SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PRODUCT PURCHASE AND NON-FUNGABLE TOKENS - Patent application

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided for product purchases / auctions and NFTs. A computer-based digital platform facilitates users to purchase or participate in auctions for physical products (e.g., collectibles, memorabilia, unique works of art, etc.) and automatically generates and manages NFTs associated with purchases / auctions of such products. Products can be purchased / bid on via an online platform accessible from a user's computer system or mobile terminal. One or more vouchers can be redeemed at a desired location and used to access the platform to realize a purchase of the product, participate in an auction for the product, or redeem a gifted product. The NFT provides proof of ownership of the product and is linked to the product by the system.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] Priority claim This application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 317,421, filed March 7, 2022, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

[0002] Technical Field The present disclosure relates generally to the field of electronic commerce. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to systems and methods for product purchases and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). [Background technology]

[0003] Related Technology In the field of e-commerce, there is a growing interest in blockchain-based solutions. NFTs are a type of blockchain-based technology where non-transferable units of data that can be sold or traded are stored on the blockchain and are uniquely identifiable. Often, NFTs are associated with digital assets such as photos, videos, or audio files. NFTs serve as a certificate of authenticity or proof of ownership of an asset. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] It would be beneficial to expand the use of NFTs in connection with buying and selling non-digital assets, such as physical products and collectibles. It would also be beneficial to provide a digital platform that facilitates both the purchase or sale of assets (e.g., non-digital assets), but also to automatically issue and maintain NFTs associated with the purchase or sale of such assets in a convenient and accessible digital platform. Thus, there is a need for systems and methods for product purchases and NFTs that address the aforementioned and other needs. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] overview The present disclosure relates to a system and method for product purchases and NFTs. The system provides a computer-based digital platform that allows users to easily purchase physical products (e.g., collectibles, memorabilia, unique works of art, etc.) and automatically generates and manages NFTs associated with the purchase of such products. Products can be purchased through an online (e.g., web-based, etc.) platform accessible from a user's computer system or mobile terminal (e.g., smartphone, etc.). One or more vouchers (e.g., in the form of a voucher card, QR code, etc.) can be redeemed at a desired location (e.g., a point of sale) and can be used to access the platform to realize a purchase of a product, participate in an auction for a product, or redeem a gifted product (e.g., gifted to a recipient by another user of the system). When a product is purchased or redeemed, an NFT is automatically generated and managed by the system. The NFT provides proof of ownership of the product and is linked to the product by the system.

[0006] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The foregoing features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates a system of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] A flowchart showing the processing steps performed by the system of the present disclosure to automatically generate and manage product purchases and product-related NFTs. [Diagram 3] A flowchart showing the processing steps performed by the system of the present disclosure to participate in product auctions and automatically generate and manage NFTs associated with the auctioned products. [Figure 4]1 is a flowchart illustrating the process steps performed by the system of the present disclosure to purchase products using voucher cards and automatically generate and manage NFTs associated with the products. [Diagram 5] A flowchart showing the processing steps performed by the system of the present disclosure to purchase products using QR codes and automatically generate and manage NFTs associated with the products. [Figure 6] A flowchart showing the processing steps performed by the system of the present disclosure to redeem gift products and automatically generate and manage NFTs associated with gift products.

[0008] Detailed Description The present disclosure relates to a machine learning system and method for product purchasing and NFTs, as described in more detail below in conjunction with Figures 1-6. As described in more detail below, the system allows consumer purchasers of physical products to use NFTs to securely verify ownership of physical products purchased on the platform. The system has particular application in the collectibles market, where counterfeit products from unverified sources are rampant. Each product purchased using the system is automatically linked to a specific NFT, securely authenticating ownership of the purchased product. The system also provides a means for consumers to sell products from their collections to other consumers.

