Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
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ELECTRONIC TRANSACTION RECORD DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED DOCUMENTS
The present application incorporates all of the disclosure of prior co-pending
US
Application S/N 13/022,867, filed 02/08/2011, and of US Provisional
application
61/433,820, filed 01/18/2011, at least by reference, and also adds new matter.
Priority is
claimed to the filing date of S/N 13/022,867 for any claims enabled entirely
by the
disclosure of that application, and to the filing date of S/N 61/433,820 for
any claims
enabled entirely by that Provisional application.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of commerce and pertains particularly to
methods and apparatus for acquiring a transaction record from an electronic
point of sale
(POS) system.
2. Discussion of the State of the Art
In the art of commerce, including ecommerce, receipts are important records of
financial transactions. Many receipts are physically printed on paper by point-
of-sale
(POS) systems, vending machines, ticketing machines or other systems or
machines that
facilitate completion of financial transactions or goods exchanges. Keeping,
organizing,
and retrieving paper receipts can be time consuming and tedious. Physical
receipts might
be lost, temporarily misplaced, or destroyed before they are aggregated for
tax filing or
other financial auditing purposes.
Many receipts are in electronic format. Such electronic receipts are used in e-
commerce, where a financial transaction or goods exchanges is accomplished
through
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Internet or via telephone. An electronic receipt is essentially a file that
contains data that
is similar to a paper receipt. Electronic receipts are delivered to the
receiving parties
remotely, or from a remote location. Therefore, the receiver of the record
must send
contact information to the sender, most commonly an email address. However,
sharing
an email address or other personal contact information with the receipt sender
exposes
the receipt-receiving entity to privacy and security risks.
More recently, efforts have been made to utilize electronic receipts for
physical
retail. There have been software products developed to integrate with POS
systems to
output the receipt information to a file. The electronic record or receipt is
uploaded to a
central server, from whence it is sent from the server to a receiving device,
or it might be
sent directly to the receiving device. A problem with this approach is that
the consumer
has to provide identification and contact information to the POS or to a third
party service
provider. In the case of a third party service, the provided contact and
identification data
may be used solely at the third party service.
A problem is also evident in the art that integration must be accomplished
between a POS and a third-party system before records may be distributed to
specific
third-party systems or devices. Systems of this type often store more
information about
the receipt sending entity than just the receipt information and integration
to such systems
may raise security and privacy concerns, which may have an effect of slowing
or
preventing broad adoption of such electronic record distribution systems.
Therefore, what is clearly needed is a record distribution system for a POS
computing system that provides direct receipt distribution locally or to a
remote
repository controlled by a user.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The problem stated above is that environmentally friendly and efficient record
generation and receipt in a business to consumer (B2C) transaction scenario is
desirable
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for an enterprise and patronizing consumer, but many of the conventional means
for
acquiring a record of receipt, such as by printing (physical receipt) or
remote send
(electronic receipt), also create unnecessary paperwork (physical printing)
and potential
security risks (remote send). The inventors therefore considered functional
components
of a point of sale (POS) computing system, looking for elements that exhibit
integrate
ability that could potentially be harnessed to provide receipt presentation
and acquisition
but in a manner that would not create security challenges or more paperwork.
Every enterprise that markets products and or services is propelled by
consumer
patronage, one by-product of which is an abundance of transactions that will
occur and
which must be accounted for. Most such enterprises employ networked POS
computing
systems to conduct the day-to-day business of the enterprise, and POS
computing
terminals and similar consumer interfacing applications and machines are
typically a part
of such apparatus.
The present inventor realized in an inventive moment that if, at the point of
transacting, records of the transaction including associated data could be
efficiently and
securely transmitted from the POS computing appliance to a secure personal
device or
other secure storage location of a consumer, significant improvements in
efficiency and
security surrounding the transaction might result. The inventor therefore
constructed a
unique system for transmitting records that allowed consumers to acquire their
receipts
directly from the POS computing system using a close-proximity wireless
protocol to
make the acquisition in an efficient high security setting. A significant
improvement in
efficiency and reduction in the cost of transacting results, with no
impediment to work or
quality of service (QoS) created.
Accordingly, in an embodiment of the present invention, a point-of-sale (POS)
receipt management system is provided, comprising a computerized appliance at
the POS
executing first software (SW) from a non-transitory physical medium, and a
peripheral
device coupled to the computerized appliance, the peripheral device enabled to
transmit
data wirelessly to a portable communication device in close proximity to the
peripheral
device, the portable communication device in possession of a consumer. Upon
the
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consumer completing a transaction at the POS, the POS computerized appliance
prepares
transaction data, which is transmitted to the peripheral device, and hence
wirelessly to the
portable communication device in possession of the consumer.
