Payment server, method for controlling the payment server, and program

Abstract

To improve user convenience by making it easier to register account information. [Solution] A settlement server that performs electronic payments in an electronic payment service and is capable of communicating with a user terminal device operated by a user of an electronic payment service, comprising: a receiving unit that receives an account linkage request from the user terminal device, which includes employee identification information for identifying the employee in the labor management server and account identification information for identifying the employee's account in the electronic payment service; an acquisition unit that acquires the employee's account information in the electronic payment service based on the account identification information; and a transmitting unit that transmits an account linkage result, which includes the employee identification information, the account identification information, and the employee's account information, to the labor management server.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a settlement server, a control method for the settlement server, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, an electronic payment service using a user terminal device owned by a user has been known. For example, in Patent Document 1, a code such as a barcode or a QR code (registered trademark) is displayed on a user terminal device, and an electronic payment system that executes electronic payment by having a store terminal device installed in a store read these code information has been proposed.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the electronic payment system described in Patent Document 1, information on accounts managed by the electronic payment system (for example, information on e-money accounts or bank accounts) cannot be linked with external services. Therefore, in order to register information on accounts managed by the electronic payment system with an external service, the user himself / herself needs to register the account information with the external service that he / she wants to link, which may be inconvenient for the user.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and one of its purposes is to provide a settlement server, a control method for the settlement server, and a program that can easily register account information and improve convenience for users.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is a settlement server that performs electronic payments in an electronic payment service and is capable of communicating with a user terminal device operated by a user of an electronic payment service, comprising: a receiving unit that receives an account linkage request from the user terminal device, which includes employee identification information for identifying the employee and account identification information for identifying the employee's account in the electronic payment service; an acquisition unit that acquires the employee's account information in the electronic payment service based on the account identification information; and a transmitting unit that transmits an account linkage result, which includes the employee identification information, the account identification information, and the employee's account information, to the labor management server. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a payment server, a method for controlling the payment server, and a program that can easily register account information and improve convenience for users. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This diagram shows an example of a configuration for implementing an electronic payment service. [Figure 2] This is a sequence diagram (part 1) illustrating the general flow of electronic payments. [Figure 3] This is a sequence diagram (part 2) illustrating the general flow of electronic payments. [Figure 4] This is a diagram showing the configuration of payment server 100. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of the contents of user information 182. [Figure 6] This diagram shows an example of the contents of merchant / store information 186. [Figure 7] This is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the labor management server 300. [Figure 8] This figure shows an example of the contents of employee information 392. [Figure 9] This sequence diagram shows an example of the process of setting the salary payment method to electronic money, which is executed by the employee terminal device 400, the labor management server 300, the payment server 100, and the user terminal device 200. [Figure 10] This diagram shows an example of window W1 for setting up payroll bank accounts in a labor management system. [Figure 11] This figure shows an example of the bank account change window W2 in a labor management system. [Figure 12] This figure shows an example of a QR code display window W3 in a labor management system. [Figure 13] This figure shows an example of a salary payment settings screen. [Figure 14] This figure shows an example of confirmation screen W4 in a labor management system. [Figure 15] This sequence diagram shows an example of the process of setting the salary payment method to electronic money, which is executed by the labor management server 300, the payment server 100, and the user terminal device 200. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The following describes the payment server, the control method for the payment server, and the program's implementation with reference to the diagrams. Various devices, such as the "server" mentioned below, which provide services to users or perform internal analysis, may be implemented by a distributed group of devices, and the operators of each device may be different. Furthermore, the owner of the hardware of the devices (the provider of the cloud server) and the operator that actually operates them may also be different. An electronic payment service is a service that supports payment for the purchase of goods and services at a store. A store refers to, for example, a physical store (a brick-and-mortar store) that exists in the real world, but may also include a virtual store for e-commerce. A virtual store may include one provided by an entity different from the operator of the electronic payment service. In that case, when settling a purchase at a virtual store, the system is controlled to transition to the electronic payment service interface screen. In an electronic payment service, a store is treated as belonging to, for example, a merchant (brand), and processing such as payment when a purchase is made at a store is mainly carried out between the user and the merchant. Alternatively, processing such as payment may be carried out between the user and the store.

[0010] [Electronic payment service] Figure 1 shows an example of a configuration for realizing an electronic payment service. The electronic payment service is implemented with a payment server 100 at its center. The payment server 100 communicates with, for example, one or more user terminal devices 200, one or more first store terminal devices 50, one or more second store terminal devices 70, a labor management server 300, and employee terminal devices 400 via a network NW. The network NW includes, for example, the internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), a wireless base station, and provider equipment.

[0011] The user terminal device 200 is, for example, a portable terminal device such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal. The user terminal device 200 is a computer device having at least an optical reading function, a communication function, a display function, an input reception function, and a program execution function. In the following description, the configurations for realizing these functions are respectively referred to as a camera, a communication device, a touch panel, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), etc. In the user terminal device 200, a settlement application (hereinafter referred to as a settlement app) 20 is executed by a processor such as a CPU, and it operates to provide an electronic payment service to the user in cooperation with the payment server 100. The settlement app 20 is installed in the user terminal device 200 from, for example, an application store, and controls a camera, a communication device, a touch panel, etc.

