System and method for seller-assisted automated payment processing and exception management

• US 20050075979A1
• Filed: 06/10/2004
• Published: 04/07/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Old World Industries (Old World Industries LLC)
• Original Assignee: Old World Industries (Old World Industries LLC)
• Inventors: Kong, Xiang, Rogoff, Robert, Steiner, William M., Walters, Alan J., Leavitt, Stacy A., Malloy, Stephen Louis, Schweigel, Brian R.
• Application Number:
  US10/865,997
• Publication Number:
  US 20050075979A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/00 Payment architectures, schemes or protocols apparatus for performing or posting payment transactions G07F7/08, G07F19/00; electronic cash registers G07G1/12
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/0457 the tickets being sent electronically
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/14 specially adapted for billing systems
• 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: G07F 17/42 for ticket printing or like apparatus , e.g. apparatus for dispensing of printed paper tickets or payment cards
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/04 Means for returning surplus or unused coins
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/06 with provision for the noting of the money to be paid
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 5/00 Receipt-giving machines cash registers giving receipts G07G1/00

Abstract

A system and method for seller-assisted automated payment and adjustment processing is provided. A seller receives a payment from a buyer that does not match the seller'"'"'s invoice and consequently requires an adjustment. An adjustment document creator receives the payment data from the buyer and retrieves buyer-specific order data from said seller to construct an adjustment document. A variety of adjustment documents may be created depending upon the actual adjustment required. The adjustment document may then be automatically routed to a set of one or more buyer-specific human reviewers for approval of the adjustment. The automated payment and adjustment processing system is preferably integrated with the seller'"'"'s financial institution.

Claims

1. A method for automatically generating an adjustment document, said method including:

receiving payment information from a buyer;

receiving invoice information from a seller;

comparing said payment information and said invoice information; and

automatically generating an adjustment document when said payment information differs from said invoice information.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said adjustment document is one of a plurality of available adjustment documents.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising receiving remittance information regarding said payment information and wherein said adjustment document is automatically generated based at least in part on said remittance information.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein the difference between said invoice information and said payment information is a currency amount and said adjustment document is automatically generated based at least in part on the size of the currency amount.

5. The method of claim 1 further including routing said adjustment document to a human reviewer for approval.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the difference between said invoice information and said payment information is a currency amount and wherein said routing is based at least in part on the size of said currency amount.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein said routing is based on a predetermined seller configuration.

8. The method of claim 5 wherein said routing is based at least in part on the identity of said buyer.

9. The method of claim 5 further including routing said adjustment document to an additional human reviewer for approval.

10. A method for automatically routing an adjustment document to a reviewer, said method including:

receiving an electronic adjustment document at a workflow approval processor, said adjustment document based on a payment received from a buyer;

determining a routing workflow for said adjustment document, wherein said routing workflow is variable depending on information in said adjustment document; and

automatically routing said adjustment document from said workflow approval processor to at least one of a plurality of reviewers based on said routing workflow.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein said routing is based on the identity of said buyer.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein adjustment document includes a currency amount being disputed and wherein said routing is based at least in part on the size of said currency amount.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein said routing is based on a predetermined seller configuration.

14. The method of claim 10 wherein said routing is based at least in part on the identity of said buyer.

15. The method of claim 10 further including routing said adjustment document to an additional human reviewer for approval.

17. The method of claim 10 further including:

receiving an approval from said at least one of a plurality of reviewers;

processing said payment received from said buyer using said adjustment document; and

posting said payment received from said buyer.

18. The method of claim 10 further including:

receiving a denial from said at least one of a plurality of reviewers; and

referring said adjustment document to a collections department.

16. A method for automatically routing an adjustment document to a reviewer, said method including:

receiving an electronic adjustment document at a workflow approval processor, said adjustment document based on a payment received from a buyer;

determining a routing workflow for said adjustment document, wherein said routing workflow is variable depending on information in said adjustment document; and

automatically routing said adjustment document from said workflow approval processor to at least one of a plurality of reviewers based on said routing workflow,

wherein said routing is performed by an Application Service Provider (ASP).

19. A system for automatically generating an adjustment document, said method including:

a payment processing and exception management application receiving payment information from a buyer and receiving invoice information from a seller;

a business data filter comparing said payment information and said invoice information; and

an adjustment document creator automatically generating an adjustment document when said payment information differs from said invoice information.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein said adjustment document creator includes a plurality of available adjustment documents.

21. The system of claim 20 wherein said adjustment document creator automatically generates said adjustment document based at least in part on the identity of said buyer.

22. The system of claim 20 wherein the difference between said invoice information and said payment information is a currency amount and said adjustment document creator automatically generates said adjustment document based at least in part on the size of the currency amount.

23. The system of claim 20 further including a workflow approval processor routing said adjustment document to a human reviewer for approval.

24. The system of claim 23 wherein said workflow approval processor routes said adjustment document based on the identity of said buyer.

25. The system of claim 23 wherein the difference between said invoice information and said payment information is a currency amount and wherein said workflow approval processor routes said adjustment document based at least in part on the size of said currency amount.

26. The system of claim 23 wherein said workflow approval processor routes said adjustment document based on a predetermined seller configuration.

