BACKGROUND

The present invention, in some embodiments thereof, relates to supply chain management and, more specifically, but not exclusively, to systems and methods for tracking shipments during transportation.

Supply chain management involves management of complex and dynamic transportation and logistics networks. Decisions are made in order to direct items shipped from a producer to the final retailer or end user. Methods are systems are being developed to improve the efficiency of transporting certain items from a certain producer, to certain final retailers, along a transportation path that may be thousands of kilometers long, involving a large number of transportation vehicles.

SUMMARY

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a computer implemented method for monitoring a shipment during transport, comprising: at a geographical site, automatically detecting the arrival of the shipment based on an identification of at least one tag, wherein the shipment includes at least one item being transported, and the at least one tag device that monitors the at least one item using at least one environmental sensor that senses at least one environmental parameter; mapping the identified at least one tag to an organization; accessing a server storing a set-of-rules associated with the organization; evaluating at least one rule of the set-of-rules associated with the geographical site, the evaluation of the at least one rule indicative of at least one of monitored environmental conditions of the at least one item during transport and logistics of transport of the shipment; identifying when the at least one rule is met, a shipping segment between the geographical site and another geographical site representing an origin or destination along the shipping route of the shipment; and updating a tracking data structure tracking progress of the shipment along the shipping route with the identified shipping segment.

Optionally, the method further comprises generating an alert when the at least one rule is not met, the alert indicative of an error in at least one of the monitored environmental conditions of the at least one item during transport and logistics of transport of the shipment.

Optionally, the set-of-rules is stored in association with a hierarchical data structure defined for an organization associated with the at least one tag device, wherein the hierarchical data structure represents a geographical hierarchy of geographical sites for the organization, wherein the lowest level leaf nodes each represent a certain geographical site, wherein each relatively higher level node represents a geographical zone including geographical zones represented by relatively lower level nodes and the geographical sites represented by respective lowest level leaf nodes, wherein the highest level root node represents all geographic sites and all geographical zones of the organization, wherein each geographical site at each leaf node stores a respective set-of- rules, and the set-of-rules are retrieved according to the geographical site of the shipment.

Optionally, set-of-rules are stored in association with nodes relatively higher than the leaf nodes, wherein each leaf node inherits all set-of-rules associated with the higher level nodes according to hierarchical associations.

Optionally, evaluating the at least one rule of the set-of-rules comprise evaluation each set-of-rules stored at each node in the hierarchy above the node of the geographical site.

Optionally, the set-of-rules include at least one condition defined by at least one parameter, and at least one action for execution when the at least one condition is met.

Optionally, the at least one parameter is selected from the group consisting of: a trigger denoting arrival or departure of the shipment, a name of the rule, a shipper organization, a shipper geographical site, at least one receiver organization, a receiver geographical site, and a set of geographical sites along the shipping route of the shipment.

Optionally, the hierarchical data structure stores, for one or more nodes, at least one threshold for the at least one environmental parameter for the at least one item during at least one of transport to or from the geographical location, and storage and handling at the geographical site.

Optionally, the method further comprises resolving between the shipper of the shipment and the receiver of the shipment, by calculating the at least one environmental requirement for the at least one environmental parameter for the at least one item of the shipment that is satisfied for both the shipper and the receiver according to respective associated hierarchical data structure, and generating instructions for the at least one item during at least one of transport to or from the geographical location, and storage and handling at the geographical site, according to the resolution.

Optionally, resolving comprises computing an intersection of the environmental requirements of the shipper and the environmental requirements of the receiver.

Optionally, thresholds are stored in association with nodes relatively higher than the leaf nodes, wherein each leaf node inherits all thresholds applied to higher level nodes of the leaf node.

Optionally, mapping comprises mapping the identified at least one tag to a plurality of organizations; accessing comprises access the server storing a set-of-rules associated with each of the plurality of organization; further comprising resolving conflict between the set-of-rules associated with each of the plurality of organization to create a common set-of-rules; and wherein evaluating comprises evaluating the common set-of-rules. Optionally, the common set-of-rules is created based on a logical Boolean AND operation applied to the set-of-rules associated with each of the plurality of organizations.

Optionally, the method further comprises determining instructions for the shipment according to the set-of-rules, and presenting the instructions within a GUI on a display, wherein the instructions include storing the shipment at the geographical site, or designating the shipment for transport to another geographical site.

Optionally, the method further comprises receiving monitoring data from the at least one tag device indicative of environmental conditions of the at least one item during shipping along the previous shipping segment.

Optionally, the method further comprises generating a notification of arrival of the shipment at the geographical site when the at least one rule is met.

Optionally, the method further comprises when the at least one rule is met, generating instructions to split a plurality of the at least one item and a plurality of the at least one tag device into a plurality of shipments.

Optionally, the method further comprises when the at least one rule is met, generating instructions to close the shipment when the at least one rule is met. Optionally, the method further comprises instructions to create a new shipment from the closed shipment, wherein the destination geographical site of the shipping route of the new shipment is based on the originating geographical site of the closed shipment.

Optionally, the method further comprises generating instructions when the at least one rule is met, for setting at least one value of at least one environmental parameter for storage at the geographical site.

Optionally, the arrival of the shipment is detected by a communication unit located at the geographical site based on establishing a wireless communication with the at least one tag device.

Optionally, the at least one tag device establishes the wireless communication with an arbitrary communication unit of a plurality of communication units located at the geographical site, and further comprising: identifying a set of communication units in geographic proximity to the arbitrary communication unit, wherein each member of the set of communication units is located at a respective geographic site; executing, for each respective geographic site associated with each member of the set of communication units, the set-of-rules associated with the respective geographic site, and identifying a subset of the set-of-rules that are met; and executing the actions of the identified subset of the set-of-rules by ignoring duplicate actions.

