Patent Publication Number: US-11651364-B2

Title: System and method for translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is the U.S. National Stage Application of International Application No. PCT/US2018/053308, filed Sep. 28, 2018, which claims the benefit of, and priority to, Singapore Patent Application No. 102017084475 filed on Oct. 12, 2017. The entire disclosures of the above applications are incorporated herein by reference. 
     FIELD OF INVENTION 
     The following discloses systems and methods for translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats. 
     BACKGROUND 
     There are two kinds of networks on which payment card transactions are conducted. The first is a single-message system designed for automated teller machines (ATMs) and point-of-sale (POS) transactions that mainly requires personal identification number (PIN) entry by a cardholder to authenticate transactions. The second is a dual-message system designed for credit card and debit card transactions that generally relies on the cardholder&#39;s signature to authenticate transactions. 
     Different system messaging formats are used in these two networks. In a single-message transaction, an acquirer submits a single electronic message to a payment gateway. The single electronic message contains all data required for authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction. Actual financial settlement occurs at a later time. In a dual-message transaction, the acquirer submits two electronic messages to the payment gateway at the time of purchase: the first electronic message contains information required for an authorization decision, whereas and a second message at a later point in time containing additional data required for clearing and settlement. 
     Participants (e.g. merchants or banks) who would like to allow or manage both types of transactions will need to set up both the dual-message system and the single-message system at their end. Various data elements used in both systems require user&#39;s in-depth knowledge for determining what type of message is being processed. Various reconfigurations of the existing user systems will be required in an attempt to process both type of transactions. 
     There are hurdles for setting up both dual-message and single-message systems at the participant&#39;s end. First of all, additional costs will be incurred for implementing both dual-message and single-message formats at the participants&#39; end, since technical supports will be required at the participants&#39; end due to challenges in network configuration or system integration. Secondly, the technical knowledge required for operating the dual-message and single-message systems will be a burden to the participants. An accidental improper operation may hamper proper processing and affect the customer&#39;s business. Thirdly, additional equipment (such as routers, switches or interface processors) will be needed to implement dual-message and single-message systems. Any delay in delivering the additional equipment will cause inconvenience in operation and hinder the customer from making revenue. 
     There is thus a need for a technical solution to provide simplified systems and methods that enable the participants to allow or manage both types of transactions without the hurdles for setting up both dual-message and single-message systems at the participant&#39;s end and thereby improve interoperability of systems, simplify network architecture and reduce the number of infrastructure components. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the disclosure. 
     SUMMARY 
     According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats, the method comprising: receiving a message, from a first party, in a system agnostic format that comprises transactional properties of a transaction conducted at a financial service terminal, the transactional properties of the transaction at least comprising a channel of the transaction; and translating the message into one of a plurality of predetermined system formats in response to the channel of transaction. 
     In various examples of the first aspect, the channel indicates where a transaction takes place, which serves as an essential nature that determines a type of the transaction. Different channels may refer to different types of transaction. For example, the channel of the transaction can be, for example, an ATM machine, a POS machine, a core banking service terminal used at a bank counter, a virtual check-out server and/or the like. If the channel indicates that the transaction is conducted at an ATM machine, the transaction can be determined as a single-message system transaction. Likewise, if the channel indicates that the transaction is conducted at a POS machine of a brick and mortar store or a virtual check-out server of an e-Commerce store, the transaction can be determined as a dual-message system transaction. 
     According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a format translator for translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats, the format translator comprising: an input module configured to receive a message, from a first party, in a system agnostic format that comprises transactional properties of a transaction conduced at a financial service terminal, the transactional properties of the transaction at least comprising a channel of the transaction; a translation module configured to translate the message into one of a plurality of predetermined system formats in response to the channel of the transaction; and an output module configured to communicate the translated message. 
     According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon executable instructions for controlling a format translator to perform steps comprising: receiving a message, from a first party, in a system agnostic format that comprises transactional properties of a transaction conducted at a financial service terminal, the transactional properties of the transaction at least comprising a channel of the transaction; and translating the message into one of a plurality of predetermined system formats in response to the channel of transaction. 
