CA2337656A1

CA2337656A1 - Automated shipping configurator for multiple transportation resources

Info

Publication number: CA2337656A1
Application number: CA002337656A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Christopher Kravas; Kenneth Crane
Original assignee: Webmodal, Inc.; Christopher Kravas; Kenneth Crane; Enron Freights Markets Corp.
Current assignee: ENRON FREIGHTS MARKETS CORP
Priority date: 2000-02-22
Filing date: 2001-02-20
Publication date: 2001-08-22
Also published as: MXPA01001903A

Abstract

An automated system provides a user with the ability to automatically configure intermodal freight transportation in a convenient and efficient manner. In a first preferred embodiment, information relating to freight transportation resources may be accessed via the Internet and a web interface. Although it is preferred that the Internet be used for access, it is contemplated that any known type of access to a program or database would be suitable.
Regardless of how a user gains access to the system, the system will provide the user with the ability to identify origination and destination information for a freight shipment that is to travel via intermodal freight carriers. Additionally, the user may enter data relating pick-up and/or delivery scheduling for the shipment. Once this information has been identified, the system automatically identifies all available trucking and rail resources which are compatible in terms of scheduling for delivery of the desired load. This information is assembled into one or more combined intermodal freight transportation alternatives that provide transportation for the freight shipment between the origination and destination locations. The information on available resources is then presented to the user for selection from among the various shipping alternatives.

Description

TITLE OF THE INVENTION
AUTOMATED SHIPPING CONFIGURATOR FOR MULTIPLE TRANSPORTATION
RESOURCES
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field Of The lnvention The present invention relates generally to the freight transportation industry. More specifically, the present invention is directed to a computer controlled system for selecting from among multiple shipping resources for domestic intermodal full truckload freight transportation of a freight shipment (intermodal transportation). The system provides users with the ability to acccas information relating to available shipping resources that satisfy user selected criterion so that an appropriate intermodal transportation solution may be easily selected.
Description of the Related Art In the shipping industry, when a manufacturer or supplier desires to ship products or goods to a particular destination, it is currently necessary for someone to go through the time consuming process of arranging transportation for the products through each of several freight transportation sen~ice providers. A single trucking company could provide freight transportation sewices between any locations within the continent. However, it is usually less expensive when shipping freight over long distances, to use a combination of trucking and rail resources. This t)~p~: of freight transportation is known in the field as domestic intennodal full truckload freight trar.~sportation.
Intermodal transportation is most desirable when speed of delivery is not of utmost importance. This is due to the fact that time is lost during hand-offs from one carrier to the next.
When speed is critical, it is usually more desirable to use an overland trucking company for freight transportation.
The implementation of an intennodal transportation solution typically entails contacting each of the shipping resources who will potentially be involved in transporting a particular shipment for each segment of transit in order to determine price and scheduling availability of resources for each segment of the intermodal transportation.
For example, if a particular shipment is to be transferred between Chicago and Los Angeles, it is necessary to make arrangements to have a trucking company pick up the freight from its location in Chicago and deliver it to one of the rail facilities in or near the city of Chicago. It is also necessary to make the appropriate arrangements with one of the rail transit resources near Chicago for transportation of the shipment from the rail facility in Chicago to a rail facility near Los Angeles. Finally, it is necessary to make arrangements with a trucking company in Los Angeles so that the shipment can be delivered to its final destination from the Los Angeles rail facility. 1n order to assure that a competitive price is paid for each segment of transit, it is necessary to contact a number of different shipping resowce providers for each segment of transit.
Currently, this is a very time-consuming and di~cult task for an individual to handle.
Consideration of price and availability for each segment of the jowney from multiple vendors is required in order to arrive at an intennodal transportation solution that is effcient in terms of both cost and time. Combining the transportation resowces also necessitates consideration of compatibility for each of the potential alternatives. For example, a trucking company that could deliver the freight shipment to a particular rail facility after a desired train has left for its journey to the destination rail facilit~~ would obviously not be acceptable. These availability and/or scheduling concerns must similarly be addressed for each segment of a proposed domestic inte~°modal transportation solution.
T'he amount of information to be considered in order to arrive at a solution that is most efficient in terms of time and cost can be overwhelming for an individual seeking to arrange this type of transportation. Furthermore, much of this information is not readily accessible. It is thus very di~cult for shippers under the cwrent system to arrange internnodal transportation independently.
In the shipping industry, Intermodal Marketing Companies (IMCs) are intermediaries who act as agents that assemble separate segments of freight transit routes into a domestic intermodal transportation package for transferring freight from one destination to another. IMCs

2 employ contacts at railroads and trucking companies known as drayage companies which handle the non-rail portions of an intermodal shipping solution in order to locate the relevant information. The IMCs then evaluate and coordinate the various shipping resources to identify an s~ppropriate shipping solution for the desired freight transit.
IMCs typically charge an average fee of from approximately $50 to $150 in addition to the actual combined cost of the individual component shipping services. The IMCs present a sinl;le rate to the shipper and consequently, the shipper typically does not know the actual cost of the various segments of the overall route. Because a single fee or bill is submitted to the shipper, their also are usually unaware of the amount of the fee for the IMC service which is included in the overall rate.
In the intermodal transportation industry, shippers lack ready access to information regarding the rates, schedules, and service records of the railroads and trucking companies that more, or could potentially move, their freight. Consequently, the shippers must rely on the IM(~s to arrange and execute their intermodal shipping solutions. The existing purchasing process - in which the intermediary establishes rates for different components of the move with rail and truck carriers. then~negotiates an overall price with the shipper -typically leaves the shipper with little assurance that optimal purchasing decisions are being made on its behalf.
There is currently no known system that provides ready access to all of the information nec~asary for the simple implementation of intermodal shipping solutions.
Accordingly, there remains a need in the freight transportation field for a system that will pre~~ent shippers with the ability to quickly and easily generate their own shipping solutions basE~d on directly available pricing information and information on the availability of resources from shipping service providers. Additionally, there remains a need in the field for a shipping system that will automatically configure intermodal shipping resources into a single point-to-poir~t shipping solution. Furthermore, there remains a need in the freight transportation industry for a system that will increase efficiency and save costs.
Some cost savings will be realized by providing a system that more thoroughly reviews information on shipping resources and which is also capable of automatically selecting a corr.~bination of the most desirable shipping resources based on actual user criterion. Other