Optionally, the method further comprises automatically detecting the departure of the shipment by a communication unit in wireless communication with the at least one tag device based on a disconnection of the wireless communication with the at least one tag device; and updating the tracking data structure to include a representation of the departure of the shipment from the geographical location.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a system for monitoring a shipment during transport, comprising: at least one computational unit located at a geographical site, each computational unit comprising: at least one antenna for reception of an identification transmitted by at least one tag device associated with at least one item of a shipment being transported; a program store storing code; and a processor coupled to the at least one antenna and to the program store for implementing the stored code, the code comprising: code to automatically detecting the arrival of the shipment based on an identification of the at least one tag device, map the identified at least one tag device to an organization, and access a server in network communication with the at least one computational unit, to access a set-of-rules associated with the organization stored by the server; code to evaluate at least one rule of the set-of-rules associated with the geographical site, the evaluation of the at least one rule indicative of at least one of monitored environmental conditions of the at least one item during transport and logistics of transport of the shipment, identify when the at least one rule is met, a shipping segment between the geographical site and another geographical site representing an origin or destination along the shipping route of the shipment; and code to update a tracking data structure tracking progress of the shipment along the shipping route with the identified shipping segment.

The system further comprises at one tag device in association with at least one item of the shipment being transported, each tag device comprising: at least one antenna for transmission of the identification of the respective tag device stored in a memory; and at least one environmental sensor that senses at least one environmental parameter of the at least one item.

Optionally, the at least one tag device is located within a container storing the at least one item.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention there is provided a computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing program code thereon for implementation by a processor of a computational unit located at an geographical site, for monitoring a shipment during transport, comprising: instructions to detect the arrival of the shipment based on an identification of at least one tag, wherein the shipment includes at least one item being transported, and the at least one tag device that monitors the at least one item using at least one environmental sensor that senses at least one environmental parameter; instructions to map the identified at least one tag to an organization; instructions to access a server storing a set-of-rules associated with the organization; instructions to evaluate at least one rule of the set-of-rules associated with the geographical site, the evaluation of the at least one rule indicative of at least one of monitored environmental conditions of the at least one item during transport and logistics of transport of the shipment; instructions to identify when the at least one rule is met, a shipping segment between the geographical site and another geographical site representing an origin or destination along the shipping route of the shipment; and instructions to update a tracking data structure tracking progress of the shipment along the shipping route with the identified shipping segment.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and/or scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the invention pertains. Although methods and materials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of embodiments of the invention, exemplary methods and/or materials are described below. In case of conflict, the patent specification, including definitions, will control. In addition, the materials, methods, and examples are illustrative only and are not intended to be necessarily limiting.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

Some embodiments of the invention are herein described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings. With specific reference now to the drawings in detail, it is stressed that the particulars shown are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of embodiments of the invention. In this regard, the description taken with the drawings makes apparent to those skilled in the art how embodiments of the invention may be practiced.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a method for monitoring environmental conditions of items during a shipment, and/or following logistics of transport of the items of the shipment, based on evaluation of a set-of-rules defined for a geographical site of the shipment containing the items, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of components of a system that evaluates a set-of-rules upon detecting an arrival event of a shipment of items at the geographical location, and evaluates the environmental conditions of the items during the shipment and/or generates instructions for logistical transport of the item, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic of an exemplary implementation of a hierarchical data structure 300, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention; FIG. 4A is an exemplary GUI that includes fields to define the set-of rules, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention; and

FIG. 4B is an exemplary GUI that includes fields to define the environmental parameters, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention, in some embodiments thereof, relates to supply chain management and, more specifically, but not exclusively, to systems and methods for tracking shipments during transportation.

An aspect of some embodiments of the present invention relates to systems and/or methods (e.g., code instructions executed by one or more processors) that evaluate a set-of-rules that trigger execution of actions at a geographic hand-off site (also referred to herein as geographical site or geographical location, for example, a port, a distribution center, a warehouse, and an airport) in which a shipment of items is received from a shipper. Each shipment of items is transported along multiple shipping segments between geographical hand-off sites during transportation from producer to end user. The set-of-rules are defined for one or more companies associated with the items (e.g., the owner of the items, the shipper of the items, the end purchaser of the items, the producer of the items, the receiving company) and per geographical site. The set-of-rules are designed to monitor the shipped items, and determine the conditions and/or logistics at the geographical site when the items arrive and/or depart, without necessarily requiring human input and/or integrating data from external entities. The set-of-rules are evaluated to determine logistics of transport of the shipment, for example, whether the items have reached the correct geographical site, and/or how to handle the items at the geographical site (e.g., to be stored locally, distributed, re- shipped by a certain shipper to another geographical site destination, and the environmental conditions for locally storing the items). The set-of-rules may be evaluated to determine the monitored environmental conditions during transport along the previous shipping segment. When the set-of-rules are successfully evaluated (e.g., yielding a TRUE value), the shipping segment between the previous geographical site and the current geographical site is created and designated as being complete (or in progress). Results of the evaluation of the set-of-rules may be presented to a user, for example, on a display, within a graphical user interface (GUI). The user may view the results of the evaluation of the set-of-rules to improve the decision making process. The creation of the segment may be indicative of a successful completion of the segment, which may be used by the user in the decision making process of which operation(s) to execute for handling the items, for example, local storage, local distribution, or route to another shipper. A tracking data structure tracking progress of the shipment along the shipping route (e.g., stored at a central monitoring server) is updated with the created shipping segment.