In one embodiment of the invention the wireless communication from the
peripheral device to the consumer's portable communication device is by near-
field
communication (NFC) enabled in both the peripheral device and the consumer's
portable
communication device. In another embodiment the wireless communication from
the
peripheral device to the consumer's portable communication device is by
BluetoothTM
technology enabled in both the peripheral device and the consumer's portable
communication device. In yet another embodiment the wireless communication
from the
peripheral device to the consumer's portable communication device is by a
combination
of NFC technology and BluetoothTM technology enabled in both the peripheral
device
and the consumer's portable communication device. Instill another embodiment
the
wireless communication from the peripheral device to the consumer's portable
communication device is by encoding the transaction data as an image-based
code which
is displayed on a display of the peripheral device and captured by a camera of
the
consumer's mobile communication device, and subsequently decoded. The image-
based
code may be a QR code. IN still another embodiment of the invention the
wireless
communication from the peripheral device to the consumer's portable
communication
device is by ultrasound technology enabled in both the peripheral device and
the
consumer's portable communication device.
In one embodiment the POS appliance is Internet-connected, the transaction
information is transmitted to a third-party server in the Internet and a
transaction ID is
transmitted via the peripheral device to the consumer's portable communication
device,
enabling the consumer to download the transaction information from the third
party
server. In some cases the transaction data may be pushed by the third-party
server to an
internet-connected appliance selected by the consumer.
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In another aspect of the invention a point-of-sale (POS) receipt management
methodis provided, comprising the steps of (a) composing transaction
information at a
point-of-sale computerized appliance regarding a completed transaction with a
consumer;
(b) transmitting the transaction information to a peripheral device coupled to
the
computerized appliance; and (c) transmitting the transaction information by
the
peripheral device to a portable communication device associated with the
consumer,
using close-proximity wireless technology.
In one embodiment of the method in step (c) the wireless communication from
the
peripheral device to the consumer's portable communication device is by near-
field
communication (NFC) enabled in both the peripheral device and the consumer's
portable
communication device. I another embodiment in step (c) the wireless
communication
from the peripheral device to the consumer's portable communication device is
by
BluetoothTM technology enabled in both the peripheral device and the
consumer's
portable communication device. In yet another embodiment in step (c) the
wireless
communication from the peripheral device to the consumer's portable
communication
device is by a combination of NFC technology and BluetoothTM technology
enabled in
both the peripheral device and the consumer's portable communication device.
In one embodiment of the method of the invention in step (c) the wireless
communication from the peripheral device to the consumer's portable
communication
device is by encoding the transaction data as an image-based code which is
displayed on
a display of the peripheral device and captured by a camera of the consumer's
mobile
communication device, and subsequently decoded. The image-based code may be a
QR
code. In yet another embodiment the wireless communication from the peripheral
device
to the consumer's portable communication device is by ultrasound technology
enabled in
both the peripheral device and the consumer's portable communication device.
In another embodiment of the method the POS appliance is Internet-connected,
the transaction information is transmitted to a third-party server in the
Internet and a
transaction ID is transmitted via the peripheral device to the consumer's
portable
communication device, enabling the consumer to download the transaction
information
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from the third party server. IN some cases the transaction data is pushed by
the third-
party server to an internet-connected appliance selected by the consumer.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES
Fig. 1 is an architectural overview of a transaction network supporting direct
transfer of a transaction record according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
Fig. 2 is a plan view of a dongle device of Fig. 1 according to an embodiment
of
the present invention.
Fig. 3 is a block diagram illustrating basic and optional components of the
dongle
device of Fig. 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 4 is a process flow chart illustrating steps for transmittal of a
transaction
record from a POS computing appliance according to an aspect of the present
invention.
Fig. 5 is a process flow chart illustrating steps for transmittal of a
transaction
record from a POS computing appliance according to another aspect of the
present
invention.
Fig. 6 is a process flow chart illustrating steps for transmittal of a
transaction
record from a POS computing appliance according to yet another aspect of the
present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The inventor provides a data transmission system used at physical point-of-
sale
(POS) systems that enables a consumer to receive a record of a transaction or
other
business conducted without requiring the consumer to provide personal contact
information to the POS entity. The present invention is described in enabling
detail using
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the following examples, which may describe more than one relevant embodiment
falling
within the scope of the present invention.
Fig. 1 is an architectural overview 100 of a transaction network supporting
direct
transfer of a transaction record according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
Transaction network 100 includes a retail sales location 101. Location 101
represents
any physical location where a consumer may obtain a record of a transaction
including
store locations, ticket machines, ATM location, or any other location where a
physical
receipt might be printed for a consumer. Retail location 101 includes a local
area
network (LAN) 125. LAN 125 may be connected to an automatic transaction
network
(ATM) or to an Internet network without departing from the spirit and scope of
the
present invention.
LAN 125 supports a point-of-sale (POS) computing appliance 107. POS
appliance 107 is a sales terminal in this example. In one aspect, LAN 125
supports the
terminal that is connected to a server that has POS SW installed and
executable there
from. POS appliance 107 in this embodiment includes a keyboard for input and a
monitor for display. Other methods of input may also be provided such as touch
screen
input. Appliance 107 has a peripheral device 109 connected thereto, in this
example, by a
computer peripheral cable 108. In one embodiment, device 109 is a dongle
device
equipped with a wireless communications capability such as near field
communications
(NFC), BluetoothTM or both capabilities. Dongle device 109 is cabled to
computing
appliance 107 in this example. In one embodiment, the dongle device is a
universal serial
bus (USB) dongle connected via a USB cable. In another embodiment the dongle
may be
connected to appliance 107 via a serial or parallel port cable. In another
embodiment,
dongle device 109 utilizes a wireless connection to commuting appliance 107
such as
infrared, wireless USB, or some other wireless connection protocol.
