Patents Examined by Reva R Danzig
  • Patent number: 8571939
    Abstract: Aspects of the invention are directed to a two phase payment link and authorization method and system for mobile devices. A method for payment and authorization according to an embodiment includes: requesting and receiving, at a mobile device, a transaction identifier from a payment service; displaying the transaction identifier on a display of the mobile device, wherein the transaction identifier is in a machine readable format; scanning the transaction identifier at a point of sale system; sending the transaction identifier and transaction information associated with items to be purchased from the point of sale system to the payment service; creating, at the payment service, a logical link between the mobile device and the point of sale system, based on the transaction identifier; and sending the transaction information from the payment system to the mobile device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2013
    Assignee: Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions Holdings Corporation
    Inventors: Paul D. Lindsey, Eric J. Nilsen, Mark W. Sisson
  • Patent number: 8560407
    Abstract: A method for inventory management performed by a computerized inventory management system includes, with an inventory management system, receiving an initial inventory line comprising an item, a quantity, and a bin. The method further includes, with the inventory management system providing a split quantity user interface window in response to determining that the quantity of the item exceeds an actual quantity stored at the bin, creating and displaying a plurality of new inventory lines to replace the first inventory line in response to an autosplit control of the user interface being engaged, the new inventory lines including different bins, and providing a control through the user interface window to allow manual adjustment of the new inventory lines.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2013
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Kevin Buonagurio, Sarika Budhiraja
  • Patent number: 8554603
    Abstract: Systems and methods for analyzing legal service providers and unit or ratio costs are provided. Billing data from legal services providers is analyzed to identify common tasks based on task codes. The common tasks are then analyzed to determine a unit cost or ratio cost for the tasks or a ratio cost for the tasks compared to the total costs for a matter. Analysis constraints are applied to the billing data to generate a cost model, which can be output in a variety of different graphical formats. This output, which identifying at least some of the total matter costs on a unit cost or ratio cost basis, allows for comparison of legal services provided by a number of different legal services providers. It also allows for comparing price quotes from a number of legal services providers against each other and against historical cost information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2013
    Assignee: The Counsel Management Group, LLC
    Inventor: Frederick Henry Paulmann
  • Patent number: 8458058
    Abstract: A tax event system is configured to evaluate a taxable event that gives rise to tax liability in multiple jurisdictions. The system provides for real time determination of location information (e.g. work location, residence location, assignment location, and the like) for the calculation of tax liability. Such real time analysis allows for transactions to be settled and tax liability to be satisfied in time periods prescribed by various regulating authorities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2013
    Assignee: American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael Kuchs, Terence Duffeler, Deborah Thomas, Ramana M. Murthy
  • Patent number: 8417562
    Abstract: Systems and methods for generating a score for use in automated processing of correction submissions are presented. In one embodiment, a submission value from a correction submission obtained from a submitter is obtained. The submission value corresponds to a proposed correction of an attribute of an item, the item having a plurality of attributes that describe the item, and the submission value corresponds to one of the plurality of attributes of the item. The current attribute value of the item that corresponds to the submission value is obtained. A first set of characterization values is generated for the submission value according to a first set of criteria. A second set of characterization values for the current attribute value is generated according to a second set of criteria. Using the first and second sets of characterization values, a score is generated for the correction submission. The score is stored in a data store in association with the correction submission.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2013
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Ronald G. Siemens
  • Patent number: 8401934
    Abstract: An approach is provided for enabling the accounting of closures to support query requests established by a device. A computation processing and accounting infrastructure determines one or more closures based, at least in part, on a query request. One of the one or more closures based, at least in part, on one or more predetermined policies is selected to generate a response to the query.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2013
    Assignee: Nokia Corporation
    Inventors: Sergey Boldyrev, Nikolai Grigoriev, Ian Justin Oliver, Mika Juhani Mannermaa, Ora Lassila
  • Patent number: 8392296
    Abstract: A system for monitoring chain of custody of contents of a container includes a lock mechanism configured to lock at least one door of the container in a closed position, a housing enclosing at least a portion of the lock mechanism, and a lock circuit at least partially enclosed within the housing. The lock circuit includes a memory, a lock controller, a wireless module configured to receive information from at least one sensor associated with the container, the information regarding at least one property of the contents of the container, wherein the wireless module is configured to store the information in memory, wherein at least one of the wireless module or the sensor is powered wirelessly, and a lock controller configured to receive commands related to operation of the lock mechanism, to monitor the stored information to identify a change of state of the at least one sensor, and to generate chain of custody data to be transmitted to a remote location via the wireless module.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2013
    Assignee: Cubic Corporation
    Inventors: David R. Powers, Donald H. Warf, Moses M. Kamai, Daniel Bertuna, Walter C. Bonneau, Jr., David K. Aberizk, Jon D. Neasham, Scott Wilson, Keith L. Frankie, Stuart J. Waddell
  • Patent number: 8370188
    Abstract: Work packets are assembled, within a software factory, into a customized deliverable unit of software by software factory components that have been rated as being the most suitable according to requirements set by the customer. The work packets comprise exit criteria for returning the work packets and the customized deliverable unit from an assembly line to a software factory operations unit in the software factory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2013
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Fausto Bernardini, Jarir K. Chaar, Yi-Min Chee, Joseph P. Huchel, Thomas A. Jobson, Jr., Daniel V. Oppenheim, Krishna C. Ratakonda
  • Patent number: 8301524
    Abstract: An accounting apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention includes an accounting unit, an occupancy time counting unit and a charge discounting unit. The accounting unit is configured to impose a charge for use of a device that is an object of accounting on the basis of the number of operations and/or an operation time of the device. The occupancy time counting unit is configured to count an occupancy time that the device has been exclusively used by a user. The charge discounting unit is configured to discount the charge for use of the device on the basis of the occupancy time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2012
    Assignee: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventor: Takuya Fukata
  • Patent number: 8296182
    Abstract: Computer-implemented systems and methods are provided for determining an action item from a global set of action items for a plurality of customers based on an objective function, a plurality of individual constraints, and a plurality of aggregate constraints. A plurality of offer sets is generated for each customer. An approximate highest reduced adjusted objective for each of the offer sets for each customer is calculated, and the customers are bucketed based on the highest adjusted objective value associated with each customer. The buckets are collapsed into a single bucket record containing a plurality of aggregate offer set columns, and an aggregate offer set column is selected from each bucket record for each bucket. Each bucket associated with a selected offer set is disaggregated, and the action item included in the selected offer set is stored in a computer-readable memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2012
    Assignee: SAS Institute Inc.