Alternatively, when the set-of-rules are not met (e.g., evaluated to a FALSE value), an alert may be generated indicating an error. For example, the alert may indicate that that shipment arrived at the wrong geographical location, and/or a failure to maintain environmental conditions (according to an environmental requirement) during the most recent transportation.

One or more tag devices that are transported with the items are wirelessly identified by a communication unit installed at the geographical site when the shipment arrives at the geographical site. The tag devices may include sensor(s) that sense environmental parameters for monitoring the transport environment of the items, for example, temperature and relative humidity. The tag devices transmit their stored data to the communication unit, including a unique identifier (also referred to herein as ID) and optionally the environmental monitoring data collected by the sensor(s). Each tag device is associated with a shipment of one or more items. Each tag device is associated with one or more organizations (e.g., a company, a producer, a shipper, a distributer, a retailer, a receiver), which may be identified by accessing a mapping database that maps tag IDs with organizations. For example, a tag device is associated with a shipment of 50 crates of potatoes, and with a shipper company and a receiver company.

The communication unit accesses a server storing the set-of-rules defined for the organization handling the shipment along the route (optionally associated with the tag device ID, as described herein), and/or defined for the geographical site along the route of the shipment.

The set-of-rules are stored according to a hierarchy representing geographical zones, optionally, in nodes connected with edges defining the hierarchical relationships. Lowest level nodes (i.e., leaf nodes) represent actual physical geographical locations, for example, a port (e.g., for trucks, a seaport, and an airport), a distribution center, and a warehouse). Respectively higher level nodes represent geographical zones arranged according to defined geographical hierarchies that each include smaller geographical zones, for example, cities, states, and countries. The set-of-rules may be defined per node, at any hierarchy. Each geographical site inherits the set-of-rules of all of the nodes at the higher levels, according to the hierarchical relationships. For example, a node representing a shipping port in New York includes the set-of-rules defined for the certain shipping port, the set-of-rules defined for New York State, the set-of-rules defined for the United States, and the set-of-rules defined for all shipments by the company.

Optionally, the set-of-rules store environmental requirements (for example, a threshold or range) for local storage and/or transport of the item, for example, a temperature and/or relative humidity range. The environmental requirements may be defined per item, for example, for meat, for milk, for bananas, for frozen meals, and/or for non-food items for example, flammable materials, and temperature and/or humidity sensitive products such as electronic components. The environmental requirements are inherited according to the hierarchy. When there is a conflict between environmental requirements defined by different nodes, the conflict is resolved (e.g., by code instructions executed by one or more processors) by calculating the environmental requirements that satisfy all sets-of-rules, for example, by calculating the intersection of all requirements of all sets-of-rules. For example, when the set-of-rules at the geographical site define a shipping temperature of 1-4 degrees Celsius for milk, but the state node defines a shipping temperature of 2-7, the environmental requirement 2-4 is calculated. A common set-of-rules may be created by an intersection operation applied to the set-of-rules of the organizations, to create a common set-of-rules. The common set-of-rules is evaluated. It is noted that the common set-of-rules may be created by performing a Boolean AND operation on all the rules, such that an evaluation of the common set-of-rules is met when all of the rules are met.

Optionally, during a hand-over of the shipment from a shipping company to a receiving company, the conflict in environmental requirements may arise between the shipping company and the receiving company. The conflict may be resolved by calculating the intersection of the environmental requirements, as described. The communication unit may continuously or periodically wirelessly communicate with the tag device, to confirm that the shipment is located at the geographical site. When the wireless communication is terminated, or the communication unit fails to re-establish contact with the tag device, the communication unit may detect the departure of the shipment. The tracking data structure may be updated accordingly to indicate that the shipment has left the geographical site.

The systems and/or methods (e.g., code instructions executed by one or more processors) described herein address the technical problem of tracking correct transportation of a shipment and/or verifying that environmental conditions of items in the shipment are according to environmental requirements. The technical problem is based on management of a large volume of data that arises from each shipping container that may include different items that may have different final shipping destinations and/or different environmental conditions, with each shipping container travelling thousands of kilometers along possibly a large number of geographical locations, where at each geographic location the shipping container may be stored, opened for distribution, and/or routed to a different shipper.

The systems and/or methods (e.g., code instructions executed by one or more processors) proposed a technical solution to the technical problem, by using tag devices that communication with communication devices at each geographical site, and a server centrally storing a set-of-rules for each geographical site. The technical solution is at least partly based on evaluating the set-of-rules for the geographical site when the shipment of items is detected as arriving at the site.

The systems and/or methods (e.g., code instructions executed by one or more processors) described herein improve an underlying technical process within the technical field of supply chain management, in particular, the logistics of transporting items that may require adherence to predefined environmental requirements.

The systems (including the urine analysis devices) and/or methods described herein (e.g., code instructions executed by one or more processor(s)) improve performance of a computing unit and/or network. The improvement in computer and/or network performance is based on the evaluation of the set-of-rules occurring locally at each geographical site when the shipment is detected as arriving at the geographical site. Tag devices, which may be implemented with a relatively small amount of memory, with simple radio transmitters, and/or with low performance processor(s) are used for each set of items being shipped, for example, rather than more complex computers performing more complicated functions. The tag devices are designed to collected data from the environmental sensors during the transport, and are not necessarily designed to perform more complex computations such as evaluation of the set-of-rules. A large number of tag devices may be used in the system, for example, one or more tags per type of item per shipment container.

