Granted Patent B2

US 12,597,511 · App. 18/815,343 · Granted Apr 7, 2026

Inventors: Casey Bleeker (Denver, CO); Nathan A. Cartwright (Cincinnati, OH)

Assignee: CDW LLC

G16H40/20G06F16/2455G06F40/30G06Q10/1093G10L15/063G10L15/1815G10L15/22G10L15/30H04M1/656G10L2015/223H04M2201/40

Abstract

Claims (68)

1 . An artificial intelligence (AI) based method for improving patient appointment scheduling and inventory management, the method comprising:

applying, by one or more processors while simultaneously receiving verbal responses from a user as part of a patient appointment data stream, a natural language processing (NLP) model to the verbal responses from the user to output (i) textual transcriptions corresponding to the verbal responses from the user and (ii) intent interpretations corresponding to the textual transcriptions;

querying, by the one or more processors utilizing an application programming interface (API), a scheduling database to determine a matching appointment that satisfies a service threshold and an inventory threshold based on the textual transcriptions and the intent interpretations, wherein the scheduling database comprises scheduling data corresponding to a plurality of service locations, wherein the scheduling data corresponding to each service location includes a schedule calendar and an inventory listing, and wherein the inventory threshold includes a supply inventory threshold and a medical staff inventory threshold;

comparing, by the one or more processors, the schedule calendar and the inventory listing for each respective service location in the plurality of service locations to a date threshold and the inventory threshold;

determining, by the one or more processors, the matching appointment based on a first respective service location that satisfies a distance threshold, the service threshold, the date threshold, and the inventory threshold; and

causing, by the one or more processors, a user device of the user to convey the matching appointment to the user.

2 . The AI based method of claim 1 , wherein the scheduling database stores service location data corresponding to a plurality of service locations, and the method further comprises:

receiving, at a server including the NLP model, new service location data corresponding to a new service location that includes a new service location address;

automatically storing, by the server, the new service location data into the scheduling database;

receiving, at the server, a subsequent appointment request from a different user; and

querying, by the one or more processors, the scheduling database to determine a subsequent matching appointment, wherein the scheduling database includes the new service location data.

3 . The AI based method of claim 1 , wherein querying the scheduling database further comprises:

transmitting, by a fulfillment microservice, a query request to a scheduling microservice; and

responsive to receiving the query request, querying, by the scheduling microservice, the scheduling database to determine the matching appointment.

4 . The AI based method of claim 1 , wherein the scheduling database stores service location data corresponding to a plurality of service locations, and the method further comprises:

determining, by the one or more processors, a location of the user based on the textual transcriptions;

converting, by the one or more processors, the location of the user to a coordinate value;

converting, by the one or more processors, a respective service location address for each respective service location to a respective coordinate value;

calculating, by the one or more processors, a respective service location distance from the location of the user for each respective service location of the plurality of service locations;

determining, by the one or more processors, a sorted list of service locations based on the respective service location distance for each respective service location of the plurality of service locations; and

selecting, by the one or more processors, the matching appointment from the sorted list based on a subset of service locations on the sorted list that satisfy a distance threshold, wherein the distance threshold corresponds to a maximum distance value from the location of the user.

5 . The AI based method of claim 1 , wherein the textual transcription includes a user-specified service, and the service threshold corresponds to the user-specified service.

6 . The AI based method of claim 1 , wherein the user device is a telephone, and the matching appointment is conveyed to the user through a verbal communication transmitted through a speaker of the telephone.

7 . The AI based method of claim 1 , wherein the scheduling database comprises a regulatory guidance database that includes a prioritization schedule corresponding to one or more services.

8 . The AI based method of claim 1 , further comprising:

receiving, at a server including the NLP model and the one or more processors, an appointment request from the user, wherein the NLP model is trained with a plurality of verbal responses regarding appointment scheduling of a plurality of users, and the NLP model is configured to output one or more textual transcriptions and one or more intent interpretations corresponding to the one or more textual transcriptions; and

initiating, by the one or more processors and based on the appointment request, the patient appointment data stream including the verbal responses from the user regarding an appointment of the user.

