Abstract:
A method for selecting and processing payroll deduction as a payment option for articles purchased during electronic commerce. An employer authorizes selected vendors involved in electronic commerce to accept payroll deduction as a payment option for the employer&#39;s employees. The employer and vendor establish guidelines for utilizing the payroll deduction option during electronic commerce and the vendor stores the guidelines and identifying information for the employer and corresponding employees in a database in the vendor&#39;s computer. Thereafter, when an employee selects articles from the vendor&#39;s web site, the employee may select payroll deduction as the payment option. The vendor places the employee&#39;s selections and payment option in a file and forwards them to the employer. The employer may approve or reject the employee&#39;s selection and the vendor processes the order according to the employer&#39;s instructions. Then the vendor informs the employee about the status of the order. This method therefore affords authorized employees the option of using payroll deduction during electronic commerce.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a method for processing payments of articles selected during electronic commerce, and more particularly, to a method for selecting and processing a payroll deduction plan as a way of paying for articles selected on an Internet vendor&#39;s web site. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Advances in computer processing power and network communications have made information from a wide variety of sources available to users on computer networks. Computer networking allows network computer users to share information, software applications and hardware devices, and internetworking enables a set of physical networks to be connected into a single network such as the Internet. Computers connected to the Internet or connected to networks other than the Internet also have access to information stored on those networks. The World Wide Web (Web), a hypermedia system used on the Internet, enables hypertext linking, whereby documents automatically reference or link other documents located on connected computer networks around the world. Thus, users connected to the Internet have almost instant access to information stored in relatively distant regions. 
     A page of information on the Web may include references to other Web pages and may include a broad range of multimedia data including textual, graphical, audio, and animation information. Currently, Internet users retrieve information from the Internet, through the Web, by ‘visiting’ a web site on a computer that is connected to the Internet. 
     The web site is, in general terms, a server application that displays information stored on a network server computer. The web site accepts connections from client programs, such as Internet browser applications. Browser applications, such as Microsoft Explorer™ or Netscape Internet Browser™, allow Internet users to access information displayed on the web site. Most browser applications display information on computer screens and permit a user to navigate through the Web using a mouse. Like other network applications, Web browsing uses a client-server paradigm. When given a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of a document, the browser application becomes a client and it contacts a server application specified in the URL to request the document. After receiving the document from the server application, the browser application displays the document to the user. When the browser application interacts with the server application, the two applications follow the HyperText Transport Protocol (HTTP). HTTP allows the browser application to request a specific article, which the server application then returns. To ensure that browser applications and server applications inter-operate unambiguously, HTTP defines the exact format for requests sent from the browser application to the server application as well as the format of replies that the server application returns. 
     As the number of physical networks connected to the Internet continues to grow, so too will the number of web sites that are accessible to Internet users and so too will commercial activity on the Internet. Providers of a wide range of products and/or services are continuously exploring new methods for promoting and selling them. Commercial vendors&#39; web sites are similar to other types of web sites except that they usually incorporate functionality to enable financial transactions between users and vendors. 
     Currently, during an electronic commerce transaction on the Internet, a consumer enters the URL of a vendor and the browser application requests a web page associated with the URL from the appropriate server application. The consumer may select articles displayed on the vendor&#39;s web page and submit the selection to the vendor through the browser application. For example, a consumer on the Internet, wishing to purchase a software application, may enter the URL of a vendor into the browser application. The browser displays a corresponding web page and the consumer may order the software application on the web page through the browser application. Upon receiving the consumer&#39;s selection, the vendor requests payment for the selected articles before delivering them to the consumer. The consumer may pay the vendor through credit cards or the vendor may require cash upon delivery of the selected articles. However, for consumers who do not have credit cards, do not wish to use credit cards, or do not have cash available at the time of delivery of the selected articles, this method of purchasing articles during electronic commerce is unsatisfactory. 
