UPWARD receives patent for "Automatic Detection of Stay Records".

Patent number: No. 6864771 Title of invention: Portable terminal, method of generation and program of generation

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UPWARD has been detecting and utilizing location information from the GPS function of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, but the evolution of the stay detection logic, the content of this patent, will enable automatic stay detection with even higher precision.

By focusing thoroughly on improving the accuracy of stay detection, we have improved the user experience by making the application more convenient for sales representatives in the field to use. This will contribute to the promotion of sales digital transformation from the "field's perspective.

The newly developed patented technology utilizes a virtual geographic boundary "geo-fence" and our proprietary technology, and has been modified to a specification that determines when a customer enters/exits a certain distance centered on the customer's location near the current location, such as a 100-meter radius, or other virtual area. The new system is capable of detecting intrusion/exit within a shorter time and shorter distance than before.

By using this technology in combination with the geo-fence of the operating system (OS), the deployment range of the active virtual area and the time of stay detection can be arbitrarily changed, allowing for flexible use according to the sales characteristics of each company, such as "building density" and "customer response time.

 These automatically detected location data are temporarily recorded in the "UPWARD" application, and sales representatives can easily report their activities by simply pressing the "Report" button at their discretion. Since accurate activity details based on location information are reflected, daily reports and activity reporting after returning to the office can be reduced, promoting sales activities in the new normal era of remote work and direct return to the office.

In addition, the company has succeeded in reducing the battery consumption of mobile terminals by focusing on development from the field's point of view. Unlike "location tracking that periodically acquires information on the terminal side and determines whether the user is still in the area," which is implemented in many similar services, this system only determines whether the user has entered or exited the virtual area, thereby minimizing battery consumption and encouraging on-site activities. This reduces battery consumption as much as possible and encourages activities in the field.

These inventions significantly reduce the workload of sales representatives who are responsible for the "last mile" tasks that are essential to business, such as sales visits, on-site surveys, equipment and facility inspections, delivery, and delivery operations. While steadily accumulating customer touchpointdata from the field, the system promotes a hybrid online/offline sales approach, facilitating the evolution of an efficient sales organization that can survive in the new era.

DEVELOPER COMMENTS - MANAGER, DEVELOPMENT DIVISION, TECHNOLOGY GROUP, UPWARD CO.

In order to reproduce successful sales activities, it is essential to accumulate customer and activity information and utilize it as an asset. We took on the challenge of automatic visit detection to make it easier logfor frontline personnel to make contact with customers while concentrating on the sales activities at hand.

Since some use cases of visitation activities involve dozens of visits in a day, it was necessary to consider a system that can detect even cases where visits to each location take only a few minutes without prior scheduling. This technology solves the above issues by using a virtual area called a geo-fence. Geo-fences consume less battery power than conventional location-based tracking, making them suitable for outdoor use over long periods of time.

In order to realize a world where people in the field can focus only on the creative aspects of sales activities, UPWARD will continue to make further improvements to automate and simplify all data entry, making full use of the latest technology.

UPWARD's future potential, selected as a J-Startup

In October 2021, UPWARD was selected from among some 10,000 startups in Japan as one of the "companies that can compete and win on the world stage," and was selected for the " J-Startup " startup support program run by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). Startup ", a startup support program run by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

We aim for further business growth, including overseas expansion, while continuing to develop products from a "field-oriented" perspective, including this patent, and to provide and support such products in Japan and overseas.