3 advantages will be realized by a system that automatically communicates information between shippers and shipping resource providers in order to more efficiently match available shipping resources with shippers who require those services.
Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following Summary and Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments set forth below.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention, an automated system provides a user with the ability to automatically configure intermodal transportation in a convenient and efficient manner.
In a. first preferred embodiment, information relating to freight transportation resources may be accessed via the Internet and a web interface. Although it is prefen;ed that the Internet be used for access, it is contemplated that any known type of access to a program or database would be suitable.
For example, in alternate preferred embodiments of the system, dial up access via the conventional telephone system will be provided. In such a system, shippers will be able to identiy themselves with a special code. An automated system would then prompt the user for the number and t)~pe of shipping containers requiring transit and the origination and destination locations for the shipment. Other information may be entered as well. Requests for use of the system could also be made automatically via facsimile or through a conversation over the telephone.
Regardless of how a user gains access to the system, the system will provide the user with the ability to identify origination and destination information for a freight shipment that is to ta~avel via intermodal carriers. Additionally, the user may enter data relating pick-up and/or delivery scheduling for the shipment. Once this information has been identified, the system automatically identifies all available trucking and rail resources which are compatible in terms of sch~:duling for delivery of the desired load. This information is assembled into one or more combined intermodal transportation packages that provide transportation for the freight shipment between the origination and destination locations. The information on available resources is then presented to the user for selection from among the various shipping alternatives.

4 In order to accomplish this result, the system accesses a database containing information on moth trucking and rail resources associated with the origination city.
First, the system identifies all possible rail routes between the origination and destination locations from a database containing this information. This is initially based upon identification of the rail heads that respectively provide service to both the origination and destination locations. Although it is preferred that the system identify rail resources initially, it is contemplated that the system could also initially identified trucking resources first.
The initial identification of rail resource availability is based upon zip code information entered by a shipper for both the origination and destination locations. For example, a database may contain information that indicates a particular zip code is serviced by one or more specific rail heads or service providers. The system then identifies a rail resource that travels between an origination and destination rail center.
The zip code information is correlated with city pair information in order to expeditiously ider.~tify rail and trucking resource availability. The city pair information corresponds with scheduling information for the trucking resources as well pricing information for the truck transit segrnent of travel.
It will be recognized by those skilled in the art that it is not necessary that zip code information be used in order to identify available rail and truck resources as well as pricing information. The information could also be obtained in any conventional manner by linking origination and destination location information with rail service centers and truck transit pric ing. For example, this could also be accomplished simply by identification of origination and destination city information. In such an embodiment, the city information itself would be dire~aly linked with information on the scheduling and/or availability of trucking and rail resources as well as pricing information.
Regardless of how the data is structured or linked, the database containing information on truth and/or rail scheduling and pricing is populated with information directly received from the rail .and truck service providers. The database may be linked with each of the rail service providers so that when changes are entered into the database of the rail service provider, these identical changes are reflected in the database of the automated configuration system.

In order to limit the amount of information that will be presented to a user, the system will initially identify only those rail services that are capable of initiating transportation within a specified period of time. Once rail resources have been identified, the system then accesses ini:ormation in a database containing information on trucking resources of the origination city that are capable of transferring freight to one or more rail facilities associated with the origination city that have been identified as being capable of providing the necessary rail services. The system automatically eliminates those trucking resources that are incompatible with a particular rail transit selection due to scheduling concerns.
For example, some trucking companies may be eliminated due to an inability to satisfy pick-up or delivery scheduling requirements which may be requested by a shipper. This would oc~:ur when a shipper requests that a particular shipment be picked up within a few hours and a given trucking company could not satisfy this requirement. This step eliminates irrelevant information from being presented to a user.
The system automatically links each of the relevant rail resources with identified trucking companies having available resources capable of transferring the freight from the origination location to a rail facility located near the city within sufficient time to satisfy each of the identified rail transit resources as well as any scheduling requirements imposed by the shipper.
The system operates in similar fashion for identifying potential trucking resources at the destination location. The system will typically identify several combinations of trucking and rail resources for transferring the freight between the origination and destination city via intermodal carriers.
In the event that the system is not able to identify any combination of intermodal tra~zsportation resources which satisfy the user's request, the system automatically notifies the user that no intermodal transportation solution exists for the requested itinerary and presents the user with the option of selecting an alternate itinerary. This situation may occur, for example, if the delivery date requested by the shipper cannot be satisfied by any of the available combinations of shipping resources stored in the system database.
Specifically, if the user sel~:cted a one day delivery time for transit from Chicago to Los Angeles, the system would automatically indicate that such a delivery schedule was impossible. The system would then aut~~matically request that the user select a later delivery date. The system maintains a cal~:ulation of the total transit time for the combined shipping package and if the requested delivery date is no longer achievable by this total time value, an automatic message is sent to the user identifying this event. This event may also occur when a user requests a pick-up time that cannot be satisfied by any of the available trucking resources identified in the database.
Once the system has identified the relevant intermodal transportation solutions for a particular freight shipment, the system will either automatically select a solution or it will present the information to the user so that the user may select the information directly. In the embodiment of the system where the user selects the desired shipping solution, the system has several options for presenting the identified information to a user. The user may also have the ability to select and or alter the way in which this information will be presented to the user depending on the capabilities of the system. For instance, in one embodiment of the system, all information on pricing will be presented to the users of the system, however, this is not necessary as an alternate embodiment may only present information on a combined freight transport package price.
In one example embodiment, a computer software program affords the user with the ability to select presentation of the relevant information based on several priorities. Specifically, by selecting one option. the identified intermodal transportation solutions may be arranged with priority placed upon speed of delivery. In this mode, those combinations of rail and trucking res~~urces having availability within a fixed window of time will be presented to a user first, ranked from earliest completion time to latest.
Alternatively, the identified information on intermodal shipping solutions may be presented to the user prioritized according to the overall cost of the combined freight trmsportation package. In such a mode of operation, the user will receive a list of the available cornbinations of shipping resources arranged from lowest to highest price. In one mode of opf;ration, the user will be able to alternately select the arrangement of information with the presentation of information based upon either price or speed of completion.
Where a plurality of combinations of shipping resources have either the same cost or same completion date, regardless of the user selection for the overall presentation of the information, the information will be arranged for presentation to the user based on a hierarchy according to both price and speed of completion. For example, if a user selects to prioritize the presentation of information on available combinations of shipping resources based on price, among combinations having the same price, those combinations that have an earlier completion date will be presented first.
In a further alternate embodiment of the invention, a user profile may be used to predesignate specific rail or truck resources desired by that user. This option would accommodate shippers that may have a preference for a particular local trucking company or rail carrier but who do not have preferences for other segments of the intennodal transportation package.
In another alternate embodiment of the system, the user is presented with the option of independently creating a combined rail-truck-rail package by selecting from among each of the available shipping resources for each segment of the journey. In such a mode of operation, once a u;~er selects origination trucking information, the user is then presented with a selection of available rail resources compatible with the initial trucking selection. The user may then select the desired rail resource followed by selection of a destination trucking resource for transferring the shipment from the destination rail yard to the ultimate destination location. The system is flea~ible and allows a user to also make a:n initial rail selection followed by selection of available compatible drayage trucking selections for both origination and destination cities. Alternatively, rather than manual selection of the various rail and trucking resources through the configuration system. a softv~'are program may automatically identify a complete rail-truck-rail package for a given user.
In one embodiment of the system, the automated shipping configurator employs a web server for initial access from a plurality of users via the Internet. The web server presents a web basked interface so that one or more users may access the system to gain the particular desired form of configuration whether it be automated or based upon manual selections of each segment of ~i freight transportation request. The information regarding price and availability of transportation resources is contained in one or more database servers accessible to the web server.

