Patent ID: 9727940
Date: 2017-08-08
CPC Classifications: G06Q

Claim:
1. A method for unobscuring a demand level for airline seats, the method comprising: receiving over a first network, from a first computing system and at a second computing system, a bookings table representing actual seat bookings for a flight, wherein the actual seat bookings occurred during a first time period, and wherein the actual seat bookings are grouped into a plurality of fare classes; accessing, by a processor configured for unobscuring demand for airline seats, the processor forming part of the second computing system having an unobscuring module operative thereon, the bookings table; determining, by the processor of the second computing system, which fare classes in the plurality of fare classes have demand that is obscured due to the availability of seats for booking in a lower fare class in the plurality of fare classes; calculating, by the processor of the second computing system and via execution of an expectation management (EM) algorithm, the unobscured demand for at least one fare class in the plurality of fare classes; converting, by the processor of the second computing system, the unobscured demand for the at least one fare class into integer values representing seat bookings in the respective fare classes; updating, by the processor of the second computing system, the bookings table with the integer values to form an unobscured bookings table; transferring over the first network, by the second computing system and to a third computing system configured with a demand forecasting system operative thereon, the unobscured bookings table; utilizing, by the third computing system, the unobscured bookings table to generate an unobscured demand forecast for the flight; transferring over the first network, by the third computing system and to a fourth computing system configured for taking seat bookings, the unobscured demand forecast; opening, based on the unobscured demand forecast and by the fourth computing system, an additional fare class on the flight for seat bookings; and taking, by the fourth computing system and over a second network, a seat booking in the additional fare class.