     In respective examples of the second and the third aspects, the channel of the transaction carries the same meaning as described above with respect to the first aspect. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Embodiments of the invention will be better understood and readily apparent to one of ordinary skilled in the art from the following written description, by way of example only, and in conjunction with the drawings, in which: 
         FIG.  1    shows a schematic of a system, in accordance with a first embodiment of the present application, wherein a format translator is used for translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats. In the first embodiment, the format translator is implemented as a stand-alone device between a participant of a transaction and a payment gateway that facilitates the authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the participant can be an acquirer bank of a merchant that participates in payment of a good or service purchase transaction taken place at either a brick and mortar store or an e-Commerce store of the merchant. 
       The transaction can also be a currency conversion transaction taken place at a bank counter, a cash withdrawal transaction taken place at an automated teller machine (ATM), etc, as described in detail below. In such scenarios, the participant can be a financial institute, e.g. an acquirer bank that own and run the bank counter or the ATM machine, etc. 
         FIG.  2    shows another schematic of the system, in accordance with a second embodiment of the present application, wherein the format translator as shown in  FIG.  1    is implemented in the payment gateway. In the second embodiment, the format translator can be in the form of either a part of a firmware, a software patch, or a part of hardware for a processor of the payment gateway. 
         FIG.  3    illustrates a further schematic of the system, in accordance with a third embodiment of the present application, wherein the format translator as shown in  FIGS.  1  and  2    is implemented in an acquirer bank that participates in the authorization, clearing and settlement of a transaction as described in the first embodiment. 
         FIG.  4    shows a flowchart depicting steps of a method for translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats, in accordance with the embodiments shown in  FIGS.  1  to  3   . 
         FIG.  5    shows an exemplary computing device  500  to realize a format translator for translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats, in accordance with the embodiments shown in  FIGS.  1  to  3   . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Embodiments of the present invention will be described, by way of example only, with reference to the drawings. Like reference numerals and characters in the drawings refer to like elements or equivalents. 
     Some portions of the description which follows are explicitly or implicitly presented in terms of algorithms and functional or symbolic representations of operations on data within a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions and functional or symbolic representations are the means used by those skilled in the data processing arts to convey most effectively the substance of their work to others skilled in the art. An algorithm is here, and generally, conceived to be a self-consistent sequence of steps leading to a desired result. The steps are those requiring physical manipulations of physical quantities, such as electrical, magnetic or optical signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. 
     Unless specifically stated otherwise, and as apparent from the following, it will be appreciated that throughout the present specification, discussions utilizing terms such as “scanning”, “calculating”, “determining”, “replacing”, “generating”, “initializing”, “outputting”, or the like, refer to the action and processes of a computer system, or similar electronic device, that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical quantities within the computer system into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer system or other information storage, transmission or display devices. 
     The present specification also discloses apparatus for performing the operations of the methods. Such apparatus may be specially constructed for the required purposes, or may comprise a computer or other computing device selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored therein. The algorithms and displays presented herein are not inherently related to any particular computer or other apparatus. Various machines may be used with programs in accordance with the teachings herein. Alternatively, the construction of more specialized apparatus to perform the required method steps may be appropriate. The structure of a computer will appear from the description below. 
     In addition, the present specification also implicitly discloses a computer program, in that it would be apparent to the person skilled in the art that the individual steps of the method described herein may be put into effect by computer code. The computer program is not intended to be limited to any particular programming language and implementation thereof. It will be appreciated that a variety of programming languages and coding thereof may be used to implement the teachings of the disclosure contained herein. Moreover, the computer program is not intended to be limited to any particular control flow. There are many other variants of the computer program, which can use different control flows without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. 
     Furthermore, one or more of the steps of the computer program may be performed in parallel rather than sequentially. Such a computer program may be stored on any computer readable medium. The computer readable medium may include storage devices such as magnetic or optical disks, memory chips, or other storage devices suitable for interfacing with a computer. The computer readable medium may also include a hard-wired medium such as exemplified in the Internet system, or wireless medium such as exemplified in the GSM mobile telephone system. The computer program when loaded and executed on such a general-purpose computer effectively results in an apparatus that implements the steps of the preferred method. 
       FIG.  1    shows a system  100 , in accordance with an embodiment of the present application, that enables participants (merchants or banks) of a transaction to communicate messages in a system agnostic format with a payment gateway  106 . By virtue of the system agnostic message communication, data of both single-message system transactions and dual-message system transactions can be captured and processed in the system  100  without hurdles for configuring and operating the participants&#39; terminals or servers to communicate in both dual-message and single-message system messaging formats. The architecture and operation mechanism of the system  100  are described as follows. 
