
circuitry may also provide other
information like that previously discussed, that enables the shipper user to
apply a label including machine-
readable indicia to the parcel that includes a delivery item identifier or
other information which is usable to
identify the particular parcel in the system. The central system circuitry may
also provide to the shipper user
device, location information regarding the designated originating depository,
an item depositor access code and
other information that enables the shipper user to place the parcel in a
designated interior area of the
originating repository.
The exemplary system circuitry also operates to evaluate available item
carriers, current item carrier
locations and available location destinations for item transport. The central
system circuitry may operate in a
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manner like that discussed to optimize parcel transport or to consolidate
movement of multiple parcels to
facilitate the receipt of such parcels at each final destination repository.
Central system circuitry may also
present opportunity messages to item carriers and assigned transport jobs to
such item carriers. The central
system circuitry may also monitor such item carriers to assure that
performance of transport jobs is timely
commenced, and if not, may reassign transport jobs to other item carriers.
The exemplary arrangements further enable the central system circuitry to
monitor repositories for
purposes of determining the placement and removal of parcels into selected
interior areas by providing access
to authorized users such as shipper users, item carriers, and final parcel
recipients. The central system circuitry
operates in coordination with the control circuitry of the repositories to
monitor the placement, and taking of
each parcel between each originating repository and destination repository.
Further the exemplary system
tracks the parcel and assures the desired movement of the parcel to its final
destination repository. The
exemplary arrangement further operates to provide the recipient of each parcel
with notification of the receipt
of the parcel at the final destination repository. The system provides
selective controlled access to enable the
recipient to remove the parcel from the interior area of the final destination
repository, and documents the
.. taking thereof so as to assure that the parcel has been properly delivered.
Further in exemplary arrangements
the charges and credits associated with the transport of items are provided
through the central system circuitry
to assure that parcel transports are paid for and that participants in the
system are credited as appropriate for
their activities. Of course it should be understood that the functions,
activities and approaches described herein
are exemplary and in other arrangements other approaches may be used.
Further as previously discussed in some exemplary arrangements the central
circuitry may be operated
so that item carriers deliver parcels to the destination address of the
recipient. In such arrangements the central
circuitry may be operative to determine a common route which may be followed
by an item carrier to deliver
multiple parcels to the recipient addresses. In such arrangements an item
carrier may collect the parcels from
one or more compartments within the interior area of a repository responsive
to the central system giving
access thereto. The user may then utilize their portable wireless device to
document the taking of the parcels
from the repository for delivery. Further in some exemplary arrangements the
central circuitry may be
operative to cause the placement of multiple parcels that will be transported
together into a group or bundle
that is collected via placement in a single compartment. This may be done to
facilitate the ability of the item
carrier to obtain the items to be transported by the item carrier in a shorter
period of time. In such
arrangements the central system may provide the item carrier with the
destination address of each parcel. The
item carrier may then document the delivery of each parcel at the respective
destination address through
operation of their mobile wireless device in a manner like that previously
discussed. Of course these
approaches are exemplary and other arrangements other approaches may be used.
In some exemplary arrangements the control circuitry associated with the
parcel repositories is
operative to maintain information concerning the available compartment volume
in each enclosed
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compartment space. This capability enables the control circuitry to determine
where a particular parcel may be
placed within the compartments of a particular repository. Further in
exemplary arrangements the ability to
determine the available volume in compartments enables the control circuitry
to determine if a plurality of
parcels which may be subsequently transported together as a group or bundle by
an item carrier, can be placed
together in a single compartment. This capability may facilitate the ability
of the item carrier to obtain the
parcels from the repository so that they can be more readily accessed and
transported to a destination
repository or other destination.
In some exemplary systems the at least one data store associated with the
central system circuitry
includes data corresponding to information that is accessible to item carrier
contact devices and that can be
used to facilitate the placement of parcels into and the removal of parcels
from repositories. Such additional
data is used in exemplary arrangements to assist item carriers in locating
repositories and also in carrying out
the necessary processes to access and carry out the necessary parcel
transactions at each repository. Such
additional data may also be usable by item carriers to locate areas at
customer addresses where shipments may
originate or be delivered.
Referring now to Figure 51 there is shown therein an exemplary repository 810.
The exemplary
repository 810 includes a body 812. The body 812 bounds at least one interior
area 814. In the exemplary
arrangement the body of the repository includes a right side exterior wall 816
and a left side exterior wall 818
when the repository is viewed from the front as shown in Figure 52. The
exemplary repository further
includes a back wall 820 which further bounds the at least one interior area.
