Share this article
Walmart Patent Envisions Blockchain-Powered Delivery Fleets
A patent application submitted by Walmart proposes to use autonomous vehicles with a blockchain-based authentication system for package delivery.
Updated Sep 13, 2021, 7:56 a.m. Published May 10, 2018, 6:45 p.m.
Make us preferred on Google
Automated delivery cars or trucks connected via blockchain could one day deliver packages for Walmart, new patent filings suggest.
The retail giant hinted at the possible use case in an application filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) back in October and published Thursday. Per the documents, the patent centers around technology tools to secure "restricted access areas" at a customer's home that would receive packages from the autonomous ground vehicles (AVGs), as Walmart calls them.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
Much of the application itself doesn't mention the technology, but at one point, Walmart mentions how blockchain could serve as part of a solution for "authentication-based access and encryption" that would allow the vehicles to access those restricted areas.
Additionally, that distributed network could serve as a way to track and authenticate the goods themselves.
As the application explains:
"When a customer interacts with a product, the customer is permitted to do so via a private or public authentication key. In response, new blocks may be added to subsequent root blocks, which will contain information relating to the date and time a product delivered by the AGV was accessed, as well as the authentication key that accessed the product."
Walmart wrote in the application that its proposed system could "increase customer loyalty" due to the "significant convenience" it would provide. Likewise, it added that the system would likely cut costs because of its automated nature – at the expense of delivery drivers who might otherwise serve in that capacity, however.
Indeed, the application further cements the impression that Wal-Mart is looking at blockchain as a possible tool for improving the automation of its services.
As CoinDesk reported in March, the retailer – which is separately researching blockchain as a means to track food shipments – filed a patent application aimed at creating a "smart" courier system.
Walmart trailers image via Shutterstock
More For You
Pudgy Penguins is building a multi-vertical consumer IP platform — combining phygital products, games, NFTs and PENGU to monetize culture at scale.
What to know:
Pudgy Penguins is emerging as one of the strongest NFT-native brands of this cycle, shifting from speculative “digital luxury goods” into a multi-vertical consumer IP platform. Its strategy is to acquire users through mainstream channels first; toys, retail partnerships and viral media, then onboard them into Web3 through games, NFTs and the PENGU token.
The ecosystem now spans phygital products (> $13M retail sales and >1M units sold), games and experiences (Pudgy Party surpassed 500k downloads in two weeks), and a widely distributed token (airdropped to 6M+ wallets). While the market is currently pricing Pudgy at a premium relative to traditional IP peers, sustained success depends on execution across retail expansion, gaming adoption and deeper token utility.
More For You
Bitcoin climbs above $89,000 as U.S. dollar tumbles on President Trump's remarks
The president said he isn't concerned about the dollar's recent declines, sending the greenback plunging even lower.
What to know:
- Bitcoin rallied above $89,000 as remarks by President Trump sent the dollar to its lowest level in nearly four years.
- Gold rose to a new record above $5,200 per ounce following the president's comments.
- One analyst is seeing a bullish technical divergence which could send bitcoin back to $95,000 in short order.
Top Stories
