WO2014040133A1

WO2014040133A1 - A system and method for providing an indication of an anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint

Info

Publication number: WO2014040133A1
Application number: PCT/AU2013/001043
Authority: WO
Inventors: Dongzhi SUN; Fiona Allesandra PEARSE; Emma Louise CRONIN
Original assignee: Mail Call Couriers Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2012-09-13
Filing date: 2013-09-13
Publication date: 2014-03-20
Also published as: WO2014040134A1

Abstract

A system (1) for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of couriers at selected waypoints that have been earlier allocated to those couriers. System (1) also allocates a plurality of items (2) to one or more typically geographically spaced apart couriers (3) having respective communications devices in the form of handheld mobile computers (4). The computers (4) provide courier location signals that include courier location data. This courier location data, in this embodiment, takes the form of a courier location data records (5) containing, amongst other things, GPS data that is contained within an alpha numeric field (6) that is indicative of the geographic location (7) of the respective courier. Computers (4) visually display respective target indicia (8), where indicia (8) provides a visual indication of at least one waypoint (9) for the respective courier.

Description

A SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING AN INDICATION OF AN ANTICIPATED TIME OF ARRIVAL OF A COURIER AT A PREDETERMINED WAYPOINT

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to a system and method for providing an indication of an anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint.

[0002] Embodiments of the invention have been particularly developed for providing intended recipients of couriered articles with an indication of the time of delivery of that article and some embodiments will be described herein with particular reference to that application. However, it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited to such a field of use, and is applicable to providing other parties, such as a customer of the courier, amongst others, with an indication of the time of pick-up of an article.

BACKGROUND

[0003] Any discussion of the background art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field.

[0004] It is known to provide to customers of a courier operation respective estimates of the delivery times for the respective articles being couriered. This often relies upon personnel with the courier organisation making estimates based upon a variety of variables, the assumed status of which can be considerably out-dated and/or otherwise unreliable. In an attempt to improve the accuracy of the estimates and the rate at which the estimates can be produced, attempts have been made to use a computer system that analyses historical data to provide the estimate. An example of such a system is disclosed in a US patent application in the name of Campbell et al and having the publication number 2012/0030134.

[0005] It has also been known to provide to a proposed recipient of a package that is being delivered by a courier a countdown timer with a live or at least pseudo live estimate of the time remaining until arrival of the courier at the delivery address for the package. It has been found that these countdown timers are often difficult to accurately and consistently implement in practice, and can give rise to frustration and impatience on behalf of customers whose expectations have been raised by the provision of the timer.

[0006] Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved system and method for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint.

Substitute Sheet

(Rule 26) RO/AU SUM MARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] It is an object of the present invention to overcome or ameliorate at least one of the disadvantages of the prior art, or to provide a useful alternative.

[0008] According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a system for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint, the system including:

a first database for storing courier location data indicative of the location of the courier;

a second database for storing transport data that is indicative of at least the predetermined waypoint and the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the predetermined waypoint;

a third database for storing past transport data, the past transport data being indicative of the time taken for one or more couriers to progress between selected waypoints in a set of waypoints; and

at least one processor to selectively access the databases for calculating a further indication of the time of arrival of the courier at the predetermined waypoint, wherein during a first phase preceding the anticipated time of arrival the processor selectively updates the transport data to reflect the further indication, the first phase ending at the commencement of a second phase that extends to the anticipated time of arrival.

[0009] In an embodiment the transport data indicates the anticipated time of arrival as an absolute time.

[0010] In an embodiment the transport data indicates the anticipated time of arrival as a relative time.

[0011] In an embodiment the system includes a first interface, wherein:

the courier has a communication device for obtaining current location data and for providing that data to the first interface; and

the processor is selectively responsive to the first interface and the current location data for accessing the first database and updating the courier location data.

[0012] In an embodiment the system includes:

a timer module for deriving timer data from the transport data; and a second interface for allowing at least one remote terminal to selectively access the timer data.

[0013] In an embodiment the remote terminal is operated by a user and is responsive to the timer data for displaying a timer to the user.

[0014] In an embodiment the timer includes a countdown timer.

[0015] In an embodiment the timer includes a static timer.

[0016] In an embodiment the remote terminal accesses the timer data in response to one or more triggers.

[0017] In an embodiment the triggers include at least one of: a timeout since the last access; one or more predetermined actions performed by the remote terminal; and anticipation of the commencement of the second phase.

[0018] According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a method for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint, the method including:

storing in a first database courier location data indicative of the location of the courier;

storing in a second database transport data that is indicative of at least the predetermined waypoint and the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the predetermined waypoint;

storing in the third database past transport data, the past transport data being indicative of the time taken for one or more couriers to progress between selected waypoints in a set of waypoints; and

using at least one processor to selectively access the databases for calculating a further indication of the time of arrival of the courier at the predetermined waypoint, wherein during a first phase preceding the anticipated time of arrival the processor selectively updates the transport data to reflect the further indication, the first phase ending at the commencement of a second phase that extends to the anticipated time of arrival.

[0019] In an embodiment the transport data indicates the anticipated time of arrival as an absolute time.

[0020] In an embodiment the transport data indicates the anticipated time of arrival as a relative time. [0021] In an embodiment the method includes the step of providing a first interface, wherein:

[0022] In an embodiment the method includes the further steps of:

deriving timer data from the transport data; and

providing a second interface for allowing at least one remote terminal to selectively access the timer data.

[0023] In an embodiment the remote terminal is operated by a user and is responsive to the timer data for displaying a timer to the user.

[0024] In an embodiment the timer includes a countdown timer.

[0025] In an embodiment the timer includes a static timer.

[0026] In an embodiment the remote terminal accesses the timer data in response to one or more triggers.

[0027] In an embodiment the triggers include at least one of: a timeout since the last access; one or more predetermined actions performed by the remote terminal; and anticipation of the commencement of the second phase.

[0028] According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a computer system configured to perform a method according to the second aspect of the invention.

[0029] According to a fourth aspect of the invention there is provided a computer program configured to perform a method according to the second aspect of the invention.

[0030] According to a fifth aspect of the invention there is provided a non-transitive carrier medium carrying computer executable code that, when executed on a processor, causes the processor to perform a method according to the second aspect of the invention.

[0031] According to a sixth aspect of the invention there is provided a user terminal for providing a timer, the terminal including:

a display for presenting the timer, wherein the timer is indicative of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint; a communications interface for receiving timer data from a remote computer system;

memory for storing the timer data; and

at least one processor for running executable code to access the timer data in the memory and to control the display to present the timer, wherein the executable code is responsive to one or more triggers for: initiating the communications interface to request further timer data from the remote computer system; and being responsive to the receipt of that further timer data for updating the timer data stored in memory.

[0032] In an embodiment the remote computer system includes the system of the first aspect.

[0033] In an embodiment the user terminal includes a clock for providing a clock signal, wherein the executable code is responsive to the clock signal for controlling the presentation of the timer.

[0034] In an embodiment the executable code is responsive to the timer data for presenting the timer as a countdown timer.

[0035] In an embodiment the executable code is responsive to the clock signal to control the countdown timer to increment in real time.

[0036] In an embodiment, during a first phase preceding the anticipated time of arrival, the executable code gives rise to selective access of the timer data in the memory in accordance with a first algorithm, the first phase ending at the commencement of a second phase that extends to the anticipated time of arrival.

[0037] In an embodiment, during the second phase, the executable code gives rise to selective access of the timer data in the memory in accordance with a second algorithm that is different to the first algorithm.

[0038] According to a seventh aspect of the invention there is provided a method for providing a timer, the method including:

presenting the timer on a display, wherein the timer is indicative of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint;

receiving timer data from a remote computer system with a communications interface;

storing the timer data in memory; and running executable code to access the timer data in the memory and to control the display to present the timer, wherein the executable code is responsive to one or more triggers for: initiating the communications interface to request further timer data from the remote computer system; and being responsive to the receipt of that further timer data for updating the timer data stored in memory.

[0039] According to an eighth aspect of the invention there is provided a system for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of couriers at selected waypoints allocated to those couriers, the system including:

a first database for storing courier location data indicative of the location of the couriers;

a second database for storing transport data that is indicative of the waypoints, the couriers to which those waypoints have been allocated, and the anticipated time of arrival of the couriers at the respective waypoint;

at least one processor to selectively access the databases for calculating a further indication of the time of arrival of the couriers at the allocated waypoints, wherein during a first phase preceding the anticipated time of arrival at a given waypoint the processor selectively updates the transport data to reflect the further indication, the first phase ending at the commencement of a second phase that extends to the anticipated time of arrival.

[0040] In an embodiment the processor allocates the waypoints to the couriers.

[0041] In an embodiment the processor selectively reallocates waypoints between couriers.

[0042] In an embodiment the processor selectively allocates to a given courier more than one waypoint.

[0043] In an embodiment the processor sequences the more than one waypoint for the respective courier to define a first waypoint and at least a second waypoint.

[0044] In an embodiment the processor calculates the further indication for the first and second waypoints by:

calculating a first indication for the first waypoint; and calculating the second indication by estimating a time to progress from the first waypoint to the second waypoint and adding the estimated time to the first indication.