One portion of the database contains data on trucking resource scheduling and pricing for transportation both to and from rail facilities in a particular region. For convenience, the database may be partitioned into separate ;portions for each of several geographic regions throughout the country. Each of these identified regions is associated with one or more rail facilities within the region. Trucking resources that provide access to and from a particular rail facility are identified as providing a link to the particular rail facility.
The database is further partitioned into portions for each of the several trucking companies that provide access to and from the rail facility. Each trucking and rail company will essentially have its own portion of the database containing information on pricing and availability for its own resources.
Data records relating to trucking resources provide scheduling information in order to identify whether the trucking resource identified in that data record can satisfy origination or destination drayage requirements for a particular selected rail schedule.
Information relating to the availabilin~ of the trucking company resources may also be provided, however, this is not necessary. The scheduling andlor availability information may be maintained in a number of different ways. In the preferred embodiment, this information will be stored on the basis of city pair combinations that are linked to zip code information. In an alternate embodiment, for locations within a given geographic zone surrounding a specific rail service provider, the data record may specify a fixed time, such as, for example, four hours from time of notification until delivery at the rail facility. In larger geographic zones progressing from the central location, sch~:duling times would increase. Alternatively, the scheduling information may be maintained bas~:d on ciy pair combinations without reference to zip code information. For example, based on a selected rail facility, a data record pertaining to the origination or destination location will specify a particular transit time. Alternatively, if the city pair for the origination or destination location is not specified, a time calculation may be made based upon the mileage to the destination or origination city. Pricing information is similarly maintained for the drayage sen~ice providers. Pricing information may be maintained either based upon city pair matching or nuleage calculations as well.
The information is maintained corresponding to separate regions of the country or geo;~raphic areas. For example, in the United States, -the country is broken up into various regions which are served by various rail and truck routes. Once origination and destination information is provided to the system, the system initially correlates the origination and destination cities with the rail facilities nearest the respective origination and destination cities so than. the system can identify available rail resources. The computer program reviews the database and automatically designates the appropriate available rail resources for the desired freight transportation.
The system provides a very efficient and convenient mechanism for arranging shipping needs. Shippers are empowered by the system in order to identify the most desirable shippiing solutions based on their respective needs. The system realizes cost savings for both shippers and shipping resource providers through increasing the efficiency of identifying intermodal freight transportation solutions.
In a further preferred embodiment, the system also automatically provides tracking information for shippers and shipping resource providers. This information can be utilized by the shippers in order to realize yet further efficiencies. Freight transportation tracking systems are known in the freight transportation field. These systems identify the progress of freight shipments traveling via rail service providers. This information is used by one exemplary embodiment of the system in order to assist in the coordination of services provided by the drasage trucking companies.
In this mode of operation, the system notifies a trucking company that has been selected as the origination location drayage provider for a freight shipment that another freight shipment will be arriving at the same rail facility to which the origination delivery will be made at a particular time on a given day near the time when the origination freight is to be delivered to the rail facility. Prior to the time at which the shipment nears the destination rail facility, the tracking information is used in triggering communication with the drayage provider that identifies the expected arrival time of the shipment. This capability enhances ef~rciency by potE;ntially eliminating the possibility that this truck would have returned from the rail facility empty. 'Ibis is due to the fact that the trucking company may be able to reach agreement with the shipper of the arriving shipment to provide destination drayage for that shipment.

