U.S. patent application number 09/991883 was filed with the patent office on 2002-05-30 for meeting site selection based on all-inclusive meeting cost.
This patent application is currently assigned to GetThere Inc.. Invention is credited to Bingham, Glenn, Martin, Craig.
Application Number | 20020065689 09/991883 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 26813291 |
Filed Date | 2002-05-30 |
United States Patent
Application |
20020065689 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Bingham, Glenn ; et
al. |
May 30, 2002 |
Meeting site selection based on all-inclusive meeting cost
Abstract
Meeting or conference facilities are evaluated based on an
all-inclusive meeting cost. The all-inclusive meeting cost is used
to rank the facilities based on the lowest all-inclusive meeting
cost or on highest quality below a maximum cost. Meeting planners
can then compare total meeting cost at facilities with different
characteristics, and find the facilities that offer the most value.
An application server is used to calculate all-inclusive meeting
cost from a comprehensive database of cost factors. The list of
generated meeting facilities and their costs can be generated
quickly for a large number of potential meeting facilities.
Inventors: |
Bingham, Glenn; (Henderson,
NV) ; Martin, Craig; (Henderson, NV) |
Correspondence
Address: |
FINNEGAN, HENDERSON, FARABOW, GARRETT &
DUNNER LLP
1300 I STREET, NW
WASHINGTON
DC
20005
US
|
Assignee: |
GetThere Inc.
|
Family ID: |
26813291 |
Appl. No.: |
09/991883 |
Filed: |
November 26, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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09991883 |
Nov 26, 2001 |
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09241399 |
Feb 2, 1999 |
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60115521 |
Jan 12, 1999 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/5 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 30/06 20130101;
G06Q 30/0283 20130101; G06Q 10/06314 20130101; G06Q 10/04 20130101;
G06Q 10/06375 20130101; G06Q 10/02 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/5 |
International
Class: |
G06F 017/60 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A computer implemented method of selecting a meeting facility
for hosting a meeting, the method comprising the steps of:
receiving a range of dates, a list of attendees of the meeting, and
an originating location for each of the attendees; calculating an
all-inclusive cost for hosting the meeting at each of a plurality
of potential meeting facilities based on the specified range of
dates and the specified list of attendees; and ranking the
plurality of potential meeting facilities based on the calculated
all-inclusive costs.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the calculating step further
includes the sub-step of estimating a cost for each said attendee
to travel to each of the plurality of facilities.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the calculating step further
includes the sub-step of estimating a meal cost for each attendee
at each of the plurality of facilities.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the calculating step further
includes the sub-step of estimating a lodging cost for each
attendee at each of the plurality of facilities.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the calculating step further
includes the sub-step of estimating a conference room cost for the
meeting.
6. The method of claim 1, further including the step of receiving a
list of preferred amenities and geographic locations corresponding
to the ranked plurality of potential meeting facilities; and
removing facilities from the ranked plurality of potential meeting
facilities which do not contain the preferred amenities and which
do not correspond to the geographic locations specified in the
received list of preferred amenities and geographic locations.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of calculating the
all-inclusive cost for hosting the meeting includes calculating
optimized costs and summing the calculated optimized costs.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein calculating optimized costs
includes calculating a minimum cost for ground transportation to
and from airports.
9. The method of claim 7, wherein calculating optimized costs
includes finding a lowest airfare among airport pairs corresponding
to a first airport from a set of airports near an origin location
of the attendees and a second airport from a set of airports near a
destination location of the attendees.
10. The method of claim 7, wherein calculating optimized costs
includes calculating a minimum costs for a plurality of ranges of
dates.
11. A computer system comprising: a processor; a network
connection; and a memory, the memory including instructions that
when executed by the processor performing the functions of (1)
receiving a request from a user via the network connection, the
request including information defining minimum requirements of a
meeting facility; (2) calculating an all-inclusive cost for a
plurality of meeting facilities based on the received request; and
(3) transmitting a list of a sub-set of the plurality of meeting
facilities to the user, the sub-set being based on the calculated
all-inclusive cost.
12. The system of claim 11, wherein the memory further includes
instructions for calculating the all-inclusive cost based on at
least a range of dates, a list of attendees of the meeting, and,
for each of the attendees on the list, an originating location.
13. The system of claim 11, wherein the memory further includes
instructions for ranking the plurality of potential meeting
facilities based on the calculated all-inclusive costs and
selecting the sub-set based on the ranking.
14. The system of claim 11, wherein the memory further includes
instructions for ranking the plurality of potential meeting
facilities based on a predetermined quality rating of the meeting
facilities.
15. The system of claim 12, wherein the instructions for
calculating the all-inclusive cost further perform the function of
querying a database for information relating to the plurality of
meeting facilities.
16. A method of evaluating a plurality of potential meeting
facilities for an optimal meeting facility, the method comprising
the steps of: defining minimum requirements for the optimal meeting
facility; transmitting the minimum requirements to an application
server; and receiving a list of ranked meeting facilities, the list
being ranked based on an all-inclusive cost calculation
corresponding to an estimated total cost of holding the meeting at
each meeting facility.
