System and method to evaluate a service contract covering a monitored device by integrating device, user, and account information

• US 20060031390A1
• Filed: 08/09/2004
• Published: 02/09/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited, Ricoh Corporation (Ricoh Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited, Ricoh Corporation (Ricoh Company Limited)
• Inventors: Motoyama, Tetsuro, Meyer, Christopher, Rhodes, Bob, Mimura, Makoto, Hosoe, Yasuhiko
• Application Number:
  US10/913,364
• Publication Number:
  US 20060031390A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A system and method for evaluating a service contract for managing and servicing devices communicatively coupled to a network, including: storing business context information, including terms of the service contract for managing and servicing a device; storing contract expenditure information; receiving, from an authorized user, a request for information related to profitability of the service contract over a predetermined period of time; accessing the business context information to retrieve the terms of the service contract and an identification for each device; determining, based on each respective identification, the cost of performing the service contract over the predetermined period of time for the device covered by the service contract; creating a contract profitability report describing profitability of the service contract over the predetermined period of time; and providing, to the authorized user, the contract profitability report and the terms of the service contract for the device covered by the service contract.

Claims

1. A method of evaluating a service contract for managing and servicing plural devices communicatively coupled to a network, comprising:

storing business context information, including terms of the service contract for managing and servicing at least one device of the plural devices;

storing contract expenditure information, including costs associated with managing and servicing the at least one device covered by the service contract;

receiving, from an authorized user, a request for information related to profitability of the service contract over a predetermined period of time;

accessing the business context information to retrieve the terms of the service contract and an identification for each device of the at least one device covered by said service contract;

determining, based on each respective identification, the cost of performing the service contract over the predetermined period of time for the at least one device covered by the service contract;

creating, based on (1) the cost of performing the service contract determined in the determining step, and (2) the retrieved terms of the service contract, a contract profitability report describing profitability of the service contract over the predetermined period of time; and

providing, to the authorized user, the contract profitability report and the terms of the service contract for the at least one device covered by the service contract.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the providing step comprises:

automatically sending, to said authorized user, an electronic mail message including the contract profitability report and the terms of the service contract.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the providing step comprises:

providing, to said authorized user, the contract profitability report and the terms of the service contract on a website.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the authorized user is an employee of a service supply company that has the service contract for managing and servicing the at least one device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the contract profitability report includes a number of the at least one devices covered by the service contract, a cost of supplies purchased to service the at least one device under the service contract, and a cost of serviceman calls to service the at least one device under the service contract.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the contract profitability report includes aggregated usage information of the at least one device.

7. A system for evaluating a service contract for managing and servicing plural devices communicatively coupled to a network, comprising:

means for storing business context information, including terms of the service contract for managing and servicing at least one device of the plural devices;

means for storing contract expenditure information, including costs associated with managing and servicing the at least one device covered by the service contract;

means for receiving, from an authorized user, a request for information related to profitability of the service contract over a predetermined period of time;

means for accessing the business context information to retrieve the terms of the service contract and an identification for each device of the at least one device covered by said service contract;

means for determining, based on each respective identification, the cost of performing the service contract over the predetermined period of time for the at least one device covered by the service contract;

means for creating, based on (1) the cost of performing the service contract determined by the means for determining, and (2) the retrieved terms of the service contract, a contract profitability report describing profitability of the service contract over the predetermined period of time; and

means for providing, to the authorized user, the contract profitability report and the terms of the service contract for the at least one device covered by the service contract.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the means for providing comprises:

means for automatically sending, to said authorized user, an electronic mail message including the contract profitability report and the terms of the service contract.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the means for providing comprises:

means for providing, to said authorized user, the contract profitability report and the terms of the service contract on a website.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the authorized user is an employee of a service supply company that has the service contract for managing and servicing the at least one device.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the contract profitability report includes a number of the at least one devices covered by the service contract, a cost of supplies purchased to service the at least one device under the service contract, and a cost of serviceman calls to service the at least one device under the service contract.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein the contract profitability report includes aggregated usage information of the at least one device.

13. A computer program product having a computer readable medium storing instructions for evaluating a service contract for managing and servicing plural devices communicatively coupled to a network, comprising:

instructions for storing business context information, including terms of the service contract for managing and servicing at least one device of the plural devices;

instructions for storing contract expenditure information, including costs associated with managing and servicing the at least one device covered by the service contract;

instructions for receiving, from an authorized user, a request for information related to profitability of the service contract over a predetermined period of time;

instructions for accessing the business context information to retrieve the terms of the service contract and an identification for each device of the at least one device covered by said service contract;

instructions for determining, based on each respective identification, the cost of performing the service contract over the predetermined period of time for the at least one device covered by the service contract;

instructions for creating, based on (1) the cost of performing the service contract determined by the instructions for determining, and (2) the retrieved terms of the service contract, a contract profitability report describing profitability of the service contract over the predetermined period of time; and

instructions for providing, to the authorized user, the contract profitability report and the terms of the service contract for the at least one device covered by the service contract.

14. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the instructions for providing comprise:

instructions for automatically sending, to said authorized user, an electronic mail message including the contract profitability report and the terms of the service contract.

15. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the instructions for providing comprise:

instructions for providing, to said authorized user, the contract profitability report and the terms of the service contract on a website.

16. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the authorized user is an employee of a service supply company that has the service contract for managing and servicing the at least one device.

17. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the contract profitability report includes a number of the at least one devices covered by the service contract, a cost of supplies purchased to service the at least one device under the service contract, and a cost of serviceman calls to service the at least one device under the service contract.

18. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the contract profitability report includes aggregated usage information of the at least one device.