The event of evaluation of the set-of-rules, which is used to evaluate the monitoring of the environmental conditions of the items, and/or used to generate instructions related to logistics of the transportation of the items (e.g., store locally, distribute, ship out) is triggered by identification of the arrival of the shipment at the geographical site. The computational units perform evaluation of the set-of-rules when the shipment arrival is detected, which reduces the computation time, processing resources, and/or memory resources, by locally performing the evaluation of the set-of- rules by the computational unit at each geographical site during the detected arrival event, rather than, for example, performing the evaluation more often (i.e., not triggered by the arrival event) and/or performing the evaluation by other computer devices located at other locations (e.g., centrally and/or by the tag devices, which may require more computational hardware, more memory, and/or may be less efficient).

The server which centrally stores the hierarchical data structure storing the set- of-rules improves network performance, by reducing the overall bandwidth of the network. Each computational unit at each geographical site is able to retrieve the relevant set-of-rules from the server over the network. The evaluation of the set-of-rules and/or generation of instructions based on the set-of-rules is locally performed by the computational units, which avoids transmission of the evaluation data over the network.

The systems and/or methods (e.g., code instructions executed by one or more processors) described herein are tied to physical real-life components, for example, using sensor(s) to monitor environmental parameters during transport of the items, using radio transmitters to communicate between the tag device and the communication device at the geographical site, and a server storing the set-of-rules in association with the hierarchical data structure. The systems and/or methods (e.g., code instructions executed by one or more processors) described herein provide a unique, particular, and advanced technique of real-time tracking and routing items being shipped while adhering to environmental conditions of the items.

Accordingly, the systems and/or methods described herein are inextricably tied to computer technology and physical hardware, to overcome an actual technical problem arising in shipping (i.e. transportation) of items.

Before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not necessarily limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of the components and/or methods set forth in the following description and/or illustrated in the drawings and/or the Examples. The invention is capable of other embodiments or of being practiced or carried out in various ways.

The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computer program product. The computer program product may include a computer readable storage medium (or media) having computer readable program instructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of the present invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that can retain and store instructions for use by an instruction execution device. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. A non- exhaustive list of more specific examples of the computer readable storage medium includes the following: a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, a floppy disk, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. A computer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construed as being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagating through a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulses passing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmitted through a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can be downloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computer readable storage medium or to an external computer or external storage device via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, a wide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprise copper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/or edge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in each computing/processing device receives computer readable program instructions from the network and forwards the computer readable program instructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium within the respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations of the present invention may be assembler instructions, instruction- set- architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, and conventional procedural programming languages, such as the "C" programming language or similar programming languages. The computer readable program instructions may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example, programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or programmable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readable program instructions by utilizing state information of the computer readable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry, in order to perform aspects of the present invention. Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructions may also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can direct a computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or other devices to function in a particular manner, such that the computer readable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises an article of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects of the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computer implemented process, such that the instructions which execute on the computer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of systems, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in the flowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion of instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternative implementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specified functions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions.

As used herein, the term geographical site means a physical location where a shipment departs, arrives, is stored, and/or re-distributed (e.g., the composition of the items in the container may be adjusted), for example, a port (e.g., airport, trucking port, sea port, railway station), a warehouse, a distribution center, a docking station, and the end user (e.g., retailer).

As used herein, the term shipping segment means transportation of the shipment between two geographical sites along the shipping route of the items, for example, from a sea port at one country where the boat departs the sea port at another country where the vessel arrives and docks. The shipping segment may include a portion of the shipment of the journey from the producer to the distribution center, and/or along the last mile to the end user (e.g., retailer).

Reference is now made to FIG. 1, which is a flowchart of a method for monitoring environmental conditions of items during a shipment, and/or following logistics of transport of the items of the shipment, based on evaluation of a set-of-rules defined for a geographical site of the shipment containing the items, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention. Reference is also made to FIG. 2, which is a block diagram of components of a system 200 that evaluates a set-of-rules upon detecting an arrival event of a shipment of items at the geographical location, and evaluates the environmental conditions of the items during the shipment and/or generates instructions for logistical transport of the item, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

System 200 includes one or more tag devices 202 that communicate with a communication unit 204 when a shipment 206 of one or more items 208A-B (e.g., of different types) triggers an event, optionally by arrival of a container containing shipment 206 at a geographical location having one or more installed communication units 204. Computational unit 204 accesses a server 208 to retrieve a set-of-rules for evaluation, as described herein.

Tag device 202 includes one or more antennas 210A for wirelessly communicating with antenna 210B of computational unit 204. Antenna(s) 210A may have transmitter capability (i.e., to transmit wireless signals to computational unit 204) and/or receiver capability (e.g., to respond to a prompt from computational unit 204). Optionally, the transmission power of antenna(s) 210A is designed for communication with computational unit 204 when shipment 206 is in near proximity to the geographical location where computational unit 204 is installed, for example, no more than about 5 kilometers, or 1 kilometer, or 500 meters, or 100 meters, or other values.

Tag device 202 may include one or more sensors 212 that measure one or more values of environmental parameters of items(s) 208A-B during shipment, for example, a temperature sensor that measures the temperature of the environment around items(s) 208 A-B, and/or a relative humidity sensor that measures the relative humidity of the environment around item(s) 208A-B. It is noted that each tag device 202 may be used to monitor a different type of item, and/or a group of multiple item types, for example, each shipping container storing items of different types may include one or more tag devices 202, or each case storing item of the same type may include one or more tag devices 202. Tag device(s) 202 may be installed within the container, for example, attached to the roof of the container. Tag device(s) 202 may be standalone units that may be inserted and removed from the container, for example, as packages stacked with the items within the container. Tag device(s) 202 may be enclosed in a container designed to withstand environmental conditions around the items, for example, to withstand cold (e.g., freezing) temperatures, and/or humidity.

