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US 11,966,876 B2Granted
Facility and method of use for a transportable autonomous robotic merchandise dispensing drive-thru
AssigneeRay F. Woods
InventorsRay F Woods, Rachel K Woods
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present invention is a transportable autonomous robotic merchandise dispensing drive thru wherein merchandise is loaded into said facility and dispensed to a customer through an ordering app downloaded on a mobile device or ordered at a facility site. Said drive thru facility is unmanned and completely computer and robotically operated utilizing no humans within said facility. Said facility is operated via computer processor and requires internet but no utility connections such as water, sewage, electric or gas. The current invention has a three part sanitizing system: interiorly, in each serving compartment and at each exterior touchscreen.
Claims14
A transportable autonomous robotic merchandise dispensing drive thru facility comprising:
- a computer processor, located in a utility compartment of said facility is configured to communicably connect sending and receiving data to and from a customer application, where said customer application is downloadable to a personal mobile device, and where said computer processor is configured to communicably connect transmit and receive information
- such as drive thru facility consumer orders, sales, inventory, temperature, operational details and predetermined merchandise storage temperatures, cooking and packaging parameters
- to a plurality of merchandise lockers, and packaging material lockers, one or more coolers, one or more freezers, one or more cooking devices, one or more beverage dispensing devices, one or more packaging devices, one or more conveying systems, one or more touchscreens each with a code scanner, a sanitizing and cleaning system, a merchandise distribution hub, a service application,
- where said service application is downloadable to a delivery driver's mobile device, and where said service application sends and receives inventory information and autonomous drive thru facility operational reports and where said service application communicably connects, sending and receiving information with corporate headquarters and each drive thru facility that is dedicated to each service driver,
- and said computer processor also communicably connects to a corporate headquarters, and where said computer processor receives data with order details from said customer application and generates a code per data received and where said code is linked to an order,
- and the computer processor issues instruction for one or more coolers and freezers, one or more merchandise lockers, one or more packaging material lockers, one or more cooking devices, one or more drink dispensing devices, one or more packaging devices, one or more conveying systems
- and where said code scanner reads an order code visible on a customer's mobile device and where said code reader communicates with the computer processor and the computer processor sends instruction to a robotic conveying system to retrieve an order linked to said code,
- and said computer processor receives data that said order was removed and sends instruction to said sanitizing system to sanitize a serving compartment;
- wherein said sanitizing system is three part:
- where a first part is a plurality of sprayers arranged throughout the interior of the facility but not in the utility compartment, one or more freezers, one or more coolers and not in the merchandise and packaging material locker areas and where said sanitizing system part is programmed to sanitize once per 24 hour period and where said facility's computer processor sends instruction for shut down to all cooking devices, beverage dispensing devices, conveying systems and packaging devices during the sanitizing cycle, and where said facility computer processor continues to receive orders and adds time to a customer pickup time, and where any water and/or debris resulting from said sanitizing cycle is drained into said grey water compartment,
- where a second part of said sanitizing system is a UV light in each serving compartment that sanitizes said serving compartment after each order is removed by a customer,
- and where a third part of said sanitizing system is a UV light located above each touchscreen and code scanner and where said UV light is run over the touchscreen and code scanner after each customer has used it;
- and where said computer processor sends data containing inventory, order information and facility operational health to a merchandise distribution hub and corporate headquarters,
- and where said drive thru facility is pre-manufactured with various merchandise handling devices specific to such merchandise to prepare, package and serve said merchandise before said drive thru facility is transported
- and wherein said drive thru facility is transportable via vehicle hauling and where said drive thru facility is established at a desired location and said facility is mechanically fastened to a ground surface via anchors and where said facility is self-leveling
- and said facility is connected to a world wide web for remote information transmission, sending and receiving and where when said facility is connected to the world wide web and operational,
- no humans are required within said facility to operate, prepare, package, serve and clean said merchandise and said drive thru facility.
14 more elements
A method to communicably connect a transportable autonomous robotic merchandise dispensing drive thru computer processor, a corporate headquarters, a customer application,
- where said customer application is downloadable to a personal mobile device,
- and where said computer processor is configured to communicably connect transmit and receive information to a plurality of merchandise lockers,
- and packaging material lockers,
- one or more electronic racks,
- one or more coolers,
- one or more freezers,
- one or more cooking devices,
- one or more beverage dispensing devices,
- one or more packaging devices,
- one or more conveying systems,
- one or more touchscreens each with a code scanner,
- a sanitizing and cleaning system,
- a merchandise distribution hub,
- a service application, where said service application is downloadable to a delivery driver's mobile device,
- the method including:
- receiving an order through the customer application
- the computer processor issues an order code and pickup time that is sent back through the customer application, then
- instruction is issued to the merchandise lockers, one or more cooking devices, one or more beverage dispensing devices, one or more packaging devices, one or more conveying systems,
- and order code information is received at one or more touchscreens each with a code scanner,
- merchandise and packaging material locker send information including, but not limited to, inventory, item specifications, item location, item expiration and item temperature,
- information received by the computer processor regarding inventory is sent to a merchandise distribution hub and through the service application to a delivery driver's mobile device,
- and where the computer processor receives inventory specific information through the service application during delivery of lockers to a facility,
- inventory specific information is received to the computer processor as each merchandise and packaging material locker is loaded in the electronic rack,
- when an order code is read by a code scanner, order code information is received by the computer processor and instruction is issued to one or more conveying systems to retrieve the order received for that order code,
- and where data is received by the computer processor as an order is picked up and a door on a window closes, the computer processor issues instruction for sanitizing of a serving compartment and sanitizing of a touchscreen and code scanner,
- and where after 23 hours of operation of said drive thru facility the computer processor issues instruction for a shut down during cleaning and sanitizing,
- communicating with one or more cooking devices, one or more beverage dispensing devices, one or more conveying systems and packaging devices for lockdown during sanitizing cycle,
- communication between the computer processor and each cooking device, beverage dispensing device, conveying system, sanitizing system, electronic rack, merchandise and packaging material lockers, touchscreens and code readers, generator, battery bank, solar panels, freezers, coolers,
- where data includes but is not limited to temperature, motion, instruction, location, operation error, humidity, quantity, device specific operation information, and liquid levels,
- wherein said sanitizing system is three part:
- where a first part is a plurality of sprayers arranged throughout the interior of the facility but not in the utility compartment, one or more freezers, one or more coolers and not in the merchandise and packaging material locker areas and where said sanitizing system part is programmed to sanitize once per 24 hour period and where said facility's computer processor sends instruction for shut down to all cooking devices, beverage dispensing devices, conveying systems and packaging devices during the sanitizing cycle, and where said facility computer processor continues to receive orders and adds time to a customer pickup time, and where any water and/or debris resulting from said sanitizing cycle is drained into said grey water compartment,
- where a second part of said sanitizing system is a UV light in each serving compartment that sanitizes said serving compartment after each order is removed by a customer,
- and where a third part of said sanitizing system is a UV light located above each touchscreen and code scanner and where said UV light is run over the touchscreen and code scanner after each customer has used it;
- and the computer processer sends information to a customer application to alter a menu of items when an operation error has been received by the computer processor from the aforementioned devices or systems when a shut down message is received by a device or system, and all data received or sent by the computer processor is sent to a corporate headquarters.
31 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.