Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
TITLE: EXPEDITED PROCESSING OF ELECTRONIC PAYMENT
TRANSACTIONS
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application
No. 15/197,708
entitled "Expedited Processing of Electronic Payment Transactions" and filed
on June 29,
2016. This application also claims priority to U.S. Application No. 15/197,711
entitled
"Multi-Interface Processing of Electronic Payment Transactions" and filed on
June 29,
2016.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Electronic payments may be performed in a variety of ways. A
payment
terminal may process payment transactions, and may interact with payment
devices such
as a payment card having a magnetic strip that is swiped in a magnetic reader
of the
payment terminal, a payment device having a Europay/Mastercard/Visa (EMV) chip
that
is inserted into a corresponding EMV slot of the payment terminal, and near
field
communication (NFC) enabled devices such as a smartphone or EMV card that is
tapped
at the payment terminal and transmits payment information over a secure
wireless
connection. The payment terminal may receive payment information from the
payment
device as well information about a transaction, and may communicate this
information to
a payment system for processing of the transaction.
[0003] At various times, conditions may occur that prevent the
payment terminal
from communicating with a payment server for completing a payment transaction.
The
conditions may be caused by a failure of a communication link between the
payment
terminal and payment server, such as a faulty network connection. At other
times, a
payment terminal may be unable to transmit information for approval by the
payment
server, such as when a connection between payment terminal and server
experiences a
high latency. In some instances, these conditions can lead to lengthy delays
in payment
processing times if payment processing cannot be completed until the payment
terminal
may transmit payment information to a server. Users of the payment terminal
and
consumers completing a payment transaction may lose patience if a delay is
sufficiently
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lengthy. Delays during payment transactions may result in annoyance for
customers
seeking to complete transactions and reduced transaction volumes for
merchants.
[0004] In addition, payment terminals experiencing a high payment
transaction
volume may experience significant delays, even when communication between a
payment device and payment server, such as a server located at a financial
institution,
occurs quickly. Transaction durations may be affected by the amount of time a
payment
terminal requires to read electronic payment information from a payment
device.
Sometimes, a delay may occur based on a type of payment device used to
complete a
payment transaction. For example, chip cards must be physically inserted into
a payment
terminal while processing occurs. Delays in processing of chip card
transactions may
create particular discomfort or friction during payment transactions
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] The above and other features of the present disclosure, its
nature and
various advantages will be more apparent upon consideration of the following
detailed
description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
[0006] FIG. 1 shows an illustrative block diagram of a payment system in
accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0007] FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative block diagram of a payment device
and
payment terminal in accordance with some embodiments of the present
disclosure;
[0008] FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative block diagram of a payment reader
in
accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0009] FIG. 4 depicts an illustrative block diagram of a merchant device
in
accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0010] FIG. 5 depicts an illustrative block diagram of a payment service
system
in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0011] FIG 6 depicts a non-limiting flow diagram illustrating exemplary
methods
for processing electronic payment information received from a chip card in an
expedited
processing mode in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0012] FIG. 7 depicts a non-limiting ladder diagram illustrating
exemplary
methods for processing electronic payment information received from a chip
card in an
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expedited processing mode in accordance with some embodiments of the present
disclosure; and
[0013] FIG. 8 depicts a non-limiting flow diagram illustrating exemplary
methods for selectively processing electronic payment information through a
plurality of
interfaces in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0014] A payment system may include a payment terminal and a payment
server.
The payment terminal may have a payment reader and a merchant device. The
payment
reader receives payment information from a payment device such as an EMV chip
card, a
magnetic stripe card, or a NFC payment device. The merchant device has a point-
of-sale
application that provides a user interface for a merchant, and that
communicates with the
payment reader and payment server. The payment server processes transactions
based on
the payment information as well as other information (e.g., payment amount,
merchant,
location, etc.) received from the merchant device, and communicates a payment
result
(e.g., approval or denial) back to the merchant device.
100151 The merchant device may receive a request at a user interface of
the
merchant device to process electronic payment information from a chip card in
an
expedited processing mode. In the expedited processing mode, the merchant
device may
process electronic payment transactions more quickly than using normal
processing steps
Before entering expedited processing mode, the merchant device may provide an
opt-in
request to the user interface. In some embodiments, the opt-in request may
include
information for the user, such as notifications or disclosures regarding the
ramifications
of accepting the opt-in request.
[0016] If a user accepts the opt-in request, the merchant device may
receive a
request for payment and request an electronic payment response from a chip
card inserted
at an interface of the payment reader (such as a contact interface). The
electronic
payment response from the chip card may include information from the chip card
such as
encrypted payment information. In some embodiments, chip card may provide an
electronic payment response including an authorization request cryptogram
("ARQC")
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The merchant device may receive the electronic payment response from the chip
card and
store it in memory at the merchant device.
[0017] The merchant device may approve a payment transaction associated
with
the electronic payment response from the chip card. In some embodiments, the
approval
may be provided as an "offline approval." In some embodiments, approval of the
payment transaction from the merchant device may allow the chip card to be
removed
from the payment reader. The merchant device may process additional requests
for
payment, receive additional electronic payment responses from each
corresponding chip
card and store them in memory at the merchant device. In some embodiments, for
each
corresponding chip card providing an electronic payment response indicating
approval
(e.g., including an ARQC), the merchant device may provide approval for the
transaction
to the chip card. After the merchant device provides approval of the payment
transaction,
the merchant device may associate payment-type and time indicators with each
electronic
payment response. The merchant device may transmit approval requests to one or
more
payment servers when the merchant device determines they may be transmitted.
The
payment-type indicator may inform the payment servers that the approval
request is to be
processed according to an expedited payment protocol. Accordingly, the chip
card may
be removed at an earlier stage of the transaction (e.g., after an initial
electronic payment
response is received) rather than having to remain in the chip card slot for
additional
communications with the payment server.
[0018] FIG. 1 depicts an illustrative block diagram of a payment system
1 in
accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. In one embodiment,
payment system 1 includes a payment device 10, payment terminal 20, network
30, and
payment server 40. In an exemplary embodiment, payment server 40 may include a
plurality of servers operated by different entities, such as a payment service
system 50
and a bank server 60. These components of payment system 1 facilitate
electronic
payment transactions between a merchant and a customer.
[0019] The electronic interactions between the merchant and the customer
take
place between the customer's payment device 10 and the merchant's payment
terminal
20. The customer has a payment device 10 such as a credit card having magnetic
stripe, a
credit card having an EMV chip, or a NFC-enabled electronic device such as a
smart
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phone running a payment application. The merchant has a payment terminal 20
such as a
payment terminal or other electronic device that is capable of processing
payment
information (e.g., encrypted payment card data and user authentication data)
and
transaction information (e.g., purchase amount and point-of-purchase
information), such
as a smart phone or tablet running a payment application.
100201 In some
embodiments (e.g., for low-value transactions or for payment
transactions that are less than a payment limit indicated by a NEC or EMV
payment
device 10) the initial processing and approval of the payment transaction may
be
processed at payment terminal 20. In other embodiments, payment terminal 20
may
communicate with payment server 40 over network 30. Although payment server 40
may
be operated by a single entity, in one embodiment payment server 40 may
include any
suitable number of servers operated by any suitable entities, such as a
payment service
system 50 and one or more banks of the merchant and customer (e.g., a bank
server 60).
The payment terminal 20 and the payment server 40 communicate payment and
transaction information to determine whether the transaction is authorized.
For example,
payment terminal 20 may provide encrypted payment data, user authentication
data,
purchase amount information, and point-of-purchase information to payment
server 40
over network 30. Payment server 40 may determine whether the transaction is
authorized
based on this received information as well as information relating to customer
or
merchant accounts, and responds to payment terminal 20 over network 30 to
indicate
whether or not the payment transaction is authorized. Payment server 40 may
also
transmit additional information such as transaction identifiers to payment
terminal 20.
100211 Based on the
information that is received at payment terminal 20 from
payment server 40, the merchant may indicate to the customer whether the
transaction
has been approved. In some embodiments such as a chip card payment device,
approval
may be indicated at the payment terminal, for example, at a screen of a
payment terminal.
In other embodiments such as a smart phone or watch operating as a NFC payment
device, information about the approved transaction and additional information
(e.g.,
receipts, special offers, coupons, or loyalty program information) may be
provided to the
NFC payment device for display at a screen of the smart phone or watch or
storage in
memory.
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[0022] In some embodiments, the payment server 40 may receive a
plurality of
payment approval requests from the payment terminal 20. Each payment approval
request may comprise an electronic payment response and an associated payment
type-
indicator that indicates the payment response should be processed using an
expedited
processing mode, as discussed in greater detail hereafter. Payment server 40
also may
receive payment approval requests from a payment terminal 20 comprising an
indicator
for checking an ability of a communication interface of the payment terminal
20 to
communicate with the payment server 40, or a connection speed between the
payment
terminal 20 and payment server 40. In some embodiments, payment server 40 may
receive a payment approval request and an associated time indicator, and
process the
payment approval request according to a time indicated by the time indicator.
Further, in
some embodiments, payment server 40 may receive electronic payment information
and a
swipe mode processing indicator, and provide a payment approval response for
the
electronic payment information.
[0023] FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative block diagram of payment device 10
and
payment terminal 20 in accordance with some embodiments of the present
disclosure.
Although it will be understood that payment device 10 and payment terminal 20
of
payment system 1 may be implemented in any suitable manner, in one embodiment
the
payment terminal 20 may comprise a payment reader 22 and a merchant device 29.
However, it will be understood that as used herein, the term "payment
terminal" may
refer to the entire payment teiminal 20 or any suitable component of the
payment
terminal 20, such as payment reader 22 or merchant device 29. In an
embodiment, the
payment reader 22 of payment terminal 20 may be a wireless communication
device that
facilitates transactions between the payment device 10 and a merchant device
29 running
a point-of-sale application.
[0024] In one embodiment, payment device 10 may be a device that is
capable of
communicating with payment terminal 20 (e.g., via payment reader 22), such as
a NFC
device 12 or an EMV chip card 14. Chip card 14 may include a secure integrated
circuit
that is capable of communicating with a payment teiminal such as payment
terminal 20,
generating encrypted payment information, and providing the encrypted payment
information as well as other payment or transaction information (e.g.,
transaction limits
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for payments that are processed locally) in accordance with one or more
electronic
payment standards such as those promulgated by EMVCo. Chip card 14 may include
contact pins for communicating with payment reader 22 (e.g., in accordance
with ISO
7816) and in some embodiments, may be inductively coupled to payment reader 22
via a
near field 15. A chip card 14 that is inductively coupled to payment reader 22
may
communicate with payment reader 22 using load modulation of a wireless carrier
signal
that is provided by payment reader 22 in accordance with a wireless
communication
standard such as ISO 14443.
100251 NFC device 12 may be an electronic device such as a smart phone,
tablet,
or smart watch that is capable of engaging in secure transactions with payment
terminal
20 (e.g., via communications with payment reader 22). NFC device 12 may have
hardware (e.g., a secure element including hardware and executable code)
and/or
software (e.g., executable code operating on a processor in accordance with a
host card
emulation routine) for performing secure transaction functions. During a
payment
transaction NFC device 12 may be inductively coupled to payment reader 22 via
near
field 15 and may communicate with payment terminal 20 by active or passive
load
modulation of a wireless carrier signal provided by payment reader 22 in
accordance with
one or more wireless communication standards such as ISO 14443 and ISO 18092.
[0026] Although payment terminal 20 may be implemented in any suitable
manner, in one embodiment payment terminal 20 may include a payment reader 22
and a
merchant device 29. The merchant device 29 runs a point-of-sale application
that
provides a user interface for the merchant and facilitates communication with
the
payment reader 22 and the payment server 40. Payment reader 22 may facilitate
communications between payment device 10 and merchant device 29. As described
herein, a payment device 10 such as NFC device 12 or chip card 14 may
communicate
with payment reader 22 via inductive coupling. This is depicted in FIG. 2 as
near field
15, which comprises a wireless carrier signal having a suitable frequency
(e.g., 13.56
MHz) emitted from payment reader 22.
[0027] In one embodiment, payment device 10 may be a contactless payment
device such as NFC device 12 or chip card 14, and payment reader 22 and the
contactless
payment device 10 may communicate by modulating the wireless carrier signal
within
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near field 15. In order to communicate information to payment device 10,
payment
reader 22 changes the amplitude and/or phase of the wireless carrier signal
based on data
to be transmitted from payment reader 22, resulting in a wireless data signal
that is
transmitted to the payment device. This signal is transmitted by an antenna of
payment
reader 22 that is tuned to transmit at 13.56 MHz, and if the payment device 10
also has a
suitably tuned antenna within the range of the near field 15 (e.g., 0 to 10
cm), the
payment device receives the wireless carrier signal or wireless data signal
that is
transmitted by payment reader 22. In the case of a wireless data signal,
processing
circuitry of the payment device 10 is able to demodulate the received signal
and process
the data that is received from payment reader 22
[0028] When a contactless payment device such as payment device 10 is
within
the range of the near field 15, it is inductively coupled to the payment
reader 22. Thus,
the payment device 10 is also capable of modulating the wireless carrier
signal via active
or passive load modulation. By changing the tuning characteristics of the
antenna of
payment device 10 (e.g. by selectively switching a parallel load into the
antenna circuit
based on modulated data to be transmitted) the wireless carrier signal is
modified at both
the payment device 10 and payment reader 22, resulting in a modulated wireless
carrier
signal. In this manner, the payment device is capable of sending modulated
data to
payment reader 22.
[0029] In some embodiments, payment reader 22 also includes an EMV slot
21
that is capable of receiving chip card 14. Chip card 14 may have contacts that
engage
with corresponding contacts of payment reader 22 when chip card 14 is inserted
into
EMV slot 21. Payment reader 22 provides power to an EMV chip of chip card 14
through these contacts and payment reader 22 and chip card 14 communicate
through a
communication path established by the contacts.
[0030] Payment reader 22 may also include hardware for interfacing with
a
magnetic strip card (not depicted in FIG. 2). In some embodiments, the
hardware may
include a slot that guides a customer to swipe or dip the magnetized strip of
the magnetic
strip card such that a magnetic strip reader can receive payment information
from the
magnetic strip card. The received payment information is then processed by the
payment
reader 22.
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[0031] Merchant device 29 may be any suitable device such as tablet
payment
device 24, mobile payment device 26, or payment terminal 28. In the case of a
computing device such as tablet payment device 24 or mobile payment device 26,
a
point-of-sale application may provide for the entry of purchase and payment
information,
interaction with a customer, and communications with a payment server 40. For
example, a payment application may provide a menu of services that a merchant
is able to
select and a series of menus or screens for automating a transaction. A
payment
application may also facilitate the entry of customer authentication
information such as
signatures, PIN numbers, or biometric information. Similar functionality may
also be
provided on a dedicated payment terminal 28.
[0032] Merchant device 29 may be in communication with payment reader 22
via
a communication path 23/25/27. Although communication path 23/25/27 may be
implemented via a wired (e.g., Ethernet, USB, FireWire, Lightning) or wireless
(e.g., Wi-
Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, or ZigBee) connection, in one embodiment payment reader 22
may
communicate with the merchant device 29 via a Bluetooth low energy interface,
such that
the payment reader 22 and the merchant device 29 are connected devices. In
some
embodiments, processing of the payment transaction may occur locally on
payment
reader 22 and merchant device 29, for example, when a transaction amount is
small or
there is no connectivity to the payment server 40. In other embodiments,
merchant
device 29 or payment reader 22 may communicate with payment server 40 via a
public or
dedicated communication network 30. Although communication network 30 may be
any
suitable communication network, in one embodiment communication network 30 may
be
the internet and payment and transaction information may be communicated
between
payment terminal 20 and payment server 40 in an encrypted format such by a
transport
layer security (TLS) or secure sockets layer (SSL) protocol.