     Some employers currently offer, as a benefit to their employees, payroll deduction plans as a method of paying for predetermined products and/or services with predetermined vendors. Under the payroll deduction plan, the employer may deduct the cost of already purchased articles and/or services from an employee&#39;s future pay checks. Before the employee can use the payroll deduction plan as a payment option, the employer must approve the total purchase amount and the vendor. While this scheme affords employees the option of purchasing products and services on future earnings, the list of predefined products/services and vendors is usually limited. Moreover, the payroll deduction payment option is not utilized in electronic commerce. As electronic commerce on the Internet grows, so too will the desire to use the payroll deduction plan as an option for on-line purchases. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a method for selecting and processing a payroll deduction as a payment option for articles purchased during electronic commerce. An employer authorizes selected vendors involved in electronic commerce to accept the payroll deduction as a payment option for the employer&#39;s employees. The employer and vendor establish guidelines for utilizing the payroll deduction option during electronic commerce and the vendor stores the guidelines and identifying information for the employer and corresponding employees in a database in the vendor&#39;s computer. Alternatively, the employer may periodically provide a list with information about employees who qualify to participate in the payroll deduction plan and the vendor updates the database with the periodic list. Thereafter, when an employee selects articles from the vendor&#39;s web site, the employee may select payroll deduction as the payment option. The vendor then places the employee&#39;s total purchase and payment option in a file and forwards them to the employer. The employer may review the employee&#39;s total purchase and instruct the vendor on how to process it. The vendor processes the selections according to the employer&#39;s instructions and informs the employee about the status of the order. This method therefore affords authorized employees the option of using payroll deduction during electronic commerce. 
     Specifically in the preferred embodiment of the present invention, when an employee ‘enters’ the selected vendor&#39;s web site and chooses articles to be purchased, the employee may select payroll deduction as the payment method. The employee is then asked to enter his/her e-mail address and to create a secret password. Thereafter, the employee may enter the respective on-line account with the e-mail address and password. The employee is also asked to enter a unique employer identifier. To ensure accurate employer information during each electronic commerce transaction, employees who previously utilized payroll deductions to pay for on-line purchases may be asked to update or confirm their employer information. The employee is then transferred to a confirmation page to confirm the types and quantities of selected articles, the employer&#39;s information and the payroll deduction information. Upon confirming the information, the employee is requested to sign a financial responsibility agreement. Thereafter, the employee submits an electronic order for the selected articles to the vendor; the electronic order is processed by the vendor&#39;s computer system and an order summary of the electronic order is placed in the appropriate employer&#39;s holding file. A confirmation e-mail is also sent from the vendor to the employee. Each employer that participates in the vendor&#39;s payroll deduction plan has a unique holding file where the employer is able to view an order summary for each employee. 
     The employer is contacted to approve or reject the employee&#39;s order. If the payroll deduction transaction is approved, the order is released and processed by the vendor and an e-mail about the status of the order is sent to the consumer. Thereafter, the purchased article is sent to the employee and the appropriate amount is deducted from the employee&#39;s future earnings. If the order is rejected, the employer may note a reason for the rejection or invite the employee to contact the employer for a reason. Moreover, the employer may either instruct the vendor to hold the order in the holding file or cancel the order from the holding file. Either way, the vendor sends an email about the status of the order to the employee. 
     If the employer does not respond to orders in the holding file within a predetermined time, a reminder notice is sent to the employer and employee. Another predetermined time is established and if the employer does not respond to the reminder notice within that specified period of time, the vendor cancels the order. An email notifying the employee about the cancellation is sent by the vendor. 
     It is therefore the object of the present invention to provide a method for authorizing selected vendors to offer payroll deduction as a payment option to appropriate consumers during electronic commerce transactions and for establishing guidelines for the payroll deduction plan. 
     It is another object of the invention to provide a method for allowing the consumer to select payroll deduction as a payment option during on-line shopping and for confirming the selection before it is submitted to a corresponding employer. 
     It is yet another object of the invention to provide a method for submitting the consumer&#39;s selections to the corresponding employer, for contacting the corresponding employer to review the selection and to instruct on how it should be processed, and for processing the consumer&#39;s selections based on the employer&#39;s instructions. 
     Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description that follows, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objectives and advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by the system particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings. 
     To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described, the present invention provides a method for selecting and processing payroll deduction as a payment option during electronic commerce between a pre-selected vendor and an employee of an employer, by authorizing, by the employer, the pre-selected vendor to offer payroll deduction as a payment option during electronic commerce between the pre-selected vendor and the employee; establishing, by the pre-selected vendor and the employer, guidelines for a payroll deduction plan; selecting, by the employee, articles to be purchased from the pre-selected vendor&#39;s web site, confirming on a confirmation page the selected articles, the employer&#39;s information, the employee&#39;s information and the payroll deduction information and signing a financial responsibility agreement; submitting, by the employee to the pre-selected vendor, an electronic order with the selected articles; storing, by the pre-selected vendor, the electronic order in a holding file and contacting the employer to review an order summary of the electronic order; instructing the pre-selected vendor, by the employer, how to process the electronic order; and processing, by the pre-selected vendor, the electronic order based on the employer&#39;s instructions. 