The exemplary repository further
includes a bottom portion 822 and a top portion 824. Of course it should be
understood that these components
which make up the body of the repository are exemplary, and in other
arrangements other types and
configurations of components may be used.
In the exemplary arrangement the interior area 814 of the body 812 includes a
plurality of separated
compartments, for example compartments 826 and 828 shown in Figures 54 and 55.
Each compartment
includes a respective opening, such as opening 830 of compartment 828. The
respective opening to a
compar __ tment enables access to the compartment interior area from outside
the body. In the exemplary
arrangement a respective door controls access through the associated opening
to the respective compartment
interior area. For example a door 832 controls access to compartment 828. A
door 834 controls access to
compartment 826. In the exemplary arrangement of repository 810, there are ten
doors that control access to
ten compartment interior areas within the repository. Of course this
configuration is exemplary and in other
arrangements a repository may only have a single interior area compartment or
plurality of compartments.
In the exemplary arrangement each door is movably mounted in operative
connection with the body in
a manner like that later discussed. Each respective door is rotationally
movable about an axis and also
movable along the axis. In the exemplary arrangement each door is movable
while remaining in attached
connection with the body, between a closed position in which the door closes
its respective opening and
compartment interior area, and an open position in which at least a portion of
the door is disposed away from
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Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
its respective opening, and its respective compar tment interior area is
accessible from outside of the body.
Figure 51 shows all the doors of the exemplary repository 810 in the closed
position, while Figure 54 shows all
the doors in an open position. Of course it should be understood that
generally during operation of the
repository only one door will be opened by an authorized user at a time as
discussed in the incorporated
disclosures.
In the exemplary repository arrangement, each door is associated with a
respective lock. For example
a lock 836 is associated with door 832 in the exemplary arrangement. Lock 836
in the exemplary arrangement
is in operative attached connection with a vertically extending divider 838
which separates the interior area of
compartment 826 from the interior area of compartment 828. In the exemplary
arrangement the lock 836 is
partially enclosed by a lock cover 840 that is in operatively attached
connection with divider 838.
The exemplary electronic lock 836 of the exemplary arrangement is shown in
greater detail in Figure
69. The exemplary lock 836 includes a lock body 842 that in the operative
position is mostly concealed by the
lock cover 840. The lock body 842 includes a bolt accepting slot 844. A jaw
846 is movably mounted inside
the lock. The jaw 846 is configured to releasably engage a U-shaped bolt 848
like that shown in Figure 70. In
the exemplary arrangement each door has a bolt in operatively attached
connection with an interior face
thereof which is engageable with the jaw of the respective lock. In the
exemplary arrangement in the closed
position of the door, for example door 832, the associated bolt 848 extends
from the inside face of the door and
in the bolt accepting slot 844. The bolt 848 engages the jaw 846 and moves the
jaw such that the jaw holds the
bolt in engagement therewith for as long as the lock remains in the locked
condition. Responsive to electrical
signals from the control circuitry associated with the repository, the lock is
enabled to be in the unlocked
condition. In the unlocked condition the lock is operative to enable the jaw
846 to be moved so as to
disengage the bolt 848. This enables the door 832 to be moved from the closed
position to the open position.
Of course it should be understood that this locking arrangement is exemplary
and in other arrangements other
approaches may be used.
In the exemplary arrangement the lock 836 includes a forward extending
actuator which is
alternatively referred to as a plunger 850. The exemplary plunger 850 is
movably mounted on the lock body
842 and is biased outwardly by a spring or other suitable biasing member. The
exemplary plunger is in
operative connection with an electrical switch that is inside the lock body.
The exemplary plunger 850 is
configured so that when the associated door, such as door 832, is in the
closed position, the plunger 850 is
disposed inwardly and the associate electrical switch is in an electrical
condition which is indicative to the
associated circuitry of the repository that the door is closed. When the door
832 is in the open position the
plunger is disposed further outwardly in the opening and the associated
electrical switch has an electrical
condition which is indicative to the circuitry that the door is in the open
position. Of course it should be
understood that this approach is exemplary and in other arrangements other
approaches may be used.