     As shown in  FIG.  1   , a transaction  100   a  takes place in an embodiment of a system  100 . The transaction  100   a  can be a good or service purchase transaction  100   a  between a merchant (not shown) and a customer  101  at a brick and mortar store or an e-Commerce store. In the present embodiment, the customer  101  makes payment for the transaction  110   a  at a financial service terminal  102 . The financial service terminal  102  can be a Point of Sales (POS) terminal  102  in the brick and mortar store or a virtual check-out (interchangeably referred to as an “virtual check-out server  102 ”) at the e-Commerce store. 
     In this embodiment, as the transaction  100   a  takes place, the POS terminal  102  or the virtual check-out server  102  captures data (not shown) relating to transactional properties of the transaction  100   a , and transmits  122  the data to a server  104  of the merchant&#39;s acquirer (interchangeably referred to as an “acquirer server  104 ”) in the system  100 . 
     Alternatively, the transaction  100   a  can be a currency conversion or other monetary transaction  100   a  that takes place at a financial service terminal  102  or a server  102  of an online service application of a bank. As an example, the financial service terminal  102  can be an ATM machine  102 . Furthermore, the other monetary transaction  100   a  can be such as a cash withdrawal transaction. In this embodiment, as the transaction  100   a  takes place, the financial service terminal  102  captures data (not shown) relating to transactional properties of the transaction  100   a  and transmits  122  the data to a server  104  of the bank that runs the ATM machine  102  or the server  102 . For the simplicity of the present application, the bank is also referred to as an acquirer, and the server  104  of the bank is also referred to as the acquirer server  104 . 
     For the simplicity of the present application, further embodiments of the transactions  100   a  will not be described. It can be appreciated by a skilled person in the art that the present system  100  allows similar transactions to be conducted and processed. 
     In the system  100 , the transactional properties of the transaction  100   a  comprise at least a channel  112  of the transaction  100   a . The channel  112  indicates an essential nature that determines a type of the transaction  100   a . For example, if the channel  112  indicates that the transaction  100   a  is conducted at an ATM machine, the transaction  100   a  can be determined as a single-message system transaction  100   a . As mentioned above, the channel  112  of the transaction  100   a  may also be a POS machine, a core banking service terminal used at a bank counter, a virtual check-out server and/or the like. If, in an alternative example, the channel  112  indicates that the transaction  100   a  is conducted at a POS machine of a brick and mortar store or a virtual check-out server of an e-Commerce store, the transaction  100   a  can be determined as a dual-message system transaction  100   a.    
     The transactional properties of the transaction  100   a  can further comprise data is a time of the transaction  100   a , a date of the transaction  100   a , a location of the transaction  100   a , a transaction reference number recorded at the financial service terminal  102  where a payment of the transaction  100   a  is conducted, a transaction amount of the transaction  100   a , a reconciliation amount of the transaction  100   a , a settlement amount of the transaction  100   a , a card number of a payment card used by the customer  101  for the payment of the transaction  100   a , an International Card Association (ICA) identifier of the acquirer that manages and/or administers the channel  112  of the transaction  100   a , and a type of the merchant (such as a merchant identifier registered at a payment gateway  106  in the system  100 ) where the transaction  100   a  takes place. The transactional properties of the transaction  100   a  can further comprise information of a card acceptor (interchangeably referred to as “card acceptor information”), which in many scenarios is the acquirer that accepts the payment card for the payment of the transaction  100   a . The card acceptor information comprises a country code, a postal code, an address, and/or a name of the acquirer. The transactional properties of the transaction  100   a  can further comprise a transaction service fee chargeable by the payment gateway  106  to the acquirer for processing the transaction  100   a.    
     In an embodiment of the present application, the acquirer server  104  can be an API server or a message generation server managed by the acquirer or by a third party service provider on behalf of the acquirer. 
     In the present embodiment, the acquirer server  104  comprises a module  104   a  that is configured to generate  105  a message  114  based on the data relating to the transactional properties of the transaction  100   a  received  122  in the acquirer server  104 . The message  114  is in a system agnostic format and comprises transactional properties of the transaction  100   a . The transactional properties of the transaction  100   a  comprised in the system agnostic format message  114  comprises at least the information of the channel  112  of the transaction  100   a.    
