Method and apparatus for providing visitors with a personalized itinerary and managed access to attractions

• US 20020174003A1
• Filed: 05/15/2001
• Published: 11/21/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Agile Journeys LLC
• Original Assignee: Michael Anthony Eaton, William Gibbens Redmann
• Inventors: Redmann, William Gibbens, Eaton, Michael Anthony
• Granted Patent: US 7,212,983 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/8
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/025 Coordination of plural reservations, e.g. plural trip segments, transportation combined with accommodation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/04 Forecasting or optimisation specially adapted for administrative or management purposes, e.g. linear programming or "cutting stock problem" market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities G06Q30/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0962 having an indicator mounted inside the vehicle, e.g. giving voice messages

Abstract

A method is disclosed for creating itineraries for a party of visitors to a facility, the facility having multiple attractions. Visitors give answers to questions about their preferences, which is combined with authoritative information about their admission privileges, and information stored about the attractions and facility, to generate an itinerary. The method can be executed by a portable, handheld computer which asks the questions, accepts the answers, and processes them into an itinerary which is both portable and dynamic, adjusting in real time to schedule changes and unscheduled attraction closures. In an alternative embodiment, the itinerary can be generated as the result of an Internet transaction, or through an interaction with a facility employee. The itinerary may be presented to the party in printed form, such as a schedule or ticket book. If a facility has an access control system that uses a central database, the itinerary can generated as records in the database, thereby allowing parallel use of prior art access methods.

Claims

1. A method for generating an itinerary for a party visiting a facility having attractions comprising the steps of

loading a set of data representing the facility and the attractions;

collecting information about the party;

generating an itinerary using the information about the party and the set of data representing the facility and the attractions; and

,

providing the itinerary to the party.

2. A method for generating an itinerary for a party visiting a facility having attractions comprising the steps of

loading a set of data representing the facility and the attractions;

collecting information about the party;

generating an itinerary using the information about the party and the set of data representing the facility and the attractions, said itinerary specifying at least one attraction being experienced at a scheduled time; and

,

providing the itinerary to the party.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein at least one attraction specified by the itinerary requires admission media;

and, further comprising the step of providing admission media for the at least one attraction in the itinerary to the party.