The exemplary repository 810 further includes a plurality of horizontally
extending shelves within the
interior area. The horizontally extending shelves horizontally divide and
separate the compartments within the
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repository. An exemplary shelf 852 is shown in Figures 63 ¨ 65. The exemplary
shelf 852 includes a pair of
transversely extending side portions 854 and 856. Side portions 854 and 856
are configured to engage in
horizontally extending slots that extend on the inside faces of the right side
wall 816 and the left side wall 818
respectively. For example in the exemplary arrangement shelf side portion 854
may be engaged in one of slots
858, 860, 862 or 864 which extend on the inside face of right side wall 816 as
shown in Figure 71. Likewise,
shelf side portion 856 may be engaged in one of slots 866, 868, 870 or 872
which extend on the inside face of
left side wall 818 as shown in Figure 73. In the exemplary arrangement the
engagement of the shelf side
portions in a respective pair of parallel slots in the side walls is operative
to hold the shelf in supported
engagement with the body of the repository.
The exemplary shelf 852 further includes a plurality of spaced rearward
extending projections 874 that
extend from the rear side thereof. In the exemplary arrangement projections
874 are configured to extend in
slots such as slots 876, 878 on the inside face of the back wall 820 as shown
in Figure 78. In the exemplary
arrangement the slots that extend in the back wall 820 are in horizontally
aligned relation with the slots that
extend in the side wall. The engagement of the projections 874 and the
associated slots on the inside face of
the back wall are further operative to provide support for the respective
shelf. Further the exemplary
configuration of shelf 852 includes fastener engaging projections 880 that
extend from the underside thereof
The exemplary fastener engaging projections 880 are configured to accept
fasteners therein that engage
openings in inward extending bosses 882 that extend inwardly on the inside
face of the back wall 820. As can
be appreciated, fasteners such as screws may be extended through the openings
in a projection 880 and a boss
882 to hold the shelf in fixed operative engagement with the body. Of course
this approach is exemplary and
in other arrangements other approaches may be used.
The exemplary shelf 852 further includes a pair of transversely disposed upper
central projections 884.
The upper central projections 884 are configured to engage a divider such as
divider 838. A divider is enabled
to be securely held in a recess 886 that extends between the projections 884.
As a result the projections are
operative to prevent the divider from being displaced by an individual who may
have access to one
compartment but not the compartment on the other side of the divider. Further
as shown in Figure 64 the
exemplary shelf 852 includes a pair of lower central projections 888. A recess
890 extends transversely
between the pair of lower central projections 888. The projections 888 are
operative to hold an upper side of a
vertically extending divider in position between the immediately adjacent
horizontal shelves. Further in the
.. exemplary arrangement the inside face of the back wall 820 includes
recesses 892 as shown in Figure 78. The
recesses 892 are bounded by transversely disposed pairs of inward extending
projections 894. In the
exemplary arrangement the rear face of the vertically extending dividers are
configured to engage in the
recesses 892 which further helps to hold the dividers in position. Further in
this exemplary arrangement a
lower wall on the interior of the top portion 824 also includes a recess that
engages an upper portion 896 of the
vertically extending divider 838 between the uppermost compartments 826 and
828. Of course this approach
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
for holding the vertical dividers in place within the repository is exemplary
and in other arrangements other
approaches may be used.
The exemplary shelf 852 further includes at least one horizontally extending
frame piece 898 at a
forward portion thereof In the exemplary arrangement frame piece 898 is
integrally formed with the
remainder of the horizontally extending shelf. Frame piece 898 is operative to
bound the respective adjacent
openings to the compar tments that are above and below the frame piece.
Further, the frame piece 898 extends
in intermediate relation of immediately vertically adjacent doors of the
repository when the doors are in the
closed position. The exemplary frame piece further includes a vertically
extending central portion 900. The
exemplary central portion 900 extends both in an upward direction and a
downward direction from the forward
extending frame piece. As shown in Figure 55 the central portion is aligned
with a forward projection 902 that
extends forwardly at the front of each vertically extending divider. Each
forward projection 902 extends
between immediately horizontally adjacent doors of the repository when the
doors are in the closed position.
In the exemplary arrangement each frame piece of shelf 852 includes outward
extending peripheral
portions 904, 906. In the exemplary arrangement the peripheral portions extend
at the opposed transverse
outward ends of the frame piece 898. The peripheral portions further extend
beneath the respective door that is
positioned immediately above the frame piece, and above the respective door
that is positioned immediately
below the frame piece. The exemplary peripheral portions are of greater
thickness in the vertical direction than
other portions of the frame piece 898. Further in the exemplary arrangement
peripheral portion 904 extends
forwardly of a right side channel 908 that is in attached connection with
right side wall 816. Similarly
peripheral portion 906 extends forwardly of a left side channel 910 that is in
attached connection with left side
wall 818.