     An alternate embodiment of the present invention provides a system for selecting and processing payroll deduction as a payment option during electronic commerce between a pre-selected vendor and an employee of an employer, having means for authorizing, by the employer, the pre-selected vendor to offer payroll deduction as a payment option during electronic commerce between the pre-selected vendor and the employee; means for establishing, by the pre-selected vendor and the employer, guidelines for a payroll deduction plan; means for selecting, by the employee, articles to be purchased from the pre-selected vendor&#39;s web site, means for confirming on a confirmation page the selected articles, the employer&#39;s information, the employee&#39;s information and the payroll deduction information and means for signing a financial responsibility agreement; means for submitting, by the employee to the pre-selected vendor, an electronic order with the selected articles; means for storing, by the pre-selected vendor, the electronic order in a holding file and means for contacting the employer to review an order summary of the electronic order; means for instructing the pre-selected vendor, by the employer, how to process the electronic order; and means for processing, by the pre-selected vendor, the electronic order based on the employer&#39;s instructions. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention that together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. 
     In the drawings: 
     FIG. 1 illustrates a computer network in which the inventive payroll deduction plan may be incorporated; 
     FIG. 2 illustrates the TCP/IP Layering Model Protocol used during communications between components on the computer network; 
     FIG. 3 illustrates a method for selecting and processing payroll deduction as a payment option for on-line purchases during electronic commerce; 
     FIGS. 4 and 4A illustrate the steps implemented according to the preferred embodiment of the inventive method of FIG.  3 . 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The present invention described below describes the functionality of the inventive method for processing payroll deduction for on-line purchases over the Internet. 
     FIG. 1 is an example of a local area network (LAN)  100  that is configured to utilize a non-repudiation protocol. LAN  100  comprises a server  102 , four computer systems  104 ,  106 ,  108 , and  110 , and peripherals  112 , such as printers and other devices that may be shared by components on LAN  100 . Computer systems  104 ,  106 ,  108  and  110  may serve as clients for server  102  and/or as clients and/or servers for each other and/or for other components connected to LAN  100 . Components on LAN  100  are preferably connected together by cable media, for example copper or fiber-optic cable and the network topology may be a token ring topology  114 . It should be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that other media, for example, wireless media, such as optical and radio frequency, may also connect LAN  100  components. It should also be apparent that other network topologies, such as Ethernet, may be used. 
     Data may be transferred between components on LAN  100  in packets, i.e., blocks of data that are individually transmitted over LAN  100 . Routers  120 ,  122  create an expanded network by connecting LAN  100  to other computer networks, such as the Internet, other LANs or Wide Area Networks (WAN). Routers are hardware devices that may include a conventional processor, memory, and separate I/O interface for each network to which it connects. Hence, components on the expanded network may share information and services with each other. In order for communications to occur between components of physically connected networks, all components on the expanded network and the routers that connect them must adhere to a standard protocol. Computer networks connected to the Internet and to other networks typically use TCP/IP Layering Model Protocol. It should be noted that other internetworking protocols may be used. 
     As illustrated in FIG. 2, the TCP/IP Layering Model comprises an application layer (Layer  5 )  202 , a transport layer (Layer  4 )  204 , an Internet layer (Layer  3 )  206 , a network interface layer (Layer  2 )  208 , and a physical layer (Layer  1 )  210 . Application layer protocols  202  specify how each software application connected to the network uses the network. Transport layer protocols  204  specify how to ensure reliable transfer among complex protocols. Internet layer protocols  206  specify the format of packets sent across the network as well as mechanisms used to forward packets from a computer through one or more routers to a final destination. Network interface layer protocols  208  specify how to organize data into frames and how a computer transmits frames over the network. Physical layer protocols  210  correspond to the basic network hardware. By using TCP/IP Layering model protocols, any component connected to the network can communicate with any other component connected directly or indirectly to one of the attached networks. 
