Inventors:
Kenneth C. Knapp - Austin TX
Michael Daniel Santivenere - Austin TX
Michael Joseph Sullivan - Austin TX
Jonathan Mark Wagner - Round Rock TX
Assignee:
International Business Machines Corporation - Armonk NY
International Classification:
G06F 1760
Abstract:
Expected service delays are determined from actual service data captured during service at an establishment. For each party seeking service at an establishment, the time at which the party seeks service and the time at which the party receives, or at least begins receiving, service are automatically captured, by sensors situated proximate to a cafeteria-style service line or from a data processing system-implemented waiting list. A subset of the collected data is selected utilizing defined criteria relevant to service times, such as time of day, level of service as a proportion to overall capacity, etc. An average service delay for parties is then calculated from the selected subset of collected service data. This average service delay is employed in determining an expected service delay for prospective customers, adjusting the average service delay by multiplication with a factor specified to correspond with relevant characteristics of service at the establishment, such as time of day, size of the party seeking service, etc. The projected service delay for a prospective customer is then transmitted from the establishments Web site to the requester.
