Data structure for a complex order processing system

• US 20070203799A1
• Filed: 05/06/2002
• Published: 08/30/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mark Lewis, Richard Caballero
• Original Assignee: Mark Lewis, Richard Caballero
• Inventors: Lewis, Mark, Caballero, Richard
• Granted Patent: US 7,761,337 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• 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 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0639 Item locations

Abstract

A data structure for a complex order processing system is implemented in a set of tables for assets, quotes, and orders. The asset table includes information regarding products currently installed and services being delivered to a customer'"'"'s premises. The aggregate asset tables for a customer represent the customer'"'"'s service profile. The quote table represents an offer to change the products and services provided to a customer, and the order table represents instructions to change the products and services provided to a customer. The assets can represent a product with a hierarchy of instances of sub-products, and one or more of the sub-products can itself be a complex product. The asset, quote and order tables comprise several fields. Some of the fields are the same across the tables so than information can be readily transferred from the quote table to an order table when a quote is approved by a customer and converted to an order. Information is also transferred from an order table to an asset table when an order is successfully completed and the asset configuration is applied to the service profile of the customer. When a customer requests a quote to change their service profile, the information from an asset table is transferred to a quote table. Multiple assets, quotes, and orders can be associated with a customer, and the tables provide information regarding the status of each asset, quote, and order. The data structure also includes information regarding whether a price type of a product or service item is a one-time charge, recurring, or usage-based.

Claims

1-67. -67. (canceled)

68. An order processing system comprising:

a complex object comprising at least one of;

a service profile, quote information, and order information pertaining to an account;

a data manager operable to

receive at least a portion of the service profile from an external server via an information network; and

generate a business object based on the portion of the service profile; and

a transformation engine operable to generate at least a portion of the complex object based on the business object.

69. The order processing system of claim 68, further comprising:

user interface instructions operable to;

generate a customer portal view comprising a list of products and services associated with the account, a list of quotes associated with the account, a list of orders associated with the account, and a plurality of user-selectable options; and

receive data input from a user.

70. The order processing system of claim 68, further comprising:

a plurality of business service methods to perform functions associated with processing orders.

71. The order processing system of claim 70, further comprising:

a plurality of workflow processes, wherein each workflow process invokes at least one of the plurality of business service methods.

72. The order processing system of claim 69, further comprising:

instructions operable to update the status of order line items when a provisioning system completes all or part of an order.

a plurality of business service methods;

user interface instructions operable to;

generate a customer portal view comprising a list of products and services associated with an account, a list of quotes associated with the account, a list of orders associated with the account, and a plurality of user-selectable options;

receive input from a user; and

a plurality of workflow processes, wherein at least one of the plurality of workflow processes is invoked when a user selects one of the plurality of user-selectable options, and the at least one of the plurality of workflow processes invokes at least one of the plurality of business service methods to perform functions associated with the selected option.

73. The complex order processing system of claim 72, further comprising a plurality of complex objects, wherein each complex object is based on a property set of at least one of:

a complex asset, a quote, and an order; and

the business service methods include at least one of;

an Apply Method to create a hybrid asset/order that simulates the future configuration of the complex asset by overlaying unprocessed items and attributes from open orders on one of the plurality of complex objects that is based on the complex asset;

a Delta Method to generate a delta complex object that represents the difference between at least two of the plurality of complex objects;

a Trim Method to create a new complex object by eliminating all items that meet predefined trim criteria from one of the plurality of complex objects;

a Logical Delete Method to generate a transformed delta order complex object by transforming items in one of the plurality of complex objects with an action code “

Delete”

to “

Update” and

changing status of the transformed items to “

Inactive”

;

an Explode Method to copy items in one of the plurality of complex objects with quantity greater than one, and generate a delta quote complex object with a corresponding number of copies of the item with quantity equal to one;

a Fully Exploded Method to determine whether the items in one of the plurality of complex objects have a quantity greater than one;

a Field Delta Method to set the action code of a parent quote item to “

Update”

when a specified field is updated;

a Set Effectivity Dates Method to generate a “

Calculated Effective End Date”

, a “

Calculated Effective Start Date”

, and a “

Completed Date”

