ISDN credit checking

• US 5,313,463 A
• Filed: 03/25/1993
• Issued: 05/17/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: AT&T, Inc.
• Original Assignee: AT&T, Inc.
• Inventors: Lauber, Pamela J., Kittredge, Barbara J., Ladieu-Walton, Julie M., Gore, Angela R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Olms, Douglas W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): TON, DANG T
• Application Number:
  US08/038,563
• Time in Patent Office: 418 Days
• Field of Search: 170/58.1, 170/60, 170/94.1, 170/94.3, 170/110.1, 170/54, 379/144, 379/91, 379/92, 379/93, 379/94, 379/96
• US Class Current: 370/524
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4037 Remote solvency checks
• 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: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13209 ISDN
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13515 authentication, authorisation - fraud prevention
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13541 routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13547 subscriber, e.g. profile, database, database access
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0029 Provisions for intelligent networking

Abstract

A business performs a credit check on a customer'"'"'s credit card number by utilizing the D-channel of an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) facility. The ISDN facility connects the business to a telecommunications network, which utilizes signaling system number 7 (SS7). Specifically, the ISDN Q.931 protocol is modified to allow the Q.931 FACILITY message to include: a) credit check request, b) a call reference number, and c) the customer'"'"'s credit card number. This information is sent, via the ISDN D-channel, to the telecommunications network, which passes the information, via an SS7 Transaction Capability Application Part (TCAP) message, to a credit checking data base. A result from the credit checking data based is then passed back through the telecommunications network to the business on the D-channel of the ISDN facility.

Claims

1. A method for validating credit information, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving the credit information from a customer on a B-channel of an ISDN facility at a business terminal;

sending the credit information on a D-channel of the ISDN facility to a telecommunications network;

validating the credit information provided by the D-channel of the ISDN facility;

providing a result of the validation from the telecommunications network on the D-channel of the ISDN facility; and

receiving a result of the validation from the D-channel of the ISDN facility at the business terminal;

where said credit information and said result are embedded within a respective D-channel signaling message to and from the telecommunications network.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the D-channel signaling message of the sending step includes a FACILITY message, the FACILITY message including:

a) a request for validation of the credit information, b) a Call Reference Value for the customer, and c) the credit information.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the D-channel signaling message of the receiving a result step includes a FACILITY message, the FACILITY message including:

a) a Call Reference Value for the customer, and b) the result of the validation.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the validating step comprises the further steps of:

receiving the credit information from the D-channel of the ISDN facility in a stored-program-control switch of the telecommunications network;

sending the credit information from the stored-program-control switch to a data base;

searching the data base to provide the result of the validation, where the search is keyed on said information; and

sending the result from the data base to the stored-program-control switch.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the sending the credit information step includes the step of sending a SS7 TCAP message, the TCAP message containing the credit information.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the sending the result from the data base step includes the step of sending a SS7 TCAP message, the TCAP message containing the result.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the credit information is a credit card number.

8. Apparatus for providing a communication channel to validate credit information from a customer, the apparatus being comprised of:

a stored-program-control switch;

a premise telephone system; and

an ISDN facility for providing communication between the stored program control switch and the premise telephone system, the facility being comprised of a plurality of B-channels and a D-channel, the D-channel being used for a) sending the credit information in a first D-channel signaling message from the premise telephone system to the stored-program-control switch and for b) sending a result of the validation of the credit information from the stored-program-control switch to the premise telephone system in a second D-channel signaling message.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the premise telephone system is further comprised of:

a stored-program-control switch; and

an ISDN terminal responsive to the stored-program-control switch for providing access to the D-channel of the ISDN facility.

10. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the credit information is a credit card number.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the credit information is received from the customer on a B-channel of the ISDN facility.

12. Apparatus for validating information from a customer, the apparatus being comprised of:

a telecommunications network;

a credit data base for receiving the information from the telecommunications network and for validating the information and for providing a result of the validation to the telecommunications network;

a premise telephone system; and

an ISDN facility for providing communication between the telecommunications network and the premise telephone system, the facility being comprised of a plurality of B-channels and a D-channel, the D-channel being used for a) sending the information in a first D-channel signaling message from the premise telephone system to the telecommunications network and for b) sending a result of the validation of the information in a second D-channel signaling message from the telecommunications network to the premise telephone system.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the premise telephone system is further comprised of:

a stored-program-control switch; and

an ISDN terminal responsive to the stored-program-control switch for providing access to the D-channel of the ISDN facility.

14. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the information is a credit card number.

15. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the information is received from the customer on a B-channel of the ISDN facility.