[0033] FIG. 3 depicts a block diagram of an exemplary payment reader 22
in
accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. In one embodiment,
payment reader 22 may be a wireless communication device that communicates
wirelessly with an interactive electronic device such as a merchant device 29,
for
example, using Bluetooth classic or Bluetooth low energy. Although particular
components are depicted in a particular arrangement in FIG. 3, it will be
understood that
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payment reader 22 may include additional components, one or more of the
components
depicted in FIG. 3 may not be included in payment reader 22, and the
components of
payment reader 22 may be rearranged in any suitable manner. In one embodiment,
payment reader 22 includes a reader chip 100, a plurality of payment
interfaces (e.g., a
contactless interface 102, a contact interface 104, and a swipe interface
105), a power
supply 106, a wireless communication interface 108, a wired interface 110, and
a
transaction chip 114. Payment reader 22 also includes a processing unit 120
and memory
122 in reader chip 100, and general processing unit 124, cryptographic
processing unit
125, general memory 126 and cryptographic memory 128 in transaction chip 114.
Although in one embodiment the processing unit 120 and memory 122 will be
described
as packaged in a reader chip 100 and transaction chip 114 respectively, and
configured in
a particular manner, it will be understood that processing unit 120, general
processing
unit 124, cryptographic processing unit 125, memory 122, general memory 126,
and
cryptographic memory 128 may be configured in any suitable manner to perform
the
functionality of the payment reader 22 as is described herein. It will also be
understood
that the functionality of reader chip 100 and transaction chip 114 may be
embodied in a
single chip or a plurality of chips, each including any suitable combination
of processing
units and memory to collectively perform the functionalities of reader chip
100 and
transaction chip 114 as described herein.
[0034] In some embodiments, payment reader 22 may include various
interface
elements (not depicted) for providing output to a user. In an embodiment, an
interface
element may provide indicators of progress of a transaction or processing at
the payment
reader 22. The interface element may be any suitable device for providing an
output to a
user of payment reader 22, such as a touchscreen, lights, a textual display,
speaker, or
other interface. In some embodiments, the interface elements may be configured
to
receive inputs from a user and provide the inputs to various resources of the
payment
reader 22, such as reader chip 100 and transaction chip 114.
[0035] In some embodiments, reader chip 100 may be any suitable chip,
such as a
K21 chip supplied by Freescale Semiconductor, Inc. Processing unit 120 of
reader chip
100 of payment reader 22 may be any suitable processor and may include
hardware,
software, memory, and circuitry as is necessary to perform and control the
functions of
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payment reader 22. Processing unit 120 may include one or more processors, and
may
perform the operations of reader chip 100 based on instructions in any
suitable number of
memories and memory types. In some embodiments, processing unit 120 may have
multiple independent processing units, for example a multi-core processor or
other
similar component. Processing unit 120 may execute instructions stored in
memory 122
of reader chip 100 to control the operations and processing of payment reader
22. As
used herein, a processor or processing unit may include one or more processors
having
processing capability necessary to perform the processing functions described
herein,
including but not limited to hardware logic (e.g., hardware designed by
software that
describes the configuration of hardware, such as hardware description language
(HDL)
software), computer readable instructions running on a processor, or any
suitable
combination thereof A processor may run software to perform the operations
described
herein, including software accessed in machine-readable folin on a tangible
non-
transitory computer readable storage medium.
[0036] In an exemplary embodiment, the processing unit 120 of reader
chip 100
may include two RISC processors configured to operate as a hub for controlling
operations of the various components of payment reader 22, based on
instructions stored
in memory 122. As used herein, memory may refer to any suitable tangible or
non-
transitory storage medium. Examples of tangible (or non-transitory) storage
medium
include disks, thumb drives, and memory, etc., but does not include propagated
signals.
Tangible computer readable storage medium include volatile and non-volatile,
removable
and non-removable media, such as computer readable instructions, data
structures,
program modules or other data. Examples of such media include RAM, ROM, EPROM,
EEPROM, SRAM, flash memory, disks or optical storage, magnetic storage, or any
other
non-transitory medium that stores information that is accessed by a processor
or
computing device.
[0037] Reader chip 100 may also include additional circuitry such as
interface
circuitry, analog front-end circuitry, security circuitry, and monitoring
component
circuitry. In one embodiment, interface circuitry may include circuitry for
interfacing
with a wireless communication interface 108 (e.g., Wi-Fi, Bluetooth classic,
and
Bluetooth low energy), circuitry for interfacing with a wired interface 110
(e.g., USB,
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Ethernet, FireWire, and Lightning), circuitry for interfacing with other
communication
interfaces or buses (e.g., I2C, SPI, UART, and GPIO), and circuitry for
interfacing with a
power supply 106 (e.g., power management circuitry, power conversion
circuitry,
rectifiers, and battery charging circuitry).
[0038] Transaction chip 114 may include one or more processors having
processing capability necessary to perform the processing functions described
herein,
including but not limited to hardware logic, computer readable instructions
running on a
processor, or any suitable combination thereof In an exemplary embodiment,
transaction
chip 114 may perform functionality relating to processing of payment
transactions,
interfacing with payment devices, cryptography, and other payment-specific
functionality. In some embodiments, transaction chip 114 may include a general
processing unit 124 for executing instructions associated with general payment
functionality and a cryptographic processing unit 125 for handling
cryptographic
processing operations. Each of general processing unit 124 and cryptographic
processing
unit 125 may have dedicated memory associated therewith (i.e., general memory
126 and
cryptographic memory 128). In this manner, specific cryptographic processing
and
critical security information (e.g., cryptographic keys, passwords, user
information, etc.),
may be securely stored and processed by cryptographic memory 128 and
cryptographic
processing unit 125.
[0039] One or both of general processing unit 124 and cryptographic
processing
unit 125 of transaction chip 114 may communicate with reader chip 100 (e.g.,
processing
unit 120), for example, using any suitable internal bus and communication
technique. In
this manner, reader chip 100 and transaction chip 114 can collectively process
transactions and communicate information regarding processed transactions
(e.g., with
merchant device 29).
[0040] Transaction chip 114 may also include circuitry for interfacing
with a
contact interface 104 (e.g., power and communication circuitry for directly
interfacing
with an EMV chip of a chip card 14 that is inserted into slot 21). In some
embodiments,
transaction chip 114 may also include analog front-end circuitry for
interfacing with the
analog components of contactless interface 102 (e.g., electromagnetic
compatibility
(EMC) circuitry, matching circuits, modulation circuitry, and measurement
circuitry).
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[0041] Contactless interface 102 may provide for NFC communication with
a
contactless device such as NFC device 12 or chip card 14. Based on a signal
provided by
reader chip 100, an antenna of contactless interface 102 may output either a
carrier signal
or a modulated signal. A carrier signal may be a signal having a fixed
frequency such as
13.56 MHZ. A modulated signal may be a modulated version of the carrier signal
according to a modulation procedure such as ISO 14443 and ISO 18092. When the
payment reader 22 is inductively coupled to a contactless device, the
contactless device
may also modulate the carrier signal, which may be sensed by the contactless
interface
102 and provided to the reader chip 100 for processing. Based on these
modulations of
the carrier signal, payment reader 22 and a contactless device are able to
communicate
information such as payment information
[0042] Contact interface 104 may be a suitable interface for providing
power to a
payment chip such as an EMV chip of a chip card 14 and communicating with the
EMV
chip. Contact interface 104 may include a plurality of contact pins (not
depicted in FIG.
3) for physically interfacing with the chip card 14 according to EMV
specifications. hi
some embodiments, contact interface 104 may include a power supply (VCC) pin,
a
ground (GNU) pin, a reset (RST) pin for resetting an EMV card, a clock (CLK)
pin for
providing a clock signal, a programming voltage (VPP) pin for providing a
programming
voltage to an EMV card, an input output (I/0) pin for providing for EMV
communications, and two auxiliary pins. In this manner, the payment reader and
the chip
card are able to exchange information such as payment information.
[0043] In some embodiments, a chip card detection circuit 112 may be
provided
for the contact interface 104, and may detect when a chip card has been
inserted into a
chip card interface (e.g., card slot) of the contact interface 104. In
exemplary
embodiments, a chip card detection circuit may include suitable hardware
(e.g., switches,
optical detection circuits, proximity sensors, etc.) for detecting the
presence of a chip card
in the card slot of the contact interface 104. This signal may then be
provided for
processing by one or more other components of the payment reader 22 (e.g.,
reader chip
100 of payment reader 22).
[0044] Swipe interface 105 may provide an interface for reading
infolination
from a magnetic stripe ("magstripe") of a payment device, such as a credit or
debit card,
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swiped through swipe interface 105. In some embodiments, swipe interface 105
may be
in communication with transaction chip 114 and may provide electronic payment
information received when a user swipes the magstripe through the swipe
interface 105 to
the transaction chip 114 for processing. In some embodiments, swipe interface
105 may
include any suitable hardware for reading information from a magstripe of a
payment
card and providing the information to transaction chip 114.
[0045] In some embodiments, general processing unit 124 may include any
suitable processor for performing the payment processing functionality of
payment reader
22 described herein. ln some embodiments, general memory 126 may be any
suitable
memory as described herein, and may include a plurality of sets of
instructions for
performing general transaction processing operations of payment reader 22,
such as
transaction processing instructions 166, data authentication instructions 168,
signal
conditioning instructions 170.
[0046] Transaction processing instructions 166 may include instructions
for
controlling general transaction processing operations of the payment reader
22, such as
controlling the interaction between the payment reader 22 and a payment device
10 (e.g.,
for interfacing with a payment device via the contactless interface 102 and
contact
interface 104), selecting payment processing procedures (e.g., based on a
payment
processing entity associated with a payment method), interfacing with the
cryptographic
processor 125, and any other suitable aspects of transaction processing.
[0047] Data authentication instructions 168 may include instructions for
providing configuration information for a payment terminal 20. The
configuration
information may include any suitable information, such as payment limits and
types of
transactions for local transactions (i.e., transactions that occur without
contacting a
payment server 40) and supported applications. As an example, in some
embodiments,
data authentication instructions168 may include configuration instructions
such as TMS-
CAPK instructions. In some embodiments, the TMS ¨CAPK may be tailored for a
particular jurisdiction (e.g., country-specific).
[0048] Signal conditioning instructions 170 may include instructions for
conditioning signals received from a payment device 10 via the contactless
interface 102
(e.g., from a NFC payment device 10). Although in some embodiments, signal
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conditioning instructions 170 may include instructions for manipulating
signals received
via contactless interface 102, signal conditioning instructions 170 may
include
instructions for conditioning signals using any suitable hardware, logic, or
algorithm
required to process NFC signals received via contactless interface 102.
[0049] Cryptographic processing unit 125 may be any suitable a processor
as
described herein, and, in some embodiments, may perform cryptographic
functions for
the processing of payment transactions. For example, in some embodiments a
cryptographic processing unit 125 may encrypt and decrypt data based on one or
more
encryption keys, in a manner that isolates the encryption functionality from
other
components of payment reader 22 and protects the encryption keys from being
exposed
to other components of payment reader 22
[0050] In some embodiments, cryptographic memory 128 may be any suitable
memory or combination thereof as described herein, and may include a plurality
of sets
of instructions for performing cryptographic operations, such as payment
processing
instructions 176 and cryptographic instructions 178. Payment processing
instructions
176 may include instructions for performing aspects of payment processing,
such as
providing for encryption techniques to be used in association with particular
payment
procedures, accessing account and processing information, any other suitable
payment
processing functionality, or any suitable combination thereof. Cryptographic
instructions
178 may include instructions for performing cryptographic operations.
Cryptographic
processing unit 125 may execute the cryptographic instructions 178 to perform
a variety
of cryptographic functions, such as to encrypt, decrypt, sign, or verify a
signature upon
payment and transaction information as part of a payment transaction.
100511 Wireless communication interface 108 may include suitable
wireless
communications hardware (e.g., antennas, etc.) and one or more processors
having
processing capability necessary to engage in wireless communication (e.g.,
with a
merchant device 29 via a protocol such as Bluetooth low energy) and control
associated
circuitry, including but not limited to hardware logic, computer readable
instructions
running on a processor, or any suitable combination thereof. Although wireless
communication interface 108 may be implemented in any suitable manner, in an
exemplary embodiment, wireless communication interface 108 may be implemented
as a
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Texas Instruments CC2640 device, which may include a processing unit (not
depicted)
and memory (not depicted).
[0052] Power supply 106 may include one or more power supplies such as a
physical connection to AC power or a battery. Power supply 106 may include
power
conversion circuitry for converting an AC or DC power source into a plurality
of DC
voltages for use by components of payment reader 22. When power supply 106
includes
a battery, the battery may be charged via a physical power connection, via
inductive
charging, or via any other suitable method. Although not depicted as
physically
connected to the other components of the payment reader 22 in FIG. 3, power
supply 106
may supply a variety of voltages to the components of the payment reader 22 in
accordance with the requirements of those components.
[0053] Wired interface 110 may include any suitable interface for wired
communication with other devices or a communication network, such as USB,
Lightning,
FireWire, Ethernet, any other suitable wired communication interface, or any
combination thereof. In some embodiments, wired interface 110 may allow
payment
reader to communicate with one or both of merchant device 29 and payment
server 40.
[0054] Memory 122 of reader chip 100 may include a plurality of sets of
instructions for controlling operations of payment reader 22, such as
operating
instructions 130 and transaction processing instructions 132.
[0055] Operating instructions 130 may include instructions for
controlling general
operations of the payment reader 22, such as internal communications, power
management, processing of messages, system monitoring, sleep modes, user
interface
response and control, operation of the wireless interface 108, operation of
the transaction
chip 114, and the management of the other sets of instructions. In one
embodiment, the
operating instructions 130 may provide the operating system and applications
necessary
to perform most of the processing operations that are performed by the
processing unit
120 of the reader chip 100 of payment reader 22
[0056] Operating instructions 130 may also include instructions for
interacting
with a merchant device 29. In one embodiment, the merchant device 29 may be
running
a point-of-sale application. The operating instructions 130 may include
instructions for a
complementary application to run on processing unit 120 of reader chip 100, in
order to
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exchange information with the point-of-sale application. For example, the
point-of-sale
application may provide a user interface that facilitates a user such as a
merchant to
engage in purchase transactions with a customer. Menus may provide for the
selection of
items, calculation of taxes, addition of tips, and other related
functionality. When it is
time to receive payment, the point-of-sale application may send a message to
the payment
reader 22 (e.g., via wireless interface 108). The operating instructions 130
facilitate
processing of the payment, for example, by acquiring payment information via
the
contactless interface 102 or contact interface 104, by invoking the
transaction chip 114 to
process that payment information, and by generating responsive messages that
are
transmitted to the point-of-sale application of the merchant device via
wireless interface
108
[0057] Operating instructions 130 may also include instructions for
interacting
with a payment service system 50 at a payment server 40. In one embodiment, a
payment
service system 50 may be associated with the payment reader 22 and the point-
of-sale
application of the merchant device 29. For example, the payment service system
50 may
have information about payment readers 22 and merchant devices 29 that are
registered
with the payment service system 50 (e.g., based on unique identifiers). This
information
may be used to process transactions with servers of the merchant and customer
financial
institutions, for providing analysis and reports to a merchant, and
aggregating transaction
data. The payment reader 22 may process payment information (e.g., based on
operation
of reader chip 100 and transaction chip 114) and communicate the processed
payment
information to the point-of-sale application, which in turn communicates with
the
payment service system 50. In this manner, messages from the payment reader 22
may
be forwarded to the payment service system 50 of payment server 40, such that
the
payment reader 22 and payment service system 50 may collectively process the
payment
transaction.