[0045] According to a ninth aspect of the invention there is provided a method for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of couriers at selected waypoints allocated to those couriers, the method including:

storing in a first database courier location data indicative of the location of the couriers;

storing in a second database transport data that is indicative of the waypoints, the couriers to which those waypoints have been allocated, and the anticipated time of arrival of the couriers at the respective waypoint;

storing in a third database past transport data, the past transport data being indicative of the time taken for one or more couriers to progress between selected waypoints in a set of waypoints; and

using at least one processor to selectively access the databases for calculating a further indication of the time of arrival of the couriers at the allocated waypoints, wherein during a first phase preceding the anticipated time of arrival at a given waypoint the processor selectively updates the transport data to reflect the further indication, the first phase ending at the commencement of a second phase that extends to the anticipated time of arrival.

[0046] According to a tenth aspect of the invention there is provided a computer system configured to perform a method according to the ninth aspect.

[0047] According to an eleventh aspect of the invention there is provided a computer program configured to perform a method according to the ninth aspect.

[0048] According to a twelfth aspect of the invention there is provided a non-transitive carrier medium carrying computer executable code that, when executed on a processor, causes the processor to perform a method according to the ninth aspect.

[0049] According to a thirteenth aspect of the invention there is provided a system for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of couriers at selected waypoints allocated to those couriers, the system including:

communication devices allocated to respective couriers for: obtaining courier location data for respective couriers; and being responsive to the courier location data for generating courier location signals; an interface that is responsive to the courier location signals for extracting the courier location data and for storing the courier location data in a first database;

a third database for storing past transport data, the past transport data being indicative of the time taken for one or more couriers to progress between selected waypoints in a set of waypoints;

at least one processor to selectively access the databases for calculating a further indication of the time of arrival of the couriers at the allocated waypoints, wherein during a first phase preceding the anticipated time of arrival at a given waypoint the processor selectively updates the transport data to reflect the further indication, the first phase ending at the commencement of a second phase that extends to the anticipated time of arrival;

a timer module for deriving timer data from the transport data; and

a second interface for allowing at least one remote terminal to selectively access the timer data.

[0050] According to a fourteenth aspect of the invention there is provided a system for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint with an item, the system including:

a first computer network that is responsive to receiving an order for the delivery of the item at the predetermined waypoint for generating an order record; and

a second computer network that is responsive to the order record for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at the waypoint in accordance with the method of the second aspect.

[0051] In an embodiment the first computer network supports a first interface through which a customer places the order and the second computer network supports a second interface through which a remote terminal accesses the timer data.

[0052] In an embodiment the first computer network is operator by or on behalf of a retailer and the second computer network is operator by or on behalf of a courier service provider. [0053] In an embodiment the order was made by a user and the remote terminal is operated by the user.

[0054] According to a fifteenth aspect of the invention there is provided a system for confirming the delivery details for an article to be delivered to a predetermined waypoint by a courier, the user having a mobile telecommunications device and the system including:

a first interface for communicating a first message to the communications device for providing an indication of a predetermined delivery time for the item;

a second interface for receiving a second message from the communications device indicating a change to the predetermined delivery time; and

a processor that is responsive to at least one of the messages for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the waypoint.

[0055] In an embodiment the processor is responsive to one or both of the messages for determining when to initiate the method of the second aspect.

[0056] In an embodiment the processor allocates the item to the courier.

[0057] In an embodiment the first interface and the second interface are included in a common web-interface.

[0058] According to a sixteenth aspect of the invention there is provided a timer for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint, the timer including:

[0059] One embodiment provides a computer program product for performing a method as described herein.

[0060] One embodiment provides a non-transitive carrier medium for carrying computer executable code that, when executed on a processor, causes the processor to perform a method as described herein.

[0061] One embodiment provides a system configured for performing a method as described herein.

[0062] Reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment", "some embodiments" or "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrases "in one embodiment", "in some embodiments" or "in an embodiment" in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, but may. Furthermore, the particular features, structures or characteristics are not necessarily mutually exclusive and may be combined in any suitable manner, as would be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art from this disclosure, in one or more embodiments.

[0063] As used herein, unless otherwise specified the use of the ordinal adjectives "first", "second", "third", etc., to describe a common object, merely indicate that different instances of like objects are being referred to, and are not intended to imply that the objects so described must be in a given sequence, either temporally, spatially, in importance or significance, in ranking, priority or in any other manner.

[0064] In the claims below and the description herein, any one of the terms "comprising", "comprised of" or "which comprises" is an open term that means including at least the elements/features that follow, but not excluding others. Thus, the term "comprising", when used in the claims, should not be interpreted as being limitative to the means or elements or steps listed thereafter. For example, the scope of the expression such as "a device comprising A and B" should not be limited to devices consisting only of elements A and B. Any one of the terms "including" or "which includes" or "that includes" as used herein is also an open term that also means including at least the elements/features that follow the term, but not excluding others. Thus, "including" is synonymous with and means "comprising". [0065] As used herein, the term "exemplary" is used in the sense of providing an example, as opposed to indicating quality, preference or superiority. That is, an "exemplary embodiment" is an embodiment provided as an example, as opposed to necessarily being an embodiment of exemplary quality.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0066] Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 illustrates schematically a system for providing an indication of the anticipated arrival time of a plurality of couriers at waypoints allocated to those couriers;

Figure 2 illustrates schematically the transport of an item by one of the couriers between a pick-up address and a delivery address;

Figure 3 illustrates a representative record of courier location data;

Figure 4 illustrates a representative record of target indicia;

Figure 5 illustrates a representative record of future transport data;

Figure 6 illustrates a representative record of target location data;

Figure 7 illustrates a representative record of past transport data;

Figure 8 illustrates schematically one of the computers of Figure 1 utilised by a courier;

Figure 9 illustrates a representative record of timer data;

Figure 10 is a flowchart illustrating the calculation of an indication of the anticipated arrival times of the couriers at the relevant waypoints using the system of Figure 1 ;

Figure 11 is a flowchart illustrating the accessing of the timer data held by system 1 by a remote terminal;

Figure 12 is a schematic representation of a further system for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint;

Figure 13 is a schematic representation of an order record that is generated by the system in Figure 12 in response to a customer ordering goods from a retailer, where the goods are to be delivered to a predetermined waypoint; and Figure 14 is a flowchart for the operation of the embodiment illustrated in Figure 12.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0067] Described herein are a system and method for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint.

[0068] Referring to Figures 1 and 2 there is illustrated schematically a system 1 for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of couriers at selected waypoints that have been earlier allocated to those couriers. In performing this operation, system 1 also allocates a plurality of items 2 (including but not limited to item 2a, item 2b, and item 2n) to one or more typically geographically spaced apart couriers 3 (including but not limited to courier 3a, courier 3b, and courier 3m) having respective communications devices in the form of handheld mobile computers 4 (including but not limited to computer 4a, computer 4b, and computer 4m). Whilst only couriers 3a, 3b, and 3m are explicitly illustrated in Figure 1 it will be appreciated that system 1 is designed to accommodate many hundreds or thousands of couriers, and is able to operate with any number of couriers from one to many thousands. The computers 4 provide, amongst other things, courier location signals that include courier location data. This courier location data, in this embodiment, takes the form of a courier location data records 5 (as representatively illustrated in Figure 3) containing, amongst other things, GPS data that is contained within an alpha numeric field 6 that is indicative of the geographic location 7 of the respective courier. Computers 4 visually display respective target indicia 8 as schematically indicated in Figure 4, where indicia 8 provides a visual indication of at least one waypoint 9 for the respective courier. The derivation of this and other waypoints will be described in more detail in the co-pending PCT application in the name of this applicant and having the same filing date as the present PCT application. The co-pending PCT application makes a priority claim to Australian patent application 2012216820, and the content of both the co-pending PCT application and Australian patent application are incorporated herein by way of cross reference.

[0069] Referring again to Figure 1 , system 1 includes a first interface, in the form of a web interface 1 1 , for receiving from a plurality of customers 12 (including but not limited to customer 12a, customer 12b, and customer 12x), via respective smart phones 15, future transport data for the respective items. The future transport data is contained within a future transport data record 16, and one such record is representatively and exemplarily illustrated in Figure 5. For each item 2 the future transport data record 16 is indicative of two locations between which the associated item is to be transported. One of the locations is a pick-up address 19 - which is indicated by pick-up address data held in field 20 of record 16 - and the other of the locations is a delivery address 21 - which is indicated by delivery address data that is contained within a field 22 of record 16. The future transport data record 16 is also indicative of a first target time - represented by delivery time data in field 23 of record 16 - for delivery of the item 2 to the delivery address 21. In this embodiment the future transport data record 16 is also indicative of a second target time - represented by pick-up time data held in field 24 of record 16 - by when the item 2 is to be picked up by the courier from the pick-up address 19. The pick-up time data and delivery time data are used by system 1 to best assist the couriers comply and adhere to pre-set service delivery times. That is, system 1 is responsive to the fields in records 16 when determining the allocation of the relevant items to the couriers and the sequence in which the allocated waypoints are to be arrived at by those couriers. In some instances either or both of the data in fields 23 and 24 are specified directly by the customers, whilst in other instances either or both of the data in fields 23 and 24 are specified by the service times. For example, in some embodiments system 1 is configured to ensure the difference between the first target time and the second target time is maintained below a predetermined maximum. In one such embodiment, in which the pick-up address and delivery address are within the same city, the predetermined maximum is three hours. In other embodiments different predetermined maximums are used. Moreover, system 1 is configured to allow a customer to specify that a given job is urgent and that it should be performed as quickly as possible. System 1 is responsive to this specification for determining the allocation of given items to the couriers and the ordering of the waypoints for those couriers.

[0070] The pick-up address and the delivery address represent waypoints in system 1 and it is the anticipated time for a courier to reach those waypoints that system 1 is configured to selectively indicate.

