U.S. patent application number 16/052593 was filed with the patent office on 2019-02-07 for system and method of quoting aviation insurance from multiple insurance vendors.
The applicant listed for this patent is Matthew R. White. Invention is credited to Matthew R. White.
Application Number | 20190043134 16/052593 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 65231214 |
Filed Date | 2019-02-07 |
United States Patent
Application |
20190043134 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
White; Matthew R. |
February 7, 2019 |
SYSTEM AND METHOD OF QUOTING AVIATION INSURANCE FROM MULTIPLE
INSURANCE VENDORS
Abstract
The present invention relates to a method, a system, and the
associated software. With respect to the method, it is best
characterized as a method of providing a user with an estimate of
an aviation insurance premium from one or more vendors. The method
may include receiving an aircraft identification input,
transmitting user input information to one or more aviation
insurance vendors, and displaying received aviation insurance
premium estimates from one or more vendors. The system is best
characterized as a system for administering aviation insurance
estimates. In order to accomplish desired objectives, the system
employs certain associated software to allow users to receive
multiple aviation insurance premium quotes from one or more
vendors.
Inventors: |
White; Matthew R.; (Corona,
CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
White; Matthew R. |
Corona |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
65231214 |
Appl. No.: |
16/052593 |
Filed: |
August 1, 2018 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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62540389 |
Aug 2, 2017 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 40/08 20130101;
G06F 3/04842 20130101; G06F 40/154 20200101 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 40/08 20060101
G06Q040/08; G06F 17/22 20060101 G06F017/22; G06F 3/0484 20060101
G06F003/0484 |
Claims
1. A computer-implemented method for providing a user with an
aviation insurance premium estimate from one or more insurance
vendors, comprising the steps of: displaying on a user display
unit, by one or more computer processors, a selectable input
graphical user interface, the interface including one or more
condition input screens for an aircraft identification input from
the user; receiving, by the one or more computer processors at a
service server, an aircraft identification input; initiating, by
the one or more computer processers at the service server, a
third-party information request to a national aviation authority
for aircraft data for an aircraft associated with said aircraft
identification input; transmitting, by the one or more computer
processors at the service server to the selectable input graphical
user interface, the aircraft data received in response to the
third-party information requests to said national aviation
authority; receiving, by the one or more computer processors at the
service server, user input data including one or more user selected
aviation insurance vendors, user information, and user verification
of said aircraft data; transmitting, by the one or more computer
processors at the service server, to each of the one or more user
selected aviation insurance vendor's servers, a request for an
aviation insurance premium estimate; receiving, by the one or more
computer processors at the service server, the aviation insurance
premium estimate from the one or more selected aviation insurance
vendors; and displaying, by the one or more computer processors
onto the user display unit, the received aviation insurance premium
estimates.
2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the aircraft
identification input is the N number of the desired aircraft to be
insured.
3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein said
aircraft data includes the aircraft's year, make, and model.
4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the aircraft
identification input is the desired aircraft to be insured's year,
make, and model.
5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the aircraft
data includes the aircraft's N number.
6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein said user
information includes the user's first and last name, city, state,
and zip.
7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein said
receiving user input data including one or more user selected
aviation insurance vendors, user information, and user verification
of said aircraft identification data further comprises: receiving
pilot information.
8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein user
verification consists of the user verifying that the aircraft data
is correct by not changing the data.
9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the aircraft
data is automatically populated onto the selectable graphical user
interface after it is transmitted.
10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the
selectable graphical user interface further comprises a select all
button, wherein the select all button is used to select all
available aviation insurance companies.
11. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, after receiving the
user input information and user verification of said aircraft
identification data, the method further comprises the step of:
converting, by the one or more computer processors, said user data
and verification of said aircraft data into a standard format
suitable for said one or more user selected aviation insurance
vendors;
12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein said
standard format is XML formatted for each aviation insurance
vendor's specific XML format.
13. A system for administering aviation insurance premium estimate
comprising: one or more processors; a memory device coupled to the
one or more processors; and one or more computerized programs,
wherein the one or more computerized programs are stored in the
memory device and configured to be executed by the one or more
processors, the one or more computerized programs including
instructions for: detecting one or more user input information in
the selectable graphical user interface, each user input
information representative of aviation insurance premium estimate
specific information, and in response to detecting at least some
user input information representative of a request for an estimate
for aircraft insurance premium, initiating at least an aircraft
identification input request; receiving at the service server the
aircraft identification input; initiating from the service server a
third-party information request to a national aviation authority
for aircraft data for an aircraft associated with said aircraft
identification input; transmitting from the service server to the
selectable input graphical user interface, the aircraft data
received in response to the third-party information request to said
national aviation; receiving at the service server the user input
information including one or more user selected aviation insurance
vendors, user information, and user verification of said aircraft
data; transmitting from the service server to each of the one or
more user selected aviation insurance vendor's servers, a request
for an aviation insurance premium estimate; receiving at the
service server the aviation insurance premium estimates from the
one or more selected aviation insurance vendors; and displaying
onto the user display unit the received aviation insurance premium
estimates.
14. The system of claim 13, wherein the one or more computerized
programs further include instructions for interfacing with a
predictive model to access third party data.
15. The system of claim 13, wherein the one or more computerized
programs further include instructions for converting user input
information into a standard or XML format.
16. The system of claim 13, wherein aircraft identification input
is imported from an electronic spreadsheet.
17. The system of claim 13, wherein the national aviation authority
is the Federal Aviation Authority, and wherein the third-party
information request is sent from the service server to a database
of the Federal Aviation Authority.
18. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium, comprising
executable instructions that, when executed by a processing system
including a processor, facilitate performance of operations,
comprising: displaying on a user display unit a selectable input
graphical user interface, the interface including one or more
condition input screens for prompting user, pilot, and aircraft
identification input from a user; receiving at the service server
the user, pilot, and aircraft identification input; transmitting
from the service server to the selectable input graphical user
interface, a list of available aviation insurance vendors based on
the received user, pilot, and aircraft identification input;
receiving at the service server one or more user selected aviation
insurance vendors, transmitting from the service server to each of
the one or more user selected aviation insurance vendor's servers a
request for an aviation insurance premium estimate; receiving at
the service server the aviation insurance premium estimates from
the one or more selected aviation insurance vendors; and
displaying, by the one or more computer processors onto the user
display unit, the received aviation insurance premium
estimates.
19. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 18,
wherein the executable instructions further comprises receiving
each desired aviation insurance vendor selected by a user or all
vendors selected by the user from a select all input on the
selectable input graphical user interface.
20. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 18,
wherein the aircraft identification input includes the N number and
the information retrieved from the Federal Aviation Administration
databases includes aircraft year, make, and aircraft model.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional
Application No. 62/540,389 filed Aug. 2, 2017, which is
incorporated by reference in its entirety.
FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0002] This disclosure relates generally to the field of aviation
insurance, and more particularly, to a method and system which
permits prospective aviation insurance buyers to obtain premium
quotes from multiple insurance vendors that can be easily compared
with minimum user supplied information.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Even with modern technology and advancements with data
storage and the internet, it remains relatively difficult to obtain
and compare quotes for aviation insurance products. In order to
receive quotes for their client, current aviation insurance brokers
have to manually submit a quote request to each insurance company
individually. Typically, to receive aviation quotes for their
clients, aviation brokers must use aviation insurance systems that
are dedicated PC programs that must be installed on an aviation
broker's local computer. While using these programs, the aviation
brokers must supply very detailed information about an aircraft and
pilot to each aviation insurance vendor that they wish to receive a
quote from. Therefore, an aviation broker must spend a significant
amount of time and effort on receiving an aviation quote from each
vendor and must enter a significant amount of information to
receive said quotes.
[0004] There have been some attempts to provide alternatives. For
example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,343,309 discloses a method for providing a
user with an estimate of an insurance premium for an insurance
product from at least one insurance vendor by completing the steps
of having the consumer input the data necessary to receive the
quotes, having the service provider convert the inputs into a
common format and embed a website address to the insurance
companies, sending the common format info and embed insurance web
address back to the user before sending the information to the
selected insurance vendor directly from the user, and finally
sending the insurance quotes back to the user from the insurance
vendor.
[0005] Although this patent attempts to describe receiving an
insurance quote from multiple vendors, the patent still includes
several disadvantages of the conventional insurance systems. More
specifically, this patent fails to in include an adequate system or
method that can allow a broker to receive aviation insurance quotes
from multiple vendors using a minimum amount of user input.
[0006] Thus, a way to quickly send an aviation insurance quote
request to multiple vendors of aviation insurance products using a
minimum amount of user input is desired and would save a
significant amount of time and effort during the aviation insurance
quoting process.
[0007] The disclosed system and method is directed to overcoming
one or more of the problems set forth above.
SUMMARY
[0008] The disclosure presented herein relates to a method, system,
or computer program product. More specifically, a method, system,
or computer product for providing a user with an estimate of an
aviation insurance premium from one or more vendors. The method
includes receiving the aircraft identification input at the service
server, initiating a third-party information request to a national
aviation authority for aircraft data, and transmitting a request
for an insurance aviation insurance premium estimate to one or more
aviation insurance vendors. The system includes one or more
processors and a memory coupled to the one or more processors, with
program instructions on the memory to administer an aviation
insurance estimate.
[0009] In some embodiments, the preceding and following embodiments
and descriptions are for illustrative purposes only and are not
intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. Other aspects and
advantages of this disclosure will become apparent from the
following detailed description.
[0010] Certain terminology and derivations thereof may be used in
the following description for convenience in reference only and
will not be limiting. For example, words such as "upward,"
"downward," "left," and "right" would refer to directions in the
drawings to which reference is made unless otherwise stated.
Similarly, words such as "inward" and "outward" would refer to
directions toward and away from, respectively, the geometric center
of a device or area and designated parts thereof. References in the
singular tense include the plural, and vice versa, unless otherwise
noted.
Definitions
[0011] Memory refers to a computer memory, which is any physical
device capable of storing information temporally or permanently.
For example, Random Access memory (RAM), is a volatile memory that
stores information on an integrated circuit used by the operating
system, software, and hardware.
[0012] A server is a computer that provides data to other
computers. It may serve data to systems on a local area network
(LAN) or a wide area network (WAN) over the Internet.
[0013] A local area network may serve as few as two or three users
(for example, in a small-office network) or several hundred users
in a larger office. LAN networking comprises cables, switches,
routers and other components that let users connect to internal
servers, websites and other LANs via wide area networks.
[0014] A wide area network (WAN) is a geographically distributed
private telecommunications network that interconnects multiple
local area networks (LANs).
[0015] Wi-Fi is the standard wireless local area network (WLAN)
technology for connecting computers and myriad electronic devices
to each other and to the Internet. Wi-Fi is the wireless version of
a wired Ethernet network, and it is commonly deployed alongside
ethernet.
[0016] A database (DB) is an electronic filing system, generally in
a computer. A collection of information (usually as a group of
linked data files) organized in such a way that a program can
quickly select pieces of data.
[0017] A computer network ("network") is a group of computer
systems and other computing hardware devices that are linked
together through communication channels to facilitate communication
and resource-sharing among a wide range of users
[0018] A computing device is any electronic equipment controlled by
a CPU (Central processing Unit), including desktop and laptop
computers, smartphones and tablets. It usually refers to a
general-purpose device that can accept software for many purposes
in contrast with a dedicated unit of equipment such as a network
switch or router.