[0058] Transaction processing instructions 132 may include instructions
for
processing payment transactions at payment reader 22. In one embodiment, the
transaction processing instructions may be compliant with a payment standard
such as
those promulgated by EMV. Depending on the payment method that is being used
(e.g.,
Europay, Mastercard, Visa, American Express, etc.), a particular processing
procedure
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associated with the payment method may be selected and the transaction may be
processed according to that procedure. When executed by processing unit 120,
these
instructions may determine whether to process a transaction locally, how
payment
information is accessed from a payment device, how that payment information is
processed, which cryptographic functions to perform, the types of
communications to
exchange with a payment server, and any other suitable information related to
the
processing of payment transactions. In some embodiments, transaction
processing
instructions 132 may perform high level processing, and provide instructions
for
processing unit 120 to communicate with transaction chip 114 to perform most
transaction processing operations.
[0059] Transaction processing instructions 132 may include pre-charge
instructions for communicating payment information with a payment device when
performing pre-charge operations during a payment transaction. In some
embodiments,
transaction processing instructions 132 may include instructions for handling
transactions
intended to provide preliminary charges to a chip card for processing by the
payment
reader 22 until the payment transaction is completed (e.g., at a point of sale
application
running on a merchant device 29 in communication with the payment reader). In
some
embodiments, the preliminary charge or charges may provide a dummy charge
amount in
order for the chip card to produce an authorization response (e.g., an
authorization
response cryptogram). Depending on when the pre-charge request is received
from the
merchant device, this authorization response may be transmitted back to the
merchant
device (e.g., via wireless interface 108 or wired interface 110) prior to the
merchant
completing the payment transaction.
100601 In some embodiments, it may be desired for an authorization
response
returned during pre-charge to be processed with a payment amount that matches
the
actual payment amount of the transaction to be completed by the merchant. Such
a pre-
charge may include acquiring a plurality of preliminary payment amounts for
authorization by a chip card based on the transaction processing instructions
132. The
reader chip 100 may receive each of the plurality of preliminary payment
amounts in a
message, such as from point-of-sale application at the merchant device 29 or
payment
server 40. As described in greater detail below, in some embodiments, the
plurality of
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preliminary payment amounts may be determined arbitrarily and provided to the
payment
reader 22 for use by the reader chip 100. In other embodiments, the plurality
of
preliminary payment amounts may be derived based on predictive techniques
using
historical data for the merchant device 29, and in some embodiments, data from
other
payment terminals 20, as will be discussed further hereafter. The transaction
processing
instructions 132 may include instructions for continuing to provide
preliminary charges
until an actual payment amount is received (e.g., processing of payment
information from
the payment transaction is complete).
100611 In other embodiments, the transaction processing instructions 132
may
include instructions for receiving an indicator that a charge request is a pre-
charge
request, may assign a priority to the indicator associated with the pre-charge
request, and
store the indicator and its assigned priority in memory, such as memory 122.
In this
regard, the reader chip 100 may prioritize or deprioritize a pre-charge
request based on
the indicator. In some embodiments, the reader chip 100 may secure
authorization for
each pre-charge request in order of priority (e.g., from highest to lowest
prioritization).
In some embodiments, transaction processing instructions 132 may include
instructions
for assigning priority proportionally with regard to a score assigned to a
preliminary
payment amount that is indicative of a likelihood that the preliminary payment
amount
will match an actual payment amount for the transaction. In yet other
embodiments, the
reader chip 100 may store and prioritize or deprioritize a request for payment
information
without regard to whether the request is a pre-charge request using
instructions stored in
transaction processing instructions 132.
100621 Transaction processing instructions 132 may include instructions
for
collecting information other than payment information before a charge is
initiated during
a payment transaction. For example, when a chip card is inserted into the
contact
interface 104 but before transaction chip 114 requests electronic payment
information
from (i.e., charges) the card, the reader chip 100 may collect other
information needed for
processing the payment transaction from the chip card, such as details about
the chip
card, an identity of a customer financing institution or issuer that issued
the chip card, an
account number, an expiration date of the chip card, or other information. In
addition,
transaction processing instructions 132 may include instructions for
determining
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information about a customer using the payment device, including an identity
of the
customer, transaction history, or other information. In some embodiments,
transaction
processing instructions 132 may include instructions for collecting any
suitable
information from a payment device 10 prior to requesting electronic payment
information
or otherwise initiating a charge at the payment device 10.
[0063] FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary merchant device 29 in accordance with
some
embodiments of the present disclosure. Although a merchant device 29 may be
implemented in any suitable manner, in one embodiment the merchant device 29
may be
an interactive electronic device that provides a user interface and
communicates with one
or more other devices. Examples of interactive electronic devices include
tablets, smart
phones, smart watches, desktop computers, laptop computers, custom electronic
devices,
or any other suitable electronic device having the necessary user interface
and
communication capabilities to perform the functions described herein.
[0064] Although particular components are depicted in a particular
arrangement
in FIG. 4, it will be understood that merchant device 29 may include
additional
components, one or more of the components depicted in FIG. 4 may not be
included in
merchant device 29, and the components of merchant device 29 may be rearranged
in any
suitable manner. In one embodiment, merchant device 29 includes a processing
unit 202,
a memory 204, an interface bus 206, a power supply 208, a user interface 210,
a first
wireless interface 212, a second wireless interface 214, and a wired interface
216.
[0065] In one embodiment, the merchant device 29 includes a processing
unit 202
and memory 204 that are configured to control and perform the necessary
operations of
the merchant device 29. In one embodiment, the processing unit 202 may be a
general
purpose processor running instructions for a mobile operating system,
programs, and
applications based on instructions that may be stored in memory 204. The
memory 204
may include any suitable memory types or combination thereof as described
herein, such
as flash memory and RAM memory, for storing instructions and other data and
providing
a working memory for the execution of the operating system, programs, and
applications
of the merchant device 29. In one embodiment, the memory 204 may include a
plurality
of sets of instructions, such as operating instructions 220, point-of-sale
application
instructions 222, EMV offline instructions 224, and EMV/swipe mode
instructions 226.
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[0066] The processing unit 202 may execute the instructions of memory
204 to
interact with and control one or more other components of the merchant device
29.
Although the processing unit 202 may communicate with other components of the
merchant device 29 in any suitable manner, in one embodiment the processing
unit may
utilize an interface bus 206. Interface bus 206 may include one or more
communication
buses such as I2C, SPI, USB, UART, and GPIO. In one embodiment, the processing
unit
202 may execute instructions of the memory and based on those instructions may
communicate with the other components of the merchant device 29 via the
communication buses of interface bus 206.
[0067] Merchant device 29 may also include a power supply 208. Power
supply
208 may include power conversion circuitry for converting AC power and/or
generating a
plurality of DC voltages for use by components of merchant device 29. When
power
supply 208 includes a battery, the battery may be charged via a physical power
connection, via inductive charging, or via any other suitable method. Although
not
depicted as physically connected to the other components of merchant device 29
in FIG.
4, power supply 208 may supply a variety of voltages to the components of
merchant
device 29 in accordance with the requirements of those components.
[0068] Merchant device 29 may also include a user interface 210. User
interface
210 may provide various options for the user of the merchant device 29 to
interact with
applications and programs running on the merchant device 29. An exemplary user
interface 210 may include hardware and software for any suitable user
interface, such as
a touchscreen interface, voice command interface, keyboard, mouse, gesture
recognition,
any other suitable user interface, or any combination thereof. In one
embodiment, the
user interface 210 may be a touchscreen interface that displays an interactive
user
interface for programs and applications such as a point-of-sale application
running on the
merchant device 29.
[0069] Merchant device 29 may also include a plurality of wireless
communication interfaces. The wireless communication interfaces may include
any
suitable hardware and software for providing a wireless communication
interface such as
Bluetooth classic, Bluetooth low energy, WiFi, cellular, short message service
(SMS),
NFC, any other suitable wireless communication interface, or any combination
thereof
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In an embodiment, a first wireless communication interface 212 may be a
wireless
communication interface that primarily communicates with payment reader 22
(e.g.,
Bluetooth low energy interface) while a second wireless communication
interface 214
may be a wireless communication interface (e.g., WiFi) that primarily
communicates
with a payment service system 50 of payment server 40 (e.g., via the
internet).
[0070] Merchant device may also include a wired interface 216, which may
include any suitable interface for wired communication with other devices or a
communication network, such as USB, Lightning, FireWire, Ethernet, any other
suitable
wired communication interface, or any combination thereof.
[0071] Operating instructions 220 may include instructions for
controlling any
suitable general operations of the merchant device 29, such as internal
communications,
power management, control of 1./0 devices, control of communication devices,
control of
other hardware of the merchant device 29, any other suitable instructions, or
any
combination thereof. In one embodiment, the operating instructions may provide
instructions for the operating system of the merchant device 29 as well as
most drivers,
programs, and applications operating on the merchant device 29.
[0072] Operating instructions 220 may include instructions for
controlling the
operations of the user interface 210. The user interface 210 may be controlled
in
accordance with the instructions of programs and applications of the operating
instructions 220, point-of-sale application instructions 222, EMV offline
instructions 224,
and EMV/swipe mode instructions 226. In one embodiment, the operating
instructions
220 may include instructions to display information about an EMV offline mode
or
EMV/swipe mode. Operating instructions 220 may also include instructions for
interacting with a payment reader 22 and for interacting with a payment
service system
50 at a payment server 40. The payment reader 22 and/or the application
running on the
merchant device 29 may be known (e.g., via a registration process) to the
payment
service system 50, such that the merchant device 29 may process payments with
the
payment service system 50 according to the point-of-sale application
instructions 222.
[0073] Point-of-sale application instructions 222 include instructions
for running
a point-of-sale application on the merchant device 29. When executed by the
processing
unit 202, the point-of-sale application instructions 222 may provide for a
rich display of
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an interactive interface that allows a merchant to process payment
transactions with
customers. These instructions may include customized interfaces that allow the
merchant
or customer to select products for purchase, calculate sales tax, process
tips, provide
receipts, generate discounts or special offers, process customer loyalty
programs, search
for items in inventory or for delivery, and perform any other suitable retail
operations. In
some embodiments, the point-of-sale application instructions 222 may include
instructions for providing a rich display of information relating to expedited
processing
modes such as EMV offline mode or EMV/swipe mode.
100741 In some embodiments, point-of-sale application instructions 222
may
include instructions for a processing request to enter an expedited processing
mode. In
some embodiments, the point-of-sale application instructions 222 may receive a
request
from a user to enter an expedited processing mode, such as via user interface
210. In an
exemplary embodiment, various conditions may occur that make processing
payment
transactions using normal procedures impractical, such as when a connection is
lost
between the payment terminal 20 and payment server 40 and payment terminal 20
is
unable to communicate with payment server 40. As discussed further below,
entering an
expedited processing mode may enable the merchant device 29 to continue
processing
payment transactions until a connection between payment terminal 20 and
payment
server 40 may be restored. In addition, normal processing operations may be
impractical
during peak transaction times or other times when large crowds may visit a
merchant
location and customers making purchases may experience long lines or wait
times before
they may provide payment and leave the merchant's store. Entering a swipe mode
at the
merchant device 29 may permit customers to take advantage of faster processing
of
payment information available through processing the transaction by swiping a
payment
device with a magstripe.
[0075] In some embodiments, point-of-sale application instructions 222
may
include instructions for receiving an input from a user at the user interface
210 requesting
entry into the expedited processing mode. For example, in some embodiments,
point-of-
sale application instructions 222 may display an opt-in request in response to
the request
to enter expedited processing mode. In some embodiments, point-of-sale
application
instructions 222 may require the user to accept the opt-in request before the
user may
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execute an expedited processing mode. In this regard, the user may accept or
decline the
opt-in request from point-of-sale application instructions 222. If the user
declines the
request, point-of-sale application instructions 222 may process the
transaction normally,
without entering the expedited processing mode. If the user accepts, the point-
of-sale
application instructions 222 may permit the user to proceed with steps in the
mode for
which the user has accepted an opt-in request (e.g., an EMV offline mode or
swipe
mode).
100761 In some embodiments, point-of-sale application instructions 222
may
include instructions for providing and displaying a user interface framework
and
notifications or disclosures related to the expedited processing mode. For
example, the
user may receive a notification after accepting the opt-in request that a
payment
transaction will be performed according to the expedited processing mode. In
some
embodiments, point-of-sale application instructions 222 may provide a
notification to the
user of a liability shift that may occur as part of the expedited processing
mode, such as
from an issuer of a payment device 10 (e.g., a chip card or swipe card) to a
merchant
using payment terminal 20 to process payment transactions. Other notifications
or
disclosures may be provided in other embodiments. In one embodiment, point-of-
sale
application instructions 222 may provide to a user any information related to
the
expedited processing mode for which disclosure may be required or appropriate.
100771 In some embodiments, point-of-sale application instructions 222
may
include instructions for providing various notifications to the processing
element 202 of
merchant device 29 in response to acceptance of an opt-in request by a user.
In some
embodiments, a notification may include an indication that the transaction is
being
processed in expedited processing mode according to an expedited payment
protocol. In
some embodiments, the processing unit 202 may perform steps of the expedited
processing mode in response to the notification. In some embodiments, a
notification
may include an indication of a reason that a transaction will be processed as
a swipe
mode transaction. For example, the notification may indicate that payment
information
will be received by reading a magstripe at the swipe interface 105 because a
request to
the enter swipe mode has been received and a user has accepted the opt-in
request, not
because a failure to read a chip card at the payment terminal 20 has resulted
in processing
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the transaction as a technical fallback transaction (e.g, when allowing a user
to swipe a
chip card because the payment reader 22 cannot read the EMV chip). The
notification
may provide other information in response to acceptance of an opt-in request
by a user in
other embodiments.
100781 EMV offline instructions 224 may include instructions for
entering the
EMV offline mode at the merchant device 29 and processing payment information
from a
payment device 10 (e.g., a chip card) in the EMV offline mode. In some
embodiments,
EMV offline instructions 224 may cause the merchant device 29 to enter the EMV
offline
mode in response to various events. Based on EMV offline instructions 224, the
merchant device 29 may enter the EMV offline mode when a user accepts an opt-
in
request at the user interface 210, when processing unit 202 determines that a
communication interface (e.g., wireless interface 214) of the merchant device
29 is
unable to communicate with one or more payment servers, when a latency of
communication between merchant device 29 and a payment server 40 is above a
threshold, or in response to other occurrences or other criteria.
100791 In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include
instructions for processing electronic payment information from a chip card as
part of the
EMV offline mode. The steps of the EMV offline mode may include aspects of
existing
EMV processing tasks for providing payment authorization in response to an
electronic
payment response from a chip card, such as transaction processing using Visa
QuickChip for EMV or other similar processing operations. For example, in
some
embodiments, EMV offline instructions may request and receive electronic
payment
information from the chip card, as part of the expedited processing mode. The
EMV
offline instructions 224 may cause processing unit 202 to provide a request to
payment
reader 22 for an electronic payment response from a chip card at a chip card
interface 104
of payment reader 22. In some embodiments, the request for an electronic
payment
response may be provided in response to a first request for payment received
at the point-
of-sale application 222 or otherwise.
[0080] In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include
instructions for receiving an electronic payment response. In some
embodiments, the
electronic payment response may be provided by a chip card inserted at contact
interface
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104 of the payment reader 22. The chip card may perform risk management in
response
to the request for electronic payment response and either decline to approve
the
transaction offline or provide information required for an online
authorization request. In
some embodiments, the information provided by the chip card may include an
authorization request cryptogram ("ARQC") or other similar information
required to
perform online authorization of an electronic payment request. Other steps for
receiving
an electronic payment response from payment reader 22 may be perfoimed in some
embodiments.
