Method and system for providing order status information using an update status flag

• US 8,078,504 B2
• Filed: 09/17/2010
• Issued: 12/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Fisher, Alan S., Kaplan, Samuel Jerrold
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Jagdish
• Application Number:
  US12/885,234
• Publication Number:
  US 20110004667A1
• Time in Patent Office: 452 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705/27, 705/26.1, 705/26.8, 705/26.81
• US Class Current: 705/26.81
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063114 Status monitoring or status determination for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0619 Neutral agent
• 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: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

A method and system for providing order status information using an update status flag to receive status information pertaining to an order placed by a customer with a merchant. It is determined whether the received status information is new relative to further status information pertaining to the order stored within a status record. The status record is updated to include the received status information if the received status information is new. The updated message indicating the received status information is then composed and sent to the customer.

Claims

1. A method of providing a notification service, the method comprising:

receiving, at a server computer, status information relevant to an order;

determining, using a processor, an order status of the order based on the status information;

updating an order record for the order with the status information;

automatically generating a message containing the order status; and

transmitting, over a network, the message to a user of the notification service.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising requesting the status information.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising storing the status information in a status database.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

periodically determining that the status information has been updated, and

generating the message containing the order status in response to the status information having been updated.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the status information includes information regarding a shipping status of the order.

6. A system for providing a notification service, the system comprising:

a status receiver to receive status information relevant to an order;

a status requester to determine an order status of the order based on the status information;

a status updater to update an order record for the order with the status information; and

a messenger module to automatically generate a message containing the order status and to transmit, over a network, the message to a user of the notification service.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the status requester is to request the status information.

8. The system of claim 6 further comprising a status database to store the status information.

9. The system of claim 6 wherein the messenger module is to:

periodically determine that the status information associated with the order has been updated, and

generate the message containing the order status in response to the status information having been updated.

10. The system of claim 6 wherein the status information includes information regarding a shipping status of the order.

11. A non-transitory machine-readable medium having executable instructions to cause a machine to perform a method to provide update information, the method comprising:

receiving, at a server computer, status information relevant to an order;

determining an order status of the order based on the status information;

updating an order record for the order with the status information;

automatically generating a message containing the order status; and

transmitting, over a network, the message to a user of the notification service.

12. The machine-readable medium of claim 11, the method further comprising requesting the status information.

13. The machine readable medium of claim 11, the method further comprising storing the status information in a status database.

14. The machine-readable medium of claim 11, the method further comprising:

periodically determining that the status information has been updated, and

generating the message containing the order status in response to the status information having been updated.

15. The machine-readable medium of claim 11 wherein the status information includes information regarding a shipping status of the order.

16. A system comprising:

a first means for receiving, at a server computer, status information relevant to an order;

a second means for determining an order status of the order based on the status information,

a third means for updating an order record for the order with the status information; and

a fourth means for automatically generating a message containing the order status and for transmitting the message to a user of the notification service, over a network.