The origination drayage provider can use this information in coordinating drayage trucking in order to minimize or even eliminate the need for trucks to travel either to or from the rail facility without a load of freight. This further enhances the efficiency and profitability of the drayage providers.
In a further enhanced version ofihe system, the system identifies pairs of arriving and departing shipments for a given drayage trucking company at each rail facility that is serviced by the drayage trucking company. This information is automatically transmitted to the drayage trucking company to help further eliminate trucks traveling either to or from the rail facility without a load of freight. Whenever possible, the trucking company can use this informatian to adjust its trucking schedules accordingly to realize this further efficiency.
The system can also be used to present the tracking information to customers directly through the web interface or other communications interface. For tracking information, once each segment of the journey is completed and for various intermediate way points, a tracking database is updated by information transmitted by the shipping resource.
Accordingly, a person using the system can readily track progress of the shipment throughout the country.
In a further preferred embodiment of the system, further costs, savings and efficiencies ma3~ be realized by identifying particular shipments traveling via rail to a particular destination location v~-hich do not have assigned destination drayage. The system desirably matches up those trucking resources who will be delivering loads of freight to the destination city of the frei;;ht for which no drayage trucking resources have been assigned. The system specifically identifies those trucking resources making deliveries to the destination location that do not have sch~:duled pick-ups at the destination location.
If a trucking resource is identified through the system as delivering freight to the rail facility, rather than returning with an empty load, trucking companies are willing to sacrifice some cost in order to gain the benefit of utilizing the trucking services on the return trip. Thus, the system advantageously identifies these situations so that both the shipper and the trucking corr~pany may more efFrciently utilize their resources.
In this mode of operation, a message is sent automatically to both the shipper and the trucking company having the identified resource availability so that either one or both may make a F~roposal for the cost of delivery to the final location. A separate server may be employed for receiving proposals for final delivery in these situations. Proposals received from the drayage trucking company are compared with the proposals from the shipper and if a match is identified, the: system automatically notifies both the shipper and the drayage trucking provider so that the ap~~ropriate arrangements can be made between the shipper and drayage trucking company. This ensures that the drayage trucking provider may pick up the freight shipment for delivery when the' drayage trucking provider makes a delivery at the rail facility. Billing may be handled automatically by the system that arranges the match between shipper and drayage trucking company.
In situations where an identified maximum price a shipper is willing to pay exceeds a minimum the trucking company is willing to receive, a further surcharge fee which is a portion of this difference may be deducted from the purchase price and transferred to the system operator as a fee for use of the system.
In an further embodiment. the system may also be an;anged to provide billing services for the' various shipping resources. In this mode of operation, the system will add a small fee to the co:>t of the overall combined shipping package in order to cover the cost of system operations.
Typically, this fee will be presented to the user in the pricing information that is presented to the us~:r. This is done in order to reduce the chance that a shipper may simply use the system only to identiy combinations of shipping resources having lower rates. Because an overall package price is presented to the shipper, it is not apparent what cost the individual segments of the journey are. Payment can then be automatically made to the intermodal freight transportation configuration service provider who will directly pay each of the individual component shipping re~~ource providers. Billing is thus simplified for the shippers using the system. This aspect of the: system is not necessary and the actual costs of each shipping segment could be presented to a person who uses the system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The system is further described in detail below with reference to the drawings wherein:
Figure 1 is a block diagram illustration of an embodiment of the overall intennodal freight transportation configuration system;
Figure 2 is a block diagram of the system that depicts parallel processing for identifying interim information by the system;
Figure 3 is a flow diagram illustration that depicts processing a user request by the intermodal freight transportation configuration system;
Figure 4 is a flow diagram illustration that depicts access to the system by a freight transportation provider;
Figure 5 illustrates a data record for a drayage trucking company;
Figure 6 illustrates a data record for a rail service provider.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Figure 1 illustrates a first preferred embodiment of the system which is shown generally at 10. A web server 15 is connected to the Internet through a known interface such as a T-1 connection or fiber optic link 17. A plurality of individuals requiring shipping services 22 ;end intermodal freight transportation service providers 24 are able to access the system through the Internet.
It should be recognized that the present invention is not limited by the type of connection or interface. Any communication link will provide satisfactory results, however, it is preferred that a more robust link be provided in order to accommodate greater traffic volume and to increase access to the system. As the speed of telecommunications links increases, it is contemplated that the disclosed system will be compatible with these newer systems. All that is necessary is a communications link between the computer which identifies the information described below and a plurality of freight shippers and transportation providers. Although it is preferred that the Internet be used for access, it is contemplated that any type of access to a program or database are suitable for use as well.
For example. in alternate preferred embodiments of the system, dial up access via the conventional telephone system is provided. In such a system, shippers are able to identify themselves with a special code that can be entered via DTMF tones. An automated system then prompts the user for the number and type of shipping containers requiring transit and the origination and destination locations for the shipment. In this version of the system, the oril;ination and destination locations are identified via automatically generated synthesized speech and voice responses are translated into digital information via a voice recognition cornputer module. The translated digital responses identifying origination and destination locations are then read back to the user via a text-to-speech synthesizer in order to confirm the information. Shipping resource providers have similar access to the system in order to update database records relating to pricing and availability of their respective resources. Requests for use of the system may also be made automatically via facsimile or through a conversation over the telephone.

Regardless of how a user gains access to the system, the system will provide the user with the ability to identify origination and destination locations for a freight shipment that is to travel via intermodal freight carriers. The user also has the ability to specify the size of the shipment such as the number and size or type of shipping containers for the freight shipment.
Once this information has been identified, the system automatically identifies all available trucking and rail resources which are compatible in terms of scheduling for delivery of the desirf:d load.
Throughout the specification, the reference to database server or servers is a reference to the memory containing all information regarding scheduling and pricing for the rail and drayage trucking resources. The memory may contain other information as well that is relevant to the use of the; shipping resources.
It should be recognized that although it is preferred that this information reside in one or more database servers which include disk drive storage media, it is not necessary that the infonr~ation be stored in such a storage device. Virtually any information storage media will suffice for implementation of this memory. Furthermore, the memory does not have to reside in a single physical location. The memory can actually be comprised of one or more separate memory units which individually may be comprised of distinct storage media. If embodied as distinct memory units. the memory units may or may not be linked together. All that is nece:>sary is that the selection program have access to the necessary information resident in the one or more memory locations so that the system may make the necessary selections. The term memory is thus not limited to a single physical information storage device or location.
In the illustrated preferred embodiment of Figure 1, the database server 27 contains information relating to pricing and scheduling information or availability of transportation resoiuces provided by a plurality of intermodal freight transportation resource providers. As noted, the memory embodied as the database server 27 will typically include other information as well. The information contained in the database server may also desirably partitioned to correspond with specific geographic regions located throughout the country.
However, it is prefe~nred that the system search for availability of rail and trucking resources on the basis of zip code information that is linked to city pair combinations as described below.