100811 In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include
instructions for assigning a time indicator or timestamp to an electronic
payment response
received from payment reader 22. EMV offline instructions 224 may include
instructions
for associating the electronic payment response with one or more time
indicators
depending on various factors and requirements applicable to the transaction.
For
example, as described further below, electronic payment response processing at
one or
more payment servers may require a time indicator associated with an
electronic payment
response to falls within a range of time for the particular transaction. In
some
embodiments, the time indicator may correspond to a time when the chip card
provided
the electronic payment response, for example, when required for processing of
the
electronic payment response (e.g., the time indicator is part of a hash or
ARQC required
for response authentication). In this regard, more than one time indicator may
be
associated with the electronic payment response in some embodiments, for
example,
when an amount of time between the time when the chip card provided the
electronic
payment response and the time when one or more payment servers receive the
electronic
payment response exceeds a threshold (e.g., a latency threshold). In some
embodiments,
the associated time indicator may specify transmission to a payment server at
the soonest
possible time in the future, or at a pre-scheduled time In some embodiments,
EMV
offline instructions 224 may include instructions for assigning a plurality of
time
indicators to an electronic payment response from a chip card. In this regard,
one of the
plurality of time indicators may match a time within the range of time for the
transaction
required by the one or more payment servers. In some embodiments, the time
indicator
associated with an electronic payment response may enable merchant device 29
to
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schedule a time for sending the electronic payment response to the one or more
payment
servers based on EMV offline instructions 224.
[0082] In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include
instructions for storing payment transaction information as an offline
transaction in
memory 204 of the merchant device 29. The payment transaction information may
include an electronic payment response, one or more associated time indicators
or a
payment type indicator. In some embodiments, the payment type indicator may
include
information about a payment device 10 that provided an electronic payment
response,
such as a chip card. In some embodiments, the indicator may include an
indicator that a
liability shift, such as from a chip card issuer to merchant has or has not
occurred.
[0083] In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include
instructions for approving a transaction associated with an electronic payment
response.
The approval may be based on standard EMV processing steps at the merchant
device 29,
such as EMV processing carried out during normal operations at the merchant
device 29.
In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include instructions for
providing the approval as an offline approval, such as a notification first
electronic
payment response may be received at the merchant device 29. In some
embodiments, the
EMV offline instructions 224 may provide a notification for a user (e.g., to
the user
interface) following the approval prompting removal of the chip card from the
chip card
interface 104. The user may remove the chip card before transmission of any
information
associated with the transaction occurs, such as the electronic payment
response or other
information. In this regard, a payment transaction time perceived by a user
may be
decreased.
100841 EMV offline instructions 224 may include instructions for
performing the
foregoing steps when additional payment requests are received at the merchant
device 29.
In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include instructions for
requesting additional electronic payment responses in response to additional
requests for
payment at the user interface, storing the additional electronic payment
responses in
memory 204, and approving additional transactions associated with the
additional
electronic payment responses. The steps may be repeated as often as necessary
for any
payment requests received at the user interface 210 of merchant device 29.
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[0085] In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include
instructions for transmitting a payment approval request to one or more
payment servers.
In some embodiments, the payment approval request may comprise one or more
electronic payment responses and an associated payment-type indicator for each
electronic payment response. In some embodiments, the payment type indicator
may
indicate to one or more payment servers that one or more electronic payment
responses
are to be processed according to an expedited payment protocol. Under the
expedited
payment protocol (e.g., Visa quick chip), the transaction may be approved
without any
further communications between the payment server and the chip card. This
allows the
chip card to be removed earlier in the payment process (e.g., after the
electronic payment
response is transmitted, at a particular stage of a transaction, or upon
preliminary
approval by a merchant device. In addition, the payment approval request may
comprise
an indicator comprising information about a liability shift, such as an
indicator that a
liability shift to the merchant has occurred.
[0086] In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include
instructions for transmitting a payment approval request at a variety of times
or in
response to a variety of events. For example, in some embodiments, after
storing one or
more electronic payment responses in memory, EMV offline instructions 224 may
include an option to send one or more payment approval requests to one or more
payment
servers based on a determination that the one or more payment approval
requests may be
transmitted. EMV offline instructions may determine that the one or more
payment
approval requests may be transmitted based on a determination that a
communication
interface of payment terminal 20 (e.g., wireless interface 214 of merchant
device 29) is
available. In this regard, processing unit 202 (based on EMV offline
instructions 224)
may check whether the communication interface is able to communicate with one
or
more payment servers (e.g., payment server 40) in any suitable manner, such by
as
monitoring transmissions received at the communication interface or by
receiving a
response from the one or more payment servers to a message transmitted from
the
communication interface. In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may
include instructions for performing the check after a first electronic payment
response is
received at the merchant device 29. In some embodiments, EMV offline
instructions 224
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may include instructions for determining that a frequency of payment requests
is less than
a threshold as part of determining that a payment approval request may be
transmitted. In
this regard, EMV offline instructions 224 may include instructions for noting
a time at
which each payment request is received at the user interface 210 and comparing
a
frequency of the requests with a pre-defined threshold. The threshold may be
updated
from time-to-time based on various factors, such as a latency of communication
between
the payment terminal 20 and payment server 40, or other similar information.
[0087] In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include
instructions for forwarding one or more payment approval requests to one or
more
payment servers if the communication interface is able to communicate with
them. In
some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may assign a time indicator to
the
payment approval request, such as when a time indicator is not part of an ARQC
associated with an electronic payment response. In some embodiments, EMV
offline
instructions 224 may include instructions for waiting to send a payment
approval request
to one or more payment servers until a time indicated by a time indicator
associated with
the payment approval request. The time indicated by the time indicator may be
a
particular or explicit time, an elapsed time, or a conditional time. For
example, the time
indicated by the time indicator may be based on a determination that a latency
of
communication between payment terminal 20 and a payment server 40 has fallen
below a
threshold, or that a frequency of payment requests has fallen below a
threshold. The time
indicator may include other information in other embodiments.
[0088] EMV offline instructions 224 may include instructions forwarding
a
payment approval request at a time corresponding to the time of the associated
time
indicator. The time corresponding to the time indicator may be a future time
at which the
payment approval request is scheduled to be sent. In some embodiments, a
plurality of
payment approval requests may be associated with respective time indicators
corresponding to a similar time. In this regard, EMV offline instructions may
process
multiple payment approval requests at a time corresponding to the time
associated with
the time indicator. In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may
include
instructions for forwarding a payment approval request and its associated time
indicator
to one or more payment servers at a time prior to a time corresponding to the
time of the
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time indicator. In this regard, the one or more payment servers may wait to
process the
payment approval request until the time corresponding to the time of the time
indicator.
In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include instructions for
forwarding a payment approval request to an intermediate server, which may
forward the
payment approval request to one or more payment servers at a later time. In
some
embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include instructions for
forwarding to
one or more payment servers all payment approval requests available for
transmission for
a given time. EMV offline instructions 224 may include instructions for
processing
payment approval requests using other techniques in other embodiments.
[0089] EMV offline instructions 224 may include instructions for
receiving a
payment approval response in response to a payment approval request sent to
one or more
payment servers. In some embodiments, the payment approval response may be
associated with one or more payment approval requests, and may indicate that a
particular payment transaction has been approved or declined, such as by a
chip card
issuer. In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 224 may include
instructions for
providing a notification to user interface 210 of ultimate approval or denial
of the
payment approval request indicated by a payment approval response. Payment
approval
responses may be received for each payment approval request sent to the one or
more
payment servers.
[0090] Discussion now will turn to an embodiment in which the merchant
device
29 may comprise a swipe interface 105, and may be configured to process
payment
transactions with a chip card in a swipe mode. Under some circumstances,
payment
terminal 20 may be unable to process a payment transaction in which a customer
attempts
to provide electronic payment information using a chip card. In some
instances, damage
to an EMV chip of a chip card, improper use, various hardware and software
issues at a
payment terminal 20, or other problems may prevent processing of payment
information
using normal EMV procedures. Processing of EMV chip cards may be performed
using
a magstripe when a payment reader 22 is unable to read payment information
using
normal EMV processing. In general, the process for "falling back" to allow
processing of
payment information from a chip card using the chip card's magstripe may be
referred to
as a "fallback transaction." During a swipe transaction involving a card with
a magstripe
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but no EMV chip, liability for risk of non-payment in the event a transaction
is declined
shifts from card issuer to merchant accepting the swipe transaction. However,
no liability
shift occurs as part of a technical fallback transaction (e.g., where the
fallback transaction
occurred as a result of technical problems with the payment procedure), and
liability
remains with the card issuer. In order to permit a merchant to opt-in to
permit a payment
transaction involving a chip card to be processed as a swipe transaction, card
issuers and
various regulatory authorities may require liability for non-payment to shift
to the
merchant. Acceptance of a request to shift liability from a card issuer to a
merchant may
permit the merchant to operate payment terminal 20 in a swipe mode, thereby
achieving
faster payment transaction processing and reduced checkout time.
[0091] EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include instructions for
causing
payment terminal 20 to enter a swipe mode. In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode
instructions 226 may include instructions for determining when to enter swipe
mode at
the merchant device 29. For example, the merchant device 29 may enter swipe
mode in
response to a request to enter swipe mode received at user interface 210
(e.g., by user
input at point-of-sale application 222) or a determination that certain
criteria (e.g., queue
size, transaction frequency, etc.) meet a threshold. In some embodiments, the
request to
enter swipe mode may be provided in response to a request for payment
information at
the user interface 210, or when a chip card is detected at the payment
terminal 20, such as
at contact interface 104.
[0092] In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may require
a
user to accept a request to opt-in or accept a liability shift from card
issuer to merchant
before permitting the payment transaction to proceed by executing the steps of
the swipe
mode. If a user declines to accept the opt-in request, the processing of the
payment
transaction for which the request was provided may continue according to
normal
processing operations (e.g., requiring a chip card to be processed through the
chip card
interface rather than the magstripe interface). Acceptance of the opt-in
request may
permit the merchant device 29 to execute the steps for processing a payment
transaction
in swipe mode. The opt-in request may include any suitable information for
display to a
user in conjunction with the opt-in request, such as notifications and
disclosures related to
the liability shift to the merchant or other information. In some embodiments,
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EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include instructions for providing an opt-
in
request in response to various events, such as when a user provides a request
via user
interface 210, a determination that a merchant is experiencing high customer
volume
(e.g., based on information from sensors or cameras), when a time between
payment
transactions at a payment terminal falls below a threshold amount of time, or
other events
indicating that a customer may experience delays in completing a payment
transaction at
the payment terminal 20.
100931 In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include
instructions for processing electronic payment information of a swipe payment
type as
part of swipe mode operations. A user may provide a payment transaction
request at user
interface 210. In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may
include
instructions for receiving electronic payment information from a payment card
magstripe
swiped through swipe interface 105 in response to a payment transaction
request at user
interface 210. The electronic payment information may include information
provided as
part of a conventional swipe payment transaction, such as card issuer
information and
card and cardholder identification.
100941 EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include instructions for
generating
and associating indicators with electronic payment information received during
swipe
mode. In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may generate a
swipe
mode indicator based on the payment terminal entering swipe mode. The swipe
mode
indicator may permit electronic payment information to be processed according
to
procedures for processing swipe payment type. In addition, the swipe mode
indicator
may indicate that the transaction is not a technical fallback transaction.
Because the chip
card is being operated in the swipe mode in the absence of technical fallback,
the
indicator may inform payment servers that the transaction should be processed
as a swipe
transaction requiring a liability shift to the merchant. In some embodiments,
EMV/swipe
mode instructions 226 may generate an indicator that a payment card that
provided the
electronic payment information is a chip card. The indicator that the payment
card is a
chip card may be based on any suitable infoiniation, including a notification
received at
the merchant device 29 that the payment card is a chip card. The indicator
that a payment
card is a chip card may be based on other information in other embodiments. In
some
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embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include instructions for
associating a swipe mode indicator and indicator that a payment card is a chip
card with
electronic payment information received at the payment terminal during the
swipe mode.
EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may generate and associate other indicators in
other
embodiments.
100951 In some
embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include
instructions for processing a payment transaction with electronic payment
information of
a swipe payment type provided by a payment card that is not a chip card. In
this regard,
EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may cause the merchant device 29 to receive a
payment transaction request and electronic payment information of a swipe
payment type
from swipe interface 105 of payment reader 22. EMV/swipe mode instructions 226
may
cause merchant device 29 to determine the card that provided the electronic
payment
information is not a chip card and process the electronic payment information
provided
by the card according to a swipe protocol. In some embodiments, the swipe
protocol may
include steps for processing electronic swipe payment information using
conventional
methods (e.g., if a swipe only card is provided to the payment reader 105, the
liability
shift to the merchant may not occur).
100961 In some
embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include
instructions for permitting normal processing of a payment transaction after a
request to
enter swipe mode has been accepted (e.g., from one payment transaction to
another). For
example, the merchant device 29 may determine that conditions that prompted
the
request to enter swipe mode have abated or no longer exist. In some
embodiments, the
determination may be based on a determination that a number of customers
present on the
merchant's premises has fallen below a threshold, or that a time between
payment
transactions now exceeds the threshold time it previously fell below. In this
regard,
merchant device 29 may exit swipe mode and resume operations for normal
processing of
payment transactions. In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may
include instructions for processing payment information from a chip card at
contact
interface 104 using noimal payment processing after entering swipe mode. A
request for
normal chip card processing may be provided from user interface 210, and
EMV/swipe
mode instructions 226 may include instructions for processing electronic
payment
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information from the chip card in the normal manner (e.g., through
communication with
the chip card at contact interface 104). For example, EMV/swipe mode
instructions 226
may cause merchant device 29 to receive the payment information and transmit
the
electronic payment information to one or more payment servers. EMV/swipe mode
instructions 226 may receive a payment approval response at a communication
interface
of payment terminal 20 (e.g., wireless interface 214) in response. In this
regard, no
liability shift may occur as part of processing electronic payment information
from the
chip card (e.g., liability for the payment transaction request is not assigned
to the
merchant).
[0097] EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include instructions for
transmitting electronic payment information associated with a payment
transaction
request to one or more payment servers, such as via wireless interface 214.
The
electronic payment information may be received at the merchant device 29 via
executing
normal processing or swipe mode, and may include one or more of a swipe mode
indicator and indicator that a card that provided the electronic payment
infolination is a
chip card. EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include instructions for
receiving a
payment approval response associated with electronic payment information
transmitted to
the one or more payment servers. Thus, for a plurality of electronic payment
information
transmissions, in an exemplary embodiment, a payment approval response
associated
with the electronic payment information may be received at a communication
interface of
the payment terminal 20 (e.g., at wireless interface 214). Note that, in some
embodiments, a payment approval response may be based on one or more of the
swipe
mode indicator and indicator that a card that provided the electronic payment
information
is a chip card The payment approval response may be based on other information
in
other embodiments
[0098] In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include
instructions for identifying a delay condition during which transmission of
electronic
payment information to one or more payment servers should be delayed. The
condition
may be an event such as a loss of connectivity with the one or more payment
servers, a
high transaction volume, slow connection speeds, or any combination thereof.
