System and method for automating invoice processing with positive confirmation

• US 20020143699A1
• Filed: 03/28/2001
• Published: 10/03/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Edison Vault, LLC
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: May, Michael Randy, Baumann, Carl Steven, Munson, John Irving, Wilson, Sherry Lee, Sjostrom, William Montgomery
• Granted Patent: US 8,027,892 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/14 specially adapted for billing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0613 Third-party assisted

Abstract

An invoice processing system includes a requisition and catalog server (referred to as a Req/Cat Web, or RCW, server), a procurement services system (SAP), and a requester terminal (browser). ReqCat Web allows requesters to input requirements (requisitions) which ReqCat then passes to SAP, which creates purchase orders, sends them to vendors for fulfillment, receives the vendors invoices, and prepares the payments. Commodities may be designated as either receivable or non-receivable, and this designation is stored in ReqCat web and passed to SAP on inbound requisitions. Payments on invoices received for non-receivable items are approved via a positive confirmation process, and payments on invoices received for receivable items are approved via a negative confirmation process. Positive acceptance of an invoice by a requester of commodities triggers automatic generation of a goods received (move) ticket.

Claims

1. A method for approving and paying an invoice for commodities, comprising the steps of:

receiving said invoice for commodities from a vendor;

generating from said invoice a notification to an authorizer that includes information needed to pay the invoice and a selectable button for authorizing or rejecting payment; and

responsive to authorization by said authorizer, creating an automated receipt transaction file and entering said transaction file into a system for payment.

2. The method of claim 1, said system being an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step responsive to rejection by said authorizer, creating an email notification to accounts payable for returning said invoice to said vendor.

4. The method of claim 3, said authorizer being the requester of said commodities.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of marking said commodities upon requisition as either receivable or non-receivable commodities.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising the step responsive to receiving an invoice for a said non-receivable commodity of executing a negative confirmation process for payment authorization.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising the step responsive to receiving an invoice for a said receivable commodity of executing a positive confirmation process for payment authorization.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising the steps of

sourcing said non-receivable commodity from a front-end requisition and catalog server;

and

responsive to receiving an invoice for a said nonreceivable commodity that was sourced from said server, executing a positive confirmation process for payment authorization.

9. The method of claim 8, said positive confirmation process further comprising the steps of:

recording the acceptance or rejection of payment of the invoice to a database; and

notifying a back-end procurement services system when payment of an invoice is accepted.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step on a scheduled basis of executing a bridge for sending data from said database to said back-end procurement services system for new invoice items for which payment has been accepted.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising the step of posting as goods receipts at said back-end procurement services system said new invoice items for which payment has been accepted.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

directing said authorizer to review a positive confirmation notice within a front-end requisition and catalog system;

responsive to said authorizer logging in to said frontend system, displaying said notification.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

a user interface to said front-end server for receiving positive confirmation notices and providing positive confirmation responses.

15. The system of claim 14, said front-end server further for marking said commodities upon requisition as either receivable or non-receivable commodities.

16. The system of claim 15, said front-end system further responsive to receiving an invoice from said back-end system for a said non-receivable commodity that was sourced from said front-end server of executing a positive confirmation process for payment authorization.

18. The program storage device of claim 17, said method steps further comprising:

marking said commodities upon requisition as either receivable or non-receivable commodities;

responsive to receiving an invoice for a said non-receivable commodity, executing a negative confirmation process for payment authorization;

responsive to receiving an invoice for a said receivable commodity, executing a positive confirmation process for payment authorization;

sourcing said non-receivable commodity from a front-end requisition and catalog server; and

responsive to receiving an invoice for a said non-receivable commodity that was sourced from said server,

executing a positive confirmation process for payment authorization.

13. System for approving and paying an invoice for commodities, comprising:

a front-end requisition and catalog server;

a back-end procurement services system;

said front-end server being responsive to an invoice for commodities from said back-end system for generating from said invoice a notification to an authorizer that includes information needed to pay the invoice and a selectable button for authorizing or rejecting payment; and

said front-end server being responsive to authorization by said authorizer for creating an automated receipt transaction file and entering said transaction file into said back-end system for payment.

17. A program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by a machine to perform method steps for approving and paying an invoice for commodities, said method steps comprising:

receiving said invoice for commodities from a vendor;

generating from said invoice a notification to an authorizer that includes information needed to pay the invoice and a selectable button for authorizing or rejecting payment; and

responsive to authorization by said authorizer, creating an automated receipt transaction file and entering said transaction file into a system for payment.

19. A computer program product or computer program element for approving and paying an invoice for commodities according to method steps comprising:

receiving said invoice for commodities from a vendor;

generating from said invoice a notification to an authorizer that includes information needed to pay the invoice and a selectable button for authorizing or rejecting payment; and

responsive to authorization by said authorizer, creating an automated receipt transaction file and entering said transaction file into a system for payment.