    Inventors: Manoj Keshavmurthi Chari, Balaji Gopalakrishnan, Yi Liao, Michelle Gail Opp
  • Patent number: 8280788
    Abstract: Systems and methods for providing peer-to-peer and group financial management are provided herein. An example system includes a payment processor that executes software instructions for creating and managing electronic payment accounts and an accounts database to store account data from the payment processor. The payment processor may be configured to receive a payment request from a payer, the payment request including information to identify a payee and a payment amount. The payment processor may be further configured to determine if the accounts database includes an account associated with the payee, and based on a determination that the accounts database includes an account associated with the payee, send an electronic message to the payee that notifies the payee of the payment request.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 2, 2012
    Assignee: Visa International Service Association
    Inventor: Jeffrey William Perlman
  • Patent number: 8275650
    Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed for determining when installation of additional self-service financial transaction devices (SSFTDs) may be desired at a site to improve end-to-end user experience. The system may collect and store transaction-level data, session-level data, user wait time data, and/or other data, and use an enhanced SSFTD user wait time model to identify recommendations and other statistical outputs. The SSFTD may include hardware and software to assist in measuring and collecting various useful readings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 25, 2012
    Assignee: Bank of America Corporation
    Inventors: Allison Mensing Corbett, Sudhakar Mallya, Ashley Bree Ross, Kris Deion Tullos, Chang Yu
  • Patent number: 8260692
    Abstract: Embodiments of the invention provide systems, methods, and computer program products for an online safety deposit box inventory management system. A customer may securely log into the customer's bank accounts and add or delete safety deposit boxes to a list of safety deposit boxes that the customer owns. The customer may select a box to view and add or delete items that the customer has in the selected box. The customer may also edit the description, type, date, etc. of items that the customer already has listed in the box. In keeping a list of the items that the customer has in each safety deposit box the customer may keep an up-to-date record of the contents of each box for the customer's estate in case the customer passes away or simply in order to have a back up copy in case something happens to a paper copy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 7, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 4, 2012
    Assignee: Bank of America Corporation
    Inventors: Eric W. Miller, Aaron D. Lewis, Brian R. Jones
  • Patent number: 8255294
    Abstract: A method and system for monitoring supply of physical consumables for one or more vehicles receives at an input port supply data associated with a corresponding one of the one or more vehicles. The supply data is originated at a supply device that supplies the physical consumables. Consumption specification data associated with the one or more vehicles are retrieved from a storage device. The consumption specification data is specified by at least one of a vehicle manufacturer or an authority, e.g. a commercial, governmental or military authority. The method and system provides the supply data to a processing unit over a physical transmission medium to determine a variance relative to the consumption specification data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 6, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 28, 2012
    Assignee: Commercial Fuel Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Mark Dixon, Mark Golczewski
  • Patent number: 8249957
    Abstract: A system and method for processing push transactions. A payor may initiate a transaction without input from the payee. A system can determine who the payee is from partial information provided by the payor, and direct the transaction to the proper party.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 21, 2012
    Assignee: Visa U.S.A.
    Inventors: Matthew Mullen, Mark Rockelman, Barbara Patterson
  • Patent number: 8219432
    Abstract: Techniques are described for managing the release of tasks so that the tasks are available for performance, such as for tasks submitted by task requesters to be performed by human task performer users, or the release of other types of items as being available for use. In some situations, the managed release of tasks is based at least in part on determining one or more desired task performance characteristic values, and predicting appropriate values for one or more performance-related factors that will produce the determined desired task performance characteristic values. As one example, a determined target quantity of tasks to make concurrently available may be determined that will result in a desired level of task performance contention, such as based on expected or actual values for a rate of task performance and a duration of possible contention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 10, 2012
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Adam D. Bradley, John B. Bravenec