Rule based system and method for charging student accounts

• US 20080059371A1
• Filed: 04/02/2007
• Published: 03/06/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Educate Online Technology LLC
• Original Assignee: Educate Online Technology LLC
• Inventors: Finnigan, Stu, Viazanko, Duane, McAvoy, Glenn, Adams, Brad
• Granted Patent: US 8,630,957 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063112 Skill-based matching of a person or a group to a task
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06398 Performance of employee with respect to a job function
• 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 30/00 Commerce
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/20 Education
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/08 providing for individual presentation of information to a plurality of student stations
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/00 Electrically-operated teaching apparatus or devices working with questions and answers mechanically operated G09B3/00; computing arrangements G06F

Abstract

A system for charging one ore learning session to one or more student accounts comprises an online learning system having one or more nodes that creates one or more online learning sessions. An enrollment node receives student enrollment information, including responsible authority information. A scheduling node schedules the online learning session. A database stores one or more student accounts created based on the received student enrollment information. The same or another databases stores information relating to one or more responsible authority charge criterion for charging the one or more learning sessions to the one or more student accounts. An activity node receives one or more session activity information associated with the one or more learning sessions and an accounting node associates a charge information for a learning session to an student account based the one or more responsible authority charge criterion and one or more session activity information.

Claims

1. A system for charging one ore learning session to one or more student accounts, comprising:

an online learning system having one or more nodes that creates one or more online learning sessions;

an enrollment node that receives student enrollment information, including responsible authority information;

a scheduling node that schedules the online learning session;

a database that stores one or more student accounts created based on the received student enrollment information;

a database that stores information relating to one or more responsible authority charge criterion for charging the one or more learning sessions to the one or more student accounts;

an activity node for receiving one or more session activity information associated with the one or more learning sessions; and

an accounting node that associates a charge information for a learning session to an student account based the one or more responsible authority charge criterion and one or more session activity information.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the charge information for the learning session is associated with the student account the based on a determination of whether one or more session activity information associated with the learning session satisfy the one or more responsible authority charge criterion.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the responsible authority information comprises information relating to at least one of a parent, a public or private school official, a third party, a governmental authority, a non-governmental authority or a certification authority.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more session activity information relate to student log in time, student logout time and student test score during the learning session.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein one or more responsible authority charge criterion relate to at least one of a student conduct towards the learning session, a length of stay of the student in the learning session or a student progress during the learning session.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more responsible authority charge criterion relate to responsible authority contract parameters and the one or more session activity information events captured during the learning session, the accounting node processes the responsible authority contract parameters in conjunction with the captured events to associate the charge information for the learning session with the student account.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the events comprise at least one of schedule event relating to a teacher or student schedule or session event that takes place during the learning session.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the session event relate to at least one of an event relating to a log-in, a log-out, a matching between a teacher and student, a session start, student test score, session length, teacher comment or student assessment.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the scheduling event relate to an event associated with at last one of a session cancellation, session rescheduling or a session no-show.