Total value bidding

• US 20030204465A1
• Filed: 04/24/2002
• Published: 10/30/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ariba Incorporated (SAP SE)
• Original Assignee: FreeMarkets Incorporated (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Miller, Keith, Marhafer, David, Clevenger, David, McIlnay, Dan
• Granted Patent: US 7,483,852 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/37
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0226 Incentive systems for frequent usage, e.g. frequent flyer miles programs or point systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

A method and system of evaluating values of different payment or delivery terms in online auctions, including obtaining an interest rate and a period from a buyer for a lot, the lot having a predetermined value, receiving a first bid from a first bidder and a second bid from a second bidder on the lot, the first and second bids each having a payment time and a rebate and transforming the first bid into a first value and the second bid into a second value using the interest rate, the period, and the predetermined value from the buyer, and the payment times and rebates from the first and second bidders.

Claims

17. A method of evaluating values of different terms in online auctions comprising:

obtaining an interest rate (i) and payment period (e) from a buyer for a plurality of lots, each lot having a price (n);

receiving a plurality of bids from a plurality of bidders, each bid having a payment time (p) and a rebate (x);

generating an adder (b) and a factor (m) for each bid;

transforming the adders (b), factors (m), and rebates (x) into values (y); and

ranking the values (y).

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the generating comprises:

calculating the factor (m) according to equation (1);

m=n/(1+i)^t  

 

(1)

wherein t=time in which the rebate (x) will be paid.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein the generating comprises:

calculating the adder (b) according to equations (2) and (3);

$\begin{array}{cc}b=\frac{\underset{q=1}{\overset{g}{\sum <br><br>}}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>b_q}{{\left(1+i\right)}^{\left(r+e\right)}}<br><br><br><br>\mathrm{wherein};<br><br>& \left(2\right)\\ b_q=\frac{n/g*i*f}{{\left(1+i\right)}^{\left(z_q+f\right)}},& \left(3\right)\end{array}$

q=1 to g time periods,

g=number of time periods,

r=total time units in a time period,

f=(p−

e), and

z_q=total time units from 0 to q.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein the transforming comprises:

calculating the values (y) according to equation (4);

y=(m*x)+b.  

 

(4)

21. A method of evaluating values of different terms in online auctions comprising:

obtaining an interest rate (i) and payment period (e) from a buyer for a lot, the lot having a price (n);

soliciting a plurality of bids from a plurality of bidders;

receiving the bids from the bidders, each bid having a payment time (p) and a rebate (x);

calculating a factor (m) according to equation (1);

m=n/(1+i)^t  

 

(1)

wherein;

t=time in which the rebate (x) will be paid;

generating adders (b) for each bid according to equations (2) and (3);

$\begin{array}{cc}b=\frac{\underset{q=1}{\overset{g}{\sum <br><br>}}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>b_q}{{\left(1+i\right)}^{\left(r+e\right)}}<br><br><br><br>\mathrm{wherein};<br><br>& \left(2\right)\\ b_q=\frac{n/g*i*f}{{\left(1+i\right)}^{\left(z_q+f\right)}},& \left(3\right)\end{array}$

q=1 to g time periods,

g=number of time periods,

r=total time units in a time period,

f=(p−

e), and

z_q=total time from 0 to q;

determining the values (y) according to equation (4);

y=(m*x)+b; and

 

 

(4)

ranking the values (y).

22. A system for evaluating values of different terms in online auctions comprising:

a database for receiving and storing an interest rate and a period from a buyer for a plurality of lots and a plurality of bids on the lots from a plurality of bidders, each bid having a payment time and a rebate, the lots having a predetermined value; and

software for generating an adder and a factor for each bid and transforming the adders, factors and rebates into values.

23. The system of claim 22 wherein the interest rate is calculated per day.

24. The system of claim 22 wherein the period is determined in days.

25. The system of claim 22 wherein the payment time is provided in days.

26. The system of claim 22 wherein the adder (b) is calculated according to equations (2) and (3):

27. The system of claim 22 wherein the factor (m) is calculated according to equation (1):

m=predetermined value/(1+interest rate)^{time period}  

 

(1)

wherein the time period comprises 360 days+days after the 360 days in which the rebate will be paid.