     In the embodiments of the present application, in addition to the channel  112  of the transaction  100   a , the module  104   a  is further configured to include one or more of the transactional properties of the transaction  100   a  as described above into the message  114  in the system agnostic format. 
     For example, the message  114  in the system agnostic format can be constructed by the module  104   a  as follows:
         &lt;?xml version=“1.0” encoding=“UTF-8”?&gt;   &lt;UniversalmessagetransactionRequest&gt;   &lt;TransactionReference&gt;1234567890&lt;/TransactionReference&gt;   &lt;CardNumber&gt;5184680430000006&lt;/CardNumber&gt;   &lt;TransactionAmount&gt;   &lt;Value&gt;1314&lt;/Value&gt;   &lt;Currency&gt;566&lt;/Currency&gt;   &lt;/TransactionAmount&gt;   &lt;ReconciliationAmount&gt;   &lt;Value&gt;4.32&lt;/Value&gt;   &lt;Currency&gt;840&lt;/Currency&gt;   &lt;/ReconciliationAmount&gt;   &lt;SettlementAmount&gt;   &lt;Value&gt;4.32&lt;/Value&gt;   &lt;Currency&gt;840&lt;/Currency&gt;   &lt;SettlementAmount&gt;   &lt;LocalDate&gt;0822&lt;/LocalDate&gt;   &lt;LocalTime&gt;133414&lt;/LocalTime&gt;   &lt;Channel&gt;ATM&lt;/Channel&gt;   &lt;ICA&gt;009674&lt;/ICA&gt;   &lt;MerchantType&gt;6532&lt;/MerchantType&gt;   &lt;CardAcceptor&gt;   &lt;Name&gt;THE BEST BANK&lt;/Name&gt;   &lt;City&gt;ANYTOWN&lt;City&gt;   &lt;State&gt;MO&lt;/State&gt;   &lt;PostalCode&gt;63101-1234&lt;/PostalCode&gt;   &lt;Country&gt;USA&lt;/Country&gt;   &lt;CardAcceptor&gt;   &lt;TransactionFee&gt;   &lt;Value&gt;25588&lt;/Value&gt;   &lt;Currency&gt;840&lt;/Currency&gt;   &lt;TransactionFee&gt;   &lt;/UniversalMessagetransactionRequest&gt;       

     In other examples, further transactional properties of the transaction  100   a  can be added into the message  114  to determine the nature of the transaction  100   a  in accordance with practical requirements. 
     As shown in  FIG.  1   , the system  100  further comprises a format translator  110 . The format translator  110  can be a stand-alone device  110  that links the acquirer server  104  to the payment gateway  106  that facilitates authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction. In another embodiment, the format translator  110  can be implemented as a middleware system operated in an interface processor  110  that connects the acquirer server  104  to the payment gateway  106 . The skilled person in the art will readily understand that the interface processor  110  serves as an entry point for switching and routing transaction processing networks within the payment gateway  106 . 
     As shown in  FIG.  1   , the format translator  110  comprises an input module  120 , a translation module  130  and an output module  140 . The input module  120  is configured to receive  124  the message  114  in the system agnostic format from the acquirer server  104 . The received message  114  in the system agnostic format will then be transmitted to the translation module  130  for translation into a message in the single-message system format or the dual-message system format. 
     As described above, the type of the transaction  100   a  can be determined by the channel  112  of the transaction  100   a . In this manner, the translation module  130  is configured to translate the message  114  into a message  114   a / 114   b  in one of two pre-determined system formats (that is, to translate the message  114  into a message  114   a / 114   b  in the single-message system format or in the dual-message system format) in response to the channel  112  of the transaction  100   a  comprised in the received message  114 . For example, the channel  112  of the transaction  100   a  can be an ATM channel if the payment of the transaction  110   a  is made at an ATM machine  102 , or a POS channel if the payment of the transaction  110   a  is made at a POS terminal  102 , or an e-Commerce channel if the payment of the transaction  110   a  is made at a virtual check-out server  102 . 
     In an embodiment, the translation module  130  is configured to translate the message  114  into a first predetermined system format (e.g. the single-message system format) in response to the channel  112  of the transaction  100   a  being a first channel  112  of transaction  100   a  (e.g. the ATM channel). In this embodiment, the translated message  114   a  in the first predetermined system format (e.g. the single-message system format) comprises all data required for authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction  100   a.    