A memory 214 may store the measurements performed by sensor(s) 212. The measurements may be wirelessly transmitted to computational unit 204 when the arrival event is detected. Memory 214 may store a tag identifier (also referred to herein as ID), which may be transmitted to computational unit 204 for identification of tag 202. Memory 214 may be implemented, for example, as random access memory (RAM).

A processing unit 216 may operate sensor(s), memory 214, and antenna 210A.

Processing unit 216 may be implemented for example, as a central processing unit (CPU), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) device, or the like.

A power source 218 (e.g., battery, outlet plug) provides power to components of tag device 202.

Tag device 202 may be implemented, for example, as single unit, optionally housed in a durable case and/or hermetically sealed to protect the internal components from the wear and tear that may be incurred during shipping, and/or from varying environmental conditions within the shipping container. Tag device 202 may be installed within the shipping container (e.g., physically attached to a wall or roof), and/or may be box-like device that is placed within the shipping container.

Computational unit 204 and server 208 respectively include processing units 220A-B, a program store 222A-B for storing code instructions executable by the respective processing unit 220A-B, and optionally a data repository 224A-B for storing data. Optionally, data repository 224B of server 208 stores on or more of: a tracking repository 226A storing tracking data structures that track the shipping progress of shipments, a repository 226B that stores a mapping of tag IDs to organizations, a hierarchical data structure repository 226C that stores hierarchical data structures for each organization, an associated set-of-rules 226D mapped to nodes of the hierarchy, and optionally environmental requirements 226E mapped to the nodes of the hierarchy. Data repository 224B may include a shipment repository 226F (e.g., a database) that stores data of shipment 206, for example, one or more of: shipment identifier, originating geographical site, destination geographical site, shipping companies authorized for transportation, item(s), and unique IDs of tag devices.

Processing units 220A-B may be implemented, for example, as a central processing unit(s) (CPU), a graphics processing unit(s) (GPU), field programmable gate array(s) (FPGA), digital signal processor(s) (DSP), and application specific integrated circuit(s) (ASIC). Processing unit(s) 220A-B may include one or more processors (homogenous or heterogeneous), which may be arranged for parallel processing, as clusters and/or as one or more multi-core processing units.

Program stores 222A-B may be implemented as, for example, a random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), and/or a storage device, for example, non- volatile memory, magnetic media, semiconductor memory devices, hard drive, removable storage, and optical media (e.g., DVD, CD-ROM).

Data repository 224A-B may be implemented as, for example, a memory, a local hard-drive, a removable storage unit, an optical disk, a storage device, and/or as a remote server and/or computing cloud (e.g., accessed using a network connection).

Computational unit(s) 204 communicate with server 206 over a data communication link (e.g., a network optionally network 226 or another network, direct cable and/or wireless links) using respective data interfaces 228 A-B. The data communication link and/or network 226 may be implemented, for example, as one or more of: the internet, a private network, a local area network, and/or a cellular network, and a wireless network. Data interfaces 228A-B may be implemented as physical hardware and/or virtually using software, for example, as a network interface card, and/or network communication software providing higher layers of network connectivity.

Optionally, one or more client terminal(s) 230 may access and/or receive data from server 208 and/or computational unit(s) 204 over network 226, for example, to receive notifications of arrival of shipments, receive alerts indicative of an error in evaluation of the set-of-rules, and/or to receive shipment reports (e.g., as described herein). Client terminals 230 may be implemented as, for example, a mobile device, a desktop computer, a thin client, a Smartphone, a Tablet computer, a laptop computer, a server, a wearable computer, glasses computer, and a watch computer.

Client terminals 230 include or are in communication with respective user interfaces 232 (which may be integrated with a display, or be implemented as a separate device), for example, a touchscreen, a keyboard, a mouse, and voice activated software using speakers and microphone. It is noted that server 208, computational unit(s) 204, and/or tag device 202 may include a connection to a user interface.

The acts of the method described with reference to FIG. 1 may be implemented and/or executed by components of system 200 described with reference to FIG. 2.

At 102, the set-of-rules are defined. The set-of-rules are optionally defined during design time, but may be dynamically updated, for example, according to changes in laws and/or regulations. The set-of-rules may be defined manually, for example, by a user using a user interface. The set-of-rules may be implemented, for example, as a script, written using a domain specific language, using a general programming language, built by defining values and selecting from a list of predefined rules, and the like.

The set-of-rules are stored in association with a hierarchical data structure defined for an organization. Each organization is associated with one or more tag device. The mapping between organizations and tag devices may be stored in repository 226B. The hierarchical data structure may be implemented, for example, as a tree with nodes at respective hierarchical levels and edges defining hierarchical relationships between the nodes.

Reference is now made to FIG. 3, which is a schematic of an exemplary implementation of a hierarchical data structure 300, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

The hierarchical data structure represents a geographical hierarchy of geographical sites defined for the organization (e.g., Company A). The lowest level leaf nodes 302 each represent a certain geographical site, for example, a port, a distribution warehouse, and a storage facility. Each relatively higher level node represents a geographical zone that includes the geographical zones represented by the relatively lower level nodes, and the geographical sites represented by the respective lowest level leaf nodes. For example, nodes at a country level or state level include the nodes of the geographical sites 302. For example France includes two sites and New York State includes 3 sites. Nodes at a continent or country level 306 include all nodes below. For example, Europe includes France, and Germany, with the geographical sites of each country. For example, United States includes New York State and California, with all geographical sites of each state. It is noted that the hierarchy may be created according to geographical definitions (e.g., city, county, state, continent), for example, according to law and/or regulations (e.g., local laws, state laws, country laws) such as laws defining environmental requirements for transport of food products.

