Patent ID: 7249070
Filing Date: 2007-07-24
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
1. A computer-implemented method of reconciling a current central inventory record having existing counts, pricing, vintage, and location assignments for a plurality of product types, comprising: obtaining by means of a processing device the current central inventory record maintained by the processing device; recounting a central inventory to produce an updated count for each product type; removing, from the existing inventory record having counts, pricing, and vintaging for the plurality of product types, each instance of each count where price or vintage is an outlier value beyond a credible range from the least known valid value to the greatest known valid value; statistically determining a representative price and vintage for each of the plurality of product types from the existing inventory record after the instances of each count with outlier values have been removed, and wherein assigning a price and vintage comprises assigning the representative price and vintage that falls near the center of the credible range for the product type; comparing each count of the current central inventory record to each updated count to obtain a difference in count for each product type; when the difference for a particular product type indicates that a number of instances for the product type for the particular location assignment of the current central inventory record is greater than the number of instances for a different location assignment, reducing the count of the current central inventory record maintained by the processing device for the particular product type by the difference by detecting excessive instances of the count for the product type for the particular location assignment and removing enough instances from the count for the product type having the particular location assignment to equalize the number of instances with the number of instances at the different location assignment; when the difference for the particular product type indicates a shortage in the count of the current central inventory record, adding the difference to the count of the current central inventory record maintained by the processing device for the particular product type and providing a location assignment to each instance added to the count by detecting a shortage of instances of the count for the product type for the particular location assignment relative to a proportionate amount and providing the particular location assignment to one or more of the added instances, and assigning to each added instance the representative price and vintage determined for the product type; wherein the current central inventory record has counts for each product type divided into a new status, a re-use status, and an in-service status, and wherein the step of recounting a central inventory to produce an updated count for each product type comprises recounting the central inventory to produce an updated count for the new status, the re-use status, and the in-service status, and wherein comparing each count of the current central inventory record to each updated count comprises comparing the count for the new status to the updated count for the new status, comparing the count for the re-use status to the updated count for the re-use status, and comparing the count for the in-service status to the updated count for the in-service status to produce a difference for each status and for each product type; wherein comparing each count of the current central inventory record to each updated count further comprises: detecting whether an excess or shortage exists for each status of the current central inventory record for a product type; when an excess exists for the new status for the product type, reducing the count of the new status for the product type by the excess; when a shortage exists for the new status for the product type, converting the shortage of the new status for the product type to a shortage for the in-service status for the product type; when an excess exists for the re-use status for the product type, reducing the count of the reuse status for the product type by the excess; when a shortage exists for the re-use status for the product type, and an excess of instances of in service status exists for the product type, substituting the excess of instances of in-service status for the shortage of instances of the re-use status in the current central inventory record until the excess of the in-service status in depleted or the shortage of the re-use status is eliminated; when an excess exists for the in-service status for the product type, reducing the count for the in-service status for the product type by the excess; and when a shortage exists for the in-service status for the product type including any shortage converted from the new or re-use status for the product type, adding instances equal to the shortage to the in-service status for the product type with one or more of the instances being provided the particular location assignment.