Payment processing with selection of a processing parameter

• US 7,653,598 B1
• Filed: 08/01/2003
• Issued: 01/26/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Checkfree Services Corporation (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Checkfree Corporation (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Inventors: Webber, Cathy E., Dreyer, Hans D., Pigg, Esther J., McMichael, William Richard Jr., Hamilton, Daniel Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung; Mary
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen; Tien C
• Application Number:
  US10/631,973
• Time in Patent Office: 2,370 Days
• Field of Search: 705 1- 45, 379/123, 379/144, 379/225, 702/38, 235/379, 370/465, 209/584, 377/10
• US Class Current: 705/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/389 Keeping log of transactions for guaranteeing non-repudiation of a transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03

Abstract

A technique for making a payment to a payee on behalf of a payor is provided. A selection is made, based upon a received payment request, of a processing parameter from a group of processing parameters. The group of processing parameters consists of at least two of three processing parameters. The three processing parameters are a speed of processing, cost of processing, and a risk of processing. The payment is made according to the selected processing parameter.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

storing, by a payment service provider in a database, for each of a plurality of payment processing debit options for debiting a payor account and for each of a plurality of payment processing credit options, a respective predetermined numeric value for each of a plurality of payment processing factors, wherein the plurality of payment processing factors comprise (i) a cost of processing factor and (ii) a speed of processing factor, wherein each respective value is a score relative to other debit or credit options;

receiving, by the payment service provider, a payment request to pay a payee on behalf of a payor;

determining, by the payment service provider based upon the payment request, applicable debit options from the plurality of payment processing debit options and applicable credit options from the plurality of payment processing credit options, wherein each of the applicable debit options and the applicable credit options is applicable to processing the payment request;

selecting, by the payment service provider, one of the plurality of payment processing factors based on a preference;

evaluating, by the payment service provider, each of a plurality of combinations of applicable debit options and applicable credit options, wherein the evaluation comprises determining a respective function of the values for the selected processing factor for each combination;

determining, by the payment service provider, an optimal combination of one applicable debit option and one applicable credit option based at least in part on the evaluation; and

directing payment in accordance with the optimal combination,

wherein the above steps are performed by one or more computers associated with the payment service provider.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the preference is associated with at least one of i) the payor, ii) a consumer service provider with which the payor is associated, or iii) the payment service provider.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

prior to selecting one of the plurality of payment processing factors based on a preference, determining the preference from a plurality of applicable preferences.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the function comprises a sum of the respective values of the selected one of the plurality of payment processing factors for the applicable debit option and the applicable credit option for each combination of the plurality of combinations producing a respective total value for each combination, and wherein determining the optimal combination comprises selecting one of the plurality of combinations based on the respective total value for each combination.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the function is a first function, the optimal combination is a first optimal combination the one applicable debit option is a first debit option, the one applicable credit option is a first credit option, and wherein determining the optimal combination further comprises:

identifying a second optimal combination comprising a second debit option and a second credit option, wherein the total value of the first optimal combination equals the total value of the second optimal combination; and

selecting the first combination based on evaluating a second function using the respective values of another of the plurality of payment processing factors for each of the first combination comprising the first debit option and the first credit option and the second combination comprising the second debit option and the second credit option.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the one applicable debit option is one of i) a draft drawn on a deposit account associated with the payor, or ii) an electronic debiting of the deposit account associated with the payor.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the one applicable credit option is one of i) a draft drawn on a deposit account associated with the payor, ii) a check drawn on a deposit account associated with the payment service provider, iii) an electronic funds transfer drawn on the deposit account associated with the payor, or iv) an electronic funds transfer drawn on the deposit account associated with the payment service provider.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

evaluating each of the applicable debit options based on a risk of processing factor,

wherein determining an optimal combination of one applicable debit option and one applicable credit option comprises determining an optimal combination based at least in part on the risk evaluation.

9. A system comprising:

a communications interface configured to receive a payment request to pay a payee on behalf of a payor; and

a processor configured to;

store, in a database, for each of a plurality of payment processing debit options for debiting a payor account and for each of a plurality of payment processing credit options, a respective predetermined numeric value for each of a plurality of payment processing factors, wherein the plurality of payment processing factors comprise (i) a cost of processing factor and (ii) a speed of processing factor,

determine, based upon the payment request, applicable debit options from the plurality of payment processing debit options and applicable credit options from the plurality of payment processing credit options, wherein each of the applicable debit options and the applicable credit options are applicable to processing the payment request,

select one of the plurality of payment processing factors based on a preference,

evaluate each of a plurality of combinations of applicable debit options and applicable credit options, wherein the evaluation comprises determining a respective function of the values for the selected processing factor for each combination;

determine an optimal combination of one applicable debit option and one applicable credit option based at least in part on the evaluation; and

direct payment in accordance with the optimal combination of the one debit option and the one credit option.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the preference is associated with at least one of i) the payor, ii) a consumer service provider with which the payor is associated, or iii) the payment service provider.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to, prior to selecting one of the plurality of payment processing factors based on a preference, determine the preference from a plurality of applicable preferences.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the function comprises a sum of the respective values of the selected one of the plurality of payment processing factors for the applicable debit option and the applicable credit option for each combination of the plurality of combinations producing a respective total value for each combination, and wherein determining the optimal combination comprises selecting one of the plurality of combinations based on the respective total value for each combination.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the function is a first function, the optimal combination is a first optimal combination, the one applicable debit option is a first debit option, the one applicable credit option is a first credit option, and wherein the processor is further configured to:

identify a second optimal combination comprising a second debit option and a second credit option, wherein the total value of the first optimal combination equals the total value of the second optimal combination, and

select the first combination based on evaluating a second function using the respective values of another of the plurality of payment processing factors for each of the first combination comprising the first debit option and the first credit option and the second combination comprising the second debit option and the second credit option.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the one applicable debit option is one of i) a draft drawn on a deposit account associated with the payor, or ii) an electronic debiting of the deposit account associated with the payor.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein

the one applicable credit option is one of i) a draft drawn on a deposit account associated with the payor, ii) a check drawn on a deposit account associated with the payment service provider iii) an electronic funds transfer drawn on a deposit account associated with the payor, or iv) an electronic funds transfer drawn on the deposit account associated with the payment service provider.

16. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to evaluate each of the applicable debit options based on a risk of processing factor and to determine an optimal combination of one applicable debit option and one applicable credit option based at least in part on the risk evaluation.