Account opening facilitation system, method and computer program product

• US 7,577,598 B2
• Filed: 04/24/2002
• Issued: 08/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/01/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: United Parcel Service Of America Incorporated (United Parcel Service Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: United Parcel Service Of America Incorporated (United Parcel Service Incorporated)
• Inventors: Lawson, legal representative, Lawson, Phil G., Jaslow, Seth D., Rousseau, Curtis R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hamilton; Lalita M
• Application Number:
  US10/128,825
• Publication Number:
  US 20030040997A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,673 Days
• Field of Search: 705/35,38
• US Class Current: 705/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/03 Credit; Loans; Processing thereof

Abstract

A system for facilitating the opening of accounts by a plurality of backend systems. The account opening system includes a front-end interface that interacts with a customer to collect customer information such as an account-type selection, billing information and pickup location information. A backend interface of the system pre-validates the customer information and routes the customer information to the backend systems for activation of the account. The backend interface also includes a monitor that determines the availability of the backend systems and a cache that stores the open account request and customer information for later routing when the backend systems are temporarily unavailable. Advantageously, pre-validation of the customer information allows the backend interface to distribute an account number to the customer in real time when the backend systems are unavailable. Pre-validation ensures that the customer information is sufficiently correct to allow later activation of the account by the backend systems.

Claims

1. A system for facilitating the opening of an account for a customer if an account activation system is unavailable, said account opening system comprising:

a customer query system configured to prompt the customer to submit customer information and an account opening request if the account activation system is unavailable, said query system further configured to record the submitted customer information and account opening request;

a pre-validation system configured to receive the customer information from the customer query system and to validate that the customer information is sufficiently correct to allow activation of the account;

an account number distribution system configured to allocate and distribute an account number identifying the account if the account activation system is unavailable in response to validation of the customer information;

a cache system capable of receiving and storing the account opening request, the account number and the validated customer information if the account activation system is unavailable and further capable sending the account opening request, the account number and the validated customer information to the account activation system if the account activation system is available; and

a monitor system that is configured to determine if the account activation system is available and is capable of communicating with the cache system.

2. An account opening system of claim 1, wherein the account number distribution system includes an unique account number repository from which the account number is allocated and distributed.

3. An account opening system of claim 1, further comprising an account recommendation system configured to make an account-type suggestion based on account use information and wherein the customer query system is further configured to prompt the customer for the account use information and to record the account use information submitted by the customer.

4. An account opening system of claim 3, wherein the account-type suggestion is the account-type having minimal cost to the customer.

5. A computer-implemented method for opening an account for a customer if an account activation computer system is unavailable, said method comprising the steps of:

prompting the customer to submit customer information and an account opening request if the account activation system is unavailable;

having an account number distribution computer system allocate an account number identifying the account in response to validation of the customer information;

storing the account opening request, the account number and the validated customer information in a cache system if the account activation system is unavailable;

determining if the account activation computer system is available and is capable of communicating with the cache system; and

sending the account opening request, the account number and the validated customer information to the account activation system if the account activation system is available.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein after said prompting step, further comprising recording the customer information and account opening request.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein after said recording step, further comprising validating that the customer information is sufficiently correct to allow activation of the account if the account activation system is unavailable.

8. The method of claim 5, further comprising the step of providing an account-type suggestion based on account use information submitted by the customer.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein providing an account-type suggestion based on account use information submitted by the customer comprises suggesting an account-type having minimal cost to the customer.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of prompting the customer for the account use information.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising the step of recording the account use information.

12. The method of claim 5, wherein said allocating step comprises allocating an account number from an account number distribution system which includes an unique account number repository.