System and method for the payment and accounting of petty disbursements

• US 7,840,495 B2
• Filed: 08/03/2001
• Issued: 11/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jay Levenson
• Original Assignee: Jay Levenson, Sherri Adler
• Inventors: Adler, Sherri, Levenson, Jay
• Primary Examiner(s): Worjloh; Jalatee
• Application Number:
  US09/921,629
• Publication Number:
  US 20030028492A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,399 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705/42, 705/44, 705/35, 705/41, 705 64- 79, 235/380, 713/150
• US Class Current: 705/65
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/027 involving a payment switch or gateway
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/0855 involving a third party
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/105 involving programming of a portable memory device, e.g. IC cards, "electronic purses"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/227 characterised in that multiple accounts are available, e.g. to the payer
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/29 characterised by micropayments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/367 involving electronic purses or money safes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3676 Balancing accounts
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/405 Establishing or using transaction specific rules
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/06 Asset management; Financial planning or analysis

Abstract

A system and method for the payment of petty cash disbursements is disclosed wherein a tree structure of linked purchasing cards is constructed according to a real-life organizational structure of persons able to authorized the expenditures of the petty cash. A central computer facility is used to maintain the structure and to facilitate the modification of the expenditure limits for the purchasing cards and the movement of cash between a master account and the accounts of each of the purchasing cards to cover purchased made thereby.

Claims

1. A system for the payment of petty cash disbursements comprising:

a private network for managing the payment of petty cash disbursements, the private network comprising;

a master account set up within the private network, said master account linked to a bank account via a main processor, said bank account having a predetermined amount of funds deposited therein by a funding entity;

a first level of one or more subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts set up within the private network and linked to said master account via the main processor, each of the first level subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts having a first amount of pre-paid funds deposited therein, wherein each first level subordinate pre-paid purchasing card account is associated with a card held by a user for making purchases up to the first amount of pre-paid funds, wherein purchases made using said card are approved by a credit card processor linked to the main processor; and

a second level of one or more subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts set up within the private network and linked to one or more of said first level subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts via the main processor, each of the second level subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts having a second amount of pre-paid funds deposited therein, wherein each second level subordinate pre-paid purchasing card account is associated with a card held by a user for making purchases up to the second amount of pre-paid funds, wherein purchases made using said card are approved by the credit card processor linked to the main processor;

wherein the first amount of pre-paid funds are unique to each of the first level subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts, and wherein the second amount of pre-paid funds are unique to each of the second level subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts;

wherein the funding entity has the authority to authorize the transfer and deposit of pre-paid funds to said master account to cover purchases made using that master account and to any subordinate pre-paid purchasing card account linked to said master account, either directly or indirectly;

wherein an owner of any of said pre-paid purchasing card accounts has the authority to authorize the transfer of pre-paid funds from its own account to any subordinate pre-paid purchasing card account linked thereto; and

wherein said cards associated with any of said first level or second level subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts are re-usable within other private networks set up within the system.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein each of said subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts has a maximum pre-paid deposit limit.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein requests for the modification of said maximum pre-paid deposit limit for any subordinate pre-paid purchasing card account and the authorization of said modification are accomplished in real time.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein said requests and said authorizations are facilitated by a web site available over the Internet.

5. The system of claim 3 wherein said requests and said authorizations are facilitated by a voice recognition facility.

6. The system of claim 2 further comprising a software application running on a computer system.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein said software application is configured to establish communications with outside entities.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein said communications with outside entities are:

encrypted prior to sending and decrypted after receiving to ensure data integrity and security; and

entered into a log file for audit and customer support purposes.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein said software application establishes communication with a bank, said bank maintaining said bank account.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein said software application initiates a transaction at said bank to move pre-paid funds between said bank account and said subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts.

11. The system of claim 8 wherein said software application establishes communications with the credit card processor, wherein said software application is configured to instruct said credit card processor to modify said maximum pre-paid deposit limit for any of said subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein said credit card processor exchanges data with said software application, said exchanged data advising said software application of purchases made using any of said purchasing cards.

13. The system of claim 1 wherein any of said pre-paid purchasing card accounts has the authority to create and break links to and from purchasing card accounts subordinate thereto.

