Method and system of electronically receiving and processing membership information of an organization

A group organizational system operational as a computer program on a computer network. The computer network provides communication between a host server and a plurality of remote individual users. The group organizational system includes an organization database, a registrant database and a roster database. The organization database includes information relevant to an organization and predetermined registration qualifications. The registrant database is in communication with the remote users and the host server. The registrant database receives registration information from the remote users. The roster database is in communication with the host server. The host server includes a registration generation program for comparing the registration information of the remote users with the predetermined registration qualifications to determine whether a remote user qualifies as member of the organization. The host server further includes a roster generation program for generating a plurality of rosters including the members of the organization, based upon the registration information of the members of the organization. The group organizational system can further include a schedule database which is in communication with the host server. A schedule generation program for generating a schedule of events of the organization based upon the rosters and predetermined scheduling restraints. The group organizational system further includes a product database. The product database comprising product information about products relevant to the organization. A product generation program which generates a product list based upon the registration information of the remote users and the product information of the product database.

FIELD OF INVENTION
 This invention relates generally to a method and system for electronically
 receiving and processing information from individuals. More particularly,
 this invention relates to an organizational method and system for
 receiving information over an electronic network from potential and actual
 members of an organization, automatically generating membership groupings,
 automatically generating schedules of organizational events, providing
 information about products related to the activities of the organization,
 and automatically notifying the members over the electronic network of the
 membership groupings, schedules and product information.
 BACKGROUND
 It is common for organizations, such as sports leagues, to register large
 numbers of individuals to participate in the activities of the
 organization. Due to the large number of individuals, coordinating the
 registration of the individual participants can be time consuming and
 cumbersome. For example, a typical youth sports league may include over
 2000 participants. Registration of the participants requires determination
 of the age, gender, and address of each of the individual participants. In
 addition, league organizers must collect league fees. The time required to
 register the participants and collect the fees can be prohibitively great.
 Once all of the participants are registered, the organization (league) must
 generate team rosters which include all of the participants. Generation of
 team rosters requires grouping the participants by the above listed
 factors of age, gender, and address, plus other factors including
 participant preference and experience.
 Once team rosters have been generated, the league organizers must generate
 game schedules for all of the teams. Generation of schedules requires
 matching team rosters which fall into similar groupings of participants.
 Generally, the matching includes configuring the game schedule so that
 every team roster of a particular grouping plays every other team roster
 within the grouping. Typically, the generation of schedules also includes
 consideration of playing field availability, season length, holidays and
 other time constraints.
 Typically, participation in the activities of a sports league requires the
 purchase of products which are required for participation. For example,
 participation in a basketball league may require the purchase of proper
 shoes or athletic apparel. It can be difficult for league administrators
 to properly advise participants of the required products.
 In the case of youth sports leagues, most of the league administration is
 performed by volunteer parents who only have a limited amount of time to
 dedicate to league administration. Therefore, league administration
 resources can be very limited. Typically, it is nearly impossible for a
 league's limited volunteer staff, using antiquated tools and communication
 methods, to respond to all participant's requests for league information,
 questions and concerns.
 The administrative efforts required to register participants, collect
 league fees, generate team rosters, generate team roster schedules,
 suggest product purchases and answer general questions is enormous.
 Coupled with the fact that league administrators are typically volunteers
 with limited amounts of free time and administrative systems, makes league
 administration nearly impossible.
 It is desirable to have a organizational network system which allows a
 plurality of individuals to easily register as members of an organization.
 It is desirable that the organizational network system have the capability
 to receive information from the individual members, and generate
 membership groupings and generate a schedule of events and activities of
 the organization based upon the information received, and automatically
 communicate the groupings and schedule to the members. Additionally, it is
 desirable that the network system be able to automatically provide the
 members with information about products which may be useful to the members
 during the course of the activities of the organization.
 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
 The present invention is an organizational network computer system which
 allows many individuals to electronically register over a computer network
 as members of the organization. The organizational network computer system
 has the capability to receive information over the computer network from
 the individual members. The information of the individual members is used
 for automatically generating membership groupings, and generating a
 schedule of events of the organization. The network computer system can
 also provide the members with information about products which may be
 useful to the member during the course of the activities of the
 organization. The network computer system automatically communicates over
 the computer network the membership grouping, the schedule of events and
 the product information.