The highest level root node 308 represents all geographic sites and all geographical zones associated with the organization, for example, all regions where the organization does business. For example, when the organization is a sea freight company, all the ports that the ships may dock at are included. Each geographical site represented by leaf node 302 stores a respective set-of- rules (i.e. Rules). The rules may be stored within the node itself, or a point stored at the nodes may point to the rules within a database, or other implementations may be used. The set-of-rules represent the rules for the certain geographical site of the shipment, for example, how to handle the shipment at the certain port.

Optionally, the hierarchical data structure stores at least one environmental requirement (i.e. requirements) for the environmental parameter(s) for the item(s). For example, safe temperature ranges for storage of the item(s), and/or safe relatively humidity for storage of the item(s). Optionally, environmental requirements are defined for each type of item, for example, for bananas, for meat, for frozen prepared foods, for flammable materials, and for computers. The environmental requirements are defined for transport to and/or from the geographical location, and/or storage and handling at the geographical site.

The hierarchical data structure stores the rules and/or environmental requirements

Each node inherits the set-of-rules and/or environmental requirements of its parent node(s) (i.e., the nodes at higher levels). Leaf nodes 302 representing geographical sites inherit the rules and/or environmental requirements of the nodes at the higher levels according to the hierarchical relationship. For example, leaf node 310 inherits the rules and/or requirements of node France, node Europe, and node Company A. Rules and/or requirements stored in higher level nodes are defined for all child (i.e., lower level) nodes of the higher level node. For example, rules and/or requirements of node 308 are applied by all geographical sites. For example, rules and/or requirements of France node are applied to the child sites (i.e., site 1 and 2).

The hierarchical data structure defines the rules and/or requirements according to geographical zones, and the inheritance correctly applied the zoning rules and/or requirements to the actual specific geographical site where shipments arrive and/or depart. For example, rules and/or requirements that apply across the United States are stored in the United States node for application to all geographical sites in all states. State specific rules and/or requirements are stored in the respective state node, for application to all geographical sites in the state. Company-wide policy is defined using rules and/or requirements and stored in node 308 for application by all geographical sites of the company.

The set-of-rules include one or more conditions defined by one or more parameters. Optionally, the evaluation of the set-of-rules produces a binary outcome, for example, met or not met, TRUE or FALSE.

The set-of-rules include one or more actions for execution when the condition(s) are met (or evaluated as TRUE).

Exemplary parameters include one or more of: a trigger denoting arrival or department of the shipment, a name of the rule, a shipper organization, a shipper geographical site, one or more receiver organizations, a receiver geographical site, and a set of geographical sites along the shipping route of the shipment.

Optionally, the set-of-rules are accessible to a system administration (e.g., super user), and not necessarily exposed to other users of organizations, unless defined, for example, the shipper, receiver, and third party company agree which information is shared and with who.

Users may view shipment segments according to defined permission settings, which may be stored in nodes of the hierarchical data structure, optionally per geographical site, per country, or company-wide according to the level of the node storing the permissions. Users may be defined with settings to view shipments at geographical sites that belong to another organization (e.g., the shipper has permission to view the third geographical site which the shipment is passing through, for example, the user is only granted permission to view shipment details of shipments relevant to the organization of the user, and is not granted permission to view shipment details of other organizations.

Reference is now made to FIG. 4A, which depicts an exemplary graphical user interface (GUI) that includes fields to define the set-of rules, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

Reference is now made to FIG. 4B, which depicts an exemplary GUI that includes fields to define the environmental parameters, optionally for each type of item, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

Referring now back to FIG. 1, at 104, the arrival of the shipment is automatically detected at the geographical site. Alternatively, the departure of shipment 206 from the geographical location is detected. Shipment 206 includes one or more types of item 208A-B being transported, and one or more tag devices 202 that monitor items 208A-B using sensor(s) 212.

The arrival of shipment 206 is detected by one or more communication units 204 located at the geographical site. Communication unit 204 establishes a wireless communication with antenna 21 OA of tag device 202, for example, by receiving a broadcast of a signal transmitted by antenna 21 OA. Alternatively or additionally, antenna 210B of communication unit 204 may continuously or periodically transmit a query broadcast, to which antenna 21 OA of tag device 202 responds when shipment 206 is in geographical proximity to communication unit 204.

Tag device 202 transmits its ID to communication unit 204. Tag device 202 may transmit monitoring data collected by sensor(s) 212 during transport from the previous geographical site. The monitored data may be used to generate a status report, and/or applied to the set-of-rules.

An arrival event (of a shipment) is detected by computation unit 204 when a signal is received from antenna 21 OA of tag device 202 when the signal has not been detected earlier.

Alternatively, the departure of the shipment from the geographical site is automatically detected. Communication unit 204 may automatically detect the department of the shipment from the geographical site based on a disconnection of the wireless communication with antenna 210A of tag device 202. For example, signals transmitted by antenna 21 OA of tag device 202 are no longer received by antenna 210B of computational unit 204 (i.e., antenna 210A is now out of range of antenna 210B).

Optionally, the computational unit issues instructions to update the tracking data structure to include a representation of the departure of the shipment from the geographical location.

A notification indicative of arrival or departure of the shipment at the geographical site may be generated, for example, transmitted to client terminal 230 for presentation on user interface 233 (e.g., on the display), for example, as a text, as a GUI presentation, and/or transmitted for storage by server 208.

