Granted Patent B1

US 12,612,086 · App. 18/343,135 · Granted Apr 28, 2026

Inventors: Gaurav Kumar (Bellevue, WA); Nicholas G. Dyshaw (Stillwater, MN)

Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.

B61L15/0027G01S13/88

Abstract

Claims (75)

1 . A freight sensor package, comprising:

a battery;

a mmWave radar sensor;

a long range communication device;

an imaging sensor and a microphone; and

a processor in communication the mmWave radar sensor, the long range communication device, and a memory, the processor configured to at least:

receive a cargo signature associated with a plurality of objects that are loaded within a trailer prior to transport, the cargo signature comprising a combination of sensor data from the mmWave radar sensor and at least one additional sensor;

receive, from the mmWave radar sensor, data related to at least one change associated with an object of the plurality of objects that are within the trailer during transport;

instruct a comparison between the data related to the at least one change during transport and the cargo signature;

determine at least one event based on the comparison;

responsive to determination of the at least one event, instruct actuation of at least one of the imaging sensor or the microphone to capture imaging or audio data associated with the at least one event;

store the at least one event within the memory; and

transmit, via the long range communication device, the at least one event to a remote computing resource.

2 . The freight sensor package of claim 1 , further comprising:

a visual output device and an audio output device;

wherein the processor is further configured to:

responsive to determination of the at least one event, instruct actuation of at least one of the visual output device or the audio output device to present an alert or information related to the at least one event.

3 . The freight sensor package of claim 1 , wherein the long range communication device is configured to communicate with at least one other freight sensor package via a peer-to-peer, long range mesh communication network, the at least one other freight sensor package being associated with a second trailer that is separate from the freight sensor package associated with the trailer.

4 . A device, comprising:

a mmWave radar sensor;

at least one of an imaging sensor or an audio input device; and

a processor in communication the mmWave radar sensor and a memory, the processor configured to at least:

receive a cargo signature associated with an interior of a container, the cargo signature comprising a combination of sensor data from the mmWave radar sensor and at least one additional sensor;

receive, from the mmWave radar sensor, data related to a change associated with an object or an environment within the interior of the container;

instruct a comparison between the data related to the change and the cargo signature;

determine an event based on the comparison;

responsive to determination of the event, instruct actuation of at least one of the imaging sensor or the audio input device to capture imaging or audio data associated with the event; and

store the event within the memory.

5 . The device of claim 4 , wherein the device is configured to be coupled to the interior of the container, the container comprising at least one of a trailer, freight container, shipping container, or unit load device.

6 . The device of claim 4 , wherein the data related to the change comprises at least one of:

an opening or closing of a door of the container;

a placement of an object within the container during a loading process;

a movement of an object within the container during a transport process; or

a removal of an object from within the container during an unloading process at the destination.

7 . The device of claim 4 , wherein the

cargo signature is associated with a plurality of objects that are loaded within the interior of the container during a loading process and prior to a transport process.

8 . The device of claim 4 , wherein the event comprises at least one of:

shifting or falling of an object within the container during transport;

unauthorized opening of a door of the container during transport;

unauthorized entry of an agent into the container during transport; or

unauthorized placement, movement, or removal of an object within the container during transport.

9 . The device of claim 4 , further comprising:

an accelerometer configured to detect acceleration of the container;

wherein the data related to the change is received responsive to detection of an acceleration by the accelerometer.

10 . The device of claim 4 , further comprising:

at least one of a visual output device or an audio output device;

wherein the processor is further configured to:

responsive to determination of the event, instruct actuation of at least one of the visual output device or the audio output device to present an alert or information related to the event.

11 . The device of claim 4 , further comprising:

an onboard power supply; and

a connection to an external power source;

wherein the device is configured to operate using the onboard power supply in an absence of a connected external power source.

12 . The device of claim 4 , further comprising:

at least one of a high bandwidth communication device, a cellular communication device, or a long range communication device;

wherein the processor is further configured to:

transmit, via at least one of the high bandwidth communication device, the cellular communication device, or the long range communication device, the event to a remote computing resource;

wherein based on the event, the remote computing resource is configured to determine additional unloading procedures during an unloading process at a destination.

13 . A method, comprising:

receiving, by a processor, a cargo signature associated with an interior of a container, the cargo signature comprising a combination of sensor data from an mmWave radar sensor and at least one additional sensor positioned within the container;

receiving, by the processor, data related to a change associated with an object or an environment within the interior of the container;

instructing a comparison between the data related to the change and the cargo signature;

determining, by the processor, an event based on the comparison;

responsive to determination of the event, instructing actuation of at least one of an imaging sensor or an audio input device to capture imaging or audio data associated with the event; and

storing, by the processor, the event within a memory.

14 . The method of claim 13 ,

wherein the cargo signature is associated with a plurality of objects that are loaded within the interior of the container during a loading process and prior to a transport process.

15 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the data related to the change is received during at least one of a loading process, a transport process, or an unloading process of the container.

16 . The method of claim 13 , further comprising:

instructing, by the processor, additional procedures during an unloading process based on the event.

17 . The freight sensor package of claim 1 , wherein the at least one additional sensor comprises at least one of the imaging sensor, a Bluetooth sensor, or an ultra-wideband communication device.

18 . The device of claim 4 , wherein the at least one additional sensor comprises at least one of the imaging sensor, a Bluetooth sensor, or an ultra-wideband communication device.

19 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the at least one additional sensor comprises at least one of the imaging sensor, a Bluetooth sensor, or an ultra-wideband communication device.

20 . The device of claim 4 , further comprising:

a long range communication device;

wherein the long range communication device is configured to communicate with at least one other device via a peer-to-peer, long range mesh communication network, the at least one other device being associated with a second container that is separate from the device associated with the container.

Assignments (1)

References Cited (29)