Inspecting and releasing goods at a land, air, or sea border

A portable device comprising:

• a display screen;
• a processing unit;
• and
• memory for storing computer readable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the portable device to perform the steps of:
• (i) receiving a task list, wherein each task corresponds to a shipment of goods;
• (ii) displaying task information on the display screen;
• (iii) receiving inspection results from a user, wherein the inspection results correspond to one of the shipments of goods in the task list;
• and
• (iv) transmitting the inspection results over a wireless communications link.

A computer, comprising:

• a display screen;
• a processing unit;
• and
• memory for storing computer readable instructions wherein, when the computer readable instructions are executed by the processor, they cause the computer to perform the steps of:
• (i) receiving a task list from a second computer, wherein each task corresponds to a shipment of goods;
• (ii) displaying task information on the display screen;
• (iii) receiving inspection results from a user, wherein the inspection results correspond to one of the shipments of goods in the task list;
• and
• (iv) sending the inspection results to the second computer;
• wherein the task information comprises at least one of a digital image, a selectable link to view a bill of lading, and a selectable link to alert an X-ray team.

A portable device comprising:

• a display screen;
• a processing unit;
• and
• memory for storing computer readable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the portable device to perform the steps of:
• (i) receiving a task list, wherein each task corresponds to a shipment of goods;
• (ii) displaying a task summary list on the display screen;
• (iii) displaying detailed task information on the display screen, wherein the task information comprises information associated with a shipment of goods corresponding to a selected task;
• (iv) receiving inspection results from a user, wherein the inspection results correspond to the shipment of goods;
• and
• (v) transmitting the inspection results.

A computer, comprising:

• a display screen;
• a processing unit;
• and
• memory for storing computer readable instructions wherein, when the computer readable instructions are executed by the processor, they cause the computer to perform the steps of:
• (i) receiving a list of tasks from a central database, wherein each task corresponds to a shipment of goods;
• (ii) displaying a task list on the display screen, wherein, for each task, the computer displays a priority level, an arrival date, an importer name, a risk level, and a commodity name;
• (iii) displaying task information on the display screen, wherein the task information comprises information associated with a shipment of goods corresponding to a selected task;
• (iv) receiving inspection results from a user, wherein the inspection results correspond to the shipment of goods;
• and
• (v) transmitting the inspection results to clear the shipment for passage.

A method of clearing a shipment of goods into a country, comprising the steps of:

• (i) receiving a task list into a portable device, wherein each task corresponds to a shipment of goods;
• (ii) displaying task information on a display screen of the portable device;
• (iii) receiving inspection results from a user of the portable device, wherein the inspection results correspond to one of the shipments of goods in the task list;
• and
• (iv) transmitting the inspection results from the portable device.

A computer, comprising:

• a processor;
• and
• memory for storing computer readable instructions that cause the computer to perform the steps of:
• (i) sending a task list to a portable device, wherein each task corresponds to a shipment of goods;
• (ii) receiving inspection results from the portable device, wherein the inspection results correspond to one of the shipments of goods in the sent task list;
• and
• (iii) clearing the shipment of goods into a country based on the received inspection results.

A computer readable medium storing computer readable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause one or more computers to perform the steps of:

• (i) sending a task list to a portable device, wherein each task corresponds to a shipment of goods;
• (ii) receiving inspection results from the portable device, wherein the inspection results correspond to one of the shipments of goods in the sent task list;
• and
• (iii) clearing the shipment of goods into a country based on the received inspection results.