Internet-based matching service for expert consultants and customers with matching of qualifications and times of availability

Abstract

An Internet server matches experts offering consulting services in the biological sciences or the like with potential customers of such consulting services. The server presents each expert with a Web interface through which the expert inputs his or her qualifications and times of availability. The qualifications are organized in a two-tier hierarchy of broad subject areas and sub-areas within each area. The times of availability are organized in terms of starting time of availability and duration of availability from that starting time. The server also presents each customer with a Web interface through which the customer inputs the qualification and times of availability sought. The qualifications and times are organized in the same fashion as for the expert. The customer can input multiple service requests, each with different qualifications and times of availability. The server uses the input data to match experts with customers. At first, the experts and the customers are anonymous to one another. Once either an expert or a customer chooses to purchase the record concerning a match, the record with contact information is released, and the expert and the customer can contact each other. The server provides other functions, such as allowing a physician to contact a manufacturer or a product, using only the brand name of that product; allowing companies to conduct surveys of physicians; and providing distance learning.

Description

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09 / 418,474, filed Oct. 15, 1999, whose disclosure is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety into the present disclosure.COPYRIGHT NOTICE [0002] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] The present invention is directed to a system and method for matching experts and expertise with persons requiring expert services and more particularly for a system and method for doing such matching by use of a database of experts' areas of expertise and times of availability. [0004] The increasing complexity of product developmen...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0010] In light of the above, it will be readily apparent that a need exists in the art for an efficient marketplace for expert services. It is therefore a primary object of the invention to provide a marketplace for expert services that allows experts and customers of expert services to find one another readily.

[0020] This aspect of the invention enables requesters of specialist knowledge and providers of feedback information on products to use the product identifier to contact the manufacturer directly, without knowing or having to know the specific contact information for the manufacturer. This will enable users of products to quickly and in an uncomplicated fashion relay feedback on products and services to the manufacturers and to request additional information, and to establish other means of communication with then manufacturer.

Problems solved by technology

In addition, many individual consultants provide services to customers. and may only be allocated to the party willing to pay that premium because internal time constraints require a tradeoff between more expenses today or a later product market introduction with delayed revenue stream in the future.

Also, the times during which each expert will be available are not stored.

Another problem occurs when a person, such as a physician, wishes to obtain information a product by its trade name.

That process is time-consuming, and if the manufacturer is a large corporation with multiple locations, the question may not reach anyone qualified to answer it.

Third, while it would be useful to integrate such a system with one for allowing queries to go in the opposite direction, there is no such integration.

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