In the exemplary arrangement each frame piece 898 includes a plurality of
transversely spaced tapered
ramp surfaces 912. The tapered ramp surfaces 912 are configured to be tapered
outwardly from a generally
flat strip surface 914 that extends on the frame piece between the ramp
surfaces. The exemplary tapered ramp
surfaces 912 extend further outwardly from the flat strip surface with
increasing inward distance from an
outward edge 916 of the frame piece 898. In the exemplary arrangement the
tapered ramp surfaces terminate
outwardly in a generally flat outer surface 918. Of course it should be
understood that this configuration is
exemplary and in other arrangements other ramp surface configurations may be
used. This may include for
example, ramp surfaces that are more numerous in number or that have a greater
width across the frame piece
for example. In the exemplary arrangement the tapered ramp surfaces 912 extend
vertically outwardly from
both the top and bottom of the frame piece 898. However in other exemplary
arrangements the tapered ramp
surfaces may extend only from one of the top or the bottom of the frame piece.
In the exemplary repository arrangement interior area compartments of
different sizes are provided.
For example the compartments associated with doors 833 and 835 are half the
size of the compartments
associated with doors 832 and 834. Further the lowest compartment of the
exemplary repository that is
associated with door 837 is twice the size of the compartments associated with
doors 832 and 834. As can be
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appreciated, in the exemplary arrangement because the compartment associated
with door 837 spans the entire
width of the repository, the lock that is associated with door 837 is in fixed
operative connection with the
inside face of the left side wall 818 rather than a central divider as is the
case with the other doors of the
exemplary arrangement. Of course it should be understood that numerous
different sized compartments may
be provided in exemplary repositories.
Further in exemplary arrangements the smaller compartments associated with
doors 833 and 835 are
separated internally within the repository. This is accomplished in the
exemplary arrangement through the use
of a shelf 853 which is shown in Figure 68. Shelf 853 includes features
similar to shelf 852 previously
described, except that it is only half as wide as shelf 852. Shelf 853
includes a side portion 855 that is
configured to engage in a slot 861 that extends on the inside face right side
wall 816. The opposed side of the
shelf 853 includes a shelf side portion 857 that is engaged in a slot 841 in a
divider 839 that is shown in
Figures 66 and 67. Divider 839 is similar to divider 838 previously discussed,
and is mounted in a similar
manner. However as can be appreciated, divider 839 includes a pair of locks
that enable controlling the locked
and unlocked conditions of doors 833 and 835. Of course numerous different
configurations for dividers may
be utilized such that exemplary repositories may include numerous different
sizes and configurations of
compartment interior areas.
The exemplary channels 908, 910 which extend at the front of walls 816 and 818
respectively are
shown in cross-section in Figure 56. In Figure 56 the channel is shown
positioned in the manner of the right
side channel 908 in the exemplary arrangement. As can be appreciated, a left
side channel 910 of the
exemplary arrangement has the same transverse cross-sectional configuration as
channel 908 except that in the
operative position, channel 910 is rotated 180 from the position of channel
908. Of course while in the
exemplary arrangement the channels that are utilized include identical
transverse cross-sections, and in other
arrangements different cross-sectional channel configurations and other
structures may be used on opposed
sides of the repository.
In the exemplary arrangement the channels 908, 910 are operative to provide
for attached engagement
of a respective repository side wall and the movable doors that are mounted in
operative connection with the
repository. The configuration of the exemplary channels which provide this
capability will be described in
detail with regard to the right side channel 908. However as can be
appreciated, the left side channel 910
provides the same capability in the exemplary arrangement as it is arranged as
the mirror image of the
structures that are utilized in connection with the right side channel.
The exemplary channel 908 includes a track 920 thereon. The exemplary track
920 extends vertically
in the operative position of the repository. The exemplary track 920 further
extends axially along an axis that
is parallel to an axis of rotation 922 about which the doors that are located
on the right side of the repository,
such as door 832, rotate when moving between the open and closed positions.
The exemplary channel 908 includes in transverse cross-section a generally
planar outer track face
surface 924. A slot 926 extends inwardly in the channel such that the slot
extends along a direction that is
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perpendicular to the outer track face surface. As used herein the term
generally planar with regard to the outer
track face surface means that the face surface on each transverse side of the
slot 926 extends within a common
plane. In the exemplary arrangement an axially elongated recess 928 is
disposed inwardly in the channel away
from the outer track face surface 924. The exemplary recess 928 is wider than
slot 926 in a direction parallel
to the outer track face surface. Further in the exemplary arrangement the
outer track face surface 924 includes
an axially extending recess 930.
