Electronic apparatus and information providing method thereof

A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a program, which when executed, causes a computer to:

• receive, by a transceiver of an electronic apparatus, from a barcode scanner via a communication network, data indicative of identification information of at least one item among a set of items for an order, the identification information based on scanned data related to the at least one item, the set of items including a first subset and a second subset;
• receive, by the transceiver, from a first terminal used by a sorting operator via the communication network, data indicative of the set of items being allocated to an operation cell of a fulfillment center;
• access, by a controller of the electronic apparatus, from a storage medium accessible by the controller, prior delivery data related to a plurality of prior deliveries of items, the prior delivery data including information relating to corresponding packing and cooling material used for the plurality of prior deliveries, the storage medium configured to store the prior delivery data in a classified manner based on reference dates and categories associated with the items of the plurality of prior deliveries;
• determine, by the controller, a match between the identification information of the at least one item and at least a portion of the prior delivery data;
• access, by the controller, order information corresponding to the at least one item, the order information including date information of the order;
• access, by the controller, weather information associated with the order based on an amount of time required for a delivery of the at least one item, wherein the amount of time required for the delivery is counted from a first point in time at which the order corresponding to the at least one item is placed and to a second point in time at which the delivery is completed;
• access, by the controller, information on a plurality of categories associated with the at least one item based on the order information;
• in response to the identification information of the at least one item and the data indicative of the set of items being allocated to the operation cell, execute program codes to compute, by the controller, data relating to a packing material for the at least one item to be packed together with other ones of the set of items, wherein the computing of the data relating to the packing material is based on (i) an amount and a type of cooling material required for the delivery of the at least one item to its destination in accordance with the match, (ii) the amount of time required for the delivery, (iii) the date information of the order, (iv) the weather information associated with the order, and (v) the information on the plurality of categories associated with the at least one item, the data relating to the packing material including information corresponding to the first subset and information corresponding to the second subset, the information corresponding to the first subset indicating a requirement for distribution at a first temperature lower than a second temperature for distribution of the second subset;
• transmit, by the transceiver and via the communication network, the computed data relating to the packing material to a second terminal, the second terminal used by a packing operator at the fulfillment center;
• cause identification information regarding the packing material and the computed data relating to the packing material to be displayed on the second terminal to facilitate having the packing operator pack the at least one item associated with the plurality of categories using the packing material indicated by the identification information, the identification information regarding the packing material and the computed data displayed on the second terminal including an indication of a first packing material for maintaining the first subset at the first temperature within a first area of a box and a second packing material for maintaining the second subset at the second temperature within a second area of the box;
• receive, by the transceiver and from the second terminal, scanned identification information regarding the first packing material and the second packing material used in the packing of the at least one item;
• receive, by the transceiver and from the second terminal, scanned identification numbers regarding the first subset and the second subset and a box barcode;
• and
• verify that i) an amount and a type of the first packing material and the second packing material identified by the scanned identification information match the amount and the type of the of the cooling material identified by the identification information displayed on the second terminal and that ii) the first subset, the second subset, the first packing material, and the second packing material are packed into the respective first and second areas of the box.

An apparatus, comprising:

• a communication device;
• a display;
• a storage medium;
• and
• a controller configured to:
• receive, by the communication device and from a barcode scanner via a communication network, data indicative of identification information of at least one item among a set of items for an order, the identification information based on scanned data related to the at least one item, the set of items including a first subset and a second subset;
• receive, by the communication device and from a first terminal used by a sorting operator via the communication network, data indicative of the set of items being allocated to an operation cell of a fulfillment center;
• access, from the storage medium, prior delivery data related to a plurality of prior deliveries of items, the prior delivery data including information relating to corresponding packing and cooling material used for the plurality of prior deliveries, the storage medium configured to store the prior delivery data in a classified manner based on reference dates and categories associated with the items of the plurality of prior deliveries;
• determine a match between the identification information of the at least one item and at least a portion of the prior delivery data;
• access, by the controller, order information corresponding to the at least one item, the order information including date information of the order;
• access, by the controller, weather information associated with the order based on an amount of time required for a delivery of the at least one item, wherein the amount of time required for the delivery is counted from a first point in time at which the order corresponding to the at least one item is placed and to a second point in time at which the delivery is completed;
• access, by the controller, information on a plurality of categories associated with the at least one item based on the order information;
• in response to the identification information of the at least one item and the data indicative of the set of items being allocated to the operation cell, executing program codes to compute data relating to a packing material for the at least one item to be packed together with other ones of the set of items, wherein the computing of the data relating to the packing material is based on (i) an amount and a type of cooling material required for the delivery of the at least one item to its destination in accordance with the match, (ii) the amount of time required for the delivery, (iii) the date information of the order, (iv) the weather information associated with the order, and (v) the information on the plurality of categories associated with the at least one item, the data relating to the packing material including information corresponding to the first subset and information corresponding to the second subset, the information corresponding to the first subset indicating a requirement for distribution at a first temperature lower than a second temperature for distribution of the second subset;
• transmit, by the communication device via the communication network, the computed data relating to the packing material to a second terminal, the second terminal used by a packing operator at the fulfillment center;
• cause identification information regarding the packing material and the computed data relating to the material to be displayed on the second terminal to facilitate packing having the packing operator pack the at least one item associated with the plurality of categories using the packing material indicated by the identification information, the identification information regarding the packing material and the computed data displayed on the second terminal including an indication of a first packing material for maintaining the first subset at the first temperature within a first area of a box and a second packing material for maintaining the second subset at the second temperature within a second area of the box;
• receive, by the transceiver and from the second terminal, scanned identification information regarding the first packing material and the second packing material used in the packing of the at least one item;
• receive, by the transceiver and from the second terminal, scanned identification numbers regarding the first subset and the second subset and a box barcode;
• and
• verify that i) an amount and a type of the first packing material and the second packing material identified by the scanned identification information match the amount and the type of the of the cooling material identified by the identification information displayed on the second terminal and that ii) the first subset, the second subset, the first packing material, and the second packing material are packed into the respective first and second areas of the box.