 A first embodiment of this invention includes a group organizational system
 operational as a computer program on a computer network. The computer
 network provides communication between a host server and a plurality of
 remote individual users. The group organizational system includes an
 organization database, a registrant database and a roster database. The
 organization database includes information relevant to an organization and
 predetermined registration qualifications. The registrant database is in
 communication with the remote users and the host server. The registrant
 database receives registration information from the remote users. The host
 server includes a registration generation program for comparing the
 registration information of the remote users with the predetermined
 registration qualifications to determine whether a remote user qualifies
 as a member of the organization. Whether the remote user is qualified as a
 member of the organization is automatically communicated through the
 computer network to each of the remote users. The registration database is
 updated to indicate whether a remote user is qualified as a member of the
 organization. The host server further includes a roster generation program
 for generating a plurality of rosters including the members of the
 organization, based upon the registration information of the members of
 the organization. The rosters are stored in the roster database. The
 rosters are automatically communicated through the computer network to the
 remote users.
 A second embodiment is similar to the first embodiment. The second
 embodiment further includes a schedule database which is in communication
 with the host server. The host server further includes a schedule
 generation program for generating a schedule of events of the organization
 based upon the rosters and predetermined scheduling constraints. The
 schedules are automatically communicated through the computer network to
 the remote users.
 A third embodiment is similar to the first embodiment. The third embodiment
 further includes a product database which is in communication with the
 host server. The product database includes product information about
 products relevant to the organization. The host server further includes a
 product generation program which generates a product list based upon the
 registration information of the remote users and the product information
 of the product database. The product list is automatically communicated
 through the computer network to the remote users.
 Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent
 from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the
 accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles of
 the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION
 As shown in the drawings for purposes of illustration, the invention is
 embodied in an organizational network computer system and method which
 allows many individuals to electronically register as members of the
 organization. The organizational network computer system receives
 information from the individual members. The information of the individual
 members is used to automatically generate membership groupings, and
 generate a schedule of events of the organization. The network computer
 system can also provide the members with information about products which
 are useful to the activities of the organization. The network computer
 system automatically communicates over a computer network the membership
 groupings, the schedules and the product information.
 FIG. 1 shows a computer networking system which can be used to implement
 the system and method of the invention. The computer networking system
 includes a host server 100 connected to a network 110 and several remote
 user terminals 120, 130, 140, 150. A system administrator 160 can enter
 control parameters and commands directly to the host server 100. FIG. 1
 only shows a single system administrator 160. However, the invention can
 include more than one system administrator 160. The system administrator
 160 is distinguished from the remote users in that the system
 administrator 160 has greater priority in accessing and modifying
 information within the databases of the computer networking system.
 The remote user terminals 120, 130, 140 allow remote users to access
 computer programs and databases which are controlled by the host server
 100 through the network 110. The host server 100 can provide access to
 information within the databases through a web page which the remote users
 can access through the network 110. The web page is controlled by the host
 server 100, and generates a screen view for display to the remote users.
 During a remote user's web page access, the web page provides menu
 selections of programs and information relevant to the purposes of the web
 page. Upon the remote user selection of a menu item, the host server 100
 displays on the web page corresponding programs or up-to-date information.
 FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of the invention which includes the host server
 100, computer programs 210, 220, 230, 240 according to the invention which
 run on the host server 100, and various databases 250, 260, 270, 280, 290
 which can be accessed by the remote users and the host server 100.
 The computer programs of the invention include a registration qualification
 program 210, a roster generation program 220, a schedule generation
 program 230 and a product generation program 240. The databases of the
 invention include an organization database 250, a registration database
 260, a roster database 270, a schedule database 280 and a product database
 290.
 By way of example, the invention is described through the registration and
 organization of a sports league. However, it should be understood that
 this is merely an example of a use of the invention, and that other types
 of organizations, such as schools, scouts, clubs and others, could equally
 benefit from the invention.
 A first aspect of the invention includes an organizational network computer
 system and method which allows many individuals to electronically register
 as members of an organization (such as a sports league). The registration
 process primarily involves the registration qualification program 210, the
 organization database 250 and the registration database 260.
 The host server 100 receives registration information from remote users,
 through the network 110. Typically, the information is input to the host
 server 100 through a web page associated with the organization.
 The host server 100 provides information about the league to the remote
 users through the web page. The league information is generally stored
 within the organization database 250. The league information is valuable
 to the remote user because it provides the remote user with descriptions
 of the organizations involved, the sports offered, the requirements for
 participation, and league logistics.
 The information input by the remote user is generally stored in the
 registration database 260. Typically, this information includes the remote
 user's age, gender, address, experience and personal preferences.