17. The method of claim 16, further including the steps of:
choosing preferred amenities for meeting facilities from the list
of ranked meeting facilities; choosing specific geographic
locations corresponding to a geographic location of at least one of
the meeting facilities in the list; transmitting the preferred
amenities and the specific geographic location to the application
server; and receiving an updated list of meeting facilities from
the application server based on the chosen preferred amenities and
geographic locations.
18. The method of claim 17, further comprising the step of:
choosing one or more of the meeting facilities from the updated
list and making a reservation at the chosen facility via an
electronic request for proposal.
19. A computer readable medium containing instructions that when
executed by a processor causes the processor to perform the steps
of: receiving a request from a user, the request including
information relating to minimum requirements for a meeting
facility; calculating an all-inclusive cost for a plurality of
meeting facilities based on the received request; and transmitting
a list comprising a sub-set of the plurality of meeting facilities
to the user, the sub-set being based on the calculated
all-inclusive costs.
20. A system comprising: an application server; a database coupled
to the application server, the database storing information
corresponding to a plurality of meeting facilities; a meeting
planner user agent processor having an interface for accepting
requests for a list of potential meeting facilities ranked
according to an all-inclusive cost of hosting a meeting; a meeting
facility user agent processor corresponding to at least one of the
plurality of meeting facilities, the meeting facility user agent
processor having an interface for accepting requests to modify
information in the database relating to the meeting facility
corresponding to the meeting facility user agent processor; and a
network coupling the meeting planner user agent processor, the
meeting facility user agent processor, and the application server;
wherein the application server receives and processes the requests
from the meeting planner user agent and the meeting facility user
agent.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
application Ser. No. 60/115,521, entitled "Method for Selecting
Meeting Sites Based on All-inclusive Meeting Cost," filed on Jan.
12, 1999.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] This invention relates to methods and systems for meeting
and event planning, and more particularly, to a method and system
for selecting facilities (both hotels and meeting space) for
holding meetings, conferences, conventions, trade shows, special
events, and other group-related events.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] For any given meeting or conference, there are almost always
several hundred, if not thousands, of meeting sites that could
adequately host the meeting. A person charged with selecting a
meeting site typically goes through a five-step process: (1)
choosing the preferred dates for the meeting; (2) choosing a
specific geographic location--generally a specific city--for the
meeting; (3) determining what amenities the facilities must offer
to be considered for the meeting; (4) locating meeting facilities
that meet the location and amenity requirements and requesting bids
or quotes from them; and (5) evaluating the bids based on a simple
cost evaluation (i.e., lower bids are usually better).
[0006] The typical five-step process is designed to narrow, as
quickly as possible, the number of meeting facilities the planner
must evaluate, which means that the planner may never seriously
consider a large number of sites that may be suitable for the
meeting. Ideally, before choosing a geographic location and
preferred amenities, planners would evaluate each potential
facility in search of the most ideal, or highest value facility,
where value refers to the most benefit, as defined by the meeting
planner, for the price. For example, the highest value meeting site
typically offers the best combination of location, amenities, and
quality of service.
[0007] As used herein, a meeting site or meeting facility refers to
the hotel where the out-of-town attendees lodge and the location at
which the attendees gather. This definition is useful because: (1)
the hotel and the meeting location are very often the same
facility; and (2) the choice of the hotel and the meeting location
are almost always made hand-in-hand (i.e., if they are not the same
facility, the hotel will be close to the property providing the
meeting space--at a minimum they will be in the same city).
[0008] The conventional, above-described manual method of selecting
a meeting facility is sub-optimal. There are at least three reasons
for this.
[0009] First, manual methods fail to identify the meeting facility
that offers the most value. Because planners eliminate so many
facilities based on geography and amenities, they never seriously
evaluate many potential facilities. Furthermore, planners do not
consider the all-inclusive cost (travel, lodging, meals, meeting
space, and incidentals) of a meeting. Rather they look only at the
facility cost. The facility cost has been estimated as accounting
for only about 33 percent of the total cost of a typical
meeting.
[0010] Second, the conventional method creates information flow
inefficiencies. One way it does this is by limiting the amount of
comparison cost information that planners have when selecting a
meeting site. Planners rarely have the time or the access to the
necessary information to find out if quoted prices are in line with
market rates or reflect special price opportunities. For example,
when facilities need to fill excess lodging capacity, they often
offer low rates. However, facilities have no truly effective way of
identifying the planners who need to plan a meeting during the time
the special rate is in effect, or of providing the planners with
enough information about the facility to pique their interest.
Facilities are limited to direct mail and/or to advertising in
publications that are read by meeting planners. Both of these
approaches are very inefficient. Likewise, there is no easy way for
meeting facilities to communicate to planners the value of cost
factors like free airport shuttles or free meals.
[0011] Third, the current process is extremely slow. Finding a
number of sites that meet a planner's qualifications can take hours
or even days. Finding acceptable properties is and has been a
manual process, often involving searching brochures, books,
association memberships, and personal lists, and asking for
recommendations from travel agents. Alternatively, online databases
allow limited access to facility information. For example, certain
hotel chains have started to put meeting capacity information for
their affiliated properties on the Internet. Although these online
databases generally allow planners to search for potential sites
based on geography and required amenities, there is no reliable way
to determine which facilities will be priced within the planner's
budget. Also, most facilities must still be eliminated before a
planner can effectively request cost information.