[0019] An aviation insurance broker or insurance agent is a person
or firm independent of any insurance company, who acts as an
intermediary in bringing together clients seeking aviation or
aircraft insurance cover and insurance companies offering suitable
aviation insurance policies.
[0020] An aviation insurance premium is the amount of money that an
individual or business must pay for an aviation insurance policy.
The aviation insurance premium is income for the insurance company,
once it is earned, and also represents a liability in that the
insurer must provide coverage for claims being made against the
policy.
[0021] A national aviation authority (NAA) or civil aviation
authority is a government statutory authority in each country that
maintains an aircraft register and oversees the approval and
regulation of civil aviation.
[0022] The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United
States is a national authority with powers to regulate all aspects
of civil aviation. These include the construction and operation of
airports, air traffic management, the certification of personnel
and aircraft, and the protection of U.S. assets during the launch
or re-entry of commercial space vehicles.
[0023] The registration number is commonly referred to as an N
number, because all aircraft registered there have a number
starting with the letter N. An alphanumeric system is used because
of the large numbers of aircraft registered in the United States.
An N-number begins with a run of one or more numeric digits, may
end with one or two alphabetic letters, may only consist of one to
five characters in total, and must start with a digit other than
zero.
[0024] In computing, Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a markup
language that defines a set of rules for encoding documents in a
format that is both human-readable and machine-readable.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0025] The preceding and following embodiments and descriptions are
for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the
scope of this disclosure. Other aspects and advantages of this
disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed
description.
[0026] Embodiments of the present disclosure are described in
detail below with reference to the following drawings. These and
other features, aspects, and advantages of the present disclosure
will become better understood with regard to the following
description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings. The
drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of
selected embodiments and not all possible implementations and are
not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
[0027] FIG. 1 depicts a block diagram depicting a computing
environment, in accordance with one embodiment of the present
invention.
[0028] FIG. 2 depicts a flowchart of the operational steps taken by
aviation insurance estimate program within computing environment
100 of FIG. 1, in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0029] FIG. 3 is an example display screen showing an example of
the aviation insurance estimate program's crowdsourcing
function.
[0030] FIG. 4 is an example display screen showing an example of
the aviation insurance estimate program's live quote updating
functionality.
[0031] FIG. 5 is an example display screen showing an example of
the aviation insurance estimate program's built-in insurance
company referral buttons.
[0032] FIG. 6 is an example display screens showing an example of a
method of multiple submissions for drone/UAS estimates.
[0033] FIG. 7 is an example of an input screen for information
about other factors which may affect the estimate for drone/UAS
insurance.
[0034] FIG. 8 is an example of an input screen for information
about other factors which may affect the premium for drone/UAS
insurance.
[0035] FIG. 9 is an example of an input screen for information
about other factors which may affect the premium for drone/UAS
insurance.
[0036] FIG. 10 is an example of an input screen for selecting
aviation insurance vendors.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0037] As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspects of
the present invention may be embodied as a system, method, or
computer program product. Accordingly, aspects of the present
invention may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an
entirely software embodiment (including firmware, resident
software, micro-code, etc.) or an embodiment combining software and
hardware aspects may generally be referred to herein as a
"circuit," "frame," or "system." Furthermore, aspects of the
present invention may take the form of a computer program product
embodied in one or more computer readable medium(s) having computer
readable program code/instructions embodied thereon.
[0038] Embodiments of the present invention are related to
providing a user with an aviation insurance premium estimate from
one or more insurance vendors. The process of receiving an aviation
insurance premium estimate involves a myriad of business tasks
including but not limited to receiving the aircraft identification
input from the users, initiating a third party information request
to a national aviation authority for aircraft data, transmitting to
one or more selected aviation insurance vendor's servers a request
for an aviation insurance premium estimate, and displaying the
received aviation insurance estimates.
[0039] Typically, communication between brokers and aviation
insurance vendors is conducted in a manner utilizing telephones,
facsimile, email, and dedicated computer programs that are
installed and operated on the brokers personal computer. These
conventional methods, however, tend to be redundant, time
consuming, error-prone, and overall inefficient. What is needed is
an online method and system for connecting these parties and
providing a central location to communicate. In addition, the
current aviation insurance premium estimate process may be
difficult as the broker must enter in same client, aircraft, and
pilot information for each insurance vendor they wish to receive an
estimate from. Additionally, the current process requires the
broker to enter in large amounts of redundant information
pertaining to the aircraft desired to be insured.
[0040] In one aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a
method for providing a user with an aviation insurance premium
estimate. The method may include a program configured to retrieve
and transfer information about a specific aircraft from a national
aviation authority. In another aspect, the present disclosure is
directed to a system for administrating an insurance premium
estimate. The system may include receiving an aircraft
identification input, an aircraft identification and aircraft data
retrieval process, and a transmitting process.
[0041] The method of providing a user with an aviation insurance
premium estimate includes an aircraft data retrieving process,
where a user will be able to enter in aircraft identification
information, and the program will retrieve aircraft data from a
national aviation authority and prefill the condition inputs for
the aviation insurance premium estimate request. A program provides
the aviation premium estimate condition input screens, initiates
the third-party information request, transmits the retrieved data
back to the user's condition input screen, and provides the user
the aviation insurance premium estimates from one or more insurance
vendors.
[0042] One object of the present invention is to provide
centralized administration of aviation insurance premium estimates
that are globally accessible by users. The advantage of this object
is a decrease in paper handling, redundancy, inaccuracy, and
general inefficiency associated with more conventional modes of
communication. Another object of the present invention is to
provide a more efficient system for prefilling aircraft data that a
user is required to supply and minimizing the amount of information
a user must input in order to receive aviation insurance premium
estimates. The advantage of this object is a reduction in the
amount of time which transpires between the time a user requests an
aviation insurance premium estimate and the user receives one or
more estimates on an aviation insurance product.
