Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47G—HOUSEHOLD OR TABLE EQUIPMENT
  • A47G29/00—Supports, holders, or containers for household use, not provided for in groups A47G1/00-A47G27/00 or A47G33/00 
  • A47G29/14—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels
  • A47G29/141—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels comprising electronically controlled locking means
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
  • G07F17/00—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services
  • G07F17/10—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for means for safe-keeping of property, left temporarily, e.g. by fastening the property
  • G07F17/12—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for means for safe-keeping of property, left temporarily, e.g. by fastening the property comprising lockable containers, e.g. for accepting clothes to be cleaned
  • G07F17/13—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for means for safe-keeping of property, left temporarily, e.g. by fastening the property comprising lockable containers, e.g. for accepting clothes to be cleaned the containers being a postal pick-up locker
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47G—HOUSEHOLD OR TABLE EQUIPMENT
  • A47G29/00—Supports, holders, or containers for household use, not provided for in groups A47G1/00-A47G27/00 or A47G33/00 
  • A47G29/14—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels
  • A47G29/141—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels comprising electronically controlled locking means
  • A47G2029/145—Deposit receptacles for food, e.g. breakfast, milk, or large parcels; Similar receptacles for food or large parcels with appliances for preventing unauthorised removal of the deposited articles, i.e. food or large parcels comprising electronically controlled locking means the receptacle comprising means for identifying a deposit; Deposits carrying identification means, e.g. a bar code
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E05—LOCKS; KEYS; WINDOW OR DOOR FITTINGS; SAFES
  • E05G—SAFES OR STRONG-ROOMS FOR VALUABLES; BANK PROTECTION DEVICES; SAFETY TRANSACTION PARTITIONS
  • E05G1/00—Safes or strong-rooms for valuables
  • E05G1/06—Safes or strong-rooms for valuables having provision for multiple compartments
  • E05G1/08—Safes or strong-rooms for valuables having provision for multiple compartments secured individually