 The host server 100 then causes the registration qualification program 210
 to be executed. FIG. 3 shows a flow chart of the registration process
 according to the invention, including the registration qualification
 program 210.
 A first step 310 includes receiving registration information from the
 remote users. Generally, the information is input as stated above, through
 an organization web page. A set of response are requested on the web page,
 in which the remote users respond. The response information is stored in
 the registration database 260. Registration information can include age,
 gender, address and experience. In addition, the registration information
 can include a form of payment, like, a credit card number.
 A second step 320 includes the registration qualification program 210
 accessing the registration information stored in the registration database
 260 and qualification information stored in the organization database 250.
 The registration qualification program 210 compares the registration
 information with the qualification information and determines whether a
 remote used qualifies as a qualified member. For example, a remote user
 who is fifteen years old will not be qualified as a member of a league for
 twelve year olds. Qualified members are allowed to participate in the
 organization.
 An embodiment of the invention further includes automatically communicating
 to each remote user whether the remote user is qualified as a member of
 the league through the network 110. The communication can be in the form
 of an electronic mail message sent to the remote user. The electronic mail
 can be sent to an electronic mail address stored in the registration
 database at the time the remote user registers. Alternatively, the
 communication can be automatically displayed on a web page that is
 controlled by the host server 100 which the remote user is accessing.
 Another aspect of the invention includes automatically generating rosters
 which include qualified members of the organizations, and automatically
 communicating the rosters to the members of the organization. Generally,
 generating the rosters includes executing the roster generation program
 220, and accessing the registration database 260 and the roster database
 270.
 FIG. 4 is a flow chart which shows the steps included within the roster
 generation program 220.
 A first step 400 of the roster generation program 220 includes displaying
 registration statistics of the qualified members of the league. The
 registration information is stored within the registration database 260,
 and is easily accessible. The league administrator (system administrator)
 160 can make informed decision about the organization of the league before
 any team rosters are generated. For example, the registration statistics
 can depict how many qualified members are of a particular gender, age or
 experience. If the league administrator observes that there are no
 qualified members of a particular gender or age, the league administrator
 can request that rosters not be generated for those particular divisions
 within the league.
 A second step 410 includes the system administrator 160 deciding whether
 the roster generation program 220 should automatically generate the
 rosters, or whether the system administrator prefers to personally select
 the rosters.
 If the system administrator 160 selects the rosters to be automatically
 generated, then a third step 420 includes the determination of a roster
 rule set. The roster rule set can include stipulations, for example, on
 the number of members to be included on a roster, the number of boys or
 girls to be included on a roster, the desired age distribution to be
 included on a team, or any other system administrator 160 defined
 restriction.
 A fourth step 430 of FIG. 4 includes automatically generating rosters of
 the qualified members once a rule set has been selected. The details of
 the automatic roster generation of the fourth step 430 will be discussed
 in greater detail later.
 A fifth step 440 include the system administrator 160 indicating
 satisfaction with the rosters which have been generated. If the system
 administrator 160 is not satisfied with the rosters which have been
 generated, then the second step 410 is repeated.
 A sixth step 450 results if the system administrator 160 decides to
 personally select the rosters at the second step 410. The sixth step 450
 includes sorting the organization members by age, school, address, or
 another predetermined parameter. The sorted members are listed so that the
 system administrator can observe the sorted lists.
 A seventh step 460 includes the system administer 160 selecting rosters
 from the sorted lists generated by the sixth step 450.
 Once rosters have been generated, the rosters must be communicated to the
 remote users and qualified members of the organization. An eighth step 470
 determines which of two methods is used for communicating the rosters to
 the remote users.
 A ninth step 480 represents the first method of communicating the rosters
 which includes sending an electronic mail message to the remote users. The
 electronic mail address is acquired from the remote users when the remote
 users enter information which is stored in the registration database 260.
 Each remote user has the option of printing the electronic mail message so
 that the remote user has a hard-copy of the roster.
 A tenth step 490 represents the second method of communicating the rosters
 which includes the host server 100 providing access to the roster
 information to the remote users through the network 110. Generally, the
 remote users log on to a web page which is controlled by the host server
 100. One of the options available on the web page is access to the rosters
 stored on the roster database 270. Upon accessing the roster database 270,
 the remote user can print a hard-copy of the roster.
 FIG. 5 is another flow chart which show more detail of the steps included
 within the roster generation program 220. More specifically, FIG. 5 is a
 flow chart which shows the steps included within the fourth step 430 of
 FIG. 4, which includes automatically generating rosters of the qualified
 members based on a selected rule set.
