JP2012014534A - Claim information management system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce cost for issuing a payment slip to a customer.SOLUTION: In a claim information management system for managing claim information of utilities to be charged on the basis of a meter-reading result transmitted from a handy terminal, meter-reading information necessary for meter-reading and a receipt number on a settlement service system that performs settlement by proxy of the cost charged on the meter-reading result are managed in association with each other. The reception number is described on notice information to a customer in meter-reading, and the customer is allowed to perform settlement of the charge with the reception number on the settlement service system.

Description

  The present invention relates to a billing information management system that allows customers to make payment more easily when paying monthly public charges.

  Public services such as gas, water, and electric power are charged according to usage. The usage fee is measured by a meter reading person reading a meter provided in each customer's house or the like. The person in charge of meter reading uses a device called a handy terminal and inputs the result of meter reading to this handy terminal. The handy terminal calculates the usage amount, the scheduled billing amount, and the receipt amount for the previous meter reading based on the input meter reading result, and then prints the result on the site as a notice card and passes it to the customer as notice information.

  For customers who wish to pay for usage charges other than by direct debit, based on the data of the meter reading results, the user will be billed for usage charges again from the gas, water, and power supply companies at a later date. Invoices such as a transfer notice and a transfer request form are sent, and the user transfers the fee.

  However, administrative fees and postage for mailing invoices based on transfer notices and transfer request forms that charge usage fees have been high costs for gas, water, power, and other suppliers.

  Therefore, in order to solve this problem, Patent Document 1 prints a transfer sheet for use at a financial institution or a convenience store together with a notification form to a customer who wishes to make payment other than by direct debit by a handy terminal. Is disclosed.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-53670

  However, if the customer loses the transfer paper printed by the handy terminal or makes it unreadable by soiling it, it will be necessary to issue the transfer paper again. However, there is a problem that the cost for mailing is required.

  The billing information management system of the present invention is a billing information management system comprising a handy terminal, and a management server for calculating a billing amount of a public bill charged based on a meter reading result transmitted from the handy terminal, The management server includes payment information generation means for generating payment information for each customer fee, and payment information for transmitting the payment information to a payment service system provided by a company providing the payment service via a communication network. A reception number receiving means for receiving from the payment service system a reception number which is issued in correspondence with the payment information in the payment service system and is used when using the fee payment terminal; and the payment From the information, meter reading information for performing meter reading at the handy terminal is generated, and the receiving Meter reading information generating means for transmitting to the handy terminal together with a number; meter reading result acquiring means for acquiring a meter reading result from the handy terminal; fee calculating means for calculating a billing amount for the settlement information from the meter reading result; and the settlement Charge notification means for transmitting the billing amount to the settlement service system as a billing amount for information, and the handy terminal prints the receipt number together with the meter reading result.

  Here, the meter reading result sent from the handy terminal is automatically sent from the meter connected to the communication network as well as the meter reading staff going to the public service meter and entering the meter information into the handy terminal. This also includes the result of meter reading acquired automatically.

  In addition, the payment service means a service that collects money collected by a convenience store, a bank, etc., but is not limited to these facilities, and includes, for example, services on the Internet. It is a waste.

  The receipt number is information for uniquely determining payment information in the payment service system. Generally, any alphanumeric character is used, but other information that makes payment information unique is used. You can also.

  The management server further comprises a billing amount notifying unit for transmitting the billing amount calculated by the fee calculating unit to the handy terminal, and the handy terminal has already received the billing amount from the management server when performing the printing. It is determined whether or not it is received, and when it is received, the billing amount is printed together with the meter reading result and the receipt number.

  In other words, the handy terminal can acquire the billing fee as a response immediately after the meter reading person inputs and transmits the meter reading information and informs the customer. In addition, when printing, the handy terminal determines whether or not the billing amount has already been received from the management server. If processing is not in time, meter reading information etc. can be exchanged with the management server in real time. It is possible to respond flexibly even in environments where there is no.

  In the billing information management system according to the present invention, the payment service system temporarily sets a date before the issuance date as a handling deadline when the receipt number is issued, and the charge notification unit of the management server When the amount is transmitted to the settlement service system, the original handling deadline is notified, and the settlement service system changes the provisional handling deadline to the original handling deadline.

  In the present invention, whether or not to perform a payment procedure at the fee payment terminal is controlled by the handling time limit data of the settlement service system. By setting a date before the issuance date as the deadline for handling (date that expires at the time of payment by the customer), it will not be accepted even if the customer tries to pay by mistake, so information such as a data invalid flag is provided separately Memory resources can be saved.