[0012] Accordingly, there is a need in the art to allow meeting
planners to quickly and effectively compute an all-inclusive
meeting cost for each of a large number of potential meeting
facilities prior to defining geography and preferred amenities.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0013] One computer implemented method for selecting a meeting
facility for hosting a meeting consistent with the present
invention comprises a plurality of steps. The steps include: (1)
receiving a range of dates, a list of attendees of the meeting,
and, an originating location for each of the attendees; (2)
calculating an all-inclusive cost for hosting the meeting at each
of a plurality of potential meeting facilities based on the
specified range of dates and the specified list of attendees; and
(3) ranking the plurality of potential meeting facilities based on
the calculated all-inclusive costs.
[0014] A computer system consistent with the present invention
comprises a processor, a network connection, and a memory. The
memory includes instructions that when executed by the processor
perform the functions of (1) receiving a request from a user via
the network connection, the request including information defining
minimum requirements of a meeting facility; (2) calculating an
all-inclusive cost for a plurality of meeting facilities based on
the received request; and (3) transmitting a list of a sub-set of
the plurality of meeting facilities to the user, the sub-set being
based on the calculated all-inclusive cost.
[0015] Another method consistent with the present invention
comprising the steps of defining minimum requirements for the
optimal meeting facility; transmitting the minimum requirements to
an application server; and receiving a list of ranked meeting
facilities, the list being ranked based on an all-inclusive cost
calculation corresponding to an estimated total cost of holding the
meeting at each meeting facility.
[0016] Another computer system consistent with the present
invention includes an application server, a database, a meeting
planner user agent processor, a meeting facility user agent
processor, and a network connecting the meeting planner user agent
processor, the meeting facility user agent processor, and the
application server. The database stores information corresponding
to a plurality of meeting facilities. The meeting planner user
agent processor has an interface for accepting requests for a list
of potential meeting facilities ranked according to an
all-inclusive cost of hosting a meeting. The meeting facility user
agent processor corresponds to at least one of the plurality of
meeting facilities, the meeting facility user agent processor
having an interface for accepting requests to modify information in
the database relating to the meeting facility corresponding to the
meeting facility user agent processor. The application server
receives and processes the requests from the meeting planner user
agent and the meeting facility user agent.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0017] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and
constitute a part of this specification, illustrate several
embodiments consistent with this invention and, together with the
description, help explain the principles of the invention. In the
drawings,
[0018] FIG. 1 is a conceptual overview of a system consistent with
an aspect of the present invention;
[0019] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the meeting planner
user agent processor;
[0020] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the facility user
agent processor;
[0021] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the application server;
[0022] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary composition of
the database management server;
[0023] FIGS. 6A and 6B illustrate pseudo-code showing methods
consistent with the present invention;
[0024] FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating methods for selecting a
meeting facility;
[0025] FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating methods performed by the
application server when processing search requests;
[0026] FIGS. 9 and 10 are flow charts illustrating calculation of
an all-inclusive meeting cost; and
[0027] FIGS. 11-14 are computer screen images of an exemplary user
interface presented to a meeting planner.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0028] Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the
invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying
drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be
used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like
parts.
[0029] Systems and methods consistent with the present invention
enable a person planning a meeting to quickly and efficiently
evaluate a large number of potential meeting facilities and
generate an all-inclusive estimated cost for each facility to hold
the meeting or conference. The all-inclusive cost estimate takes a
number of factors into consideration, including, for example,
location of the facilities, amenities offered by the facilities
(e.g., whether golf courses are available nearby), date of the
meetings, and number and origin of the meeting attendees. The
person planning the meeting may then quickly and easily select the
optimal facility for the upcoming meeting.
[0030] FIGS. 1-5 are diagrams illustrating one system consistent
with the present invention. A conceptual overview of the system is
shown in FIG. 1.
[0031] System 100 includes a meeting planner user agent processor
200 (hereinafter "user agent" or "meeting planner user agent"), a
meeting facility user agent processor (hereinafter "facility agent"
or "meeting planner facility agent") 300, an application server
400, and a database management server (DBMS) 500. Network 110
allows meeting planner user agent 200, meeting facility user agent
300, and application server 400 to communicate with one another.
Network 110 may be the Internet, a local area network (LAN), or a
combination of the two. Additionally, the communication function
provided by network 110 could also be provided by other types of
networks, or by e-mail, the telephone, or postal mail. The link to
the DBMS 500 from application server 400 may be a local area
network. This link could also be provided by other means that allow
for the transfer of the necessary information between DBMS 500 and
application server 400.
[0032] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating meeting planner user
agent 200 in more detail. The person planning the meeting interacts
with meeting planner user agent 200, which acts as an interface
between the person and application server 400. Meeting planner user
agent 200 may be a standard Internet browser that permits user
input through DHTML web pages 210 which have validation objects 220
that ensure the user input will be acceptable to the application
server 400. User agents 200 may be a commercially available
Internet browser such as Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape
Navigator. User agent 200 executes on a computer 205. Computer 205
should have enough memory to execute user agent 200 and store and
process requested DHTML web pages, including search results.
