# US 10,482,700 B2 · Supply chain system and non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing program > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,482,700 B2 - Document ID: US10482700B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/011,681 - Filed: 2018-06-19 - Published: 2019-01-10 - Granted: 2019-11-19 - Earliest claimed: 2017-07-10 - Assignees: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America - Applicants: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America - Inventors: Junichiro Soeda - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10482700B2 ## CPC - G07C 9/00571: {operated by interacting with a central unit} - B60P 7/13: Securing freight containers or forwarding containers on vehicles - E05B 19/0005: {Key safes (E05B35/086 takes precedence)} - G06Q 10/08: Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management - G06Q 10/083: Shipping - G06Q 10/0832: Special goods or special handling procedures, e.g. handling of hazardous or fragile goods - G06Q 10/0833: Tracking - G06Q 10/08365: {Deliveries to storage lockers} - G06Q 10/0838: {Historical data} - G07C 9/00174: {Electronically operated locks; Circuits therefor; Nonmechanical keys therefor, e.g. passive or active electrical keys or other data carriers without mechanical keys (mechanical locks with electric permutation E05B49/00; arrangements for sensing or reading record carriers G06K7/00; electronic switching H03K17/00)} - G07C 9/00912: {for safes, strong-rooms, vaults or the like} - H04L 9/0637: {Modes of operation, e.g. cipher block chaining [CBC], electronic codebook [ECB] or Galois/counter mode [GCM]} - H04L 67/1042: using topology management mechanisms - G06Q 10/0841: {Compliance with shipping requirements} - G06Q 2220/00: Business processing using cryptography - G07C 2009/00825: {remotely by lines or wireless communication} - G07C 2009/0092: {for cargo, freight or shipping containers and applications therefore in general} - G07C: TIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE - B60P: VEHICLES ADAPTED FOR LOAD TRANSPORTATION OR TO TRANSPORT, TO CARRY, OR TO COMPRISE SPECIAL LOADS OR OBJECTS (vehicles with special provisions for transporting patients or disabled persons, or their personal conveyances A61G3/00) - E05B: LOCKS; ACCESSORIES THEREFOR; HANDCUFFS - G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) ## Abstract A supply chain system is provided. The supply chain system includes a server that manages at least a right of ownership of an article. The article is an actual object. A container is provided with a lock. The lock is configured to at least open through an electronic process. The container is capable of physically storing the article. At least one of a processor or a circuit, when an opening request to open the lock is received, determines whether a user who has issued the opening request and a user who has the right of ownership of the article match. When the user who has issued the opening request and the user who has the right of ownership of the article match, the lock is opened for allowing the article to be removed from the container. The server is notified that the lock has been opened. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A supply chain system, comprising: a server that manages at least a right of ownership of an article, the article being an actual object; a container that is provided with a lock, the lock being configured to at least open through an electronic process, the container being capable of physically storing the article; and at least one of a processor or a circuit that, when an opening request to open the lock is received, determines whether a user who has issued the opening request and a user who has the right of ownership of the article match, wherein, when the user who has issued the opening request and the user who has the right of ownership of the article match, the lock is opened for allowing the article to be removed from the container, and the server is notified that the lock has been opened, and wherein the server manages the right of ownership of the article by accumulating, as a first history, change of the right of ownership of the article in distributed ledgers including a plurality of ledgers of same content and manages opening or fastening of the lock as a second history. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The supply chain system according to claim 1, wherein the container notifies, through wireless communication, the server that the lock has been opened, and wherein, upon receiving a notification, the server manages the second history of the lock by adding an opening of the lock to the second history. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The supply chain system according to claim 1, wherein the server, when a change request to change the right of ownership of the article is received, performs an authentication process to determine whether a user who has issued the change request is the user who has the right of ownership, and wherein, after the server performs the authentication process, the server accumulates the change of the right of ownership of the article as the first history by recording a user to which the right of ownership of the article has been granted. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The supply chain system according to claim 1, wherein the container is a transparent case, an opaque latticed case, or a barred case. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The supply chain system according to claim 1, wherein the container includes a sensor for detecting a storage state of the article, wherein the container wirelessly transmits, to the server, information indicating the storage state of the article detected by the sensor, and wherein the server manages a storage state history of the article by accumulating the information indicating the storage state of the article transmitted from the container. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The supply chain system according to claim 1, wherein the distributed ledgers are constructed on a blockchain platform. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The supply chain system according to claim 1, wherein the lock is configured to open and fasten. ### Claim 8 (depends on 6) The supply chain system according to claim 6, wherein the container notifies, through wireless communication, the server that the lock has been opened or fastened, and wherein, upon receiving a notification, the server manages the opening or the fastening of the lock by adding the opening or the fastening of the lock to the second history. ### Claim 9 (depends on 6) The supply chain system according to claim 6, further comprising: a lock manager configured to open and fasten the lock. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The supply chain system according to claim 9, wherein the lock manager is configured to perform near-field communication as wireless communication. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The supply chain system according to claim 10, wherein the container includes the lock manager. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The supply chain system according to claim 1, wherein the container includes the at least one of the processor or the circuit. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The supply chain system according to claim 1, wherein the server includes the at least one of the processor or the circuit. ### Claim 14 A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing a program that, when executed by a computer, causes the computer to perform operations comprising: managing at least a right of ownership of an article, the article being an actual object; opening a lock of a container through an electronic process, the container being capable of physically storing the article; and determining, when an opening request to open the lock is received, whether a user who has issued the opening request and a user who has the right of ownership match, wherein, in the determining, when the user who has issued the opening request and the user who has the right of ownership managed match, the lock is opened for allowing the article to be removed from the container, and a notification regarding an opening of the lock is issued, and wherein the computer manages the right of ownership of the article by accumulating, as a first history, change of the right of ownership of the article in distributed ledgers including a plurality of ledgers of same content and manages opening or fastening of the lock as a second history. ### Claim 15 A method, comprising: managing, by a server, at least a right of ownership of an article, the article being an actual object; opening a lock of a container through an electronic process, the container being capable of physically storing the article; and determining, by at least one of a processor or a circuit when an opening request to open the lock is received, whether a user who has issued the opening request and a user who has the right of ownership match, wherein, in the determining, when the user who has issued the opening request and the user who has the right of ownership managed match, the lock is opened for allowing the article to be removed from the container, and a notification regarding an opening of the lock is issued, and wherein the server manages the right of ownership of the article by accumulating, as a first history, change of the right of ownership of the article in distributed ledgers including a plurality of ledgers of same content and manages opening or fastening of the lock as a second history.