PREPROCESSOR SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR REJECTION OF DUPLICATE INVOICES

• US 20010014880A1
• Filed: 02/03/1999
• Published: 08/16/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: REYNOLDS, SCOTTY J., HUGHES, ROBERT P., MURPHY, JULIE M., CARTIN, LAWRENCE J., MOSHER, EILEEN L., CIOTOLI, LOUIS M., BEACH, MICHAEL W., FEDORCHAK, THEODORE W., BUCINELL, GERALD D.
• Granted Patent: US 7,003,494 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting

Abstract

An accounts payable system in which invoices submitted by electronic data interchange (EDI) foe audited for duplicate invoices prior to them being entered into the production database, or environment. Pre-processor logic audits, identifies and returns electronically duplicate transmissions. At this pre-processor level, all inbound invoices are sorted in credit/debit sequence. Invoices are posted (committed to the production accounts payable environment; that is, to the accounts payable data base) one at a time so purchase order history is current for each evaluation. Inbound invoices are sorted by credit/debit. Only debits are audited.

Claims

1. Method for operating an account payable computing system, comprising the steps of:

preprocessing electronic invoices received from a vendor to identify duplicate invoices;

introducing invoices not identified as duplicate invoices into an accounts payable data base; and

rejecting invoices identified as duplicate invoices back to said vendor without introducing said duplicate invoices into said accounts payable data base.

2. A method for operating a computing system, comprising the steps of:

grabbing an inbound EDI invoice file from a vendor before it is input to an accounts payable database;

auditing said inbound EDI invoice file for a duplicate invoice item;

upon determining said inbound EDI invoice is a duplicate, creating a duplicate invoice transaction back to said vendor; and

posting to said accounts payable database only those invoices determined not to be duplicates.

3. The method of

claim 2

, said auditing step comprising the further steps of:

first sorting said inbound EDI invoice against an accounts payable production table for same vendor and same vendor invoice number;

second sorting hits from said first sorting for same purchase order billed;

third sorting hits from said second sorting for same items billed on purchase order;

fourth sorting hits from said third sorting to identify said inbound EDI invoice as a duplicate invoice if it contains an item having a net sum greater than zero.

4. Method for operating a computing system responsive to receipt of an electronic input invoice from a vendor, comprising the steps of:

grabbing said input invoice before it is input to an accounts payable database;

identifying previously received invoices from said vendor having the same vendor invoice identifier;

identifying said previously received invoices having the same vendor invoice identifier any items corresponding to items on said input invoice;

calculating the net sum of items on said input invoice having corresponding items on said previously received invoices;

for an input invoice having an item with a net sum greater than zero, communicating a duplicate invoice rejection message back to said vendor; and

for an input invoice having no item with a net sum greater than zero, posting said input invoice to said accounts payable database.

5. A program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by a machine to perform method steps for processing electronic input invoices from a vendor, said method steps comprising:

preprocessing said input invoices to identify duplicate invoices;

introducing invoices not identified as duplicate invoices into an accounts payable data base for payment; and

rejecting invoices identified as duplicate invoices back to said vendor without introducing said duplicate invoices into said accounts payable data base for payment.

6. A program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by a machine to perform method steps for operating a computing system responsive to receipt of an electronic input invoice from a vendor, said method steps comprising:

grabbing said input invoice before it is input to an accounts payable database;

identifying previously received invoices from said vendor having the same vendor invoice identifier;

identifying said previously received invoices having the same vendor invoice identifier any items corresponding to items on said input invoice;

calculating the net sum of items on said input invoice having corresponding items on said previously received invoices;

for an input invoice having an item with a net sum greater than zero, communicating a duplicate invoice rejection message back to said vendor; and

for an input invoice having no item with a net sum greater than zero, posting said input invoice to said accounts payable database.

7. An article of manufacture comprising:

a computer useable medium having computer readable program code means embodied therein for operating a computing system responsive to receipt of an electronic input invoice from a vendor, the computer readable program means in said article of manufacture comprising;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to effect grabbing said input invoice before it is input to an accounts payable database;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to effect identifying previously received invoices from said vendor having the same vendor invoice identifier;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to effect identifying said previously received invoices having the same vendor invoice identifier any items corresponding to items on said input invoice;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to effect calculating the net sum of items on said input invoice having corresponding items on said previously received invoices;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to effect for an input invoice having an item with a net sum greater than zero, communicating a duplicate invoice rejection message back to said vendor; and

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to effect for an input invoice having no item with a net sum greater than zero, posting said input invoice to said accounts payable database.

8. An article of manufacture comprising:

a computer useable medium having computer readable program code means embodied therein for processing electronic input invoices from a vendor, the computer readable program means in said article of manufacture comprising;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to effect preprocessing said input invoices to identify duplicate invoices;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to effect introducing invoices not identified as duplicate invoices into an accounts payable data base for payment; and

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to effect rejecting invoices identified as duplicate invoices back to said vendor without introducing said duplicate invoices into said accounts payable data base for payment.

9. A computing system responsive to receipt of an electronic input invoice from a vendor, comprising:

means for grabbing said input invoice before it is input to an accounts payable database;

means for identifying previously received invoices from said vendor having the same vendor invoice identifier;

means for identifying said previously received invoices having the same vendor invoice identifier any items corresponding to items on said input invoice;

means for calculating the net sum of items on said input invoice having corresponding items on said previously received invoices;

means, responsive to an input invoice having an item with a net sum greater than zero, for communicating a duplicate invoice rejection message back to said vendor; and

means, responsive to an input invoice having no item with a net sum greater than zero, for posting said input invoice to said accounts payable database.