Atomic deposit transaction

• US 7,974,899 B1
• Filed: 09/30/2008
• Issued: 07/05/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: United Services Automobile Association
• Original Assignee: United Services Automobile Association
• Inventors: Prasad, Bharat, Pollack, Jeffrey N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Colbert; Ella
• Assistant Examiner(s): OJIAKU, CHIKAODINAKA
• Application Number:
  US12/242,107
• Time in Patent Office: 1,008 Days
• Field of Search: 705/38, 705/44, 235/379
• US Class Current: 705/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

A user may generate a digital image of a negotiable instrument such as a check. The digital image may be transmitted to an institution in a digital image file for deposit of the check. After the user selects to submit the digital image file, the digital image file may be sent from a user computing device to the institution. The user computing device may be decoupled from the transaction once the submission of the digital image file for deposit of the check is made. The transaction is thereafter managed by the institution. Incomplete transactions are avoided by moving the transaction processing to the server side at the institution after the user submits the digital image file. This may be referred to as an atomic deposit transaction.

Claims

1. An atomic deposit transaction method, comprising:

instantiating a remote deposit transaction including providing user authenticating credentials to a server at an institution;

generating a digital image file of a physical negotiable instrument via a general purpose imaging device, the general purpose imaging device coupled to a user owned computing device;

providing the digital image file of the physical negotiable instrument to the server at the institution for processing via a communications connection between the user owned computing device and the institution for deposit of the physical negotiable instrument into a deposit account of the user;

failing to provide any user-specified end-of-transaction information to the institution after providing the digital image file to the institution, the digital image file being processed by the server at the institution to deposit funds of the physical negotiable instrument into the deposit account of the user, without the server at the institution receiving any user-specified end-of-transaction information from the user owned computing device after receiving the digital image file; and

receiving information at the user owned computing device pertaining to the processing of the digital image file and the depositing of funds of the physical negotiable instrument into the deposit account.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the information comprises accessing a website of the institution to obtain the information.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein providing the digital image file comprises selecting a link on the website and submitting the digital image file via the link.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications connection comprises an Internet connection or a wireless cellular connection.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the digital image file comprises streaming the digital image file to the institution.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating the digital image file by capturing at least one image of the physical negotiable instrument via the general purpose imaging device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the physical negotiable instrument comprises a check.

22. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

severing the communications connection without providing any user-specified information to the institution other than the digital image file.

8. A computer-readable medium comprising computer-readable instructions for an atomic deposit transaction, said computer-readable instructions issuable by a processor to:

instantiate a remote deposit transaction including providing user authenticating credentials to a server at an institution;

generate a digital image file of a physical negotiable instrument via a general purpose imaging device, the general purpose imaging device coupled to a user owned computing device;

provide the digital image file of the physical negotiable instrument to the server at the institution for processing via a communications connection between the user owned computing device and the institution for deposit of the physical negotiable instrument into a deposit account of the user;

fail to provide any user-specified end-of-transaction information to the server at the institution after providing the digital image file to the institution, the digital image file being processed by the server at the institution to deposit funds of the physical negotiable instrument into the deposit account of the user, without the institution receiving any user-specified end-of-transaction information from the user owned computing device after receiving the digital image file; and

receive information at the user owned computing device pertaining to the processing of the digital image file and the depositing of funds of the physical negotiable instrument into the deposit account.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the instructions that receive the information comprise instructions that access a website of the institution to obtain the information.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the instructions that provide the digital image file comprise instructions that select a link on the website and submit the digital image file via the link.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the communications connection comprises an Internet connection or a wireless cellular connection.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the instructions that provide the digital image file comprise instructions that stream the digital image file to the institution.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, further comprising instructions that generate the digital image file by capturing at least one image of the physical negotiable instrument via the general purpose imaging device.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the physical negotiable instrument comprises a check.

23. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, further comprising instructions that sever the communications connection without providing any user-specified information to the institution other than the digital image file.

15. A system for atomic deposit transaction, comprising:

a memory;

a processor disposed in communication with said memory, and configured to issue a plurality of processing instructions stored in the memory, wherein the processor issues instructions to;

instantiate a remote deposit transaction including providing user authenticating credentials to a server at an institution;

generate a digital image file of a physical negotiable instrument via a general purpose imaging device, the general purpose imaging device coupled to a user owned computing device;

provide the digital image file of the physical negotiable instrument to the server at the institution for processing via a communications connection between the user owned computing device and the institution for deposit of the physical negotiable instrument into a deposit account of the user;

fail to provide any user-specified end-of-transaction information to the server at the institution after providing the digital image file to the institution, the digital image file being processed by the server at the institution to deposit funds of the physical negotiable instrument into the deposit account of the user, without the institution receiving any user-specified end-of-transaction information from the user owned computing device after receiving the digital image file; and

receive information at the user owned computing device pertaining to the processing of the digital image file and the depositing of funds of the physical negotiable instrument into the deposit account.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the processor further issues instructions to access a website of the institution to obtain the received information.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the processor further issues instructions to select a link on the website and submit the digital image file via the link.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the communications connection comprises an Internet connection or a wireless cellular connection.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the processor further issues instructions to stream the digital image file to the institution.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the processor further issues instructions to generate the digital image file by capturing at least one image of the physical negotiable instrument via the general purpose imaging device.

21. The system of claim 15, wherein the physical negotiable instrument comprises a check.

24. The system of claim 15, wherein the processor further issues instructions to severing the communications connection without providing any user-specified information to the institution other than the digital image file.