[0012] The first store terminal device 50 is installed, for example, in a store. The first store terminal device 50 is a computer device having at least a product price acquisition function, an optical reading function, a program execution function, and a communication function. The first store terminal device 50 includes a so-called POS (Point of Sale) device, and the product price acquisition function and the optical reading function may be realized by the POS device. The store code image 60 is placed in the store and is a code image such as a QR code (registered trademark) printed on a paper or plastic medium. Note that the store code image 60 may be displayed by a display placed in the store (which may be a display of a terminal device such as a smartphone).

[0013] The second store terminal device 70 is used by the operator of the franchise store. The second store terminal device 70 is a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a personal computer, or the like. In the second store terminal device 70, an interface 72 for the franchise store operates. The interface 72 for the franchise store may be an application for the franchise store or a browser. The interface 72 for the franchise store accepts settings of coupons and the like by the operator of the franchise store and transmits them to the settlement server 100. The second store terminal device 70 which is a smartphone has functions of displaying a code image corresponding to the store code image or reading the code image displayed by the user terminal device 200 by executing an application for the franchise store.

[0014] The settlement server 100 is a server device that manages electronic money available for electronic payment services. The settlement server 100 realizes electronic payment based on the settlement information received from the user terminal device 200 or the first store terminal device 50. The first store terminal device 50 may include a POS device and a franchise store server. In that case, the settlement information is transmitted from the POS device to the settlement server 100 via the franchise store server. In the following description, without particularly distinguishing this, it is assumed that the settlement information is transmitted from the first store terminal device 50.

[0015] The labor management server 300 is a computer that manages information related to the labor of employees in a company and communicates with the settlement server 100 and the employee terminal device 400 via the network NW. Although details will be described later, the labor management server 300 provides services such as management of employee information and cooperation with an attendance management system and a salary management system.

[0016] The employee terminal device 400 is a computer operated by an employee of a company and communicates with the labor management server 300 via the network NW. Although details will be described later, the employee terminal device 400 is used to utilize the services provided by the labor management server 300.

[0017] Figures 2 and 3 are sequence diagrams illustrating the general flow of electronic payments. There may be two patterns for electronic payments: Pattern 1 and Pattern 2.

[0018] In the case of Pattern 1 shown in Figure 2 (hereinafter referred to as User Scan), the user terminal device 200, with the payment application 20 running, decodes the store code image 60 using its optical reading function (S1). The store code image 60 contains information about the store URL (Uniform Resource Locator). This store URL is an electronic payment service domain to which information that can identify the store has been added, and is associated with the merchant ID and store ID, etc., at the payment server 100 (described later). The payment application 20 sends the first payment information, including the store URL and account ID, to the payment server 100 (S2). The payment server 100 searches for store information (described later) from the merchant ID and store ID corresponding to the store URL, obtains the merchant name and store name information (S3), and sends it to the payment application 20 (S4). The user enters the payment amount into the user terminal device 200 on the screen where the merchant name and store name are displayed (S5). The user terminal device 200 then generates second payment information, including at least the payment amount, and sends it to the payment server 100 (S6). The payment server 100 performs electronic payment based on the received second payment information (S7). The payment server 100 then sends a payment completion notification (information for displaying the payment completion screen) to the payment application 20 (S8), and the payment application 20 displays the payment completion screen (S9). If the store code image 60 is displayed on a display placed in the store, the store code image 60 may include payment amount information as well as the store URL. In this case, the procedure for the user to enter the payment amount is omitted, and the payment amount information is included in the first payment information and sent to the payment server 100. Merchant name and store name information may be included and displayed on the payment completion screen.

[0019] In the case of Pattern 2 shown in Figure 3 (hereinafter referred to as Store Scan), when the payment app 20 is launched, when a payment operation is performed in the payment app 20, when it is time for an automatic update (for example, every minute), and at other times, the payment app 20 sends a request to the payment server 100 to issue a one-time code (S11). The payment server 100 generates a one-time code (S12) and sends it to the payment app 20 (S13). The payment app 20 displays a code image such as a QR code (registered trademark) or barcode generated based on the one-time code (S14). The user holds the display surface of the user terminal device 200 over the first store terminal device 50, and the first store terminal device 50 decodes the code image using its optical reading function and obtains the one-time code, etc. (S15). Then, the first store terminal device 50 generates payment information including the one-time code, payment amount, merchant ID, store ID, etc., and sends it to the payment server 100 (S16). The payment amount information is obtained in advance by barcode scanning or manual input. Based on the received information, the payment server 100 identifies the user corresponding to the one-time code and performs the electronic payment (S17). The payment server 100 then sends a payment completion notification to the payment app 20 (S18), and the payment app 20 displays a payment completion screen (S19).

[0020] Furthermore, electronic payment may be performed using only one of the above patterns. Also, the "account ID" explained in Figure 2 may be other information that can be used as user identification information (for example, a phone number). In addition, the issuance of a one-time code may be omitted during store scanning, and the payment app 20 may display a code image generated based on the user's account ID. In that case, the payment server 100 identifies the user corresponding to the account ID instead of identifying the user corresponding to the one-time code.

[0021] [Payment Server] Figure 4 is a diagram of the configuration of the payment server 100. The payment server 100 includes, for example, a communication unit 110, a payment content provision unit 120, a payment processing unit 130, an information management unit 140, a receiving unit 150, an acquisition unit 160, a transmission unit 170, and a storage unit 180. Components other than the communication unit 110 and the storage unit 180 are realized, for example, by a hardware processor such as a CPU executing a program (software). Some or all of these components may be realized by hardware (including circuitry) such as LSI (Large Scale Integration), ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), and GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or by the cooperation of software and hardware. The program may be stored in advance on a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or flash memory (a storage device equipped with a non-transient storage medium), or it may be stored on a removable storage medium such as a DVD or CD-ROM (a non-transient storage medium) and installed on the storage device when the storage medium is inserted into the drive device.