     In another embodiment, the translation module  130  is configured to translate the message  114  into a second predetermined system format (e.g. the dual-message system format) in response to the channel  112  of the transaction  100   a  being a second channel  112  of transaction  100   a  (e.g. the POS channel or the e-Commerce channel). In this embodiment, the translated message  114   b  in the second predetermined system format (e.g. the dual-message system format) comprises a first message comprising data for the authorization of the transaction and a second message comprising data for the clearing and settlement of the transaction. In the above embodiments, the translated message  114   a / 114   b  is then transmitted to the output module  140  to communicate  126  with the payment gateway  106 . The translated message  114   a / 114   b  is then routed through the payment gateway  106  into a second party  108  for further authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction  100   a . The second party  108  can be an issuer  108  of the payment card used for the payment of the transaction  100   a.    
     For the simplicity of the present application, the routing of the translated message  114   a / 114   b  in the payment gateway  106  and the further authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction  100   a  are not described. 
     In the system  100 , it can be appreciated by the skilled person that, after the the routing of the translated message  114   a / 114   b  and the further authorization, clearing or settlement of the transaction  100   a  are processed at the payment gateway  106  or the issuer  108 , the format translator  110  can translate messages in the single-message system format  114   a  or the dual-message system format  114   b  from the payment gateway  106  into messages in the system agnostic format  114  in a similar manner as described above. The translated messages in the system agnostic format  114  can be communicated from the format translator  110  to the acquirer server for necessary processing. The steps in this embodiment are not shown in the  FIG.  1    for the sake of simplicity. 
     Similar to  FIG.  1   ,  FIG.  2    shows another embodiment of the present application. Like reference numerals and characters in the drawings refer to like elements, equivalents or steps.  FIG.  2    shows a system  200  wherein the format translator  110  as shown in  FIG.  1    is implemented as a format translator  110  in the payment gateway  206 . 
     In the embodiment shown in  FIG.  2   , the format translator  210  can be in the form of either a part of a firmware, a software patch, or a part of hardware for a processor  206  of the payment gateway  206 . 
     Similar to  FIGS.  1  and  2   ,  FIG.  3    shows a further embodiment of the present application. Like reference numerals and characters in the drawings refer to like elements, equivalents or steps.  FIG.  3    illustrates a system  300  wherein the format translator  110 ,  210  as shown in  FIGS.  1  and  2    is implemented in the acquirer server  104 ,  204 ,  304  that participates in the authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a.    
     In the embodiment shown in  FIG.  3   , the format translator  310  can be in the form of either a part of a firmware, a software patch, or a part of hardware for the acquirer server  104 ,  204 ,  304 . 
     In view of the system  100 ,  200 ,  300  for translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats as illustrated in  FIGS.  1  to  3   , and as described above,  FIG.  4    shows a flow chart  400  that exemplifies steps of a method of translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats at the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310 . 
     At step  402 , the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310  receives  124 ,  224 ,  324  a message  114 ,  214 ,  314 , from a first party  104 ,  204 ,  304   a , in a system agnostic format that comprises transactional properties of a transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a  conducted at a financial service terminal  102 ,  202 ,  302 . The transactional properties of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a  at least comprise a channel  112 ,  212 ,  312  of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a . As described above, the channel  112 ,  212 ,  312  of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a  can be, for example, an ATM machine, a POS machine, a core banking service terminal used at a bank counter, a virtual check-out server and/or the like. 
     In an embodiment, the first party  104 ,  204 ,  304   a  can be an acquirer  104 ,  204 ,  304 . In the embodiment, the method shown in the flow chart  400  can be implemented by a stand-alone device  110  as shown in  FIG.  1   . The stand-alone device  110  can be an interface processor  110 , in which a middleware system configured as the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310  is installed, that links the acquirer  104 ,  204 ,  304  to a payment gateway  106 ,  206 ,  306  that facilitates authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a.    
     In another embodiment, the method shown in the flow chart  400  can be implemented by a middleware system  210  in the form of either a part of firmware, a software patch, or a part of hardware for a processor of the payment gateway  206 , as shown in  FIG.  2   . 
     In a further embodiment, the method shown in the flow chart  400  can be implemented by a middleware system  310  in the form of either a part of firmware, a software patch, or a part of hardware for a server of the acquirer bank  304  that participates in the authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a.    