[0033] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating facility user agent
300 in more detail. Facility user agent 300 is similar in design to
meeting planner user agent 200. The facility user agent acts as the
interface between the meeting facility and the application server
400. As with meeting planner user agent 200, facility user agent
300 includes a user input section 310, such as the interface of a
web browser, and a validation object 320, which ensures user input
will be acceptable to application server 400. Agent 300 executes on
computer 305. Through user input section 310, the facility may
enter facility specific information including information such as
rates, amenities, location, contact information, and meeting room
sizes and capacities. This information is eventually stored in DBMS
500.
[0034] Facility agent 300 gives each facility the ability to change
its profile, using a standard Internet browser, including rates, as
needed. For example, if a hotel determines that it will likely have
unused capacity during the month of October, it may reduce the rate
it charges for guest or meeting rooms. This tends to improve the
hotel's ranking in the search results, and thus improve the hotel's
chances of attracting business. Conversely, if a hotel expects to
be full during a given time period it may increase its rates for
that time period or indicate that it does not have
availability.
[0035] FIG. 4 illustrates application server 400 in more detail.
Application server 400 is a web server executing on a computer 405
with sufficient memory and processing capability to store a file
directory 460, execute a script processor 410, instantiate a global
object 430, a local object 440, and a search object 450. To
increase speed, global object 430 and local object 440 are stored
in random access memory 420. File directory 460 can be stored in a
secondary memory such as on a hard disk drive.
[0036] Application server 400 acts as a central controller that
takes information requests from meeting planner user agent 200 and
generates corresponding requests to database management server
(DBMS) 500. Using the information received from database management
server 500, application server 400 calculates the all-inclusive
meeting costs for the facilities desired by the planner. After
calculating the all-inclusive meeting costs, application server 400
returns the search results to meeting planner user agent 200.
[0037] Application server 400 also acts as the interface through
which meeting facility user agent 300 modifies its information
relating to its meeting facility in DBMS 500. Application server
400, may be, for example, Microsoft Internet Information Server
4.0, although web servers with similar capabilities may also be
used.
[0038] Script processor 410, in response to requests from agents
200 or 300, translates files from file directory 460 into HTML or
DHTML format and transmits these web pages to user agents 200 and
300. Active Server Pages (ASP) may be used to implement the script
processor, although other script processors such as CGI and PERL
may also be used.
[0039] File directory 460 stores the web pages used to gather the
information input from meeting planners and meeting facilities, as
well as the user pages used to return information and search
results back to the users.
[0040] Search object 450 performs the actual calculation of the
all-inclusive meeting costs. In calculating the all-inclusive
meeting cost, script processor 410 receives hotel selection
criteria, attendee origin information, and meeting preferences for
a search from meeting planner user agent 200 and requests
information from DBMS 500. The resulting data is sent as parameters
to search object 450, which then calculates the all-inclusive
meeting costs. The results are ordered and stored in local object
440. The operator of search object 450 is discussed in more detail
below.
[0041] Global object 430 is instantiated on the application server
400 and is accessible through script processor 410. Global object
430 consists of several arrays used by search object 450 that are
loaded into RAM 420 in order to reduce the required communication
between application server 400 and DBMS 500, and to increase the
speed at which web pages are returned to the meeting planner or
meeting facility. These arrays contain information that is used
globally across all searches. More particularly, the arrays include
property arrays that include the following information for each of
the facilities with profiles in DBMS 500: name, city, state, and
quality rating. Additionally, global object 430 contains arrays
relating to the origin of attendees, metro area information, region
information, and hotel chains. The information in global object 430
should generally be limited to non-volatile information or
information that doesn't change frequently.
[0042] Local objects 440 store information specific to a particular
meeting planner or meeting facility including a user profile, which
may include such things as the meeting planner's or meeting
facility's contact information and preferences. A local object 440,
specific to each meeting planner, is loaded into RAM 420 each time
a meeting planner logs on to application server 400.
[0043] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the database management
server (DBMS) 500. The purpose of DBMS 500 is to store the data
tables used in the calculation of the all-inclusive meeting cost
and to store other information about each facility and the meeting
planner. The user profile table 510 contains information specific
to planners that are registered at application server 400. Origin
tables 520 contain location information relating to the origination
of attendees. Transportation tables 530 include information
necessary in calculating the cost of getting attendees from their
origin to their destination cities. Metro table 540 includes
information specific to a given metro area, such as typical meal
costs, taxi rates, public transportation costs, etc. Property table
550 includes information about meeting facilities used to calculate
the all-inclusive meeting cost, as well as the quality, amenity,
and meeting room information for each facility.
[0044] Several types of database management servers may be used to
implement DBMS 500, such as Microsoft SQL Server.
[0045] FIGS. 6A and 6B contain pseudo-code illustrating in more
detail methods consistent with the present invention for
calculation of the all-inclusive meeting costs, as performed by
search object 450. The pseudo-code is divided into three sections:
a primary procedure 601 (called "Calculate") and two
sub-procedures, procedures 602 and 603 (called "TransCost" and
"GetDist"). The glossary at the end of this disclosure defines
terms used in FIGS. 6A and 6B.