In some
embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may include instructions for
storing the
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electronic payment information (e.g., in memory 204) in response to
identification of the
delay condition. In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 226 may
cause
merchant device 29 to monitor the delay condition and, upon expiration of the
delay
condition, transmit the electronic payment information stored in response to
the delay
condition to the one or more payment servers. In some embodiments, the delay
condition
may be a determination that a frequency of payment transactions (e.g., at
payment
terminal 20) exceeds a threshold frequency. In an embodiment, the delay
condition may
comprise a connection speed between the payment terminal 20 (e.g., merchant
device 29)
and one or more payment servers. In some embodiments, a threshold may be based
on
any suitable information, including merchant identification, merchant type,
merchant
location, employee identification, customer identification, item type, time,
or other
information. In some embodiments, expiration of the delay condition may
comprise the
frequency of payment transactions falling below the threshold. In one
embodiment,
expiration of the delay condition may comprise a connection speed exceeding a
threshold
connection speed. In other embodiments, expiration of the delay condition may
be based
on any suitable information.
100991 Note that, in some embodiments, capabilities assigned to merchant
device
29 based on EMV offline instructions 224 and EMV/swipe mode instructions 226
may be
combined. For example, if a determination that a duration for processing a
payment
transaction using expedited processing mode based on EMV offline instructions
224
exceeds a threshold, merchant device 29 may execute EMV/swipe mode
instructions 226
in an attempt to reduce payment transaction time. The determination may be
based on
any suitable information about a transaction and average durations of payment
transactions carried out using one or more of expedited processing mode
according to
EMV offline instructions 224 and swipe mode according to EMV/swipe
instructions 226.
It will be understood that such capabilities may be combined in any suitable
arrangement
to achieve the purposes set forth herein.
[00100] FIG. 5 depicts an exemplary payment service system 50 of a
payment server 40 in accordance with some embodiments of the present
disclosure.
Although the payment service system 50 is depicted as a single server, it will
be
understood that the operations and memory of the payment service system 50 may
be
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distributed over any suitable number of servers. Although particular
components are
depicted in a particular arrangement in FIG. 5, it will be understood that the
payment
service system 50 may include additional components, one or more of the
components
depicted in FIG. 5 may not be included in the payment service system 50, and
the
components of payment service system 50 may be rearranged in any suitable
manner. It
will also be understood that, in some embodiments, payment service system 50
may
include the necessary components and have the necessary configuration to
perform any of
the functionality attributed to the payment server 40 herein. In one
embodiment,
payment service system 50 includes at least a processing unit 302, a memory
304, an
interface bus 306, a power supply 308, and a communication interface 310.
[00101] In one embodiment, the payment service system 50 includes a
processing
unit 302 and memory 304 that are configured to control and perform the
necessary
operations of the payment service system 50. In one embodiment, the processing
unit
302 of may be a high-speed processor running instructions for an operating
system for the
server, programs, and applications based on instructions that may be stored in
memory
304. The memory 304 may include any suitable memory types or combination
thereof as
described herein for storing instructions and other data and providing a
working memory
for the execution of the operating system, programs, and applications of the
payment
service system 50. In one embodiment, the memory may include a plurality of
sets of
instructions, including but not limited to operating instructions 320, payment
processing
instructions 322, EMV offline instructions 324, and EMV/swipe mode
instructions 326.
[00102] The processing unit 302 may execute the instructions of memory
304 to
interact with and control one or more other components of the payment service
system
50. Although the processing unit 302 may communicate with other components of
the
payment service system 50 in any suitable manner, in one embodiment the
processing
unit 302 may utilize an interface bus 306. Interface bus 306 may include one
or more
communication buses such as I2C, SPI, USB, UART, and GPIO. In one embodiment,
the
processing unit 302 may execute instructions of the memory 304 and based on
those
instructions may communicate with the other components of the payment service
system
50 via the communication buses of interface bus 306.
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[00103] The payment service system 50 may also include a power supply
308.
Power supply 308 may include power conversion circuitry for converting AC
power
and/or generating a plurality of DC voltages for use by components of the
payment
service system 50. In some embodiments, power supply 308 may include a backup
system such as a battery backup, to avoid interruptions in service during
power outages.
Although not depicted as physically connected to the other components of the
payment
service system 50 in FIG. 5, power supply 308 may supply a variety of voltages
to the
components of the payment service system 50 in accordance with the
requirements of
those components.
[00104] The payment service system 50 may also include a communication
interface 310 Although communication interface 310 may include any suitable
communication interface or combination thereof, in some embodiments, the
communication interface 310 may utilize higher speed communication interfaces
such as
WiFi, cellular, Ethernet, or fiber optics. The communication interface 310 may
establish
a secured connection (e.g., via TLS or SSL) with a payment terminal 20 (e.g.,
payment
reader 22 via merchant device 29) in order to exchange messages relating to
transactions
to be processed, firmware updates, application updates, etc. The communication
interface 310 may also communicate with other servers of the payment server 40
such as
payment servers, which may, in some embodiments, be located remotely from the
payment service system 50 and operated by different entities than those that
control the
payment service system 50. For example, in one embodiment, the payment service
system 50 may be operated by an entity that provides one or more of the
payment reader
22, merchant device 29, or point-of-sale application 222. Payment servers may
be
associated with and operated by one or more of the merchant, issuer, or
customer banks
[00105] Memory 304 may include a plurality of sets of instructions for
performing
the processing operations of the payment service system 50, such as operating
instructions 320, payment instructions 322, EMV offline instructions 324,
EMV/Swipe
mode instructions 326, and any other suitable instructions for operating the
payment
service system 50 (e.g., instructions related to the operation of one or more
other
applications or components of the payment service system 50).
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[00106] Operating instructions 320 may include instructions for
controlling any
suitable general operations of the payment service system 50, such as internal
communications, power management, control of communication devices, control of
other
hardware of the payment service system 50, any other suitable instructions, or
any
combination thereof. In one embodiment, the operating instructions may provide
instructions for the operating system of the payment service system 50 as well
as most
drivers, programs, and applications operating on the payment service system
50.
[00107] Operating instructions 320 may also include instructions for
interacting
with a merchant device 29. In one embodiment, the payment service system 50
may
communicate with the merchant device 29 via the communication interface 310.
Operating instructions 320 may include instructions that when executed by
processing
unit 302 control these communications and provide for secure communication by
implementing procedures such as TLS, SSL or as encrypted data based on keys.
[00108] Payment processing instructions 322 include instructions for
processing
payments, and may control the content of messages that are communicated to the
merchant device 29, payment reader 22 (e.g., via merchant device 29), and/or
payment
servers. In one embodiment, the payment processing instructions may include
information about each payment reader 22 and merchant device 29 having an
installed
point-of-sale application 222. In addition to performing payment processing
functions
such as providing payment information such as amount and a credit card number
to a
transaction processing system and communicating responses back to the
merchant, the
payment service system 50 may also perform complex analysis of merchant data
that may
be used to provide reports, metrics, or other data to a merchant (e.g., a
merchant
operating a plurality of merchant devices 29 at a plurality of locations).
Payment
processing instructions 322 may also include instructions for accessing
encryption keys
such as a shared private key or a key of a public/private key pair for
encrypting and
decrypting data provided by one or more of a payment device 10, payment reader
22, or
merchant device 29.
[00109] EMV offline instructions 324 may include instructions for
processing an
EMV offline payment approval request received from a payment terminal 20. The
EMV
offline instructions 324 may include instructions for determining a time to
carry out steps
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to process a payment approval request. In some embodiments, EMV offline
instructions
324 may cause payment service system 50 to determine a time corresponding to a
time
indicated by a time indicator associated with a payment approval request and
wait until
the time to begin processing the payment approval request. In some
embodiments, EMV
offline instructions 324 may include instructions for matching a time
indicator of a
payment approval request with a time indicated by an electronic payment
response, such
as an ARQC or cryptographic hash. In some embodiments, the EMV offline
instructions
324 may include instructions for processing the payment approval request at a
time
assigned arbitrarily if no time indicator is specified by an ARQC or
cryptographic hash of
the electronic payment response. In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions
324
may cause the payment service system 50 to provide payment information
included in an
electronic payment response to a bank server for authorization immediately
when the
payment service system 50 receives a payment approval request, or may wait
until a time
corresponding to a time indicator associated with the payment approval request
or its
associated electronic payment response. In addition, EMV offline instructions
324 may
include instructions for assigning an indicator to a payment approval request
indicating
the occurrence of a liability shift as part of the payment transaction. EMV
offline
instructions 324 may assign other information to a payment approval request in
other
embodiments.
[00110] In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 324 may include
instructions for storing one or more payment approval requests in memory 304
of the
payment service system 50 until a time for transmission for processing at a
bank server.
The payment approval requests may be transmitted to one or more bank servers
at various
times, such as when received at a communication interface 310 of the payment
service
system 50, at a time corresponding to a time associated with a time indicator
of the
payment approval request, when a number of payment approval requests received
at the
payment service system 50 exceeds a threshold, or other time. In some
embodiments, a
time for transmission of a payment approval request may be deteimined
according to a
user input or any other suitable information.
[00111] In some embodiments, EMV offline instructions 324 may cause
payment
service system 50 to receive a payment approval response (e.g., from a bank
server) and
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provide the response to the payment terminal 20. The payment approval response
may
indicate whether an issuer has approved or declined a payment transaction
based on a
corresponding payment approval request. In some embodiments, the payment
approval
response may be based on a payment-type indicator associated with a payment
approval
request (e.g., the payment approval response may be provided without a
requirement of
additional round-trip communications with the chip card). In this regard, a
payment
approval response may indicate a basis for the outcome of the payment approval
response
(e.g., why a bank server approved or declined an associated payment approval
request).
[00112] EMV/swipe mode instructions 326 may include instructions for
processing
electronic payment infoi Illation received from payment terminal 20. In
some
embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 326 may include instructions for
determining that the electronic payment information has been provided together
with an
accompanying swipe mode indicator and indicator that the card that provided
the
electronic payment information is a chip card. EMV/swipe mode instructions 326
may
cause payment service system 50 to determine, based on the payment information
and
indicators, that the payment transaction has been completed as a swipe mode
transaction.
In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 326 may cause payment service
system 50 to modify or assign an indicator to the electronic payment
information and
transmit the electronic payment information to one or more servers (such as a
bank
server) for approval. In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 326 may
include instructions for receiving a plurality of electronic payment
information from
payment terminal 20 and storing the plurality of electronic payment
information for
transmission to the one or more servers. EMV/swipe mode instructions 326
further may
include instructions for transmitting the plurality of electronic payment
information to
one or more servers for approval.
[00113] In some embodiments, EMV/swipe mode instructions 326 may include
instructions for receiving a payment approval response for the electronic
payment
information and transmit the payment approval response to the payment terminal
20. In
some embodiments, the payment approval response may indicate whether a payment
transaction is accepted or declined by the card issuer. In some embodiments,
the
payment approval response may be based on one or more of the swipe mode
indicator
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and indicator that the card that provided the electronic payment information
is a chip
card. In some embodiments, the indicators may comprise information indicating
to the
one or more payment servers that chip card provided electronic payment
information of a
swipe payment type. In this regard, the indicator may allow the one or more
servers to
deteimine that no technical fallback occurred and that the merchant has
accepted an opt-
in request, shifting liability for the payment request to the merchant. In
some
embodiments, the indicators may indicate that the payment card that provided
the
electronic swipe payment information was not from a chip card, and that
liability for the
payment request may remain with the bank or issuer. EMV/swipe mode
instructions 326
may include instructions for receiving the payment approval response and
transmitting it
to payment terminal 20. In some embodiments, payment service system may repeat
the
process for each of the plurality of electronic payment information received
at the
payment service system 50 based on EMV/swipe mode instructions 326.
[00114] In view of the structures and devices described supra, methods
that can be
implemented in accordance with the disclosed subject matter will be better
appreciated
with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 6-8. While, for purposes of
simplicity of
explanation, the methods are shown and described as a series of steps, it is
to be
understood and appreciated that such illustrations or corresponding
descriptions are not
limited by the order of the steps, as some steps may occur in different orders
and/or
concurrently with other steps from what is depicted and described herein. Any
non-
sequential, or branched, flow illustrated via a flowchart should be understood
to indicate
that various other branches, flow paths, and orders of the steps, can be
implemented
which achieve the same or a similar result. Moreover, not all illustrated
steps may be
required to implement the methods described hereinafter.
[00115] FIG. 6 depicts exemplary methods for expedited processing of
electronic
payment transactions in accordance with some embodiments of the present
disclosure. In
one embodiment, as is depicted in FIG. 6, methods for expedited processing of
electronic
payment transactions may be performed by a payment terminal 20 device (e.g.,
as
described in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 6, the combination of payment
reader 22
and merchant device 29). Although these steps are described as being performed
by
particular devices in one embodiment, it will be understood that the
allocation of the
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steps between the devices may be modified in any suitable manner or that the
number of
devices performing the steps may be modified in any suitable manner.
[00116] At step 602, a request to enter expedited processing mode may be
received
at a user interface 210 of merchant device 29 for processing payment
transactions at the
merchant device 29 and payment reader 22 according to the steps of an
expedited
processing mode. In some embodiments, the request may be received as an input
from a
user via point-of-sale application instructions 222 displayed at user
interface 210. In
some embodiments, the request may be generated in response to a message
displayed to
the user via the user interface 210 when a payment transaction begins (e.g.,
when the user
opens point-of-sale application instructions 222, a payment device 10 is
detected, a
customer provides an input at the payment reader 22, or any combination
thereof). In
some embodiments, the request may be generated automatically in response to a
deteunination that merchant device 29 is unable to communicate with one or
more
payment servers, or based on other criteria such as transaction frequency or
queue size.
After the request to enter expedited processing mode has been received,
processing may
continue to step 604.
[00117] At step 604, an opt-in request may be provided at user interface
210 of
merchant device 29 in response to the request to enter expedited processing
mode
received at step 602. In some embodiments, the opt-in request may be displayed
at user
interface 210 to a user as a graphical message, and may include GUI elements
that the
user may select to provide input indicating whether the user accepts the opt-
in request. In
some embodiments, the opt-in request may include disclosures or notifications
regarding
the ramifications of accepting or declining the opt-in request, such as
information
indicating that a liability shift to the merchant will be required for certain
transactions
(e.g., chip card transactions) if the merchant enters the expedited processing
mode. After
the opt-in request has been provided to the user interface 210, processing may
continue to
step 606.
[00118] At step 606, the merchant device 29 may determine whether the opt-
in
request has been accepted. The determination may be made based on the input
from step
604. Note that, in some embodiments, the user only may be permitted to execute
the
steps of the expedited processing mode when user accepts the opt-in request.
In some
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embodiments, if a user declines the opt-in request, processing may continue to
step 607,
where processing of the payment transaction at the merchant device 29 and
payment
reader 22 may continue according to the steps of a normal transaction
processing mode
(e.g., according to noitnal chip card processing procedures). If the user
accepts the opt-in
request, processing may proceed to step 608.
[00119] At step 608, the merchant device 29 may enter an expedited
processing
mode and perform the remaining steps depicted by FIG. 6. At step 610, a first
request for
payment information may be received at a user interface 210 of merchant device
29. The
request for payment may be provided as an input from a merchant via point-of-
sale
application 222 based on progress of the merchant and customer in conducting a
transaction. The customer may then be prompted to insert the chip card into
the payment
reader 22, e.g., by a user interface or instructions provided by the merchant.
After the
request for payment information has been received, processing may continue to
step 611.
[00120] At step 611, merchant device 29 may provide an electronic request
to
payment reader 22 for an electronic payment response from the inserted chip
card. The
chip card may perform risk management in response to the request for
electronic payment
response and either approve the transaction offline (e.g., based on offline
payment limits
stored at the chip card, in which case it will not be required to process the
transaction
with a liability shift), or if offline approval is not approval is not
available, provide an
electronic payment response including information required for an online
authorization
request according to an expedited payment protocol. In some embodiments, the
payment
response may include an authorization request cryptogram or other similar
information
required to perform online authorization of an electronic payment request.
