COMPUTERIZED METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR TRADING OF SECURITIES

Abstract: An improved method and system for computerized trading of securities in which order preferences for securities are entered by a user and are stored on a computer system for future use as default values in response to the user placing an order. The time that it takes to complete an order may be reduced through the use of previously selected order preferences being displayed to the user in the order placement window.

Description: TITLE: COMPUTERIZED METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR TRADING OF SECURITIES BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1 Field of the Invention The present invention generally relates to computer software More particularly, the present invention relates to computer- implemented trading of securities 2 Description of the Related Art The securities trading industry has burgeoned since the advent of the Internet Many companies offer securities trading services through a variety of automated methods, such as through a telephone or a computer system The placement of orders to buy or sell securities may be done through the use of an order entry screen on a computer system Some of the elements of the order entry screen may include a security transaction, a security symbol, a number of shares to be traded, a dollar amount, a limit price, a trailing stop pπce, and a stop loss pπce As used herein, a "secuπty transaction" may be one of the following buy, sell, sell short, stop loss, stop limit, sell to open, sell to close, buy to open, buy to close Existing order entry screens for placing securities orders require the user to enter all of the information for the order, each time an order is placed In order to reduce the time it takes the usei to submit a securities order for execution, it is desirable to provide a method for storing user-specified order preferences for securities and using those preferences to automatically populate an order entry screen SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides various embodiments of an improved method and system for computenzed trading of securities In one embodiment, order preferences for securities are entered by a user and are stored on a computer system for future use as default values in response to the user placing an order The user may adjust any or all of the default values at the time of order placement The time that it takes to complete an order may potentially be I educed through the use of previously selected order preferences being displayed to the user in the order placement window BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a network diagram of a wide area network which is suitable for implementing \aπous embodiments, Figure 2 is an illustration of a typical computer system which is suitable for implementing various embodiments, Figure 3 is a flowchart illustrating the collection of security-specific order preferences according to one embodiment, Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating the collection of generic order preferences according to one embodiment, Figure 5 is an illustration of a security-specific order preferences window which is suitable foi implementing various embodiments, Figure 6 is an illustration of a generic order preferences window which is suitable for implementing vaπous embodiments; and Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method of submitting an order for execution through the use of an order placement window according to o le embodiment While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in detail It should be understood, however, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL EMBODIMENTS Figure 1 Wide Area Network Figure 1 illustrates a wide area network (WAN) according to one embodiment WAN 102 is a network that spans a relatively large geographical area The Internet is an example of WAN 102 WAN 102 typically includes a plurality of computer systems which are interconnected through one or more networks Although one particular configuration is shown in Figure 1, WAN 102 may include a vaπety of heterogeneous computer systems and networks which are interconnected in a vaπety of ways and which run a vaπety of software applications One or more local area networks (LANs) 104 may be coupled to WAN 102 A LAN 104 is a network that spans a relatively small area Typically, a LAN 104 is confined to a single building or group of buildings Each node (l e , individual computer system or device) on a LAN 104 preferably has its own CPU with which it executes programs, and each node is also able to access data and devices anywhere on the LAN 104 The LAN 104 thus allows many users to share devices (e g , printers) as well as data stored on file servers The LAN 104 may be characterized by any of a vaπety of types of topology (I e , the geometric aπangement of devices on the network), of protocols (l e , the rules and encoding specifications for sending data, and whether the network uses a peer-to- peer or client/server architecture), and of media (e g , twisted-pair wire, coaxial cables, fiber optic cables, radio waves) Each LAN 104 includes a plurality of interconnected computer systems and optionally one or more other devices for example, one or more workstations 110a, one or more personal computers 1 12a, one or more laptop or notebook computer systems 114, one or more server computer systems 1 16, and one or more network printers 118 As illustrated m Figure 1 , an example LAN 104 may include one of each of computer systems 110a, 112a, 114, and 116, and one printer 118 The LAN 104 may be coupled to other computer systems and/or other devices and/or other LANs 104 through WAN 102 One or more mainframe computer systems 120 may be coupled to WAN 102 As shown, the mainframe 120 may be coupled to a storage device or file server 124 and mainframe terminals 122a, 122b, and 122c The mainframe terminals 122a, 122b, and 122c may access data stored in the storage device or file server 124 coupled to or included in the mainframe computer system 120 WAN 102 may also include computer systems which are connected to WAN 102 individually and not through a LAN 104 as illustrated, for purposes of example, a workstation 110b and a personal computer 112b For example, WAN 102 may include computer systems which are geographically remote and connected to each other through the Internet Figure 2 Typical computer system Figure 2 illustrates a typical computer system 150 which is suitable for implementing various embodiments of a system and method for computerized trading of