Queue management system and method

• US 10,304,276 B2
• Filed: 06/07/2012
• Issued: 05/28/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Universal City Studios LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Universal City Studios LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Inventors: Schwartz, Justin Michael, Osterman, Ross Alan, Polk, Jeffrey Lamar
• Primary Examiner(s): Louie, Oscar A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Gebre, Messeret F
• Application Number:
  US13/491,289
• Publication Number:
  US 20130332509A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,546 Days
• Field of Search: 709203
• 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 2011/02 related to amusement parks
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2011/04 related to queuing systems

Abstract

A queue management system in accordance with present embodiments may include a data server system including a processor and memory. The queue management system may include an interface system of the data server system configured to receive a reservation request including an indication of a general time period of arrival of a guest to an area. Additionally, the queue management system may include a reservation right allotment system of the data server system configured to correlate a reservation slot for accessing an attraction to identification information for the guest. Further, the queue management system may include a detection system of the data server system configured to determine when a portable identification feature associated with the identification information has arrived to the area, and a reservation assignment system of the data server system configured to establish a reservation to access the attraction at a specific time window.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving attraction preference data into a reservation system before a guest enters a park, wherein the attraction preference data includes an attraction list comprising a plurality of attractions of the park selected by the guest and a guest-designated level of interest in each attraction of the plurality of attractions selected by the guest, wherein the plurality of attractions of the park selected by the guest are attractions of the park that the guest is interested in experiencing;

analyzing the attraction preference data to produce analysis results using an algorithm performed by a processor of the reservation system, wherein the algorithm is configured to perform the analysis using attraction availability data generated from electronic monitoring of the plurality of attractions associated with the attraction list, location data associated with the attraction list, park utilization data, and the guest-designated level of interest in the respective attractions;

electronically detecting a portable identification feature associated with the guest at an entrance into the park using a guest entry system of the reservation system, wherein electronically detecting the portable identification feature comprises polling the guest entry system of the reservation system at predetermined intervals to retrieve information indicative of detection of the portable identification feature to automatically identify that the guest has arrived at the park, and displaying a proposed itinerary on the portable identification feature for the guest to confirm, modify, or cancel in response to determining that the guest has entered the park, wherein the proposed itinerary is based on the analysis results, wherein the proposed itinerary comprises reservations for the guest, and wherein one or more of the reservations has a specific time window for the guest to access a respective attraction from the attraction list; and

presenting the proposed itinerary according to the analysis results, wherein the reservations are presented in series such that the guest is guided to a series of attractions in a manner that limits backtracking.

2. The method of claim 1, comprising initiating a reminder of the reservations at a prompting time prior to a respective specific time window of one of the reservations, wherein the prompting time is based on a location of the guest relative to a location of the respective attraction.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the algorithm is configured to perform the analyzing using rankings of levels of interest between each attraction of the plurality of attractions of interest by the at least one user.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the algorithm is configured to perform the analyzing using historic park data associated with the plurality of attractions of interest.

5. The method of claim 1, comprising assigning the reservations having the specific time windows for accessing the one or more attractions to the portable identification feature associated with the guest and to another portable identification feature associated with another guest.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein presenting the proposed itinerary comprises presenting the reservations for attractions in the attraction list designated by the guest as high interest to be interspersed throughout the proposed itinerary such that interest of the guest is maintained throughout the duration of the proposed itinerary.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein presenting the reservations according to the attraction preference data and the user-designated level of interest comprises presenting the reservations designated as high interest early in the proposed itinerary.

8. The method of claim 1, comprising adjusting the proposed itinerary to exclude certain high intensity attractions for a period of time following a reservation at a restaurant of the park.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the portable identification feature comprises a cellular telephone.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the portable identification feature comprises a wearable feature.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the wearable feature comprises a bracelet having integral circuitry.

12. A method comprising:

receiving a request to generate an overlapping itinerary for a park between a first group of guests and a second group of guests via a reservation system;

identifying, via the processor of the reservation system, one or more existing itineraries for the park or preferences relating to the park of the first group of guests and the second group of guests, wherein the one or more existing itineraries for the park or preferences relating to the park comprise a first plurality of attractions selected by the first group of guests and a second plurality of attractions selected by the second group of guests, and wherein the first plurality of attractions selected by the first group of guests are attractions the first group of guests are interested in experiencing and the second plurality of attractions selected by the group of guests are attractions the second group of guests are interested in experiencing;

generating one or more overlapping itineraries for the first group of guests and the second group of guests based on common attractions between the first plurality of attractions selected by the first group of guests and the second plurality of attractions selected by the second group of guests identified via the one or more existing itineraries or preferences, wherein the overlapping itineraries comprise reservations, each reservation having a specific time window for the first group of guests and the second group of guests to access an attraction of the park, wherein the reservations are presented according to attraction preference data and a designated level of interest in one or more attractions, wherein the designated level of interest in the one or more attractions is provided by the first group of guests, the second group of guests, or both, and wherein the reservations are presented in series such that the first group of guests and the second group of guests are guided to a series of attractions in a manner that limits backtracking;

detecting a first portable identification feature associated with the first group of guests and a second portable identification feature associated with the second group of guests at an entrance to the park using a guest entry system of the reservation system;

wherein detecting the first portable identification feature and the second portable identification feature comprises polling the guest entry system of the reservation system at predetermined intervals to receive data indicative of detection of the first portable identification feature and detection of the second portable identification to automatically identify that the first group of guests and the second group of guests have arrived at the park; and

displaying the overlapping itineraries to the first group of guests on the first portable identification feature associated with the first group of guests when the first group of guests arrive at the park and to the second group of guests on the second portable identification feature associated with the second group of guests when the second group of guests arrive at the park.