  Further, the billing information management system of the present invention includes a notice information editing means for editing notice information about billing information for a customer from the settlement information, the receipt number and the billing amount, and the notice information is communicated to the customer via a communication network. And a notification information transmitting means for transmitting via e-mail.

  Here, the notification information is information for the customer to pay the billing fee by the settlement system, and is information including inquiry information to the settlement system and the billing amount. Of course, other information may be included.

  According to the present invention, even if there is no transfer form, the customer can pay the fee at the fee payment terminal if he / she knows the receipt number for his / her billing. This eliminates the need for the customer to save the transfer form, saves time, and allows the payment method to be freely selected such as transfer to a financial institution or payment at a convenience store. Increase opportunities and increase customer convenience. In addition, the cost for issuing or reissuing the transfer paper can be reduced for the supplier.

1 is a system configuration diagram of a utility bill collection system 100 including a management server 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a functional block diagram of a management server 10 and a settlement service system 2 in FIG. It is an example of composition of customer information DB, settlement information DB, billing information DB, and meter-reading information DB which exist in storage parts 13 and 23 of Drawing 2. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process of Embodiment 2 of this invention.

Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a utility bill collection system 100 including a billing information management system according to the present invention.

  The management server 10 manages customer information, contract information, and billing information for customers. The fee is determined by the usage amount of the public service, and is calculated based on the meter reading result transmitted from the meter reading server 4 connected by a dedicated line or network. Then, the management server 10 generates billing information for the customer from the calculated usage fee. The billing information is transmitted to the settlement service system 2 connected via the network 3. The settlement service system 2 is a server of a fee collection agent service provider, and the fee collection agent service provider collects a fee from the customer on behalf of the provider providing the public service. After the billing fee is collected, the settlement service system 2 notifies the billing information system 1 that the fee collection has ended. The management server 10 receives the notification and completes the billing process.

  The settlement service system 2 collects the price from the customer based on the billing information generated by the management server 10. The settlement service system 2 is connected to a plurality of fee payment terminals 8 via the dedicated network 7 and receives inquiries about billing information from the fee payment terminals 8 and notification of payment of fees. After receiving the notification, the billing information is processed and the management server 10 is notified of this.

  The fee payment terminal 8 is a terminal that receives a charge amount inquiry from a customer, displays the charge amount, and receives payment from the customer. The operation of the terminal is performed by the customer himself or the employee of the store where the terminal is installed. For example, a POS terminal cash register at a convenience store, an information terminal, a bank ATM, or the like may be used. The fee payment terminal 8 performs payment reception processing while transmitting / receiving inquiry information and amount receipt information to / from the payment service system 2.

  The meter reading server 4 distributes and collects meter reading information with a plurality of handy terminals 6 and transmits / receives meter reading information to / from the management server 10. The meter-reading server 4 and the handy terminal 6 are connected by a network 5, but this network may be a dedicated wireless communication, or a general mobile phone network or a telephone network.

  The handy terminal 6 is a terminal that receives a result of meter reading by a person in charge of meter reading and transmits the result to the management server 10 via the network 5 and the meter reading server 4. Information for meter reading is distributed from the management server 10 via the meter reading server 4. The meter reading person carries the handy terminal 6, goes to the customer's house based on the meter reading information, performs meter reading, and inputs the result to the handy terminal 6. The handy terminal 6 can calculate the usage fee by its own arithmetic processing unit 62, or obtain the usage fee by referring to the management server 10 by the transmission / reception unit 61. In addition, the handy terminal 6 can print out the meter reading information and the usage fee as notification information, and the meter reading person gives the printed notification information to the customer and informs the customer of the meter reading information.

  In FIG. 1, a billing information management system 1 is composed of a management server 10, a meter reading server 4, and a handy terminal 6. Further, the billing information management system 1 is added with a settlement service system 2 and a fee payment terminal 8 to constitute a utility fee collection system 100.

  As mentioned above, although the structure of the utility bill collection system 100 which concerns on embodiment of this invention was shown, this invention is not limited to this structure. For example, although the networks 5 and 7 are shown as dedicated networks, they may be the same as the network 3 which is a general communication network. Further, the management server 10 and the meter-reading server 4 can be configured as one body. In the following description, it is assumed that the management server 10 and the meter reading server 4 are provided separately.

  Next, the configuration of the management server 10 and the settlement service system 2 will be described with reference to the functional block diagrams of FIGS.

