Aggregate Constraints for Payment Transactions

Abstract

This document describes tools capable of authorizing or enabling authorization of multiple payment transactions without requiring that a buyer or seller authorize each transaction separately. The tools may do so by enabling a buyer or seller to select aggregate constraints, such as a total price or number of transactions. Based on these selected constraints, the tools may authorize every payment transaction that meets the aggregate constraints without requiring the buyer to authorize every transaction separately.

1 . A method implemented at least in part by a computing device comprising:
 enabling a user to select an aggregate price or aggregate quantity of transactions for a set of multiple payment transactions;   receiving, from the user and responsive to the act of enabling, a selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity; and   providing a unique identifier associated with the selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity effective to: enable a payment transaction requested by or associated with the user to be associated with the selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity; and enable a determination of whether the requested payment transaction satisfies the selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity when aggregated with a previously authorized or executed payment transaction of the set of multiple payment transactions.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the act of enabling the user further enables the user to select a time period for the selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the act of providing enables a determination of whether the requested payment transaction satisfies the selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity when aggregated with the previously authorized or executed payment transaction and where the previously authorized or executed payment transaction was requested within the time period. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the act of enabling the user provides a user interface with human-readable text indicating selectable aggregate constraints and the act of receiving receives the aggregate price or aggregate quantity through selection of the human-readable text or graphical indicia associated with the human-readable text. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the act of enabling the user provides an application program interface (API) through which a remote software application may interact sufficient to select the aggregate price or aggregate quantity and the act of receiving receives the aggregate price or aggregate quantity through the API. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the act of providing enables a determination of whether the requested payment transaction satisfies the selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity without explicit authorization from the user. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the act of enabling the user enables the user to select all of the constraints at one time. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the unique identifier is a token having a character string. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the act of receiving the selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity receives the selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity prior to authorization of or execution of the previously authorized or executed payment transaction. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity comprises both a selected aggregate price and a selected aggregate quantity. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the selected aggregate price or aggregate quantity comprises only one of a selected aggregate price and a selected aggregate quantity. 
     
     
         12 . A method implemented at least in part by a computing device comprising:
 enabling a user to select a set of one or more aggregate constraints for aggregate multiple payment transactions; and   receiving, from the user and responsive to the act of enabling, a selected set of one or more aggregate constraints constraining the aggregate multiple payment transactions, the selected set of aggregate constraints effective to enable a determination of whether or not a requested payment transaction meets the selected set of aggregate constraints when the requested payment transaction is aggregated with previously requested payment transactions that met the selected set of aggregate constraints.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the act of enabling the user to select the set of one or more aggregate constraints enables the user to select the constraints at one time. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the act of receiving the selected set of one or more aggregate constraints receives the set of one or more aggregate constraints prior to authorization of or execution of any of the previously requested payment transactions. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the act of enabling the user provides an application program interface (API) through which a remote software application may interact sufficient to select the selected set of aggregate constraints and the act of receiving receives the selected set of aggregate constraints through the API. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the act of enabling the user provides a user interface with human-readable text indicating selectable aggregate constraints and the act of receiving receives the selected set of aggregate constraints through selection of the human-readable text or graphical indicia associated with the human-readable text. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising receiving a request to authorize or execute the requested payment transaction. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , further comprising determining that the requested payment transaction meets the selected set of aggregate constraints when the requested payment transaction is aggregated with the previously requested payment transactions that met the selected set of aggregate constraints. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein one of the selected set of aggregate constraints sets a maximum total monetary cost for the aggregate multiple payment transactions. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the one of the selected set of aggregate constraints setting the maximum total monetary cost for the aggregate multiple transactions comprises a time period in which the maximum total monetary cost is based and outside of which transactions are not considered part of the aggregate multiple payment transactions.