[0043] To meet these and other objects and advantages of the
present invention, preferred and alternate embodiments of an online
method and system for providing an aviation insurance premium
estimate are provided. The present invention will now be described
in detail with reference to the Figures.
[0044] FIG. 1 depicts a block diagram of a computing environment
100 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 1 provides an illustration of one embodiment and does not
imply any limitations regarding the environment in which different
embodiments may be implemented. In the depicted embodiment,
computing environment 100 includes a network 102, a service server
104, an aviation insurance estimate program 106, a database 108, a
computing device 110, a third-party systems 112, and a third-party
data 114. As depicted, computing environment 100 provides an
environment for the aviation insurance estimate program 106 and
database 108 to access content created on computing device 110
through network 102. Computing environment 100 may include
additional servers, computers, or other devices not shown.
[0045] Network 102 may be a local area network (LAN), a wide area
network (WAN) such as the Internet, any combination thereof, or any
combination of connections and protocols that may support
communications between service server 104 and computing device 110
in accordance with embodiments of the invention. Network 102 may
include wired, wireless, or fiber optic connections.
[0046] Service server 104 may be a management server, a web server,
or any other electronic device or computing system capable of
processing program instructions and receiving and sending data. In
some embodiments, service server 104 may be a laptop computer,
tablet computer, netbook computer, personal computer (PC), a
desktop computer, or any programmable electronic device capable of
communicating with computing device 110 via network 102. In other
embodiments, service server 104 may represent a server computing
system utilizing multiple computers as a server system, such as in
a cloud computing environment. In another embodiment, server 104
represents a computing system utilizing clustered computers and
components to act as a single pool of seamless resources. In some
embodiments, the creator of the content may provide all the
potential options on service server 104. In the depicted
embodiment, service server 104 includes aviation insurance estimate
program 106 and database 108. In other embodiments, service server
104 may include any combination of aviation insurance estimate
program 106 and database 108.
[0047] Aviation insurance estimate program 106 operates to provide
a system and method to provide a user an aviation insurance premium
estimate from one or more aviation insurance vendors. Aviation
insurance estimate program 106 receives the aircraft identification
input, initiates a third-party information request to a national
aviation authority, transmits a request for an aviation insurance
premium estimate to one or more aviation insurance vendors, and
provides the user with aviation insurance premium estimates. In the
depicted embodiment, aviation insurance estimate program 106
resides on service server 104 with database 108 and utilizes
network 102 for computing device 110 to access the content. In some
embodiments, aviation insurance estimate program 106 resides on
computing device 110. In other embodiments, aviation insurance
estimate program 106 may be located on another server or computing
device, provided aviation insurance estimate program 106 has access
to database 108 and computing device 110.
[0048] Database 108 may be a repository that may be written to
and/or read by aviation insurance estimate program 106. Information
gathered from aviation insurance estimate program 106 may be stored
to database 108 as well as any analyze techniques, metadata, and
additional data that aviation insurance estimate program 106 may be
used to analyze, extract, create, and associate tags in content. In
one embodiment, database 108 is a database management system (DBMS)
used to allow the definition, creation, querying, update, and
administration of a database(s). In the depicted embodiment,
database 108 resides on service server 104. In other embodiments,
database 108 resides on another server, or another computing
device, as long as database 108 is accessible to aviation insurance
estimate program 106.
[0049] The server 104 may also access third-party systems 112 and
third-party data 114, through the network 102, which may include
aircraft data, including make, model, and year as well as aircraft
history.
[0050] Computing device 110 may be a management server, a web
server, or any other electronic device or computing system capable
of processing program instructions and receiving and sending data.
In some embodiments, computing device 110 may be a laptop computer,
tablet computer, netbook computer, personal computer (PC), a
desktop computer, or any programmable electronic device capable of
communicating with service server 104 via network 102. In other
embodiments, computing device 110 may represent a server computing
system utilizing multiple computers as a server system, such as in
a cloud computing environment. In another embodiment, computing
device 110 represents a computing system utilizing clustered
computers and components to act as a single pool of seamless
resources. In the depicted embodiment, computing device 110
communicates with aviation insurance estimate program 106 via
network 102. In other embodiments, computing device 110 may include
any combination of aviation insurance estimate program 106 and
database 108.
[0051] FIG. 2 depicts a flowchart of the operational steps taken by
aviation insurance estimate program 106 to receive aircraft
identification input, initiate a third-party information request,
and receive then display an aviation insurance premium estimate
from one or more aviation insurance vendors, within computing
environment 100 of FIG. 1, in accordance with an embodiment of the
present invention. FIG. 2 provides an illustration of one
embodiment and does not imply any limitations regarding computing
environment 100 in which different embodiments may be implemented.
Modifications to the depicted flowchart may be made.
[0052] In step 202, aviation insurance estimate program 106
determines the estimate requirements. On a personal computing
device, or other computing device, the user can access the aircraft
insurance estimate program through an interne browser or dedicated
program software or application. After accessing the aviation
insurance estimate program, a selectable input graphical user
interface is presented to the user on the display unit of the
computing device used by the user to access the program. The
aviation insurance estimate program 106 determines estimate
requirements by receiving an input selection from the user by
asking the user to select, from one or more estimate entry
selectable inputs, the most accurate estimate entry option. This
input selection may be, but not limited to the type of insurance
sought by the user, and whether the insurance sought is for
pleasure or business, or whether the user desires a new quote or
continue working on an estimate already in progress.