9 . An artificial intelligence (AI) based system for improving patient appointment scheduling and inventory management, the system comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more memories, storing instructions thereon that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:

apply, while simultaneously receiving verbal responses from a user as part of a patient appointment data stream, a natural language processing (NLP) model to the verbal responses from the user to output (i) textual transcriptions corresponding to the verbal responses from the user and (ii) intent interpretations corresponding to the textual transcriptions;

query, using an application programming interface (API), a scheduling database to determine a matching appointment that satisfies a service threshold and an inventory threshold based on the textual transcriptions and the intent interpretations, wherein the scheduling database comprises scheduling data corresponding to a plurality of service locations, wherein the scheduling data corresponding to each service location includes a schedule calendar and an inventory listing, and wherein the inventory threshold includes a supply inventory threshold and a medical staff inventory threshold;

compare the schedule calendar and the inventory listing for each respective service location in the plurality of service locations to a date threshold and the inventory threshold;

determine the matching appointment based on a first respective service location that satisfies a distance threshold, the service threshold, the date threshold, and the inventory threshold; and

cause a user device of the user to convey the matching appointment to the user.

10 . The AI based system of claim 9 , wherein the scheduling database stores service location data corresponding to a plurality of service locations, and the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to:

receive new service location data corresponding to a new service location that includes a new service location address;

automatically store the new service location data into the scheduling database;

receive a subsequent appointment request from a different user; and

query the scheduling database to determine a subsequent matching appointment, wherein the scheduling database includes the new service location data.

11 . The AI based system of claim 9 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to:

transmit, by utilizing a fulfillment microservice, a query request to a scheduling microservice; and

responsive to receiving the query request, query, by utilizing the scheduling microservice, the scheduling database to determine the matching appointment.

12 . The AI based system of claim 9 , wherein the scheduling database stores service location data corresponding to a plurality of service locations, and the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to:

determine a location of the user based on the textual transcriptions;

convert the location of the user to a coordinate value;

convert a respective service location address for each respective service location to a respective coordinate value;

calculate a respective service location distance from the location of the user for each respective service location of the plurality of service locations;

determine a sorted list of service locations based on the respective service location distance for each respective service location of the plurality of service locations; and

select the matching appointment from the sorted list based on a subset of service locations on the sorted list that satisfy a distance threshold, wherein the distance threshold corresponds to a maximum distance value from the location of the user.

13 . A tangible machine-readable medium comprising instructions for improving patient appointment scheduling and inventory management that, when executed, cause a machine to at least:

apply, while simultaneously receiving verbal responses from a user as part of a patient appointment data stream, a natural language processing (NLP) model to the verbal responses from the user to output (i) textual transcriptions corresponding to the verbal responses from the user and (ii) intent interpretations corresponding to the textual transcriptions;

query, using an application programming interface (API), a scheduling database to determine a matching appointment that satisfies a service threshold and an inventory threshold based on the textual transcriptions and the intent interpretations, wherein the scheduling database comprises scheduling data corresponding to a plurality of service locations, wherein the scheduling data corresponding to each service location includes a schedule calendar and an inventory listing, and wherein the inventory threshold includes a supply inventory threshold and a medical staff inventory threshold;

compare the schedule calendar and the inventory listing for each respective service location in the plurality of service locations to a date threshold and the inventory threshold;

determine the matching appointment based on a first respective service location that satisfies a distance threshold, the service threshold, the date threshold, and the inventory threshold; and

cause a user device of the user to convey the matching appointment to the user.

14 . The tangible machine-readable medium of claim 13 , wherein the scheduling database stores service location data corresponding to a plurality of service locations, and the instructions, when executed, further cause the machine to at least:

receive new service location data corresponding to a new service location that includes a new service location address;

automatically store the new service location data into the scheduling database;

receive a subsequent appointment request from a different user; and

query the scheduling database to determine a subsequent matching appointment, wherein the scheduling database includes the new service location data.

15 . The tangible machine-readable medium of claim 13 , wherein the scheduling database stores service location data corresponding to a plurality of service locations, and the instructions, when executed, further cause the machine to at least:

determine a location of the user based on the textual transcriptions;

convert the location of the user to a coordinate value;

convert a respective service location address for each respective service location to a respective coordinate value;

calculate a respective service location distance from the location of the user for each respective service location of the plurality of service locations;

determine a sorted list of service locations based on the respective service location distance for each respective service location of the plurality of service locations; and

select the matching appointment from the sorted list based on a subset of service locations on the sorted list that satisfy a distance threshold, wherein the distance threshold corresponds to a maximum distance value from the location of the user.

Assignments (1)

Continuity (2)

References Cited (22)