The exemplary channel 908 further includes in transverse cross-section, a wall
engaging face 932. In
the configuration of the exemplary channel, the wall engaging face 932 is
disposed on the channel from the
outer track face surface 924, but extends in a direction parallel to the outer
track face surface 924. A wall slot
934 extends inwardly in the channel from the track face surface. The wall slot
934 extends in a direction that
is perpendicular to the wall engaging face 932. A wall recess 936 is disposed
inwardly from the wall engaging
face within the channel 908. The exemplary wall recess is wider in a direction
parallel to the wall engaging
face than the slot. The exemplary channel further includes other recesses
therein. These recesses of the
exemplary arrangement are used for purposes that are later discussed. Of
course it should be understood that
this channel configuration is exemplary and in other arrangements other
approaches may be used.
In the exemplary arrangement the track 920 is used for movably mounting the
doors that control
access to the compartments of the repository in attached connection with the
body of the repository such that
the doors are both rotatably movable about the axis 922 as well as vertically
movable along the axis. The
exemplary mounting arrangement of the doors of the repository is represented
in Figures 57 ¨ 60. Each door
such as door 832 for example, includes an inside face 938. The inside face of
the door includes a plurality of
fastener accepting apertures 940 on the lateral side of the door opposite the
locking bolt. A hinge 942 includes
a pair of relatively movable hinge leafs 944, 946. Each exemplary hinge leaf
includes knuckle portions 948,
950. A hinge pin 952 extends axially through the plurality of knuckle portions
948, 950 such that the hinge
leafs 944, 946 are held together in engaged relation while being relatively
rotationally movable about the hinge
pin and the axis 922.
Hinge leaf 944 includes a plurality of fastener accepting opening 954. The
fastener accepting leaf
openings 954 are configured to accept fasteners 956 therein. The fasteners 956
extend through the respective
fastener accepting leaf openings 954 and are engaged with the apertures 940 of
the door.
A mounting strip 958 extends in the track 920 of the channel 908. The
exemplary mounting strip 958
includes in transverse cross-section, a base 960. The base includes a
plurality of disposed fastener accepting
openings 962 that extend through the base. The base further includes pairs of
axially aligned, spaced
projections 964. The projections of each pair extend on opposed axial sides of
a respective fastener accepting
opening 962. The projections 964 in the operative position of the mounting
strip extend forward in the slot
926. In the exemplary arrangement the projections 964 are sized so that the
projections are axially movable
while engaged in the slot.
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In the exemplary configuration the base 960 of the mounting strip 958 is
configured to extend in the
recess 928. The base 960 of the exemplary arrangement is wider than the
projections 964 in a direction
parallel to the outer track face surface 924. As a result while the mounting
strip is insertable vertically in the
recess 928 of the track 920, in the operative position in which the
projections 964 extend in the slot 926, the
base is prevented from passing outwardly through the slot. As a result the
exemplary mounting strip is
prevented from being pulled outwardly from the recess 928 through the slot.
Further in the exemplary
arrangement the mounting strip 958 includes reinforcing projections 966 on an
opposed side of the base from
the projections 964 that extend in the slot 926. In the exemplary arrangement
the reinforcing projections 966
extend in surrounding relation of the fastener accepting openings 962 to
provide improved engagement
between the mounting strip and fasteners that extend through the fastener
accepting openings.
In the exemplary door mounting arrangement, hinge leaf 946 includes a
plurality of fastener accepting
openings 968. Respective fasteners 970 extend through a respective fastener
accepting opening, in the slot
926, and engage a respective fastener accepting opening 962 in the mounting
strip 958. As a result the
fasteners hold the hinge 942 in operatively engaged relation with the body of
the repository through the track
920 while enabling the fasteners, the hinge and the door, to be axially
movable along the axis 922. Further as
shown in Figure 62 the knuckle portions 948, 950 of the hinge are enabled to
axially move in the axially
extending recess 930 of the outer track face surface 924. As a result the
knuckle portions of the hinge do not
engage the outer track face surface and impede the rotational or axial
movement of the hinge of the exemplary
arrangement.
Of course it should be understood that the arrangement shown which provides
both rotational and
axial movement of the door relative to the body, is exemplary and in other
arrangements other approaches may
be used. For example, in some arrangements the axially extending track may be
in fixed operative connection
with the interior face of the door, rather than the forward face of the body.