  The management server 10 includes a transmission / reception unit 11 that communicates with the communication network 3, an arithmetic processing unit 12 that performs arithmetic processing related to customer information or billing information, and a storage unit 13 that stores data related to customers and billing.

  The transmission / reception unit 11 of the management server 10 is connected to the settlement service system 2 via the meter reading server 4 and the communication network 3.

  The arithmetic processing unit 12 of the management server 10 includes a payment information generation unit 1201 that generates payment information to be transmitted to the payment service system 2, a payment information transmission unit 1202 that transmits the payment information to the payment service system 2, and a payment service. A receipt number acquisition unit 1203 that acquires a reception number assigned to settlement information by the system, a meter reading information generation unit 1204 that generates information necessary for meter reading for a customer, and a meter reading server 4 Meter reading information transmitting means 1205 for transmitting to the handy terminal 6 via the terminal, meter reading result acquiring means 1206 for receiving the meter reading result transmitted from the handy terminal 6, charge calculating means 1207 for calculating a charge from the meter reading result, handy terminal 6 and billing service system 2 to notify the billing fee information And 1208, and a billing information generating means 1209 Metropolitan for billing information generation.

  The storage unit 13 of the management server 10 includes a customer information DB 131 that holds information related to the customer's address and name, a payment information DB 132 that holds information related to payment information of the customer's usage fee, and the like for meter reading by the handy terminal 6. It consists of a meter reading information DB 133 that holds information, a billing information DB 134 that holds information related to billing information for usage charges to customers, and the like.

  The settlement service system 2 includes a transmission / reception unit 21 that communicates with the communication network 3 and the leased line network 7, a central processing unit 22 that performs processing related to payment information, and a storage unit 23 that stores data related to payment and customers. Has been.

  The transmission / reception unit 21 of the settlement service system 2 is connected to the billing information management system 2 via the communication network 5 and is connected to the fee payment terminal 8 via the dedicated line network 7.

  The calculation processing unit 22 of the payment service system 2 includes a payment information acquisition unit 222 for receiving payment information transmitted from the management server 10, a payment information processing unit 223 for performing a payment information update process, and the payment information. Receiving number generating means 224 for generating the receiving number, receiving number notifying means 225 for notifying the management server 10 of the receiving number, and charging fee information acquiring means 226 for acquiring the charging fee information from the management server 10 Is done.

  The storage unit 23 of the payment service system 2 includes a payment information DB 231 for holding payment information and a reception number DB 232 for holding reception number information.

  The processing flow of the utility bill collection system 100 including the management server 10 according to the present invention will be described with reference to the data configuration diagram of FIG. 3 and the flowchart of FIG.

  The meter reading information generation unit 1204 extracts customer information whose scheduled meter reading date is after a predetermined business day from the customer information DB 131, creates meter reading information based on the customer information, and stores it in the meter reading information DB 133 (S101). Since the scheduled meter reading date is determined for each region, it can be searched from the address of the customer information (FIG. 4 (a)). Further, a desired date for each customer may be registered in the customer information DB 131 and searched based on the information.

  The data structure of the meter reading information DB 133 is as shown in FIG. The meter reading information is generated by the meter reading information generation means 1204 with reference to the previous meter reading information in the customer information DB 131 and the meter reading information DB 133. At the time of generation, the meter value, usage, and receipt number are undecided, so the initial value is blank. These values are updated based on the data acquired in a later step.

  The payment information generation means 1201 creates payment information for the billing fee to be paid by the payment service system 2 based on the customer information in the customer information DB 131 and the meter reading information stored in the meter reading information DB 133, Store in the settlement information DB 132 (S102). The data structure of the payment information is as shown in FIG. The settlement information is generated based on the meter reading information, and the settlement information is generated in one-to-one correspondence with each data of the meter reading information. Of the payment information, the value of the customer financial institution name is determined with reference to the customer information DB 131. The receipt number is blank when generating payment information, and the initial value of the billing amount and handling deadline is set to 0 and the creation date. These values are updated based on the data acquired in a later step.

  The payment information transmission unit 1202 transmits the generated payment information to the payment service system 2, and the payment service system 2 receives the payment information by the payment information acquisition unit 222 (S103).

  The receipt number generation means 224 in the settlement service system 2 generates a receipt number for the received settlement information, sets the receipt number in the settlement information, and stores it in the settlement information DB 231 and the receipt number DB 232 (S104). The payment information DB 231 stores data having the same structure as the payment information DB 132 in the management server 10. The receipt number can be generated by storing the last number issued in the receipt number DB 232 and incrementing the number, but any method that can generate a unique number is possible. Optional. An example of the data structure of the reception number DB 232 is as shown in FIG.