securities Each computer system 150 typically includes components such as a CPU 152 with an associated memory medium such as floppy disks 160 The memory medium may store program instructions for computer programs, wherein the program instructions aie executable by the CPU 152 The computer system 150 may further include a display device such as a monitor 154 an alphanumeric input device such as a keyboard 156, and a directional input device such as a mouse 158 The computer system 150 may be operable to execute the computer programs to implement trading of securities as described herein The computer system 150 preferably includes a memory medium on which computer programs accordmg to various embodiments may be stored The term "memory medium" is intended to include an installation medium, e g , a CD-ROM, or floppy disks 160, a computer system memory such as DRAM, SRAM, EDO RAM, Rambus RAM etc , or a non-volatile memory such as a magnetic media, e g , a hard dπve, or optical storage The memory medium may include other types of memory as well, or combinations thereof In addition, the memory medium may be located m a first computer in which the programs are executed, or may be located in a second different computer which connects to the first computer over a network In the latter instance, the second computer provides the program instructions to the first computer for execution Also, the computer system 150 may take vanous forms, including a personal computer system, mainframe computer system, workstation, network appliance, Internet appliance, personal digital assistant (PDA), television system or other device In general, the term "computer system" can be broadly defined to encompass any device having a processor which executes instructions from a memory medium The memory medium preferably stores a software program or programs for trading of securities as described herein The software program(s) may be implemented m any of various ways, including procedure-based techniques component-based techniques, and/or object-oriented techniques, among others For example, the softwaie program may be implemented using ActiveX controls, C++ objects, JavaBeans, Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC), browsei- based applications (e g , Java applets), traditional programs, or other technologies or methodologies, as desired A CPU, such as the host CPU 152, executing code and data from the memory medium includes a means for creating and executing the software program or programs according to the methods and/or block diagrams described below Figure 3 Security-specific order preferences Figure 3 shows an embodiment of the system and method for computerized trading of securities As shown m Figure 3, according to one embodiment, a user may be prompted to enter one or more security-specific order preferences for each of one or more securities in step 201 As used herein, an "order preference" is a default value to be used in response to a user placing an order for a security In step 202, the one or more security-specific order preferences may be stored in a memory on a computer system (e g , on a user's computer or on a server) In step 203, the one or more security-specific order preferences may be used as default values in response to the user placing an order for one of the one or more securities Figure 4- Generic order preferences Figure 4 shows an embodiment of the system and method for computerized trading of securities As shown in Figure 4, according to one embodiment, a user may be prompted to enter one or more generic order preferences for a generic security in step 211. In step 212, the one or more generic order preferences may be stored m a memory on a computer system. In step 213, the one or more generic order preferences for the generic security may be used as default values for all orders for securities without corresponding security-specific order preferences Figure 5: Security-specific order preferences wmdow Figure 5 illustrates a security-specific order preferences window 500 according to one embodiment The security-specific order preferences window 500 may be included within a view screen 155. The view screen 155 may be displayed on monitor 154, of Figure 2. The security-specific order preferences wmdow 500 may include one or more user interface elements, such as a security symbol 501, a number of shares 502, a dollar amount 503, a limit price 504, a trailing stop price 505, and a stop loss price 506. As shown m Figure 5, the security symbol 501 is "T", which is the security symbol of AT&T Corporation, the number of shares 502 is 5000 shares, the dollar amount 503 is $40,000, the limit price 504 is $0, the trailing stop price 505 is $0,125, and the stop loss price 506 is $0 As used herein, a "user interface element" is a command, control, or mechanism for a user to input data into a computer program As used herein, a "limit order" is an order to buy a specified quantity of a security at or below a specified pπce, or to sell it at or above a specified pπce As used herein, a "limit price" is the price specified in a limit order As used herein, a "trailing stop order" is a stop loss order that follows the prevailing price trend As used herein, a "trailing stop price" is the price specified in a trailing stop order. As used herein, a "stop loss order" is an order to buy or sell a certain quantity of a certain security if a specified price is reached or passed, wherein the specified price is below the cuπent market pπce and the order is to sell As used herein, a "stop loss pπce" is the price specified in a stop loss order. In some embodiments, the user need not complete all fields on window 500 for each security For example, specifying a number of shares 502 may be sufficient in lieu of specifying a dollar amount 503 Alternatively, the security-specific order preferences window 500 may include additional user interface elements (not shown), such as a "lot indicator" for the minimum amount of the lot which must be bought or sold As used herein, a "lot" is a group of items which are bought or sold together. For example, if the user specifies the "lot indicator" to be 25% then only if at least 25% of the order can be filled will an offer to buy/sell from the user be accepted. The "lot indicator" may have a default value (i.e., 100%) to be used if the user does not specify a value. Another user interface element (not shown) may be a "limit price indicator" for the limit price 504 The "limit price indicator" may require a pair of prices (a maximum price and a minimum price) and a percentage of the difference between the two prices. Two examples