, wherein the “

Calculated Effective End Date”

is set to the date the action code of an item in one of the plurality of complex objects based on an order was set to “

delete”

, the “

Calculated Effective Start Date”

is set to the date the action code of the item in the one of the plurality of complex objects was set to “

add”

, and the “

Completed Date”

is set to the date the order was completed;

a Set Action Method to set the action code of an item in one of the plurality of complex objects;

a Save Object Method to receive a key and a property set hierarchy that represents one of the plurality of complex objects, and saves the one of the plurality of complex objects in a string to object map using the key;

a Get Object Method to receive the key and return the one of the plurality of complex objects that corresponds to the key;

a Reset Method to delete all saved complex objects from the map;

a Module Licensed Method to determine whether the complex order processing system is licensed for a particular computer system;

an Update Order Status Method to check a Status field of a root item and all child items in the hierarchy of one of the plurality of complex objects based on a complex asset to determine whether the Status field is set to “

Complete”

, “

Failed”

or NULL;

a Merge Method to copy all items from one of the plurality of complex objects to another of the plurality of complex objects;

a Set Field Method to enumerate through the item hierarchy of one of the plurality of complex objects, find a named field of each item, and set the named field to a specified value; and

a Create Empty Complex Object Method to create an empty complex object based on one of the plurality of complex objects.

74. The complex order processing system of claim 75, wherein the workflow processes comprise:

a Supplemental Orders Process to create a new order by allowing the user to revise a pending order, wherein the Supplemental Orders Process is operable to;

generate the requested future state of the complex object by applying the prior active and unprocessed orders to the complex object;

apply a current order line item to the complex object;

allow the user to reconfigure the complex object;

generate the difference between the requested state of the complex object before the current order line item was applied and the state of the object after the user reconfigured the complex object; and

ungroup any order line item with a quantity of more than 1 into multiple line items, each with a quantity of 1.

75. The complex order processing system of claim 70, wherein the workflow processes comprise:

a Move Process to transfer a customer'"'"'s complex asset configuration from an old location to a new location by entering the address of the new location and entering a single option selection to transfer the complex asset configuration from the old location to the new location.

76. The complex order processing system of claim 70, further comprising a plurality of complex objects, wherein each complex object is based on a property set of at least one of:

a complex asset, a quote, and an order; and

the workflow processes comprise at least one of;

a New Products and Services Process to create a quote;

a Modify Products and Services Process to modify a complex asset in a quote;

a Disconnect Products and Services Process to disconnect a complex asset;

a Profile Process to retrieve account information that corresponds to a quote;

an Edit Quotes Line Items Process to apply all active and unprocessed orders to a complex asset to generate the future state of the complex asset, and allow the user to make changes to the configuration of the complex asset and update a quote;

a Supplemental Orders Process to create a new order by allowing the user to revise a pending order;

an Edit Order Line Items Process to apply all active and unprocessed orders to a complex asset to generate the future state of the complex asset, allow the user to make changes to the configuration of the complex asset, and update an order;

a Quote to Order Process to convert a quote to a sales order;

an Update Opportunity Process to create revenue items for all quote line items;

a Submit Order Process to associate account information with each line item in an order and set the status of the order to “

open”

;

an Ungroup Quotes Process to create multiple copies of line items in a quote that have quantities greater than one;

an Apply Completed Sales Order Line Item To Service Profile Process to update an asset table for a complex asset that has been provisioned; and

a Move Process to transfer a customer'"'"'s complex asset configuration from an old location to a new location by entering the address of the new location and entering a single option selection.

81. The complex order processing system of claim 76, wherein the Move Process is operable to:

identify a move-out address;

identify a move-in address;

retrieve the complex assets for the move-out address;

generate a move-in quote;

add account information from the complex asset for the move-out address to the move-in quote;

generate two quote line items for each quote line item in the move-out quote, wherein one quote line item has an action code of Delete and is associated with the move-out address, and the other quote line item has an action code of Add and is associated with the move-in address;

specify a completed date for the move-out quote; and

assign a service point to each quote line item to be connected in the move-in quote.

77-80. -80. (canceled)

82-115. -115. (canceled)