28. The system of claim 22 wherein the value (y) is calculated according to equation (4):

y=(m*x)+b  

 

(4)

where;

m is the factor,

x is the rebate, and

b is the adder.

29. The system of claim 22 wherein the software compares and ranks the values.

30. A machine readable medium for evaluating values of different terms in online auctions comprising:

a first machine readable code that receives and stores an interest rate and a period from a buyer for lots, each lot having a predetermined value;

a second machine readable code that receives bids from bidders, each bid having a payment time and a rebate;

a third readable code that generates an adder and a factor for each bid; and

a fourth readable code that transforms the adders, factors and rebates into values.

1. A method of evaluating values of different terms in online auctions comprising:

obtaining an interest rate and a period from a buyer for a lot, the lot having a predetermined value;

receiving a first bid from a first bidder and a second bid from a second bidder on the lot, the first and second bids each having a payment time and a rebate; and

transforming the first bid into a first value and the second bid into a second value using the interest rate, period, and predetermined value from the buyer and the payment times and rebates from the first and second bidders.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

comparing the first value and the second value.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

displaying a rank of the first value with respect to the second value.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the transforming comprises:

using linear programming to calculate the first and second values.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the transforming comprises:

determining a factor from the interest rate and the period; and

generating a first and second adder from the first and second payment times, respectively, the interest rate, the period, and the predetermined value.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the generating comprises:

calculating the factor (m) according to equation (1);

m=predetermined value/(1+interest rate)^{time period}  

 

(1)

wherein the time period comprises a time in which the rebate will be paid.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the calculating comprises:

providing the time period based on days, the time period being 360 days+days after the 360 days in which the rebate will be paid.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the generating comprises:

calculating the adder (b) according to equations (2) and (3);

$\begin{array}{cc}b=\frac{\underset{q=1}{\overset{g}{\sum <br><br>}}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>b_q}{{\left(1+\mathrm{interest}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{rate}\right)}^{\left(\mathrm{total}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{time}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{units}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>i<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>n<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>a<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{time}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{peirod}+\mathrm{period}\right)}}<br><br><br><br>\mathrm{wherein};<br><br><br><br>q=1<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{to}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{total}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{time}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{periods};<br><br><br><br>\text{<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{payment}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{value}=\mathrm{payment}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{time}-\mathrm{period};<br><br>\mathrm{and}& \left(2\right)\\ b_q=\frac{\left(\mathrm{predetermined}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{value}/\mathrm{total}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{time}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{periods}\right)*\mathrm{interest}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{rate}*\mathrm{payment}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{value};<br><br><br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}}{{\left(1+\mathrm{interest}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{rate}\right)}^{\mathrm{extra}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>{\mathrm{time}}_q}}& \left(3\right)\end{array}$

extra time_q=total time units from 0 to q time periods+payment value.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the calculating comprises:

providing the extra time, the time units, the payment time, and the period based on days; and

determining the interest rate per day.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

soliciting potential bidders.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the soliciting comprises:

preparing a request for quotation;

providing the request for quotation to the potential bidders; and

requesting the potential bidders to respond to the request for quotation.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

conducting the auction as a reverse auction.

13. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

conducting the auction as a forward auction.

14. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

electronically coupling the first and second bidders to an auction coordinator; and

submitting the first and second bids to the auction coordinator online.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein the obtaining comprises:

identifying at least one of goods and services to be purchased.

16. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving at least one additional bid having an additional time period and an additional rebate; and

transforming the additional rebate into an additional value.

31. The machine readable medium of claim 30 further comprising a fifth readable code that compares and ranks the values.

32. The machine readable medium of claim 30 wherein the interest rate, period, and payment time are based on days.

34. The machine readable medium of claim 30 wherein the factor (m) is calculated according to equation (1):

m=predetermined value/(1+interest rate)^{time period}  

 

(1)

wherein the time period comprises 360 days+days after the 360 days in which the rebate will be paid.

35. The machine readable medium of claim 30 wherein the value (y) is calculated according to equation (4):

y=(m*x)+b  

 

(4)

wherein;

m is the factor,

x is the rebate, and

b is the adder.

32-1. The machine readable medium of claim 30 wherein the adder (b) is calculated according to equations (2) and (3):