Data processing: financial – business practice – management – or co – Automated electrical financial or business practice or... – Accounting
Reexamination Certificate
1998-10-16
2001-10-09
Hafiz, Tariq R. (Department: 2765)
Data processing: financial, business practice, management, or co
Automated electrical financial or business practice or...
Accounting
C705S001100, C705S018000, C705S500000, C705S030000, C705S042000, C705S044000, C705S045000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06301567
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods and systems for providing information over a network to a user of the network and, more particularly, to methods and systems for providing data searching, alert notification, and automated data presentation functions to customers of financial services.
2. Related Art
Traditionally, persons receiving relatively large numbers of negotiable instruments, for example checks, obtained one or more so-called lockboxes to receive the checks. Frequently, lockboxes are located at Post Offices and the checks for a particular person are delivered to a designated lockbox or lockboxes in one or more Post Offices. Alternatively, the lockbox may be a designated address at a financial institution which processes the received checks.
Usually, persons receiving large numbers of checks are business concerns who also seek financial services. Indeed, these business concerns desire one or more checking accounts to receive the proceeds from the checks and, thereafter, draw proceeds from the checking accounts via withdrawals. Providers of financial services for these business concerns have recognized that it is desirable to provide certain information regarding the checks (or receipts) received in a lockbox to the business concern. Such information consist of particular parameters of the checks, for example, the remitter name, serial number, bank number, routing number, payment amount, etc. This information is typically gathered and stored in a computer database.
Storage of the information in a computer database is usually accomplished by entering values of the parameters relating to the checks into an index file containing fields. The index files are then appropriately addressed and cross cataloged such that they may be retrieved on command and the information contained therein may be provided to a customer (e.g., a business concern) of the financial service provider.
Image files of the checks delivered to a particular lockbox are also produced and stored such that they may later be accessed by the financial service provider or customer.
Although financial service providers have been able to provide customers with the ability to search the databases containing the index and image files, it has not been possible heretofore to perform analytic analyses on the data contained in the image files and provide the results of the analytic analyses to the customer. Further, it has not been possible to automatically alert a customer that a particular check has been received in the lockbox or that some other condition which is a function of the data in the index files has been met. Still further, it has not been possible to automatically adjust an interface between the database and the customer such that the so-called “look and feel” of the interface is personalized to the preferences of the user.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to overcome the deficiencies of the prior art, one aspect of the instant invention is directed to a method of providing information regarding lockbox receipts to a customer having a lockbox account, the method including the steps of: having alert criteria containing alert conditions selected by the customer; creating a database file for each of the receipts of the lockbox account which are received after the customer has selected the alert criteria, each of the files comprising a plurality of fields containing data relating to a respective one of the receipts, the alert criteria defining certain of the fields as containing data to be compared against the alert conditions; comparing the alert conditions with the data of the fields of the database files defined by the alert criteria; and alerting the customer that one or more of said files contain data that have met the alert criteria.
According to another aspect of the instant invention, a method of providing information regarding lockbox receipts to a customer having a lockbox account, includes the steps of creating a database file for each of the receipts of the lockbox account, each of the files comprising a plurality of fields containing data relating to a respective one of the receipts; and producing a chart in which the information regarding the lockbox receipts is presented as a function of the data of at least one field.
According to yet another aspect of the instant invention, a method of providing information to computer network users includes the steps of: providing at least first and second screen formats, each screen format being designated to provide at least part of the information to a respective user, one of the first and second screen formats being provided prior to the other in accordance with a command from the user; monitoring numbers of times that the user commands that each of the first and second screen formats be provided; and automatically providing one of the first and second screen formats prior to the other without a command from the user as a function of the numbers of times that the user commands that the first and second screen formats be provided.
According to still another aspect of the instant invention a method of providing information to computer network users includes the steps of: providing respective users with options to receive one or more screen formats on command from a plurality of screen formats, each screen format being designated to provide at least part of the information to a respective user; monitoring numbers of times that the respective users command that each of the plurality of screen formats be provided; and automatically altering the option of a respective user to receive a certain one of the plurality of screen formats as a function of the number of times that the respective user commands that the certain screen format be provided.
According to another aspect of the instant invention a method of providing information to computer network users includes the steps of: classifying the network users into a plurality of groups; storing a plurality of different sets of screen formats, each set of screen formats being designated to provide the information to a respective one of the groups of users; and providing one of the sets of screen formats to a particular network user on command based on the user's group classification.
Other objects, features, and advantages will become apparent to one skilled in the art from the instant disclosure.
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http://www.linuxsecurity.com/articles/vendors_products_article-1367.html, Ryan W. Maple, “Guardian Di
Cahill Teresa
Leong Sang
McCarthy Mary
Reyna Ilona
Wren Margaret J.
Hafiz Tariq R.
Ostrolenk Faber Gerb & Soffen, LLP
Robinson-Boyce Akiba
The Chase Manhattan Bank
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