TRANSMISSION AND CAPTURE OF LINE-ITEM-DETAIL TO ASSIST IN TRANSACTION SUBSTANTIATION AND MATCHING

• US 20080197188A1
• Filed: 02/15/2007
• Published: 08/21/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/15/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Liberty Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. (American Express Company)
• Inventors: Sachdev, Sunil, Harrison, Sarah, Jagatic, Jason, Miller, Margaret A.
• Application Number:
  US11/675,478
• Publication Number:
  US 20080197188A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/380
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems

Abstract

A system, method and computer program product for capturing Line-Item-Detail to assist in substantiating eligible expenses for participating card holders. The system leverages existing data feeds to capture Line-Item-Detail at a point of sale (POS). Advanced filtering and transmission protocols are implemented to enable the process of capturing and transmission of data. The system helps to reduce the number of paper receipts that are required from card members, especially those resulting from over the counter purchases at retail stores. By flagging eligible purchases, the invention aids in automation of the rebate/claims process thereby leading to a faster rebate process and hence, improving customer satisfaction.

Claims

1. A method for automatically providing a tax-benefit for eligible purchases by capturing line item data related to items being purchased, comprising:

(a) reading data from a customer account card, in connection with a process for payment by a customer for the items being purchased, at a point of sale device;

(b) sending data read from the card and line item data related to the items being purchased to a database remote from the point of sale device;

(c) comparing the line item data with a list of items stored in the database that are eligible for a tax-benefit and generating tax-benefit eligible data identifying any items from amongst those being purchased that are eligible for a tax benefit;

(d) sending the tax-benefit eligible data to the point of sale device;

(e) processing payment information for the purchased items taking into account any eligible tax benefits; and

(f) displaying information related to eligible tax-benefits, at the point of sale device, in real time.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein step (b) comprises encrypting data being sent to the database according to an RSA algorithm.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein data being sent to the database and data being received from the database are transmitted using full duplex communication.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the data stored on the card is encrypted and the method further comprises comparing encrypted data read from the card with a table of encrypted card numbers.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein step (d) comprises decrypting data received at the point of sale device according to an RSA algorithm.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting the payment information to a third party.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

(g) updating a local database at the point of sale device for most recent prices of the purchased items.

7. A system for automatically providing a tax-benefit for an eligible purchase by capturing line item data from a list of purchased items, comprising:

a point of sale device configured to read data from a customer account card;

a first database associated with the point of sale device;

a second database comprising at least one table of encrypted card numbers and a list of eligible items associated customer accounts;

means for identifying, at the second database, one or more eligible items, among the items being purchased, that are eligible for a for tax-benefit; and

means for sending data related to the identified one or more eligible items to the point-of sale device, whereby tax-benefits are provided in real-time for the identified one or more eligible items.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the data read from the customer account card is enerypted according to an RSA algorithm.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the first local database contains healthcare and financial information related to a customer account.

10. A computer readable storage medium having computer program code recorded thereon, that when executed by a processor causes the processor automatically provide tax-benefits for eligible purchases by capturing line item data related to items being purchased, the computer program code comprising:

a first set of instructions for reading data from a customer account card at a point of sale device in connection with a process for a payment of the items being purchased by a customer;

a second set of instructions for sending the read data to a database remote from the point of sale device;

a third set of instructions for searching purchases eligible for the tax-benefits, amongst the purchased items;

fourth set of instructions for sending information related to the purchases eligible to the point-of sale device and separately to a card company for storage purposes; and

a fifth set of instructions for processing payment information for the purchased items, and for displaying the tax benefits on an item-by-item basis at the point-of-sale device in real-time for the eligible purchases, amongst the purchased items.