This is desirable so that the system is not required to search through all records in the dat;tbase in order to provide a solution for each request for intermodal freight shipping. Rather, the system is only required to search records in the database server 27 of transportation resources relevant to the specific origination and destination locations.
Freight transportation resource providers have access to their relevant records contained within the database server or memory 2? so that they may update their own information on pricing and availability of their resources via the Internet on an ongoing basis in order to ensure that the information which is accessed by the system users is accurate. Access to the portions of the system that enable alteration of the transportation records is provided in a very limited manner via a secure connection or password protected public/private key as is known in the conununication field so that each freight transportation resource provider may only modify their owa information. Modification of this information may also be accomplished over the telephone by speaking directly with a representative of the system operator.
Regardless of how a shipper accesses the database for changing information;
shippers are cap~ible of changing both price and/ or schedule information for their shipping resources. In a further alternate embodiment of the system, a shipping resource provider is able to modify information in the database pertaining to capacity as well as spot pricing information.
Capacity may be important when, for example, all the trucks of a drayage provider will be i:n use transferring shipments on a given day. Obviously, the system then should not indicate avai lability of shipping resources for transferring shipments on that day.
Additionally, with respect to spot pricing issues described below, the system will allow a trucking company to idernify a special spot price for transit to/from a given rail facility that would only be valid for a particular period of time and would thereafter expire. The special pricing may also expire if another shipper had made arrangements for transit of a shipment at the special rate where no other resources were available at that rate.
In order identify relevant records in the database 27, the system accesses a database containing information on trucking and rail resources associated with the origination city. First, the ;>ystem identifies all potential rail routes between the origination and destination locations from a database containing this information. This database, which may be a part of a single dat;3base on server 27 or a separate database, in a preferred embodiment contains a correlation between zip codes of origination and destination locations and the rail heads or service centers than. are accessible to those cities. Although it is preferred that the system identify rail resources initially, it is contemplated that the system could also initially identify trucking resources first.
The: precise sequence or process through which relevant data is identified is unimportant. All that: is necessary is that the system be able to identify rail and trucking resources that are accessible to the origination and destination locations.
As noted, in the preferred embodiment, the initial identification of rail resource availability is based upon zip code information entered by a shipper for both the origination and destination locations. For example, a database may contain information that indicates a par>:icular zip code is serviced by one or more specific rail heads or service providers. The system then identifies one or more rail resources that travel between an origination and desi:ination rail center.
It is preferred although not necessary that the zip code information be correlated with city pair information in order to expeditiously identify rail and trucking resowce availability. In the database, the city pair information corresponds with scheduling information for the trucking resources as well pricing information for the truck transit segment of travel.
It will be recognized by those skilled in the art that it is not necessary that zip code information be used in order to identify available rail and truck resources as well as pricing information. The information could also be obtained in any conventional manner by linking origination and destination location information with rail service centers and truck transit pricing. For example, this could also be accomplished simply by identification of origination and destination city information. In such an embodiment, the city information itself would be directly linked with information on the scheduling and/or availability of trucking and rail resources as well as pricing information.
In an alternate embodiment, a database contains information for every city or town in the country or countries for which transportation will be provided that identifies the rail centers that are .accessible to each city. Some towns or cities may have access to a plurality of rail centers.
This con elation can be provided in several different ways.