  Thereafter, the combination information of the payment ID and the reception number of the payment information is transmitted to the management server 10 by the reception number notification unit 225, and the reception number acquisition unit 1203 in the management server 10 receives the transmitted combination information (S105). ).

  The meter reading information generation unit 1204 searches the settlement information DB 132 from the settlement ID in the received combination information, updates the receipt number of the corresponding settlement information to the receipt number corresponding to the combination information, and stores it in the meter reading information DB 133 (S106). ).

  The meter reading information transmission means 1205 transmits the meter reading information to the handy terminal 6 via the meter reading server 4 and the network 5, and the handy terminal 6 receives the meter reading information by the transmitting / receiving unit 61 and stores it in the storage unit 63. (S107).

  The person in charge of meter reading performs meter reading work while referring to the meter reading information in the handy terminal, and inputs the result into the handy terminal 6, and the handy terminal 6 stores the result of meter reading in the storage unit 63 (S108).

  The handy terminal 6 calculates the usage amount from the meter reading result, calculates the fee by a predetermined fee calculation method such as multiplying the usage amount by the unit price, and uses the calculated fee as the scheduled charge amount, along with the meter reading result and customer information As a printout from the output unit 64 (S109). The amount calculated here is a scheduled charge amount, and the official charge amount is a value calculated by the management server 10. The reason for notifying the billing amount here is that it is possible to inform the customer immediately after the meter reading how much the billing amount will be as a preliminary report value. In general, the planned billing amount and the actual billing amount will be the same unless a fee adjustment such as a change in contract is entered, so the customer will know the correct amount in most cases if they know this information. Can do.

  At this time, referring to the customer's payment method, if the payment method is not bank withdrawal, the receipt number is also output at the same time. The customer can pay the fee based on the receipt number. Details thereof will be described later. At this time, a transfer sheet for paying the fee at a financial institution or a convenience store may be output at the same time.

  The handy terminal 6 transmits the meter reading result to the management server 10 via the network 5 and the meter reading server 4, and the management server 10 receives the meter reading result acquisition unit 1206 and passes the meter reading information generation unit 1204. The information is stored in the information DB 133 (S110).

  The fee calculation means 1207 calculates the fee based on the meter reading information, and updates the data of the corresponding billing amount in the settlement information DB 132 (S111). Since the usage fee calculated in step S109 is calculated as a provisional billing amount as described in step S109, the formal fee is calculated again here.

  The payment information transmitting unit 1202 transmits the payment information including the calculated fee and the reception number to the payment service system 2 via the network 3, and the payment service system 2 receives the payment information acquisition unit 222 and sets the payment information. The DB 231 is updated (S112). At this time, the handling deadline is updated to the correct date. For example, the value can be set to three weeks after the renewal date, and the customer can pay at the fee payment terminal 8 by that date. This value may be arbitrarily determined by a commercial service provider.

  The payment information acquisition unit 222 notifies the management server 10 that the update of the payment information has been completed (S113).

  The billing information creating unit 1209 generates billing information for managing the billing result to the customer from the settlement information and stores it in the billing information DB 134 (S114).

  The customer pays the fee charged by the notification information from the fee payment terminal 8 (S115). The customer can pay based on the information of the transfer form, the notification information, or the receipt number. The payment terminal 8 may be, for example, an information terminal at a convenience store, a POS cash register, an ATM at a financial institution, etc., and a customer inputs a receipt number into those terminals, or transfers a transfer form and notification information, You can inquire about your own charges. The inquiry is made by communication between the fee payment terminal 8 and the settlement service system 2, but is omitted in this flowchart. The fee payment operation may be performed on behalf of the person in charge at the place where the fee payment terminal 8 is set.

The fee payment terminal 88 notifies the payment service system 2 that the fee has been paid (S116).
The payment information processing means 223 of the payment service system 2 updates the payment information to the effect that payment has been made (S117).
The settlement service system 2 notifies the management server 10 that the settlement has been performed (S118).
The management server 10 updates the billing information and the paid flag of the settlement information by the settlement processing means not shown in FIG. 2, and completes the billing process.

  As described above, according to the billing information management system of the present invention, the customer can pay the fee at the fee payment terminal 8 if he / she knows the receipt number for his / her billing even without the transfer form. . This eliminates the need for the customer to save the transfer form, saves time, and allows the payment method to be freely selected such as transfer to a financial institution or payment at a convenience store. Increase opportunities and increase customer convenience. In addition, it is possible to reduce the cost of issuing or reissuing the transfer paper for the charge collection service provider.

