Venue traffic flow management

• US 10,733,544 B2
• Filed: 10/08/2019
• Issued: 08/04/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blazer And Flip Flops, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Blazer And Flip Flops, Inc.
• Inventors: Sahadi, Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Dung
• Application Number:
  US16/596,141
• Publication Number:
  US 20200111034A1
• Time in Patent Office: 301 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/047 Optimisation of routes or paths, e.g. travelling salesman problem
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/14 Travel agencies
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 11/00 Arrangements, systems or apparatus for checking, e.g. the occurrence of a condition, not provided for elsewhere
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2011/04 related to queuing systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences

Abstract

A platform provides recommendations for points of interest in a venue to venue attendees. Different points of interest are recommended in different amounts in order to prevent congestion in the venue in the form of extremely long queues or extremely large crowds. To achieve this, the platform divides a large group of venue attendees into multiple sub-groups, with each sub-group being recommended a different point of interest, and the size of each sub-group based on a difference between an optimal queue or crowd size and an actual queue or crowd size of a queue or crowd associated with that point of interest.

Claims

1. A method for itinerary personalization in a predetermined venue area, the method comprising:

generating one or more recommendations for a first point of interest located within the predetermined venue area, the first point of interest associated with a first level of congestion;

generating one or more recommendations for a second point of interest located within the predetermined venue area, the second point of interest associated with a second level of congestion that is greater than the first level of congestion;

dividing a plurality of venue attendee devices within the predetermined venue area into at least a first group of venue attendee devices and a second group of venue attendee devices, wherein the first group of venue attendee devices includes at least one more venue attendee device than the second group of venue attendee devices does based on the second level of congestion being greater than the first level of congestion;

sending the one or more recommendations for the first point of interest to the first group of venue attendee devices; and

sending the one or more recommendations for the second point of interest to the second group of venue attendee devices.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first level of congestion corresponds to a length of a first queue at the first point of interest, and wherein the second level of congestion corresponds to a length of a second queue at the second point of interest.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein a sum of the length of the first queue and a size of the first group of venue attendee devices is equal a sum of the length of the second queue and a size of the second group of venue attendee devices.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first level of congestion corresponds to congestion along a first path associated with the first point of interest, and wherein the second level of congestion corresponds to congestion along a second path associated with the second point of interest.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first level of congestion corresponds to a size of a first crowd at the first point of interest, and wherein the second level of congestion corresponds to a size of a second crowd at the second point of interest.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first level of congestion corresponds to a popularity of the first point of interest, and wherein the second level of congestion corresponds to a popularity of the second point of interest.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first level of congestion corresponds to a risk of mechanical failure of the first point of interest, and wherein the second level of congestion corresponds to a risk of mechanical failure of the second point of interest.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating one or more recommendations for a third point of interest located within the predetermined venue area, wherein dividing the plurality of venue attendee devices into at least the first group of venue attendee devices and the second group of venue attendee devices includes dividing the plurality of venue attendee devices into at least the first group of venue attendee devices and the second group of venue attendee devices and a third group of venue attendee devices; and

sending the one or more recommendations for the third point of interest to the third group of venue attendee devices.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the third point of interest is associated with a third level of congestion, and wherein a number of venue attendee devices in the third group of venue attendee devices relative to a number of venue attendee devices in the first group of venue attendee devices and a number of venue attendee devices in the second group of venue attendee devices is based on a comparison between the third level of congestion and the first level of congestion and the second level of congestion.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein dividing the plurality of venue attendee devices into the at least the first group of venue attendee devices and the second group of venue attendee devices is based on respective locations of the plurality of venue attendee devices, a location of the first point of interest, and a location of the second point of interest.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the respective locations of a plurality of venue attendee devices include respective locations of the first group of venue attendee devices and respective locations of the second group of venue attendee devices, wherein dividing the plurality of venue attendee devices into at least the first group of venue attendee devices and the second group of venue attendee devices is based on the respective locations of the first group of venue attendee devices being closer to the location of the first point of interest than the respective locations of the second group of venue attendee devices and on the respective locations of the second group of venue attendee devices being closer to the location of the second point of interest than the respective locations of the first group of venue attendee devices.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the locations of the plurality of venue attendee devices include a location that is identified using one or more Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers of one of the plurality of venue attendee devices.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the locations of the plurality of venue attendee devices include a location that is identified based on one of the plurality of venue attendee devices being in communication range of a short-range wireless signal source having a known location.

14. A system for itinerary personalization in a predetermined venue area, the system comprising:

a memory that stores instructions;

a processor, wherein execution of the instructions by the processor causes the processor to;

generate one or more recommendations for a first point of interest located within the predetermined venue area, the first point of interest associated with a first level of congestion,

generate one or more recommendations for a second point of interest located within the predetermined venue area, the second point of interest associated with a second level of congestion that is greater than the first level of congestion, and

divide a plurality of venue attendee devices within the predetermined venue area into at least a first group of venue attendee devices and a second group of venue attendee devices, wherein the first group of venue attendee devices includes at least one more venue attendee device than the second group of venue attendee devices does based on the second level of congestion being greater than the first level of congestion; and

a communication transceiver, wherein the communication transceiver sends the one or more recommendations for the first point of interest to the first group of venue attendee devices and sends the one or more recommendations for the second point of interest to the second group of venue attendee devices.

15. The system of claim 14, further comprising a beacon that emits a short-range wireless signal, wherein execution of the instructions by the processor causes the processor to identify one or more locations of one or more of the plurality of venue attendee devices based on the one or more of the plurality of venue attendee devices being in range of the beacon, wherein dividing the plurality of venue attendee devices into at least the first group of venue attendee devices and the second group of venue attendee devices is based on the locations of one or more of the plurality of venue attendee devices, a location of the first point of interest, and a location of the second point of interest.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the first level of congestion corresponds to a length of a first queue at the first point of interest, and wherein the second level of congestion corresponds to a length of a second queue at the second point of interest.

17. A method for itinerary personalization, the method comprising:

dividing a plurality of venue attendee devices within the predetermined venue area into at least a first group of venue attendee devices and a second group of venue attendee devices, wherein the first group of venue attendee devices includes at least one more venue attendee device than the second group of venue attendee devices does based on a second level of congestion associated with a second point of interest being greater than a first level of congestion associated with a first point of interest;

sending one or more recommendations for the first point of interest to the first group of venue attendee devices; and

sending one or more recommendations for the second point of interest to the second group of venue attendee devices.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the first level of congestion corresponds to a length of a first queue at the first point of interest, and wherein the second level of congestion corresponds to a length of a second queue at the second point of interest.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the first level of congestion corresponds to congestion along a first path associated with the first point of interest, and wherein the second level of congestion corresponds to congestion along a second path associated with the second point of interest.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein dividing the plurality of venue attendee devices into at least the first group of venue attendee devices and the second group of venue attendee devices is based on locations of the plurality of venue attendee devices, a location of the first point of interest, and a location of the second point of interest.