[0053] After the user enters in their desired insurance type and
whether it is new quote on the selectable input graphical
interface, the user entered information is sent to the service
server where the program 106 determines the estimate requirements.
After the estimate requirements are determined, in one embodiment,
the program determines which condition input screens are required
in order to receive an aviation insurance estimate based off of the
determined estimate requirements.
[0054] In step 204, aviation insurance program 106, after having
determined the estimate requirements, display on the user's display
unit, of their computing device, the selectable input graphical
user interface. This selectable input graphical user interface, in
some embodiments, includes one or more condition input screens. The
selectable input graphical user interface includes one or more
condition input screens, including an input screen for an aircraft
identification input from the user.
[0055] In one embodiment, the program 106 will display to the user
the selectable input graphical user interface that includes one or
more condition input screens with multiple input options which the
user can select to enter in the aircraft input. In one embodiment,
the selection is made when the user enters in data in the
corresponding input option or manually selecting said option. In
this embodiment, these options can include entering an aircraft
identification number, or N number, of a national aviation
authority, selecting unknown aircraft identification number and
manually inputting the aircraft year, make, and model, or importing
an electronic spreadsheet that contains aircraft input data for the
aircraft desired to be insured.
[0056] In step 206, the aviation insurance estimate program 106
receives an aircraft identification input. In one embodiment, the
aircraft identification input can include entering the aircrafts
registration number, commonly referred to as an N number, other
aircraft identification information if the N number is unknown such
as the aircrafts year, make, and model, or allow a user to import
an electronic file that includes an electronic spreadsheet that has
aircraft identifying information. If the user uploads an electronic
file, such as a Microsoft.RTM. Excel file that contains the
aircraft identifying information such as year, make, and model, the
aviation insurance estimate program 106 will retrieve that aircraft
identification input from said file.
[0057] In step 208, after the aviation insurance estimate program
106 receives an aircraft identification input from the user, the
program will initiate a third-party information request to a
national aviation authority for aircraft data for an aircraft
associated with said aircraft identification input. The aircraft
data can include an aircraft's year, make, and model, as well as an
aircraft's registration information to ensure quick and accurate
estimate submissions. The national aviation authority is a
government statuary authority in each country that maintains an
aircraft register and over sees the approval and regulation of
civil aviation and includes the Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA). In one embodiment, third-party information request includes
retrieving aircraft data associated with the provided aircraft
identification information from the FAA's database.
[0058] In one example, after the user enters the aircraft's N
number, this information is sent back to the service server 104.
From the service server 104, aviation insurance estimate program
106 initiates a third-party information request by connecting with
third-party systems 112 to retrieve third party data 114. In one
embodiment, the third-party systems is a national aviation
authority such as the FAA, and the third party data is aircraft
data, including an aircraft's N number, make, model, year, and
registration number. For example, in one embodiment, if a user
enters an aircraft's N number as the aircraft identification input
and is seeking an aviation insurance estimate in the United States,
the program will connect with the FAA's database to retrieve the
aircraft year, make, and model for the provided N number. This
retrieved aircraft data would then populate the remaining fields
for said aircraft data on the condition input screen.
[0059] In another embodiment, if the user does not know an
aircraft's registration number, or N number, the user can enter in
the aircraft's year, make, and model, or as much of that
information that is known. The program will initiate a third-party
information request from the service server 104 to the third-party
systems 112 listed above, and retrieve the unknown aircraft data
and populate the missing fields on the corresponding condition
input screens.
[0060] In a further embodiment, if the user submits an electronic
spreadsheet, including a Microsoft.RTM. Excel spreadsheet, the
aviation insurance estimate program 106 will retrieve aircraft
identification information from said spreadsheet including any
recognized aircraft N number, year, make, or model. The program
will initiate a third-party information request, and send retrieved
aircraft identification information from the service server 104 to
the third party systems 112 for aircraft data associated with said
aircraft identification information. In one embodiment,
identification information for multiple aircraft can be retrieved
from said spreadsheet, and the program can initiate said
third-party information request to correctly match the FAA database
aircraft year, make, and model in order to make the estimate
process quicker and more accurate for multiple or single aircraft
requests.
[0061] The aviation insurance estimate program 106 may be in
communication with one or more third-party systems 112 such as a
federal, state, or municipal entity such as the Federal Aviation
Authority (FAA) website, database, or third-party data 114 to
retrieve aircraft data. This data may be used alone or combined
with other third-party data or used with the assistance of a
predictive model. The predictive model(s) of the present invention
may include one or more neural networks, Bayesian networks (such as
Hidden Markov models), expert systems, decision trees, collections
of decision trees, support vector machines, or other systems known
in the art for address problems with large numbers of variables. In
some embodiments, the predictive models are trained on prior data
and outcomes using a historical database of aviation insurance
related data and resulting correlation relating to a same aircraft,
different aircraft, or a combination of same and different
aircraft.
[0062] In decision 210, the aviation insurance program 210
determines if the aircraft was identified. In some embodiments, the
aircraft data must be retrieved from the third-party within a
predetermined information tolerance, the information tolerance
being a predetermined minimum amount of aircraft data retrieved
from the national aviation authority database, to determine whether
the aircraft has been successfully identified. In some embodiments,
the program 106 needs to retrieve aircraft data associated with the
make, year, and model if the aircraft's N number was supplied by
the user in order to meet the minimum information tolerance for the
YES BRANCH. In additional embodiments, the program 106 needs be
able to retrieve the aircraft's registration information or N
number if this information was not supplied by the user. If
aircraft insurance estimate program 106 is able to retrieve enough
aircraft data sufficient to meet the minimum information tolerance
(YES BRANCH, proceed to step 212), the program 106 transmits the
aircraft data. If aviation insurance estimate program 106 is unable
to determine if the aircraft was identified (NO BRANCH, proceed to
step 206), the program 106 attempts to collect more identifying
information on the aircraft before performing step 208 again. In
some non-limiting embodiments, if the program is unable to
determine the aircraft or retrieve third-party aircraft data, the
program 106 continues to step 216 asking the user to manually enter
the aircraft data.