[0022] The storage unit 180 can be an HDD, flash memory, RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The storage unit 180 may also be a NAS (Network Attached Storage) device that can be accessed by the payment server 100 via the network. The storage unit 180 stores information such as user information 182, payment content information 184, and merchant / store information 186.

[0023] The communication unit 110 is a communication interface for connecting to a network NW. The communication unit 110 is, for example, a network interface card.

[0024] The payment content provision unit 120, for example, has the functionality of a web server and provides information (content) for displaying various screens of the electronic payment service to the user terminal device 200. The payment content provision unit 120 reads the necessary content from the payment content information 184 as appropriate and provides it to the user terminal device 200. The user terminal device 200 receives various inputs from the user while the content is being played by the payment application 20 and transmits the aforementioned payment information, etc., to the payment server 100.

[0025] The payment processing unit 130 performs payment processing based on payment information transmitted by the user terminal device 200 or the first store terminal device 50. The payment processing unit 130 performs payment processing while referring to the user information 182.

[0026] Figure 5 shows an example of the contents of User Information 182. User Information 182 is an example of user registration information. User Information 182 includes, for example, user URL, account ID, telephone number, password, as well as email address, user ID, name, address, gender, date of birth, registration date, charge balance, credit payment settings, credit payment limit, credit payment amount, available credit payment amount, payment method settings, bank account, credit card number, charge history information, payment history information, employee ID, server ID, and virtual account information. The user URL is used for transfer processing between users. When registering for the electronic payment service, registration of a telephone number and password is mandatory. The account ID is issued to the user by the payment server 100, and the user ID is an ID that the user can set at will (or not set). Similarly, the email address, name, address, and date of birth are also information that the user can set at will (or not set). The registration date is the date the user registered for the electronic payment service (the date the account was created). Hereafter, the user instance (electronic payment account) to which this information is associated will be referred to as an account.

[0027] The charge balance is information indicating the balance of electronic money set by the user by sending money to their account in advance. Methods of sending money include sending from an ATM (Automatic Teller Machine) of a designated provider (bank) and sending from a registered bank account. The credit payment setting indicates whether or not the user has completed the settings to enable electronic payments by credit card, and is set to either "Completed" or "Not Completed". The credit payment limit is the monthly limit for credit payments, the credit payment amount is the amount already used for credit payments in the current month, and the available credit payment amount is the amount available for credit payments in the current month, calculated by subtracting the credit payment amount from the credit payment limit. While the diagram shows only one credit payment limit, in reality there are also daily limits, and the lower of these may be set as the credit payment limit. Further details on credit payments will be described later. The payment method setting indicates whether the user will use electronic payment with the charge balance or payment by credit card at that time. The bank account and credit card numbers are information (account number, card number) of a bank account or credit card number that can be used to deposit funds into the electronic payment service. The charge history information is a record of when the user has previously sent money to the electronic payment service to increase the charge balance. The payment history information shows the details of each payment made by the user (date and time, store ID of the store where the purchase was made, payment amount, payment method, etc.). The employee ID is identification information used to identify an employee. The server ID is identification information used to identify the labor management server 300. The virtual account information is information (financial institution name, branch number, account number, etc.) associated with each employee and owned by the company operating the electronic payment service. The virtual account is an example of an electronic money account used to receive electronic money.

[0028] Figure 6 shows an example of the contents of the merchant / store information 186. The merchant / store information 186 includes, for example, a first table 186A in which merchant IDs and store IDs are associated with store URLs, a second table 186B in which merchant names and sales figures are associated with merchant IDs, and a third table 186C in which store names are associated with store IDs. In addition to this information, the merchant / store information 186 may also include information such as the merchant or store category, store location, and payment patterns.

[0029] The information management unit 140 manages user information 182 and affiliated store / store information 186 based on information obtained from the user terminal device 200 and the second store terminal device 70. For example, the information management unit 140 adds, edits, deletes, etc., new records for user information 182 and affiliated store / store information 186.

[0030] The receiving unit 150 receives various information (e.g., account linking requests) from other devices by controlling the communication unit 110. The acquisition unit 160 acquires employees' virtual account information and bank account information. The transmitting unit 170 transmits various information (e.g., account linking results) to other devices by controlling the communication unit 110. Details of the processing by the receiving unit 150, acquisition unit 160, and transmitting unit 170 will be described later.

[0031] [Electronic payment] When the payment processing unit 130 obtains payment information from the user terminal device 200 or the first store terminal device 50, it refers to the user information 182 to obtain the user's "payment method setting". For users whose "payment method setting" is set to "charge balance", the payment processing unit 130 performs electronic payment as follows: For example, the payment processing unit 130 performs electronic payment by decreasing the charge balance, which is managed in association with the user ID, and increasing the value of the merchant's sales proceeds item. The merchant's sales proceeds item value is not used as electronic money itself, for example, but rather the amount corresponding to the sales proceeds item value is transferred to the bank account in a cycle according to the agreement between the merchant and the electronic payment service.