[0071] Items 2 are typically relatively physically small and packaged (or otherwise boxed or contained) for transportation. Items 2 are typically also able to be easily manually handled. However, some couriers also handle bulky items, valuable goods (such as jewellery, gems, antiques, coins and notes, bullion etc.) delicate items, hazardous goods, dangerous goods, liquid goods etc. Typically items 2 include documents (either original or copies), books, cheques, flat-pack furniture, clothing, foot ware, leisure equipment (bicycles, surfboards, skis, tents etc), electrical appliances, electrical equipment, automotive parts (including for example tyres, wheels, replacement parts, small motors, engines and gearboxes), gifts, toys, computers, mobile telephones, smart phones, and other computing devices. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that many other articles or combination of articles are able to comprise all or part of an item 2.

[0072] It is usual for items to be packaged in one way or another to facilitate secure transportation between the relevant pick-up and delivery addresses.

[0073] Whilst only three customers 12 are explicitly illustrated in Figure 1 it will be appreciated that, in use, there are typically many hundreds or thousands of such customers each business day.

[0074] A second interface, in the form of a web interface 25, receives from computers 4 the courier location signal and extracts the data records 5. Interface 25 provides selectively to computers 4 target location data records 26 - as representatively illustrated in Figure 7 - from which the target indicia 8 is derived. The target indicia provides the respective couriers with a text and/or graphic illustration of one or more waypoints to which that courier is to progress. In this embodiment the waypoints allocated to each courier are presented in a sequence that the courier is to follow.

[0075] System 1 includes a first database 28 for storing the future transport data records 16, a second database 29 for storing the courier location data records 5, and a third database 30 for storing past transport data records 31. Records 31 relate to a plurality of previously transported items and include data indicative of: the locations - that is the prior waypoints - between which the previously delivered items were transported; and the time taken to transport the article between the locations. One of records 31 is schematically illustrated in Figure 7. In other embodiments records 31 include additional or different data. It will be appreciated that as items are delivered that system 1 updates database 28 with additional records 31 derived from information collected prior to and during the delivery of that item. In other embodiments, records 31 are also derived from information collected following from the delivery.

[0076] The data records 5 stored within database 29 need not be identical to the original data records extracted from the courier location signals. That is, the records stored within database 29 are derived from the extracted data records and include substantially identical informational content. However, in some embodiments the format of the data records is changed and/or the information content transformed due to an intermediate or subsequent operation of executable code that processes records 5.

[0077] A server system 35 includes a web server 36, an application server 37, and other servers (not shown) for performing a variety of operations to allow the operation of system 1. [0078] The record 26 is communicated to the selected courier 3 by server 36, via interface 25, and to the relevant one of computers 4. That computer, through running local software - in this embodiment a locally running application - is responsive to record 26 for generating the indicia 8 on the visual display of the computer. This indicia provides the courier with an address to which the courier is to progress - that is, a waypoint - together with a graphically represented map and route along that map to follow to the address. This address is referred to as waypoint 9, and is either a pick-up or delivery address. In this embodiment, the courier is provided only a plurality of sequenced waypoints, route information 39 between adjacent waypoints in the sequence, waypoint type data indicative of whether the waypoint is a pick-up or delivery address, and an identifier for the item related to that waypoint.

[0079] Server system 35 and databases 28, 29 and 30 are located at a data capture and processing facility 41 and are operated by a first party ("the system operator") that is a corporation providing courier services and which employs or otherwise remunerates the couriers 3 for the work undertaken in picking up and delivering the allocated items between the relevant waypoints. In other embodiments one or more of the servers within the server system 35 are located other than at facility 41 and communicate with the other servers via a communications network (not shown). In further embodiments, one or more of databases 28, 29 and 30 are combined together with each other, or segmented and spread across a plurality of distinct databases within facility 41 or elsewhere. In some embodiments, use is made of cloud computing facilities in addition to, or instead of, any one or more of sever system 35 and databases 28, 29 and 30.

[0080] In other embodiments, the system operator is a fleet management service provider, and provides data to a client (typically a fleet operator) to allow the fleet operator to manage the allocation of jobs to the vehicles within the relevant fleet for a relevant period. That is, the system operator need not be the party also providing the courier or other transportation services.

[0081] In other embodiments the fleet comprises one or more taxis and the term "item" includes one or more humans.

[0082] Computers 4 are off-the-shelf, readily available components including both hardware and software and having respective inbuilt GPS receivers and which are web- enabled and operable to run executable code to connect with and communicate with system 1 via interface 25. Some of this code is pre-installed within computers 4, whilst other is proprietary code installed by the operator of system 1 to enable certain interactions and functionalities as part of the communications. [0083] In other embodiments, computers 4 are smart phones - such as, for example, an iPhone 4S, an iPhone 5, a HTC One, a Samsung Galaxy SI I and Samsung Galaxy SIN (or other smart phone running the Android operating system). However, in other embodiments use is made of a smart phone running the Windows operating system or other operating system. Other smart phones and similar personal communication and computing devices are also broadly applicable to use with system 1.

[0084] In other embodiments, one or more of computers 4 does not include an inbuilt GPS receiver, and is connected instead to a separate GPS receiver that in use is carried by the respective courier 3. In some embodiments the receiver is carried on the body of the courier, whilst in other embodiments the receiver is mounted to a vehicle normally used by the courier to progress between the waypoints. This allows the courier location information for a given courier to be communicated to the computer 4 and then onto interface 11. In other embodiments the GPS receiver communicates with interface 11 directly or via a separate network.

[0085] Preferentially all computers 4 are of the same make and model. However, in other embodiments, a range of different computers 4 (or smart phones) are used by the couriers 3.

[0086] In this embodiment computers 4 are manufactured by Intermec Technologies Corporation and designated as model CN50 and use Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system and have inbuilt GPS capability. Such a mobile computer, and like computers, are designed robustly for field use and are well suited to use in the commercial application of system 1.

[0087] Preferentially, the computers 4 that are issued to couriers 3 include at least a 3G network capability and/or a 4G network capability. However, in other embodiments use is made also or instead smart phones with only a GPRS capability. In some embodiments, communications between system 1 and computers 4 occurs selectively by another communications interface than interface 25. An example of the latter includes an SMS interface.

[0088] In other embodiments, the location information is provided by other than a GPS signal. For example, in one embodiment, use is made of triangulation or other techniques to gain the location information.

[0089] Smart phones 15 are commercially available hardware devices running associated software for allowing web-enabled connection with system 1. It will be appreciated that one or more of smart phones 15 is able to be substituted by another communications device with like functionality. Examples of such other communications devices include desktop computers, laptop computers, tablet computers, PDAs, netbook computers, mobile computers or other web-enabled devices.

[0090] Web interfaces 1 1 and 25 are accessed by the relevant users (the couriers 3, customers 12 and other allowed parties) by way of client terminals that have been illustrated in the drawings, by way of example, as computers or smart phones. That is, in broad terms, the users access the relevant interface over the Internet by way of the client terminals, which can include one or more of smart phones, mobile computers, personal computers, PDAs, cellular telephones, gaming consoles, and other Internet enabled devices.

[0091] Each of the servers within server system 35 includes various components to allow operation. By way of example, and with reference to Figure 1 , server 37 is illustrated as including a processor 51 coupled to a memory module 52 and a communications interface 53, such as an Internet connection, modem, Ethernet port, wireless network card, serial port, or the like. In other embodiments distributed resources are used. For example, in one embodiment server 37 includes a plurality of distributed servers having respective storage, processing and communications resources. In another embodiment, server 37 is a virtual server and/or a cloud server and/or a hosted server.

[0092] Memory module 52 includes software instructions 54, which are executable on processor 51.

[0093] Server 37 is coupled to databases 28, 29 and 30. In further embodiments the databases leverage memory module 52.

[0094] In some embodiments one or both of web interfaces 11 and 25 includes a website. The term "website" should be read broadly to cover substantially any source of information accessible over the Internet or another communications network (such as WAN, LAN or WLAN) via a browser application running on a client terminal. In some embodiments, a website is a source of information made available by a server and accessible over the Internet by a web-browser application running on a client terminal. The web-browser application downloads code, such as HTML code, from the server. This code is executable through the web-browser on the client terminal for providing a graphical and often interactive representation of the website on the client terminal. By way of the web-browser application, a user of the client terminal is able to navigate between and throughout various web pages provided by the website, and access various functionalities that are provided. [0095] Although some embodiments make use of a website/browser-based implementation, in other embodiments proprietary software methods are implemented as an alternative. For example, in such embodiments client terminals such as computers 4 and smart phones 15 maintain software instructions for a computer program product that essentially provides access to a portal via which a framework is accessed (for instance via an iPhone app or the like).

[0096] In general terms, each client terminal - that is, computers 4 and smart phones 15, or their equivalents or substitutes - can be schematically and exemplarily represented as shown in Figure 8. More particularly, and by way of example, in Figure 8 a client terminal defined by computer 4b includes a processor 55 coupled to a memory module 56 and a communications interface 57, such as a wireless 4G connection. In other embodiments different connections are utilised to gain an internet connection; be it a modem, Ethernet port, serial port, or the like, or a wireless connection other than through a 4G network. Memory module 56 includes software instructions 58, which are executable on processor 55. These software instructions allow computer 4b to execute a software application, such as a proprietary application or web browser application and thereby render on-screen a user interface and allow communication with server system 35. This user interface allows for the creation, viewing and administration of profiles, access to the internal communications interface, and various other functionalities.

