Robust payment settlements using distributed and potentially unreliable computer systems

• US 8,886,562 B1
• Filed: 07/11/2008
• Issued: 11/11/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Talati, Mayank, Schulman, Michael, Lakshmanan, Radhika
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell, James
• Assistant Examiner(s): Malhotra, Sanjeev
• Application Number:
  US12/172,107
• Time in Patent Office: 2,314 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/14, 705/35, 705/38, 705/39, 705/65, 713/165, 707/2, 395/615, 235/380
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/08 Payment architectures
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions

Abstract

Settlement transactions are processed on a distributed computer system. Settlement data describing a settlement request are received and stored in a settlement storage. The storage includes a request status field with a value describing the status of the settlement request. The settlement data are stored in a vendor file responsive to the value of the request status field. Data describing the vendor file are stored in a vendor file information storage. The vendor file information storage includes a file status field with a value describing the status of the vendor file. The vendor file is provided to a vendor for settlement processing responsive to the value of the file status field. The distributed computer system is able to detect and rectify errors in the distributed computer system by using the request status and file status fields, which allows the distributed computer system to be comprised of conventional computers.

Claims

1. A method for processing settlement transactions on a distributed computer system, comprising:

storing, by the distributed computer system, settlement data corresponding to a plurality of settlement requests in a settlement storage, the settlement storage including for each of the plurality of settlement requests a request status field indicating a processing status of the settlement request, each of the plurality of settlement requests destined for at least one of a plurality of vendors;

storing, by the distributed computer system, vendor data in a vendor file information storage describing a vendor file to be created for a vendor, the vendor file information storage including a file status field indicating a processing status of the vendor file, the file status field including a value indicating the vendor file is being created;

creating, by the distributed computer system, the vendor file for the vendor, the vendor file including a set of settlement requests, from the plurality of settlement requests, destined for the vendor and which include a value in the requests'"'"' respective request status field indicating that settlement data of the request has been formatted for the vendor;

responsive to the file status field including the value indicating that the vendor file is being created for longer than a threshold time period, declaring that an error occurred in creating the vendor file and recreating, by the distributed computer system, the vendor file; and

providing, by the distributed computer system, the vendor file to the vendor for processing the set of settlement requests.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to the request status field of a settlement request destined for the vendor indicating that stored settlement data corresponding to the settlement request are not formatted for the vendor, processing the stored settlement data by;

formatting the stored settlement data according to vendor specifications;

storing the formatted settlement data in the settlement storage; and

updating the request status field to indicate that the stored settlement data are formatted for the vendor.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

declaring that an additional error occurred responsive to the request status field of a settlement request destined for the vendor not changing within a set time from indicating that stored settlement data corresponding to the settlement request are not formatted for the vendor to indicating that the stored settlement data are formatted; and

formatting the stored settlement data responsive to declaring the additional error occurred.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein creating the vendor file comprises:

identifying a template for the vendor file based at least in part on the vendor; and

storing settlement data of the set of settlement requests in the identified template.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to including a settlement request, from the set of settlement requests, in the vendor file, updating the request status field of the settlement request to indicate that settlement data of the settlement request are stored in the vendor file.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the vendor file to the vendor comprises:

enriching the vendor file with sensitive data;

encrypting the vendor file; and

sending the vendor file to the vendor.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein enriching the vendor file with sensitive data comprises:

identifying a place holder in the settlement data stored in the vendor file; and

replacing the placeholder in the vendor file with sensitive information represented by the place holder.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the vendor file to the vendor comprises:

transmitting the vendor file to the vendor; and

updating the file status field to indicate that the vendor file was transmitted to the vendor.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

declaring that an additional error occurred responsive to the file status field not changing within a set time from indicating the vendor file has not been sent to indicating the vendor file has been sent; and

initiating processing of the vendor file responsive to declaring the additional error occurred.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the settlement storage comprises a table having multiple rows and columns, wherein each row stores settlement data corresponding to one of the plurality of settlement requests and the columns of the table represent fields of the settlement request.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the vendor file is provided to the vendor responsive to the files status field indicating that the vendor file is ready for transmittal to the vendor.

11. A computer program product having a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable code for processing settlement transactions on a distributed computer system, the computer-executable code comprising:

a request handler module configured to store settlement data corresponding to a plurality of settlement requests in a settlement storage, the settlement storage including for each of the plurality of settlement requests a request status field indicating a processing status of the settlement request, each of the plurality of settlement requests destined for at least one of a plurality of vendors;

a batch handler module configured to;

store vendor data in a vendor file information storage describing a vendor file to be created for a vendor, the vendor file information storage including a file status field indicating a processing status of the vendor file, the file status field including a value indicating the vendor file is being created;

create the vendor file for the vendor, the vendor file including a set of settlement requests, from the plurality of settlement requests, destined for the vendor and which include a value in the requests'"'"' respective request status field indicating that settlement data of the request has been formatted for the vendor; and

responsive to the file status field including the value indicating that the vendor file is being created for longer than a threshold time period, declare that an error occurred in creating the vendor file and recreate the vendor file; and

a vendor communication module configured to provide the vendor file to the vendor for processing the set of settlement requests.

14. The computer program product of claim 11, further comprising a vendor handler module configured to:

declare that an additional error occurred responsive to the request status field of a settlement request destined for the vendor not changing within a set time from indicating that stored settlement data corresponding to the settlement request are not formatted for the vendor to indicating that the stored settlement data are formatted; and

format the stored settlement data responsive to declaring the additional error occurred.

15. The computer program product of claim 11, wherein the vendor communication module is further configured to:

declare that an additional error occurred responsive to the file status field not changing within a set time from indicating the vendor file has not been sent to indicating the vendor file has been sent; and

initiate processing of the vendor file responsive to declaring the error occurred.

12. A computer-implemented system for processing settlement transactions on a distributed computer system, the system comprising:

a computer processor; and

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer program modules configured to execute on the computer processor, the computer program modules comprising;

a request handler module configured to store settlement data corresponding to a plurality of settlement requests in a settlement storage, the settlement storage including for each of the plurality of settlement requests a request status field indicating a processing status of the settlement request, each of the plurality of settlement requests destined for at least one of a plurality of vendors;

a batch handler module configured to;

store vendor data in a vendor file information storage describing a vendor file to be created for a vendor, the vendor file information storage including a file status field indicating a processing status of the vendor file, the file status field including a value indicating the vendor file is being created;

create the vendor file for the vendor, the vendor file including a set of settlement requests, from the plurality of settlement requests, destined for the vendor and which include a value in the requests'"'"' respective request status field indicating that settlement data of the request has been formatted for the vendor; and

responsive to the file status field including the value indicating that the vendor file is being created for longer than a threshold time period, declare that an error occurred in creating the vendor file and recreate the vendor file; and

a vendor communication module configured to provide the vendor file to the vendor for processing the set of settlement requests.

16. The system of claim 12, further comprising a vendor handler module configured to:

declare that an additional error occurred responsive to the request status field of a settlement request destined for the vendor not changing within a set time from indicating that stored settlement data corresponding to the settlement request are not formatted for the vendor to indicating that the stored settlement data are formatted; and

format the stored settlement data responsive to declaring the error occurred.