Computing appliance 107 in this example has a printer 106 connected to it via
a
standard printing cable. More than one physical printer may be connected to
computing
appliance 107 without departing from the spirit and scope of the present
invention. In
one embodiment printer 106 has wireless connection capability and is
wirelessly
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configured to POS computing appliance 107. Printer 106 is a default printer or
the
printer used to print transaction records or receipts for consumers who
purchased a
product or service from the location. In other embodiments printers having
connection
with the POS may be network printers or printers connected to the same network
as the
POS.
In an embodiment of the present invention, dongle device 109 with the aid of
SW
112 emulates printer 106 as a default printing destination. When dongle 109 is
properly
installed and ported to POS computing appliance 107, the dongle is immediately
recognized as a default-printing destination for consumer transaction records,
typically
characterized as transaction receipts. A consumer operating mobile
communications
device 110 may make a purchase at location 101. The transaction record is sent
to the
dongle device 109 where it may or may not be displayed on the device. The
receipt is an
electronic file that is transmitted directly to mobile communications device
110 by way
of NFC protocol. A consumer must bring mobile device 110 within NFC range
(10CM
or less) to the dongle to initiate the data transmittal from the dongle
directly to the mobile
device.
In one embodiment the dongle device is not specifically required to emulate a
printer. In one aspect of the invention, the paper printer setup process may
be altered or
modified, or the system may intervene in the normal printing process. For
example, one
might modify or intervene in the spooler step provided by the operating system
during the
printing process. Instead of simply printing to the printer, the spool SW may
be adapted
to temporarily store the printing data in memory or computing hardware before
sending
the data to printer driver. Thus, the spooler may send the printing data to
multiple
destinations including the dongle device, a paper printer, or directly to a
transaction
terminal. According to another embodiment of the invention, a copy of the
printing data
is made by SW adapted for the purpose just after the spooler receives the
print data but
before it is erased from temporary memory controlled by that spooler SW.
In yet another possible embodiment of the present invention, the dongle
component connects to the POS computing device and the paper printer. In this
case, a
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computational protocol (not illustrated) running on the operating system (OS)
receives
the printing data and sends a copy to SW of the dongle. This algorithm also
sends a copy
to the paper printer. It is noted herein that this alternative embodiment
works
downstream from the printer driver. However, the first two alternative
embodiments are
implemented upstream from the printer driver. This fact will make some
difference in
the format of the printing data that the dongle device receives. A printer
driver could be
adapted with a unique coding standard when working downstream of a paper
printer
driver, such that the data received by the dongle has already been encoded
according to
the paper printer standard. In this respect the last mentioned alternative
embodiment, the
data received typically has to be decoded according to the paper printer
standard. This
may add some complexity to implementation making the third embodiment a less
desirable embodiment.
Dongle device 109 is illustrated in this example as in communication with a
mobile communications device 110. Communications device 110 may be a smart
phone,
an android device, a personal digital assistant, an iPad device, or any other
mobile-
platform computing appliance. In this embodiment, mobile phone 110 is used to
accept a
record of a transaction transmitted wirelessly from dongle device 109. In this
embodiment, POS computing appliance has SW 112 (dongle drivers) provided to
support
the operation and capabilities of dongle device 109. Driver SW (SW 112)
installed on
POS computer 107 allows the dongle device to be immediately recognized as a
receipt
printer.
Device 109 can emulate either one type or multiple types of receipt printers
in
software and can allow the configuring user (POS Host) to choose which
particular
printer the device should emulate so that the device can appear to be the same
type of
printer as the actual receipt printer (106) in use at the location. When the
dongle is
plugged into a POS computing appliance like appliance 107, and the drivers are
installed
and running, the POS computing appliance immediately recognizes the dongle as
a
receipt printer and a pop up window may appear of the POS display asking the
merchant
to choose among a list of printer type options for the type of printer that
they would like
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the dongle to emulate. The merchant chooses the same type of printer as the
receipt
printer they currently use. SW 112 allows the dongle to acquire receipt
information
when the POS computer sends a printing request. The receipt information
(transaction
record) acquired in printer format can be decoded and reformatted to other
formats on the
dongle device for better readability if required. The dongle can also be
configured to
convert print formats to standard PDF or HTML formats.
During installation, the driver/installation software (112) recognizes all
existing
printers that the POS computer is connected to. This presents merchants with
an option
to create a master printer with a name they may specify. This enables the
merchant to
print on their existing paper, receipt printer, and the dongle simultaneously.
Technically,
this is accomplished by implementing a printer filter function in the driver
software,
which allows the printing commands/messages to be passed through to the actual
paper
receipt printer.
A transaction record can include a number of data categories such as merchant
name, address, and department, date and time of transaction, payment method
used,
warranty information, rebate information, and so on. Data might be itemized on
the
dongle device such as the name, price, and quantity of items purchased, total
price paid,
total tax, tip, and other like information. In one embodiment, the dongle
device includes
SW for parsing the data to extract certain data that can then be automatically
organized,
managed and analyzed for accounting, tax filing, or for other purposes. In
another
embodiment the functions may be performed on the POS system using the first
SW.