After the
request for an electronic payment response has been provided to the chip card
and the
chip card has provided an associated electronic payment response, processing
may
continue to step 612.
[00121] At step 612, merchant device 29 may store the electronic payment
response received from the chip card in memory at the merchant device 29
(e.g., memory
204 of merchant device 29). In some embodiments, a plurality of electronic
payment
responses associated with a plurality of requests for an electronic payment
response may
be stored at any given time. For example, following receipt at the merchant
device 29 of
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a first electronic payment response associated with a first request, the
merchant device 29
may request additional electronic payment responses and additional responses
associated
with the additional requests may be received and stored at the merchant device
29. In this
regard, the plurality of electronic payment responses may be received and
stored as a
batch, piecemeal, one-at-a-time, or any combination thereof After the
electronic
payment response has been stored in memory at the merchant device 29,
processing may
continue to step 614.
[00122] At step 614, merchant device 29 may provide approval of the
payment
transaction for which the electronic payment response was provided. The
approval may
be based on standard EMV processing steps at the merchant device 29, such as
EMV
processing carried out during normal operations at the merchant device 29. In
an
embodiment as depicted in FIG. 6, the merchant device 29 may provide the
approval as
an offline approval without communicating the electronic payment response to a
payment
server. In some embodiments, the merchant device 29 may provide a notification
for a
user (e.g., to the user interface) following the approval prompting removal of
the chip
card from the chip card interface 104. The user may remove the chip card
before
transmission of any information associated with the transaction occurs, such
as the
electronic payment response or other information. After approval for the
transaction has
been provided, processing may continue to step 616.
[00123] In other embodiments, not depicted in FIG. 6, the merchant device
may
monitor parameters such as connection speed with a payment server, an average
response
time for the payment server, an elapsed time for the present transaction, a
transaction
amount, and an anticipated time for completion of the transaction to determine
whether to
provide offline approval or to communicate with the payment server to obtain
approval
(e.g., utilizing a standard payment protocol or an expedited payment
protocol). In some
embodiments, transactions that are not approved offline may be processed in a
manner
such that a liability shift to the merchant is not required, e.g., such that
the transaction is
not approved until a response is received from the payment server. However,
the
conditions may be calibrated such that these online transactions are required
in situations
where the delay is unlikely to delay transactions or cause merchant and
customer
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discomfort. Accordingly, under the proper conditions, only some of the
transactions may
be processed with a liability shift.
[00124] Returning to the steps of FIG. 6, at step 616, merchant device 29
may
associate one or more indicators with each electronic payment response
received in
response to a request for electronic payment response. In some embodiments,
the one or
more indicators may include a payment-type indicator. The payment-type
indicator may
indicate to one or more payment servers that one or more electronic payment
responses is
to be processed according to an expedited payment protocol. According to the
expedited
payment protocol, the transaction may be approved or denied by payment servers
without
the need for any additional communications with the chip card. This may allow
the chip
card to be removed at an earlier stage of the transaction, and for electronic
payment
responses to be stored by the payment reader or merchant device for later
transmission to
the payment server.
[00125] In some embodiments, the one or more indicators may include a
time
indicator associated with a payment approval request. In some embodiments, a
time
indicator may be associated with each payment approval request, and may
correspond to
a future transaction time. After the one or more indicators have been
associated with
each electronic payment response, processing may continue to step 618.
[00126] At step 618, merchant device 29 may determine whether to transmit
a
payment approval request to one or more payment servers. In some embodiments,
the
determination may be based on a check that merchant device 29 may perform to
deteitnine whether a communication interface merchant device 29 (e.g.,
wireless
interface 214) is able to communicate with the one or more payment servers, or
based on
other parameters such as a connection speed or average transaction processing
time. If
the communication interface 214 is unable to communicate with the one or more
payment
servers or if an expected transaction time exceeds a threshold, merchant
device 29 may
determine that the payment approval request should not be transmitted yet, and
processing may continue to step 624. If the communication interface 214 is
able to
communicate with the one or more payment servers, merchant device 29 may
determine
that it may transmit the payment approval requests, and processing may
continue to step
620.
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[00127] At step 620, merchant device 29 may transmit one or more payment
approval requests and its associated one or more indicators to one or more
payment
servers. In some embodiments, merchant device 29 may determine when it may
transmit
a payment approval request based on its associated time indicator. In some
embodiments, a first payment approval request may be transmitted prior to
receipt of
additional electronic payment responses at the merchant device 29. In some
embodiments, each payment approval request may be transmitted at a time that
corresponds to the time of its associated time indicator. In some embodiments,
merchant
device 29 may transmit a payment approval request and indicators prior to the
time of the
time indicator when a time indicator corresponds to a future time. In this
regard, the time
indicator may indicate that the one or more payment servers should wait to
process the
payment approval request until the time corresponding to the time of the time
indicator.
In such an embodiment, a payment service system may forward the requests to a
bank or
issuer server of the payment servers for approval at the time of the time
indicator. After
merchant device 29 has transmitted one or more payment approval requests,
processing
may continue to step 622.
[00128] At step 622, merchant device 29 may receive one or more payment
approval responses from the one or more payment servers in response to
transmitting the
one or more payment approval requests. In some embodiments, merchant device 29
may
receive each payment approval response via a communication interface (e.g.,
wireless
interface 214). In some embodiments, each payment approval response may be
associated with each payment approval request transmitted from merchant device
29.
The merchant device may then process the received payment approval response,
e.g., by
storing records of approvals and denials and providing notifications (e.g., of
transaction
denials following a liability shift).
[00129] As discussed above, if the merchant device 29 is unable to
transmit the
approval request, processing may continue to step 624. At step 624, merchant
device 29
may determine whether additional requests for payment have been received, such
as at
the user interface 210 of merchant device 29. A user may conduct subsequent
payment
transactions, each associated with a unique request for payment. If additional
requests
for payment have been received, processing may return to step 610 and steps
610 through
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618 may be repeated. If no additional requests for payment have been received,
processing may return to step 618 to determine whether the approval requests
may be
transmitted. Processing may continue to pass between these two states (e.g.,
at regular
intervals) until additional payments are requested or the existing
transactions are
transmitted to the payment servers for approval.
[00130] FIG. 7 depicts a non-limiting ladder diagram illustrating
exemplary steps
for expedited processing of electronic payment transactions in accordance with
some
embodiments of the present disclosure. In one embodiment, as is depicted in
FIG. 7,
methods for expedited processing of electronic payment transactions may be
performed
by a payment terminal 20 device (e.g., the combination of payment reader 22
and
merchant device 29), a payment service system 50, and bank server 60. Although
these
steps are described as being performed by particular devices in one
embodiment, it will
be understood that the allocation of the steps between the devices may be
modified in any
suitable manner or that the number of devices performing the steps may be
modified in
any suitable manner.
[00131] At step 702, merchant device 29 provides a request for a first
electronic
payment response from a chip card 10 in response to a request for payment. As
described
herein, the request for payment may be provided via user interface 210 or
merchant
device 29, and the chip card 10 may be inserted into contact interface 104 of
payment
reader 22. The request for payment may include a payment amount or other
suitable
information. After payment reader 22 receives the request for payment,
processing may
continue to step 704.
[00132] At step 704, payment reader 22 may request the electronic payment
response from the chip card 10, and at step 706, the chip card provides the
electronic
payment response. As described herein, the electronic payment response may
indicate
that the chip card 10 has declined to provide approval for the transaction. In
some
embodiments, the chip card 10 may approve the transaction and provide
electronic
payment information (e.g., an ARQC). At step 708, payment reader 22 may
forward the
electronic payment information to merchant device 29. After payment reader 22
forwards the electronic payment response from the chip card 10 to merchant
device 29,
processing may continue to step 709.
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[00133] At step 709, merchant device 29 may provide to payment reader 22
an
approval of the payment transaction for which the electronic payment response
was
provided. As described herein, the approval may be based on standard EMV
processing
steps at the merchant device 29 or as an offline approval without
communicating the
electronic payment response to a payment server. At step 710, payment reader
22 may
provide the approval for the transaction to the chip card 10 indicating
approval of the
transaction to the chip card. Merchant device may provide a notification to a
user that the
chip card 10 may be removed, as described above.
[00134] Exemplary steps executed by the merchant device 29 and payment
reader
22 as part of an expedited processing mode may be identified with reference to
line 711.
Steps comprising the expedited processing mode in an exemplary embodiment may
be
performed by the merchant device 29 and payment reader 22, without
communicating
with the payment service system 50 or bank server 60, as is depicted to the
left of line
711 in FIG. 7. Steps that may occur at a later time to complete approval of
the expedited
processing of the transaction are depicted as solid lines to the right of line
711 (e.g., steps
712, 714, 716, and 718). Steps that are performed in a normal operating mode,
in which
communication with the payment card continues after communications with the
payment
service system 50 and bank server 60, are depicted to the right of line 711
and are
depicted with dashed lines (e.g., steps 720, 722, 724, 726, 728, and 730).
These steps are
skipped in the expedited processing mode, such that the chip card may be
removed after
step 710.
[00135] At step 712, merchant device 29 may provide one or more payment
approval requests to the payment service system 50. As described herein above,
each
payment approval request may comprise one or more electronic payment responses
and
an associated payment-type indicator for each. In some embodiments, multiple
payment
approval requests may be sent in batches, e.g., when payment processing
frequency falls
below a threshold or a connection speed exceeds a threshold. In some
embodiments,
each payment approval request may also comprise a time indicator that may
correspond
to a transaction time (e.g., future time), and may indicate a time for
transmission, as
described above. At step 714, payment service system 50 may forward each of
the one or
more payment approval requests it receives to bank server 60 for approval. As
noted
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herein, each of the one or more payment approval requests may be transmitted
at a time
that corresponds to the time of the time indicator. In some embodiments, the
payment
service system 50 may wait until the time of the time indicator to transmit a
payment
approval request.
[00136] At step 716, payment service system 50 may receive, at a
communication
interface of the payment service system 50, one or more payment approval
responses
provided by bank server 60. Note that, in some embodiments, each payment
approval
response may correspond to one of the one or more payment approval requests
provided
to the bank server 60 for approval at step 714. After payment service system
50 receives
a payment approval response from the bank server 60, processing may continue
to step
718
[00137] At step 718, payment service system 50 may provide one or more
payment
approval responses received at step 716 to the merchant device 29. As
described herein,
each approval response may correspond to a particular payment approval request
obtained as part of a payment transaction. In this regard, merchant device 29
may receive
confirmation that a particular payment transaction has been approved or
declined by each
respective bank server 60. After a payment approval response has been received
at step
818, processing may continue to step 720.
[00138] As noted above, steps 720, 722, 724, 726, 728, and 730 may be
performed
during a normal operating made in which expedited processing is not taking
place.
Thus, steps 720 through 730 may not occur in embodiments in which merchant
device 29
and payment reader 22 execute the steps of expedited processing mode described
herein.
However, when the merchant device 29 and payment reader 22 are not operating
in
expedited processing mode, the merchant device 29 may provide a payment
approval
response to payment reader 22 at step 720, and the payment reader 22 may
forward the
payment approval response to the chip card 10 at step 722. When the chip card
10
receives the payment approval response, it may provide a receipt message to
payment
reader 22 at step 724. In some embodiments, the receipt message may be
indicative of a
confirmation that the chip card 10 has received the payment approval response.
At step
726, payment reader 22 transmits the receipt message received from the chip
card 10 to
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merchant device 29. When a merchant device 29 receives one or more receipt
messages
from one or more chip cards 10, processing may proceed to step 728.
[00139] At step 728, merchant device 29 may transmit one or more receipt
messages from a chip card 10 to a payment service system 50. As described
herein, the
merchant device 29 may transmit a receipt message according to one or more
associated
indicators, such as a time indicator. The payment service system 50 may
transmit the
receipt message to a corresponding bank server 60 at step 730. Thereafter,
processing
may end.
[00140] FIG. 8 depicts a non-limiting flow diagram illustrating exemplary
steps for
selectively processing electronic payment information through a plurality of
interfaces in
accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. Although it will
be
understood that any suitable device may process the electronic payment
information, in
an exemplary embodiment, the transaction may be completed by a payment
terminal
including a merchant device 29 and payment reader 22.
[00141] At step 802, a request to process chip card payment transactions
using a
according to the steps of a swipe mode may be received at a user interface 210
of
merchant device 29. In some embodiments, the request may be received as an
input from
a user via point-of-sale application instructions 222 displayed at user
interface 210. In
some embodiments, the request may be generated in response to a message
displayed to
the user via the user interface 210 when a payment transaction begins (e.g.,
when the user
opens point-of-sale application instructions 222, a payment device 10 is
detected, a
customer provides an input at the payment reader 22, or any combination
thereof). In
some embodiments, the request may be generated automatically in response to a
deteimination that a chip card has been inserted into payment terminal 20,
based on
transaction frequency, queue size, or other similar factors. After the request
to enter
swipe mode has been received, processing may continue to step 804.
[00142] At step 804, an opt-in request may be provided at user interface
210 of
merchant device 29 in response to the request to enter swipe mode received at
step 802.
In some embodiments, the opt-in request may be displayed at user interface 210
to a user
as a graphical message, and may include indicators the user may select to
provide input
indicating whether the user accepts the opt-in request. In some embodiments,
the opt-in
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request may include disclosures or notifications regarding the ramifications
of accepting
or declining the opt-in request (e.g., liability shift from card issuer to
merchant), and may
include information from a card issuer, a merchant, regulatory authority, or
any
combination thereof. After the opt-in request has been provided to the user
interface 210,
processing may continue to step 806.
[00143] At step 806, merchant device 29 may determine whether a user has
accepted the opt-in request provided at step 804. The determination may be
made based
on the input from step 804. Note that, in some embodiments, the user only may
be
permitted to execute the steps of the swipe mode when user accepts the opt-in
request. In
some embodiments, if a user declines the opt-in request, processing may
continue to step
807, where processing of the payment transaction at the payment terminal 20
may
continue according to the steps of a normal operational mode (e.g., requiring
that a chip
card be inserted into the chip card interface of the payment reader 22, except
under
special circumstances such as a technical fallback situation). If the user
accepts the opt-
in request, processing may proceed to step 808.
[00144] At step 808, the merchant device 29 may enter a swipe processing
mode,
in which chip cards may be run as magstripe cards without first attempting to
operate as a
chip card. Processing may continue to step 810, at a first payment transaction
request
may be received at a user interface 210 of merchant device 29. The request for
payment
may be provided as an input from a merchant via point-of-sale application 222,
and may
indicate a request for electronic payment information based progress of a
purchase (e.g.,
progression to a desired point of a payment transaction, finalizing of a
payment amount,
etc.). After the payment transaction request has been received, processing may
continue
to step 811.
[00145] At step 811, merchant device 29 may receive swipe payment
information
from payment reader 22. In some embodiments, payment reader 22 may read a
magstripe
of a payment card swiped through swipe interface 105. After electronic payment
information of a swipe payment type in response to the payment transaction
request has
been received at the merchant device, processing may continue to step 812.
[00146] At step 812, merchant device 29 may determine whether a payment
card
that provided electronic payment information of a swipe payment type is a chip
card. In
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some embodiments, merchant device 29 may determine whether the payment card is
a
chip card based on the electronic payment information provided at swipe
interface 105 of
payment reader 22. If merchant device 29 determines that the payment card that
provided electronic payment information of a swipe payment type is not a chip
card,
processing may continue to step 814, and the payment terminal 20 may complete
payment processing for the transaction using a normal swipe payment
transaction
protocol based on the determination. If the merchant device 29 determines that
the
payment card that provided electronic payment information of a swipe payment
type is a
chip card, processing may continue to steep 816.