27. The system of claim 23 wherein said workflow approval processor routes said adjustment document to an additional human reviewer for approval.

28. The system of claim 19 wherein said workflow approval processor is implemented as an Application Service Provider (ASP).

29. The system of claim 19 wherein said workflow approval processor is implemented at a financial institution

30. The system of claim 19 wherein said workflow approval processor is outsourced to a third party

31. A system for automatically routing an adjustment document to a reviewer, said system including:

a workflow approval processor receiving an electronic adjustment document, said adjustment document based on a payment received from a buyer,

wherein said workflow approval processor determines a routing workflow for said adjustment document, wherein said routing workflow is variable depending on information in said adjustment document; and

a plurality of reviewers, wherein said workflow approval processor automatically routes said adjustment document to at least one of said plurality of reviewers based on said routing workflow.

32. The system of claim 31 wherein said workflow approval processor routes said adjustment document based on the identity of said buyer.

33. The system of claim 31 wherein adjustment document includes a currency amount being disputed and wherein said workflow approval processor routes said adjustment document based at least in part on the size of said currency amount.

34. The system of claim 31 wherein said workflow approval processor routes said adjustment document to an additional reviewer for approval.

35. The system of claim 31 wherein said workflow approval processor is implemented as an Application Service Provider (ASP).

36. The system of claim 31 wherein said workflow approval processor is implemented at a financial institution

37. The system of claim 31 wherein said workflow approval processor is outsourced to a third party

38. The system of claim 31 wherein said workflow approval processor receives an approval from said at least one of a plurality of reviewers, processes said payment received from said buyer using said adjustment document, and posts said payment received from said buyer.

39. The system of claim 31 wherein said workflow approval processor receives a denial from said at least one of a plurality of reviewers and refers said adjustment document to a collections department.

40. A method for automatically generating an adjustment document, said method including:

receiving payment information from a buyer;

receiving invoice information from a seller;

comparing said payment information and said invoice information; and

automatically generating an adjustment document when said payment information differs from said invoice information, wherein said comparing is performed by an Application Service Provider (ASP).

41. A method for automatically generating an adjustment document, said method including:

receiving payment information from a buyer;

receiving invoice information from a seller;

comparing said payment information and said invoice information; and

automatically generating an adjustment document when said payment information differs from said invoice information,

wherein said comparing is performed by a software package installed at a financial institution.

42. A method for automatically routing an adjustment document to a reviewer, said method including:

receiving an electronic adjustment document at a workflow approval processor, said adjustment document based on a payment received from a buyer;

determining a routing workflow for said adjustment document, wherein said routing workflow is variable depending on information in said adjustment document; and

automatically routing said adjustment document from said workflow approval processor to at least one of a plurality of reviewers based on said routing workflow,

wherein said routing is performed by a software package installed at a financial institution.

43. A method for automatically routing an adjustment document to a reviewer, said method including:

receiving an electronic adjustment document at a workflow approval processor, said adjustment document based on a payment received from a buyer;

determining a routing workflow for said adjustment document, wherein said routing workflow is variable depending on information in said adjustment document; and

automatically routing said adjustment document from said workflow approval processor to at least one of a plurality of reviewers based on said routing workflow,

wherein said routing is performed by a software package that has been outsourced to a third party

44. A method for processing payments from a buyer, said method including:

receiving invoice information from a seller, said invoice information representing at least one unpaid invoice billed to a buyer by said seller;

receiving payment information from a buyer;

electronically comparing said payment information to said invoice information to make an automated determination whether said payment information is matchable to at lease one of said unpaid invoices; and

transmitting said payment information to a reviewer at said seller when said automated determination is not able to match said payment information to at least one of said unpaid invoices.

45. The method of claim 44 further including allowing the reviewer at the user to match said payment information with at least one of said unpaid invoices.

46. The method of claim 45 wherein said automated determination is not able to match said payment information to at least one of said unpaid invoices because the payment amount of said payment information does not match a payment amount included in one of said at least one unpaid invoices.

47. The method of claim 46 wherein said payment amount of said payment information does not match said payment amount of one of said at least one unpaid invoices due to data entry error.

48. The method of claim 46 wherein said payment amount of said payment information does not match said payment amount of one of said at least one unpaid invoices because said payment information includes a payment amount for more than one of said unpaid invoices and said payment information does not indicate which of said more than one unpaid invoices are included.

49. The method of claim 46 wherein said payment amount of said payment information does not match said payment amount of one of said at least one unpaid invoices because the payment amount of said payment information represents pre-payment for an invoice that does not yet exist.

50. The method of claim 46 wherein said payment amount of said payment information does not match said payment amount of one of said at least one unpaid invoices because the payment amount of said payment information represents payment for an invoice that has already been paid.

51. The method of claim 46 wherein said payment amount of said payment information does not match said payment amount of one of said at least one unpaid invoices because said invoice is subject to a deduction or adjustment.

52. The method of claim 46 wherein said seller is a first seller and said payment amount of said payment information does not match said payment amount of one of said at least one unpaid invoices because said payment amount of said payment information represents a payment to a second seller other than said first seller.