Mobile communications device 110 has SW 113 provided thereto and adapted to
enable wireless receipt of a transaction record held on dongle device 109 via
a close
proximity wireless protocol such as near field communication (NFC),
BluetoothTM, or
some other close proximity wireless protocol. In one embodiment, NFC is used
to pair
mobile telephone 110 and dongle device 109 for BluetoothTM communication. In
this
embodiment, a consumer operating mobile telephone 110 brings the device within
NFC
range (10 centimeters or less) in order to initiate BluetoothTM pairing and
establishment
of a subsequent BluetoothTM session. The consumer may then acquire the
transaction
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record when the BluetoothTM session becomes active and the receipt is
transmitted from
the dongle to the mobile device.
LAN 125 supports an Internet access server 114. Internet access server 114
enables the POS computing station to receive Internet access services. Server
114 is
connected to a network backbone 115 in Internet network 102. Backbone 155
represents
all of the lines, equipment, and access points that make up the Internet
network as a
whole. Therefore, there are no geographic limitations to practice of the
present invention.
The invention, it is noted, may be practiced locally without any requirement
for logging
on to any network. However, in one embodiment, a consumer operating mobile
telephone 110 may desire to have the transaction record forwarded to a
repository held
online by a third-party service such as an online management service 105.
In one embodiment, a consumer may bring an NFC-enabled or a radio-frequency-
identification (RFID) tag 111 into communication range with dongle device 109
in the
absence of an NFC-enabled communications device like device 110. This action
may
cause a consumer identification (ID) parameter such as a personal
identification number
(PIN) or personal access code (PAC) to be transmitted (read) from the NFC or
RFID tag.
The ID may also include a network destination address like a universal
resource locator
(URL) to the online repository destination. Management service 105 includes a
LAN 126
that supports an Internet connected data server 127. Data server 127 includes
a physical
digital medium coupled thereto that is adapted to hold all of the SW and data
required to
enable data server functionality.
Server 127 has connection to Internet backbone 115. POS 107 may, instead of
printing a local record, forward the record to server 127 via access line 124
and network
backbone 115. Server 127 receives the record and stores the record along with
other
records for the identified and validated consumer. Consumers may then access
receipts
when required with the aid of third-party SW. For example, a consumer
operating a
desktop computer 116 aided by a SW application 122 accesses server 127 through
a
public-switched-telephone-network (PSTN) 104, an Internet service provider
(ISP) 121,
and network backbone 115. SW application 122 may be provided by the third-
party
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service as a downloaded and installed application to effect registration, and
to regulate
access to data stored in repository 128 labeled receipt data.
A consumer operating a wireless cellular phone 117 aided by a SW application
123 may access server 127 through a wireless carrier network (WCN) 103, a cell
tower
119, a wireless Internet service provider (WISP) 120, and network backbone
115. A
consumer operating a laptop computer 118 aided by SW 124 may access server 127
through WCN 103, cell tower 119, and WISP 120. In another embodiment, a
consumer
operating mobile telephone 110 aided by SW 113 may retrieve the receipt from
dongle
109 temporarily, and then upload it to server 127 for storage in repository
128 at a later
time. There are many possibilities. SW 113 may also receive data from server
127. SW
applications 122, 123, and 124 represent third-party applications for
interacting with a
subscriber service for storing records online and are not explicitly required
in order to
practice the present invention.
After a consumer has transaction records stored on his or mobile device, the
consumer may set the mobile SW application to "sync" the cumulated receipt
information
with his/her personal computer, server, or other electronic devices. When the
customer
requires a receipt for return, product exchange, or other purposes, he/she
only needs to
pull up the particular receipt on his/her mobile device, or download it to the
mobile
device from the server. The digital receipt may be displayed on the mobile
device so that
the merchant can scan the bar code on the receipt for processing the requested
transaction. Alternatively, the user can print out the digital receipt on
paper when
necessary from their mobile device or by uploading the digital receipt to a
server and then
accessing it on the web.
When a consumer needs a receipt for return, product exchange, or the like, the
consumer can call up the particular receipt on the host mobile device or
download it to
the mobile device from a third-party service. The digital receipt may be
displayed on the
display screen of the mobile device so that the POS merchant can scan the bar
code on
the receipt for processing the requested transaction. Alternatively, the user
can print out
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the digital receipt on paper whenever necessary from their mobile device or by
uploading
the digital receipt to a server and then accessing it on the web to print it.
Fig. 2 is a plan view of dongle device 109 of Fig. 1 according to an
embodiment
of the present invention. Dongle device 109 may be a wireless device or a
tethered
device without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
In this
example, device 109 may be adapted additionally as a physical credit and debit
card
reader and may include a card reading slot 201 for swiping a debit or credit
card during
transacting. In this example, dongle 109 has a display 204. Display 204 may be
used
during transacting to display transaction particulars and for displaying a
transaction
record such as an electronic receipt.
