Data processing: generic control systems or specific application – Specific application – apparatus or process – Article handling
Reexamination Certificate
2000-12-21
2003-08-26
Ellis, Christopher P. (Department: 3651)
Data processing: generic control systems or specific application
Specific application, apparatus or process
Article handling
C700S225000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06611732
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention generally relates to a distribution system for many types of products classified according to product type such as clothing, shoes, bags, and wallets as well as by the design, color, or size of each product type and, more specifically, relates to a distribution system in which small quantities of several such products may be delivered in the same package to a retail store or other customer facility.
PRIOR ART
The sale of miscellaneous goods such as fashion apparel and other clothing and accessories as well as shoes, bags, and wallets involves the display of a variety of types of products at retail stores. As products are specifically classified according to design, color, size, and other attributes, this requires the storage of the products as stored inventory in store storage space and promptly offering these products according to customer requests, which in turn necessitates the tasks of searching for and locating stored inventory.
However, retail stores must give priority to floor space utilized as an exhibit area for customers. Limits are placed on the area reserved for storage, and the arrangement and storage of in-stock products by type, design, color, size, and other attributes are notably difficult.
Moreover, jumps quickly take place from one group of hot-selling merchandise to the next in the areas of fashion clothing and miscellaneous goods. Even in-store stock moves frequently between production factory or long-term storage, which complicates inventory management.
Packaging such products by product type, design, color, and size when they are to be shipped increases the number of packages and brings a decrease in shipping efficiency.
As
FIG. 6
shows, conventional distribution systems for the process of shipping and in-store storage of varying types of products for retail stores use a mixed packing method in which a plurality of products of differing types, designs, colors, and sizes are packed in one package and provide a package content list for each package that indicates in detail the products contained therein.
Such conventional distribution systems comprise a shipping site
20
and a receiving site
30
. The shipping site
20
comprises a computer
21
that in turn comprises a printer and display
23
that prints a work order
24
showing the products to be packed for the order. The receiving site
30
comprises a database system
34
that electronically stores the details of package content and a computer
31
that comprises a display
33
and a printer
35
that prints a package content list
36
. The computer
21
of the shipping site
20
and the computer
31
of the receiving site
30
are connected via a data transmission route
5
. At the shipping site
20
, the products to be shipped to the receiving site
30
are packed in the package
2
according to the work order
24
, and once packing is complete, the package
2
is delivered to the receiving site
30
via a distribution network
4
.
In this distribution system, package content data for the package
2
is prepared by the computer
21
of the shipping site
20
and transferred via the data transmission route
5
to the computer
31
of the receiving site
30
, where it displayed on the display
33
, printed as the package content list
36
by the printer
35
, and electronically stored as inventory data in the database system
34
.
In the distribution system shown in
FIG. 6
, the package
2
is shipped via the distribution network
4
, and package content lists corresponding to mixed packages containing a plurality of products of differing types, designs, colors, and sizes are sent as the package content data of the package
2
via the data transmission route
5
.
The problems of the distribution system shown in
FIG. 6
are that either the generation of package content data for the package
2
is troublesome or the efficiency of packaging is low at the shipping site
20
and that disparities between inventory data and actual products in inventory arise, if only temporarily, because the time of arrival of the package
2
at the receiving site
30
and the time of arrival of the package content data at the receiving site
30
do not coincide.
When a plurality of products of differing types, designs, colors, and sizes are to be mixed and packed in a package, it is extremely difficult to determine the gross volume of the products that could be packed in a package of a certain volume prior to the start of packing because the volumes and shapes of the products differ.
Therefore, when many products are to be packaged and a plurality of packages are to be shipped to one receiving site
30
, it is extremely difficult to include work instructions for a plurality of packages appear on the work order
24
at the shipping site
20
.
Packing must proceed according to the following procedure: All work instructions for the products are listed on the work order
24
even when they are to be separated into a plurality of packages. A mark (a dashed line
25
) indicating a division between the products packed is placed in the work order
24
during packing. Based on the work order
24
marked with the dashed line
25
, a package content list for each package is input into the computer
21
and sent to the receiving site
30
via the data transmission route
5
.
The items in the work order
24
could be listed in groupings constituting a range of products that could individually fit within the packages by calculating the volume of the products, but discrepancies between calculated values and package data would bring redundancy to the work, a number of products fewer than could be normally packed would have to be designated, and packing efficiency would necessarily decrease. If the designated number of products could not fit in the associated package, another content list would have to be prepared.
In other words, conventional distribution systems problematically require a new package content list to be prepared for every box.
Even when the package content list data of the package
2
arrives at the receiving site
30
, the package content is displayed on the display
33
of the computer
31
, the package content list
36
is printed on the printer
35
, and the data is stored in the database system
34
, this data remains invalid until the package
2
actually arrives at the receiving site
30
, where it must be compared with valid data on actual product inventory. Once the package
2
does arrive, the data must be revised to valid data.
As has been discussed, the generation of detailed content data for each package
2
based on the actual packing records is necessitated at the shipping site
20
for mixed packages containing a plurality of products of differing types, designs, colors, sizes, and other attributes in a conventional distribution system. At the receiving site
30
, this data must both be compared to valid data on actual product inventory and, when the package
2
arrives, be updated to valid data.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
The distribution system of the invention, which ships products packed in a package
2
at a shipping site
20
via a distribution network
4
to a receiving site
30
, sends in the package an electronic tag
1
containing data on the packaged products.
The products contained in the package
2
are of a plurality of types, and the data stored on the electronic tag
1
contains quantity information and specific data on the type, color, size, and other attributes of the packed products.
In the distribution system of the invention, the shipping site
20
comprises a display
23
that displays packing work for products to be packed in the package
2
and a tag write device
22
that writes data regarding the packed products on the electronic tag
1
. The receiving site
30
comprises a tag read device
32
that reads the data stored on the electronic tag
1
, a database system
34
that stores some or all of the data stored on the electronic tag
1
, and a printer
35
that prints the data stored on the electronic tag
1
.
Furthermore, in the distribution system a
Crawford Gene O.
Ellis Christopher P.
Leading Information Technology Institute, Inc.
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