[0063] In step 212, the aircraft data received in response to the
third-party information requests to said national aviation
authority is transmitted from the service server 104 to the user,
and specifically, transmitted to the corresponding condition input
screens displayed on the user's computing device 110. In some
embodiments, after the aircraft data is transmitted, the aircraft
insurance estimate program 106 populates the corresponding
condition input screens with the retrieved aircraft data. This is
done in order to allow the user to enter in a minimum amount of
information to allow for faster and simpler estimates on aircraft
insurance. In some embodiments, the aircraft data is transmitted
from the service server 104 to the corresponding condition input
screens on the computing device 110 through the network 102.
[0064] In decision 214, aviation insurance estimate program 106
determines if the aircraft data transmitted to the user in step 212
is verified as correct by the user. In some embodiments, after the
program populates the corresponding condition input screens with
the retrieved aircraft data, determines that the aircraft was
correctly identified, and aircraft data is verified, the aircraft
insurance estimate program 106 moves onto the next step (YES
BRANCH, proceed to step 216) and proceeds to enter in the user
input data. If the aviation insurance estimate program 106 is
unable to verify the aircraft data (NO BRANCH, proceed to step
206), the program 106 attempts to collect identification data on
the aircraft. In some embodiments, the program would perform the
aircraft identification input steps if the user deletes the data
from the populated fields or if the user indicates on the
selectable input graphical user interface that the populated fields
of aircraft data retrieved and transmitted to the user in step 212
are not correct and do not correspond to the aircraft sought to be
insured. In some embodiments, the program 106 allows the user to
enter in aircraft data themselves into the corresponding condition
input screens if the transmitted aircraft data is incorrect.
[0065] In Step 216, the aviation insurance program 216 receives, at
the service server, user input data including general coverage
information, user information, aircraft insurance information,
pilot information, type of coverage sought, and one or more user
selected aviation insurance vendors. In one embodiment, said user
input data was entered in by the user onto the corresponding
condition input screens. In some embodiments, this step is
performed concurrently with step 214. In another embodiment, it is
performed after step 214.
[0066] In one embodiment, the general coverage information can
include aircraft insurance for traditional fixed wing aircraft,
unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or drone aircraft, commercial/charter
and private aircraft, helicopter, experimental aircraft, propeller
or jet aircraft, or other flying machines or aviation aircraft.
Additionally, the detailed coverage information can include the
options of a new purchase of aviation insurance, or a renewal of an
existing insurance policy. If the type of insurance sought is a
renewal of an existing policy, or if the user currently has a
policy they are looking to replace, the program 106 will allow the
user to enter in the expiration date of their current policy.
[0067] In one embodiment, the detailed coverage information is used
to determine the condition input screens displayed to the user.
Setting forth or generating the condition input screens is the
process of collecting information from the user and using that
information to display to the user the correct one or more
condition input screens for the type of aviation insurance sought.
The estimate requirements may comprise selectable input(s)
corresponding to said estimate requirements, the location of the
insurance sought, the duration of the policy or coverage sought by
the user, the above-mentioned type of aircraft insurance, the
number of aircraft sought to be covered, or the like.
[0068] Further, the aviation insurance estimate program 106, in one
embodiment, allows the user to enter in user information such as
their first and last name, address, city, state, and zip code
information. In this embodiment, this personal information,
including the geographical location information such as the zip
code or address, can be used by the program 106 to determine the
estimate requirements, such as the vendors available in that region
and policies that are available to the user. In one embodiment, the
user information can include any information commonly collected
about a user or company in order to give an insurance estimate.
[0069] The input data can also include aircraft insurance
information. In one embodiment, a separate condition input screen
is presented to the user after entering in their user information.
The aircraft insurance information can include the tail number (or
N number), the aircraft, year, make, model, hull coverage, aircraft
modifications, home airport, or other information commonly
collected for aircraft insurance. In one embodiment, much of the
aircraft insurance information and aircraft data is pre-populated
for the user in step 212, and the user only needs to fill out any
missing fields.
[0070] Further, in one embodiment, the user input data can include
pilot information. Pilot information is often required for an
aviation insurance premium estimate, and in a non-limiting
embodiment, the pilot information required to be entered in the one
or more input screens by the user includes the pilot's first and
last name, age, type of flight certificate held by the pilot, pilot
ratings, pilot history of losses, waivers, and violations, total
hours, retractable landing gear certified, multi-engine certified,
tailwheel certified, and other information relevant for aviation
insurance estimates.
[0071] In one embodiment, the program 106 can speed up pilot
information entry and increase accuracy by using data from the FAA
airmen database to populate license, ratings, and other pilot
information for each pilot. In this embodiment, after a user
populates a pilot's first, last name, and street address or city,
the program 106 will search the FAA pilot database and display
matched information such as pilot license, pilot ratings, pilot
medical and address information. The program 106 will then present
the user a button to transfer this data instantly to the all
relevant fields within corresponding input screen, saving the user
time, increasing information accuracy and making the quoting
process faster
[0072] After the pilot's information is entered, in one embodiment,
the user can continue onto the next condition input screen to
select the type of aviation insurance sought. The type of aviation
insurance sought can include having the user verify and enter
insurance liability coverage information. In one embodiment, this
includes having the user select the liability and medical coverage
sought by the user. In one embodiment, the policies and coverage
options available to the user may be based on the user's geographic
location entered in the steps above. In another embodiment, the
user can select the coverage options available on a drop-down list
on the corresponding condition input screen.
