SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MANAGING INHERENT PROJECT UNCERTAINTY
First Claim
1. A method of calculating a schedule for a project comprised of a plurality of tasks, the method comprising:
- receiving from a user a definition for at least some of a plurality of tasks comprising a project, the received definition for a task comprising a task identifier, a relationship to at least one other of the plurality of tasks, and a range of work associated with the task;
applying a statistical model to estimate an expected task completion date for each of the plurality of tasks having a definition, wherein the statistical model is applied to the range of work associated with a task and the expected task completion date reflects a date by which the associated task will likely be completed; and
utilizing the expected task completion date for each of the plurality of tasks having a definition to calculate a schedule for the project.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A software and/or hardware facility for managing project schedules having inherent uncertainty. The facility allows users to create hierarchical data structures to model projects and other collective efforts. The hierarchical data structures contain work items that can represent tasks, collections of tasks and collections of collections and tasks. Each work item can have associated with it an estimate provided by a user, such as a ranged estimate of the amount of work remaining before the work item is completed. Based at least in part on the provided estimate, the facility can calculate expected start and finish dates for each work item. By calculating expected start and finish dates for all or most of the work items in a project, the facility is able to calculate an expected end date for the entire project. By basing the calculation on ranged estimates, the facility can account for the uncertainty inherent in projects.
59 Citations
45 Claims
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1. A method of calculating a schedule for a project comprised of a plurality of tasks, the method comprising:
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receiving from a user a definition for at least some of a plurality of tasks comprising a project, the received definition for a task comprising a task identifier, a relationship to at least one other of the plurality of tasks, and a range of work associated with the task; applying a statistical model to estimate an expected task completion date for each of the plurality of tasks having a definition, wherein the statistical model is applied to the range of work associated with a task and the expected task completion date reflects a date by which the associated task will likely be completed; and utilizing the expected task completion date for each of the plurality of tasks having a definition to calculate a schedule for the project. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. A system for managing a schedule of a project comprised of a plurality of tasks, the system comprising:
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in input module for receiving from a user a definition for at least some of a plurality of tasks comprising a project, the received definition for a task comprising a task identifier, a relationship to at least one other of the plurality of tasks, and a range of work associated with the task; a task estimation module for applying a statistical model to estimate an expected task completion date for each of the plurality of tasks having a definition, wherein the statistical model is applied to the range of work associated with a task and the expected task completion date reflects a date by which the associated task will likely be completed; a project estimation module for utilizing the expected task completion date for each of the plurality of tasks having a definition to calculate a schedule for the project; and a presentation module for displaying the schedule for the project to the user in a manner that depicts at least some of the relationships between the plurality of tasks comprising the project. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42)
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43. A computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computing system to perform a method of calculating a schedule for a project comprised of a plurality of tasks, the method comprising:
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receiving from a user a definition for at least some of a plurality of tasks comprising a project, the received definition for a task comprising a task identifier, a relationship to at least one other of the plurality of tasks, and a range of work associated with the task; applying a statistical model to estimate an expected task completion date for each of the plurality of tasks having a definition, wherein the statistical model is applied to the range of work associated with a task and the expected task completion date reflects a date by which the associated task will likely be completed; and utilizing the expected task completion date for each of the plurality of tasks having a definition to calculate a schedule for the project. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45)
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Specification