Patent ID: 7650295

Claim:
A method of managing delivery goods using a delivery goods management apparatus for directly delivering goods from a deliverer to a location associated with a recipient when the recipient is absent from the location, wherein said management apparatus is equipped, at least, with a CPU and a storage containing a deliverer database having deliverer IDs, a user database having user IDs and a delivery goods information database having at least identification information for delivery goods, and is connected with at least one deliverer terminal operated by the deliverer and at least one user terminal operated by a client or the recipient through a network so as to be accessed both by the deliverer and the recipient, said method comprising: receiving, at the delivery goods management apparatus, a request sent from the deliverer terminal to the user terminal to confirm reception of delivery goods entered by the deliverer through the deliverer terminal while the recipient of the delivery goods from the location is absent, wherein the request includes a message to confirm as to whether the recipient approves or rejects delivery of the goods by the deliverer to the location; extracting using the CPU, recipient information from the storage of the delivery goods management apparatus, where the user database stores the recipient information corresponding to information related to the request to confirm reception of the delivery goods, and editing information for the request by referring to the user database and the delivery goods information database; and transmitting using the CPU, a notification, from the delivery goods management apparatus, to said recipient of confirmation request information through the user terminal based on the recipient information while the recipient is absent from the location, said method further comprising: storing information for the deliverer corresponding to delivery goods identification information in said deliverer database and receiving the delivery goods identification information and reception approval/refusal information entered by said recipient; extracting using the CPU, the deliverer information relevant to the delivery goods identification information from said deliverer database; and notifying using the CPU, said deliverer of the reception approval/refusal information based on the deliverer information, so that the deliverer delivers the goods to the location associated with the recipient while the recipient is absent when a result of the reception approval/refusal information indicates an approval of the delivery of the goods by the recipient and notifying the deliverer to not deliver the goods while the recipient is absent when the result of the reception/refusal information indicates a refusal of the delivery of the goods by the recipient.