[00147] At step 816, merchant device 29 may generate and associate
indicators
with electronic payment information received during swipe mode In some
embodiments, merchant device 29 may generate a swipe mode processing indicator
based
on the payment terminal entering swipe mode. The swipe mode processing
indicator may
permit electronic payment information to be processed according to procedures
for
processing swipe payment type and indicate that the transaction is not a
technical fallback
transaction (e.g., the transaction is not a transaction in which the chip card
failed to
process at a chip card interface of the payment terminal). Because the chip
card is being
operated in the swipe mode in the absence of technical fallback, the swipe
mode
processing indicator may inform one or more payment servers that the
transaction should
be processed as a swipe transaction, requiring a liability shift to the
merchant. In some
embodiments, merchant device 29 may generate an indicator that a payment card
that
provided the electronic payment information is a chip card. The indicator that
the
payment card is a chip card may be based on any suitable information,
including a
notification received at the merchant device 29 that the payment card is a
chip card (e.g.,
such as following the determination that the payment card is a chip card at
step 812) In
some embodiments, the swipe mode indicator and indicator that a payment card
is a chip
card may be associated with electronic payment information received at the
payment
teuninal during the swipe mode. After indicators have been generated and
assigned,
processing may continue to step 818.
[00148] At step 818, merchant device 29 may determine whether additional
payment transaction requests have been received, such as via user interface
210. If
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merchant device 29 determines additional requests have been received, the
electronic
payment and indicators may be stored for the current transaction may be stored
in
memory and processing may return to step 810. If no additional payment
transaction
requests have been received, processing may continue to step 820, where
merchant
device 29 may identify a delay condition. In some embodiments, delay
conditions
merchant device 29 may identify may be an event such as a loss of connectivity
with the
one or more payment servers, a high transaction volume, slow connection
speeds, or any
combination thereof. In some embodiments, the delay condition may be a
determination
that a frequency of payment transactions (e.g., at payment terminal 20)
exceeds a
threshold frequency. In an embodiment, the delay condition may comprise a
connection
speed between the payment terminal 20 (e.g., merchant device 29) and one or
more
payment servers. If merchant device 29 identifies a delay condition at step
820,
processing may continue to step 822. If a delay condition is not identified
processing
may continue to step 824.
[00149] At step 822, merchant device 29 may store electronic payment
information
and indicators (e.g., in memory 204) in response to identification of the
delay condition.
In some embodiments, merchant device 29 may monitor the delay condition and,
upon
expiration of the delay condition, transmit the electronic payment information
and
indicators stored in memory to the one or more payment servers. In some
embodiments,
expiration of the delay condition may comprise the frequency of payment
transactions
falling below a threshold. In some embodiments, the threshold may be based on
any
suitable information, including merchant identification, merchant type,
merchant
location, employee identification, connection speeds, average approval time,
customer
identification, item type, time, or other information. After merchant device
29
determines that one or more delay conditions have expired, processing may
continue to
step 824.
[00150] At step 824, merchant device 29 may transmit the electronic
payment
information and associated swipe mode processing indicator to one or more
payment
servers, such as via wireless interface 214. The transmitted electronic
payment
information may be received at the merchant device 29 via executing normal
processing
or swipe mode, and may include one or more of a swipe mode indicator and
indicator that
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a card that provided the electronic payment information is a chip card. After
the
electronic payment information and associated swipe mode processing indicator
have
been transmitted to one or more payment servers, processing may continue to
step 826.
[00151] At step 826, merchant device 29 may receive a payment approval
response
for the electronic payment information. In some embodiments, merchant device
29 may
receive a payment approval response associated with electronic payment
information
transmitted to the one or more payment servers. Thus, for a plurality of
electronic
payment information transmissions, in an exemplary embodiment, a payment
approval
response associated with the electronic payment information may be received at
a
communication interface of the payment terminal 20 (e.g., at wireless
interface 214).
Note that, in some embodiments, a payment approval response may be based on
one or
more of the swipe mode indicator and indicator that a card that provided the
electronic
payment information is a chip card. The merchant device may then process the
received
payment approval response, e.g., by storing records of approvals and denials
and
providing notifications (e.g., of transaction denials following a liability
shift). Thereafter,
processing may end.
[00152] In an embodiment, a method for a payment terminal to process
electronic
payment information received from a chip card comprises receiving, at a user
interface of
the payment terminal, a request to enter an expedited processing mode, and
providing, at
the user interface of the payment terminal, an opt-in request in response to
the request to
enter the expedited processing mode, wherein a user is only permitted to enter
the
expedited processing mode when the opt-in request is accepted by the user. The
method
may further comprise receiving, at the user interface of the payment terminal,
a first request
for payment, requesting, by a processing element of the payment terminal, a
first electronic
payment response from a first chip card in response to the first request for
payment,
checking whether a communication interface of the payment terminal is able to
communicate with one or more payment servers, storing, at a memory of the
payment
terminal, the first electronic payment response when the communication
interface is unable
to communicate with the one or more payment servers, and approving a first
transaction
associated with the first electronic payment response. The method may further
comprise
receiving additional requests for payment at the user interface, requesting,
by the
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processing element of the payment terminal, additional electronic payment
responses from
additional chip cards, storing, at the memory of the payment terminal, the
additional
electronic payment responses, and approving additional transactions associated
with the
additional electronic payment responses. The method may further comprise
determining,
after storing the first electronic payment response and the additional
electronic payment
responses and approving the first transaction and the additional transactions,
that the
communication interface of the payment terminal is able to communicate with
the one or
more payment servers, associating a payment-type indicator with each of the
first electronic
payment response and the additional electronic payment responses, wherein the
payment
type indicator indicates to the one or more payment servers that the first
electronic payment
response and the additional electronic payment responses are to be processed
according to
an expedited payment protocol The method may further comprise transmitting,
from the
communication interface of the payment terminal, the first electronic payment
response, the
additional electronic payment responses, and the associated payment-type
indicators to the
one or more payment servers, wherein a standard payment protocol requires
additional
information from each of the chip cards to process a transaction for the chip
card, wherein
the expedited payment protocol causes the one or more payment servers to
process the first
transaction and the additional transactions without the additional
information, and wherein
the first transaction and the additional transactions are processed at the one
or more servers
according to the expedited payment protocol after the first transaction and
the additional
transactions are approved by the payment terminal, and receiving, at the
communication
interface of the payment terminal, a payment approval response associated with
each of the
first electronic payment response and the additional electronic payment
responses, wherein
the payment approval response is based on the payment-type indicators.
[00153] In an embodiment, the method may further comprise associating a
time
indicator with the first electronic payment response and each of the
additional electronic
payment responses, wherein each time indicator corresponds to a future
transaction time,
and transmitting each time indicator with its associated electronic payment
response.
[00154] In an embodiment of the method, each time indicator and its
associated
electronic payment response is transmitted at a time that corresponds to the
time of the time
indicator.
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[00155] In an embodiment of the method, each time indicator and its
associated
electronic payment response is transmitted prior to a time that corresponds to
the time of
the time indicator, and wherein the one or more payment servers wait until the
time of the
time indicator to process the electronic payment response.
[00156] In an embodiment, a method for a payment terminal to process
electronic
payment information received from chip cards in an expedited processing mode
may
comprise receiving, at a user interface of the payment terminal, a first
request for payment,
requesting, by a processing element of the payment terminal in response to the
first request
for payment, a first electronic payment response from a first chip card via a
chip card
interface of the payment terminal, storing, at a memory of the payment
terminal, the first
electronic payment response, and approving a first transaction associated with
the first
electronic payment response. The method may further comprise receiving
additional
requests for payment at the user interface, requesting, by the processing
element of the
payment terminal in response to the additional requests for payment,
additional electronic
payment responses from additional chip cards via the chip card interface,
storing the
additional electronic payment responses at the memory, and approving
additional
transactions associated with the additional electronic payment responses. The
method may
further comprise associating a payment-type indicator with each of the first
electronic
payment response and the additional electronic payment responses, wherein the
payment
type indicator indicates to one or more payment servers that the first
electronic payment
response and the additional electronic payment responses are to be processed
according to
an expedited payment protocol. The method may further comprise determining,
after
storing the first electronic payment response and the additional electronic
payment
responses and approving the first transaction and the additional transactions,
that payment
approval requests may be transmitted to the one or more payment servers,
wherein each
payment approval request comprises one of the first electronic payment
response or the
additional electronic payment responses, and for each one of the electronic
payment
responses, its associated payment-type indicator, and transmitting, from a
communication
interface of the payment terminal to the one or more payment servers, the
payment
approval requests, wherein a standard payment protocol requires additional
information
from each of the chip cards to process a transaction for the chip card,
wherein the
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expedited payment protocol causes the one or more payment servers to process
the first
transaction and the additional transactions without the additional
information, and wherein
the first transaction and the additional transactions are processed at the one
or more servers
according to the expedited payment protocol after the first transaction and
the additional
transactions are approved by the payment teiminal.
[00157] In an embodiment, the method may further comprise receiving, at
the user
interface of the payment terminal, a request to enter the expedited processing
mode, and
providing, at the user interface of the payment terminal, an opt-in request in
response to the
request to enter the expedited processing mode, wherein a user is only
permitted to execute
the steps of the expedited processing mode when the opt-in request is accepted
by the user.
[00158] In an embodiment, the method may further comprise checking
whether the
communication interface of the payment terminal is able to communicate with
the one or
more payment servers after receiving the first payment response, and
transmitting, from the
communication interface when it is able to communicate, the first electronic
payment
response to the one or more payment servers prior to receiving the additional
electronic
payment responses.
[00159] In an embodiment of the method, determining that payment approval
requests may be transmitted comprises deteanining that the communication
interface of the
payment terminal is able to communicate with the one or more payment servers.
[00160] In an embodiment, the method may further comprise receiving, at
the
communication interface of the payment terminal, a payment approval response
associated
with each of the payment approval requests, wherein the payment approval
response is
based on the payment-type indicators.
[00161] hi an embodiment of the method, determining that payment approval
requests may be transmitted comprises determining that a frequency of payment
requests is
less than a threshold.
[00162] hi an embodiment, the method may further comprise associating a
time
indicator with each payment approval request, wherein each time indicator
corresponds to a
future transaction time, and transmitting each time indicator with its
associated electronic
payment response to the one or more payment servers.
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[00163] In an embodiment of the method, each time indicator and its
associated
payment approval request are transmitted at a time that corresponds to the
time of the time
indicator.
[00164] In an embodiment of the method, each time indicator and its
associated
payment approval request are transmitted prior to a time that corresponds to
the time of the
time indicator, and wherein the one or more payment servers wait until the
time of the time
indicator to process the payment approval request.
[00165] In an embodiment, a payment terminal for processing wireless
electronic
payment information received from chip cards in an expedited processing mode
may
comprise a chip card interface, a communication interface configured to
communicate with
one or more payment servers, a user interface configured to receive requests
for payment
from a user, and one or more processing elements coupled to the chip card
interface, the
communication interface, and the user interface, wherein the one or more
processing
elements are configured to execute user interface instructions, expedited
processing
instructions, and transaction processing instructions. The payment terminal
may further
comprise one or more memories configured to store the user interface
instructions,
expedited processing instructions, and transaction processing instructions,
wherein user
interface instructions cause the one or more processing elements to receive a
first request
for payment at the user interface, receive additional requests for payment at
the user
interface, wherein expedited processing instructions cause the one or more
processing
elements to request a first electronic payment response from a first chip card
via the chip
card interface in response to the first payment request, store the first
electronic payment
response at a memory of the payment terminal, request additional electronic
payment
responses from additional chip cards via the chip card interface, store the
additional
electronic payment responses at the memory, and associate a payment-type
indicator with
each of the first electronic payment response and the additional electronic
payment
responses, wherein the payment type indicator indicates to one or more payment
servers
that the first electronic payment response and the additional electronic
payment responses
are to be processed according to an expedited payment protocol, wherein the
transaction
processing instructions cause the one or more processing elements to approve a
first
transaction associated with the first electronic payment response, approve
additional
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transactions associated with the additional electronic payment responses,
determine, after
storing the first electronic payment response and the additional electronic
payment
responses and approving the first transaction and the additional transactions,
that payment
approval requests may be transmitted to the one or more payment servers via
the
communication interface, and transmit the payment approval requests to the one
or more
payment servers, wherein each payment approval request comprises one of the
first
electronic payment response or the additional electronic payment responses,
and for each
one of the electronic payment responses, its associated payment-type
indicator, wherein a
standard payment protocol requires additional information from each of the
chip cards to
process a transaction for the chip card, wherein the expedited payment
protocol causes the
one or more payment servers to process the first transaction and the
additional transactions
without the additional information, and wherein the first transaction and the
additional
transactions are processed at the one or more servers according to the
expedited payment
protocol after the first transaction and the additional transactions are
approved by the
payment terminal.
[00166] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, the user interface
instructions
further cause the one or more processing elements to receive a request to
enter the
expedited processing mode from the user interface and provide, at the user
interface, an
opt-in request in response to the request to enter the expedited processing
mode, wherein a
user is only permitted to execute the steps of the expedited processing mode
when the opt-
in request is accepted by the user.
[00167] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, the transaction
processing
instructions further cause the one or more processing elements to check
whether the
communication interface of the payment terminal is able to communicate with
the one or
more payment servers after receiving the first payment response and transmit,
via the
communication interface when it is able to communicate, the first electronic
payment
response to the one or more payment servers prior to receiving the additional
electronic
payment responses.
[00168] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, a determination that
the
payment approval requests may be transmitted comprises a determination that
the
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communication interface of the payment terminal is able to communicate with
the one or
more payment servers.
[00169] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, the transaction
processing
instructions further cause the one or more processing elements to receive, via
the
communication interface of the payment terminal, a payment approval response
associated
with each of the payment approval requests, wherein the payment approval
response is
based on the payment-type indicators.
[00170] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, a deteimination that
payment
approval requests may be transmitted comprises a determination that a
frequency of
payment requests is less than a threshold.
[00171] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, the transaction
processing
instructions further cause the one or more processing elements to associate a
time
indicator with each payment approval request, wherein each time indicator
corresponds to
a future transaction time, and transmit each time indicator with its
associated electronic
payment response.
[00172] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, each time indicator and
its
associated payment approval request are transmitted at a time that corresponds
to the time
of the time indicator.
[00173] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, each time indicator and
its
associated payment approval request are transmitted prior to a time that
corresponds to the
time of the time indicator, and wherein the one or more payment servers wait
until the time
of the time indicator to process the payment approval request.
[00174] hi an embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable storage
medium
may comprise instructions stored therein, which when executed by one or more
processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising
receiving a
first request for payment via a user interface of a payment terminal,
requesting a first
electronic payment response from a first chip card via a chip card interface
in response to
the first request for payment, providing the first electronic payment response
to a memory
of the payment terminal, and approving a first transaction associated with the
first
electronic payment response. The operations may further comprise receiving
additional
requests for payment via the user interface, requesting additional electronic
payment
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responses from additional payment cards via the chip card interface in
response to the
additional requests for payment, providing the additional electronic payment
responses to
be stored in the memory, and approving additional transactions associated with
the
additional electronic payment responses. The operations may further comprise
associating
a payment-type indicator with each of the first electronic payment response
and the
additional electronic payment responses, wherein the payment type indicator
indicates to
the one or more payment servers that the first electronic payment response and
the
additional electronic payment responses are to be processed according to an
expedited
payment protocol, and determining, after storing the first electronic payment
response and
the additional electronic payment responses and approving the first
transaction and the
additional transactions, that payment approval requests may be transmitted to
the one or
more payment servers, wherein each payment approval request comprises one of
the first
electronic payment response and the additional electronic payment responses,
and for each
one of the electronic payment responses, its associated payment-type
indicator. The
method may further comprise providing the payment approval requests for
transmission to
the one or more payment servers via a communication interface of the payment
terminal,
wherein a standard payment protocol requires additional information from each
of the chip
cards to process a transaction for the chip card, wherein the expedited
payment protocol
causes the one or more payment servers to process the first transaction and
the additional
transactions without the additional information, and wherein the first
transaction and the
additional transactions are processed at the one or more servers according to
the expedited
payment protocol after the first transaction and the additional transactions
are approved by
the payment teiminal.