     In the embodiments, the message  114 ,  214 ,  314  in the system agnostic format is generated  105 ,  205 ,  305  at a module  104   a ,  204   a ,  304   a  in the acquirer server  104 ,  204 ,  304 . In an embodiment, the acquirer server  104 ,  204 ,  304  can be an API server or a message generation server of the acquirer. 
     At step  404 , the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310  translates  135 ,  235 ,  335  the message  114 ,  214 ,  314  into one of a plurality of predetermined system formats, for example the single-message system format  114   a ,  214   a ,  314   a  or the dual-message system format  114   b ,  214   b ,  314   b  in response to the channel  112 ,  212 ,  312  of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a.    
     In an embodiment of the step  404 , when the channel  112 ,  212 ,  312  of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a  is a first type of channel of transaction, i.e. when the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a  is taken place at automated teller machines (ATMs)  102 ,  202 ,  302 , the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310  translates the message  114 ,  214 ,  314  into a first predetermined system format, i.e. the single-message system format  114   a ,  214   a ,  314   a , in response to the channel of the transaction being the first channel of transaction. In this embodiment, the translated single-message system format message  114   a ,  214   a ,  314   a  comprises all data required for authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a.    
     In another embodiment of the step  404 , when the channel  112 ,  212 ,  312  of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a  is a second type of channel of transaction, i.e. when the payment of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a  is made on credit cards or debit cards at the financial service terminal  102 ,  202 ,  302 , the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310  translates the message  114 ,  214 ,  314  into a second predetermined system format, i.e. the dual-message system format  114   b ,  214   b ,  314   b , in response to the channel of the transaction being the second channel of transaction. The financial service terminal  102 ,  202 ,  302  can be in the form of point of sale (POS) machines or e-Commerce virtual check-outs. In this embodiment, the translated dual-message system format message  114   b ,  214   b ,  314   b  can comprise a first message comprising data for the authorization of the transaction, and a second message comprising data for the clearing and settlement of the transaction. 
     In the above described embodiments, the translated single- or dual-message format messages  114   b ,  214   b ,  314   b  are routed through the payment gateway  106 ,  206 ,  306  into a second party  108 ,  208 ,  308  for further authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a . The second party  108 ,  208 ,  308  can be issuer banks as described above. For the simplicity of the present disclosure, the routing and forwarding of the translated single- or dual-message format messages  114   b ,  214   b ,  314   b  between the payment gateway  106 ,  206 ,  306  and the second party  108 ,  208 ,  308  will not be described. 
     In the above described embodiments, the transactional properties of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a  comprised in the message  114 ,  214 ,  314  further comprise information about the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a , such as one or more of a time of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a , a date of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a , a location of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a , a transaction reference number recorded at the financial service terminal  102 ,  202 ,  303  where the payment of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a  is conducted, a transaction amount of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a , a reconciliation amount of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a , a settlement amount of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a , a card number of a payment card used by the customer  101 ,  201 ,  301  for the payment of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a , an International Card Association (ICA) identifier of acquirer bank  104 ,  204 ,  304  that owns the channel  112 ,  212 ,  312  of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a , a type of the merchant (such as a merchant identifier registered at the payment gateway  106 ,  206 ,  306 ) where the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a  is taken place, card acceptor information (such as a country code, postal code, address, and/or name of the merchant&#39;s acquirer bank  104 ,  204 ,  304 ), and a transaction fee chargeable by the payment gateway  106 ,  206 ,  306  to the acquirer bank  104 ,  204 ,  304 . As described herein, the payment gateway  106 ,  206 ,  306  can be a payment gateway run by MasterCard, Visa, American Express, etc. 
     As appreciated by the skilled person in the art, the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310  is further able to translate a message  114   b ,  214   b ,  314   b  in either the single- or dual-message formats into a message  114 ,  214 ,  314  in the system agnostic format. In an embodiment, the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310  can further receives (not shown) a message  114   b ,  214   b ,  314   b  in either the single- or dual-message formats from the payment gateway  106 ,  206 ,  306 . The message  114   b ,  214   b ,  314   b  in either the single- or dual-message formats can comprise data relating to a response from the payment gateway  106 ,  206 ,  306  to an authorization request (e.g. comprised in the message  114 ,  214 ,  314 , not shown) of the transaction  100   a ,  200   a ,  300   a . The format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310  can further translate the message  114   b ,  214   b ,  314   b  in either the single- or dual-message formats into a message  114 ,  214 ,  314  in the system agnostic format. 