[0032] The payment processing unit 130 performs electronic payment as follows for users whose "payment method setting" is set to "credit card payment". Credit card payment is a payment method that is carried out in cooperation with a credit card company, which is a separate entity from the electronic payment service operator. The electronic payment service operator acts as the creditor and allows electronic payment that does not depend on the charge balance within the credit limit. In order to use the credit card payment service, it may be required to obtain a credit card provided by the electronic payment service operator. The amount used by credit card payment is settled in a lump sum for the month on the payment date of the following month, for example, by withdrawal from a bank account. In this case, the payment processing unit 130 performs a provisional settlement by adding the settlement amount to the credit card usage amount and subtracting the same amount from the available credit card balance. When the closing date arrives, it processes the payment for the current month to be withdrawn on the payment date of the following month as described above, or requests the credit card company operator to perform the said process. If the settlement amount exceeds the available credit card balance at the time of provisional settlement, an error notification is sent back to the payment app 20.

[0033] [Labor Management Server] Figure 7 is a diagram of the configuration of the labor management server 300. The labor management server 300 includes, for example, a communication unit 310, a login processing unit 320, a generation unit 330, an account management unit 340, a receiving unit 350, a transmission unit 360, an update unit 370, a notification unit 380, and a storage unit 390. Components other than the communication unit 310 and the storage unit 390 are realized, for example, by a hardware processor such as a CPU executing a program (software). Some or all of these components may be realized by hardware (including circuitry) such as an LSI, ASIC, FPGA, or GPU, or by the cooperation of software and hardware. The program may be stored in advance in a storage device such as an HDD or flash memory (a storage device equipped with a non-transient storage medium), or it may be stored in a removable storage medium such as a DVD or CD-ROM (a non-transient storage medium) and installed in the storage device when the storage medium is mounted on a drive device.

[0034] The storage unit 390 can be an HDD, flash memory, RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The storage unit 390 may also be a NAS device that can be accessed by the labor management server 300 via a network. Employee information 392 is stored in the storage unit 390.

[0035] The communication unit 310 is a communication interface for connecting to a network NW. The communication unit 310 is, for example, a network interface card.

[0036] The login processing unit 320 accepts logins from employees. The generation unit 330 generates application launch information to launch the payment application 20 on the user terminal device 200. The account management unit 340 manages the employee's salary deposit account. The receiving unit 350 receives various information (e.g., account linking results) from other devices by controlling the communication unit 310. The transmitting unit 360 transmits various information (e.g., application launch information) to other devices by controlling the communication unit 310. The update unit 370 updates the employee information 392. The notification unit 380 provides various notifications to employees. Details of the processing by the login processing unit 320, generation unit 330, account management unit 340, receiving unit 350, transmitting unit 360, update unit 370, and notification unit 380 will be described later.

[0037] Figure 8 shows an example of the contents of employee information 392. Employee information 392 includes, for example, employee ID, password, salary payment method, virtual account information, bank account information, salary history, and account ID. As mentioned above, the employee ID is identification information used to identify an employee. The password is authentication information used by the labor management server 300 to authenticate the employee when performing the login process. The salary payment method is the method of payment for the employee's salary, and can be set as electronic money or a bank account. The virtual account information is similar to the virtual account information shown in Figure 5, and is linked to each employee, containing information about a bank account (financial institution name, branch number, account number, etc.) owned by the company operating the electronic payment service. The bank account information is information about the employee's bank account (financial institution name, branch number, account number, etc.). The salary history is information showing the history of salaries paid to the employee. The account ID is similar to the account ID shown in Figure 5, and is information used to identify the employee's account in the electronic payment service.

[0038] [Process to set salary payment method to electronic money] Figure 9 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the process of setting the salary payment method to electronic money, which is performed by the employee terminal device 400, the labor management server 300, the payment server 100, and the user terminal device 200. First, the employee terminal device 400 sends login information to the labor management server 300 (step S21). Specifically, the employee terminal device 400 displays a login screen for logging into the labor management system provided by the labor management server 300, and sends the login information, including the employee ID and password entered by the employee on the login screen, to the labor management server 300.

[0039] Next, the login processing unit 320 of the labor management server 300 performs login processing based on the login information received from the employee terminal device 400 (step S22). Specifically, the login processing unit 320 determines whether the employee ID and password included in the login information match the employee ID and password included in the employee information 392. If the login processing unit 320 determines that this information does not match, it sends a notification to the employee terminal device 400 indicating that login is not permitted.

[0040] On the other hand, if the login processing unit 320 determines that this information matches, it sends a notification to the employee terminal device 400 indicating that login is permitted (step S23). As a result, the login from the employee is accepted, and the home screen of the labor management system is displayed on the display unit of the employee terminal device 400.

[0041] Next, the employee terminal device 400 sends an account setup request to the labor management server 300 to set up the bank account for salary payments for the employee whose login has been accepted (step S24). The account setup request is an application to set up the bank account for salary payments for the employee whose login has been accepted. This point will be explained in detail using the screen of the labor management system.

[0042] Figure 10 shows an example of the salary deposit account settings window W1 in a labor management system. The salary deposit account settings window W1 is a window for setting the type of salary receiving account. As shown in Figure 10, the salary deposit account settings window W1 includes buttons B1 to B4.

[0043] Button B1 is a radio button for specifying a bank account as the account for employee salary deposits. Button B2 is a radio button for specifying an electronic money account as the account for employee salary deposits. Button B3 is a cancel button for canceling the salary deposit account setting. When Button B3 is clicked by an employee, the salary deposit account setting window W1 will be closed.

[0044] On the other hand, if either button B1 or B2 is selected and button B4 is clicked by the employee, the employee terminal device 400 sends account setting information to the labor management server 300. The account setting information includes the employee ID and the salary payment method. If button B1 is clicked, the salary payment method is a bank account, and if button B2 is clicked, the salary payment method is electronic money. The update unit 370 of the labor management server 300 updates the salary payment method field in the employee information 392 based on the account setting information received from the employee terminal device 400.