14. A system for the payment of petty cash disbursements comprising:

a private network for managing the payment of petty cash disbursements, the private network including a software application running on a computer system and including a main processor, said computer system being connected to the Internet;

a master account set up within the private network, said master account linked to a bank account via the main processor, said bank account having a predetermined amount of funds deposited therein by a funding entity; and

a plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts set up within the private network, each of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts logically linked to said master account either directly or indirectly via other subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts, each of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts having a first amount of pre-paid funds deposited therein, wherein each of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts is associated with a card held by a user for making purchases up to the first amount of pre-paid funds, wherein purchases made using said card are approved by a credit card processor linked to the main processor;

wherein the first amount of pre-paid funds are unique to each of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts;

wherein the main processor controls said linking of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts and maintains a maximum pre-paid deposit limit for each of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts; and

wherein said cards associated with any of said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts are re-usable within other private networks set up within the system.

15. The system of claim 14 further comprising:

a web site controlled by said software application;

wherein said software application receives secured instructions via said web site regarding the control of said links between said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts and said maximum pre-paid deposit limit for each of said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein said software application further comprises means for communicating with a bank, said bank maintaining said bank account.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein all communications between said bank and said software application are secured by encryption.

18. The system of claim 16 wherein said communications between said bank and said software application includes data regarding the transfer of funds from said master account to each of said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts.

19. The system of claim 15 wherein said software application further comprises means for communicating with the credit card processor, said credit card processor being responsible for the authorization of purchases made with each of said purchasing cards.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein all communications between said credit card processor and said software application are secured by encryption.

21. The system of claim 19 wherein said communications between said credit card processor and said software application include:

data regarding changes in said maximum pre-paid deposit limits for each of said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts; and

information regarding authorized purchases for each of said purchasing cards.

23. The system of claim 14 wherein any of said pre-paid purchasing card accounts has the authority to create and break links to and from purchasing card accounts subordinate thereto.

22. A method for the payment of petty cash disbursements comprising the steps of:

establishing a private network for the payment of petty cash disbursements;

establishing a bank account at a bank having a predetermined amount of funds deposited therein by a funding entity, said bank account associated with the private network;

linking a master account set up within the private network to said bank account via a main processor; and

linking a plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts set up within the private network to said master account either directly or indirectly via other subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts, each of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts having a first amount of pre-paid funds deposited therein, wherein each of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts is associated with a card held by a user for making purchases up to the first amount of pre-paid funds, wherein purchases made using said card are approved by a credit card processor linked to the main processor;

wherein the first amount of pre-paid funds are unique to each of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts;

wherein said cards associated with any of said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts are re-usable within other private networks set up within the system.

24. A method for the payment of petty cash disbursements comprising the steps of:

establishing a private network for the payment of petty cash disbursements;

establishing a bank account at a bank having a predetermined amount of funds deposited therein by a funding entity, said bank account associated with the private network;

linking a master account set up within the private network to said bank account via a main processor; and

linking a plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts set up within the private network to said master account either directly or indirectly via other subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts, each of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts having a first amount of pre-paid funds deposited therein, wherein each of the plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts is associated with a card held by a user for making purchases up to the first amount of pre-paid funds, wherein purchases made using said card are approved by a credit card processor linked to the main processor;

wherein said cards associated with any of said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts are re-usable within other private networks set up within the system.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein each of said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts has a maximum pre-paid deposit limit, the method further comprising the steps of:

electronically transferring instructions to an external credit card processing entity regarding changes to said maximum pre-paid deposit limits for said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts;

electronically receiving from said external credit card processing entity information regarding approved purchases for said purchasing cards; and

electronically transferring instructions to said bank regarding the transfer of funds from said bank account to said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts to cover purchases made.

26. The method of claim 25 further comprising the step of maintaining a web site wherein secured instructions are received regarding (a) changes in said maximum pre-paid deposit limits for said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts, and (b) linking of said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts to one another.

27. The method of claim 25 further comprising the step of maintaining a voice recognition facility wherein secured instructions are received regarding (a) changes in said maximum pre-paid deposit limits for said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts, and (b) linking of said plurality of subordinate pre-paid purchasing card accounts to one another.

28. The method of claim 24 wherein any of said pre-paid purchasing card accounts has the authority to create and break links to and from purchasing card accounts subordinate thereto.