     FIG. 3 illustrates an inventive method for selecting and processing payroll deduction as a payment option for on-line purchases in electronic commerce on LAN  100 . According to the invention, an employer  302  authorizes selected vendors, an example of which is provided as vendor  304  to accept payroll deduction as a unique form of payment during an electronic commerce transaction with the employer&#39;s employees, an example of which is shown as employee  306 . During the initial authorization, employer  302  and vendor  304  establish guidelines for a payroll deduction plan. For example, employer  302  and vendor  304  may establish the number of pay periods during which deductions can occur and the number of transactions allowed to each employee  306 . They may also base the number of payroll deductions on the total purchase price. For example, a purchase price that is less than forty-nine dollars and ninety nine cents is deducted from one future paycheck; a purchase price that is greater than fifty dollars and less ninety-nine dollars and ninety nine cents is deducted from two future paychecks and so on. Employer  302  and vendor  304  may establish several sets of guidelines, whereby each set is associated with employees  306  within a specific status. For example, one set of guidelines may apply to hourly employees and another set may apply to salaried employees. Employees  306  may view all guidelines or only those that apply to them and guidelines associated with each employee  302  may change as the employee&#39;s status changes. The payroll deduction plan guidelines and other information that identify employer  302  and corresponding employees  306  are stored on a database  310  in the vendor&#39;s computer. Alternatively, employer  302  may periodically provide a list with information about employees who qualify to participate in the payroll deduction plan and the vendor  304  updates the database with the periodic list. 
     Thereafter, employees  306  may use payroll deduction as a form of payment for articles purchased on-line. When an employee  306  ‘enters’ the pre-selected vendor&#39;s web site  308  and chooses articles to be purchased, employee  306  may select payroll deduction as the payment method. Employee  306  is then asked to enter a personal identifier, such as a social security number or a current e-mail address, and to create a secret password. The personal identifier and password is used to confirm the consumer&#39;s identity during future purchases. As another alternative, vendor&#39;s web site  308  may be connected to other payroll processing companies and/or credit bureaus where employees&#39; personal identifiers and employment status may be confirmed. 
     Employee  306  is also asked to enter a unique employer identifier. The employer identifier may be printed on the employee&#39;s physical pay stub or otherwise obtained from the employer  302  or otherwise obtained from vendor&#39;s web site  308 . An employee  306  who previously utilized payroll deductions as a method of paying for on-line purchases may be asked to update the employer information, such as the employer&#39;s name, address, and telephone number. This ensures that employer information for each employee  306  is accurate during each electronic commerce transaction. For example, when employee  306  changes jobs, employee  306  will be given an opportunity to update his/her employer information to ensure that the current and subsequent payroll deduction requests are accurately processed and to access whether the new employer is also participating in the vendor&#39;s  304  payroll deduction plan. Employee  306  is then allowed to select articles to be purchased with from vendor&#39;s web site  308  or from web sites of other online merchants associated with vendor  304 . 
     Employee  306  is then transferred to a confirmation page to confirm the types and quantities of selected articles, the employer&#39;s information and the payroll deduction information. Upon confirming the information, employee  306  is requested to sign a financial responsibility agreement. Thereafter, employee  306  submits an electronic order for the selected articles to vendor  304  and the electronic order is processed by the vendor&#39;s computer system and placed in a holding file  312  in database  310 . Each employer  302  that participates in the payroll deduction plan may have a unique holding file  312 . 
     Each employer  302  with unique holding file  312  contacted a predefined number of times within a predetermined time period when orders are pending in the employer&#39;s holding file  312  to be reviewed. For example, employer  302  may be contacted one time within a twenty-four hour period when orders are pending in the employer&#39;s holding file  312 . In one embodiment of the invention, employer  302  is contacted through an e-mail with a link to a secure page. The e-mail is transmitted from the vendor&#39;s web site  308  to the employer&#39;s computer system and employer  302  may click on the link in the e-mail to connect to the secure page. Employer  302  must enter a login name and password to access information on the secure page. Thereafter, employer  302  is able to view an order summary for each employee  306 . The order summary includes the date, name, address, personal identifier, total purchase price and the number of payroll deductions required to pay for the selected articles. Employer  302  may either approve or reject the payroll deduction transaction. If the payroll deduction transaction is approved, the order is released from holding file  312  and processed by vendor  304  and an e-mail about the status of the order is sent to consumer  302 . Thereafter, the purchased article is sent to employee  306  by vendor  304  and the appropriate amount is deducted from the consumer&#39;s future earnings. 