 A first step 500 include sorting the qualified members (players) of an
 organization into leagues. An individual league can be defined by the
 grade or age of the player. For example, a particular league can include
 seventh graders, while another league includes eighth graders.
 A second step 505 includes sorting the players by division. A division can
 be defined by the address of the player, or by the school attended by the
 player. For example, a player who attends school A can be sorted into a
 first division while players who attends school B can be sorted into a
 second division.
 A third step 510 includes iteratively stepping through each player of an
 organization and assigning the player to both a league and a division.
 That is, the registration information of each remote user (player)
 includes enough information to allow categorization of the player to a
 particular league and division.
 A fourth step 515 includes checking to ensure that all player of the
 organization have been assigned to a league and a division. If all of the
 players have not been assigned, the third step 510 is repeated.
 A fifth step 520 includes creating a team within a particular division.
 A sixth step 525 include assigning a player to the last team created.
 A seventh step 530 includes checking to determine whether all of the
 players have been assigned to a team. If all players have not been
 assigned, then an eighth step 535 is executed. If all of the players have
 been assigned, then a ninth step 540 is executed.
 The eighth step 535 includes checking to determine whether the team last
 created is complete. That is, checking to determine whether the last team
 created has a complete roster of players. If the team is complete, then
 the ninth step 540 is executed. If the team is not complete, then the
 sixth step 525 is repeated.
 The ninth step 540 includes checking to determine whether all of the
 players within a division are complete. That is, checking to determine
 that all of the players who have been assigned to the division, have been
 assigned to a team within the division. If the division is not complete,
 then the fifth step 520 is repeated. If the division is complete, then a
 tenth step 545 is executed.
 The tenth step 545 includes checking to determine whether any division
 within the league has not had players and teams assigned to the division.
 If there is still at least one remaining division, then the fifth step 520
 is repeated. If all of the players within every division have been
 assigned to a team, then the roster generation program 220 is complete.
 As mentioned before, once rosters have been generated, the rosters must be
 communicated to the remote users and qualified members of the
 organization.
 Another aspect of the invention includes generating a schedule of events
 (game schedule) of the organization and automatically communicating the
 schedule to the members (players) of the organization. FIG. 6 is a flow
 chart which shows the steps included within the schedule generation
 program 230.
 A first step 605 includes selecting the teams (rosters) within a league and
 division which are to be scheduled.
 A second step 610 includes displaying to the league administrator (system
 administrator 160) an unconstrained open calender. This step is for the
 convenience of the league administrator.
 A third step 615 includes the league administrator entering any league
 constraints which may exist. League constraints can include the length of
 a league season, the number of games of a season and other time
 constraints. Time constraints can include, for example, Sundays and
 holidays.
 A fourth step 620 includes displaying a league constrained calender to the
 league administrator. Again, this step is for the convenience of the
 league administrator.
 A fifth step 625 includes prompting the league administrator for any other
 league constraints. If the league administrator desires to enter more
 constraints, the third step 615 is repeated. Otherwise, a sixth step 630
 is executed.
 The sixth step 630 includes the league administrator entering any
 facilities constraints which may exist. Here, facilities are defined here
 as the places where the sports activity can take place. For example, a
 field or gymnasium. Facilities constraints can include a facility not
 being available on particular dates or times.
 A seventh step 635 includes displaying a facilities constrained calender to
 the league administrator. Again, this step is for the convenience of the
 league administrator.
 An eighth step 640 includes prompting the league administrator for any
 other facilities constraints. If the league administrator desires to enter
 more constraints, the sixth step 630 is repeated. Otherwise, a ninth step
 645 is executed.
 The ninth step 645 includes the league administrator entering any team
 constraints which may exist. Team constraints can include a team coach not
 being available, a team not being available or team conflicts.
 A tenth step 650 includes displaying a team constrained calender to the
 league administrator. Again, this step is for the convenience of the
 league administrator.
 An eleventh step 655 includes prompting the league administrator for any
 other team constraints. If the league administrator desires to enter more
 constraints, the ninth step 645 is repeated. Otherwise, a twelfth step 660
 is executed.
 The twelfth step 660 includes generating permutations of pairings for a
 team. For example, if there are six teams to be scheduled (teams A, B, C,
 D, E, F), then a first team permutation pairing may be A and B. The next
 time the twelfth step 660 is executed, the pairing may be, for example, A
 and C.