[0097] System 1 includes a further client terminal in the form of a telephonist terminal 60 that is connected to a LAN 61 within facility 41. A telephonist 62 takes telephone orders from customers for the transportation of a specific item from a defined pick-up location to a delivery location, and uses terminal 60 to book the actual order. Terminal 60 runs a browser and is served up web pages from server 36 similarly to those delivered to smart phones 15 and the other forms of client terminals. This allows the telephonist to obtain from the customer, via a standard telephone voice call, the future transport data. Telephonist 62 has that data entered into the associated fields in the webpage, which then forms the future transport data record 16 for the given customer uploaded into system 1. Accordingly, system 1 does not need to distinguish between orders made online directly by customers, or those made via telephonist 62. However, records are kept of the nature and source of the bookings to allow for future planning (such as staffing requirements) and development of system 1.

[0098] In some instances a customer 12 is located at the pick-up address 19 (or at least intended to be located at that address at the pick-up time), whilst in other instances a customer 12 is located at the delivery address 21 (or at least intended to be located at that address at the delivery time). In further instances the customer 12 is located at neither of those addresses. In other instances, the customer 12 becomes a customer through placing an online purchase order for a good on a third party website and requesting delivery of the goods.

[0099] System 1 also includes a further client terminal in the form of a supervisor terminal 65 that is used by a supervisor 66. From this terminal the supervisor is able to, amongst other things, gain an overview of system 1 , generate reports about various operating parameters of system 1 , and to provide supervisory input.

[00100] Reference is made in this specification to "data records" or often just to "records". These terms are used synonymously and describe groupings of data for storage or transmission. A record includes at least one field having informational content and is typically stored in a common database with other records having like fields but different data (or informational content). That is not to imply that the data for a given record need be all stored together or transmitted together, simply that the record, however stored or transmitted, provides an informational whole when required.

[00101] Whilst interfaces 11 and 25 have been illustrated as separate interfaces, in practice these two are often combined as a single interface. For example, a single TCP/IP interface through which all network traffic moves between server 35 and computers 4 and smart phones 15.

[00102] System 1 provides an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of couriers 3 at selected waypoints allocated to those couriers. More particularly, computers 4 are allocated to respective couriers 3 for: obtaining the courier location data records 5 for the respective couriers; and being responsive to the courier location data for generating the courier location signals. These courier location signals include, in one form or another, the courier location data records 5. Interface 25 is responsive to the courier location signals for extracting records 5 and for storing those records 5 in database 29. Database 28 stores the future transport data records 16 that, as best shown in Figure 5, are each indicative of, amongst other things, the waypoints (that is, the pick-up address and the delivery address), the couriers 3 to which those waypoints have been respectively allocated, and the anticipated time of arrival of the couriers at the respective waypoints. In this embodiment each future transport data record 16 includes time until pick-up data 71 and time until delivery data 72 which represent the most recently stored calculation of the anticipated time for the allocated courier to arrive at the associated waypoints. [00103] As foreshadowed above, database 30 stores past transport data in the form of past transport data records 31. In this embodiment, and as best shown in Figure 5, each record 31 is indicative of, amongst other things, the time taken for the relevant courier to progress between the two specified waypoints. More particularly, record 31 includes: pickup address data that is stored in a text field 73 and which indicates the geographic location a first waypoint; pick-up time data that is held in field 74 and which indicates the time the associated item 3 was picked-up from the first waypoint; delivery address data that is held in field 75 that indicates the geographic location of the other waypoint; and delivery time data that is held in field 76 and which indicates the time of delivery at the other waypoint. The difference between the time indicated in field 74 and field 76 provides an indication of the time taken to progress between those two waypoints.

[00104] In other embodiments record 31 is configured differently to indicate the time taken to progress between the waypoints. For example, in one such other embodiment, record 31 includes a further data field (not shown) to specifically contains the indication. In other such embodiments, the further data field is used instead of field 74 and field 76.

[00105] System 1 includes at least one processor, in the form of processor 51 of application server 37, to selectively access databases 28, 29 and 30 for calculating a further indication of the time of arrival of the couriers at the allocated waypoints. During a first phase preceding the anticipated time of arrival at a given waypoint the processor 51 selectively updates the transport data to reflect the further indication. This first phase ends at the commencement of a second phase that extends to the anticipated time of arrival.

[00106] A timer module 79 is included within system 35 for deriving timer data from at least the future transport data records 16. The timer data is stored in database 80 as timer data records 81. One of records 81 is representatively illustrated in Figure 9. As will be described in more detail below, records 81 are selectively accessible, via interface 11 , by one or more remote terminals such that the users of those remote terminals are able to obtain an indication of the time of arrival of the relevant courier at the relevant waypoint.

[00107] In this embodiment, each record 81 includes an item identifier field 82 that is indicative of the respective item 2 and is typically a short generic text descriptor. However, in other instances field 82 is a very specific descriptor. In still further instances, field 82 includes an image or other information about item 2.

[00108] Record 81 also includes a waypoint data field 83 that is indicative of the pick-up address and the delivery address for the respective item 2 and is derived from fields 20 and 22 in the future transport data record 16. In this embodiment field 83 is a text field. However, in other embodiments it is instead or in addition a virtual map image (either rendered passively or actively) or a pointer or link to such an image.

[00109] A further field, a client data field 84, is included within each record 81 to specify the identity of the party or parties that are able to access record 81 and which of those fields are able to be accessed. In some embodiments this is a single party, whilst in other embodiments it includes more than one party. An example of the latter is where the customer 12 is using the courier to transport goods from a retail outlet (whether an online outlet or otherwise) and access to record 81 is granted to both the customer and one or more representatives of the retail outlet.

[00110] Record 81 also includes a courier identifier field 85 for allowing identification of the courier, and a countdown timer field 86 for indicating the times remaining for the courier identified in field 85 to reach the respective waypoints identified in field 83. During operation there will initially be two countdown timers, one relating to the waypoint for the pick-up address and the other relating to the waypoint for the delivery address. However, once the item is picked-up from the pick-up address by the courier, record 81 for that item will include only one countdown timer for the waypoint for the delivery address. Once the courier has delivered the item to the delivery address, record 81 for that item is removed from data 80.

[0011 1] It will be appreciated that other or alternative fields are able to be provided within record 80 depending upon the information that is to be conveyed or otherwise made available to external client terminals of system 1. For example, in some embodiments field 85 includes only the first name of the relevant courier, whilst in other embodiments this field is omitted altogether. In further embodiments, field 85 includes the courier's name, contact number and vehicle registration number for use by customer 12.

[00112] Reference is now made to Figure 10 where there is illustrated a flowchart of a method for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of couriers 3 at selected waypoints allocated to those couriers. At step 100 server system 35 is operating and ready to receive input from customers 12. It is also periodically polling computers 4 to obtain a more recent courier location data records 5 for the couriers. Whilst all of records 5 for each courier are stored for later analysis, system 1 is, when allocating a given item or providing an indication of the anticipated time for a courier to arrive at a waypoint, primarily concerned with the most up-to-date or current record 5 for each of the available couriers. Each record 5 is time-stamped and stored in database 29 and server 37, in providing the indication of the anticipated time of arrival at the selected waypoints, is responsive to the time-stamping to select the most recent records 5 as a proxy for the current locations of the associated couriers. All the time-stamped location data is retained for later analysis.

[00113] In some embodiments, computers 4 include executable code for supplying an updated record 5 for the associated couriers once it is ascertained that the location of computer 4 has changed by at least a predetermined distance. This allows for more local processing at computer 4 - that is, the processing required to make the decision about whether or not to send updated location data - and helps to reduce network traffic. In other embodiments, computers 4 make use of other push techniques to assist in reducing network traffic.

[00114] During a normal business day, many thousands of bookings are made by customers to have the desired items transported from one location to another. A given customer, in a given day, is able to make a single booking or multiple bookings. That is, the number of items to be transported in a given day may be different to the number of customers. Moreover, the number of couriers is typically less than the number of items to be transported in a given day.

[00115] In response to these bookings and many other inputs, system 1 allocates each item 2 to one of couriers 3, as well as providing each of the couriers with a sequence of waypoints to travel to (and hence successively between). Whilst each item 2 will have associated with it two specific waypoints for that item, it is usual for a courier to be directed to intermediate waypoints between those specific waypoints that are relevant to other items that have been allocated to that courier. However, there are instances where the two specific waypoints for an item 2 will be in direct succession for a given courier. The latter occurs more often for those items 2 where the customer (or other party) is willing to incur a premium charge for expedited pick-up and/or delivery.

[00116] It will be appreciated that as new orders are made system 1 re-calculates the allocation of all items 2 including the most recently added item. This allows either or both of the re-allocation of one or more of the items, or the re-sequencing of one or more of the waypoints allocated to a given courier. It will also be appreciated that the re-calculation will not result in either a re-allocation or a re-sequencing where the existing allocation was found to be the optimal notwithstanding the inclusion of the new order. This functionality is also described in more detail in Australian provisional patent application 2012216820, the content of which is incorporated herein by way of cross reference.

[00117] The allocation and re-allocation have an impact upon the arrival time of the couriers at the waypoints, as too do other factors such as traffic conditions, weather conditions, and courier vehicle breakdowns, amongst others. System 1 , and in particular server 37, is responsive to such factors for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of couriers 3 at selected waypoints allocated to those couriers. More particularly, and as shown in Figure 10, server 37 is at step 101 responsive to a trigger signal being received for determining when a calculation is to occur. This calculation is often a recalculation, as will be described further below. If a trigger signal has not been received at step 101 , server 37 remains in standby mode and progresses back to step 100.