[0046] Procedure 601 calculates, for each facility being
considered, the total meal cost, total lodging cost, and
transportation cost for each attendee. From these costs, the
all-inclusive meal cost is generated. Sub-procedures 602 and 603
are called by procedure 601. Sub-procedure 602 assists in
calculating transportation costs and sub-procedure 603 assists in
calculating distances between attendees and a facility. The details
of the operation of procedures 601, 602, and 603 are shown in FIGS.
6A and 6B, and are thus not described further in this
disclosure.
[0047] A more detailed description of the operation of system 100
will next be undertaken with reference to the flow charts of FIGS.
7-10.
[0048] FIG. 7 is a flow illustrating, at a high level, methods
consistent with the present invention for selecting a meeting
facility.
[0049] To begin, the meeting planner defines the meeting (step
700). This may include defining the purpose of the meeting, meeting
objectives, the meeting audience, and choosing the preferred
meeting dates. The planner may also enter a list of minimum site
requirements (alternatively referred to herein as required
amenities), such as hotel quality level, meeting room and guestroom
capacities, and other items that are crucial to the success of the
meeting. All of these variables are entered through user agent 200,
which then requests a list of facilities and their associated costs
from application server 400 (step 710). The list includes all
facilities that meet the minimum site requirements specified by the
planner. For example, if the purpose of the meeting is to inspect a
company's manufacturing plant, one minimum requirement would be
that the meeting facility be located close to the plant. If an
objective of the meeting is to help attendees get to know each
other better, and the planner feels this can best be done through a
golf tournament, a minimum requirement might be a nearby golf
course.
[0050] Providing the planner with an all-inclusive meeting costs
for all the potential meeting facilities allows the planner to
better understand the relationship between price and amenities. The
planner may then choose which amenities he or she wants in a
facility, (step 720), making the tradeoffs that provide the best
meeting value. For example, if the planner were to compare
properties on the waterfront to properties near water but not
directly on the waterfront, he might find that the value provided
by a waterfront property is less than the increase in price the
planner must pay. In this case, the planner would choose a facility
not located directly on the waterfront.
[0051] By the time the planner understand what amenities he or she
wants in a property, he or she will also know what cities or
specific geographic locations offer the best value. The planner
then chooses acceptable geographic locations (step 730).
[0052] The order of steps 720 and 730 is reversible. If a planner
believes location is more important than amenities, he or she might
switch the order of steps 720 and 730. Either way, the planner is
given the all-inclusive meeting cost information before making the
decisions about non-required amenities and location, so that he or
she has a broad enough selection of potential meeting facilities to
find the best value by trading off amenities and location with
cost.
[0053] Finally, the planner selects an individual facility for the
meeting (step 740). This may be done using one or more of several
online and off-line methods and tools. For example, the planner may
use a standard electronic request for proposal.
[0054] FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating methods performed by
application server 400 when processing search requests. The planner
logs on to application server 400 by supplying a user name and
password (step 805). The application server 400 checks to make sure
the global object 430 is loaded into RAM 420 (step 810). If the
global object 430 is not loaded, the application server 400 creates
it based on information from DBMS 500 (step 815). Preferably, as
long as there is one active meeting planner or meeting facility
logged onto application server 400, global object 430 remains in
random access memory RAM. Consequently, it does not have to be
reloaded for each new user. The application server 400 then checks
to see if the local object 440 for that specific user exists (step
820). If the local object 440 does not exist, the application
server 400 requests the user profile from DBMS 500 and creates and
initializes the local object 440 (step 825). Once both the global
430 and local objects 440 are loaded and initialized the meeting
planner can request a new search (step 830).
[0055] FIGS. 9 and 10 are flow charts illustrating the process of
calculating the all-inclusive meeting cost. The meeting planner
begins by providing search criteria, including attendee origin
information (both origin location and number of attendees from each
location), preferred meeting dates, and other meeting requirements,
as appropriate, through web pages received by the meeting planner's
user agent 200 (step 905). Once the information is entered, it is
validated (step 910). The validation object 220 verifies that the
information is in a form acceptable to the application server 400.
If the input validates correctly, it is sent to the script
processor 410 (step 920). If the input does not validate correctly,
it is returned to the user for correction and reentry (step 915).
With the correct input information, the script processor 410 calls
the search object 450 (step 925). The search object 450 then
creates the appropriate property arrays from DBMS 500 based on the
search criteria (step 930).
[0056] For example, if the search criteria states that there are
200 attendees who must stay in a single hotel, the property array
would only consist of hotels with a minimum of 200 guestrooms and
adequate meeting space. Or if the search criteria states that
hotels must have a Mobil Star rating of 3 or higher, the property
array would only include hotels with at least that rating. The DBMS
500 returns the appropriate data to the search object (step
935).
[0057] With the appropriate arrays stored in memory, search object
450 calls the "Calculation" method (step 1005) (the "Calculation"
method is shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B) to create a results array. Once
the search object 450 has calculated the all-inclusive meeting
cost, it sorts the results arrays (step 1010), based on, for
example, lowest cost. Search object 450 then stores the sorted
results arrays in local object 440, (step 1015), and sends a
completion message to the script processor 410 (step 1020).