[0045] Figure 11 shows an example of a bank transfer account change window W2 in a labor management system. The bank transfer account change window W2 is a window for entering information about an employee's salary receiving account and automatic transfer destination account. As shown in Figure 11, the bank transfer account change window W2 includes a button B5 and account information input areas A1 and A2.

[0046] Account information input area A1 is where the employee's salary receiving account information is entered. The employee's salary will be transferred to the account entered in account information input area A1. If the salary receiving account type is set to "bank account," information about the employee's bank account (bank account information) will be entered in account information input area A1. On the other hand, if the salary receiving account type is set to "electronic money," information about the employee's virtual account in the electronic payment service (virtual account information) will be entered in account information input area A1. As mentioned above, virtual account information is an example of an electronic money account for receiving electronic money, and is linked to each employee and contains information about a bank account (financial institution name, branch number, account number, etc.) owned by the company operating the electronic payment service. When the salary is transferred to the employee's virtual account, an amount of electronic money equivalent to the transferred salary will be charged to the employee's account. Details of the salary transfer process to the virtual account will be described later.

[0047] Account information input area A2 is for entering information about the automatic transfer destination account. The automatic transfer destination account is used when, for any reason, the employee's salary cannot be transferred to their salary receiving account (the account entered in account information input area A1). For example, since there is a predetermined limit on the balance of electronic money that users of electronic payment services can hold, if the salary receiving account type is set to "electronic money," there is a limit to the amount that can be received in the employee's salary receiving account. Therefore, the amount of salary that could not be received in the employee's salary receiving account will be transferred to the automatic transfer destination account entered in account information input area A2. The automatic transfer destination account will be the employee's bank account, not a virtual account.

[0048] If employees were required to manually enter information into account information input areas A1 and A2, their workload would increase, and there would be a risk of incorrect information entry. Therefore, to enable automatic information entry into account information input areas A1 and A2, the transfer account change window W2 is equipped with a button B5 to instruct the employee to link with the electronic payment service. When button B5 is clicked by an employee, the employee terminal device 400 sends an account setup request to the labor management server 300. The account setup request includes the employee ID.

[0049] Returning to the explanation of Figure 9, we will describe an example where electronic money is selected as the salary payment method in the salary transfer account setting window W1 (Figure 10), and button B5 is clicked in the transfer account change window W2 (Figure 11). When the receiving unit 350 of the labor management server 300 receives the account setting request from the employee terminal device 400 (step S24), the generating unit 330 generates code information in response to the account setting request (step S25).

[0050] The code information is an example of application launch information for launching the payment application 20. The code information is coded information that includes the employee ID, the server ID, and a link (such as a deep link) for launching the payment application 20 to use the electronic payment service. The server ID is identification information for identifying the labor management server 300 and is stored in the storage unit 390. The code information may be a one-dimensional code such as a barcode, or a two-dimensional code such as a QR code (registered trademark). The following explanation describes an example where the code information is a QR code (registered trademark).

[0051] The generation unit 330 creates a QR code using a method predetermined between the payment server 100 and the labor management server 300, but the method of generating the QR code is not limited to this. For example, the generation unit 330 may send a QR code generation request to the payment server 100 and receive the generated QR code from the payment server 100. In this case, the process of receiving the QR code from the payment server 100 will be considered as the process of generating the QR code.

[0052] The transmitting unit 360 transmits the QR code to the employee terminal device 400 (step S26). When the employee terminal device 400 receives the QR code from the labor management server 300, it displays the QR code on its display unit (step S27). This will be explained in detail using the screen of the labor management system.

[0053] Figure 12 shows an example of a QR code display window W3 in a labor management system. As shown in Figure 12, the QR code display window W3 includes a message M and a QR code C. Message M contains an explanation about receiving salary via electronic money. After the employee confirms the content of message M, they take a picture of QR code C using the user terminal device 200.

[0054] Returning to the explanation in Figure 9, the user terminal device 200 takes a picture of QR code C (step S28) and decodes QR code C (step S29). As a result, the user terminal device 200 can obtain the employee ID, the server ID, and a link to launch the payment application 20 for using the electronic payment service.

[0055] Next, the user terminal device 200 launches the payment application 20 based on the link (deep link, etc.) obtained by decoding the QR code C (step S30). At this time, the payment application 20 displays the salary payment settings screen on the display unit of the user terminal device 200.

[0056] Figure 13 shows an example of the salary payment settings screen. As shown in Figure 12, the salary payment settings screen displays a message about receiving salary via electronic money. The salary payment settings screen also includes buttons B6 and B7.

[0057] Button B6 is for canceling the salary payment settings. When an employee selects (tap) button B6, the salary payment settings screen will be closed. Button B7 is for proceeding with the salary payment settings procedure. When an employee selects (tap) button B7, the user terminal device 200 (payment application 20) sends an account linking request to the payment server 100 (step S31). The account linking request includes the employee ID, the server ID, and the account ID used to identify the employee's account in the electronic payment service.

[0058] In this way, when the QR code C is decoded by the user terminal device 200, the payment application 20 is launched, and an account linking request including the employee ID, server ID, and account ID is sent from the payment application 20 to the payment server 100. This makes it easy to perform the account linking procedure.

