Data processing: financial – business practice – management – or co – For cost/price
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-13
2001-11-27
Cosimano, Edward R. (Department: 2161)
Data processing: financial, business practice, management, or co
For cost/price
C377S016000, C379S114030, C705S418000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06324528
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for recording actual time used by method and apparatus for recording actual time used by a service which makes requests for data.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Pay telephones are common in the prior art. With the recent advent of multimedia, it is desirable to vend multimedia services at a multimedia services terminal, much in a similar way to the way in the which public pay phone services are provided.
With the advent of new payment methods including credit cards, debit cards and the like, it is desirable that users be able to pay for services rendered by a public terminal using any one of the available payment options. Requesting a user to initiate payment multiple times during a session is not acceptable. It would be desirable therefore to provide a method of paying once for unlimited service usage during a session.
Generally, public terminals charge a user either a set fee or charge by the minute, irrespective of the response of the terminal as seen by the user. Delays in such responses may be due to delays in receiving data from a network and it is not acceptable to expect a user to pay for delays or resource problems experienced by the network. Rather, the user should only be charged for actual, legitimate transfers of data. The present invention addresses these and other needs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of recording actual time used by a service which makes requests for data. The method includes the steps of:
a) recording time during which the service is in operation; and
b) suspending the recording of the time during periods exceeding a pre-defined duration, during which the service is waiting for data in response to a request for data.
Preferably, the method includes the steps of:
a) starting a first timer in response to a request for access to the service;
b) starting a second timer in response to transmission of a request for data;
c) checking the second timer to determine whether or not it holds a value greater than a pre-defined value and disabling the first timer when the second timer holds a value greater than the predefined value; and
d) re-enabling the first timer when the data is received.
Preferably, the method includes the step of producing a billing record identifying the service, the time value accumulated on the first timer and a charge amount associated with the service, the charge amount being calculated from rate information associated with the service and the time indicated by the first timer. Preferably, the method includes the steps of:
a) recording times during which a plurality of respective services are in operation; and
b) suspending the recording of the time for each service waiting for data for a period of time greater than a pre-determined time until the data is received.
Preferably, the method includes the steps of:
a) starting respective first timers in response to respective requests for access to the data;
b) starting respective second timers in response to transmission of respective requests for the data;
c) checking each of the respective second timers to determine whether or not any of the second timers holds a value greater than the pre-defined value and disabling the first timers associated with each service having a second timer with a value greater than the pre-defined value; and
d) re-enabling the first timers associated with each service which has received a response to its request for data.
Preferably, the method includes the step of storing a plurality of pre-defined values and associating separate pre-defined values with each service.
Preferably, the method includes the step of producing a billing record identifying each service requested by the user, each time value accumulated on each first timer associated with each service requested by the user respectively and a charge amount associated with each service, the charge amount being calculated from rate information associated with each service respectively and the time indicated by the first timers associated with each service respectively.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of recording actual time used by a service, the method comprising the steps of:
a) recording time during a period in which the service is in operation and a rate at which data is received is greater than a pre-defined rate; and
b) suspending the recording of the time during periods during which the rate at which data is received is less than a pre-defined rate.
Preferably, the method includes the steps of:
a) enabling a first timer in response to a request for usage of at least one of the services;
b) determining a receive data rate at which data is received in response to the request; and
c) comparing the receive data rate with a pre-defined rate value and disabling the first timer when the pre-defined rate value is less than the pre-defined data rate value and re-enabling the first timer when the receive data rate exceeds the pre-defined rate.
Preferably, the method includes the steps of:
a) recording times associated with a plurality of services respectively, while data is received at the service at a rate exceeding a pre-defined rate; and
b) suspending the recording of the time for at least one of the services during periods when data is received at a rate less than the pre-defined rate.
Preferably, the method includes the steps of:
a) enabling timers associated with respective services in response to a request for usage of at least one of the services;
b) determining respective receive data rates at which data is received in response to a request for data by a respective service; and
c) for each service, comparing the receive data rate with at least one pre-defined rate value and disabling the first timer when the receive data rate is less than the pre-defined rate value and re-enabling the first timer when the receive data rate exceeds the pre-defined rate.
Preferably, the method includes the step of storing a plurality of pre-defined rate values and associating separate pre-defined rate values with each service.
Preferably, the method includes the step of producing a billing record identifying each service requested by the user, each time value accumulated on each first timer associated with each service requested by the user respectively and a charge amount associated with each service, the charge amount being calculated from rate information associated with each service respectively and the time indicated by the first timers associated with each service respectively.
According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided an apparatus for recording actual time used by a service which makes requests for data, the apparatus including a first timer for recording time during which the service is in operation and a second timer rendered operable when the service requests data. The second timer is operable to disable the first timer to suspend the recording of the time when the second timer acquires a value exceeding a pre-defined value, representing the time during which the service is waiting for data in response to a request for data and the second timer re-enables the first timer when the data is received.
Preferably, the apparatus includes memory for storing rate information relating to a billing for charging a user for the use of the service.
Preferably, the apparatus includes a billing device for producing a billing record identifying the service, the time value accumulated on the first timer and a charge amount associated with the service, the charge amount being calculated from the rate information associated with the service and the time indicated by the first timer.
Preferably, the apparatus includes a plurality of timers associated with respective services for recording times during which a plurality of respective services are in operation and a plurality of second timers. Each of the second timers is rendered operable when its associated service requests data, the second timers being operable to
Dickie Douglas Brock
Hillson Andrew Raines
Bracewell & Patterson L.L.P.
Cosimano Edward R.
Nortel Networks Limited
Smith Kevin L.
LandOfFree
Method and apparatus for recording actual time used by a... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Method and apparatus for recording actual time used by a..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Method and apparatus for recording actual time used by a... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2610501