Online product exchange system with price-sorted matching products

• US 7,933,806 B2
• Filed: 09/11/2006
• Issued: 04/26/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: CXT Systems, Inc. (Quest Patent Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mirim Network Transfer Ltd., LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Kline, Christopher Ames, Fusz, Eugene August
• Primary Examiner(s): ZURITA, JAMES H
• Application Number:
  US11/530,873
• Publication Number:
  US 20070005446A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,688 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705/37
• US Class Current: 705/26.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0611 Request for offers or quotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0621 Item configuration or customization
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0625 Directed, with specific intent or strategy
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0639 Item locations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/188 Electronic negotiation

Abstract

An exchange system for facilitating the purchase of new cars is described. The system is coupled, in one embodiment, to a communications link. Potential car purchasers and sellers may access the exchange system via the network, and submit offers and/or pricing requests to such system. In response to the requests, the system processor retrieves the stored data from the respective databases, and causes such data to be transmitted to the local site for display. The exchange systems also executes certain functions in response to commands and data transmitted from buyer sites, dealer sites and institution sites.

Claims

1. A method for operating an electronic product exchange comprising:

accepting through a communication network, from computers of potential buyers, requests containing select product configuration data;

responsive to the requests, automatically searching, among pricing data and product configuration data for different products for sale by potential sellers, for products that match the select product configuration data of the request;

sorting the products by price, for at least the products that have select product configuration data matching the request; and

further responsive to each of the requests, automatically transferring, through the network to the computer of the potential buyer who made the request, information identifying the matching products for display in price-sorted order.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the searching comprises searching a computer database containing the pricing data and product configuration data.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the computer database stores the data in order of price, according to product configuration.

4. The method of claim 2 further comprising, before the searching, accepting through the communication network, from the potential sellers, the pricing data and product configuration data for the different products for sale by the potential sellers, and storing such information automatically in the computer database.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein accepting the pricing data and product configuration data comprises allowing the potential sellers to upload the data through the network to the computer database at will.

6. The method of claim 4 further comprising, after the automatically transferring, accepting one or more purchase orders over the communication network from the computer of the potential buyer to whom the information identifying the matching products was transferred, and responsive thereto, automatically storing buyer identification data, seller identification data, price, and product configuration data.

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising automatically generating a bill for a fee for each purchase order for which information is stored.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein accepting product configuration data includes accepting information concerning a product'"'"'s brand, style, or make.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein accepting product configuration data also includes accepting information concerning a product'"'"'s color choices, options, or feature choices.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the communication network comprises the Internet.

11. An electronic product exchange comprising:

a computer system configured to be accessed through a communication network, the computer system configured to receive one or more commands from computers of potential buyers coupled to the network, wherein a command comprises product configuration data transmitted through the network by one of the potential buyers, wherein the computer system is further configured to access data and product configuration data for different products for sale by potential sellers,

wherein the computer system is further configured to;

responsive to one of the one or more commands, automatically search among the product configuration data for the different products for products that match the product configuration data in the command;

sort the products by price, for at least the products that have select product configuration data matching the product configuration data in the command; and

responsive to the command, automatically transfer, through the communication network to the computer of the potential buyer who transmitted the respective command, information identifying one or more matching products for display in price-sorted order at the computer of the potential buyer who transmitted the command.

12. The electronic product exchange of claim 11, further comprising a database containing the data and product configuration data for the sellers'"'"' products, wherein the database is configured to be accessible by the computer system and to be accessible to one or more potential sellers.

13. The electronic product exchange of claim 12, wherein the computer system is further configured to automatically record buyer identification data, seller identification data, price, and product configuration data in response to a purchase order transmitted over the network from the computer of the potential buyer to whom the information has been transferred.

14. The electronic product exchange of claim 13, wherein the computer system is further configured to automatically generate a bill for a fee for the purchase order.

15. An electronic product exchange system comprising:

a server accessible through a communication network from computers of potential buyers coupled to the network, and computers of potential sellers;

a first computer database, accessible by the server, containing pricing and product configuration data for different products for sale, wherein

the server is configured to automatically search the first computer database for those products that match a request containing product configuration data transmitted through the network by a computer of one of the potential buyers and automatically transfer information about the matching products through the network to the computer of the potential buyer, and

wherein the transferred information identifies the matching products in price-sorted order; and

a second computer database coupled to the server, wherein the server is configured to automatically record buyer identification data, seller identification data, price, and product configuration data in the second computer database in response to purchase orders transmitted over the network to the server from the computer of the potential buyer to which the price-sorted information has been transferred.

16. The system of claim 15 further comprising a computerized automatic billing system to automatically generate a bill for a fee for each of the purchase orders.

17. The system of claim 15 further comprising a network link between the server and financial institutions.

18. The system of claim 15 wherein the first computer database is configured to store the data in order of price, according to product configuration.