[0059] The receiving unit 150 of the payment server 100 receives an account linking request from the user terminal device 200. The acquisition unit 160 acquires the employee's virtual account information and the employee's bank account in the electronic payment service based on the account ID included in the account linking request (step S32). Specifically, the acquisition unit 160 refers to the user information 182 and acquires the virtual account information and bank account information associated with the account ID included in the account linking request. If no virtual account information is associated with the account ID, the acquisition unit 160 associates new virtual account information with the account ID.

[0060] Next, the information management unit 140 performs account linking processing (step S33). Specifically, the information management unit 140 associates the account ID, employee ID, server ID, virtual account information, and bank account information and writes them to the user information 182. This allows the payment server 100 to associate users who use the electronic payment service with employees who use the labor management system of the labor management server 300.

[0061] Next, the transmission unit 170 sends the account linking results to the labor management server 300 (step S34). Specifically, the account linking results include the employee ID and account ID included in the account linking application, and the virtual account information and bank account information obtained in step S32. The transmission unit 170 also sends the account linking results to the labor management server 300 corresponding to the server ID included in the account linking application. This ensures that the account linking results are sent to the appropriate destination even if there are multiple labor management servers 300.

[0062] The receiving unit 350 of the labor management server 300 receives the account linking results from the payment server 100. The updating unit 370 updates the employee information 392 based on the account linking results (step S35). Specifically, the updating unit 370 writes the employee information 392, which is linked to the employee ID, virtual account information, bank account information, and account ID included in the account linking results, to the storage unit 390.

[0063] The account management unit 340 manages the employee's bank account included in the account linking results as an automatic transfer destination account. The automatic transfer destination account is used when the amount of employee salary paid by the company exceeds the maximum amount that the employee can receive in electronic money. This allows the company to transfer the employee's salary in cash to the automatic transfer account even if the amount of employee salary paid by the company exceeds the maximum amount that the employee can receive in electronic money, thereby preventing unpaid wages.

[0064] Next, the transmission unit 360 sends a confirmation screen to the employee terminal device 400 to verify the account linking result (step S36). The employee terminal device 400 displays the confirmation screen received from the labor management server 300 on its display unit (step S37).

[0065] Figure 14 shows an example of confirmation screen W4 in a labor management system. Confirmation screen W4 is a window for confirming information about an employee's salary receiving account and automatic remittance account.

[0066] As shown in Figure 14, on confirmation screen W4, information regarding the employee's salary receiving account and automatic remittance account is automatically entered. Specifically, the salary receiving account information is automatically entered based on the virtual account information included in the account linking results, and the automatic remittance account information is automatically entered based on the bank account information included in the account linking results. This eliminates the need for employees to manually enter information regarding their salary receiving account and automatic remittance account, thereby reducing their workload and preventing input errors.

[0067] The confirmation screen W4 includes buttons B8 and B9. If an employee clicks button B8, the employee terminal device 400 sends a cancellation request to the labor management server 300 and the payment server 100. In this case, the labor management server 300 reverts the contents of the employee information 392 to the state before the update in step S35, and the payment server 100 reverts the contents of the user information 182 to the state before the account linking process in step S33. This makes it possible to cancel the account linking even if an employee mistakenly submits an account setup application.

[0068] On the other hand, if an employee clicks button B9, the employee terminal device 400 sends a registration request to the labor management server 300 (step S38). This confirms the contents written to the employee information 392.

[0069] In the above explanation, it is assumed that employees log in to the labor management system using the employee terminal device 400, but this is not the only option. For example, employees may log in to the labor management system using the user terminal device 200. The process in this case will be explained in detail below.

[0070] Figure 15 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the process of setting the salary payment method to electronic money, which is performed by the labor management server 300, the payment server 100, and the user terminal device 200. First, the user terminal device 200 sends login information to the labor management server 300 (step S41). Specifically, the user terminal device 200 displays a login screen for logging into the labor management system provided by the labor management server 300, and sends the login information, including the employee ID and password entered by the employee on the login screen, to the labor management server 300.

[0071] Next, the login processing unit 320 of the labor management server 300 performs login processing based on the login information received from the user terminal device 200 (step S42). Specifically, the login processing unit 320 determines whether the employee ID and password included in the login information match the employee ID and password included in the employee information 392. If the login processing unit 320 determines that this information does not match, it sends a notification to the user terminal device 200 indicating that login is not permitted.

[0072] On the other hand, if the login processing unit 320 determines that this information matches, it sends a notification to the user terminal device 200 indicating that login is permitted (step S43). As a result, the login from the employee is accepted, and the home screen of the labor management system is displayed on the display unit of the user terminal device 200.

[0073] Next, the user terminal device 200 sends an account setup request to the labor management server 300 to set up the salary transfer account for the employee whose login has been accepted (step S44). As mentioned above, when the type of salary receiving account (bank account or electronic money) is selected in the salary transfer account setting window W1 shown in Figure 10, and the button B5 for linking with an electronic payment service is clicked in the transfer account change window W2 shown in Figure 11, the account setup request is sent to the labor management server 300.

[0074] The following describes an example where electronic money is selected as the salary payment method in the salary payment account setting window W1 (Figure 10), and button B5 is clicked in the transfer account change window W2 (Figure 11). When the receiving unit 350 of the labor management server 300 receives the account setting request from the user terminal device 200, the generating unit 330 generates the account setting screen (step S45).

[0075] The account settings screen is an example of application launch information for launching the payment application 20. Specifically, the account settings screen is a screen that has a launch button for launching the payment application 20. The launch button is associated with the employee ID, the server ID, and a link (deep link, etc.) for launching the payment application 20. The transmission unit 360 transmits the account settings screen to the user terminal device 200 (step S46).

