Travel information interval grid

• US 8,374,895 B2
• Filed: 02/15/2007
• Issued: 02/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/17/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Farecast, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Crean, Hugh, Bartot, Jay, Fridgen, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Chen, George
• Application Number:
  US11/675,619
• Publication Number:
  US 20070198310A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,189 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 705/5
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0603 Catalogue ordering

Abstract

A method and system for presenting travel information in a way that facilitates identifying travel plans that satisfy objectives is provided. A travel information system collects travel information for the travel items on various observation dates including the current date and presents the travel information to a user in a way that facilitates travel planning and travel shopping. The travel information system stores the travel information in an observation store. To provide travel information that satisfies a search criterion, the travel information system retrieves the travel information that satisfies the search criterion either from flight information of the observation store or from current flight information provided in real time from a source of travel information. The flight information system provides the travel information in various formats to facilitate travel planning. These formats include a fare history graph, an interval grid, a route map, a future fare graph, and/or a departure date/duration grid.

Claims

1. A method in a computer system with a processor and a memory for presenting airline fare information, the method comprising:

receiving from a user a search request having a search criterion;

retrieving as search results flight information for airline flights that match the search criterion;

generating by the computer system a departure interval presentation from the retrieved flight information that illustrates fares of the airline flights that match the search criterion at departure intervals of a departure date for a return date, the departure intervals being represented as sections of a circle representing 24 hours within the departure date, the lowest fare for a departure interval being displayed within the section representing that departure interval;

sending by the computer system for presentation to the user the generated departure interval presentation;

receiving an indication of a selection by the user of a departure interval from the departure interval presentation by the user selecting a section of the presentation corresponding to the departure interval; and

in response to receiving the indication of a selection by the user of a departure interval from the departure interval presentation,

generating by the computer system a return interval presentation from the retrieved flight information that illustrates fares of the airline flights that match the search criterion for the selected departure interval of the departure date and return intervals of the return date, the return intervals being represented as sections of a circle representing 24 hours within the return date, the lowest fare for the selected departure interval and a return interval being displayed within the section representing that return interval; and

sending by the computer system for presentation to the user the generated return interval presentation.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the intervals correspond to pre-dawn, early morning, late morning, afternoon, evening, and night.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the search criterion identifies a trip, wherein a trip is a combination of departure location and date and return location and date.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the search criterion includes a maximum fare.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein when a user selects a section of the return interval presentation, presenting to the user only the search results for the airline flights within the selected departure interval and the corresponding return interval that match the search criterion.

6. A computer-readable storage medium embedded with instructions for controlling a computing device to generate airline fare information, by a method comprising:

receiving from a user a search request having a search criterion that includes a departure date and a return date;

retrieving as search results flight information for airline flights that satisfy the search criterion;

generating a presentation of departure interval fare information from the retrieved flight information that illustrates fare information of the airline flights that satisfy the search criterion of departure intervals of the departure date, the departure intervals being represented as sections of a circle representing 24 hours within the departure date, the lowest fare for a departure interval being displayed within the section representing that departure interval;

sending for presentation to the user the generated presentation of departure interval fare information;

receiving an indication of a selection by the user of a departure interval from the departure interval fare information by the user selecting a section of the presentation corresponding to the departure interval; and

in response to receiving the indication of a selection by the user of a departure interval from the departure interval fare information,

generating a presentation of return interval fare information from the retrieved flight information that illustrates fare information of the airline flights that match the search criterion for the selected departure interval of the departure date and return intervals of the return date, the return intervals being represented as sections of a circle representing 24 hours within the return date, the lowest fare for the selected departure interval and a return interval being displayed within the section representing that return interval; and

sending for presentation to the user the search results along with the generated presentation of return interval fare information.

7. The computer-readable medium of claim 6 wherein the intervals correspond to pre-dawn, early morning, late morning, afternoon, evening, and night.

8. The computer-readable medium of claim 6 wherein the search criterion identifies a trip, wherein a trip is a combination of departure location and date and return location and date.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 6 wherein the search criterion includes a maximum fare.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 6 wherein when a user selects a section of the return interval fare information, presenting to the user only the search results for the airline flights within the selected departure interval and corresponding return interval that match the search criterion.

11. A computing device for generating airline fare information, comprising:

a memory storing computer-executable instructions of

a component that receives from a user a search request having a search criterion;

a component that retrieves as search results flight information for airline flights that satisfy the search criterion;

a component that generates a presentation of departure interval information from the retrieved flight information that illustrates flight information of the airline flights that satisfy the search criterion at departure intervals of a departure date, the departure intervals being represented as sections of a circle representing 24 hours within the departure date, flight information for a departure interval being displayed within the section representing that departure interval, the flight information including lowest fare for a departure interval; and

a component that sends for presentation to the user the generated presentation of departure interval information;

a component that receives an indication of a selection by the user of a departure interval from the presentation of the departure interval information by the user selecting a section of the presentation corresponding to the departure interval;

a component that, in response to receiving the indication of a selection by the user of a departure interval, generates a presentation of return interval information from the retrieved flight information that illustrates flight information of the airline flights that match the search criterion for the selected departure interval of the departure date and return intervals of a return date, the return intervals being represented as sections of a circle representing 24 hours within the return date, flight information for the selected departure interval and a return interval being displayed within the section representing that return interval, the flight information including lowest fare for a departure interval; and

a component that sends for presentation to the user the generated presentation of return interval information; and

a processor for executing the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory.

12. The computing device of claim 11 wherein the intervals correspond to pre-dawn, early morning, late morning, afternoon, evening, and night.

13. The computing device of claim 11 wherein the search criterion identifies a trip, wherein a trip is a combination of departure location and date and return location and date.

14. The computing device of claim 11 wherein the search criterion includes a maximum fare.

15. The computing device of claim 11 wherein a section of the interval information includes a fare amount indicating lowest fare for an airline flight within the corresponding interval that matches the search criterion.

16. The computing device of claim 11 wherein when a user selects a section of the interval information, presenting to the user only the search results for the airline flights within the selected interval that match the search criterion.