 A thirteenth step 665 include checking to determine whether the team
 pairing of the twelfth step 660 violates any of the previously determined
 team constraints. If a team constraint is violated by the pairing, then
 the twelfth step 660 is repeated. If a team constraint is not violated,
 then a fourteenth step 670 is executed.
 The fourteenth step 670 includes designating a pairing as proper. That is,
 no team constraints are violated by the pairing.
 A fifteenth step 675 includes checking to determine whether all pairs which
 do not violate team constraints have been designated as proper. That is, a
 determination is made whether A has been paired with B, C, D, E, F,
 whether B has been paired with A, C, D, E, F, as so forth through each of
 the teams A, B, C, D, E, F.
 A sixteenth step 680 includes comparing the proper team pairings with
 available time slots of the schedule. That is, the schedule includes a
 finite number of chronologically ordered available time slots. Each
 pairing of a team is chronologically matched with available slots. For
 example, the pairing A and B may be entered in a first date and time
 available slot.
 A seventeenth step 685 includes determining if the time slot of the
 schedule in which a team pairing has been matched violates any of the
 predetermined schedule constraints. If a scheduling constraint is
 violated, then the sixteenth step 680 is repeated. If no scheduling
 constraints are violated, then an eighteenth step 690 is executed.
 The eighteenth step 690 includes, entering the team pair into the schedule
 date and time slot.
 A nineteenth step 692 includes checking whether all of the team pair
 permutations have been entered into the schedule. If all of the team
 permutations have not been entered, then the sixteenth step 680 is
 repeated. If all team permutations have been entered, then a twentieth
 step 694 is executed.
 The twentieth step 694 includes determining whether each of the remote
 users requested an automatic electronic mail notification. The request for
 electronic mail notification is made at the time the remote user registers
 for the league. Therefore, the request is generally stored in the
 registration database. If an automatic electronic mail notification was
 requested, then a twenty first step 696 is executed. If an automatic
 electronic mail notification was not requested, then a twenty second step
 698 is executed.
 The twenty first step 696 includes sending an electronic mail message to
 the remote users. The electronic mail address is acquired from the remote
 users when the remote users enter information which is stored in the
 registration database 260. Each remote user has the option of printing the
 electronic mail message so that the remote user has a hard-copy of the
 schedule.
 The twenty second step 698 includes the host server 100 providing access to
 the schedule information to the remote users through the network 110.
 Generally, the remote users log on to a web page which is controlled by
 the host server 100. One of the options available on the web page is
 access to the schedules stored on the schedule database 280. Upon
 accessing the schedule database 280, the remote user can print a hard-copy
 of the schedule.
 Another aspect of the invention includes generating a product list for the
 organization members (players) which includes products which are useful to
 the activities of the organization, and automatically communicating the
 product list through the network 110 to organization members (players).
 FIG. 7 is a flow chart which shows the steps included within the product
 generation program 240.
 A first step 710 includes receiving the registration information from the
 remote users. This functionality to a large extent is included within the
 registration qualification program 210.
 A second step 720 includes comparing the registration information of the
 remote users to product information stored within the product database.
 Certain registration characteristics trigger the product generation
 program 240 to provide lists of particular products which are stored in
 the product database. For example, a remote user who is registering for a
 football league may have products like cleats, a football or a mouth guard
 listed. A remote user who is registering for a baseball league may have
 products like a glove, a bat or a hat listed. In addition, other types of
 products and services may be offered. For example, team pictures may be
 listed, or private batting lessons from an instructor may be listed.
 Essentially, any product or service that a participant of the league may
 be interested in purchasing may be listed on the product list.
 A third step 730 includes displaying the product list to the remote user.
 As with previously describe automatic communication with the remote users,
 the process of displaying the product list to the remote users can include
 individual electronic mail messages, or it can include displaying the
 product list on a web page controlled by the host server 100 which the
 remote user is currently viewing.
 A fourth step 740 include receiving any request by the remote users to
 purchase a product on the product list. The product request are generally
 made over the computer network 110. If no request are made, then the
 product generation program 240 is done. If request(s) are received, then a
 fifth step 750 is executed.
 The fifth step 750 includes processing the product request of the remote
 users. Basically, this includes completing an order for a product. This
 can be accomplished by communicating the order to the manufacturer of the
 product through the network 110. Further, payment of the product can be
 completed simultaneous with the request. For example, the remote user can
 enter a credit card number which provides payment for the good or services
 requested by the remote user.
 Although specific embodiments of the invention have been described and
 illustrated, the invention is not to be limited to the specific forms or
 arrangements of parts so described and illustrated. The invention is
 limited only by the claims.