       FIG.  5    depicts an exemplary computing device  500 , hereinafter interchangeably referred to as a computer system  500 , where one or more such computing devices  500  may be used in the above-described system  100 ,  200 ,  300  to implement the above-described method  400  for translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats, such as the single-message format or the dual-message format. The exemplary computing device  500  can be used to implement the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310 ; the financial service terminal  102 ,  202 ,  302 ; the server  104 ,  204 ,  304  of the acquirer bank; the payment gateway  106 ,  206 ,  306 ; or the server  108 ,  208 ,  308  of the issuer bank as described herein. The following description of the computing device  500  is provided by way of example only and is not intended to be limiting. 
     As shown in  FIG.  5   , the example computing device  500  includes a processor  504  for executing software routines. Although a single processor is shown for the sake of clarity, the computing device  400  may also include a multi-processor system. The processor  504  is connected to a communication infrastructure  506  for communication with other components of the computing device  500 . The communication infrastructure  506  may include, for example, a communications bus, cross-bar, or network. 
     The computing device  500  further includes a main memory  508 , such as a random access memory (RAM), and a secondary memory  510 . The secondary memory  510  may include, for example, a storage drive  512 , which may be a hard disk drive, a solid state drive or a hybrid drive and/or a removable storage drive  514 , which may include a magnetic tape drive, an optical disk drive, a solid state storage drive (such as a USB flash drive, a flash memory device, a solid state drive or a memory card), or the like. The removable storage drive  514  reads from and/or writes to a removable storage medium  544  in a well-known manner. The removable storage medium  544  may include magnetic tape, optical disk, non-volatile memory storage medium, or the like, which is read by and written to by removable storage drive  514 . As will be appreciated by persons skilled in the relevant art(s), the removable storage medium  544  includes a non-transitory or transitory computer readable storage medium having stored therein computer executable program code instructions and/or data. 
     In an alternative implementation, the secondary memory  510  may additionally or alternatively include other similar means for allowing computer programs or other instructions to be loaded into the computing device  500 . Such means can include, for example, a removable storage unit  522  and an interface  530 . Examples of a removable storage unit  522  and interface  530  include a program cartridge and cartridge interface (such as that found in video game console devices), a removable memory chip (such as an EPROM or PROM) and associated socket, a removable solid state storage drive (such as a USB flash drive, a flash memory device, a solid state drive or a memory card), and other removable storage units  522  and interfaces  530  which allow software and data to be transferred from the removable storage unit  522  to the computer system  500 . 
     The computing device  500  also includes at least one communication interface  524 . The communication interface  524  allows software and data to be transferred between computing device  500  and external devices via a communication path  526 . In various embodiments of the inventions, the communication interface  524  permits data to be transferred between the computing device  500  and a data communication network, such as a public data or private data communication network. The communication interface  524  may be used to exchange data between different computing devices  500  which such computing devices  500  form part of an interconnected computer network. Examples of a communication interface  524  can include a modem, a network interface (such as an Ethernet card), a communication port (such as a serial, parallel, printer, GPIB, IEEE 1394, RJ45, USB), an antenna with associated circuitry and the like. The communication interface  524  may be wired or may be wireless. Software and data transferred via the communication interface  524  are in the form of signals which can be electronic, electromagnetic, optical or other signals capable of being received by communication interface  524 . These signals are provided to the communication interface via the communication path  526 . 
     As shown in  FIG.  5   , the computing device  500  further includes a display interface  502  which performs operations for rendering images to an associated display  530  and an audio interface  532  for performing operations for playing audio content via associated speaker(s)  534 . 
     As used herein, the term “computer program product” may refer, in part, to removable storage medium  544 , removable storage unit  522 , a hard disk installed in storage drive  512 , or a carrier wave carrying software over communication path  526  (wireless link or cable) to communication interface  524 . Computer readable storage media refers to any non-transitory, non-volatile tangible storage medium that provides recorded instructions and/or data to the computing device  500  for execution and/or processing. Examples of such storage media include magnetic tape, CD-ROM, DVD, Blu-Ray™ Disc, a hard disk drive, a ROM or integrated circuit, a solid state storage drive (such as a USB flash drive, a flash memory device, a solid state drive or a memory card), a hybrid drive, a magneto-optical disk, or a computer readable card such as a PCMCIA card and the like, whether or not such devices are internal or external of the computing device  500 . Examples of transitory or non-tangible computer readable transmission media that may also participate in the provision of software, application programs, instructions and/or data to the computing device  500  include radio or infra-red transmission channels as well as a network connection to another computer or networked device, and the Internet or Intranets including e-mail transmissions and information recorded on Websites and the like. 