When the dongle receives a print command, it displays the receipt data in
display
window 204. Dongle 109 has at least one indicator light or button 202 that can
be
programmed to illuminate when a transaction record is ready to be offloaded
from the
device. In one embodiment a button 203 is provided as a submit button for
submitting a
consumer PIN or PAC transmitted to the dongle from an NFC or RFID tag along
with the
resident transaction record to a third-party hosted storage and management
service. In
one embodiment a consumer may upload certain tax-deductible receipts directly
to a tax
service account so that by the end of the year all of the tax-deductible
receipts are
accounted for and organized according to tax reporting protocols. In one
embodiment,
the SW program can algorithmically port the data to an existing tax-related
function.
Dongle device 109 does not require a display to practice the invention.
In one embodiment a user interacts with the dongle device as a POS terminal
including sliding the credit or debit card to initiate payment. The dongle
with the aid of
SW 122 can transmit data to a mobile telephone like device 110 at different
stages of a
transaction. In an embodiment where a consumer wants a printed receipt but not
a
transmitted file, the dongle device can function as a pass through inline
device sending
the transaction record data (print request) on to the default physical printer
connected to
the POS computing appliance. Alternately, if the user doesn't want a paper
receipt, the
dongle device can avoid sending the receipt to the default printer. In one
embodiment
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this functionality can be managed via the dongle device using input controls
and a display
configured as a consumer interface. In one embodiment, a consumer interface
for
selecting specific functionality is provided on the POS as part of SW 112 and
not directly
on the dongle device.
As an alternative, a consumer can use a wireless NFC accessory to gain NFC
capability on their BluetoothTm-enabled device. More specifically, such a
wireless NFC
accessory may consist of both BluetoothTM and NFC components. Such an
accessory
would have a processor and circuitry for passing data in-between the two
different
communication components. One of the functions of the accessory would be to
pair
BluetoothTM on the dongle device with BluetoothTM on the hardware accessory
ported to
the mobile telephone and getting data from the dongle device through NFC and
passing
the data within the accessory from its own NFC to its own BluetoothTM. Since
the
consumer device has already been paired with BluetoothTM, the receipt data can
then be
transferred from the dongle to the consumer device through a BluetoothTM
connection.
However, this embodiment uses NFC as the method for transmitting receipt data
between user accessory and merchant dongle device and uses the BluetoothTM as
method
for transmitting data between user accessory (NFC-hardware extension) and user
main
device (mobile communications device). One embodiment disclosed uses NFC as
bridge
connection for pairing user device and merchant dongle and uses BluetoothTM or
other
connection methods for transmitting receipt data.
It is noted herein that the dongle device and SW functionality does not
require
integration with a POS computing platform or other receipt generating system
because it
interfaces through standard printing protocols already recognized by the
systems. This
fact makes the dongle device very simple and easy to adopt by merchants and
businesses
regardless of the kind of POS protocols used.
Fig. 3 is a block diagram illustrating basic and optional components of dongle
device 109 of Fig. 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Dongle device
109 includes a PC interface 309 for porting or plugging the device into a port
on a POS
computing appliance. In this example, a power line-in, a data input line, and
a data
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output line (I/0) is illustrated. In this example, dongle device includes a
microprocessor
300 adapted to process data on the device and to transmit data upon initiation
or request.
A BUS structure is available on the device to connect the various device
components for
operation. Dongle device 109 includes an NFC module 302 enabling near field
transmittal of data in a bi-directional fashion between the device and a
mobile
communications appliance like smart phone 110 of Fig. 1. NFC module 302 may
also be
adapted to communicate with an NFC or RFID tag.
In this example, dongle device includes a read/write module 301 adapted for
reading data from a card and for writing data to a card. It is assumed herein
that the NFC
module enables transmittal of data and receipt of certain forms of data
between the
dongle and a mobile communications device or a radio-enabled NFC or RFID tag.
Dongle device 109 may include a display circuit 308 adapted to enable display
of data.
Dongle device 109 includes a consumer input circuit 305 adapted to enable a
consumer to
interact with the dongle as a POS terminal consumer interface. In one
embodiment the
display is a touch screen display and the consumer may interact with the
device using the
touch screen. In another embodiment a physical keypad, an array of action
buttons, or
other input indicia might be provided. A flash memory module 309 is provided
for the
purposes of storing data for transmit to other devices. A small amount of
random access
memory (RAM) and read only memory (ROM) may be provided for boot SW load and
other purposes. In one embodiment the memory is organized as a fast cache for
quick
upload or transfer of data.
Dongle device 109 includes a data transmittal circuit (TX) 307. TX circuit 307
is
adapted to enable the dongle device to transmit data using NFC or BluetoothTM.
In other
embodiments other wireless protocols might be adopted. Dongle device 109
includes a
state indicator circuit 306. State indicator circuit 306 is adapted to enable
a flashing icon,
light emitting diode (LED), illuminated button, or the like to illuminate
thereby indicating
a state like readiness to transmit data. There may be one or more such
indicators installed
on the dongle device 109 without departing from the spirit and scope of the
present
invention. An indicator may be a flashing icon on display in the display
screen or touch
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screen. An indicator might be a light emitting diode (LED) or some other light
source
integrated to the device.