[00175] In an embodiment, the instructions may further cause the one or
more
processors to perform operations comprising receiving a request to enter the
expedited
processing mode from the user interface, and providing, to the user interface,
an opt-in
request in response to the request to enter the expedited processing mode,
wherein a user is
only permitted to execute the steps of the expedited processing mode when the
opt-in
request is accepted by the user.
[00176] hi an embodiment, the instructions may further cause the one or
more
processors to perform operations comprising checking whether the communication
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interface is able to communicate with one or more payment servers after
receiving the first
payment response, and providing, to the communication interface when it is
able to
communicate and prior to receiving the additional electronic payment
responses, the first
electronic payment response to be transmitted to the one or more payment
servers.
[00177] In an embodiment, determining that payment approval requests may
be
transmitted comprises determining that the communication interface of the
payment
terminal is able to communicate with the one or more payment servers.
[00178] In an embodiment, determining that payment approval requests may
be
transmitted comprises determining that a frequency of payment requests is less
than a
threshold.
[00179] In an embodiment, the instructions may further cause the one or
more
processors to perform operations comprising associating a time indicator with
each
payment approval request, wherein each time indicator corresponds to a future
transaction
time, and providing each time indicator and its associated electronic payment
response to
the communication interface to be transmitted to the one or more payment
servers.
[00180] In an embodiment, each time indicator and its associated payment
approval
request are provided to the communication interface for transmission at a time
that
corresponds to the time of the time indicator.
[00181] In an embodiment, each time indicator and its associated payment
approval
request is provided to the communication interface for transmission prior to a
time that
corresponds to the time of the time indicator, and wherein a payment server
waits until the
time of the time indicator to process the payment approval request.
[00182] In an embodiment, a method for a payment terminal to selectively
process
electronic payment information through a plurality of payment interfaces may
comprise
receiving, at a user interface of the payment terminal, a first payment
transaction request,
receiving, at a chip card interface of the payment terminal, first electronic
payment
information of a first electronic payment information type from a chip card in
response to
the first payment transaction request, transmitting, from a communication
interface of the
payment terminal, the first electronic payment information to one or more
payment
servers, and receiving, at the communication interface of the payment
telininal, a first
payment approval response for the first electronic payment infoimation The
method
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may further comprise receiving, at the user interface of the payment terminal,
a request to
enter a swipe mode, providing, at the user interface of the payment terminal,
an opt-in
confirmation in response to the request to enter the swipe mode, wherein the
payment
terminal is only permitted to enter the swipe mode when the opt-in
confirmation is
accepted by a user, receiving, at the user interface of the payment terminal,
a second
payment transaction request, and receiving, at a swipe interface of the
payment terminal,
second electronic payment information of a second electronic payment
information type
from a payment card in response to the second payment transaction request. The
method
may further comprise receiving, at the payment terminal, a notification that
the payment
card is a chip card, generating, at the payment terminal, a swipe mode
processing
indicator based on the payment terminal entering the swipe mode and the
notification,
wherein the swipe mode processing indicator allows the second electronic
payment
information to be processed according to procedures for the second electronic
payment
information type, transmitting, from the communication interface of the
payment
terminal, the swipe mode processing indicator and the second electronic
payment
information to the one or more payment servers, and receiving, at the
communication
interface of the payment terminal, a second payment approval response for the
second
electronic payment information, wherein the payment approval response is based
on the
swipe mode processing indicator.
[00183] In an embodiment of the method, the swipe mode processing
indicator
indicates that the transaction is not a technical fallback transaction, and
wherein the
technical fallback transaction indicates that the chip card failed to process
at the chip card
interface of the payment terminal.
[00184] In an embodiment, the method may further comprise identifying a
delay
condition during which the transmission of the second electronic payment
information
should be delayed, storing the second electronic payment information at a
memory of the
payment terminal, and transmitting the second electronic payment information
based on
the expiration of the delay condition
[00185] In an embodiment of the method, the delay condition comprises a
frequency of payment transactions and the expiration of the delay condition
comprises
the frequency of payment transactions falling below a threshold.
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[00186] In an embodiment, a method for a payment tettninal to selectively
process
electronic payment information through a plurality of payment interfaces may
comprise
receiving, at a user interface of the payment terminal, a request to enter a
swipe mode,
providing, at the user interface of the payment terminal, an opt-in
confirmation in
response to the request to enter the swipe mode, wherein the payment terminal
is only
permitted to enter the swipe mode when the opt-in confirmation is accepted by
a user,
receiving, at the user interface of the payment terminal, a payment
transaction request,
and receiving, at a swipe interface of the payment terminal, electronic
payment
information of a swipe payment type from a payment card in response to the
payment
transaction request. The method may further comprise generating, at the
payment
terminal, a swipe mode processing indicator based on the payment terminal
entering the
swipe mode and an indicator that the payment card is a chip card, wherein the
swipe
mode processing indicator allows the electronic payment information to be
processed
according to procedures for the swipe payment type, transmitting, from a
communication
interface of the payment terminal, the swipe mode processing indicator and the
electronic
payment information to one or more payment servers, receiving, at the
communication
interface of the payment terminal, a payment approval response for the
electronic
payment information, wherein the payment approval response is based on the
swipe
mode processing indicator.
[00187] In an embodiment of the method, the swipe mode processing
indicator
indicates that the transaction is not a technical fallback transaction, and
the technical
fallback transaction indicates that the chip card failed to process at a chip
card interface
of the payment terminal.
[00188] In an embodiment, the method may further comprise identifying a
delay
condition during which the transmission of the electronic payment information
should be
delayed, storing the electronic payment information at a memory of the payment
terminal, and transmitting the electronic payment information based on an
expiration of
the delay condition
[00189] In an embodiment of the method, the delay condition comprises a
frequency of payment transactions and the expiration of the delay condition
comprises
the frequency of payment transactions falling below a threshold.
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[00190] In an embodiment of the method, the delay condition comprises a
connection speed between the payment terminal and the one or more payment
servers,
and wherein the expiration of the delay condition comprises the connection
speed
exceeding a threshold.
[00191] In an embodiment, the method may further comprise receiving, at
the
payment terminal, a notification that the payment card is a chip card, wherein
the
indicator that the payment card is a chip card is based on the notification.
[00192] In an embodiment, the method may further comprise receiving, at
the user
interface of the payment terminal, a second payment transaction request,
receiving, at the
swipe interface of the payment terminal, electronic payment information of a
swipe
payment type from a second payment card in response to the second payment
transaction
request, determining that the second payment card is not a chip card, and
processing the
second payment card according to a standard swipe card protocol based on the
deteonination.
[00193] In an embodiment, the method may further comprise receiving, at
the user
interface of the payment terminal, a second payment transaction request,
receiving, at a
chip card interface of the payment teiminal, second electronic payment
information of a
chip card payment type from a second chip card in response to the second
payment
transaction request, transmitting, from the communication interface of the
payment
terminal, the second electronic payment information to one or more payment
servers, and
receiving, at the communication interface of the payment terminal, a payment
approval
response for the second electronic payment information.
[00194] In an embodiment of the method, liability for the first payment
transaction
request is assigned to a merchant operating the payment terminal, and
liability for the
second payment transaction request is not assigned to the merchant.
[00195] In an embodiment, a payment terminal for selectively processing
electronic payment information through a plurality of payment interfaces may
comprise a
swipe interface configured to receive electronic payment information of a
swipe payment
type from a magstripe payment card, a chip card interface configured to
receive
electronic payment information from a chip card, a communication interface
configured
to communicate with one or more payment servers, a user interface configured
to receive
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a request to enter a swipe mode, an opt-in confirmation, and a payment
transaction
request, and one or more processing elements coupled to the swipe interface,
communication interface, and the user interface, wherein the one or more
processing
elements are configured to execute user interface instructions, swipe mode
instructions,
and transaction processing instructions. The payment terminal may further
comprise one
or more memories configured to store the user interface instructions, swipe
mode
instructions, and transaction processing instructions, wherein the user
interface
instructions cause the one or more processing elements to receive a request
from the user
interface to enter a swipe mode, provide an opt-in confirmation to the user
interface in
response to the request to enter the swipe mode, and receive a payment
transaction
request from the user interface, wherein the swipe mode instructions cause the
one or
more processing elements to permit the payment terminal to enter the swipe
mode only
when the opt-in confirmation is accepted by a user and generate a swipe mode
processing
indicator based on the payment terminal entering the swipe mode and an
indicator that
the payment card is a chip card, wherein the swipe mode processing indicator
allows the
electronic payment information to be processed according to procedures for the
swipe
payment type, and wherein the transaction processing instructions cause the
one or more
processing elements to receive electronic payment information of the swipe
payment type
from the payment card in response to the payment transaction request, transmit
the swipe
mode processing indicator and the electronic payment information to the one or
more
payment servers via the communication interface, and receive a payment
approval
response for the electronic payment information, wherein the payment approval
response
is based on the swipe mode processing indicator.
[00196] In an
embodiment of the payment terminal, the swipe mode processing
indicator indicates that the transaction is not a technical fallback
transaction, and the
technical fallback transaction indicates that the chip card failed to process
at the chip card
interface of the payment terminal.
[00197] In an
embodiment of the payment terminal, the transaction processing
instructions further cause the one or more processing elements to identify a
delay
condition during which the transmission of the electronic payment information
should be
delayed, store the electronic payment information at a memory of the payment
terminal,
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and permit the transmission of the electronic payment information based on an
expiration
of the delay condition.
[00198] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, the delay condition
comprises
a frequency of payment transactions and the expiration of the delay condition
comprises
the frequency of payment transactions falling below a threshold.
[00199] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, the delay condition
comprises
a connection speed between the payment terminal and the one or more payment
servers,
and wherein the expiration of the delay condition comprises the connection
speed
exceeding a threshold
[00200] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, the swipe mode
instructions
further comprising receiving, at the payment terminal, a notification that the
payment
card is a chip card, and wherein the indicator that the payment card is a chip
card is based
on the notification
[00201] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, the user interface
instructions
may further cause the one or more processors to receive, from the user
interface, a second
payment transaction request and wherein the transaction processing
instructions further
cause the one or more processors to receive, from the swipe interface,
electronic payment
information of a swipe payment type from a second payment card in response to
the
second payment transaction request, determine that the second payment card is
not a chip
card, and process the second payment card according to a standard swipe card
protocol
based on the determination.
[00202] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, the user interface
instructions
may further cause the one or more processors to receive, at the user
interface, a second
payment transaction request and wherein the transaction processing
instructions further
cause the one or more processors to receive from the chip card interface
second electronic
payment information of a chip card payment type from the chip card in response
to the
second payment transaction request, transmit the second electronic payment
information
to one or more payment servers via the communication interface, and receive a
payment
approval response for the second electronic payment information via the
communication
interface.
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[00203] In an embodiment of the payment terminal, liability for the first
payment
transaction request is assigned to a merchant operating the payment terminal,
and
wherein liability for the second payment transaction request is not assigned
to the
merchant.
[00204] In an embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable storage
medium
may comprise instructions stored therein, which when executed by one or more
processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising
receiving
a request to enter a swipe mode from a user interface of the payment terminal,
providing,
to the user interface of the payment terminal, an opt-in confirmation in
response to the
request to enter the swipe mode, wherein the payment terminal is only
permitted to enter
the swipe mode when the opt-in confirmation is accepted by a user, receiving a
payment
transaction request from the user interface of the payment terminal, and
receiving
electronic payment information of a swipe payment type from a payment card via
a swipe
interface of the payment terminal in response to the payment transaction
request. The
operations may further comprise generating, at a processing element, a swipe
mode
processing indicator based on the payment terminal entering the swipe mode and
an
indicator that the payment card is a chip card, wherein the swipe mode
processing
indicator allows the electronic payment information to be processed according
to
procedures for the swipe payment type, and providing the swipe mode processing
indicator and the electronic payment information for transmission from a
communication
interface of the payment terminal to one or more payment servers. The
operations may
further comprise receiving a payment approval response for the electronic
payment
information from the communication interface of the payment terminal, wherein
the
payment approval response is based on the swipe mode processing indicator.
[00205] In an embodiment, the swipe mode processing indicator indicates
that the
transaction is not a technical fallback transaction, and the technical
fallback transaction
indicates that the chip card failed to process at a chip card interface of the
payment
terminal.
[00206] In an embodiment, the instructions may further cause the one or
more
processors to perform operations comprising identifying a delay condition
during which
the transmission of the electronic payment information should be delayed,
storing the
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electronic payment information at a memory of the payment terminal, and
permitting the
transmission of the electronic payment information based on an expiration of
the delay
condition.
[00207] In an embodiment, the delay condition comprises a frequency of
payment
transactions and the expiration of the delay condition comprises the frequency
of
payment transactions falling below a threshold.
[00208] In an embodiment, the delay condition comprises a connection
speed
between the payment terminal and the one or more payment servers, and wherein
the
expiration of the delay condition comprises the connection speed exceeding a
threshold
[00209] In an embodiment, the instructions may further cause the one or
more
processors to perform operations comprising receiving a notification that the
payment
card is a chip card, wherein the indicator that the payment card is a chip
card is based on
the notification.
[00210] In an embodiment, the instructions may further cause the one or
more
processors to perform operations comprising receiving a second payment
transaction
request from the user interface of the payment terminal, receiving electronic
payment
information of a swipe payment type from a second payment card from the swipe
interface in response to the second payment transaction request, determining
that the
second payment card is not a chip card, and processing the second payment card
according to a standard swipe card protocol based on the determination.
[00211] In an embodiment, the instructions may further cause the one or
more
processors to perform operations comprising receiving a second payment
transaction
request from the user interface of the payment terminal, receiving second
electronic
payment information of a chip card payment type from a second chip card via a
chip card
interface in response to the second payment transaction request, providing the
second
electronic payment information for transmission from the communication
interface of the
payment terminal to the one or more payment servers, and receiving a payment
approval
response for the second electronic payment information from the communication
interface of the payment terminal.
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[00212] In an embodiment, liability for the first payment transaction
request is
assigned to a merchant operating the payment terminal, and liability for the
second
payment transaction request is not assigned to the merchant.
[00213] The foregoing is merely illustrative of the principles of this
disclosure and
various modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without
departing from the
scope of this disclosure. The above described embodiments are presented for
purposes of
illustration and not of limitation. The present disclosure also can take many
forms other
than those explicitly described herein. Accordingly, it is emphasized that
this disclosure
is not limited to the explicitly disclosed methods, systems, and apparatuses,
but is
intended to include variations to and modifications thereof, which are within
the spirit of
the following clauses.
[00214] As a further example, variations of apparatus or process
parameters (e.g.,
dimensions, configurations, components, process step order, etc.) may be made
to further
optimize the provided structures, devices and methods, as shown and described
herein.
In any event, the structures and devices, as well as the associated methods,
described
herein have many applications. Therefore, the disclosed subject matter should
not be
limited to any single embodiment described herein, but rather should be
construed in
breadth and scope in accordance with the appended clauses.
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