     The computer programs (also called computer program code) are stored in main memory  508  and/or secondary memory  510 . Computer programs can also be received via the communication interface  524 . Such computer programs, when executed, enable the computing device  500  to perform one or more features of embodiments discussed herein. In various embodiments, the computer programs, when executed, enable the processor  504  to perform features of the above-described embodiments. Accordingly, such computer programs represent controllers of the computer system  500 . 
     Software may be stored in a computer program product and loaded into the computing device  500  using the removable storage drive  514 , the storage drive  512 , or the interface  550 . Alternatively, the computer program product may be downloaded to the computer system  500  over the communications path  526 . The software, when executed by the processor  504 , causes the computing device  500  to perform functions of embodiments described herein. 
     It is to be understood that the embodiment of  FIG.  5    is presented merely by way of example to explain the operation and structure of the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310 ; the financial service terminal  102 ,  202 ,  302 ; the server  104 ,  204 ,  304  of the acquirer bank; the payment gateway  106 ,  206 ,  306 ; or the server  108 ,  208 ,  308  of the issuer bank as described herein. Therefore, in some embodiments one or more features of the computing device  500  may be omitted. Also, in some embodiments, one or more features of the computing device  500  may be combined together. Additionally, in some embodiments, one or more features of the computing device  500  may be split into one or more component parts. 
     In one embodiment, the computing device  500  is implemented as the format translator  110 ,  210 ,  310  for translating a message between a system agnostic format and one of a plurality of predetermined system formats. The computing device  500  comprises an input module  120 ,  220 ,  320 , a translation module  130 ,  230 ,  330 , and an output module  140 ,  240 ,  340 . The input module  120 ,  220 ,  320  of the computing device  500  is configured to receive the message, from a first party, in a system agnostic format that comprises transactional properties of a transaction conduced at a financial service terminal. The transactional properties of the transaction at least comprise a channel of the transaction. The translation module  130 ,  230 ,  330  of the computing device  500  is configured to translate the message into one of a plurality of predetermined system formats in response to the channel of the transaction. The output module  140 ,  240 ,  340  is configured to communicate the translated message. 
     In the present embodiment, the computing device  500  is configured to translate the message of the system agnostic format into a first predetermined system format in response to the channel of the transaction being a first channel of transaction. The first predetermined system format comprises all data required for authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction. In an embodiment, the first channel of transaction comprises an automated teller machine (ATM). The first predetermined system format is the single-message system format as described above. 
     In the present embodiment, the computing device  500  is further configured to translate the message of the system agnostic format into a second predetermined system format in response to the channel of the transaction being a second channel of transaction. The translated message in the second predetermined system for comprises a first message comprising data for the authorization of the transaction, and a second message comprising data for the clearing and settlement of the transaction. In an embodiment, the second channel of transaction comprises a point of sale (POS) machine or an e-Commerce virtual check-out where the transaction is made on credit cards or debit cards. The second predetermined system format is the dual-message system format as described above. 
     In the present embodiment, the first party can be an acquirer. The computing device  500  serves in a middleware that links the acquirer to a payment gateway that facilitates authorization, clearing and settlement of the transaction. 
     In the present embodiment, the input module  120 ,  220 ,  320  of the computing device  500  is further configured to receive a message in one of the plurality of predetermined system formats from a payment gateway. In this embodiment, the message at least comprises data relating to a response from the payment gateway regarding an authorization request made by the first party. The translation module is further configured to translate the message in the one of the plurality of predetermined system formats into a message in the system agnostic format. 
     As described above, the embodiments of the present application enable participants (merchants or banks) of a transaction to communicate messages in a system agnostic format with a payment gateway. By virtue of the system agnostic message communication, data of both single-message system transactions and dual-message system transactions can be captured and processed in a payment network system  100 ,  200 ,  300  as described in the present application without hurdles as described above. 
     It will be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the present invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects illustrative and not restrictive.