Inventory information distribution systems, devices and methods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11593759-B2
Application number	US-202016938359-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 24, 2020
Priority date	Apr 21, 2015
Publication date	Feb 28, 2023
Grant date	Feb 28, 2023

Abstract

Some embodiments provide a product inventory information distribution apparatus, comprising: a central electronic data storage buffer; a control circuit; and a memory storing computer instructions that when executed cause the control circuit to: detect product inventory update information messages, wherein each of the product inventory update information messages is received from one of multiple different product inventory systems and is generated by a corresponding one of the multiple product inventory systems when one of the multiple product inventory systems detects a change in an inventory state corresponding to any one of hundreds or more products available through the product inventory storage facility; direct each of the multiple product inventory update information messages to the central electronic data storage buffer; and maintain messages in the central electronic data storage buffer received during a buffer retention window of time.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A product inventory information distribution system, comprising:
a central electronic data storage buffer comprising multiple memory each communicatively coupled with a distributed communication network;
a control circuit communicatively coupled over the distributed communication network with the central electronic data storage buffer and with each of multiple different product inventory systems; and
a memory coupled to the control circuit and storing computer instructions that when executed by the control circuit cause the control circuit to:
receive, over time, product inventory update information messages received over the distributed communication network without requesting the product inventory update information messages, wherein each of the product inventory update information messages is received from one of the multiple different product inventory systems corresponding to one of the multiple different product inventory storage facilities when one of the multiple product inventory systems detects a change in an inventory corresponding to any one of hundreds or more products available through the corresponding product inventory storage facility;
communicate, in real time and in response to receiving the product inventory update information, over the distributed communication network each of the multiple product inventory update information messages to the central electronic data storage buffer;
control the central electronic data storage buffer to maintain at least a portion of the product inventory update information messages in the central electronic data storage buffer for a respective buffer retention window of time wherein multiple different inventory update information messages of the product inventory updated information messages are each associated with a different buffer retention window of time having different durations as a function of a product corresponding to the respective inventory update information message; and

automatically control the central electronic data storage buffer to cause, in response to buffering, each of the product inventory update information messages to be streamed from the central electronic data storage buffer over the distributed communication network to each of multiple different application services without requests from the multiple different application services and communicate instructions over the distributed communication network to each of the multiple different application services to control the multiple different application services causing each of the multiple different application services to sequentially update and compile inventory information to duplicate a current, real-time inventory state at each of the multiple product inventory storage facilities for each of one or more of the hundreds or more products available through each of the multiple product inventory storage facilities.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein each of the multiple product inventory update information messages comprises a corresponding universal time code defining a time of the respective change in an inventory to a corresponding product, and defines the respective change in the inventory.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the control circuit is further configured to maintain each of the product inventory update information messages in the central electronic data storage buffer for the respective buffer retention window of time such that each of the product inventory update information messages is available, during the respective buffer retention window, to be subsequently supplied to a requesting one or more of the multiple application services in response to a failure of the one or more of the multiple application services to receive one or more of the product inventory update information messages when attempted to be streamed.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the control circuit is further configured to:
receive a first restore request from a first application service of the multiple different application services;
identify, from the first restore request, a first starting read point time designating a past time from which product inventory update information messages are being requested; and
cause a first set of one or more previously buffered product inventory update information messages that were buffered following the first starting read point time to be communicated to the first application service.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein a first product inventory update information message of the multiple product inventory update information messages is assigned a first buffer retention window of time, and a second product inventory update information message of the multiple product inventory update information messages is assigned a second buffer retention window of time that has a different time duration than the first buffer retention window of time.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the control circuit is further configured to:
receive a first restore request from a first application service of the multiple different application services;
identify, from the first restore request, a first starting read point time; and
cause a first set of one or more previously buffered product inventory update information messages that were buffered following the first starting read point time to be communicated to the first application service.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the control circuit is further configured to:
receive a second restore request from a second application service of the multiple different application services;
identify, from the second restore request, a second starting read point time different than the first read point time; and
cause a second set of one or more previously buffered product inventory update information messages that were buffered following the second starting read point time to be communicated to the second application service.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the control circuit is further configured to:
identify, for each of the product inventory update information messages, one or more servers, of multiple servers operated by each of the multiple application services, intended to receive the product inventory update information message;
wherein the causing each of the product inventory update information messages to be streamed to each of the multiple different application services comprises causing each of the product inventory update information messages to be streamed to the corresponding identified one or more servers intended to receive a respective product inventory update information message such that the product inventory update information messages are distributed amongst the multiple servers operated by each of the multiple application services.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the multiple product inventory update information messages each comprises a product inventory storage facility identifier that uniquely identifies the product inventory storage facility from which a product inventory update information message is received, and a product identifier that uniquely identifies a product for which the product inventory update information message corresponds.

10. The system of claim 9 , wherein each of the at least some of the multiple product inventory update information messages further comprises a data type wherein the data type comprises at least one of: a change in a quantity of the product in inventory at the identified product inventory storage facility, and a change in pricing at the product inventory storage facility corresponding to the product.

11. The system of claim 1 , comprising the multiple different application services wherein two or more

Assignees

• Walmart Apollo Llc

Inventors

• Undernehr Christopher L
• Agrawal Tushar
• Ramnathkar Sandesh N
• Turknett John
• Vonga Mohandas N
• Woitaszek Matthew S

Classifications

• G06Q30/0639

  Locating goods or services, e.g. based on physical position of the goods or services within a shopping facility · CPC title

• G06F8/65

  Updates (security arrangements therefor G06F21/57) · CPC title

• G07F9/026

  for alarm, monitoring and auditing in vending machines or means for indication, e.g. when empty · CPC title

• G06Q10/107

  Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing] · CPC title

• G07F5/18

  specially adapted for controlling several coin-freed apparatus from one place · CPC title