First, each city or town in the database or memory may have one or more pointers associated with the city identification information that provide a link to identification of each rail center which is accessible to that city by a drayage service provider.
Alternatively, the information on available rail centers could simply be stored in a file or record associated with the id~:ntified city in the database or memory.. Information regarding the availability of rail resources for the destination city or town is provided in similar fashion.
If the freight shipment is to arrive at or depart from a location for which no city or town record is provided, the system automatically prompts the shipper for the nearest larger town or city location. If this occurs, the system also requests information regarding the distance of the location from the nearest identified town or city. As detailed below, this information is necessary for determining pricing information for the freight shipping package. It is preferred that zip code information be used in order to limit the number of data records to be considered by the s~rstem and to reduce the amount of memory required for storing the system information.
Upon receiving identification of the available rail service centers for the origination and destination locations, the system then identifies the combinations of origination and destination rail service centers that are compatible. Fur example, a rail service center near a particular city may not have trains that travel to a desired destination location. The system eliminates those cornbinations of origination and destination rail service centers which are incompatible by reviewing additional information contained in a database that identifies each of the rail service centers that can be accessed by a particular origination location rail service center. The database containing this information may be the same as the database described above or it may be a further database.
After identifying potential rail service providers, the system then identifies those schedules from each of the available rail service providers that will travel between the origination and destination rail facilities within a fixed period of time that may be, for example, three days and 10 hours. The database containing this information is desirably populated with information that is linked with the rail service providers. As with the other databases mentioned above, this database may be the same as the database 27 or another separate location or database.
The database may be linked with each of the rail service providers so that when changes are entered into the corresponding database of the rail service provider, these identical changes are reflected in the database of the automated configuration system. However, this link is not necessary.
Once rail resources have been identified, the system then accesses information in a dauabase containing information on the trucking resources of the origination city that are capable of transferring freight to one or more rail facilities associated with the origination city that have been identified as being capable of providing the necessary rail services. The system automatically eliminates those trucking resources that are incompatible with a particular rail transit selection due to scheduling concerns or other limitations. This step eliminates irrelevant information from being presented to a user. Elimination of a trucking resource occurs if either no resource is available or if the particular drayage provider cannot satisfy the requested scl-~eduling request of the system user.
In this regard, the database may contain time of transit information based on city pair combinations or mileage between an identified origination ~r destination locations and an identified rail facility. Geographic zone information may also be employed to identify this scheduling information. For example, if tire origination or destination city was within a particular geographic zone sun;ounding an identified rail facility, a particular transit time would be designated. Pricing information may also be linked or identified in this manner. As noted above, it is not necessary that resources be identified first. In an alternate embodiment of the system. the system would identify potential trucking resources first. In a further alternate embodiment, both trucking and rail resources could be detemlined in parallel by a version of the system that simultaneously ran programs on different processors that were respectively programmed to identify rail and trucking resources or trucking resources for origination and destination locations.
After identifying all possible candidates that satisfy the user qualifications, the system then automatically links each of the relevant rail resources with identified trucking companies having available resources capable of transferring the freight from the origination location to a rail facility located near the city within sufficient time to satisfy each of the identified rail transit resources. The system operates in similar fashion for identifying potential trucking resources at the destination location. The system will typically identify several combinations of trucking and rail resources for transferring the freight between the origination and destination city via inte~rmodal carriers. The identified combinations of transportation resources are then presented to the user.
References throughout the specification to the capabilities or steps performed by the system refer to actions performed by one or more computers and their respective processors that have access to the data for making the necessary comparisons of freight transportation service records and generating lists of selective information. In particular, the steps described throughout the specification can be performed by a single computer having access to the relevant dam or multiple computers may operate in parallel. Computers operating in parallel may identify interim solutions that are used in later processing or they may each independently create solutions for separate requests.
Figure 2 illustrates one such embodiment 30 wherein a web server 31 is connected to one or more database sen~ers 33. Two additional processing computers 35, 37 have access to the database servers 33. The web server 31 transmits data to the processing computers that instruct the processing computers to provide one or more functions relevant to identifying available intermodal freight transportation alternatives. For example, in one such mode of operation, after the rail centers have been identified, the processing computers 35, 37 may operate in parallel to search and compare the relevant records in order to identify potential drayage trucking resources at the origination and destination locations. In such a mode, in order to realize efficiency, processing computer 35 will be assigned the task of identifying potential destination drayage trucking resources and processing computer 37 will be assigned the task of identifying potential origination drayage trucking resources. The results may be transferred via a network connection to a :further processing computer or one of the processing computers 35, 37.
Alternatively, a processor associated with the web server or database servers may be assigned the task of accessing and comparing the relevant records as described herein.
Once the system has identified the relevant intetmodal freight transportation solutions for a particular freight shipment, the system will either automatically select a solution or it will present the information to the user so that the user may select the inforniation directly. In the embodiment of the system where the user selects the desired shipping solution, the system has sevf:ral options for presenting the identified information to a user. The user has the ability to select and or alter the way in which this information will be presented to the user.
For example, computer software affards the user with the ability to select presentation of the:relevant information based on several priorities. The identified intermodal freight transportation solutions may be arranged with priority placed upon speed of delivery. In this mode, those combinations of rail and trucking resources having availability within a fixed wirn3ow of time will be presented to a user first.
Alternatively, the identified information on intennodal freight transportation solutions may be presented to the user prioritized according to the overall cost of the combined freight transportation package. In such a mode of operation, the user will receive a list of the available combinations of shipping resources arranged from lowest to highest price. In one mode of operation, the user will be able to alternately select the arrangement of information with the presentation of information based upon either combined price or speed of completion. Where a pluralit)~ of combinations of shipping resources have either the same cost or same completion date. regardless of the user selection for the overall presentation of the information, the information will be arranged for presentation to the user based on a hierarchy according to both prig: and speed of completion. For example, if a user selects to prioritize the presentation of information on available combinations of shipping resources based on price, those combinations having the same price will be presented such that those combinations that have an earlier completion date will be presented first.
In a further alternate embodiment of the invention, a user prof le may be used to predesignate specific rail or truck resources desired by that user. This option would accommodate shippers that may have a preference for a particular local trucking company or rail carrier but who do not have preferences for other segments of the freight transportation package.
Figure 3 is a block flow diagram illustration of the steps associated with processing a request for intermodal freight transportation by a shipper which is shown generally at 40. In a first step 42, the shipper accesses the system over, for example, an Internet connection. Next in step 44 the shipper enters information regarding the size of the freight shipment such as the number and size of the freight containers to be delivered. In step 45, the shipper enters information identifying origination and destination cities as well as desired or required delivery and pick-up scheduling. As noted, in the preferred embodiment, this includes zip code information for the origination and destination cities. Where a shipper does not have the zip code information, the system may be programmed to ask the user if they wish to run a program that may be used to automatically identify the unknown zip code for the shipper.
In step 46 the system processes the request and generates a list of combined rail-truck-rail shipping combinations. For each of the available combinations, the system identifies the date of dei;ivery as well as the combined cost for delivery of the freight shipment.
Finally, in a step 48, they user selects the desired combination of shipping resources and enters an order for the shipping services.
When a user accesses the system over the Internet as in this example, the user receives the information regarding available shipping alternatives as HT1VIL pages of information. These pai;es of information may be generated by dynamically generated HTML or any alternate manner of presenting information via the Internet. Active server pages may also be used in system operation to present information to a person accessing the system. The information regarding available resources may also be transferred via electronic mail or via facsimile or other electronic messaging. 1n such a mode of operation, the user enters a request for information regarding the availability of shipping resources for transit of a given freight shipment from one destination to another and instructs the system to transmit the result information via a particular conununication interface. In this mode the result information can be transmitted via the telephone, via facsimile or any other available data link.