In one embodiment of the present invention, dongle 109 is adapted for
BluetoothTM via a BluetoothTM module 303. BluetoothTM module 303 may be used
for
communication instead of NFC. In one embodiment NFC may be used on the device
to
pair the device with another BluetoothTM device for data transmittal from
either device to
the other device. Dongle device 109 includes a power cell 304. Power cell 304
may be a
rechargeable battery. Power cell 304 is not specifically required in order to
practice the
invention as power may be input from the host computer the device is ported
to. It will
be apparent to one with skill in the art that the dongle device of the present
invention may
include fewer or more components than are illustrated here. The complexity of
the
device and its capabilities may vary depending on design and intent. For
example, the
device may not include a display or a user input means. In another embodiment
the
device may include both a display and means of user input. The primary
functions of the
device in a preferred embodiment are printer emulation, file format validation
and
conversion if required, and the capability of communicating the print
information to
another device and to pick up data like instructions, a PIN, or a PAC from
another device.
It is noted herein that some POS terminals are not attended computing systems
but are automated attendant machines instead that are capable of hosting a
transaction
and printing a receipt. These types of interfaces include automatic teller
machines
(ATMs) and gas station attendant machines among others. In such machines the
capabilities of dongle device 109 may be provided in SW and may be integrated
with the
standard public interface window for those types of machines by installing a
wireless
interface for NFC or BluetoothTM communication capability. In another
embodiment
transmission of data may be accomplished through card swiping (read and
writing). For
example, the user would after completing a transaction might swipe his or her
card again
to accept an electronic receipt written to the card, which can then be
transferred to
another device that can read the card such as a peripheral card reader
connected to a host
computing appliance.
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Fig. 4 is a process flow chart 400 illustrating steps for transmittal of a
transaction
record from a POS computing appliance according to an aspect of the present
invention.
In this example, it is assumed that the consumer has installed the SW of the
present
invention on his or her personal mobile device. At step 401, the consumer
finishes an
item checkout transaction at a POS location and pays using a credit/debit
card, a gift card,
or some other form of payment. In one aspect, the process moves directly to
step 402
where the human attendant or the POS computing appliance sends the record of
the
transaction to the printer. At step 403, the consumer might be prompted if
they want a
paper receipt. It is not a requirement to receive a paper receipt and it is
environmentally
friendly not to receive one. However, at step 403 the consumer is given the
choice of
paper or no paper.
At step 403, if the consumer decides they want a paper receipt, it is noted
and the
consumer is then prompted at step 411 to decide whether they want an online
record. If
they want paper but no online record or electronic receipt, then the process
may simply
end at step 412 with a printed receipt given to the consumer. In this case no
information
is sent to the dongle device. However, if at step 403 the consumer declines or
opts out of
receiving a paper receipt, then the process moves to step 404 and the printing
message or
command and data is forwarded to the dongle device. At step 411, if the
consumer has
accepted a paper receipt but still wants an electronic or online record, the
consumer still
has the option of receiving an electronic record. In this case the process
moves to step
404 and the print message is sent to the dongle device emulating the physical
printer. In
one aspect of the process the print message is simultaneously sent to the
physical printer
and the emulated printer destination (dongle) at the same time.
At step 405 the print message including the transaction record data is sent to
the
dongle device. The transaction record data may include all of the usual
particulars like
merchant name, item list, item pricing, tax, total price, discount
information, contact and
website data, and so on. In one embodiment additional promotional data may be
electronically transferred that would not necessarily be printed in a physical
receipt. This
might include an offer or notice of a discount shopping day, special pricing,
survey data,
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or other promotional materials. In one embodiment a consumer may opt out of
receiving
any information in addition to the transaction record.
At step 406, the consumer may be prompted to make a decision whether to
transmit the data to an available mobile device through wireless connection,
or to have
the data transmitted to a third-party site. If the consumer decides at step
406 not to
transmit the data to a mobile device, then the consumer may be prompted to
upload the
electronic record to a designated service site for storage at step 413. If the
consumer did
not want to transmit the data to a mobile device at step 406, and did not want
to upload
the electronic record at step 413, then the process would terminate at step
412, perhaps
with a paper receipt printed out by default.
If at step 406, the consumer elected to transmit the electronic record to a
mobile
device, then at step 407 the consumer brings the mobile device within wireless
communication range of the dongle device to initiate transmission of the data
from the
dongle to the mobile device. In one aspect the transmission protocol is NFC or
BluetoothTM. In one aspect, NFC is used to pair the dongle device and a
BluetoothTM
enabled mobile device like a smart phone for communication using BluetoothTM
technology. At step 408 the dongle device may indicate when the record is
ready to be
offloaded from the device. It is noted herein that the offloading of the data
does not erase
the merchant copies of the transaction.
At step 409 the record data is transmitted from the dongle device to the
mobile
device. The process may then terminate at step 412 bypassing step 415 in the
event that
the record was not also transmitted to a third-party destination. If at step
406, the
consumer determines not to transmit the record to the mobile device and the
consumer
determines at step 413 that they want to upload the data to a third-party
service
destination online, then at step 414 the consumer inputs consumer
identification for
validating the consumer with the third-party service destination. This may be
accomplished by bringing an NFC or RFID tag having the consumer ID on it
within
wireless communication range of the dongle device. The dongle will acquire the
data it
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needs from the tag to initiate transfer of the record over the Internet, for
example, to the
third-party service.
