US 7,627,554 B2 · Uniform financial reporting system interface utilizing staging tables having a standardized structure

Abstract

The present invention relates to a uniform financial reporting system interface, between a financial reporting tool and a general ledger database, which is capable of receiving a generalized request (non-database-specific request) from a report object or engine of a financial reporting tool. Based upon information included in the generalized request, the uniform interface accesses data from the general ledger database and returns the accessed data to the report object. The data is accessed from the general ledger database and returned to the report object by the uniform interface with the help of at least one staging table that has a standardized structure that is independent of a structure of the general ledger database.

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Claims14

Dependent claims

A computer system comprising:

a processor;
a computer storage medium accessible by the processor, the computer storage medium including components stored thereon, the components comprising:
a uniform interface that is independent of any user interface, having a set of defined options that are independent of any user interface options, configured to receive a generalized request from a report object and, based upon information included in the generalized request, access data from a general ledger database and return the accessed data to the report object, the report object being configured to operate without directly accessing the general ledger database;
wherein at least one staging table, having a standardized structure which is independent of business rules of the general ledger database, is utilized by the uniform interface to store at least a portion of the accessed data;
wherein the uniform interface is further configured to access the data from the general ledger database by translating the generalized request into a specific query which, upon execution, populates the at least one staging table with the accessed data;
wherein the uniform interface is further configured to, in response to the generalized request, query the at least one staging table to retrieve the accessed data and to return the accessed data to the report object after execution of the specific query that populates the at least one staging table;
wherein columns in the at least one staging table are related to the set of defined options of the uniform interface;
wherein the at least one staging table comprises an account staging table that is configured for storing data related to accounts for an entity, a balance staging table that is configured for storing data related to requested balance information and a column-filter staging table configured for storing data related to filtered accounts;
wherein the accessed data obtained from the general ledger database, stored in the at least one staging table, and returned to the report object comprises data from the account staging table, the balance staging table and the column-filter staging table;
and
wherein the uniform interface comprises computer program code stored on the computer storage medium and executable by the processor of the computer system.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Description5,629 words

Summary508 words

#The present invention relates to software systems for financial management of businesses. More specifically, the present invention relates to a uniform financial reporting system interface that utilizes staging tables having a standardized structure, which is not tied to a data schema or business rules of any particular general ledger system.

#A general ledger is a storehouse for financial activity and history (accounting information) of a company. Currently, a number of different general ledger software systems are available for storing accounting information. Thus, each general ledger system, being utilized for storing accounting information, may be from a different vendor or on a different platform (Oracle, Informix, Microsoft SQL Server, etc.).

#Financial reporting tools, which access and report information form general ledger databases, are widely known in the art and are widely available in the consumer market. Some prior art financial reporting tools include program code in their software to directly access a particular general ledger database (i.e., the program code (such as SQL statements) in the software of such reporting tools is tied to a structure or business rules of the particular general ledger database). One problem with such an approach is that, when a new interface to a new general ledger has to be added, the program code of the reporting tool needs to be modified to provide access to the new general ledger. Such modifications in the program code of the reporting tool could damage the access to the other general ledger database. Further, from a programming or coding standpoint, such an approach is very complex.

Brief description of the drawings5 figures

#FIG. 1 is a block diagram of one illustrative embodiment in which the present invention can be used.

#FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a financial management system utilizing a uniform interface in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

#FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a client server implementation of an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed description5,016 words

#Appendix A includes certain methods utilized to carry out embodiments of the present invention.

#The present invention relates, in general, to a uniform financial reporting system interface between a financial reporting tool and a general ledger database. More specifically, the present invention provides a uniform financial reporting system interface that utilizes staging tables having a standardized structure, which is not tied to a structure or business rules of any particular general ledger system. However, before describing the present invention in greater detail, one illustrative embodiment in which the present invention can be used will be discussed.

#FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a suitable computing system environment 100 on which the invention may be implemented. The computing system environment 100 is only one example of a suitable computing environment and is not intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use or functionality of the invention. Neither should the computing environment 100 be interpreted as having any dependency or requirement relating to any one or combination of components illustrated in the exemplary operating environment 100.

Facts

Application

10/810,766Filed 26 Mar 2004

Published

US 2005/0216497 A129 Sep 2005

Granted

1 Dec 2009

Term ended

29 Mar 2025

Estimated · how

20 years from earliest known nonprovisional domestic filing plus recorded patent term adjustment, including 368 days of adjustment. Maintenance-fee lapses, terminal disclaimers and statutory extensions have not been checked. The continuity chain may be incomplete; this is not an enforceability determination.

Classification2 codes

G06Q 10/00
Administration
G06Q
Information and communication technology [ict] specially adapted for administrative, commercial, financial, managerial

Timeline

26 Mar 2004Application filedUS 10/810,766
26 Mar 2004Assigned to Microsoft Corporationassignment of assignor's interest
29 Sep 2005PublishedUS 2005/0216497 A1
1 Dec 2009GrantedUS 7,627,554 B2
9 Dec 2014Assigned to Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLCassignment of assignor's interest
29 Mar 2025Term endedEstimated, includes 368 days of adjustment

Uniform financial reporting system interface utilizing staging tables having a standardized structure

Life of this patent

Uniform financial reporting system interface utilizing staging tables having a standardized structure

Life of this patent

Life of this patent

Abstract

Drawings

Drawings

Claims14

Description5,629 words

Drawings

Classification2 codes

Life of this patent

Description5,629 words