[00118] There are various types of events that give rise to a trigger signal within system 1. These include, by way of example only: the passage of a predetermined time interval since the last trigger; the passage of a predetermined time interval since the last calculation; a request for an indication for a specific item by a customer, supervisor or other party; an usual event, such as a weather related event, a traffic related event or the like; the re-allocation of an item to a different courier; the re-sequencing of the waypoints for a given courier; and others. In the present embodiment the indication is calculated regularly, typically about once a minute during operational hours, and fields 71 and 72 are updated accordingly at about the same rate (see below). In other embodiments different rates of calculation are used. For example, for longer haul delivery it is typically sufficient to provide a calculation hourly up until a predetermined time prior to the intended delivery. In some embodiments the predetermined time is three hours, whilst in other embodiments it is more or less than three hours. Moreover, a calculation rate of other than once per hour or once per minute is also used in other embodiments, as too are variable calculation rates.

[00119] In the present embodiment, where system 1 is configured for use with couriers in a given city, the predetermined time interval since the last trigger is one minute. Accordingly, if one minute elapses since an indication has been obtained for all the active waypoints - that is, the waypoints that have been allocated and which the allocated courier has not arrived - then the trigger is generated within system 1 and server 37 receives that trigger at step 101.

[00120] Once the trigger has been received, server 37 progresses to step 102 and ascertains the items in respect of which the trigger issued. The trigger is often in respect of all items 2, and for the following description all items 2a, 2n will be assumed to be relevant to the trigger signal. However, in other instances the trigger is in respect of a subset of the items 2 and, in some further instances, in respect of a single item only. For example, in instances where a specific request has been made by a customer, the supervisor or another party about the arrival of the courier at a waypoint for a given article, the trigger signal is in respect of that item only. In other instances the trigger signal is in respect of waypoints within a specific geographic area within the overall geographic area serviced by the couriers. In other instances the trigger signal is in respect of one or another subset of the couriers.

[00121] In embodiments where the processing capacity available to server 37 (or the associated servers) is more limited, it is known to segment the items into groups and for a sequence of the trigger signals to be received in respect of those groups. This assists to spread the available processing capacity over time.

[00122] With the relevant items 2a, 2n specified at step 102, a first of those items, item 2a, is selected and at step 103 a calculation occurs to provide an indication of the anticipated arrival time of the allocated courier (which is assumed to be courier 3b) at any active waypoint for item 2a. In this embodiment there will be a maximum of two active waypoints for any single item 2 and a minimum of one active waypoint. For if there are no active waypoints a record 16 will no longer exist for the specific item 2 for it will already have been delivered. If there is only one active waypoint in record 16 for item 2a (which is assumed to hold true for this example) that indicates item 2a has been picked up from the first waypoint (pick-up address 19 for item 2a) but not yet delivered to the second waypoint (delivery address 21 for item 2a). Accordingly, the only active waypoint for item 2a in this example is the delivery address 21 indicated by the delivery address field 22 in record 16 for item 2a.

[00123] Notwithstanding that there is only a single active waypoint for item 2a, there are a plurality of active waypoints that have been allocated to courier 3b, only one of which is the active waypoint remaining for item 2a. For this example the remaining active waypoint for item 2a is the third in the prioritised list of waypoints for courier 3a. This is for the sake of example only and to assist describing the operation of system 1.

[00124] The calculation of the indication of the anticipated time of arrival of courier 3b at the active waypoint for item 2a occurs as follows. Server 37 first calculates a location for courier 3b based upon record 5 for that courier, and in particular to the GPS data in record 5. In this embodiment the GPS data is very recent and offers a good proxy for the actual physical location of courier 3b. In other embodiments where record 5 is not believed to be sufficiently accurate, server 37 is also responsive to the timestamp data in record 5 and the active waypoint next in the sequence of waypoints that have been allocated to courier 3b to refine the calculation of the location of courier 3b. [00125] With a location indication having been calculated or obtained for courier 3b, server 37 generates a first intermediate indication of the anticipated time for courier 3b to arrive at the next active waypoint in the sequence of waypoints that have been allocated to the courier 3b. This indication is derived from an algorithm that is responsive to the available location information for courier 3b, the location of the next waypoint, the past transport data records 31 , the past transport data records 31 specific to courier 3b, weather conditions, road conditions and other factors. In other embodiments use is made of different algorithms that are responsive to the same of different factors to arrive at the indication.

[00126] Server 37 then calculates, using the same algorithm as mentioned above, a second intermediate indication of the anticipated time for courier 3b to arrive at the next scheduled active waypoint in the sequence of waypoints allocated to courier 3b. The starting point for this second intermediate indication is the first intermediate indication with an additional time factor added to account for the anticipated duration for courier 3b to move between the first and second active waypoints. Similarly, server 37 then arrives at the indication for the third waypoint (which is the remaining active waypoint for item 2a) by using the second intermediate indication with an additional time factor added to account for the anticipated duration for courier 3b to move between the second active waypoint referred to above and the remaining active waypoint for item 2a. That is, in this embodiment, the indication for a given waypoint is calculated by first calculating an indication for any intermediate waypoints in the prioritised list of waypoints allocated to the relevant courier. In other embodiments different methodologies are used.

[00127] With the indication obtained at step 103 for the arrival of courier 3b at the next active waypoint (delivery address 21) for item 2a, server 37 then progresses to step 104 and compares the newly calculated indication with the last calculated indication that is stored in field 72 of record 16 for item 2a. If the difference between these two is assessed as being less than a predetermined threshold, server 37 progresses to step 105 and determines if there remain any further items for which the indication needs to be calculated. In this example as all items 2a, 2n are relevant to the trigger, server 37 selects one of the remaining items (items 2b, 2n) and moves to step 103 to calculate the indication for the next selected item.

[00128] As the intermediate indications were calculated above for courier 3b, server 37 is in this embodiment programmed to select next an item that is also allocated to courier 3b. This allows for use of the earlier calculated intermediate indications in providing the indication for the next selected item. [00129] Returning to item 2a and step 104, if it is determined that the most recently calculated indication falls outside the predetermined threshold relative to the most recent earlier calculated indication (which is stored in field 72 of record 16 for item 2a) then server 37 progresses to step 106. At this point server 37 assesses if the active waypoint for item 2a is the next waypoint for courier 3a. That is, the determination is whether the courier is now progressing to that active waypoint with having to first go to one or more intermediate waypoints. In this example, as outlined above, this test leads to a false reading and, as such, server 37 progresses to step 107.

[00130] At step 107 server 37 is responsive to the most recently calculated indication for updating filed 72 of record 16 for item 2a. In instances where the respective indications for both waypoints for an item change, then both fields 71 and 72 are updated at this step.

[00131] Server 37 then advances to step 108, where timer module 79 is initiated to derive timer data from at least record 16 and to be responsive to this data to update at least one of the fields in record 81 for item 2a. This derivation is in accordance with a predetermined algorithm. In other embodiments different algorithms are used.

[00132] It will be appreciated that if a record 81 does not exist for item 2a, step 108 includes the initial sub-step of recreating such a record.

[00133] If at step 106 it was determined by server 37 that the next waypoint for courier 3b was the active waypoint for item 2b, an alert is raised with supervisor 66 at step 109. This is described in more detail below.

[00134] Particularly, in this embodiment, the first phase and the second phase are determined for each item, and each occur twice for each item, once for each of the two waypoints for that item. More particularly, taking item 2a as an example:

• The first instance of the first phase commences when item 2a is allocated to courier 3b and expires at the commencement of the first instance of the second phase.

• The first instance of the second phase commences when courier 3b has the pick-up address 19 allocated as the next waypoint. (That is, courier 3b has no intermediate waypoints between the current location and address 19).

• The second instance of the first phase for item 2a commences at the end of the first instance of the second phase, and expires when the second instance of the second phase commences. • The second instance of the second phase commences when courier 3b has the delivery address 21 allocated as the next waypoint. (That is, courier 3b has no intermediate waypoints between the current location and address 21).

[00135] As mentioned above, system 1 allocates items and sequences of waypoints dynamically to the couriers. This allocation of items and sequencing of waypoints (including re-allocations of items and re-sequencing of waypoints) excludes the waypoint (and the associated item) to which the courier to directly progressing toward. That is, once a waypoint has moved to the first position in the sequenced list that is provided to a courier, that waypoint (and the associated item) will not be allocated to another courier or re-sequenced for the same courier. However, all other waypoints for other items are available to be reallocated or re-sequenced.

[00136] Accordingly, during the first phase for an item (either the first or second instance of that first phase) it is possible for the updated indication that is stored in field 71 or 72 to be greater than or less than the previously held value by a small amount, or a relatively large amount. For a re-allocation or a re-scheduling are able to have a significant impact of the arrival time of the allocated courier at the waypoint. For example, if a large number of urgent jobs are taken, system 1 will allocate and sequence those jobs whilst reallocating and/or re-sequencing less urgent jobs (although still ensuring the service standards are maintained for all jobs).

[00137] During the first phase it is not unusual for the value held in field 71 or 72 to vary up and down with time and to vary considerably. As the end of the first phase approaches the volatility of the variation tends to lessen.

[00138] During the first instance of the second phase the value held in field 71 will generally always decrease. Likewise, during the second instance of the second phase the value held in field 72 will generally always decrease. Moreover, the indication of the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the next waypoint is able to be quite accurately determined, typically to within a few minutes or better. If there is any large change - for example, of greater than one minute - reflected at step 104 when the indication is for the next waypoint for that courier, then server 37 raises an alert with the supervisor 66. In other embodiments different thresholds are used in determining if the alert should be raised with supervisor 66.