Definitions

• the invention relates to a method for depositing goods in at least one locker with at least one lockable door or flap in a locker system with a computer-controlled electronic locking system for actuating the lock of the door or the flap of the locker by means of an electronic key system, in particular by means of numerical or alphanumeric input means , Chip card, magnetic card, barcode, transponder chip, biometric sensors or a radio telephone, as well as a method for returning deposited goods and a locker system for carrying out the method.
• Lockers are known which can be used by several people. For this purpose, the people have the same key to open the locker door and deposit or remove the goods. Lockers are also known which can be locked by electronic key systems using alphanumeric keyboards and code locks. People who enter the same codes can also unlock the lock system.
• the customer can open the depot compartment assigned to him with his EC card, which he inserts into the card reader.
• This measure makes it possible for the customer, without having to get in personal contact with the financial institution, to have a depository compartment reserved in the subject unit, for example due to an electronic call, which - except with the master card of the financial institution - only can be opened with his customer euro check card.
• the known locker system is not a lock system which can be used optionally by different deliverers or customers, in which the deposit lockers can be occupied by any deliverer and these are evident to any addressee addressed by the deliverer. Furthermore, it is not possible to track the occupancy of a depository using an external computer. In contrast, the invention has for its object to improve the method for operating a locker system.
• the invention is based on the consideration that more and more goods are ordered via catalog by mail order or goods ordered directly via a distribution system, e.g. B. be delivered via delivery services. This type of shipment of goods will continue to expand through online shopping on the Internet.
• the delivery and distribution take over locally, nationally and internationally active delivery services, such as UPS, FedEx, Post, Hermes, DPD and others, and at the local level also smaller deliverers, who work among other things for the supra-regional delivery service operators or mail order companies or goods manufacturers and distributors as well as forwarding agents.
• the deliverers In the normal parcel delivery times, the deliverers generally do not meet the addressee in his home.
• the goods must either be sent to the workplace, redirected according to the current place of residence or given to a neighbor. Often it is also by the deliverer, e.g. B. a courier service, repeated addressing of the addressee required to be able to deliver the goods to be delivered.
• the deliverer e.g. B. a courier service
• notifications are stored in the addressee's mailbox, who can then collect their parcel or parcel from the parcel counter at the post office. After several unsuccessful delivery attempts, the parcel or parcel with the goods is usually returned to the sender.
• the defective delivery means that he does not receive urgently needed goods on time, which applies not only to private individuals but also to industrial companies.
• the addressee generally does not want the neighbor to accept the goods intended for him.
• family members to whom the goods are not addressed e.g. B. in the case of ordered birthday or Christmas gifts.
• An object of the invention is therefore to remedy this.
• the object is achieved according to the invention by a method as specified in claim 1 and in the subordinate claim 2 in the case of delivery of a good or a product that the addressee wishes to send back to the sender.
• the procedure is not limited to senders and private individuals, deliverers and addressees can also be companies that can use the process under a wide variety of problems.
• the method according to the invention enables the delivery and delivery of goods at any time of the day, e.g. outside normal business hours and at night.
• Urgent goods e.g. B. spare parts
• Urgent goods can be deposited at a certain location in a locker of a locker system that works according to the method.
• the method also enables the locker to be used as a distribution center for overnight package services.
• Claim 30 specifies the structure of a locker system for carrying out the method according to Claims 1 and 2, in order to be able to manage goods movements until the handover and the use of the locker have been settled.
• an advantageous embodiment of the locker system is specified.
• Locker systems according to the invention are expediently arranged as larger locker units at underground and S-Bru stations, train stations, airports, shopping centers, petrol stations, in larger residential complexes and post offices. posed.
• the customer or addressee has the option of at any time of the day, e.g. B. on the way home from work to pick up the deposited articles ordered by him or the goods placed in the locker.
• the delivery and collection is done with the system's own electronic key systems or customer cards from the system operator, e.g. B. smart cards.
• other electronic key systems can also be used, up to the conventional EC card, if a bank connection is established at the same time in order to be able to check the PIN code input before a locker of the addressee or deliverer can be opened.
• a central administration computer is coupled, e.g. B. over the public wired or wireless telephone network, GSM or UMTS network or the Internet
• a central control and monitoring of lockers and goods movements is also possible.
• a handset in a cellular telephone network GSM, UMTS
• direct identification of the access authorization is also possible.
• the monitoring of lockers, changes to fees, access authorization addresses, the printing of statistics, the blocking of individual lockers, etc. are possible centrally from the head office of the administration computer.
• the method according to the invention and the locker system designed thereafter enable that when an article is ordered, for. B. in a mail order company, with the order, the delivery address of the addressee and the address of the desired locker system in which the goods are to be deposited, as well as the customer number.
• the parcel service delivers the goods and deposits them in a free one Locker of the locker system, for which purpose the deliverer inserts a chip card into the chip card reader of the locker system or biometric data of the deliverer are queried and checked using detection means or a PIN code is entered using an existing keyboard or a radio telephone.
• the computer of the locker system searches for a free locker, suitable in size, after the authorization request, if packaging sizes are still entered.
• a compartment can also be reserved by the sender, whereby data such as packaging size, delivery and collection time can be taken into account by the system.
• the parcel number, the delivery, recipient or customer number can also be entered via barcode, transponder or via radio telephone with built-in barcode scanner or typeface scanner.
• the deliverer then uses the keyboard to enter the customer's pick-up number, which thus serves as the address. Only then does the compartment open or does the lock release the door or the flap of the locker for opening. After depositing the goods in the locker, the door either closes automatically or is closed manually by the deliverer. The lock system is then automatically locked by the computer. The deliverer or courier cannot open this compartment a second time if the programming does not allow this. A second opening within a time window, e.g. during 10 seconds, can expediently be provided in order to be able to correct delivery errors.
