APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR PROCESSING MISREAD OR MISKEYED MAGNETIC INDICIA

• US 20070217669A1
• Filed: 05/09/2007
• Published: 09/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: First Data Corporation (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: First Data Corporation (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Inventors: Swift, Amy, Mok, Waisum
• Granted Patent: US 7,636,690 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/139
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/042 characterized in that the payment protocol involves at least one cheque
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40 Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentials; Review and approval of payers, e.g. check credit lines or negative lists
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes

Abstract

The present invention is directed to methods and apparatus for processing check data, such as data stored using magnetic indicia. In one embodiment, a check transaction processing system receives an indication that a first check transaction from a first payor failed to clear because at least a portion of first MICR or other account data associated with the first check transaction is incorrect. The check transaction processing system reads a personal identifier associated with the first payor, wherein the personal identifier was provided in association with the first check transaction. MICR data or other account data associated with a previously processed check transaction associated with the personal identifier is located. At least a portion of the located MICR or other account data is compared with at least the portion of first MICR or other account data associated with the first check transaction, and based at least in part on the comparison, the check transaction processing system determines if the portion of the located data is at least a potentially correct version of the portion of first MICR or other account data.

Claims

1. A method of selecting alternate MICR data, the method comprising:

receiving an indication that a check from a payor failed to clear because at least a portion of first MICR data associated with the failed check is incorrect;

reading a personal identifier associated with the payor, wherein the personal identifier was provided in association with the failed check;

locating MICR data associated with a previously processed check associated with the personal identifier;

comparing at least a portion of the located MICR data with at least the portion of the first MICR data; and

based at least in part on the comparison, determining if the portion of the located MICR data is at least a potentially correct version of the portion of the first MICR data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the portion of the first MICR data comprises an account number.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the portion of the first MICR data comprises an account number and a routing number.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein comparing the at least a portion of the located MICR data with the at least the portion of the first MICR data comprises:

comparing characters of an account number associated with the failed check with characters of an account number associated with the previously processed check to determine which characters match; and

calculating how many characters fail to match.

5. A method of selecting alternate magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) data, the method comprising:

receiving an indication that a financial instrument failed to clear, the failed financial instrument comprising invalid MICR data and associated with a payor;

locating MICR data of a cleared financial instrument associated with the payor;

calculating a number of character mismatches between at least a portion of the located MICR data and at least a corresponding portion of the invalid MICR data; and

storing the located MICR data as alternate MICR data for the invalid MICR data based at least in part on the number of character mismatches.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

associating the failed financial instrument with the alternate MICR data; and

resubmitting the failed financial instrument with the alternate MICR data.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein calculating the number of character mismatches comprises:

subtracting the at least a portion of the located MICR data and the at least a corresponding portion of the invalid MICR data to produce a subtraction result; and

summing a number of non-zero digits in the subtraction result.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein calculating the number of character mismatches comprises:

comparing character by character the at least a portion of the located MICR data with the at least a corresponding portion of the invalid MICR data;

producing a 1 value if the characters match;

producing a 0 value if the characters do not match; and

summing the 1 values once the comparison is complete.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising comparing the sum to a threshold.

10. The method of claim 5, wherein the MICR data comprises at least one of a routing number and an account number.

11. The method of claim 5, wherein locating MICR data of the cleared financial instrument associated with the payor comprises locating MICR data associated with at least one of a driver'"'"'s license number, a social security number, an address, a phone number, and a toll road transponder ID associated with the payor.

12. The method of claim 5, further comprising excluding located MICR data based at least in part on at least one of a source area and a subscriber code associated with the cleared financial instrument.

13. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

locating MICR data of more than one cleared financial instrument associated with the payor;

calculating the number of character mismatches between the at least a portion of the located MICR data and the at least a corresponding portion of the invalid MICR data for each of the cleared financial instruments associated with the payor;

determining if more than one of the located MICR data are potentially correct versions of the invalid MICR data; and

if more than one of the located MICR data are potentially correct versions of the invalid MICR data, not associating the failed financial instrument with any of the located MICR data.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising not resubmitting the failed financial instrument.

15. A computer program for selecting alternate magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) data for processing of a financial instrument, the computer program comprising:

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to receive an indication that a financial instrument failed to clear, the failed financial instrument comprising invalid MICR data and associated with a payor;

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to locate MICR data of a cleared financial instrument associated with the payor;

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to calculate a number of character mismatches between at least a portion of the located MICR data and at least a corresponding portion of the invalid MICR data; and

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to store the located MICR data as alternate MICR data for the invalid MICR data based at least in part on the number of character mismatches.

16. The computer program of claim 15, further comprising:

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to associate the failed financial instrument with the alternate MICR data; and

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to resubmit the failed financial instrument with the alternate MICR data.

17. The computer program of claim 15, wherein the computer code configured to calculate a number of character mismatches comprises:

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to subtract the at least a portion of the located MICR data and the at least a corresponding portion of the invalid MICR data to produce a subtraction result; and

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to sum a number of non-zero digits in the subtraction result.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the computer code configured to calculate the number of character mismatches comprises:

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to compare character by character the at least a portion of the located MICR data with the at least a corresponding portion of the invalid MICR data;

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to produce a 1 value if the characters match;

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to produce a 0 value if the characters do not match; and

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to sum the 1 values once the comparison is complete.

19. The computer program of claim 15, further comprising computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to exclude located MICR data based at least in part on at least one of a source area and a subscriber code associated with the cleared financial instrument.

20. The computer program of claim 15, further comprising:

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to locate MICR data of more than one cleared financial instrument associated with the payor;

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to calculate the number of character mismatches between the at least a portion of the located MICR data and the at least a corresponding portion of the invalid MICR data for each of the cleared financial instruments associated with the payor;

computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to determine if more than one of the located MICR data are potentially correct versions of the invalid MICR data; and

if more than one of the located MICR data are potentially correct versions of the invalid MICR data, computer code stored on computer-readable media configured to not associate the failed financial instrument with any of the located MICR data.