[0076] When the user terminal device 200 receives the account setting screen from the labor management server 300, it displays the account setting screen on its display unit (step S47). When an employee selects (taps) the launch button displayed on the account setting screen, the user terminal device 200 obtains the employee ID associated with the launch button, the server ID, and a link (deep link, etc.) to launch the payment application 20. The user terminal device 200 also launches the payment application 20 based on the obtained link (deep link, etc.) (step S48). At this time, the payment application 20 displays the salary receipt setting screen shown in Figure 13 on the display unit of the user terminal device 200.

[0077] In the salary payment settings screen shown in Figure 13, when an employee selects (tap) button B7, the user terminal device 200 (payment application 20) sends an account linking request to the payment server 100 (step S49). The account linking request includes the employee ID, the server ID, and an account ID for identifying the employee's account in the electronic payment service.

[0078] In this way, when the user selects the launch button, the payment app 20 is launched, and an account linking request, including the employee ID, server ID, and account ID, is sent from the payment app 20 to the payment server 100. This makes it easy to perform the account linking procedure.

[0079] The receiving unit 150 of the payment server 100 receives an account linking request from the user terminal device 200. The acquisition unit 160 acquires the employee's virtual account information and bank account information in the electronic payment service based on the account ID included in the account linking request (step S50). Specifically, the acquisition unit 160 refers to the user information 182 and acquires the virtual account information and bank account information associated with the account ID included in the account linking request. If no virtual account information is associated with the account ID, the acquisition unit 160 associates new virtual account information with the account ID.

[0080] Next, the information management unit 140 performs account linking processing (step S51). Specifically, the information management unit 140 associates the account ID, employee ID, server ID, virtual account information, and bank account information and writes them to the user information 182. This allows the payment server 100 to associate users who use the electronic payment service with employees who use the labor management system of the labor management server 300.

[0081] Next, the transmission unit 170 sends the account linking results to the labor management server 300 (step S52). Specifically, the account linking results include the employee ID and account ID included in the account linking application, and the virtual account information and bank account information obtained in step S50. The transmission unit 170 also sends the account linking results to the labor management server 300 corresponding to the server ID included in the account linking application. This ensures that the account linking results are sent to the appropriate destination even if there are multiple labor management servers 300.

[0082] The receiving unit 350 of the labor management server 300 receives the account linking results from the payment server 100. The updating unit 370 updates the employee information 392 based on the account linking results (step S53). Specifically, the updating unit 370 writes the employee information 392, which is linked to the employee ID, virtual account information, bank account information, and account ID included in the account linking results, to the storage unit 390.

[0083] Next, the transmission unit 360 sends a confirmation screen to the user terminal device 200 to confirm the account linking result (step S54). The user terminal device 200 displays the confirmation screen W4 (Figure 14) received from the labor management server 300 on its display unit (step S55).

[0084] As mentioned above, when an employee clicks button B9 on confirmation screen W4, the user terminal device 200 sends a registration request to the labor management server 300 (step S56). This confirms the contents written to employee information 392.

[0085] In this embodiment, the account linking involves the transfer of employee virtual account information, bank account information, and account ID from the payment server 100 to the labor management server 300. However, other information may also be linked. For example, the name of the money transfer service provider and the service name of the money transfer service provider may also be linked.

[0086] [Processing salary transfers to virtual accounts] When paying employee salaries as electronic money, the salary is transferred to a virtual account linked to the employee. This virtual account is a bank account owned by the company operating the electronic payment service and is linked to each employee. Specifically, the payroll management system (not shown) of the company to which the employee belongs sends the employee ID to the labor management server 300 and receives the virtual account information linked to the employee ID from the labor management server 300. The payroll management system then transfers the employee's salary to the bank account indicated by the virtual account information.

[0087] Next, the payment server 100 receives a transfer completion notification from the bank's server indicating that the salary has been deposited into the virtual account. The transfer completion notification includes the virtual account information and the amount of the deposited salary. The payment processing unit 130 of the payment server 100 reads the account ID linked to the virtual account information included in the transfer completion notification from the user information 182, and charges the read account ID with electronic money equivalent to the employee's salary.

[0088] In this way, companies can transfer salaries to virtual accounts (bank accounts) linked to employees without having to think about electronic payment services, thereby charging employees' accounts with electronic money equivalent to their salary.

[0089] [Processing when account information is changed] As mentioned above, the employee's bank account is set up as the automatic transfer account. However, the employee's automatic transfer account may change, for example, if the name on the employee's bank account changes due to marriage, or if the employee closes their bank account. If such changes are not reflected in employee information 392, it may not be possible to transfer the employee's salary.

[0090] Therefore, when an employee's bank account information is changed, the settlement server 100 sends change information, which is information indicating the content of the change, to the labor management server 300. The change information may include the changed bank account information. The change information may also include the employee's employee ID or account ID so that it is possible to identify which employee's bank account information needs to be updated. The receiving unit 350 of the labor management server 300 controls the communication unit 310 to receive the change information from the settlement server 100. The update unit 370 then updates the employee information 392 based on the change information received by the receiving unit 350. As a result, in this embodiment, even if the information regarding an employee's bank account is changed in the settlement server 100, the labor management server 300 can automatically update the employee information 392 according to the content of the change.