Next, a second embodiment of the management server 10 according to the present invention will be described.
In the second embodiment, the server is inquired of the fee result in real time without calculating the temporary fee at the handy terminal in step S109.

The processing flow of the second embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
Since the processing after steps S101 to S108 and step S112 is the same, the description thereof is omitted. FIG. 5 illustrates portions where the processing from step S108 to step S112 is different.

  After completion of step S108, the handy terminal 6 transmits the meter reading result to the management server 10 via the meter reading server 4 and the network 5, and the management server 10 receives the meter reading result acquisition means 1206, It is stored in the meter reading information DB 133 (S201).

The fee calculation unit 1207 calculates the fee based on the meter reading information, and updates the data of the corresponding billing amount in the settlement information DB 132 (S202).
The charge notification means S1208 transmits the charge calculation result to the handy terminal 6 via the meter reading server 4 and the network 5 (S203).

  The handy terminal 6 prints out the output from the output unit 64 as notification information together with the received billing amount, the meter reading result, customer information, and the like (S204).

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, by displaying the official billing fee in the notification information, the customer can know the accurate billing fee in real time, and the payment service system 2 can be obtained from the management server 10. There is no time lag in processing until notification to, and payment can be made immediately.

Next, a third embodiment of the management server 10 according to the present invention will be described.
In the third embodiment, the management server 10 includes mail notification means (not shown) in the arithmetic processing unit 12. The mail notification means edits and transmits the notification information to the customer's mail address in the customer DB 131.

  The mail notification means edits the notification information after the completion of the billing information creation in step S114, and transmits the notification information to the customer by mail. The customer can receive the notification at the mobile phone terminal or the personal computer, and can make payment at the payment terminal 8 using the reception number described therein.

  At this time, the printing cost can be saved by not printing out the notification information for the customer whose e-mail address is registered in step S109.

  As described above, according to the third embodiment, by sending the notification information by e-mail, the burden of managing the customer's notification information and the reception number can be eliminated. Cost and printing cost of notification information can be reduced.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Management server 2 Settlement service system 3, 5, 7 Communication network 4 Meter-reading server 6 Handy terminal 8 Charge payment terminal 11, 21, 41, 61, 71 Transmission / reception part 12, 22, 42, 62, 72 Operation processing part 13, 23, 43, 63, 73 Storage unit 1201 Settlement information generation unit 1202 Settlement information transmission unit 1203 Acceptance number acquisition unit 1204 Meter reading information generation unit 1205 Meter reading information transmission unit 1206 Meter reading result acquisition unit 1207 Rate calculation unit 1208 Rate notification unit

Claims (4)

A billing information management system comprising a handy terminal and a management server for calculating a bill amount of a utility bill charged based on a meter reading result transmitted from the handy terminal,
The management server is
Payment information generation means for generating payment information for each customer's fee;
Payment information transmission means for transmitting the payment information to a payment service system provided by a company providing the payment service via a communication network;
A reception number receiving means for receiving from the payment service system a reception number that is issued in response to the payment information in the payment service system and is used when using a fee payment terminal;
Generating meter reading information for performing meter reading at the handy terminal from the settlement information, and transmitting to the handy terminal together with the receipt number; meter reading information generating means;
Meter reading result acquisition means for acquiring a meter reading result from the handy terminal;
Charge calculating means for calculating a billing amount for the settlement information from the meter reading result;
Charge notification means for transmitting the billing amount to the settlement service system as a billing amount for the settlement information,
The claim information management system, wherein the handy terminal prints the receipt number together with the meter reading result.   The management server includes a billing amount notifying unit that transmits the billing amount calculated by the fee calculating unit to the handy terminal, and the handy terminal has already received the billing amount from the management server when performing the printing. The billing information management system according to claim 1, wherein the billing amount is printed together with the meter reading result and the receipt number when it is received.   When the receipt service number is issued, the settlement service system temporarily sets a date before the issuance date as a handling deadline, and the charge notification unit of the management server transmits the billed amount to the settlement service system. 3. The claim information management system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the original handling deadline is notified, and the settlement service system changes the provisional handling deadline to the original handling deadline. The management server is
Notification information editing means for editing notification information about billing information for a customer from the settlement information, the receipt number, and the billing amount;
Notification information transmitting means for transmitting the notification information to the customer by e-mail via a communication network;
The claim information management system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising:

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