In an alternate embodiment of the system, the user is presented with the option of ind~:pendently creating a combined rail-truck-rail package by selecting from among each of the available shipping resources for each segment of the journey. In such a mode of operation, once a u:,er enters origination and destination information. A screen will present the option of selecting a rail service provider or origination or destination drayage. After receiving Lhis selection information, the system will then present the user with all carrier options for the designated segment of the journey. If the user initially selects origination trucking information, the user is then presented with a selection of available rail resources compatible with the initial trucking selection. The user may then select the desired rail resource followed by selection of a destination trucking resource for transferring the shipment from the destination rail yard to the ultimate destination location. The system is flexible and allows a user to also make an initial rail selection followed by selection of available compatible drayage trucking selections for both origination and destination cities. Additionally, a user may select a combination of services pre~riously selected for a same route.
Alternatively, rather than manual selection of the various rail and trucking resources through the configuration system, a software program may automatically identify a list complete rail~~truck-rail solutions for a given user. This automated selection may be based upon an identified combination having a lowest price or earliest completion date.
Figure 4 illustrates the steps involved with access by a transportation resource provider in ordE~r to update records regarding pricing or availability of its resources.
In a first step 52, the user accesses the system. Subsequently, in step 54, the freight transportation service provider enters code information which gives him authorization to update the appropriate transportation records. 1n step 56. the intermodal freight transportation service provider is presented with one or more screen displays identifying each of his available resources. For rail service providers, information is based upon origination and destination cities for transit between those cities.
Additionally, the information displayed to the freight service provider includes destination and arri~; al times of trains as well as pricing information for transit. This pricing information is presented to shipping requestors and it is used in calculating an overall price for the combined inte:~nrrodal freight transportation package. In a step 58, the user updates any desired information from the data records and in a step 59, the freight transportation service provider exits the syst~:m.
A portion of the database 27 contains data on trucking resource availability and pricing for transportation both to and from rail facilities in a particular region. As noted, this information may be categorized based on city pair combinations that are derived from zip code information. The database is further partitioned into portions for each of the several trucking companies that provide access to and from the rail facility. Each trucking and rail company will essE~ntially have its own portion of the database containing information on pricing and availability of its particular resources.
Figure 5 illustrates an exemplary data record relating to information in the database memory pertaining to trucking resource scheduling availability and cost. As shown in Figure 5, a first portion of the data record 62 identifies name of a trucking company.
Another portion of the data record 64 identifies one or more rail service centers for which this drayage trucking pro~rider will provide access. Another part of the data record 66 references a geographic travel zorne. A further portion of the data record identifies price and transit time for travel between the idernified zone and the referenced rail center. Additional information may designate date and availabiliy of resources for a given day or time. Along with the date information, this portion of the record may include the number and type of shipping containers which may be transferred by the ~~vailable resources.
lnformation on pricing is directly provided by the trucking resource provider and is based on city pair combinations in the preferred embodiment. Pricing information may also be based on distances from the rail sen~ice center and their respective fees. However, it is preferable that this information be based on city pair combinations or zip code information that identifies transit times and prices for the trucking company from an identified zip code to one or more rail facilities.
In an alternate embodiment, the system may be linked with fizrther geographic info~znation for calculation of a particular trucking fee based on mileage to either an origination or d~atination city depending upon distance from the rail service center. For example, if a desi;2nated origination or destination city is beyond a distance for the trucking service provider for which a flat rate is provided, a rate must be calculated for this value.
Accordingly, mileage infomnation must be included in the database in order to make the appropriate calculation. A
further database may be used to provide the necessary mileage information from an origination or dE;stination location to the particular rail service center. This mileage information may be then used to calculate the appropriate rate.
As noted, rate information may also be derived from a database containing city pair or city/:rail center pair information in order to eliminate the need to calculate fees. This information can be used for billing purposes as well as for identifying scheduling capabilities that will be used in order to determine whether a particular drayage provider can satisfy scheduling requirements imposed by either a user or inherently as a result of a particular rail schedule ' requirement.
The information may also be maintained to correspond with separate regions of the cowatry or geographic area. For example, in the United States, the country may be broken up into various regions which are served by various rail and truck routes. Once origination and destination information is provided to the system, the system initially correlates the origination and destination cities with the rail facilities nearest the respective origination and destination cities so that the system can identify available rail resources. The computer program reviews the database and automatically designates the appropriate available rail resources for the desired freight transportation.
The system provides a very efficient and convenient mechanism for arranging shipping neeals. Shippers are empowered by the system in order to identify the most desirable shipping solu'~ions based on their respective needs. The system realizes cost savings for both shippers and ship~~ing resource providers through increasing the efficiency of identifying intermodal freight transportation solutions. As noted, it is preferred that zip codes be used in order to increase the efficiency of the system. The use of zip code data decreases the amount of data records and simF~Iifies the overall processing of the system.
Figure 6 illustrates an exemplary data record for a rail service provider. A
first portion of the record 72 identifies a railway company name. A next portion 74 indicates an origination rail centE:r and a portion 76 identifies a destination rail center. A final portion indicates departure time., the date of departure, transit time and cost for transit. It will be recognized that the exemplary data records are purely for the sake of illustration as the information clearly need not be shred in this format. The only thing that is necessary is that the system be linked with the appropriate pricing and scheduling information so that the system may automatically identify relevant resources.
In another alternate preferred embodiment, the system also automatically provides tracking information for shippers and shipping resource providers. This information can be utilized by the shippers in order to realize yet further efficiencies. Freight transportation tracking devices are known in the shipping industry. These systems identify the progress of freight shipments traveling via rail service providers. This information is used by the system in order to assist in the coordination of services provided by the drayage trucking companies.
In this mode of operation, the system notifies a trucking company that has been selected as the destination drayage provider that a particular freight shipment will be arriving at a particular time on a given day. The indication of the pending arrival may be based on tracking information or even the existing system records. Prior to the time at which the shipment nears the destination rail facility, the tracking information or system records are used in triggering communication with the drayage provider that identifies the expected arrival time of the shipment.
The destination drayage provider can then use this information in coordinating drayage trucking in order to minimize or even eliminate the need for trucks to travel either to or from the rail facility without a load of freight. In a further enhanced version of the system, the system identifies pairs of arriving and departing shipments for a given drayage trucking company at each rail facility that is serviced by the drayage trucking company. This information is auto>matically transmitted to the drayage trucking company to help eliminate trucks traveling either to or from the rail facility without a load of freight. Whenever possible, the trucking company can use this information to adjust its trucking schedules accordingly to realize this further efficiency.
The system can also be used to present the tracking information to customers directly through the web interface. In regard to tracking information, once each segment of the journey is completed, a tracking database is updated by information transmitted by the shipping resource.
Accordingly, a person using the system can readily track progress of the shipment throughout the cowitry.
In a further prefeaed embodiment of the system, further costs, savings and efficiencies may be realized by identifying particular shipments traveling via rail cities to a particular destination location which do not have assigned destination drayage. The system desirably matches up those trucking resources who will be delivering loads of freight to the destination city of the freight for which no drayage trucking resources have been assigned. The system specifically identifies those trucking resources making deliveries to the destination location that do not have scheduled pick-ups at the destination location.
If a trucking resource is identified through the system as delivering freight to the rail facility, rather than returning with an empty load, trucking companies are willing to sacrifice some cost in order to gain the benefit of utilizing the trucking services on the return trip. Thus, the ~;ystem advantageously identifies these situations so that both the shipper and the trucking company may more efficiently utilize their resources.
A message is sent automatically to both the shipper and the trucking company having the identified resource availability so that either one or both may make a proposal for the cost of delivery to the final location. A separate server may be employed for receiving proposals for final delivery in these situations. Proposals received from the drayage trucking company are compared with the proposals from the shipper and if a match is identified, the system automatically notifies both the shipper and the drayage trucking provider so that the appropriate arrangements can be made so that the drayage trucking provider may pick up the freight shipment for delivery when the drayage trucking provider makes the identified delivery at the rail faciliy.
In situations where an identified maximum price a shipper is willing to pay exceeds a minimum the trucking company is willing to receive, a further surcharge fee which is a portion of this difference may be deducted from the purchase price and transferred to the system operator as a :fee for use of the system.