     If the order is rejected, employer  302  may note a reason for the rejection or invite employee  306  to contact employer  302  for a reason. Employer  302  may either instruct vendor  304  to hold the order in holding file  312  or cancel the order from holding file  312 . An e-mail about the status of the order is sent to consumer  306 . 
     If employer  302  does not respond to orders in the holding file  312  within the predetermined time, a reminder notice is sent to employer  302  and employee  306  within a second predetermined time. If employer  302  does not respond to the reminder notice within a specified period of time, vendor  304  cancels the order. An e-mail notifying employee  306  about the cancellation is sent by the vendor  304 . 
     In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, each employer  302  with unique holding file  312  contacted through a non-electronic mail, such as fax or postal mail. The non-electronic mail includes the date, name, address, and personal identifier of employee  306 , the total purchase price and the number of payroll deductions required to pay for the selected articles. Employer  302  may then approve or reject the payroll deduction transaction by sending non-electronic mail to the vendor. If the order is approved, the order is released from holding file  312  and processed by vendor  304  and an e-mail about the status of the order is sent to employee  306  from the vendor  304 . If the order is not approved, it is either held in holding file  312  or canceled by vendor  304  per the employer&#39;s request. An e-mail about the status of the order is sent to employee  306  who may contact vendor  304  about held orders. 
     In yet another alternative, vendor  304  may use previously established guidelines to serve as employer&#39;s agent. Vendor  304  may use to other payroll processing companies and/or credit bureaus to approve employee&#39;s  306  on-line payroll deduction purchases without interaction from employer  302 . 
     FIG. 4 illustrates the steps implemented in a preferred embodiment of the inventive payroll deduction method. In Step  410 , employer  302  authorizes selected vendors  304  to set up their web sites  308  to accept payroll deduction as a unique form of payment from employees  306  during electronic commerce transactions. Employees  306  may thereafter use the payroll deduction plan as a form of payment for articles selected during on-line shopping. In Step  420  an existing employee  306  who previously used the payroll deduction plan is asked to enter a personal identifier, such as an e-mail address, and an already created password. A new employee  306  who has never used the payroll deduction plan is asked to enter a personal identifier and to create a secret password. New employee  306  is also asked for personal information such as the new employee&#39;s name, address, phone number and e-mail address. An existing employee  306  may go to an update page to update his/her employer&#39;s information, such as the employer&#39;s name, address, and telephone number. In Step  430 , new and existing employees  306  are then asked to enter a unique employer identifier. In Step  440 , new and existing employees  306  are then transferred to a confirmation page to confirm the types and quantities of selected articles, the employer&#39;s information and the method of payment. In Step  450 , upon confirming the necessary information, employee  306  is requested to sign the financial responsibility agreement with the total amount for the selected articles and the amount and number of payroll deductions required to pay for the selected articles. In Step  460 , employee  306  submits an electronic order for the selected articles to vendor  304  and the electronic order is processed by the vendor&#39;s computer system and placed in holding file  312 . 
     In Step  470 , an e-mail confirming the order and the payroll deduction is sent to employee  306  and vendor  304  contacts employer  302  by email or non-electronic mail. In Step  480 , employer  302  reviews the order summary and approves or rejects the order. In Step  490 , shown in FIG. 4A, approved orders are released from holding file  312  by vendor  304  and an e-mail is sent to employee  306  about the status of the order. 
     In Step  500 , if employer  302  does not respond to orders in holding file  312  within the predetermined time, a reminder notice is sent to employer  302  and employee  306  within a second predetermined time. In Step  510 , if employer  302  does not respond to the reminder notice, vendor  304  cancels the order within a specified time period. In Step  520 , an e-mail notifying employee  306  about the cancellation is subsequently sent by vendor  304 . 
     The foregoing description has been directed to specific embodiments of this invention. It will be apparent, however, that other variations and modifications may be made to the described embodiments, with the attainment of some or all of their advantages. Therefore, it is the object of the appended claims to cover all such variations and modifications as come within the true&#39;spirit and scope of the invention.