[0009] 1 illustrates a system of the present disclosure, generally designated 10 (also referred to herein as the "platform"). System 10 includes a purchasing platform computer system 12 that executes a specially programmed purchasing engine or software module 14 that provides the functionality disclosed herein. System 12 communicates with one or more devices via a network 18 (which may include the Internet, a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), etc.), including an NFT processing platform 16, a purchaser computer system 20, a vendor computer system 22, a purchaser mobile device 24, and a point of sale computer system 28. NFT processing platform 16 generates NFTs for use by system 12, which may include Polygon blockchain NFTs or other suitable NFTs. It is noted that system 12 does not need to communicate with NFT processing platform 16 to generate NFTs, but may instead be programmed to generate NFTs as described herein. NFT processing platform 16 may also be utilized to verify blockchain-based NFT transactions executed by system 12, if desired. In such a situation, platform 16 may include multiple networked peer-to-peer computer systems commonly utilized in blockchain transactions.

[0010] The buyer computer system 20 may be a general-purpose computer system that provides web-based access for the buyer to the system 12 and / or may execute a customized "front-end" software application executed by the system 20 that allows the buyer to access the system 12. The buyer may also access the computer system 20 using a mobile phone 24, as described in more detail below. For example, the mobile phone 24 may be utilized to scan a QR code 29 to access the system 12, as described in more detail below. The vendor computer system 22 enables vendors of products to communicate with the system 12 to provide information about products, coordinate shipment of products, coordinate electronic invoicing and payments to vendors, manage products sold on the platform, etc. The point-of-sale computer system 28 may be located at a point-of-sale (e.g., a retail store) and may be utilized to activate one or more voucher cards 26 for use in purchasing products on the system 12, as described in more detail below.

[0011] Purchasing engine 14 may be embodied as non-transitory computer-readable instructions stored on memory of system 12 and executed by a processor of system 12, and may be coded in any suitable high-level or low-level programming language, including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, Javascript, Python, or any suitable programming language. Alternatively, engine 14 may be embodied as a customized hardware processor, such as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other customized or embedded hard processor. Additionally, it is noted that the functionality provided by engine 14 (described in further detail below in connection with FIGS. 2-6) may be executed on multiple computers and / or on a “cloud” computing environment, if desired.

[0012] FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating a procedure (generally designated 30) executed by the system of the present disclosure for purchasing a product and automatically generating and managing an NFT associated with the product. At step 32, a purchaser accesses computer system 12 using one or more devices, such as purchaser computer system 20 or mobile phone 24. Access to the system may be controlled by user accounts and passwords, as desired. At step 34, system 12 presents information about products currently available for purchase (e.g., from a vendor operating vendor computer system 22). Examples of such products include, but are not limited to, physical products, memorabilia, collectibles, fine art, and the like. Information about such products may be presented in a web-based graphical user interface, a customized interface, and the like. At step 36, the purchaser uses system 12 to purchase the desired product (e.g., using a credit card, a PAYPAL account, APPLE PAY, or another type of e-commerce payment system, and / or cryptocurrency (e.g., Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.)). At step 38, the system creates an account for the purchaser and automatically links the purchased product to the user's account. This information is stored in an account database 40, which may be hosted by system 12 or another computer system in communication with system 12. At step 42, system 12 automatically generates an NFT associated with the purchased product and links the NFT to the user's account. The NFT may be generated by system 12 itself, or may be generated by NFT platform 16 and sent to system 12, and NFT platform 16 may be updated with information associated with the NFT and provided by system 12. Information regarding the NFT and the link to the account is stored in database 40.

[0013] FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating the process steps (generally designated 50) executed by the system of the present disclosure to participate in an auction of a product and to automatically generate and manage NFTs associated with the auctioned product. At step 52, a purchaser accesses computer system 12 using one or more devices, such as purchaser computer system 20 or mobile phone 24. Access to the system may be controlled by user accounts and passwords, as appropriate. At step 54, system 12 presents information about products currently available for auction (e.g., from vendors operating vendor computer systems 22). Examples of such products include, but are not limited to, physical products, memorabilia, collectibles, fine art, and the like. Information about such products may be presented in a web-based graphical user interface, a customized interface, and the like. At step 56, the purchaser bids on the selected product and the auction is conducted. At step 58, the system creates an account for the purchaser. This information is stored in an account database 60, which may be hosted by system 12 or another computer system in communication with system 12. If the buyer wins the auction, step 62 occurs and the buyer purchases the won product using system 12 (e.g., using a credit card, a PAYPAL account, APPLE PAY, or another type of e-commerce payment system, and / or cryptocurrency (e.g., Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.)). Also in step 62, system 12 automatically generates an NFT associated with the won product and links the NFT to the user's account. The NFT may be generated by system 12 itself or may be generated by NFT platform 16 and sent to system 12. NFT platform 16 may also be updated with information associated with the NFT and provided by system 12. Information regarding the NFT and the link to the account is stored in database 60.