[0058] When the script processor 410 receives the completion
message, it creates a response web page which includes the
all-inclusive meeting costs, detailed cost breakouts for each
facility, and property information (step 1025). The script
processor 410 then sends the response page to the meeting planner
(step 1030).
[0059] When the planner receives the results, he or she can sort
and/or filter them based on available amenities, cost and quality.
More importantly, the planner has the necessary information to find
the meeting site that offers the best value.
[0060] As an example of the operation of system 100, consider the
following. A meeting planner wants to hold a meeting for 52 people
on Sep. 23-25, 1999. He goes to the web site of the application
server on his Internet browser, and enters that he has fifteen
attendees coming from Chicago, twelve attendees coming from
Atlanta, ten attendees coming from Los Angeles, eight attendees
coming from Seattle, and seven attendees coming from Dallas. He
also enters the dates on which he would like to hold the meeting.
From previously entered preferences, the application server knows
that this meeting planner wants to see only hotels that have at
least a three star quality rating. He might also enter other
minimum requirements. In this case, assume that the meeting is
intended as a training class for marine biologists. As part of the
class, attendees need access to a large body of water with fish in
it. This body of water could be a lake or an ocean. Consequently,
the meeting planner indicates to the application server that he
needs a hotel located on the waterfront. The application server
calculates the all-inclusive meeting cost (i.e., cost of
transportation to the origin airport, airfare or driving to the
destination city, local transportation within the destination city,
lodging, meeting room rental, meals/food, incidentals, and
miscellaneous) on the preferred dates for each hotel located on the
waterfront, with meeting room and guestroom capacity for 52
attendees that has a three star rating or above. If the meeting
cost would be lower due to cheaper airfare, lower guestroom rates,
complimentary meals, or less expensive meeting room rental, for
alternative dates around the time of the preferred dates, the
application server may determine this. The application server may
then return to the meeting planner a list of the hotels ranked by
cost, and indicate which alternative dates could reduce the cost of
the meeting.
[0061] If the meeting planner prefers to have the meeting at a
location with golf nearby, he compares the cost of hotels in his
results set with golf nearby to the cost of hotels without golf.
After reviewing the information on the hotels and the meeting
costs, the meeting planner chooses one or more hotels he determines
offer the best values given what they offer in terms of location,
amenities, and all-inclusive meeting cost. He then contacts these
hotels to negotiate a final deal.
[0062] Instead of calling the hotels to negotiate a final deal, the
planner may request bids from the hotels using an electronic
request for proposal. This relieves the planner of the burden of
having to call each selected meeting facility in order to get an
official price quote from the facility for hosting the meeting.
With an electronic request for proposal, the planner sends the
final candidate list of meeting facilities and any other
information the meeting facilities must have before they can quote
the planner an official price to the application server. The
application server receives this information and handles the
contacting of the meeting facilities for the planner. Typically,
the application server does this by organizing the information, and
either e-mailing or faxing it to each candidate hotel. Similarly,
the meeting planner may electronically purchase airline tickets
using an on-line reservation system, or even reserve hotel and
meeting room space through an on-line reservation system.
[0063] FIGS. 11-14 are screen shots of an exemplary user interface
presented to a meeting planner by meeting planner user agent 200.
Through the user interface, the meeting planner enters information
such as the number and location of the attendees, the meeting
dates, and amenity information. As previously mentioned, the user
interface is preferably generated by a web browser program
receiving DHTML pages from application server 400. One of ordinary
skill in the art will appreciate that the images of the interfaces
shown in FIGS. 11-14 are exemplary only, and that many variations
on the user interface or on the technology used to implement the
user interface are possible while still falling within the scope of
the concepts covered by the present invention.
[0064] FIG. 11 is an image of the user interface through which the
meeting planner enters a list of attendees and their corresponding
originating locations. Browser 1110 displays the DHTML image from
application server 400. The meeting planner uses map 1100 by
clicking on the state that the attendee(s) originate from, and
selecting the nearest office or airport to the attendees in that
state. A dialog box (not shown) queries the user for the number of
attendees coming from that location. Box 1102 lists the attendees
selected and their originating locations. As shown, seven attendees
have been entered: four from California, four from Corpus Christi,
Tex., and three from Naples, Fla. The meeting planner presses the
next button 1104 when all the attendees have been entered.
[0065] FIG. 12 is an image of the user interface used to enter the
preferred dates of the meeting. As well as entering the start date,
and the length of the meeting, the meeting planner may enter the
earliest possible start date and the latest possible end date.
[0066] FIG. 13 is an image of an exemplary meeting facility list
returned by application server 400. A plurality of hotels 1301 are
listed along with their location, quality rating, special rate
dates, and estimated total cost 1302. Hotels are ranked by
estimated all-inclusive total cost 1302. The hotel with the lowest
total estimated cost is listed first. The meeting planner may
optionally request pop-up window 1303, through which additional
required amenities can be entered. When additional required
amenities are applied, application server 400 filters the list of
hotels 1301 and returns only those hotels that contain the required
amenities. Preferably, when the meeting planner may selects the
"Quality Rating" hyperlink, the system will sort the meeting
facility list based on the quality rating preassigned to each
facility.