In such arrangements a mounting
strip similar to mounting strip 958 may extend in the track and enable
movement of the door relative to the leaf
of the hinge through which the fasteners extend that are engaged with the
door. In such arrangements the leaf
of the hinge which is directly engaged with the body may be axially fixed
relative to the body. Further in other
exemplary arrangements the knuckle portions of the hinge structure may have
the immediately adjacent
surfaces thereof axially spaced from one another so that the hinge leafs may
move relative to one another in the
axial direction as well as in the rotational direction. Such axial gaps that
extend between the immediately
adjacent knuckle portions may provide suitable axial play so as to achieve
suitable rotational movement of the
door about the axis as well as the necessary degree of axial movement.
Numerous arrangements may be
utilized in exemplary arrangements to provide relative axial and rotational
movement of the doors relative to
the body.
The movement of the doors in an axial direction relative to the body is
desirable in exemplary
arrangements in which components which make up the body of the repository are
comprised of materials
which may undergo changes in configuration and dimensions as a result of
changes in temperature or aging of
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the materials. For example in some exemplary arrangements the walls, shelves
and other structures which
make up the body of the repository may be comprised of thermoplastic materials
such as polyethylene and/or
polypropylene. Further in exemplary arrangements some structural components
such as the channels may be
comprised of materials that have different coefficients of thermal expansion
such as steel or aluminum.
In such exemplary arrangements the different coefficients of thermal expansion
may cause the doors,
shelves or other structures to bind and impede the opening and closing of the
doors. In the exemplary
arrangements the tapered ramp surfaces 912 which extend on the frame pieces
898 operate to suitably align the
doors regardless of dimensional changes that may occur. In such arrangements
the ramp surfaces are operative
to engage the lower and/or upper surfaces bounding a door and axially move the
door as the door moves from
the open position to the closed position. Further in the exemplary
arrangements the peripheral portions 904,
906 of the shelves are operative to engage the doors when they are in the open
position and limit the axial
travel of the doors so that the doors will engage the tapered ramp surfaces
and be moved axially into alignment
with the respective opening as the door moves from the open position to the
closed position. This capability of
the exemplary arrangement enables the exemplary repository to be comprised of
molded thermoplastic and
other materials that provide desirable properties in the operation of the
parcel repository. Of course it should
be understood that these approaches are exemplary and in other arrangements
other approaches may be used.
In the exemplary arrangement the sidewalls of the repository are in
operatively engaged relation with
the respective channels through interengaging projections and recesses. This
arrangement facilitates the
construction of the repository and also serves to preserve the integrity of
the repository structure. For example
as shown in Figures 71 and 72 the exemplary right side wall 816 includes a
wall end 972 that has a transverse
cross-sectional configuration that engages with channel 908 on the side of the
channel opposite of the track
920 through which the hinges are mounted to the body. As best shown in Figure
72, the wall end 972 includes
in transverse cross-section a head portion 974. The head portion 974 is
configured to extend in engaged
relation in the wall recess 936.
The exemplary wall end 972 further includes in transverse cross-section a neck
portion 976. Neck
portion 976 is disposed away from the head portion 974 and is smaller than the
head portion in transverse
cross-section. The neck portion 976 extends through the wall slot 934. The
exemplary wall end 972 further
includes a forward wall face 978 that extends on both sides of the neck
portion 976 and is in close fitting
and/or abutting relation with the wall engaging face 932 of the channel 908.
Further the exemplary wall 816 is
of sufficient transverse thickness so as to extend outwardly so that the outer
surface thereof is in aligned
relation with the outer surface of channel 908. This provides for secure
engagement between the channel 908
and the right side wall 816 which maintains the integrity of the repository
body throughout the normal range of
operating conditions.
Further as shown in Figures 73 and 74 channel 910 is engaged to left side wall
818 in a manner
similar to that of channel 908 and right side wall 816, but in a manner that
is a mirror image thereof As
shown in Figure 74 left side wall 818 includes a wall end 980. Wall end 980
includes in transverse cross-
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-01-13
section a forward end that includes a head portion 982 and a neck portion 984
that extend in the wall recess
936 and slot 934 of channel 910 respectively. Further similar to side wall
816, side wall 818 includes a
forward wall face 984 that extends in close adjacent and/or abutting relation
with the wall engaging face 932 of
the left side channel 910. As a result the secure engagement of the left side
wall 818 and the left side channel
910 provides for secure engagement between the channel and the track to which
the doors on the left side of
the repository are mounted to the body of the repository.