[0091] Furthermore, if an employee's bank account information changes, the payment server 100 may not communicate with the labor management server 300, but instead notify the employee's payment app 20, which uses the electronic payment service, to re-link the account and update the company's bank account information, or it may display a message to that effect. In this case, the payment server 100 may also display the name of the company with which the account is currently linked, and the bank account information linked to that company, to the payment app 20.

[0092] Furthermore, instead of automatically updating employee information 392, the labor management server 300 may notify employees to update employee information 392. For example, if an employee's bank account information is changed, the settlement server 100 may send a notification regarding the change to the labor management server 300. The notification regarding the change may include the employee's employee ID or account ID so that it can identify which employee's bank account information has been changed. The receiving unit 350 of the labor management server 300 may control the communication unit 310 to receive the notification from the settlement server 100. The update unit 370 may also notify employees to update employee information 392 based on the notification received by the receiving unit 350. This notification may include prompting the employee to press button B5 in the transfer account change window W2 shown in Figure 11 to instruct the employee to link with the electronic payment service. In this way, the labor management server 300 of this embodiment can prompt employees to update employee information 392 even if the information regarding the employee's bank account is changed in the settlement server 100.

[0093] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, a virtual account linked to each employee and opened as a bank account owned by the company operating the electronic payment service was described as an example of an electronic money account for receiving electronic money, but the electronic money account is not limited to this. For example, the electronic money account may be an account for directly transferring electronic money to an employee's account in the electronic payment service. In this case, the company can transfer employee salaries directly to the employee's account in electronic money without going through a virtual account (bank account).

[0094] As described above, the labor management server 300 of this embodiment is a server that manages the labor of a company's employees and can communicate with the payment server 100, which manages electronic money usable in the electronic payment service. The labor management server 300 comprises a receiving unit 350 and an account management unit 340. When account linking is performed between the labor management server 300 and the payment server 100, the receiving unit 350 receives the account linking result from the payment server 100, which includes the electronic money account for receiving the employee's electronic money and the employee's bank account. The account management unit 340 manages the employee's electronic money account and the employee's bank account included in the account linking result as the employee's salary transfer account. This makes it easy to register account information (for example, information such as electronic money accounts and bank accounts), improving convenience for users.

[0095] Although embodiments for carrying out the present invention have been described above using examples, the present invention is not limited in any way to these embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0096] 20 Payment Apps 50. First store terminal device 100 Payment Servers 110 Communications Department 120 Payment Content Provision Department 130 Payment Processing Unit 140 Information Management Department 150 Receiver 160 Acquisition Department 170 Transmitter 180 Storage section 182 User information 200 User terminal devices 300 Labor Management Server 310 Communications Department 320 Login Processing Unit 330 Generation part 340 Account Management Department 350 Receiver 360 Transmitter 370 Update Department 380 Notification Department 390 Storage section 392 Employee Information 400 Employee Terminal Devices

Claims

1. A labor management server that manages information related to employee labor, and a payment server that performs electronic payments in the electronic payment service and is capable of communicating with a user terminal device operated by a user of the electronic payment service, A receiving unit receives an account linking request from the user terminal device, which includes employee identification information for identifying the employee in the labor management server and account identification information for identifying the employee's account in the electronic payment service. An acquisition unit that acquires the account information of the employee in the electronic payment service based on the account identification information, A transmission unit that transmits the account linkage result, including the employee identification information, the account identification information, and the employee's account information, to the labor management server. A payment server equipped with the following features.

2. The aforementioned account linking request further includes server identification information for identifying the labor management server, The transmission unit transmits the account linking result to the labor management server corresponding to the server identification information included in the account linking application. The settlement server according to claim 1.

3. The system further includes an information management unit that associates the account identification information, the employee identification information, and the employee's account information and writes them to a storage unit provided in the payment server. The settlement server according to claim 1.

4. The aforementioned account information includes an electronic money account for receiving the employee's electronic money, The receiving unit receives a transfer completion notice indicating that the employee's salary has been transferred to the electronic money account. The settlement server according to claim 1.

5. The system further includes a settlement processing unit that, based on the aforementioned transfer completion notification, charges the employee's account with electronic money equivalent to the employee's salary. The settlement server according to claim 4.

6. The aforementioned account information includes an electronic money account for receiving the employee's electronic money and the employee's bank account. The settlement server according to claim 1.

7. The aforementioned bank account will be used as an automatic transfer destination account when the amount received by the employee exceeds the upper limit of the amount that can be received in the aforementioned electronic money. The settlement server according to claim 6.

8. A labor management server that manages information related to employee labor, and a payment server that performs electronic payments in the electronic payment service and is capable of communicating with user terminal devices operated by users of the electronic payment service, The labor management server receives an account linking request from the user terminal device, which includes employee identification information for identifying the employee and account identification information for identifying the employee's account in the electronic payment service. Based on the aforementioned account identification information, the account information of the employee in the aforementioned electronic payment service is obtained, The account linking result, including the employee identification information, the account identification information, and the employee's account information, is transmitted to the labor management server. How to control the payment server.

9. A labor management server that manages information related to employee labor, and a payment server that performs electronic payments in the electronic payment service and is capable of communicating with user terminal devices operated by users of the electronic payment service, The labor management server receives an account linking request from the user terminal device, which includes employee identification information for identifying the employee and account identification information for identifying the employee's account in the electronic payment service. Based on the aforementioned account identification information, a process is performed to obtain the account information of the employee in the aforementioned electronic payment service, A process to send the account linking result, which includes the employee identification information, the account identification information, and the employee's account information, to the labor management server. A program that executes the command.

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