The process then moves to step 408 where the dongle device indicates that it
is
ready to transmit the data. Such indication may precede a confirmation step by
the user
to serve as a last approval for data transmission. For example, to affect the
transfer, the
user may have to press a button on the device or interact with an icon
displayed on the
touch screen. In one embodiment, the dongle device skips step 408 when the
consumer
has elected to have the record transmitted to an online storage. At step 409,
the dongle
device transmits the data to the third-party storage service, using the
consumer ID to
validate the process and to gain access to the repository server. At step 415
the dongle
device may indicate a confirmation of completion of the task by a flashing
icon, a LED,
or some other visual or audio indication. A beep or series of tones may be
used to
indicate successful transmit of the data. The process then ends at step 412.
In one aspect of the process, it is possible that a consumer may want a mobile
phone copy of the transaction record and may also want to upload a copy to a
records
management service. Steps 406 and 413 may be integrated to give the consumer a
choice
of receiving an electronic record locally and uploading the record to a
service. In either
case, the consumer need not give away email contact information or other
personal
information to the merchant or to the third party service. The PIN or PAC that
the
consumer has with the third-party service is sufficient to validate the
consumer. It is also
noted in this and in other aspects of the invention that encryption and other
security
regimens may be assumed present and in use.
Fig. 5 is a process flow chart 500 illustrating steps for transmittal of a
transaction
record from a POS computing appliance according to another aspect of the
present
invention. At step 501, a consumer finishes item checkout at a POS location.
At step
502, the operator of the POS terminal or computing appliance sends the print
command
or message to the dongle device. This case assumes that the consumer does not
have an
NFC-capable smart phone or similar device, but that the consumer has an NFC
tag or an
RFID tag.
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At step 503 the dongle device indicates a readiness to transmit the
transaction
record. Since the consumer has no local device for accepting the transaction
record, at
step 504 the consumer instead brings an NFC tag or an RFID tag into
communication
range with the dongle device. This process variation addresses the aspect of
the
consumer electing to save the transaction record to a third-party service. The
consumer
will have information on such tags that may be read by the dongle device aided
by the
SW of the present invention. The information will be required to validate the
consumer
and access the third-party service to which the consumer is a subscriber.
At step 506, the dongle device acquires the consumer ID, which may be a PIN, a
PAC, or some other key that would enable access to the service on behalf of
the
consumer. At 507, the dongle device transmits the transaction record to the
third-party
service, which may represent a data records storage and management service.
Fig. 6 is a process flow chart 600 illustrating steps for transmittal of a
transaction
record from a POS computing appliance according to yet another aspect of the
present
invention. This aspect variation of the process assumes that the consumer has
a mobile
smart phone or similar device that is enabled for both NFC and BluetoothTM. At
step
601, the consumer brings the NFC-enabled mobile device into dongle range for
NFC.
The object of this step is to initiate paring of the mobile device to the
dongle device for
BluetoothTM communication. At step 602 the NFC mobile device transmits the
BluetoothTM pairing password for pairing the two devices for BluetoothTM
communication.
The consumer then may step back into BluetoothTM range and the devices are
successfully paired at step 603. Pairing of devices only has to be
accomplished once per
mobile device. The consumer may retain this paring if the consumer will repeat
patronage of the same POS computing terminal in the conduct of future
business. At step
604, the consumer finishes item checkout at the POS computing terminal. At
step 605,
the operator of the POS computing appliance sends a print command to the
dongle
device. The dongle device may indicate readiness to transmit the record at
step 606 and
establishes a BluetoothTM session with the last mobile device that paired with
the dongle.
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At step 607 while the session is established, the dongle device receives and
validates a consumer ID. This step is strictly for security purposes and to
ensure that the
correct receipt is transmitted to the correct mobile appliance. At step 608
the dongle
device send the transaction record to the mobile device over the established
BluetoothTM
session. The session is then terminated and the process ends at step 609. In
one
embodiment of the present invention, a mobile phone can be enabled for NFC by
creating
a hardware extension card that could be plugged into the smart telephone to
give it NFC
capabilities.
In one embodiment the system of the invention is applicable to the food
services
industry. For example, a restaurant payment process is different than a POS
retail
operation. In a restaurant, the receipt is generated before payment. Where
tipping is
practiced, the consumer specifies the amount of tip on the receipt and keeps a
copy while
returning a copy to the food server. The food server enters the tip amount to
the POS
computing appliance or directly to the credit card processor.
For a restaurant process, the most convenient implementation of the system is
to
have a hardware unit wirelessly in communication with the POS computing
appliance. In
this way, the food server may bring the device directly to the customer. It
takes a single
tap action by the consumer to submit payment information and pick up the
digital receipt.
If the consumer wants the tip information to be recorded with the receipt, the
process can
have available functions for taking consumer input. In that case, a consumer
may type in
the tip amount into the "dongle". The SW on the device accepts the input and
generates
an updated record that contains the tip information.