• the addressee can inquire about the occupancy of a locker for a specific addressee by using his chip card or electronic key system for the occupancy display.
• the mail order company or the parcel service can request an electronic report or to send it automatically via Internet, e-mail, SMS, telephone call, fax or other communication media to the issuer or addressee.
• the recipient can be informed when the parcel can be picked up.
• the addressee or the deliverer can inquire by telephone to the computer with a corresponding voice output from the computer whether a package or good is stored for him. With the appropriate configuration, it is also possible to query the assignment for the addressee via the Internet. All that is required is that the customer number is entered. With higher insurance levels, a PIN number or the query of biometric data would also be required to identify the addressee.
• the addressee inserts his chip card into the chip card reader of the locker system and enters a PIN code.
• a display shows the specialist fees, which result from the compartment size and the duration of the occupancy, as well as the card credit.
• the card can be topped up via the locking station's operator station or via other charging stations. This can also be done via a bank connection.
• the access authorization of the recipient can also be checked by evaluating the biometric data of the recipient, by entering a PIN code or other personal data. Identification is also possible via radio telephone.
• the lockers and their doors which are accessible to the public, should be burglar-resistant and, if necessary, also designed according to the security classes. It is also recommended that the compartments and the control units are provided with alarm contacts so that damage to the locker system can be reported to the operating personnel immediately. Because the doors are basically locked and the occupancy can only be determined by those authorized to access, provided that certain goods are deposited for him, and unless such is expressly verbis provided, it is not recognizable to a person whether a locker is occupied or not. Since all processes are monitored by the computer in a locker system and the movements are saved, the unloading and removal of goods can be logged.
• a record can be kept of the pickup, which is electronically registered and managed or also acknowledged, in the form of a printout if a printer is available. It is advisable to use chip cards, biometric data, etc. to collect goods.
• chip cards, biometric data, etc. it is also advantageous to introduce a PIN code security so that even if a customer card is used, third parties cannot identify themselves as authorized users without knowing the PIN code.
• customer cards from participants in the system can be blocked at any time like a bank card by the central computer on call.
• the access rights can be managed either in the memory of the computer in the locking system or in a central computer, in the latter case a connection to the central computer being established when a locker system is used.
• direct debiting of the invoice amount for the deposited item can also be provided when the item is removed from the compartment.
• Payment systems can be integrated in the control unit in various versions, for example coin acceptance, bank note acceptance, readers for cash, EC and credit cards.
• the figure shows three locker systems 3, 4, 5 with differently sized lockers 1 and several control panels or dialog data terminals 16, the in different places, e.g. B. in residential complexes or in a gas station.
• a computer 8 9 10 which operates the electronic lock system of the locker system and controls the controllable lock systems of the individual doors 2 of the lockers 1.
• Each computer has a display screen 18, 19, 20 on which the service specialist or the operator can check and monitor the processes in the locker system.
• Such a computer can also be removed from the locker system, e.g. B. in the counter of a petrol station, set up and coupled to the locker system via a bus line.
• the computer is also connected via telecommunications connections 12, 13, 14 to a telecommunications network 11, e.g. B. connectable to the Internet or via a modem with a telephone 17.
• a computer network with a central management computer 15, for. B. the management computer of a delivery service via which all goods movements in the lockers can be called up or are also reported automatically to manage and process this data.
• a locker is opened by means of a chip card 7, which can also be a loaded cash card.
• a key 6, for example, is used to enter a PIN code or a customer number which enables the door 2 of a locker to be opened.
• the keyboard and possibly also alphanumeric displays are part of a dialog terminal 16, which can also have a viewing screen in which - as with an EC machine - user guidance is shown to the user, be it the deliverer or the addressee to facilitate the operation.
• This display or the display also makes it possible to show which compartment is occupied for which addressee, or only the compartment which is occupied by a good or a package for the addressee is shown.
• the addressee deposit the goods in a compartment. He gives for the return to the customer number, so that the delivery service is informed via the central administration computer 15 that a product to be picked up is deposited in a locker.
• the deliverer opens the relevant compartment with his chip card, for which purpose he either receives a special compartment number from the operator or a special pick-up number or code to enable access.
• the entire dialogue between the system and the deliverer or recipient can also be handled via a radio telephone (cell phone).
• An electronic signature field can also be provided at the operating station, via which the receipt of goods can be acknowledged.
• An electronic memory for storing personal data can also be provided.
• the individual compartments can also be equipped with a document display, transponder reader, scanner or the like.
• a personal or a completely anonymous delivery or return can be carried out. Delivery is possible at any time, as is pick-up, so that the addressee of such a system can pick up his parcel from the locker even after office or business hours.

Landscapes

• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Food Science & Technology (AREA)
• Lock And Its Accessories (AREA)
• Management, Administration, Business Operations System, And Electronic Commerce (AREA)
• Coin-Freed Apparatuses For Hiring Articles (AREA)
• Bakery Products And Manufacturing Methods Therefor (AREA)

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Publications (2)

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• 2000
  • 2000-01-12 DE DE10000830A patent/DE10000830C2/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2000-12-22 EP EP00987455A patent/EP1247260B1/fr not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2000-12-22 WO PCT/EP2000/013242 patent/WO2001052199A2/fr active IP Right Grant
  • 2000-12-22 AU AU23693/01A patent/AU2369301A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2000-12-22 AT AT00987455T patent/ATE381750T1/de active

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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