[0073] Additionally, in step 216, in one embodiment, the user is
then asked to select from a list of insurance vendors that they
desire to receive insurance quotes from. The list of available
vendors can be any vendor that offers the desired aviation
insurance product, and the list of available vendors can be altered
by the insurance broker or agent. In one embodiment, the selectable
graphical user interface has a select all button, wherein the
select all button allows the user to select all available insurance
vendors to request a quote from. In one embodiment, when the user
selects the select all button, the quote estimates are immediately
sent to the service server and to then to the insurance vendors. In
a further embodiment, the user can submit to each desired insurance
vendor individually.
[0074] In step 218, the aviation insurance estimate program 106
transmits the user's request for an insurance premium quote to the
service server and then to each of the one or more user selected
aviation insurance vendors. In one embodiment, the user's request
for an insurance quote includes all of the user input data and
retrieved third-party aircraft data outlined above. In another
embodiment, once the user's request for an insurance premium quote
is received at the service server, the program 106 takes the data
received and converts it into XML data formatted for each insurance
companies specific XML format and sends the data via XML securely
to each selected insurance company's direct server. In another
embodiment, the requested quote information is sent from the
service server to the corresponding insurance vendor's servers via
any electronic method commonly utilized in the insurance
industry.
[0075] In step 220, aviation insurance estimate program 106
receives at the service server the aviation insurance premium
estimate from the one or more selected aviation insurance vendors.
In this embodiment, the insurance company's servers receive the
data and insurance estimate requests, process the information, and
return the information back to the service server via XML format
and includes the following additional information: the premium,
quote number, quoted status, and quote description. The insurance
premium estimate, in one embodiment, can be comprised of any of the
following commonly found in aviation insurance estimates: the
aviation insurance premium, the aviation insurance quote, the
status of the aviation insurance premium, and a description of the
aviation insurance premium.
[0076] In step 222, the aviation insurance estimate program 106
displays onto the user's display unit, the received aviation
insurance premium estimates. In one embodiment, after the service
server receives the aviation insurance estimates from the one or
more selected aviation insurance vendors, the estimates are sent
from the service server to the user's computer and displayed to the
user. In one embodiment, the premium estimates can be displayed to
the user in a PDF format. In another embodiment, the user can
search, view, and enter the premium estimates. Additionally, in
further embodiments, the user is able to purchase aviation
insurance from the list of displayed insurance premium estimates,
request further information, request to speak with an insurance
broker or agent, request a new quote, save their insurance search,
or other actions from the displayed premium estimate page.
[0077] FIG. 3 is an example display screen showing an example of
the aviation insurance estimate program's aircraft year 36, make
32, and model 34 crowdsourcing function used to speed up aircraft
information entry and increase accuracy by using all of the present
aviation insurance estimate program's 106 user insurance make
38/model 39 corrections and applying them to similar insurance make
38/model 39 selections. Many aviation insurance vendors have their
own separate aircraft make and model list. This is shown, for
example, in FIG. 3 how all of the listed insurance models 39 for
each insurance vendor have a different model name for the same
aircraft. Due to this, when a user is quoting for aviation
insurance using traditional methods, that user has to manually
select the aircraft insurance make and model for every vendor. The
aviation insurance estimate program 106 has a Make/Model
crowdsourcing feature that collects all users insurance make
38/model 39 selections across multiple brokerages for each aviation
insurance vendor and if that specific aircraft make 32 or model 34,
and in some embodiments year 36, is entered again into the program
106, the insurance makes 38 and models 39 will be pre-populated
correctly saving the user time and increasing accuracy. In some
embodiments, if the user selects one insurance make 38 or model 39,
the program 106 uses the crowdsourcing feature to populate the
remaining insurance makes 38 and models 39 for the other insurance
vendors.
[0078] FIG. 4 is an example display screen showing an example of
the aviation insurance estimate program's live quote updating
functionality. After a quote request is submitted to an insurance
company in step 218 above, if the insurance company automatically
quotes the submission, a premium, quote control number 42 and
actual PDF quote are returned to the users display of received
aviation insurance estimates page. If the estimate request is
unable to be instantly quoted and referred to an underwriter for
manual review, once that request has been looked at and quoted,
with the program's 106 live quote updating functionality, the
insurance vendor's server will notify the service server, and the
service server will then retrieve the PDF and premium estimate from
the insurance vendor's server displaying it in real time on the
quote and history page.
[0079] FIG. 5 is an example display screen showing an example of
the aviation insurance estimate program's built-in insurance
company referral buttons. These built-in buttons appear on the
user's selectable graphical user interface and are used to refer
quotes with messages directly to underwriters at insurance vendors
for review without leaving the program's 106 interface. If quote
requests sent to insurance vendors are not automatically quoted and
returned a premium estimate and PDF in steps 218-222 above, the
program 106 displays to the user-built fields 52, buttons 54, and a
functionality that refers the quote directly to an underwriter 56
at a specified insurance vendor without the user having to log into
an insurance vendors website and perform this task.
[0080] FIGS. 6-10 are example display screens showing examples of
the steps taken for a method of quoting multiple submissions for
drone/UAS (Unmanned Aircraft System) quoting functionality of the
aviation insurance estimate program 106. Using a similar format as
multiple aircraft submissions for quoting shown with steps 202-222
above, the program's 106 functionality for multiple submission
drone/UAS quoting works in similar way but is designed and
formatted for the information specific to drones and UAV's.
[0081] In the FIG. 6 embodiment, steps 202-204 in quoting multiple
drone/UAS submissions requires the user to determine the estimate
requirements and display the condition input screens by deciding to
receive an aircraft 62 or drone/UAS 64 insurance estimate. The user
starts the UAV/drone estimate method by entering in the N number or
serial number of the drone into the drone/UAS field 64 (step 206).
