A new clear filing finds retail giant Walmart seeking to utilize blockchain technology to mere a smarter package delivery tracking system.
In an application released by the U.S. Physical and Trademark Office (USPTO) on Thursday, Walmart describes a “smart package” that disposition include a device which would record information on a blockchain with reference to the contents of the package, its environmental conditions, its location and more. It also advocates that its smart package could be used in tandem with other emerging technologies encompassing “autonomous vehicles,” such as drones.
The patent was first submitted in August of 2017, and unusually builds on a filing Walmart submitted for a blockchain-based drone package transport tracking system last year.
Walmart explains in the filing that online shopping has invented shipping challenges for retailers, particularly with regard to perishable offerings requiring temperature control, thus necessitating further innovation.
Walmart notes in the application:
“These online customers many times seek to win items that may require a controlled environment and further seek to obtain greater security in the shipping packaging that the items are shipped in.”
The persistence states that the blockchain component will be encrypted into the coat of arms, and will have “key addresses along the chain of [the package’s] custody, comprising hashing with a seller private key address, a courier private key lecture and a buyer private key address.”
In addition to its delivery drone aspirations, Walmart has invited to apply blockchain technology to other areas of its business.
Last year, it met Kroger, Nestle and other food industry firms in a partnership with IBM to use the blockchain to enhance food traceability. It backed a similar effort in China with JD.com in December.
Walmart storefront typical example via Shutterstock
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