Data structure for a complex order processing system

• US 7,865,523 B2
• Filed: 12/18/2001
• Issued: 01/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle America, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Siebel Systems Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Caballero, Richard Joseph, Lewis, Mark David
• Primary Examiner(s): AL HASHEMI, SANA A
• Application Number:
  US10/029,636
• Publication Number:
  US 20070192362A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,304 Days
• Field of Search: 707/10, 707/104.1, 707/791, 707/795, 707/796, 705/2, 705/4, 705/5, 705/38
• US Class Current: 707/791
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• 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 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

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. A computer program product, comprising:

a data structure, wherein

the data structure comprises an order processing system,

the order processing system comprises a complex object,

the complex object comprises a service profile, the service profile represents a complex asset, and

the complex asset is associated with an account;

a data manager configured 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;

a transformation engine configured to generate at least a portion of the complex object based on the business object, wherein the complex object is stored in an asset table;

an order table representing instructions to change products and services provided to a customer, wherein the order table comprises one of

a first value to indicate that an order item has been added,

a second value to indicate that the order item has been deleted, and

a third value to indicate that the order item has been updated;

a quote table representing offers to change the products and services provided to the customer, wherein

a quote is converted to an order when the customer accepts the quote; and

non-transitory computer-readable storage media, wherein the data structure, the data manager, and the transformation engine are encoded in the non-transitory computer-readable storage media.

2. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the asset table comprises a plurality of:

an asset price of the complex asset adjusted to take into account discounts;

a base price of the complex asset;

a first unique identifier of the complex asset;

a first identifier of the account that is billed for the complex asset;

a second identifier of the account at which the complex asset is provided;

a third identifier of an agreement under which the complex asset is provided;

a status of the complex asset;

a first date that service started;

a second date that service ended;

a price description;

a fourth identifier of a metering asset with which the complex asset is associated; and

an absolute quantity of an item given a position of the item in an asset hierarchy.

3. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein an action code is set to one of:

a fourth value to indicate that the complex asset is active;

a fifth value to indicate that the complex asset has been deleted; and

a sixth value to indicate that the complex asset has been suspended.

4. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the information in the asset table is transferred to the order table when a new quote is created.

5. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the information in the order table is transferred to the asset table when the order is provisioned.

6. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the quote table comprises a plurality of:

a fifth identifier of an agreement under which the quote was made;

a sixth identifier of a metering asset with which the complex asset is associated;

a first absolute quantity of an item given a position of the item in an asset hierarchy;

a seventh identifier of the account that is billed for the complex asset;

an eighth identifier of the account at which the complex asset is provided;

a first action code to indicate whether there is a change to the specified service item;

a first telephone number corresponding to the specified service item; and

a second unique identifier of the complex asset.

7. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein the action code is set to one of:

a seventh value to indicate that a quote item was added;

an eighth value to indicate that the quote item was deleted; and

a ninth value to indicate that the quote item was updated.

8. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein multiple service quotes are associated with the customer.

9. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein multiple service quotes are associated with the service item.

10. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein a workflow changes the service quote status to “

Order Placed”

once the quote is successfully converted to the order.

11. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the order table comprises a plurality of:

a ninth identifier of an agreement under which the order was made;

a tenth identifier of a metering asset with which the complex asset is associated;

a second absolute quantity of an item given a position of the item in an asset hierarchy;

an eleventh identifier of the account that is billed for the complex asset;

a twelfth identifier of the account at which the complex asset is provided;

a second action code to indicate whether there is a change to the specified service item;

a third unique identifier of the complex asset;

a second telephone number corresponding to the specified service item;

a date and time at which the order was completed; and

a status field for items in the order.

12. The data structure of claim 11, wherein the status field is set to one of:

a tenth value to indicate that an order item is deleted;

an eleventh value to indicate that the order item is Active; and

a twelfth value to indicate that the order item is Suspended.

13. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the complex asset represents a product with a hierarchy of sub-products.

14. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising:

a product integration table comprising;

a track as asset field to indicate whether a product should be converted to the complex asset by an order-to-asset workflow process;

a metering point field to indicate whether a product requires a metering point;

a price type field; and

a transfer field to indicate whether the complex asset can be moved when the customer changes address.

15. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the price type is one of:

a thirteenth value to indicate that price is a one-time charge;

a fourteenth value to indicate that the price is recurring; and

a fifteenth value to indicate that the price is based on usage.

16. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein an order type is set to indicate a service order and a status of the order is changed to indicate the order is new.

17. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein a status of each order line item is set to indicate that the order item is new when the action field is non-null and the status of each order line item is set to indicate that the order item is null when the action field is null.

18. The computer program product of claim 6, further comprising:

a quote header table comprising;

a thirteenth identifier of an agreement under which the quote was made;

a fourteenth identifier of the account to be billed for the complex asset; and

a fifteenth identifier of the account at which the complex asset will be provided.

19. The computer program product of claim 11, further comprising:

an order header table comprising;

a sixteenth identifier of an agreement under which the order was made;

a seventeenth identifier of the account that will be billed for the complex asset; and

an eighteenth identifier of the account at which the complex asset will be provided.

20. The computer program product of claim 1, further comprising:

a quote header table comprising billing and service account information; and

an order header table comprising billing and service account information,

wherein at least a portion of the information in the quote header table is transferred to the order header table when the quote is converted to the order.

21. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein

at least a portion of the information in the quote table is transferred to the order table when the quote is converted to the order;

and

a user can supply an external provision workflow to perform a function associated with maintaining the quote table when the order is provisioned.

22. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the asset table comprises an asset price adjusted to take into account discounts and a base price of the complex asset.