Optionally, multiple computational units 204 may receive signal(s) transmitted by antenna 210A of a common tag device 202. The computational units 204 may be installed at a common geographical site, and each associated with a different organization (e.g., a shipper, a receiver, a distributor). Alternatively or additionally, the computational units 204 may be installed at geographical sites in proximity to each other, close enough to tag device 202 to receive the signal(s) transmitted by antenna 210A. In such as case, the set-of-rules associated with each geographical site hosting each computational unit that receives transmissions from the common tag device are executed (e.g., in block 112). A subset of the set-of-rules that are met are identified. The instructions and/or actions that are generated (e.g., in block 116) are based on all of the set-of-rules for the geographical sites, by ignoring duplicate instructions and/or actions.

At 106, the tag device is identified, optionally by the computational unit at the geographical site. The tag device may be identified according to the transmitted signal, for example, according to a defined protocol.

The tag device may transmit its unique ID for reception by the computational unit.

At 108, an organization is identified based on an association with the unique ID of the tag device, optionally based on accessing a dataset mapping the identified tag device (e.g., using the unique tag ID) to the organization, for example, tag ID- organization association repository 226B hosted by server 208 (or other computing unit). Computational unit 204 may access repository 226B on server 208 using network 226.

Alternatively or additionally, the geographical location associated with the tag device(s) is identified. The geographical location associated with the tag device may be stored within memory 214 of tag device 202, for example, representing the geographical locations along the planned shipment route, originating port of the items, the physical location of the office of the shipper, and the like. Alternatively or additionally, the geographical location is the current geographical location where the shipment arrives, which may be identified based computing unit 204 storing the location, using global positioning data, and the like.

One or more organizations may be associated with the same unique ID of the tag device. The organizations may include organizations that are designated to handle the items along the shipping route, for example, the shipper(s) and/or receiver(s). For example, when the geographical site is a sea port, the organization associated with the ship that brought the shipment with the tag device to the port, and another organization associated with a truck that is designated to pick up the shipment with the tag device for land transportation to another location.

At 110, the set-of-rules associated with the organization is accessed, optionally by computational unit 204 accessing hierarchical data structure 226C and associated set- of-rules 226D stored on server 208.

Set-of-rules for the geographical site are accessed based on the hierarchical data structure defined for the one or more organizations identified as associated with tag device 202. The node representing the geographical site of the hierarchical data structure defined for the organization(s) is accessed to retrieve the set-of-rules, and optionally the set-of-rules stored by the higher layer nodes are inherited.

Optionally, the environmental requirements for the geographical site are accessed based on the hierarchical data structure defined for the one or more organizations identified as associated with tag device 202. The node representing the geographical site of the hierarchical data structure defined for the organization(s) is accessed to retrieve the environmental requirements, and optionally the environmental requirements stored by the higher layer nodes are inherited.

Optionally, unified environmental requirements are created by performing an intersection operation of all of the environmental requirements when multiple node layers each store environmental requirements. The unified environmental requirements include the environmental requirements that satisfy all requirements by all higher level nodes.

At 112, one or more rules of the set-of-rules (optionally including the inherited sets-of-rule) associated with the geographical site are evaluated. The evaluation may be performed by computational unit 204, optionally based on data local to the geographical site, which may be locally stored in data repository 224A of computational unit 204. Optionally, each set-of-rules stored at each node in the hierarchy above the node of the geographical site are evaluated.

Optionally, the evaluation of the rule of the set-of-rules is indicative of the environmental conditions of the item being monitored during transport (i.e., the most recent segment of the transportation route). The evaluation of the set-of-rules may be performed based on the environmental requirements defined for the geographical site (optionally including the inherited environmental requirements stored by higher level nodes). The evaluation of the set-of-rules may be performed using the sensor data provided by the tag device to the computational unit.

Optionally, the set-of-rules are evaluated to determine whether the environmental conditions during the transport adhered to the environmental requirements or not.

Alternatively or additionally, the set-of-rules are evaluated according to logistics of transport of the shipment, optionally, to determine whether the logistics of the transport are satisfied or not. For example, to determine whether the shipper is authorized to use the port at the geographical site, to determine whether the receiver is able to receive the shipment, and to determine whether storage space is available for the shipment.

Optionally, two or more organizations may be associated with a common tag device, for example, two hierarchical data structures of two organization may map to a common tag device ID, for example, an authorized shipper (e.g., sea operator) and an authorized receiver (e.g., land operator). The set-of-rules and/or environmental conditions associated with each hierarchical data structure of each organization are accessed. When two or more organizations are associated with the common tag device, conflicts arising between the environmental parameters and/or the set-of-rules defined for the geographical site are resolved.

Optionally, the conflict(s) is resolved (e.g., between the shipper of the shipment and the receiver of the shipment) for the environmental requirements, by calculating the environmental requirement (e.g., range, threshold) for the environmental parameter for the item(s) of the shipment that is satisfied for both the shipper and the receiver, according to respective associated hierarchical data structures. The conflict may be resolved by calculating the intersection of the environmental requirements. For example, a range of temperature and/or relative humidity that satisfies the requirements of both the shipper and the receiver.

Optionally, the conflict(s) is resolved for the set-of-rules by computing the logical Boolean AND operation (and/or a set union operation) of the set-of-rules of the shipper and the set-of-rules of the receiver (and/or other organizations). The combined set-of-rules represent the rules that meet all requirements of all the organizations. Instructions are generated (as described herein) according to the resolution for the item(s) during transport to and/or from the geographical location, and/or for storage and/or handling at the geographical site.

At 114, the evaluated rule(s) are met, for example, the rule(s) yield a value of TRUE.

