Optimized Appointment Scheduling Method

• US 20090276277A1
• Filed: 02/17/2006
• Published: 11/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Agfa Healthcare Corporation (Agfa-Gevaert N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Quadrat (Agfa-Gevaert N.V.)
• Inventors: Vansteenkiste, Henk, Machtelinck, Geert
• Application Number:
  US11/817,653
• Publication Number:
  US 20090276277A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/9
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1095 Meeting or appointment

Abstract

An appointment scheduling method wherein available time slots for an appointment are ranked according to the result of a balancing of importance factors adhered by an enterprise to weights associated with the available time slots such as efficiency of use of resources, urgency of examination, financial impact etc.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented appointment scheduling method wherein an appointment solution is determined for a user taking into account the availability of at least one of a set of resources, comprising the steps of

creating a solution space comprising all possible appointment solutions,

associating with each of said possible appointment solutions at least one weight, each weight having an associated preset degree of importance,

ranking possible appointment solutions according to the result of an optimization criterion applied to said weights with associated importance factors.

2. A computer program product adapted to carry out an appointment scheduling method wherein an appointment solution is determined for a user taking into account the availability of at least one of a set of resources when run on a computer, the method comprising the steps of:

creating a solution space comprising all possible appointment solutions,

associating with each of said possible appointment solutions at least one weight, each weight having an associated preset degree of importance,

ranking possible appointment solutions according to the result of an optimization criterion applied to said weights with associated importance factors.

3. A computer software product for executing an appointment scheduling method wherein an appointment solution is determined for a user taking into account the availability of at least one of a set of resources, the product comprising a computer readable medium comprising computer executable program code which when read by a computer, cause the computer to carry out steps comprising:

creating a solution space comprising all possible appointment solutions,

associating with each of said possible appointment solutions at least one weight, each weight having an associated preset degree of importance,

ranking possible appointment solutions according to the result of an optimization criterion applied to said weights with associated importance factors.