Multi-user requests for service and optimizations thereof

• US 10,567,520 B2
• Filed: 10/10/2017
• Issued: 02/18/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Uber Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Uber Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Sweeney, Matthew, Rockmore, Logan, Weitekamp, Lisa
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrell, Robert B
• Application Number:
  US15/729,270
• Publication Number:
  US 20190109910A1
• Time in Patent Office: 861 Days
• Field of Search: 705338, 709203
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/40 Support for services or applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service

Abstract

A network system managing an on-demand service within a geographic region can receive, over a network, multi-user request data corresponding to a request for service for a plurality of users. The request data can indicate one or more start locations, a plurality of users, and one or more service locations. In response to receiving the request data, the network system can select a set of service providers from a plurality of candidate service providers in the geographic region to provide the requested service. The service providers can be selected based on optimizations of one or more service parameters including estimated fares for the plurality of users, ETAs to the start location, ETAs to the service locations, etc. The network system can further determine routes for the set of service providers from their respective locations to the start or service location(s) and from the start or service location(s) to the respective start or service location(s).

Claims

1. A network system for managing an on-demand service, comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more memory resources storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the network system to;

monitor respective locations and statuses of a plurality of service providers by receiving real-time data from devices of the plurality of service providers over a network, each of the plurality of service providers being associated with one of a plurality of provider classes;

receive, over the network from a requesting user device of a requesting user, a set of multi-user request data corresponding to a multi-user request for service for a plurality of users, the set of multi-user request data including identifying information associated with the plurality of users;

in response to receiving the set of multi-user request data, identify a plurality of potential service provider selections, each of the potential service provider selections including a respective set of service providers available to service the multi-user request; and

select one of the plurality of potential service provider selections as a set of service providers to fulfill the multi-user request for service based on optimizing one or more parameters, including an aggregate measure of respective estimated fares for each of the plurality of users for the requested service.

2. The network system of claim 1, wherein the executed instructions further cause the network system to transmit, over the network to a first user device of a first user of the plurality of users, a notification message that indicates a progress of the requested service for a second user of the plurality of users.

3. The network system of claim 2, wherein the executed instructions further cause the network system to:

monitoring the progress of the requested service for the second user of the plurality of users to determine that the second user has arrived at a service location specific to the second user;

in response to determining that the second user has arrived at the service location specific to the second user, transmitting the notification message to the first user device of the first user, the notification message informing the first user that the second user has arrived at the service location specific to the second user.

4. The network system of claim 2, wherein the executed instructions further cause the network system to:

monitoring the progress of the requested service for the second user of the plurality of users to determine that the second user has rendezvoused with a service provider of the set of service providers identified for the second user;

in response to determining that the second user has rendezvoused with the service provider of the set of service providers identified for the second user, transmitting the notification message to the first user device of the first user, the notification message informing the first user that the second user has rendezvoused with the service provider of the set of service providers identified for the second user.

5. The network system of claim 1, wherein the one or more parameters include an aggregate measure of respective estimated times of arrival of each of the set of service providers at one or more start locations.

6. The network system of claim 1, wherein the one or more parameters include an aggregate measure of respective estimated times of arrival of each of the plurality of users at one or more service locations.

7. The network system of claim 1, wherein selecting one of the plurality of potential service provider selections as the set of service providers to fulfill the multi-user request for service is based further on performing multi-variate optimizations of at least two service parameters, including:

(i) the aggregate measure of respective estimated fares for each of the plurality of users for the requested service, and (ii) an aggregate measure of respective estimated times of arrival of each of the plurality of users at one or more service locations.

8. The network system of claim 1, wherein the set of service providers selected to fulfill the multi-user request for service for the plurality of users comprises a first service provider associated with a first provider class of the plurality of provider classes and a second provider associated with a second provider class of the plurality of provider classes.

9. The network system of claim 1, wherein a first service provider of the set of service providers is selected by the network system to fulfill the requested service for two or more users of the plurality of users.