of maximum and minimum price pairs are the bid and ask price of a security and the 52-week high and 52-week low price of a security. As used herein, a "bid" is the highest price any buyer is willing to pay for a given security at a given time Conversely, an "ask" is the lowest price any seller is willing to accept for a given security at a given time. As used herein, a "52-week high" is the highest price that a given security has traded at in the previous 52 weeks. Similarly, a "52-week low" is the lowest price that a given security has traded at in the previous 52 weeks. The "limit pπce indicator" may have a default value (i.e., 50%) for the percentage of the difference between the two prices to be used if the user does not specify a percentage Also, the pair of prices may be identified by a term (1 e , "bid/ask" or "52-week") or by dollar amounts Figure 6 Generic order preferences wmdow Figure 6 illustrates a generic order preferences window 600 according to one embodiment The generic order preferences wmdow 600 may be included within a view screen 155 The view screen 155 may be displayed on monitor 154, of Figure 2 The generic order preferences window 600 may include one or more user interface elements, such as a security symbol 601, a number of shares 602, a dollar amount 603, a limit pπce 604, a trailing stop pπce 605, and a stop loss pπce 606 As shown in Figure 6, the security symbol 601 is "DEFAULT", which indicates the generic security Order preferences that are set for the generic security may be used as defaults during order entry for any security not having its own security-specific settings Also shown in Figure 6, the number of shares 602 is 500 shares, the dollar amount 603 is $4,000, the limit price 604 is $0, the trailing stop price 605 is $0 125, and the stop loss price 606 is $0 In some embodiments, the user need not complete all fields on window 600 For example, specifying a number of shares 602 may be sufficient in lieu of specifying a dollar amount 603 Alternatively, the generic order preferences window 600 may include additional user interface elements as described for Figure 5 above Figure 7 Submit an order for execution - order placement window Figure 7 shows steps that may illustrate submitting an order for execution through the use of an ordei placement window, according to one embodiment In step 241, the user may be prompted to enter the security symbol In step 242, the order preferences previously selected by the user in the order preferences window may be presented in the order placement window as default values By automatically presenting previously selected order preferences based on the security symbol entered, the order entry may be completed relatively rapidly Speed of order execution is an important aspect for securities trading, particularly for day-trading In step 243, the user may be allowed to adjust one or more of the order preferences of the order placement window In step 244, the order may be submitted for execution, based on the user's input As used herein, an "order execution" is the completion of an order to buy or sell a security Various embodiments further include receiving or storing instructions and/or data implemented in accordance with the foregoing description upon a caπier medium Suitable carrier media include storage media or memory media such as magnetic or optical media, e g , disk or CD-ROM, as well as signals such as electrical, electromagnetic, or digital signals, conveyed via a communication medium such as networks 102 and/or 104 and/or a wireless link Although the system and method of the present invention have been described in connection with several embodiments, the invention is not intended to be limited to the specific forms set forth herein, but on the contrary, it is intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as can be reasonably included withm the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims

Claims: What is claimed is 1 A method for allowm * relatively rapid entry of securities orders mto a computer system, the method comprising prompting a user to enter into the computer system one or more security- specific order preferences for each of one or more securities, stormg the one or more security-specific order preferences m a memory coupled to the computer system, and automatically using the one or more security-specific order preferences as default values in response to the user placing an order in the computer system for one of the one or more securities 2 The method of claim 1, further comprising prompting the user to enter into the computer system one or more generic order preferences for a generic security, storing the one or more generic order preferences in a memory coupled to the computer system, and automatically using the one or more generic order preferences for the generic security as default values m response to the user placmg an order in the computer system for securities without corresponding security-specific order preferences 3 The method of claim 1, further comprising printing a report of previously entered security- specific order preferences 4 The method of claim 2, further comprising printing a report of previously entered generic order preferences 5 The method of claim 1 , further comprising presenting a security-specific order preferences window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order preferences window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security- specific order preferences 6 The method of claim 1 , further comprising presenting a security-specific order preferences wmdow to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order preferences wmdow comprises one or more user mterface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security- specific order preferences, and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a security symbol The method of claim 1, further comprising presenting a security-specific order preferences window to the user for each security, wherem the security-specific order preferences window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security- specific order preferences, and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a number of shares to be traded The method of claim 1, further comprising presenting a security-specific order preferences window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order preferences window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security- specific order preferences, and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a dollar amount The method of claim 1 , further comprising presenting a