[00139] Once the alert is raised supervisor 66 assess the overall situation and, if required, contacts one or more of the relevant courier and/or the customer and/or other third party to manage the relationships involved. [00140] As mentioned above, server 37 is at step 101 responsive to a trigger signal being received for determining when a calculation is to occur. These trigger signal are generated by system 1 upon one or more conditions being satisfied, and a number of examples are provided above. In another embodiment system 1 , is configured to generate a trigger signal for items in the first phase no less than four times each hour, and to generate a trigger signal for items in the second phase no less than sixty times every hour. This provides a high level of quality control for the second phase, and allows it to be tightly managed. It also helps to reduce the volatility of the changes to the fields 71 and 72 that would otherwise occur during the first phase and which were not of much significance. In other embodiments different methodologies for trigger signals, and the items relevant to those trigger signals, are used.

[00141] It will be appreciated that the fields 71 and 72 represent absolute time for the time zone concerned, in that they specify respective times on a given day that it is anticipated that the relevant courier will arrive at the respective waypoints. In other embodiments, fields 71 and 72 indicate the anticipated time of arrival as a relative time. For example, the relative time is able to be derived as a time interval from the field in another record 16 that is for a waypoint immediately preceding the waypoint in question. Alternatively, the relative time is the anticipated time until the courier arrives at the relevant waypoint.

[00142] Timer module 79 deriving the timer data record 81 primarily from the transport data record 16, and interface 1 1 allows at least one remote terminal to selectively access at least some of the fields in record 81. This will be described in more detail with reference to Figure 11.

[00143] One form of the remote terminal is smart phones 15 operated by respective customers 12 and running locally an application programming interface (API) that is configured for enabling access via interface 1 1. However, other users (with other forms of remote terminals) are also selectively provided access.

[00144] At step 200 the server 37 maintains interface 11 available for connection to remote terminals such as smart phones 15. In this example, customer 12a uses at step 201 the smart phone 15a to initiate a remote terminal connection with system 1 via interface 11. Upon establishing that connection, and being served with the necessary webpage by server 36, customer 12a enters a username and password. If successful, this will result in a further webpage being served to phone 15a that indicates any item or items for which the customer 12a earlier placed an order. At step 202, customer 12a is able to identify the relevant item (in this case item 2a). If no item is identified, server 36 serves up another page at step 203 to allow other online functionalities or reporting to be obtained by customer 12a. Following from that, once customer 12a requests to log out of system 1 at step 204, the remote terminal session is terminated at step 205.

[00145] If, at step 202, an item (in this case item 2a) is identified, module 79 moves to step 206 and selectively updates record 81 for this item. From this point, server 36 allows phone 15a, at step 207, access to field 86, in that the data contained in that field is available for transmission to phone 15a. That could be data in respect of both or only one of the waypoints for item 2a. In this case, customer 12a is permitted access to the data for both waypoints and the countdown is in respect of both waypoints. That is, customer 12a is provide at phone 15a with a visual display of two countdown timers, one for the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the pick-up address 19, and the other for the anticipated time of arrival at the delivery address 21. In other embodiments, only one countdown timer is provided. In the above example that would have only a single timer being displayed by phone 15a to provide an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the pick-up address 19. Should phone 15a be used to provided a timer after the pick-up had occurred, the user will be provided with a countdown timer for the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the delivery address.

[00146] Having updated record 81 at step 206, module 79 then begins at step 208 to decrement field 86 in second intervals in real time (or at least pseudo real time) if in either of the second phases for item 2a. If item 2a is in either of the first phases, module 79 decrements field 86 in one minute intervals, also in real time (or pseudo real time).

[00147] In other embodiments the decrementing interval is otherwise than stated above. For example, other intervals include two minute intervals, five minute intervals, ten minute intervals, half hour intervals, and otherwise. Moreover, in some embodiments the customer 12a (or other remote user) is able to specify the interval for one or more of the phases.

[00148] Once customer 12a has established a connection between phone 15a and server 36, phone 12a is provided with selected access to a countdown timer for the arrival of the allocated courier at the relevant waypoint. This countdown timer is instantiated on phone 15a (via the local API) and feed the decrementing values from field 86 to provide a visual display of the countdown (or downward increment) to customer 12a.

[00149] In other embodiments, phone 15a, once having obtained access to the relevant data in field 86 undertakes the decrement of that value locally. If the connection with system 1 is terminated the countdown timer still operates on phone 15a. Upon a further connection being established between phone 15a and system 1 , phone 15a obtains from field 86 the most up-to-date indication available and this supersedes the countdown being undertaken locally on phone 15a. That is, phone 15a seeks to synchronise with field 86 where possible, although in the absence of continuous real-time synchronisation, is still able to provide a practically accurate operation of the countdown timer.

[00150] In further embodiments system 1 is responsive to phone 15a having accessed the field 86 for a give item during one of the first phases for pushing data to phone 15a upon commencement of the next second phase. Accordingly, phone 15a (and customer 12a) will be automatically updated with the more accurate countdown timer that operates during the second phase.

[00151] In still further embodiments, the API on phone 15a, when actuated, automatically seeks to establish a connection with system 1 to obtain refreshed data from the relevant field 86. It will be appreciated that where a customer has an interest in more than one item, system 1 allows both items to be tracked and a countdown timer to be provided for each item, for each phase.

[00152] As described above, system 1 , and in particular server 37, updates record 16 at predetermined intervals that typically differ during the first and second phases. Accordingly, module 79 does not have to differentiate between those phases when creating and/or updating the fields of record 81. However, module 79 is responsive to the phase for a given item relative to either waypoint for one of a number of functions. For example, providing alerts to customers, couriers or other participants within system 1.

[00153] Whilst in the above description customer 12a is provided with one or more countdown timers, in other embodiments the customer (or other participant) is provided with a static timer that provides the indication as it was at the time of the last update provided to phone 15a from system 1. In further embodiments, field 86 of record 81 is not decremented, but remains static until refreshed by module 79.

[00154] In other embodiments phone 15a (or other remote terminals) access the timer data in record 81 in response to one or more triggers other than those mentioned above. An example of such a further trigger includes at least one of: a timeout since the last access; one or more predetermined actions performed by the remote terminal; and anticipation of the commencement of the second phase.

[00155] The above embodiments make use of a plurality of phases that recognise the different levels of accuracy that are able to be offered in providing an indication of the anticipated arrival time of a courier at a waypoint. Whilst the embodiments are described as including two phases for each waypoint, in other embodiments a different number of phases are used and different conditions are applied during those phases for the calculation of the indication.

[00156] In the above embodiments the customer 12a is generally understood as being the party wishing to make the delivery of the respective items. In other instances, the customer is the party wishing to make delivery of the respective items.

[00157] In other specific embodiments, the customer 12 is a retailer of one or more of the items 2 and the pick-up address 19 is an outlet, warehouse or other distribution centre for the retailer. One such embodiment is illustrated schematically in Figure 2, 12 and 13, where corresponding features are denoted by corresponding reference numerals. In particular, there is provided a system 300 for providing delivery of a plurality of items 2 that are available for purchase, typically by orders placed through a website of the retailer by a user 121 making use of a web-enabled device such as a smart-phone 122. It will be appreciated that the user is able to make use of other web-enabled or networkable devices for placing the order. Moreover, the retailer is also able to manually enter orders placed by telephone or in writing by email or other correspondence.

[00158] System 300 includes a first computer network 301 for receiving an order from user 121 for the delivery of item 2 at a predetermined waypoint, in the form of delivery address 21 , and for generating an order record 302 for the item. Record 302 includes a number of fields that are populated with alpha numeric characters (or special characters) to indicate one or more characteristics of user 121 , customer 12 and item 2. In this specific embodiment, record 302 includes:

• A customer identifier field 303 for containing data that is uniquely indicative of the customer in respect of system 1.

• An order number field 304 allocated by customer 12 to the transaction with user 121 concerning item 2.

• A recipient identifier field 305 that is to be populated by text for uniquely identifying user 121 (typically the family name and given name of user 121). This is gained by customer 12 during the placement of the order by user 121 , and is typically directly entered by user 121 , or simply extracted from existing records of customer 12 should user 121 have an existing account with customer 12.

• A waypoint identifier field 306 that is populated with text indicative of the desired delivery address for item 2. • An email field 307 for containing a text string representing an email address for contacting user 121. Emails sent to this address are, in this embodiment, accessible from phone 122.

• A mobile telephone number field 308 for containing a numeric string representing a mobile telephone number for contacting user 121. This telephone number, in this embodiment, is indicative of the number allocated to phone 122.

• A special instructions field 309 for being selectively populated with text indicative of any special instructions or requirements for item 2.

[00159] It will be appreciated that in other embodiments use is made of less, additional or substitute fields in record 302.

[00160] Order record 302, once generated, is communicated to a second computer network, in the form of system 1 , where the latter is responsive to the order record 302 for allocating item 2 to a courier for delivery to the delivery address and for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at the delivery address in accordance with the embodiment described above. In the embodiment the indication of the anticipated time of delivery is made available to both customer 12 and user 121.

[00161] Network 301 supports a web interface 312 through which user 121 places the order and system 1 supports interface 1 1 through which user 121 is able to access the timer data. Accordingly, user 121 , as a customer of the retailer, is able to normally browse the retailer's website to select and order goods. Once the order is placed by user 121 with customer 12, the relevant information is transmitted to system 1 via interface 312 so that both customer 12 and user 121 are able to selectively access, via interface 1 1 , the timer data to gain respective indications of the anticipated time of arrival of the relevant courier at both the pick-up address 19 and the delivery address 21.