In this embodiment, the program 106 utilizes the same method as
listed in the steps above, including FAA integration to pre-owner
name and address information populate year, make, and model of the
drone, and verification of such information and transmitting to the
user (steps 208-212).
[0082] FIG. 7 is an example of an input screen for information
about other factors which may affect the premium for drone/UAS
insurance. More specifically, this figure shows an example of the
step 216 in the method of quoting multiple drone/UAS submissions.
In this step, in this embodiment, the user submits general
information 72, effective dates, drone use/etc. The general
information 72, in some embodiments, include the input data listed
in the steps above.
[0083] FIG. 8 is an example of an input screen for information
about other factors which may affect the premium for drone/UAS
insurance. More specifically, FIG. 8 is an example further example
of step 216, in this embodiment, in the drone/UAV quoting process
and includes operator information instead of pilot information used
in the examples above. More specifically, information regarding
operators of the Drones/UAV's 86, aircraft information, claims
history 82, and questions 84.
[0084] FIG. 9 is an example of an input screen for information
about other factors which may affect the premium for drone/UAS
insurance. FIG. 9 shows, in one embodiment, further shows step 216
user input data including coverage, allowing the user to choose and
select liability and other coverage options 92.
[0085] FIG. 10 is an example of an input screen for selecting
aviation insurance vendors. FIG. 10 shows a further example of the
type of input data collected and step 216 by the user, whereby the
method allows the user to choose aviation insurance vendors. FIG.
10 is an example the quoting screen allowing the user to select one
or more insurance vendors to submit estimate request for drone/UAS
insurance. In this embodiment, the user may submit to multiple
insurance vendors at once by pressing the submit all button 104
(step 220) and return premiums and quote PDFs (step 222).
Additionally, in this embodiment the user may submit an estimate
request to each insurance vendor individually by using the submit
button 102. Additionally, a user may resubmit a request for an
insurance estimate by using the resubmit button 106.
[0086] The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a
computer program product. The computer program product may include
a computer readable storage medium (or media) having computer
readable program instructions thereon for causing a processor to
carry out aspects of the present invention.
[0087] The computer readable storage medium may be a tangible
device that may retain and store instructions for use by an
instruction execution device. The computer readable storage medium
may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic storage
device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an
electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or
any suitable combination of the foregoing. A non-exhaustive list of
more specific examples of the computer readable storage medium
includes the following: a portable computer diskette, a hard disk,
a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable
programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a static
random access memory (SRAM), a portable compact disc read-only
memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, a
floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such as punch-cards or
raised structures in a groove having instructions recorded thereon,
and any suitable combination of the foregoing. A computer readable
storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construed as being
transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or additional freely
propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves
propagating through a waveguide or additional transmission media
(e.g., light pulses passing through a fiber-optic cable), or
electrical signals transmitted through a wire.
[0088] Computer readable program instructions described herein may
be downloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a
computer readable storage medium or to an external computer or
external storage device via a network, for example, the Internet, a
local area network, a wide area network and/or a wireless network.
The network may include copper transmission cables, optical
transmission fibers, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls,
switches, gateway computers and/or edge servers. A network adapter
card or network interface in each computing/processing device
receives computer readable program instructions from the network
and forwards the computer readable program instructions for storage
in a computer readable storage medium within the respective
computing/processing device.
[0089] Computer readable program instructions for carrying out
operations of the present invention may be assembler instructions,
instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine
instructions, machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware
instructions, state-setting data, or either source code or object
code written in any combination of one or more programming
languages, including an object oriented programming language such
as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, and conventional procedural
programming languages, such as the "C" programming language or
similar programming languages. The computer readable program
instructions may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on
the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on
the user's computer and partly on a remote computer, or entirely on
the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote
computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type
of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area
network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external
computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet
Service Provider). In additional embodiments, electronic circuitry
including, for example, programmable logic circuitry,
field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or programmable logic arrays
(PLA) may execute the computer readable program instructions by
utilizing state information of the computer readable program
instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry, to perform
aspects of the present invention.
[0090] Aspects of the present invention are described herein with
reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of
methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products
according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood
that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block
diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations
and/or block diagrams, may be implemented by computer readable
program instructions.
[0091] These computer readable program instructions may be provided
to a processor of a general-purpose computer, special purpose
computer, or additional programmable data processing apparatus to
produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via
the processor of the computer or additional programmable data
processing apparatus, create means for implementing the
functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram
block or blocks. These computer readable program instructions may
also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that may
direct a computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or
additional devices to function in a particular manner, such that
the computer readable storage medium having instructions stored
therein comprises an article of manufacture including instructions
which implement aspects of the function/act specified in the
flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.
[0092] The computer readable program instructions may also be
loaded onto a computer, additional programmable data processing
apparatus, or additional device to cause a series of operational
steps to be performed on the computer, additional programmable
apparatus or additional device to produce a computer implemented
process, such that the instructions which execute on the computer,
additional programmable apparatus, or additional device implement
the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram
block or blocks.
[0093] The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate
the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible
implementations of systems, methods, and computer program products
according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this
regard, each block in the flowchart or block diagrams may represent
a module, segment, or table of instructions, which comprises one or
more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical
function(s). In some alternative implementations, the functions
noted in the block may occur out of the order noted in the figures.
For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be
executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be
executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality
involved. It will also be noted that each block of the block
diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocks
in the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, may be
implemented by special purpose hardware-based systems that perform
the specified functions or acts or carry out combinations of
special purpose hardware and computer instructions.
* * * * *