Optionally, a shipping segment is identified between the geographical site and another geographical site (i.e., the geographical site from which the shipment arrived, or where the shipment is going). The another geographical site represents an origin or destination along the shipping route of the shipment. The identification of the shipping segment may represent that the shipment successfully reached the geographical site and that the rules have been met.

Alternatively, the shipping segment is identified as local storage at the geographical site (i.e., no further transportation). The storage may include a period of time for the storage.

Optionally, a tracking data structure (e.g., stored in tracking repository 226A, which may be hosted by server 206) that tracks progress of the shipment along the shipping route is updated with the identified shipping segment.

Optionally, at 116, instructions are determined and/or generated for the shipment according to the set-of-rules that are met. Optionally, the instructions include storing the shipment at the geographical site, and/or designating the shipment for transport to another geographical site. The instructions may be generated, for example, automatically by on code instructions, and/or based on an operator manually creating the instructions.

The instructions may be, for example, transmitted for presentation within a GUI on a display of a monitoring station to present possible options for the operator (e.g., to help the operator make a decision what to do next), transmitted to client terminals of workers at the geographical site to direct or suggest to the workers what to do next (e.g., a GUI on a smartphone of the workers with instructions on how to proceed), and/or may be automatically transmitted to computer devices at the geographical site (e.g., to a container sorting robot).

Exemplary instructions include: * Instructions to split multiple items and multiple tag devices to into multiple shipments, for example, into multiple containers. Each container may be designated for a different destination.

* Instructions to close the shipment.

* Instructions to create a new shipment from the closed shipment. The destination geographical site of the shipping route of the new shipment may be based on the originating geographical site of the closed shipment, for example, when the shipment container is being returned.

* Instructions for setting value(s) of environmental parameter(s) for storage at the geographical site, and/or for setting value(s) of environmental parameters(s) during the next segment of the route. For example, the temperature and/or relative humidity for storage and/or for the next segment.

* Instructions to generated and/or transmit the arrival report.

Alternatively, when at block 112 the rule(s) are not met, at 120, an alert is generated, for example, by a message appearing on a display of a monitoring terminal, optionally within a GUI presented on user interface (e.g., display) 232 of client terminal 230. The alert may be indicative of an error in the monitored environmental conditions of the item during transport and/or an error in logistics of transport of the shipment (e.g., shipment not expected at this port). The user may take action based on the presented message.

The next rule is evaluated, as described with reference to block 112. Rules may be evaluated sequentially, optionally based on a defined priority, for example, environmental condition related rules are evaluated first. Rules may be evaluated in parallel.

At 122, blocks 104-122 are iterated, per tag device 202 per shipment 206. For example, each shipment may include multiple tag devices, each monitoring items being transported for different producers. The iteration may be performed at the same geographical location.

It is noted that blocks 104-122 may be iterated at different geographical locations, using different computational unit(s) 204, as tag device 202 and/or shipment 206 proceeds along the transportation route. The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration, but are not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein was chosen to best explain the principles of the embodiments, the practical application or technical improvement over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.

It is expected that during the life of a patent maturing from this application many relevant servers, antennas, and processors will be developed and the scope of the terms server, antenna, and processor are intended to include all such new technologies a priori.

As used herein the term "about" refers to ± 10 %.

The terms "comprises", "comprising", "includes", "including", "having" and their conjugates mean "including but not limited to". This term encompasses the terms "consisting of" and "consisting essentially of".

The phrase "consisting essentially of" means that the composition or method may include additional ingredients and/or steps, but only if the additional ingredients and/or steps do not materially alter the basic and novel characteristics of the claimed composition or method.

As used herein, the singular form "a", "an" and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. For example, the term "a compound" or "at least one compound" may include a plurality of compounds, including mixtures thereof.

The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance or illustration". Any embodiment described as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments and/or to exclude the incorporation of features from other embodiments.

The word "optionally" is used herein to mean "is provided in some embodiments and not provided in other embodiments". Any particular embodiment of the invention may include a plurality of "optional" features unless such features conflict. Throughout this application, various embodiments of this invention may be presented in a range format. It should be understood that the description in range format is merely for convenience and brevity and should not be construed as an inflexible limitation on the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the description of a range should be considered to have specifically disclosed all the possible subranges as well as individual numerical values within that range. For example, description of a range such as from 1 to 6 should be considered to have specifically disclosed subranges such as from 1 to 3, from 1 to 4, from 1 to 5, from 2 to 4, from 2 to 6, from 3 to 6 etc., as well as individual numbers within that range, for example, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. This applies regardless of the breadth of the range.

Whenever a numerical range is indicated herein, it is meant to include any cited numeral (fractional or integral) within the indicated range. The phrases "ranging/ranges between" a first indicate number and a second indicate number and "ranging/ranges from" a first indicate number "to" a second indicate number are used herein interchangeably and are meant to include the first and second indicated numbers and all the fractional and integral numerals therebetween.

It is appreciated that certain features of the invention, which are, for clarity, described in the context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features of the invention, which are, for brevity, described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in any suitable subcombination or as suitable in any other described embodiment of the invention. Certain features described in the context of various embodiments are not to be considered essential features of those embodiments, unless the embodiment is inoperative without those elements.

Although the invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and broad scope of the appended claims.

All publications, patents and patent applications mentioned in this specification are herein incorporated in their entirety by reference into the specification, to the same extent as if each individual publication, patent or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated herein by reference. In addition, citation or identification of any reference in this application shall not be construed as an admission that such reference is available as prior art to the present invention. To the extent that section headings are used, they should not be construed as necessarily limiting.