[0067] FIG. 14 is a list of an updated search result list returned
by application server 400. The updated list includes a plurality of
hotels 1402 that include the selected required amenities such as
restaurant on premises and golf nearby. The planner selects the
check boxes 1403 of the hotels (i.e., meeting facilities) for which
the planner is interested in viewing more detailed information.
[0068] In summary, the systems and methods described herein allow a
meeting planner to quickly and efficiently select a facility for a
particular conference or meeting. By combining transportation,
lodging, meeting room, and food and beverage costs for each of a
large number of meeting facilities, and when appropriate over a
broad geographic area, planners are able to find the lowest total
cost meeting. Moreover, individual costs are optimized. Based on
distance to be traveled, the present invention determines if it
makes sense for attendees to fly or drive to the meeting. For those
who are to travel by air, the present invention checks both costs
across airlines and across airport pairs, choosing both the lowest
cost airline and the lowest cost airport pair. For example, a
traveler might have the option of flying from Chicago to Dallas
using American, United, or Southwest. Flying out of O'Hare, the
traveler might be able to take American to Dallas/Fort Worth
International Airport for $350 roundtrip. The same trip on United
might cost $320. However, the traveler can also take an American
flight from Chicago Midway into Love Field for $310. Last of all,
the traveler can fly from Chicago Midway to Dallas Love Field for
$250. The system may look at all these scenarios, combine them with
the cost of getting to and from each airport, and choose the lowest
cost airport pair--in this case Southwest from Midway to Love Field
for $250 dollars. The system also determines the cost of getting
from the destination airport to the meeting facility using the
meeting facility's shuttle, renting a car, taking a taxi, or using
another alternative transportation, and recommends that attendees
use the lowest cost option. It also factors the lowest cost option
into the all-inclusive meeting cost. Moreover, the system can
search a range of dates to determine if there are other dates close
to the preferred dates that would offer either lower airfare,
guestroom rates, or meeting room rental.
[0069] In addition, the systems and methods described herein help
planners compare costs across similar properties with one or two
different amenities or that are in different geographies. By giving
planners the ability to filter properties based on the types of
amenities they offer, planners can evaluate the cost of these
amenities, and determine if these amenities or the geography add
enough value to justify the cost. Similarly, because planners are
told where each property is located, they can determine differences
in various geographic locations.
[0070] The system can also sort properties by quality level below a
maximum cost. As a result, planners can compare the difference in
price for a five star hotel versus a similar three or four star
hotel. If the price is similar, or the planner feels the difference
in the cost is justified, the planner can reserve space at the
higher quality.
[0071] Finally, the systems and methods described herein make it
easy for meeting facilities to sell to planners based on total
value. Currently, it is difficult for planners to understand the
real worth of complimentary meals, or of less expensive airfare
into a given city, as most planners do not have an all-inclusive
budget which they can use to evaluate the value of these benefits.
Because properties are ranked based on cost, if a given facility
offers advantages or benefits that improve overall value, the
planner sees a lower all-inclusive meeting cost for that hotel, and
the hotel receives a better ranking in the search results. For
example, hotels in Las Vegas offer lower room rates than many
comparable hotels because the lower room revenue can be offset with
gaming revenue. In addition, Las Vegas, Nev. has relatively
inexpensive flights between most major destinations. Both of these
factors are taken into account in the all-inclusive meeting cost,
and as a result, Las Vegas hotels tend to rank higher than similar
hotels that can't reduce their room rates, and don't have access to
the same low cost flights.
[0072] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various
modifications and variations can be made to the present invention
without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. For
example, although the facility selection systems and methods were
described primarily as an on-line (e.g. Internet) device, concepts
consistent with the present invention can also be applied to
off-line applications in which the application server is contacted
using, for example, the telephone system or postal mail.
[0073] Other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those
skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and
practice of the invention disclosed herein. It is intended that the
specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with
the true scope and spirit of the invention being indicated by the
following claims.
[0074] Glossary of terms for FIGS. 6a and 6b:
[0075] AirfareArray--Contains the one-way airfare between each pair
of airports stored in the AirportArray.
[0076] AirportArray--Contains names, addresses, latitude and
longitude for each airport that serves each origin and each
potential destination. Also contains cost of travel between each
airport and the properties it serves.
[0077] AirTranArray--Contains the transportation cost from a
particular hotel to all the airports it serves.
[0078] AltOffTrans--One way cost per person of alternate
transportation between a given office and hotel.
[0079] AttendeeArray--Contains the number of attendees coming from
each origin location, the type of origin and the origin
transportation costs.
[0080] Breakfast--Expected cost of breakfast in a given metro
area.
[0081] Complimentary Meals--Value of meals offered for free by the
property (hotel).
[0082] ConferenceArray--Contains the capacities and conference room
rates for every conference room at each of the properties being
considered.
[0083] ConfRate--Daily room rental rate for a given conference
room.
[0084] DestTrans--One-way cost of traveling from destination
airport to hotel. This value is calculated and stored in the
AirTranArray.
[0085] Dinner--Expected cost of dinner in a given metro area.
[0086] EffectEnd--Date on which an estimated cost expires.
[0087] EffectStart--Date on which an estimated cost becomes
valid.
