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AssigneeThe Crawford Group, Inc.
InventorsM. Weldon Rogers IV, Craig Stephen Kennedy, David Gary Smith, William T. Tingle, Anita K. Klopfenstein, Michael David Nolfo, Carla Denise Lambrecht, Bradley Jon DeKoter, Jon Bartels Jouris, Steven Short, Mary Douglas Schmitz
Estimating the term…
An Internet enabled, business-to-business computerized transaction system is disclosed in its preferred embodiment for use in providing rental car services for high volume users and comprises an Internet web portal through which the high volume user may access a plurality of service providers including an integrated business computer network for at least one rental vehicle service provider with that integrated business computer network also providing the same internet capability and connectivity to its employees. The rental vehicle services provider computer network is configured to interconnect a geographically diverse plurality of branch offices, cataloguing their available rental vehicles and schedules for same as well as handling all transactional data relating to its business, and does so with a centrally programmed service provider computer programmed to allow for a GUI web based internet browser connection, thereby enabling employees as well as customers with the same advantages. The Internet web portal provides ubiquitous connectivity and portability for a multi-level business organization who regularly places high volumes of rental purchases with its business partner and also those other service providers who may or may not have the same integrated business computer system and software, although in its full implementation, the present invention provides these same advantages to the service provider's employees. Utilizing the method and apparatus of the present invention large volumes of rental transactions may be placed, monitored, altered during performance, and closed out with financial accounting and payment being made virtually without human intervention in a GUI web based, internet browser environment which provides unique advantages over the prior art dedicated or proprietary software not employing this methodology.
A computer network for processing a plurality of transactions between a central server processor and a plurality of geographically diverse client processors, at least some of said client processors being located at a branch office whereat a service is provided to a consumer of said transaction, said network comprising a central server, said central server having a proprietary stored program for processing a plurality of transactions, each of said transactions involving a communication between said central server and at least one client processor, each of said client processors having a web browser for accessing said proprietary program and transacting said transactions on said server so that the entirety of data communicated within said transaction is available to said proprietary program.
A computer network including a server processor configured to handle real time processing of transaction requests from a plurality of client processors on a large scale basis, a substantial number of said client processors being geographically diverse from said server processor and each other, said client processors being configured to locally process and provide point of sale services for fulfillment of said transactions, said server processor including a proprietary program configured to process and accumulate data identifying and correlated to each of said transactions for the business processing of said transaction, a WAN interconnecting said plurality of client processors with said server processor, and said server being configured to provide a secure web based browser interface between each of said client processors and said server processor.
An internet enabled automatic rental vehicle transaction system, said system having an internet web portal through which an authorized purchaser of rental vehicle services may access over the internet a rental vehicle software program resident on a computer system, said rental vehicle software program being configured to automatically respond to a series of commands from said authorized purchaser and communicate a rental vehicle reservation to a second computer system, said second computer system having a second computer software program resident thereon, said second computer software program being configured to process rental vehicle transactions and communicate over the internet with a plurality of geographically diverse branch facilities each of which has a plurality of vehicles for rental, said second computer system being linked to said first computer system.
An automatic rental vehicle transaction system, said system having a graphical user interface (GUI) through which an authorized purchaser of rental vehicle services may access a rental vehicle software program resident on a computer system, said rental vehicle software program being configured to automatically respond to a series of commands from said authorized purchaser and communicate a rental vehicle reservation to a second computer system, said second computer system comprising a main frame computer and a plurality of client computers located at specific geographically remote rental vehicle locations at which vehicles for rent are situated, said second computer system having a GUI through which said client computers communicate with the main frame, said rental vehicle reservation having sufficient information for authorizing, processing and billing said rental vehicle transaction so that a rental vehicle transaction may be automatically processed thereby virtually without human intervention.
A method for processing vehicle rental transactions over the internet, said method comprising the steps of:
A method for providing a GUI interface through which an authorized purchaser of rental vehicle services may access a rental vehicle software program resident on a rental vehicle provider's first business computer system, and a GUI interface through which the employees of the rental vehicle provider may access a proprietary program on a second business computer system, said method comprising the steps of:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.