Cash letter print verification

• US 20090114711A1
• Filed: 11/06/2007
• Published: 05/07/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago (Federal Reserve System)
• Original Assignee: Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago (Federal Reserve System)
• Inventors: Treptow, David, Rodrigues, Richard, Mueller, Randall Lee
• Granted Patent: US 7,918,386 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/375
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/042 characterized in that the payment protocol involves at least one cheque

Abstract

A printed cash letter includes a machine-readable identifier, such as a barcode, identifying the cash letter. Upon printing, information from the identifier is read and stored in a first record. To determine whether the cash letter is a duplicate, a check presentment module compares information from the identifier with information in the first record. If information identifying the cash letter already exists in the first record, the cash letter is a duplicate. To verify cash letter printing, information identifying multiple cash letters to be printed is stored in a second record. Upon printing a portion of the cash letters, information read from identifiers on the printed cash letters is compared with information in the second record. If the second record includes information regarding a cash letter not identified in the information scanned from the barcodes, then the check presentment module identifies the cash letter as having not been printed.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for verifying printing of an electronic image cash letter (“

ICL”

), comprising the steps of;

storing information regarding multiple ICLs to be printed in a first record;

reading information in each of a plurality of printed machine-readable identifiers, each printed machine-readable identifier being associated with one of the ICLs;

storing the read information in a second record; and

identifying any of the ICLs that have not been printed by comparing the information in the first record with the information in the second record.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each printed machine-readable identifier comprises a barcode.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of outputting an alert including information regarding the identified ICLs.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein, for each of the multiple ICLs to be printed, the information stored in the first record comprises information uniquely identifying the ICL.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the information uniquely identifying the ICL comprises at least one of a total value of items in the ICL, an ABA number of a bank that will receive a printed copy of the ICL, a total number of item bundles in the ICL, and a total number of items in the ICL.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein, for each printed machine-readable identifier, the information stored in the second record comprises information uniquely identifying the one of the ICLs associated with the printed machine-readable identifier.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the information uniquely identifying the one of the ICLs comprises at least one of a total value of items in the ICL, an ABA number of a bank that will receive a printed copy of the ICL, a total number of item bundles in the ICL, and a total number of items in the ICL.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein each printed machine-readable identifier is disposed on a cover page of the one of the ICLs associated with the printed machine-readable identifier.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

for each of the printed machine-readable identifiers, prior to storing the read information in the second record, determining whether information regarding the one of the ICLs associated with the printed machine-readable identifier already is stored in the second record; and

in response to determining that information regarding the one of the ICLs associated with the printed machine-readable identifier already is stored in the second record, outputting an alert advising an operator that the one of the ICLs was printed twice.

10. A computer-readable medium comprising computer-executable instructions for performing the method of claim 1.

11. A computer-implemented method for verifying printing of an electronic image cash letter (“

ICL”

), comprising the steps of;

storing, in a first record, information uniquely identifying each of multiple ICLs to be printed, the information stored for each ICL comprising at least one of a total value of items in the ICL, an ABA number of a bank that will receive a printed copy of the ICL, a total number of item bundles in the ICL, and a total number of items in the ICL;

reading information in each of a plurality of printed machine-readable identifiers, each printed machine-readable identifier being disposed on a printed one of the ICLs;

storing the read information in a second record;

determining whether any of the ICLs have not been printed by comparing the information in the first record with the information in the second record; and

in response to determining that at least one of the ICLs has not been printed, outputting an alert advising an operator that the at least one of the ICLs has not been printed.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein each printed machine-readable identifier comprises a barcode.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein, for each machine-readable identifier, the information stored in the second record comprises information uniquely identifying the printed one of the ICLs on which the machine-readable identifier is disposed.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the information uniquely identifying the printed one of the ICLs comprises at least one of a total value of items in the ICL, an ABA number of a bank that will receive a printed copy of the ICL, a total number of item bundles in the ICL, and a total number of items in the ICL.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising the steps of:

prior to storing the read information in the second record, determining whether information regarding the one of the ICLs associated with the printed machine-readable identifier already is stored in the second record; and

in response to determining that information regarding the one of the ICLs associated with the printed machine-readable identifier already is stored in the second record, outputting an alert notifying an operator that the one of the ICLs was printed twice.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein each printed machine-readable identifier is disposed on a cover page of the one of the ICLs associated with the printed barcode.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the alert includes information uniquely identifying the at least one of the ICLs has not been printed.

18. A computer-readable medium comprising computer-executable instructions for performing the method of claim 11.

19. A computer-implemented method for verifying printing of an electronic image cash letter (“

ICL”

), comprising the steps of;

storing information regarding multiple ICLs to be printed in a record;

reading information in each of a plurality of printed machine-readable identifiers, each printed machine-readable identifier being associated with one of the ICLs; and

identifying any of the ICLs that have not been printed by comparing the read information with the information stored in the record.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein each printed machine-readable identifier comprises a barcode.

21. The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of outputting an alert including information regarding the identified ICLs.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein, for each of the multiple ICLs to be printed, the information stored in the record comprises information uniquely identifying the ICL, the information uniquely identifying the ICL comprising at least one of a total value of items in the ICL, an ABA number of a bank that will receive a printed copy of the ICL, a total number of item bundles in the ICL, and a total number of items in the ICL.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein each printed machine-readable identifier is disposed on a cover page of the one of the ICLs associated with the printed machine-readable identifier.