[00162] Specific reference is now made to Figure 14 where there is illustrated schematically a flow chart of one embodiment of the system shown in Figure 12. The steps that are undertaken on network 301 and system 1 respectively are contained by the indicated boundaries. In other embodiments all the steps occur on a single network or system, and in further embodiments additional or other networks and/or systems are used.

[00163] Whilst reference is made to item 2 as singular, it will be appreciated that a given order 302 is able to be in respect of a single item contained in a single package, or multiple items in a single package or multiple packages. Where multiple packages are involved that are not intended for allocating to a single courier, then respective separate orders 302 are generated and progress independently of each other.

[00164] At step 320 network 301 , which is operated by a retailer (that in this embodiment is customer 12) is operable and ready to receive orders from customers (which in this description are referred to as users). In this specific example, customer 12 provides a website (not shown) that allows user 121 to browse the available goods that are offered for sale, and to select one or more of those goods for inclusion within a virtual shopping cart. Once the relevant goods are selected by user 121 and the virtual shopping cart progressed to the virtual check out, user 121 is asked to login as a pre-existing client of the retailer, or to create an account. In creating this account user 121 provides sufficient information to allow the population of fields 305, 306, 307, and 308 with at least a default. In other embodiments additional or other information is obtained at this point.

[00165] Once the transaction for the selected good or goods has been completed between user 121 and customer 12 - that is, once step 321 has occurred - the user is able to select a delivery option, one of which is to have the good or goods packaged as item 2 and delivered by a courier. An application server (not shown) associated with network 301 is responsive to this option being selected for assessing at step 322 if all the required fields 303 to 309 inclusive are able to be populated from the available data. If not, the application server progresses to step 323 and, via a web interface (not shown), seeks further details from user 121 and/or confirms the details that are presently available.

[00166] Once all of fields 303 to 309 have been populated, the application server generates order 302 at step 324 and communicates this order to system 1 at step 325. System 1 , upon receipt of order 302 at step 326, verifies the quality of the information contained within fields 303 to 309 and provides a confirmation to customer 12 or a request for further and better particulars to rectify and determined deficiencies.

[00167] At step 327 system 1 is responsive to a verified record 302 for allocating item 2 to a courier 3, as has been described above. System 1 then progresses to step 328 and is responsive to, amongst other things, field 307 for generating an email to user 121 (which is directed to phone 122) that contains a unique hyperlink (also referred to simply as a link) for facilitating tracking of item 2 by user 121. That is, the user 121 is able, with a web enabled devices such as phone 121 (or other device) to click on the link to request the delivery of a corresponding webpage from system 1 that provides one or more of: a status update; access to a timer for item 2 providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of the item, or the timer until arrival of the item; information about how to manage the delivery, for example to change the desired time of delivery; and the like. [00168] A copy of the email is in some embodiments also copied to the retailer to provide a convenient record for tracking the progress of the delivery of item 2 by personnel of the retailer. Typically, however, a retailer will have a dedicated account with the courier services company operating system 1 and will be provided with secure access to a web portal (not shown) for allowing monitoring of all outstanding deliveries for that retailer.

[00169] At step 329 system 1 is responsive to, amongst other things, field 308 for generating an SMS message to phone 122. This SMS message includes data indicative of a delivery time (expressed as a range such as "Between 9 AM and 12 Noon tomorrow") and delivery address for item 2. It also includes coded options for user 121 , such as:

• To change delivery time to the next business day and between 9 AM and 12 Noon reply with "1".

• To change delivery time to the business day after tomorrow and between 9 AM and 12 Noon reply with "2".

• To change delivery time to the next business day and between 1 PM and 4 PM reply with "3".

• For other changes reply with "4".

[00170] In other embodiments only the first two coded options are provided. In further embodiments alternative or a different number of coded options are offered.

[00171] The SMS message is sent to phone 122. At this point, step 330, system 1 is responsive to any reply from phone 122 for monitoring automatically either the confirmation of the delivery address and time or the desire for a change of one or more of the delivery address or time. If no response is received by a predetermined period prior to the proposed delivery time, system 1 progresses to step 331 to operate the countdown timer for item 2 in accordance with the methodology described above. This predetermined period typically starts about one hour prior to the earliest bound of the range specified in the SMS message. Accordingly, for the above example, if user 121 had not provided any contrary indication by 8 AM on the proposed day of delivery, then item 2 would be allocated for pick-up and then for delivery between the hours of 9 AM and 12 noon that same day. It will be appreciated that this example relates to deliveries within a city. For deliveries between cities or more spaced apart pick-up and delivery addresses the predetermined period will differ. In some cases it is possible to still maintain a relatively short predetermined period for the longer distance courier orders by making use of overnight storage in the city of delivery. [00172] However, if a reply is received that includes only a "1", a "2" or a "3", system 1 progresses to step 332 and to update the proposed delivery time. System 1 then reverts to step 327 to re-calculate the allocation of item 2 and, if so determined, to allocate item 2 to a different courier. At step 328 system 1 will issue a further email to user 121 to confirm that change. In this embodiment the further email includes also a link, although it is the same as was originally issued to user 121.

[00173] For other changes assessed at step 330 it is typical for a representative of the courier service company to directly contact user 121 to ascertain the nature of the changes and for that representative to manually update the relevant records within system 1 to reflect the user's preferences or requirements. It is also possible for user 121 to contact the courier services operator directly (for example, by telephone or via the relevant website) to arrange for a change in the delivery time or address.

[00174] Returning to step 331 , system 1 is operating the timer such that either or both of customer 12 and user 121 are able to gain an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the relevant waypoint. Once system 1 determines at step 333 that the second phase of the timer has commenced for the delivery of item 2 to user 121 , progress is made to step 334 and a further SMS message issued to phone 122. This further SMS message provides a specific indication of the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the delivery address and typically would be about half an hour prior to the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the delivery address. However, in other embodiments the second phase commences at a different interval from the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the delivery address.

[00175] In any event, user 121 is alerted to the impending arrival of the courier. It will be appreciated that during the first phase the accuracy of the timing indicated by system 1 is lower than that provided during the second phase. Accordingly, in this embodiment, use is made of a push technology, in addition to the pull technology more predominantly used in system 1 , to alert the user to the availability of the more accurate indication.

[00176] Once item 2 has been delivered to user 121 at the delivery address 21 the courier, via computer 4, provides to system 1 a delivery receipt. System 1 is responsive to the receipt and one or more of fields 303 to 309 for updating one or more of databases 28 to 30 and 80. In some embodiments, system 1 also issues to customer 12 that includes predetermined text for allowing the processor associated with network 301 to automatically update a database associated with network 301 to indicate the delivery of the item. [00177] The intention of the embodiments is to ensure the user has the most accurate indication of the anticipated time of arrival for as long as it is available. Accordingly, system 1 is preferentially configured to alert user 121 (or customer 12) that the second phase has commenced.

[00178] The embodiments also attempt to provide the accurate indication for as long as possible. However, in recognition of the increasing practical difficulty in accurately predicting the time of arrival of the courier with the increasing time into the future that the time of arrival is to take place, system 1 makes use of the second phase only when that accuracy is believed sufficient. For in operating system 1 there is a need to satisfy customer expectations, and a failure to do so, by having the second phase too long and therefore more subject to error, is counterproductive. Whilst different courier service organisation will have different thresholds of risk, it has been that providing the second phase during the thirty minutes prior to the anticipated time of delivery allows for effective management of client expectations. This is particularly so when during the first phase there is also provided an, albeit less accurate, indication of the anticipated time of arrival of the courier at the waypoint.

[00179] The above embodiments have been primarily described with reference to the transportation of items by couriers operating within a single metropolitan area. However, it will be appreciated that other embodiments are applicable to multiple areas, whether those areas are adjacent to or distal from each other. The embodiments also accommodate the transportation of an item by multiple couriers between the initial pick-up address and the ultimate delivery address. That is, a first of the couriers will have a pickup address which is the initial pick-up address, and a delivery address that corresponds to the pick-up address for a second of the couriers, and so on, until the final courier in the chain has a delivery address that corresponds to the ultimate delivery address. This could include any two or more couriers operating in tandem either in the same or different areas. It will also be appreciated that the areas are in some embodiments in different countries and the couriers make use of one or more of: automotive vehicles; aircraft; watercraft; motorcycles, bicycles; foot; and other forms of transportation.

[00180] The major advantages of the above embodiments include:

• The ability to provide, in effect, a real time timer.

• The provision of an accurate countdown timer. • Leveraging from the increasing accuracy that is available in predicting the time of arrival at a given waypoint during that period immediately leading up to the courier approaching that waypoint.

• Providing a timer for a longer period, although at varying accuracy in the phase or phases preceding that phase immediately leading to the arrival of the courier at a waypoint.

• Considerable automated operation, but with quality control steps involving a human operator.

• Additional reporting capabilities.

• Ease of scalability between small and large operations.

• Efficient use of computing resources and courier resources.

• Adaptive, real-time optimisation.

• Dynamic operation.

• Configurable for relatively low bandwidth requirements for data.

• Recognition of multiple phases in the delivery of an item and how the countdown timer is able to be managed differently in those phases to account for the relative certainty of the timer.

• Accommodates re-allocation of items and/or re-sequencing of allocated waypoints whilst still providing the required certainty to the participants seeking the indication of the time until arrival at a given waypoint.

• Based upon the predominance, but not necessarily the exclusive use, of pull technology rather than push technology. That is, the customer or user is able to access the timer information as desired, not only when that information is pushed out by the courier service provider.

