A new computerized
tracking system, IndeliTrak, that incorporates the state-of-the-art technologies including
cell phones, GPS, Internet, and scanners to gather and distribute up-to-the-minute
tracking data with little effort. As an example, a courier carries a
mobile phone that is attached to a
barcode scanner and programmed with IndeliTrak's tracking
software. The
mobile phone enables the courier to log in, retrieve his service schedule, verify each
service location, log arrival / departure time, scan packages for
pickup and delivery, and sign off. Scanned data are stored on the phone and transmitted to a customized IndeliTrak
database. End users can track the packages via IndeliTrak's browser-based
user interface almost instantaneously. IndeliTrak does not require unique
package identifications (IDs) or barcodes. Acceptable IDs include
radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, non-serialized barcodes, electronic product codes (EPCs), etc. The same ID code can be reused daily.