Of course it should be understood that this arrangement for interengaging
projections and recesses that
are provided between the walls of the repository and the mounting structures
which are used to attach the doors
to the repository, is exemplary. In other arrangements other structures may be
provided to provide suitable
mounting capabilities while still maintaining structural integrity throughout
a range of environmental and other
conditions in which the repository is operated.
As shown in Figure 75 the exemplary left side wall 818 includes mounting
apertures 986 on the
interior thereof below slot 872. As previously mentioned, because the interior
compartment associated with
door 837 extends transversely across the entire interior area of the
repository, a lock associated with door 837
is mounted through the mounting apertures 986 to the inside face of left side
wall 818. Further the inside face
of the wall includes fastener accepting projections 988. Such fastener
accepting projections 988 receive
fasteners that connect the left side wall 818 and the top portion 824. As
shown in Figure 71 for example, right
side wall 816 includes similar projections which are used for holding the top
portion in attached connection
with the right side wall. Further, the exemplary left side wall 818 includes
lower fastener accepting projections
990. Projections 990 are utilized to accept fasteners that connect the left
side wall to the bottom portion 822.
As shown in Figure 71 the right side wall 816 further includes similar
fastener accepting projections that are
utilized with fasteners to hold the right side wall 816 to the bottom portion
822.
Left side wall 818 further includes at the rear side thereof, a plurality of
disposed hook projections
992. The configuration of hook projections 992 is best shown in Figure 76.
Right side wall 816 further
includes hook projections 994 at a rear side thereof that have a similar
configuration to hook projections 992.
Each of the hook projections 992, 994 include in transverse cross-section a
transversely enlarged rear head
portion 998. Each rear head portion 998 is connected to the rear wall end
through a transversely narrower rear
neck portion 1000.
As shown in Figures 77 and 78 the exemplary back wall 820 of the repository
includes at each lateral
side a plurality of hook projection engaging slots 1002. The exemplary hook
projection engaging slots are
configured to enable slidable vertical engagement of respective hook portions
992, 994 therein. Once in
engagement, the configuration of the hook engaging slots and the enlarged rear
head portions 998 of the hook
projections prevents the disengagement of the hook projections and the back
wall 820 by relative movement
forward and backward. This results because the enlarged rear head portions 998
of the hook projections hold
the back wall in engaged relation with the hook projections absent sufficient
vertical movement of the back
wall to disengage therefrom.
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In the exemplary arrangement because the back wall is operatively engaged
through fasteners with the
top portion 824, the bottom portion 822 and the interior shelves and dividers,
relative movement of the side
walls vertically relative to the back wall is prevented. Thus the exemplary
arrangement provides that once the
back wall has been engaged with the sidewalls through the engagement of the
hook projections 992, 994 in the
hook engaging slots 1002, and the back wall has been secured to the other
adjacent structures of the repository,
the back wall is held in secure engagement which maintains the integrity of
the repository body. Of course it
should be understood that this arrangement is exemplary and in other
arrangements other approaches may be
used.
Figures 79 and 80 show the top and bottom respectively of the exemplary bottom
portion 822. In the
exemplary arrangement the bottom portion 822 is comprised of a molded
thermoplastic. The bottom portion
822 includes an elongated recess 1004 for accepting the lower end of the back
wall 820 therein. A further
recess 1006 is configured to receive the lower end of the right side wall 816,
and a recess 1008 is configured to
receive the lower end of the left side wall 818. A plurality of fastener
accepting openings 1010 accept
fasteners that extend therethrough and hold the bottom portion 822 and the
back wall and side walls in fixed
engagement. A plurality of spaced upward extending projections 1012 extend on
each lateral side of the
bottom portion 822. Projections 1012 are configured to extend in the recesses
at the bottom ends of channels
908 and 910 so as to hold the channels in the proper positions relative to the
bottom portion 822. Of course
this approach to holding the channels in fixed positions relative to the
bottom portion is exemplary and in other
arrangements other approaches may be used.
Further in the exemplary arrangement the bottom portion includes surface 1014
that functions as a
frame piece and which includes a plurality of tapered ramp surfaces 1016 which
are similar to tapered ramp
surfaces 912 previously discussed. Tapered ramp surfaces 1016 are operative to
engage and axially move door
837 as the door is moved from the open position to the closed position.
