System and method for expediting the delivery of food orders to customers
Automated food delivery methods and systems using computer-managed delivery to an array of food delivery enclosures and computer-enabled customer access to the food delivered to the enclosures. Customers using the methods and systems may utilize their personal communication device such as a cell phone or tablet to order food and subsequently open an enclosure containing their food order.
1. A method for dispensing customer food orders using an array of food enclosures for receiving customer food orders from a food supply area, each of the enclosures including an opening having a movable door closing the opening, and a food order and array management computer system comprising at least one digital processor and a digital memory associated with the digital processor, the digital memory storing programmed instructions for performing the following steps:
receiving customer food orders associated with customer personal devices;
electronically displaying in the food supply area availability of enclosures so as to allow customer food orders to be supplied to empty enclosures and unavailability of enclosures which contain previously supplied customer food orders,
electronically displaying in the food supply area the assignment and supplying of each of the customer food orders to the enclosures;
electronically displaying customer-specific order information in the food supply area for all of the customer food orders while the orders are contained in the enclosures; and
receiving transmissions from the respective customer personal devices enabling the customers to open the movable door on the respective enclosures to which the respective customer food orders have been supplied.
2. The method of claim 1 further comprising electronically displaying in the food supply area customer-specific order information including a customer name associated with each of the customer food orders while the orders are contained within the enclosures.
3. The method of claim 1 further comprising electronically displaying in the food supply area customer-specific order information including an order number associated with each of the customer food orders while the orders are contained within the enclosures.
4. The method of claim 1 further comprising electronically displaying in the food supply area customer-specific order information including the time of delivering each of the customer food orders while the orders are contained within the enclosures.
5. The method of claim 1 further comprising electronically displaying in the food supply area customer-specific order information including a pick-up time specified by a customer for the customer food order while the orders are contained within the enclosures.
6. The method of claim 4 further comprising electronically displaying in the food supply area customer-specific order information including an alert that the difference between the pick-up time specified by the customer and the actual time has exceeded a predetermined limit.
7. The method of claim 1 further comprising electronically displaying in the food supply area a queue of customer food orders to be delivered to the enclosures.
8. The method of claim 1 wherein each movable door of each of the enclosures remains locked after customer food orders are supplied from the food supply area and is subsequently unlocked by customers using the respective personal devices, the method further comprising the following steps:
transmitting a door opening instruction to the respective personal device of each customer specifying the necessary response to unlock the door of an enclosure containing at least a portion of the customer food order; and
receiving the necessary response from the personal device of the customer to unlock the door.
9. The method of claim 8 wherein the door opening instruction is transmitted by SMS.
10. The method of claim 9 wherein the necessary response is transmitted by SMS.
11. The method of claim 9 wherein the necessary response is transmitted over the Internet.
12. The method of claim 11 wherein the necessary response transmitted to a customer-specific URL.
13. The method of claim 1 wherein the customer food orders are received from the customer personal devices.