Claims

We claim:

1. A system for configuring freight transportation comprising:
a memory containing information concerning freight transportation to and from a plurality of rail yards for plurality of truck freight transportation providers, and information concerning rail freight transportation between rail yards for a plurality of rail service providers;
a data display having a communication link to a processor controlled system, said processor controlled system having access to the information stored in the memory;
wherein said processor controlled system receives input information defining a freight origination location and a freight destination location; and wherein said processor controlled system provides a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the communication link includes the Internet.

3. The system of claim 1. wherein the communication link includes a wireless communication portion.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the display is a personal computer display.

5.The system of claim 1, wherein the memory is comprised of two separate disk storage drives.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory is comprised of RAM.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein the memory is comprised of RAM.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory has information associated with a specific geographic zone concerning freight transportation between at least one rail yard and the zone for a plurality of truck freight transportation providers..

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor controlled system provides a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a total price of the freight transportation package.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor controlled system provides a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a completion date for the transportation.

11. A method for configuring freight transportation comprising the steps of:
storing information concerning freight transportation to and from a plurality of railyards for plurality of truck freight transportation providers, and information concerning rail freight transportation between rail yards for a plurality of rail service providers in a memory;
providing a data display having a communication link to a processor controlled system, said processor controlled system having access to the information stored in the memory;
transmitting to said processor controlled system information defining a freight origination location and a freight destination location; and providing a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising a step of transmitting information over the Internet.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising a step of transmitting information over a wireless communication link.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising a step of displaying information on a personal computer display.

15. The method of claim 11, comprising the step of storing portions of the information on two separate disk storage drives.

16. The method of claim 11, comprising the step of storing at least a portion of the information in RAM.

17. The method of claim 15, comprising the step of storing at least a portion of the information in RAM.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the memory has information associated with a specific geographic zone concerning freight transportation between at least one rail yard and the zone for a plurality of truck freight transportation providers

19. The method of claim 11, further comprising a step of providing a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a total price of the freight transportation package.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the processor controlled system provides a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a completion date for the transportation.

21. A system for configuring freight transportation comprising:
a memory containing first information concerning freight transportation between a plurality of geographic zones and a plurality of first rail yards for a plurality of truck freight transportation providers, said first information including price for transit between the zones and each of said first rail yards, said memory also containing second information concerning rail freight transportation between said first rail yards and second rail yards for at least one rail service provider;
a data display having a communication link to a processor controlled system, said processor controlled system having access to the information stored in the memory;
wherein said processor controlled system receives input information defining a freight origination location and a freight destination location; and wherein said processor controlled system provides a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the communication link includes the Internet.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the communication link includes a wireless communication portion.

24. The system of claim 21, wherein the display is a personal computer display.

25. The system of claim 21, wherein the memory is comprised of two separate disk storage drives.

26. The system of claim 21, wherein the memory is comprised of RAM.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein the memory is comprised of RAM.

28. The system of claim 21, wherein the zone is a zip code.

29. The system of claim 21, wherein the processor controlled system provides a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a total price of the freight transportation package.

30. The system of claim 21, wherein the processor controlled system provides a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a completion date for the transportation.

31. A method for configuring freight transportation comprising the steps of:
storing first information concerning freight transportation between a plurality of geographic zones and a plurality of first rail yards for a plurality of truck freight transportation providers, said first information including price for transit between the zones and each of said first rail yards, said memory also containing second information concerning rail freight transportation between said first rail yards and second rail yards for at least one rail service provider:
providing a data display having a communication link to a processor controlled system, said processor controlled system having access to the information stored in the memory;
transmitting to said processor controlled system information defining a freight origination location and a freight destination location; and providing a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location.

32. The method of claim 31, further comprising a step of transmitting information over the Internet.

33. The method of claim 31, further comprising a step of transmitting information over a wireless communication link.

34. The method of claim 31, further comprising a step of displaying information on a personal computer display.

35. The method of claim 31, comprising the step of storing portions of the information on two separate disk storage drives.

36. The method of claim 31, comprising the step of storing at least a portion of the information in RAM.

37. The method of claim 35, comprising the step of storing at least a portion of the information in RAM.

38. The method of claim 31, wherein the memory has information associated with a specific geographic zone concerning freight transportation between at least one rail yard and the zone for a plurality of truck freight transportation providers

39. The method of claim 31, further comprising a step of providing a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a total price of the freight transportation package.

40. The method of claim 31, wherein the processor controlled system provides a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a completion date for the transportation.

41. A method for configuring freight transportation comprising the steps of:
storing first information concerning freight transportation between a plurality of geographic zones and a plurality of first rail yards for a plurality of truck freight transportation providers, said first information including price and transit time for transit between the zones and each of said first rail yards, said memory also containing second information concerning rail freight transportation between said first rail yards and second rail yards for at least one rail service provider;
providing a data display having a communication link to a processor controlled system, said processor controlled system having access to the information stored in the memory;
transmitting to said processor controlled system information defining a freight origination location and a freight destination location; and providing a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location.

42. The method of claim 41, further comprising a step of transmitting information over the Internet.

43. The method of claim 41, further comprising a step of transmitting information over a wireless communication link.

44. The method of claim 41, further comprising a step of displaying information on a personal computer display.

45. The method of claim 41, comprising the step of storing portions of the information on two separate disk storage drives.

46. The method of claim 41, comprising the step of storing at least a portion of the information in RAM.

47. The method of claim 45, comprising the step of storing at least a portion of the information in RAM.

48. The method of claim 41, wherein the memory has information associated with a specific geographic zone concerning freight transportation between at least one rail yard and the zone for a plurality of truck freight transportation providers

49. The method of claim 41, further comprising a step of providing a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a total price of the freight transportation package.

50. The method of claim 41, wherein the processor controlled system provides a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a completion date for the transportation.

51. A method for configuring freight transportation comprising the steps of:
storing first information concerning freight transportation between a plurality of geographic zones and a plurality of first rail yards for a plurality of truck freight transportation providers, said first information including price, availability of transportation resources and transit time for transit between the zones and each of said first rail yards, said memory also containing second information concerning rail freight transportation between said first rail yards and second rail yards for at least one rail service provider;
providing a data display having a communication link to a processor controlled system, said processor controlled system having access to the information stored in the memory;

transmitting to said processor controlled system information defining a freight origination location and a freight destination location; and providing a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location.

52. The method of claim 51, further comprising a step of transmitting information over the Internet.

53. The method of claim 51, further comprising a step of transmitting information over a wireless communication link.

54. The method of claim 51, further comprising a step of displaying information on a personal computer display.

55. The method of claim 51, comprising the step of storing portions of the information on two separate disk storage drives.

56. The method of claim 51, comprising the step of storing at least a portion of the information in RAM.

57. The method of claim 55, comprising the step of storing at least a portion of the information in RAM.

58. The method of claim 51, wherein the memory has information associated with a specific geographic zone concerning freight transportation between at least one rail yard and the zone for a plurality of truck freight transportation providers

59. The method of claim 51, further comprising a step of providing a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a total price of the freight transportation package.

60. The method of claim 51, wherein the processor controlled system provides a list of combinations of truck freight transportation providers and rail service providers for transfer of freight from the freight origination location to the freight destination location arranged in sequential order based on a completion date for the transportation.