Automated Invoice Generation for Complex Contracts
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Generating invoices for complex contracts with varying pricing structures and payment plans is challenging, especially for medium to large organizations with numerous contracts of different complexities, as existing methods lack efficiency and flexibility.
Innovation Solution
An automated invoice generation system that processes contract line items with predefined or custom invoice plans, enabling selective automatic invoicing based on billing types (non-recurring, recurring, or use charges) and schedules, aggregating invoice line items by account to generate invoices efficiently.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual invoice generation methods are used for complex contracts, then flexibility in handling various pricing structures is maintained, but productivity and efficiency deteriorate due to the large number of contracts requiring servicing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments contracts into line items, each with its own invoice plan and invoicing schedule. This segmentation allows the system to handle complex contracts by breaking them down into manageable units that can be processed independently and automatically, thereby improving productivity without being overwhelmed by overall contract complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-defining invoice plans and invoicing schedules for each line item before invoice generation is needed. This preparation enables the automated invoice engine to efficiently generate invoices without complex real-time calculations, resolving the contradiction between automation efficiency and system complexity.
2Productivity
If automated invoice generation is implemented, then productivity increases, but adaptability to handle varying contract complexities and pricing structures may worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal invoice engine that can handle multiple types of contracts with varying pricing structures through a common framework. The system uses standardized invoice plans and invoicing schedules that can be configured for different contract types, enabling automated processing across diverse contracts without sacrificing adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs parameter changes by allowing flexible configuration of invoice plan parameters and scheduling parameters for each line item. This enables the same automated system to adapt to different pricing structures by simply changing parameters rather than requiring different systems, thus maintaining both productivity and adaptability.
3Reliability
If comprehensive contract servicing is provided for all line items, then reliability of billing is improved, but loss of time increases due to processing numerous contracts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements periodic action through scheduled invoicing for each line item, where invoices are generated automatically at predetermined intervals defined in the invoicing schedule. This approach ensures reliable, accurate billing occurs systematically without requiring continuous manual intervention, thereby maintaining reliability while reducing time loss through automation of the periodic billing process.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques to automatically generate invoices for contracts, each of which may include any number of line items. Each contract line item may be associated with (1) a particular invoice plan that defines one or more applicable billing types (e.g., for non-recurring, recurring, and use charges) and any adjustments to the total billed amount, (2) a particular invoicing schedule that defines the timing for the invoice generation, (3) a particular account to which invoices are addressed, and (4) a flag to selectively enable automatic invoice generation. An invoice engine automatically generates invoices for a set of one or more contracts by processing each enabled line item of each contract based on the associated invoice plan and invoicing schedule to generate a set of one or more invoice line items for the contract line item. All invoice line items for each account are aggregated into an invoice for the account.