10. The network system of claim 1, wherein the set of multi-user request data indicates a start location and a plurality of service locations, each of the plurality of service locations being associated with a corresponding user of the plurality of users in connection with the multi-user request for service.

11. The network system of claim 1, wherein the set of multi-user request data indicates a plurality of start locations and a common service location for the plurality of users, each of the plurality of start locations being associated with a corresponding user of the plurality of users in connection with the multi-user request for service.

12. The network system of claim 1, wherein the executed instructions further cause the network system to, in response to receiving the set of multi-user request data from the requesting user device of the requesting user, transmit a set of notification data to a first user device of a first user to cause the first user device to present a user interface for inputting a first start location or a first service location for the first user in connection with the multi-user request for service, the first user being one of the plurality of users other than the requesting user.

13. The network system of claim 1, wherein the executed instructions further cause the network system to:

cause the requesting user device to display a set of users of the on-demand service for selection by the requesting user as one or more of the plurality of users for the multi-user request for service; and

wherein the set of users is identified by the network system based on their respective locations in comparison with a current location of the requesting user.

14. The network system of claim 1, wherein the executed instructions further cause the network system to:

cause the requesting user device to display a set of users of the on-demand service for selection by the requesting user as one or more of the plurality of users for the multi-user request for service; and

wherein the set of users is identified by the network system based on a respective permission to being included in the set of users for display on the requesting user device.

15. The network system of claim 1, wherein the executed instructions further cause the network system to:

cause the requesting user device to display a set of users of the on-demand service for selection by the requesting user as one or more of the plurality of users for the multi-user request for service; and

wherein the set of users is identified by the network system based on a contact list of the requesting user.

16. A computer-implemented method for managing an on-demand service, the method being performed by a network system and comprising:

monitoring respective locations and statuses of a plurality of service providers by receiving real-time data from devices of the plurality of service providers over a network, each of the plurality of service providers being associated with one of a plurality of provider classes;

receiving, over the network from a requesting user device of a requesting user, a set of multi-user request data corresponding to a multi-user request for service for a plurality of users, the set of multi-user request data including identifying information associated with the plurality of users;

in response to receiving the set of multi-user request data, identifying a plurality of potential service provider selections, each of the potential service provider selections including a respective set of service providers available to service the multi-user request; and

select one of the plurality of potential service provider selections as a set of service providers to fulfill the multi-user request for service based on optimizing one or more parameters, including an aggregate measure of respective estimated fares for each of the plurality of users for the requested service.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, wherein the one or more parameters includes one or more of:

(i) an aggregate measure of respective estimated times of arrival of each of the set of service providers at one or more start locations, or (ii) an aggregate measure of respective estimated times of arrival of each of the plurality of users at one or more service locations.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, wherein selecting one of the plurality of potential service provider selections as the set of service providers to fulfill the multi-user request for service is based further on performing multi-variate optimizations of at least two service parameters, including:

(i) the aggregate measure of respective estimated fares for each of the plurality of users for the provision of the requested service, and (ii) an aggregate measure of respective estimated times of arrival of each of the plurality of users at one or more service locations.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a network system, cause the network system to:

monitor respective locations and statuses of a plurality of service providers by receiving real-time data from devices of the plurality of service providers over a network, each of the plurality of service providers being associated with one of a plurality of provider classes;

receive, over the network from a requesting user device of a requesting user, a set of multi-user request data corresponding to a multi-user request for service for a plurality of users, the set of multi-user request data including identifying information associated with the plurality of users;

in response to receiving the set of multi-user request data, identify a plurality of potential service provider selections, each of the potential service provider selections including a respective set of service providers available to service the multi-user request; and

selecting one of the plurality of potential service provider selections as a set of service providers to fulfill the multi-user request for service based on optimizing one or more parameters, including an aggregate measure of respective estimated fares for each of the plurality of users for the requested service.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein the one or more parameters includes one or more of:

(i) an aggregate measure of respective estimated times of arrival of each service provider of the set of service providers at one or more start locations, or (ii) an aggregate measure of respective estimated times of arrival of each of the plurality of users at one or more service locations.