System and method for unified telephone and utility consumption metering, reading, and processing

Claim 1

A unified billing system for collecting, combining, and processing telephone and non-telephone utility usage and charge records into unified billing and usage reports, comprising: at least one remotely readable utility meter, said utility meter having a remote reading output and communicating a current utility meter reading value; a remote meter reading media, communicably connected to said remote reading output of said remotely readable utility meter; at least one automatic meter reading receiver having a meter reading input for receiving a utility meter reading value from a remotely readable utility meter via the remote reading media, such that utility meter readings from said utility meter are received at said meter reading input via said meter reading media, and said meter reading receiver further comprising a first data interface such that utility usage records are output at said first data interface in response to receipt of said utility meter readings; and a billing converter system comprising: a second data interface, communicably interconnected to said first data interface of said automatic meter reading receiver and receiving said utility usage records; a processing computer means suitable for executing software, including a persistent data memory means; a telephony billing system interface means for Transmitting telephony billing records to telephony billing accounting systems; and an application program means executed by said processing computer means, said application program means providing automatic conversion of utility usage records to telephony billing records, said telephony billing records being output at said telephony billing system interface means.

Claim 21

A method for automatically collecting, combining, and processing telephone and non-telephone utility usage and charge records into unified billing and usage reports, comprising the steps of: periodically receiving a utility meter reading record from an automatic meter reading system via a data interface to said automatic meter reading system; parsing said meter reading record for a current meter reading value and a consumer identifier; calculating a units consumed value by recalling a previous meter reading value associated with said consumer identifier and subtracting that value from said current meter reading value; associating a telephone number with said consumer identifier; creating a telephony billing record comprising a units consumed value and the telephone number associated with the consumer identifier; and collecting said telephony billing record using a telephony billing system thereby combining said utility reading with telephony-related records for processing into a unified billing invoice and usage record.

Claim 22

A method for automatically collecting, combining, and processing telephone and non-telephone utility usage and charge records into unified billing and usage reports, comprising the steps of: periodically receiving a utility meter reading record from an automatic meter reading system via a data interface to said automatic meter reading system; parsing said meter reading record for a current meter reading value and a consumer identifier; calculating a units consumed value by recalling a previous meter reading value associated with said consumer identifier and subtracting that value from said current meter reading value; associating a telephone number with said consumer identifier; creating a telephony billing record comprising a units consumed value and the telephone number associated with the consumer identifier; and collecting said telephony billing record using a telephony billing system thereby combining said utility reading with telephony-related records for processing into a unified billing invoice and usage record.