The exemplary bottom portion 822 further includes at least one internal cavity
1018. In the exemplary
arrangement the at least one internal cavity 1018 is utilized for holding
electrical components. Such electrical
components may include one or more batteries which provide power for the
locks, control circuitry, sensing
devices, reading devices, wireless communication devices and other devices
that are used in connection with
repositories as discussed in the incorporated disclosures. Further as shown in
Figure 54 some exemplary
repositories may include a power source such as a solar panel 1020. Such a
solar panel may be mounted in
operative supported connection with the top portion 824 or other structure of
the repository so as to provide a
power source for the electrical components of the repository. Of course in
other exemplary arrangements the
repository may be powered through suitable electrical connections to household
current or other source of
electrical power. Also in some exemplary arrangements one or more of the
cavities may be utilized for
purposes of housing control circuitry, wireless communication devices, sensing
devices or other electrical
devices utilized in connection with operation of the repository.
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In the exemplary arrangement the underside of the bottom portion 822 as shown
in Figure 80 may
include a plurality of disposed repository support feet 1022. The exemplary
support feet may be in operative
connection with sensors such as force sensing load cells 1024. The exemplary
load cells may be in operative
connection with control circuitry associated with the repository in a manner
like that discussed in the
.. incorporated disclosures. The exemplary force sensing load cells may be
operative to determine changes in the
weight of the repository which can be utilized for purposes of detecting the
addition of parcels to the interior
area of the repository and/or the removal of parcels from the interior area of
the repository. This may be done
in a manner like that discussed in the incorporated disclosures.
In the exemplary repository, the top portion 822 which bounds the upper end of
the repository interior
area, may include features like those discussed as included in the bottom
portion for purposes of securing the
side walls and the back wall in engaged relation therewith. Further the
exemplary top portion may include
lights for illuminating the front area of the repository. Further in exemplary
arrangements the top portion may
include cameras or other sensors, wireless communication devices which serve
as input devices and/or output
devices, sensors and circuitry such as those discussed in the incorporated
disclosures.
The interior area of the repository may also include load sensors, proximity
sensors, weight sensors,
optical sensors, image capture devices, reading devices and other types of
sensors discussed in the foregoing
disclosure, which are usable in conjunction with the control circuitry
associated with the repository for
purposes of detecting the placement and/or removal of parcels from the
interior areas of the repository. Such
sensors may also be utilized in a manner like that discussed in the foregoing
disclosure for determining the
.. available capacity of the interior area of the repository and/or selected
compartments within the repository.
Further in exemplary arrangements reading devices, wireless communication
devices, sensing devices,
illumination devices, cameras or other image capture devices, wireless
communication devices, or other input
and/or output devices like those discussed in the foregoing disclosure, may be
included on the repository.
Such components and devices may be included within the top portion, bottom
portion or other interior areas of
the repository. Numerous different operational, functional and monitoring
capabilities may be provided in
conjunction with the exemplary repository features that have been described
herein.
Thus the exemplary embodiments described herein achieve improved operation,
eliminate difficulties
encountered in the use of prior devices and systems, and attain the useful
results described herein.
In the foregoing description, certain terms have been used for brevity,
clarity and understanding.
However, no unnecessary limitations are to be implied therefrom because such
terms are used for descriptive
purposes and are intended to be broadly construed. Moreover the descriptions
and illustrations herein are by
way of examples and the inventive features are not limited to the features
shown and described.
Further in the following claims any feature described as a means for
performing a function shall be
construed as encompassing any means known to those skilled in the art as being
capable of carrying out the
recited function and shall not be deemed limited to the particular means shown
or described for performing the
recited function in the foregoing description or mere equivalents thereof
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It should be understood that features and/or relationships associated with one
embodiment can be
combined with features and/or relationships from another embodiment. That is,
various features and/or
relationships from various embodiments can be combined in further embodiments.
The inventive scope of the
disclosure is not limited to only the embodiments shown or described herein.
The term "non-transitory" with regard to a computer readable medium is
intended to exclude only the
subject matter of a transitory signal, per se, where the medium itself is
transitory. The term "non-transitory" is
not intended to exclude any other form of computer readable media, including
but not limited to media
comprising data that is only temporarily stored or stored in a transitory
fashion. Should the law change to
allow computer readable medium itself to be transitory signals, then this
exclusion is no longer valid or
binding.
Having described the features, discoveries and principles of the exemplary
embodiments, the manner
in which they are constructed and operated, and the advantages and useful
results attained, the new and useful
structures, devices, elements, arrangements, parts, combinations, systems,
equipment, operations, methods,
processes and relationships are set forth in the appended claims.
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