Patent ID: 7797205
Filing Date: 2010-09-14
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
1. An apparatus for determining the transportation of bulk products, comprising: (i) a processing device; (ii) a memory device storing data containing: (iii) a computer application executable by the processing device to formulate a mathematical model using the stored data in the memory device, wherein the mathematical model can be solved for feasible bulk product allocation, transportation routing and transportation vehicle/route scheduling for the movement of bulk products from supply locations to demand locations within a planning horizon, wherein the model comprises an objective function for net profit margin and a plurality of constraints including inventory constraints at the supply locations and the demand locations, and wherein the objective function for net profit margin comprises the sum of the monetary values of the bulk products discharged to the demand streams, including specification adjusted valuations of the discharged bulk products that are blended from different supply streams, minus the sum of the monetary values of the bulk products loaded from the supply streams and costs including the costs related to the transportation of the bulk products between the supply locations and the demand locations; and (iv) a calculation engine comprising a solver operable by the processing device to obtain a solution to the mathematical program model that maximizes the objective function for net profit margin.