• Multiple channel communication with customers/user by the operator of the courier service at different points in the transport of the item.

• Combining push and pull technologies, where push technologies are low data content and more usually present a zero or low cost to the customer/user, and allowing the customer/user to select the extent and regularity of the use of the pull technologies, which typically involve more expense to the customer/user. Conclusions and Interpretation

[00181] It will be appreciated that the disclosure above provides various significant systems and methods for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint.

[00182] Unless specifically stated otherwise, as apparent from the following discussions, it is appreciated that throughout the specification discussions utilising terms such as "processing," "computing," "calculating," "determining", analysing" or the like, refer to the action and/or processes of a computer or computing system, or similar electronic computing devices, that manipulate and/or transform data represented as physical, such as electronic, quantities into other data similarly represented as physical quantities.

[00183] In a similar manner, the term "processor" may refer to any device or portion of a device that processes electronic data, e.g., from registers and/or memory to transform that electronic data into other electronic data that, e.g., may be stored in registers and/or memory. A "computer" or a "computing machine" or a "computing platform" or a "server" may include one or more processors.

[00184] The methodologies described herein are, in one embodiment, performable by one or more processors that accept computer-readable (also called machine-readable) code containing a set of instructions that when executed by one or more of the processors carry out at least one of the methods described herein. Any processor capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken are included. Thus, one example is a typical processing system that includes one or more processors. Each processor may include one or more of a CPU, a graphics processing unit, and a programmable DSP unit. The processing system further may include a memory subsystem including main RAM and/or a static RAM, and/or ROM. A bus subsystem may be included for communicating between the components. The processing system further may be a distributed processing system with processors coupled by a network, or may be implemented as a cloud computing system. If the processing system requires a display, such a display may be included, e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube (CRT) display. If manual data entry is required, the processing system also includes an input device such as one or more of an alphanumeric input unit such as a keyboard, a pointing control device such as a mouse, and so forth. The term memory unit as used herein, if clear from the context and unless explicitly stated otherwise, also encompasses a storage system such as a disk drive unit. The processing system in some configurations may include a sound output device, and a network interface device. The memory subsystem thus includes a computer-readable carrier medium that carries computer-readable code (e.g., software) including a set of instructions to cause performing, when executed by one or more processors, one of more of the methods described herein. Note that when the method includes several elements, e.g., several steps, no ordering of such elements is implied, unless specifically stated. The software may reside in the hard disk, or may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the RAM and/or within the processor during execution thereof by the computer system. Thus, the memory and the processor also constitute computer-readable carrier medium carrying computer-readable code.

[00185] Furthermore, a computer-readable carrier medium may form, or be included in a computer program product.

[00186] In alternative embodiments, the one or more processors operate as a standalone device or may be connected, e.g., networked to other processor(s), in a networked deployment, the one or more processors may operate in the capacity of a server or a user machine in server-user network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer or distributed network environment. The one or more processors may form a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a cellular telephone, a web appliance, a network router, a smart phone, a switch or bridge, or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine.

[00187] Note that while diagrams only show a single processor and a single memory that carries the computer-readable code, those in the art will understand that many of the components described above are included, but not explicitly shown or described in order not to obscure the inventive aspect. For example, while only a single machine is illustrated, the term "machine" shall also be taken to include any collection of machines that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

[00188] Thus, one embodiment of each of the methods described herein is in the form of a computer-readable carrier medium carrying a set of instructions, e.g., a computer program that is for execution on one or more processors, e.g., one or more processors that are part of web server arrangement. Thus, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, embodiments of the present invention may be embodied as a method, an apparatus such as a special purpose apparatus, an apparatus such as a data processing system, or a computer-readable carrier medium, e.g., a computer program product. The computer-readable carrier medium carries computer readable code including a set of instructions that when executed on one or more processors cause the processor or processors to implement a method. Accordingly, aspects of the present invention may take the form of a method, an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Furthermore, the present invention may take the form of carrier medium (e.g., a computer program product on a computer-readable storage medium) carrying computer-readable program code embodied in the medium.

[00189] The software may further be transmitted or received over a network via a network interface device. While the carrier medium is shown in an exemplary embodiment to be a single medium, the term "carrier medium" should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets of instructions. The term "carrier medium" shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by one or more of the processors and that cause the one or more processors to perform any one or more of the methodologies of the present invention. A carrier medium may take many forms, including but not limited to, non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media. Non-volatile media includes, for example, optical, magnetic disks, and magneto-optical disks. Volatile media includes dynamic memory, such as main memory. Transmission media includes coaxial cables, copper wire and fiber optics, including the wires that comprise a bus subsystem. Transmission media also may also take the form of acoustic or light waves, such as those generated during radio wave and infrared data communications. For example, the term "carrier medium" shall accordingly be taken to included, but not be limited to, solid-state memories, a computer product embodied in optical and magnetic media; a medium bearing a propagated signal detectable by at least one processor of one or more processors and representing a set of instructions that, when executed, implement a method; and a transmission medium in a network bearing a propagated signal detectable by at least one processor of the one or more processors and representing the set of instructions.

[00190] It will be understood that the steps of methods discussed are performed in one embodiment by an appropriate processor (or processors) of a processing (i.e., computer) system executing instructions (computer-readable code) stored in storage. It will also be understood that the invention is not limited to any particular implementation or programming technique and that the invention may be implemented using any appropriate techniques for implementing the functionality described herein. The invention is not limited to any particular programming language or operating system. [00191] It should be appreciated that in the above description of exemplary embodiments of the invention, various features of the invention are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, Figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of one or more of the various inventive aspects. This method of disclosure, however, is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed invention requires more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive aspects lie in less than all features of a single foregoing disclosed embodiment. Thus, the claims following the Detailed Description are hereby expressly incorporated into this Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment of this invention.

[00192] Furthermore, while some embodiments described herein include some but not other features included in other embodiments, combinations of features of different embodiments are meant to be within the scope of the invention, and form different embodiments, as would be understood by those skilled in the art. For example, in the following claims, any of the claimed embodiments can be used in any combination.

[00193] Furthermore, some of the embodiments are described herein as a method or combination of elements of a method that can be implemented by a processor of a computer system or by other means of carrying out the function. Thus, a processor with the necessary instructions for carrying out such a method or element of a method forms a means for carrying out the method or element of a method. Furthermore, an element described herein of an apparatus embodiment is an example of a means for carrying out the function performed by the element for the purpose of carrying out the invention.

[00194] In the description provided herein, numerous specific details are set forth. However, it is understood that embodiments of the invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, structures and techniques have not been shown in detail in order not to obscure an understanding of this description.

[00195] Similarly, it is to be noticed that the term "coupled", when used in the claims, should not be interpreted as being limited to direct connections only. The terms "coupled" and "connected," along with their derivatives, may be used. It should be understood that these terms are not intended as synonyms for each other. Thus, the scope of an expression such as "a device A coupled to a device B" should not be limited to devices or systems wherein an output of device A is directly connected to an input of device B. It means that there exists a path between an output of A and an input of B which may be a path including other devices or means. "Coupled" may mean that two or more elements are either in direct physical or electrical contact, or that two or more elements are not in direct contact with each other but yet still co-operate or interact with each other.

[00196] Thus, while there has been described what are believed to be the preferred embodiments of the invention, those skilled in the art will recognize that other and further modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention, and it is intended to claim all such changes and modifications as falling within the scope of the invention. For example, any formulas given above are merely representative of procedures that may be used. Functionality may be added or deleted from the block diagrams and operations may be interchanged among functional blocks. Steps may be added or deleted to methods described within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A system for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint, the system including:

2. A system according to claim 1 wherein the transport data indicates the anticipated time of arrival as an absolute time.

3. A system according to claim 1 wherein the transport data indicates the anticipated time of arrival as a relative time.

4. A system according to any one of the preceding claims including a first interface, wherein:

5. A system according to claim 4 including:

a timer module for deriving timer data from the transport data; and

6. A system according to claim 5 wherein the remote terminal is operated by a user and is responsive to the timer data for displaying a timer to the user.

7. A system according to claim 6 wherein the timer includes a countdown timer.

8. A system according to claim 6 or claim 7 wherein the timer includes a static timer.

9. A system according to any one of claims 5 to 8 wherein the remote terminal accesses the timer data in response to one or more triggers.

10. A system according to claim 9 wherein the triggers include at least one of: a timeout since the last access; one or more predetermined actions performed by the remote terminal; and anticipation of the commencement of the second phase.

11. A method for providing an indication of the anticipated time of arrival of a courier at a predetermined waypoint, the method including:

12. A method according to claim 11 wherein the transport data indicates the anticipated time of arrival as an absolute time.

13. A method according to claim 11 wherein the transport data indicates the anticipated time of arrival as a relative time.

14. A method according to any one of claims 11 to 13 including the step of providing a first interface, wherein: the courier has a communication device for obtaining current location data and for providing that data to the first interface; and

15. A method according to claim 14 including the further steps of:

deriving timer data from the transport data; and

16. A method according to claim 15 wherein the remote terminal is operated by a user and is responsive to the timer data for displaying a timer to the user.

17. A method according to claim 16 wherein the timer includes a countdown timer.

18. A method according to claim 16 or claim 17 wherein the timer includes a static timer.

19. A method according to any one of claims 15 to 18 wherein the remote terminal accesses the timer data in response to one or more triggers.

20. A method according to claim 19 wherein the triggers include at least one of: a timeout since the last access; one or more predetermined actions performed by the remote terminal; and anticipation of the commencement of the second phase.