13. A queue management system, comprising:

a reservation system including at least one processor and memory, the memory storing instructions that when executed by the at least one processor, cause the reservation system to;

receive attraction preference data before a guest enters a park, wherein the attraction preference data includes an attraction list comprising a plurality of attractions of the park selected by the guest and a guest-designated level of interest in each attraction of the plurality of attractions selected by the guest, wherein the plurality of attractions of the park selected by the guest are attractions of the park that the guest is interested in experiencing;

analyze the attraction list utilizing an algorithm stored in the memory to produce analysis results, wherein the algorithm is configured to analyze the attraction list based on attraction availability data associated with the attraction list, location data associated with the attraction list, park utilization data, and the guest-designated level of interest in respective attractions in the attraction list;

detect a portable identification feature associated with the guest using a guest entry system reservation system at an entrance into the park by polling the guest entry system of the reservation system at predetermined intervals to retrieve information indicative of detection of the portable identification feature to automatically identify whether the guest has entered the park, wherein the portable identification feature comprises a wearable feature;

generate, in response to determining that the guest has entered the park, a proposed itinerary for the guest based on the analysis of the attraction list, wherein the proposed itinerary comprises reservations for the guest, and wherein one or more of the reservations has a specific time window for the guest to access a respective attraction from the attraction list; and

display on the portable identification feature the proposed itinerary with the reservations in series such that the guest is guided to a series of attractions in a manner that limits backtracking.

14. The queue management system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the reservation system to notify the guest in response to determining that a detection system of the reservation system detects the portable identification feature has not arrived to a particular attraction in the attraction list within a general time period of arrival.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the reservation system to monitor wait times of a queue for any one of the attractions in the attraction list in response to detecting the presence of the portable identification feature at an entry to the one of the attractions in the attraction list and after detecting the presence of the portable identification feature at an entry into the queue for the one of the attractions.

16. The queue management system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the reservation system to allow or deny access to attractions in the park using the portable identification feature and based on a number of times the portable identification feature has been used to access a respective attraction in the attraction list relative to a threshold for repeated access to the respective attraction.

17. The queue management system of claim 13, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the reservation system to send a reminder of a respective reservation of the one or more reservations to the guest at a prompting time prior to the respective specific time window of the reservation, wherein the prompting time is based on a location of the guest relative to a location of the attraction corresponding to the reservation.

18. A queue management system comprising:

a reservation system including at least one processor and memory storing code that is executable by the at least one processor;

an interface system of the reservation system configured to enable a guest to interface with at least a portion of the reservation system to enter a reservation request relating to a plurality of attractions of a park before the guest arrives at the park, and to receive the reservation request, wherein the interface system is configured such that the reservation request received by the interface system includes a guest-designated arrival period indicating a general time window during which the guest expects to arrive to the park, attraction preference data including an attraction list of specific attractions selected by the guest and a guest-designated level of interest in a specific attraction from the attraction list, and identification information associated with a portable identification feature of the guest, wherein the attraction list of specific attractions selected by the guest includes attractions that the guest is interested in experiencing;

a reservation right allotment module stored in the memory of the reservation system, wherein the reservation allotment module is configured to set aside a reservation slot associated with the general time window for the guest from an inventory having a limited number of available reservation slots associated with the general time window, wherein the reservation slot confirms access for the guest to at least one specific attraction during the general time window without establishing a particular hourly time for the confirmed access, and wherein the reservation right allotment system is configured to associate the reservation slot with the portable identification feature;

a detection module stored in the memory of the reservation system, wherein the detection module is configured to electronically detect the portable identification feature associated with the guest at an entrance to the park to automatically identify whether the guest has arrived to the park; and

a reservation assignment module stored in the memory of the reservation system, wherein the reservation assignment module is configured to convert the reservation slot into a reservation having a specified hourly time at which the guest has confirmed access to the specific attraction, the specified hourly time being narrower than the general time window, wherein the reservation assignment module is configured to convert the reservation slot into the reservation in response to the reservation system detecting the portable identification feature, and wherein the reservation assignment module is configured to display the reservation on the portable identification feature associated with the guest in response to the detection system detecting the portable identification feature.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the interface system is configured such that the guest-designated arrival period is the morning or the afternoon of a particular date.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the reservation system is configured to:

produce a proposed itinerary on the portable identification feature in response to detecting the portable identification feature, wherein the proposed itinerary is produced according to an algorithm that uses at least the reservation slot, an actual time at which the portable identification feature is detected, the attraction preference data, and electronic monitoring of specific attractions in the attraction list as inputs, and wherein the proposed itinerary includes a plurality of reservations, each reservation of the plurality of reservations having a specific time window during which the guest has confirmed access to a respective attraction from the attraction list; and

enable the guest to confirm, modify, or cancel the proposed itinerary.