security-specific order preferences window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order preferences window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security- specific order preferences, and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a limit price The method of claim 1, further comprising presenting a security-specific order preferences window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order preferences window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security- specific order preferences, and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a trailing stop price The method of claim 1, further comprising presenting a security-specific order preferences window to the user for each security, wherein the secuπty-specific order preferences window comprises one or more user mterface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the secuπty- specific order preferences, and wherem the security-specific order preferences comprise a stop loss price The method of claim 1, further comprising: presentmg a security-specific order preferences window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order preferences window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security- specific order preferences, and wherem the security-specific order preferences comprise a lot indicator. The method of claim 1 , further comprising presentmg a security-specific order preferences window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order preferences window comprises one or more user mterface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security- specific order preferences; and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a limit price indicator. The method of claim 2, further comprising presenting a generic order preferences window to the user for the generic security, wherein the generic order preferences window compπses one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the generic order preferences The method of claim 2, further comprising presenting a generic order preferences window to the user for the generic security, wherem the generic order preferences wmdow compπses one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the generic order preferences; and wherein the generic order preferences comprise a security symbol The method of claim 2, further comprising presenting a generic order preferences window to the user for the generic security, wherein the generic order preferences window comprises one or more user mterface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the generic order preferences, and wherem the generic order preferences comprise a number of shares to be traded The method of claim 2, further comprising presenting a generic order preferences window to the user for the geneπc security, wherem the generic order preferences window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the generic order preferences, and wherein the generic order preferences comprise a dollar amount The method of claim 2, further compπsmg presenting a generic order preferences window to the user for the generic security, wherein the generic order preferences window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the generic order preferences, and wherein the generic order preferences comprise a limit price The method of claim 2, further comprising presenting a geneπc order preferences window to the user for the generic security, wherem the generic order preferences window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the generic order preferences, and wherein the generic order preferences comprise a trailing stop price The method of claim 2, further comprising presenting a generic order preferences window to the user for the generic security, wherein the geneπc order preferences window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the generic order preferences, and wherein the generic order preferences comprise a stop loss price The method of claim 2, further comprising presenting a generic order preferences window to the user for the generic security, wherem the geneπc order preferences window comprises one or more user mterface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the generic order preferences, and wherem the geneπc order preferences comprise a lot mdicator The method of claim ._ , further compπsmg presentmg a generic o der preferences wmdow to the user for the generic security wherem the geneπc order preferences wmdow comprises one or more user mterface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the generic order preferences, and wherein the geneπc order preferences comprise a limit price indicator The method of claim 1, further compπsmg presenting a security-specific order placement window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order placement window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security-specific order preferences The method of claim 1 , further comprising presenting a security-specific order placement window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order placement window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security-specific order preferences, and wherem the security-specific order preferences comprise a secuπty symbol The method of claim 1, further comprising presenting a security-specific order placement window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order placement window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security-specific order preferences, and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a number of shares to be traded The method of claim 1 , further comprising presenting a security-specific order placement window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order placement window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security-specific order preferences, and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a dollar amount The method of claim 1 , further compπsmg presentmg a security-specific order placement wmdow to the user for each secuπty, wherein the security-specific order placement window comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security-specific order preferences, and wherem the security-specific order preferences comprise a limit price The method of claim 1 , further compπsmg presenting a security-specific order placement window to the user for each secuπty, wherein the security-specific order placement window comprises one or more user mterface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security-specific order preferences, and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a