Systems and methods for installation of a remotely monitored vending network
AssigneeVendwatch Telematics, LLC
InventorsAlfonso Javier Barragán Treviño, James J. Crow
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An embodiment provides a system of automated workflow management and active checkpoint validation that streamlines and standardizes the vending machine provisioning process. The embodiment not only normalizes the installation and deployment process across geographic and personnel differences, it also greatly optimizes the process allowing for increased installations per technician per day. The monitored assets are added to online applications in real time and remote monitoring commences immediately upon the end of technician visit. Other embodiments are addressed herein.
Claims13
At least one non-transitory storage medium having instructions stored thereon for causing a system to:
- determine an identifier, received via user input from a user of a remote computing node, for the system;
- communicate a first communication, to the remote computing node, including a plurality of user names;
- in response to the first communication, receive first user input from the remote computing node;
- wherein the first user input includes a user name that was included in the plurality of user names;
- in response to communicating a second communication to the remote computing node, receive a serial number for a vending interface unit (VIU) from the remote computing unit;
- wherein the VIU includes a communications module configured to communicate with peripheral devices of a vending machine (VM);
- receive a data exchange (DEX) file from the remote computing node;
- in response to communicating a third communication to the remote computing node, receive a plan-o-gram (POG), which corresponds to the VM, from the remote computing node;
- and determine the DEX file and plan-o-gram are justified with each other;
- wherein the first communication is configured to be displayed to the user via a display module included in the remote computing system.
An apparatus comprising:
- at least one memory and at least one processor, coupled to the at least one memory, to perform operations comprising:
- communicate a first user input to a remote computing node;
- wherein the first user input includes a user identifier;
- in response to a first communication from the remote computing node and communicating the first user input to the remote computing node, receiving a second user input including a serial number for a vending interface unit (VIU) and communicating the serial number to the remote computing unit;
- wherein the VIU includes a communications module configured to communicate with peripheral devices of a vending machine (VM) and the remote computing node;
- in response to a second communication from the remote computing node, communicate a data exchange (DEX) file to the remote computing node;
- in response to a third communication from the remote computing node, communicate a plan-o-gram (POG), which corresponds to the VM, to the remote computing node;
- and
- determine the DEX file and plan-o-gram are justified with each other;
- a display module to display at least one of the first, second, and communications to the user.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.