ELECTRONIC CLEARING SYSTEM, ELECTRONIC CLEARING SERVER, ELECTRONIC CLEARING TERMINAL, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM

• US 20060277149A1
• Filed: 05/24/2006
• Published: 12/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Nakagawa, Hirofumi, Kouno, Kenji, Kasuya, Haruhiko, Hanazato, Takashi
• Application Number:
  US11/420,145
• Publication Number:
  US 20060277149A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/42
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/023 the neutral party being a clearing house
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/042 characterized in that the payment protocol involves at least one cheque
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/108 Remote banking, e.g. home banking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/389 Keeping log of transactions for guaranteeing non-repudiation of a transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/12 Card verification

Abstract

Disclosed is an electronic clearing system which electronically processes and clears a valuable instrument including a substrate and prescribed information printed on the substrate. The system has: an electronic clearing server; a payor'"'"'s bank terminal which is installed in a payor'"'"'s bank, and originally issues the valuable instrument; a payee'"'"'s bank terminal which is installed in a payee'"'"'s bank and to which the valuable instrument is presented; and an electronic network which electronically connects the electronic clearing server with each of the payor'"'"'s bank terminal and the payee'"'"'s bank terminal. In this system: the valuable instrument further includes code information printed on the substrate, the code information being obtained by converting substrate identification information, which differentiates each substrate from other substrates, into a specific format; the payor'"'"'s bank terminal transmits the substrate identification information and the code information to the electronic clearing server; the electronic clearing server manages the substrate identification information and the code information with the substrate identification information and the code information associated with each other; the payee'"'"'s bank terminal obtains the substrate identification information and the code information from the valuable instrument presented to the payee'"'"'s bank, and transmits the substrate identification information and the code information to the electronic clearing server; and the electronic clearing server determines whether the valuable instrument presented to the payee'"'"'s bank terminal is valid by comparing the substrate identification information and the code information as managed by the electronic clearing server, with the substrate identification information and the code information as transmitted from the payee'"'"'s bank terminal.

Claims

1. An electronic clearing system which electronically processes and clears a valuable instrument including a substrate and prescribed information printed on the substrate, the system comprising:

an electronic clearing server;

a payor'"'"'s bank terminal which is installed in a payor'"'"'s bank, and originally issues the valuable instrument;

a payee'"'"'s bank terminal which is installed in a payee'"'"'s bank and to which the valuable instrument is presented; and

an electronic network which electronically connects the electronic clearing server with each of the payor'"'"'s bank terminal and the payee'"'"'s bank terminal,

wherein the valuable instrument further includes code information printed on the substrate, the code information being obtained by converting substrate identification information, which differentiates each substrate from other substrates, into a specific format,

wherein the payor'"'"'s bank terminal transmits the substrate identification information and the code information to the electronic clearing server,

wherein the electronic clearing server manages the substrate identification information and the code information with the substrate identification information and the code information associated with each other,

wherein the payee'"'"'s bank terminal obtains the substrate identification information and the code information from the valuable instrument presented to the payee'"'"'s bank, and transmits the substrate identification information and the code information to the electronic clearing server, and

wherein the electronic clearing server determines whether the valuable instrument presented to the payee'"'"'s bank terminal is valid by comparing the substrate identification information and the code information as managed by the electronic clearing server, with the substrate identification information and the code information as transmitted from the payee'"'"'s bank terminal.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the substrate identification information is information obtained from a textural pattern of the substrate.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the substrate has an IC tag and the substrate identification information is recorded in the IC tag.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the specific format is a two-dimensional barcode.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the substrate identification information corresponds to the code information in one-one relation.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the electronic clearing server has a dishonor database for managing information on a dishonored valuable instrument, makes the determination on the validity of the valuable instrument presented to the payee'"'"'s bank terminal, by using the dishonor database, and adds information on the presented valuable instrument to the dishonor database when the validity of the presented valuable instrument is not verified.

7. A computer program for having a computer function as the electronic clearing server according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. An electronic clearing server which manages information related to a valuable instrument including a substrate and prescribed information printed on the substrate, in order to electronically process and clear the valuable instrument, the valuable instrument further including substrate identification information which differentiates each substrate from other substrates, and code information printed on the substrate, the server comprising:

an information managing portion which receives the substrate identification information and the code information of the valuable instrument from payor'"'"'s bank terminal installed in a payor'"'"'s bank which issues the valuable instrument, the information managing portion managing the substrate identification information and the code information with the substrate identification information and the code information associated with each other; and

a validity determining portion which receives the substrate identification information and the code information of the valuable instrument from a payee'"'"'s bank terminal installed in the payee'"'"'s bank, when the valuable instrument is presented to the payee'"'"'s bank, the validity determining portion determines whether the valuable instrument as presented to the payee'"'"'s bank terminal is valid by comparing the substrate identification information and the code information as managed by the information managing portion, with the substrate identification information and the code information as transmitted from the payee'"'"'s bank terminal.

9. The server according to claim 8, further comprising a dishonor database for managing information on a dishonored valuable instrument, and wherein the server makes the determination on the validity of the valuable instrument presented to the payee'"'"'s bank terminal, by using the dishonor database, and adds information on the presented valuable instrument to the dishonor database when the validity of the presented valuable instrument is not verified.

10. A computer program for having a computer function as the electronic clearing server according to claim 8 or 9.

11. An electronic clearing terminal which electronically processes and clears a valuable instrument including a substrate and prescribed information printed on the substrate, the valuable instrument further including code information printed on the substrate, the code information being obtained by converting substrate identification information, which differentiates each substrate from other substrates, into a specific format, the terminal comprising:

an information managing portion which manages the substrate identification information and the code information with the substrate identification information and the code information associated each other;

an information obtaining portion which obtains the substrate identification information and the code information from the valuable instrument as presented; and

a validity determining portion which determines whether the presented valuable instrument is valid by comparing the substrate identification information and the code information as managed by the information managing portion, with the substrate identification information and the code information as obtained by the information obtaining portion.

12. The terminal according to claim 11, wherein the substrate identification information is obtained from a textural pattern of the substrate.

13. The terminal according to claim 11, wherein the substrate has an IC tag and the substrate identification information is recorded in the IC tag.

14. The terminal according to claim 11, wherein the specific format is a two-dimensional barcode.

15. The terminal according to claim 11, wherein the substrate identification information corresponds to the code information in one-one relation.

16. The terminal according to claim 11, further comprising a dishonor database for managing information on a dishonored valuable instrument, and wherein the terminal determines on the validity of the presented valuable instrument, by using the dishonor database, and adds information on the presented valuable instrument to the dishonor database when the validity of the presented valuable instrument is not verified.

17. A computer program for having a computer function as the electronic clearing terminal according to any one of claims 11 to 16.