In one embodiment, the NFC/BluetoothTM process where the NFC is used to
bridge communication. For example, when the food server brings the payment-
receipt
reader device (dongle) to the consumer, the consumer taps the device with
mobile device
while the receipt application is running. This action allows a BluetoothTM
connection to
be established between the mobile device of the consumer and the receipt
interface or
dongle brought by the food server. The payment information and consumer ID if
required is transmitted from the mobile device to the dongle device equivalent
through
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NFC during the same tapping action or through BluetoothTM after the tapping
action has
commenced to initiate BluetoothTM.
The food server also acquires the tip amount from the customer and inputs that
into the dongle equivalent. The POS computing appliance sends the final
receipt back to
the dongle equivalent device with the tip information included and on to the
consumer
mobile device via BluetoothTM connection.
In yet another embodiment of the invention receipt information may be
transferred to a consumer at the POS without need for NFC, BluetoothTM, or
other near-
field communication technology. In one such embodiment the POS-side SW, having
generated a receipt for a transaction, generates a unique ID for the receipt,
and transmits
the ID, receipt data and other information through Internet 102 to a third-
party server,
such as Server 127 in Online Management Service 105. At the same time SW 112
generates a unique bar code, QR code or other image-based code, the image-
based code
encoding receipt ID information and some other info to be immediately passed
to the
consumer (e.g. total amount, store ID, reward points earned, for example), and
transmits
that image-based code to the dongle 109, where it may be displayed on the
display of the
dongle. A dongle having the capabilities described above for NFC and/or
BluetoothTM
communication. It is only necessary that the image-based code be displayed for
the
consumer.
In this embodiment it is not necessary that all of the information regarding
the
transaction be transmitted via the image-based code. The ID is critical for
retrieval of
further information that has been sent to the third-party service and
associated to the ID.
The consumer, instead of having to have an NFC-enabled phone, uses the camera
on their smart phone to scan the bar code, QR code, or other image-based code
to collect
the information stored in the code. Then the SW 113 executing on the
consumer's mobile
phone can decode the info, which, as described above, delivers some amount of
immediate information related to the transaction to the shopper along with the
unique ID.
The consumer now can retrieve the full receipt information from the third-
party server,
using that unique receipt ID.
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In one embodiment the entire body of information may be encoded in the image-
based code, such as a QR code, or as much as the maximum capacity of the code
may
allow. As capacity capability increases, more data may be directly
transmitted.
In yet another embodiment of the invention ultrasound communication
technology may be used to transmit transaction information (receipt info) to
the consumer
at the POS, rather than NFC, BluetoothTM, or such as QR code. In this
embodiment SW
112 and provides functionality for operating a speaker and microphone
associated with
computer 107 or a dongle such as 109, and SW 113 executing on the consumer's
device
operates the speaker and microphone on that device. Information is exchanged
by ultra-
sound encoding and decoding on each end. In one embodiment it is only
necessary that
the speaker apparatus on the POS side be used with the microphone on the
consumer's
device, to transmit information in one direction from the POS device to the
consumer.
The information thus transmitted may be just the unique code associated with a
transaction, as described above, and perhaps a bit more information, wherein
the full
information has gone to a third party service associated with the unique code,
and the
consumer may then download as needed from the third-party service. This may be
desirable, as ultrasound is rather slow at present compared to NFC and
BluetoothTM.
The ultrasound technology may also be used to transmit unique shopper ID to
the
POS sale device which may then be paired with information uploaded to a third-
party
service, which may in turn push the complete info package to the consumer's
mobile
device, or to any other network-connected device preferred by the consumer.
In another variation the transaction record may be matched with the consumer
ID
so that the right information can be delivered to the right person by using
the credit card
info or loyalty card info or any token that uniquely represents the shopper,
which the
merchants are already capturing (e.g. from their payment terminal, face
recognition,
finger print scanning or other methods). In this embodiment, the consumer-side
mobile
application (software 113) just needs to require the shopper to pair such
personal
identifying information to their account with the e-receipt system.
In the embodiment described above, where an image-based code (QR for
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example) is used to transmit to the consumer a unique transaction ID, the POS
side has
no way of verifying that the consumer has, in fact scanned the code, until and
unless the
third-party server verifies to the POS that the consumer has, in fact,
interacted with the
server regarding that unique transaction ID. In one embodiment the QR code
method
may be coupled with the ultrasound method or NFC or RF communication, wherein
the
ultrasound method, NFC, or RF method may be used to send the shopper id to the
POS
side so that the POS side will immediately know that a consumer has scanned
the
encoding. Then the POS side may no longer display the code on its display. The
secondary communication may also be based on certain electromagnetic signature
and
does not have to transmit the shopper ID back to the merchant side, rather
simply
identifies that another mobile device is nearby.
In some embodiments the receipt system in any one or a combination of
embodiments described above may also be integrated with payment methods,
loyalty
systems, or with a customer relations management system.
It will be apparent to one with skill in the art that the transaction record
distribution system of the invention may be provided using some or all of the
mentioned
features and components without departing from the spirit and scope of the
present
invention. It will also be apparent to the skilled artisan that the
embodiments described
above are specific examples of a single broader invention that may have
greater scope
than any of the singular descriptions taught. There may be many alterations
made in the
descriptions without departing from the spirit and scope of the present
invention.