[0088] ExtraDay--Extra day of lodging and meals given to attendees
living far enough away from a potential meeting location to justify
traveling to the meeting the night before it starts.
[0089] ExtraDayDist--Distance attendees must live from a potential
meeting facility to justify traveling to the meeting the night
before it starts.
[0090] FilterValue--Contains a bit mask indicating which amenities
each property offers. Once the results have been returned to the
meeting planner, the FilterValue allows the meeting planner to
filter the properties based on the amenities they offer.
[0091] FirstDay%--Percentage of expected meal cost that is allotted
to non-local attendees on the first day in the destination city
(i.e., assumes that non-local attendees eat some percentage of
their meals prior to leaving home).
[0092] Guestroom Rate--Daily rate for one sleeping room at the
hotel. Depending on the meeting planners' preferences, this rate
can be for a single, double room or a suite.
[0093] HotelID--Primary key--Identification number given to each
property that is unique to that property in the PropertyArrays.
[0094] HotelResultsArray--Contains results (expected meeting cost)
for each property that meets minimum requirements where the meeting
is to be held at the hotel.
[0095] Incidentals--Expected cost of incidentals in a given metro
area.
[0096] LastDay%--Percentage of expected meal cost that is allotted
to non-local attendees on the last day of the meeting (i.e.,
assumes that non-local attendees eat some percentage of their meals
after they return home).
[0097] Local--Number of attendees that will attend a meeting but
are located too close to need lodging or meals.
[0098] LocalDist--Maximum distance attendees may live from a given
property and still be considered local.
[0099] LocalMeal%--Percentage of expected meal cost given to local
attendees on each day of the meeting.
[0100] LocalTrans--One-way cost of traveling from the hotel where
attendees are lodging to the office where the meeting is actually
held.
[0101] Lunch--Expected cost of lunch in a given city.
[0102] MaxCost--Maximum daily amount meeting planner is willing to
spend on lodging and meals for a visitor to the meeting.
[0103] MaxOffDist--Maximum distance that a hotel may be from a
given office to be considered as a place where attendees can lodge
if the meeting is held at the office.
[0104] Meal End--Date on which an expected meal cost expires.
[0105] MealArray--Contains the expected seasonal meal cost for each
metro area.
[0106] MealID--Primary Key--Identification number given to the
expected cost of meals in for a given city.
[0107] MealStart--Date on which an expected meal cost becomes
valid.
[0108] MetroArray--Contains for each metro area the expected taxi
rates, and cost of alternative transportation.
[0109] MileReimburse--Amount per mile reimbursed to attendees for
using their personal vehicles for business travel.
[0110] MiscExpense--Given as a percentage of total amount of the
meeting cost. Represents the portion of total meeting costs that
are generally not accounted for in the other itemized expenses.
[0111] NumAttendees--The total number of attendees coming from a
given origin location.
[0112] NumDays--Length in days of the meeting.
[0113] OffDist--Distance between hotel where attendees are lodging
and office where meeting is held.
[0114] OfficeID--Primary Key--Identification number given to each
office location that is unique to that office.
[0115] OfficeArray--Contains the name and location, including
latitude and longitude, for each office where attendees might
originate or at which they might hold a meeting.
[0116] OfficeResultsArray--Contains the result (expected meeting
cost) for each office and hotel combination that meets the minimum
meeting requirements.
[0117] OneWayAir--One-way cost of air travel between a given pair
of airports.
[0118] OnTime--Number of non-local attendees that will be arriving
at hotel the same day the meeting starts.
[0119] OriginArrays--Includes the name and location, including
latitude and longitude, for each origin location. In the current
embodiment of the present invention, the OriginArrays consist of
the OfficeArray and the AirportArray.
[0120] OriginTrans--Cost of transportation between the origin point
and the origin airport. This value is calculated and stored in the
AttendeeArray.
[0121] PropEnd--Date on which a given lodging rate for a given
hotel expires.
[0122] PropertyArrays--Contains all the necessary information for
each of the potential meeting properties, including name, city,
state, latitude, longitude, amenities, transportation costs to
airports, lodging rate, etc.
[0123] PropLatitude--Latitude for a given property.
[0124] PropLongitude--Longitude for a given property.
[0125] PropStart--Date on which a given lodging rate for a given
hotel becomes valid.
[0126] Quality--Quality rating for a given property.
[0127] RateID--Primary Key--Identification number given to each
rate (both lodging and conference) that is unique to that rate.
[0128] Taxi--Rate charged by the taxi per mile. May also include a
flat rate for getting into the taxi that is added to the total of
the rate multiplied by the mileage.
[0129] TotalCost--Represents the all-inclusive expected meeting
cost at a given property.
[0130] TotalDrive--Total cost incurred from driving to and from the
meeting.
[0131] TotalTrans--Total transportation expenses associated with
the meeting.
[0132] TransportationArrays--Contains information required to
compute transportation cost for the meeting, including the
AirfareArray, rental car rates, mileage reimbursement, etc.
[0133] UserProfile--Contains an individual users' account
information including preferences such as MaxCost, MaxOffDist,
Local Distance, LocalMeal%, FirstDay%, LastDay%, etc.
[0134] Visitors--Number of non-local attendees who will be
attending the meeting and require guestrooms and meals.
* * * * *