trailing stop price The method of claim 1 , further comprising presenting a security-specific order placement window to the user for each secuπty, wherein the security-specific order placement wmdow comprises one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security-specific order preferences, and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a stop loss price The method of claim 1, further comprising presenting a security-specific order placement window to the user for each security, wherein the secuπty-specific order placement window compπses one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security-specific order preferences, and wherein the security-specific order preferences comprise a lot indicator The method of claim 1 , further comprising presenting a security-specific order placement window to the user for each security, wherein the security-specific order placement window comprises one or more user mterface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security-specific order preferences, and wherem the security-specific order preferences comprise a limit price mdicator 32 The method of claim 1 , further comprising presentmg a security-specific order placement wmdow to the user for each security, wherem the security-specific order placement wmdow compπses one or more user interface elements that allow the user to specify one or more of the security-specific order preferences, promptmg the user to enter the security symbol, prompting the user to enter a secuπty transaction, presentmg the order preferences selected by the user m the order preferences window as default values on the security-specific order placement wmdow, allowing the user to adjust one or more of the order preferences of the order placement window, and submitting an order for execution based on the user's input 33 The method of claim 1, wherem the computer system is coupled to a computer network 34 The method of claim 33, wherein the computer network comprises the Internet 35 A method for allowing relatively rapid trading of securities on a computer system, the method compπsmg promptmg a user to enter into the computer system one or more security- specific order preferences for each of one or more securities, storing the one or more secuπty-specific order preferences in a memory coupled to the computer system, automatically using the one or more security-specific order preferences as default values in response to the user placing an order in the computer system for one of the one or more securities, and sendmg an acknowledgement to the user upon execution of the order 36 The method of claim 35, wherein said prompting comprises displaying an Internet web page that comprises controls that allow the user to enter the one or more secuπty-specific order preferences for each of the one or more securities 37 A method for Internet-based securities trading, the method compπsmg servmg an Internet web page to a particular user, wherein the web page comprises controls that allow the user to enter one or more security-specific order preferences for each of one or more securities, stoπng an input from the user regarding the one or more security-specific order preferences, wherein the one or more security-specific order preferences are associated with the particular user, and automatically usmg the one or more security-specific order preferences as default values in response to the particular user placmg an order for one of the one or more secuπties 38 The method of claim 37, further comprising servmg an order placement Internet web page to the particular user, wherem the order placement Internet web page prompts the user to place the order for securities 39 The method of claim 37, further comprising sending an acknowledgement to the user upon execution of the order 40 A system compπsmg a network, a CPU coupled to the network, a system memory coupled to the CPU, wherem the system memory stores one or more computer programs executable by the CPU, wherein the computer programs are executable to prompt a user to enter into the computer system one or more secuπty- specific order preferences for each of one or more securities, store the one or more security-specific order preferences in a memory coupled to the computer system, and automatically use the one or more security-specific order preferences as default values in response to the user placing an order in the computer system for one of the one or more securities 41 A carrier medium which stores program instructions, wherein the program instructions are executable to implement prompting a user to enter into the computer system one or more security- specific order preferences for each of one or more securities, storing the one or more security-specific order preferences in a memory coupled to the computer system, and automatically using the one or more security-specific order preferences as default values in response to the user placing an order in the computer system for one of the one or more secuπties 42. A method for allowing relatively rapid entry of securities orders into a first computer system, the method comprising: receiving user configuration data into the first computer system, wherein the user cor -figuration data configures the first computer system or a second computer system to automatically use the user configuration data as default values when a user places an order in the first computer system for at least one security. 43. The method of claim 42, wherein the user configuration data comprises one or more security- specific order preferences. 44. The method of claim 42, further comprising: storing the user configuration data in a memory coupled to the first computer system or the second computer system. 45. A method for allowing relatively rapid trading of securities on a first computer system, the method comprising: receiving user configuration data into the first computer system, wherein the user configuration data configures the first computer system or a second computer system to automatically use the user configuration data as default values when a user places an order in the first computer system for at least one security.

Inventors: ABSHIRE JASON W, BUNDA JOHN, DIXON THOMAS, FIERCE ERIK E, GRUBEN TODD W, LESTER SANDI, MONGARAS JASON C, NESMITH KEVIN A, SALINAS OMAR, ABSHIRE, JASON, W., BUNDA, JOHN, DIXON, THOMAS, FIERCE, ERIK, E., GRUBEN, TODD, W., LESTER, SANDI, MONGARAS, JASON, C., NESMITH, KEVIN, A., SALINAS, OMAR
Applicants: PROTRADER TECHNOLOGIES L P, PROTRADER TECHNOLOGIES, L.P.
Application year: 2000
Main classification: G06F17
IPC codes: G06F17, G06Q40