[0014] 4 is a flow chart illustrating the process steps (generally designated 70) performed by the system of the present disclosure to purchase a product using a voucher card and to automatically generate and manage NFTs associated with the product. At step 72, a purchaser purchases a voucher card (such as voucher card 26 of FIG. 1) at a point of sale (e.g., a retail store). At step 74, the voucher card is scanned by the point of sale computer system 26 to activate the voucher card and transmit information about the activated card to the system 12. At step 76, the purchaser accesses the computer system 12 using one or more devices, such as the purchaser computer system 20 or mobile phone 24, and provides the system 12 with a unique code (which can be revealed by scratching a protective coating on the back of the voucher card 26). At step 78, the purchaser uses system 12 to purchase the product associated with the voucher card (e.g., using a credit card, a PAYPAL account, APPLE PAY, or another type of e-commerce payment system, and / or cryptocurrency (e.g., Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.)), and the system creates an account for the purchaser and automatically links the purchased product to the user's account. This information is stored in an account database 80, which may be hosted by system 12 or another computer system in communication with system 12. At step 82, system 12 automatically generates an NFT associated with the purchased product and links the NFT to the user's account. The NFT may be generated by system 12 itself or may be generated by NFT platform 16 and sent to system 12, and NFT platform 16 may be updated with information associated with the NFT and provided by system 12. Information regarding the NFT and the link to the account is stored in database 80.

[0015] FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating the process steps (generally designated 90) executed by the system of the present disclosure to purchase a product using a QR code and to automatically generate and manage NFTs associated with the product. At step 92, the QR code is displayed to a purchaser (e.g., digitally displayed on a computer screen, displayed on a printed advertisement, etc.). At step 94, the purchaser scans the QR code using the camera of the mobile phone 24. Once scanned, the QR code causes the mobile phone 24 to display links that the user can select to provide access to the system 12 (e.g., hypertext links to web-based front-ends for accessing the system 12). At step 96, the purchaser accesses the computer system 12 and uses the system 12 to purchase the desired product (e.g., using a credit card, a PAYPAL account, APPLE PAY, or another type of e-commerce payment system, and / or cryptocurrency (e.g., Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.)). The desired product may be linked to the QR code such that the product is automatically displayed by the system 12 when the user scans the QR code and accesses the system 12 via the link described above. At step 98, the system creates an account for the purchaser and automatically links the purchased product to the user's account. This information is stored in an account database 100, which may be hosted by system 12 or another computer system in communication with system 12. At step 102, system 12 automatically generates an NFT associated with the purchased product and links the NFT to the user's account. The NFT may be generated by system 12 itself or may be generated by NFT platform 16 and sent to system 12. NFT platform 16 may also be updated with information associated with the NFT and provided by system 12. Information regarding the NFT and the link to the account is stored in database 100.

[0016] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating the process steps (generally designated 100) executed by the system of the present disclosure to redeem a gift product and automatically generate and manage an NFT associated with the gift product. At step 112, a purchaser accesses the system 12 using one or more devices, such as the purchaser computer system 20 or the mobile phone 24. At step 114, the purchaser purchases a product as a gift for a recipient. A gift card or gift message (e.g., an electronic message) indicating that a gift has been purchased for the recipient may be generated and sent to the recipient. At step 116, the recipient accesses the computer system 12 and redeems the gifted product. At step 116, the system creates an account for the recipient and automatically links the gift product to the recipient's account. This information is stored in an account database 120, which may be hosted by the system 12 or another computer system in communication with the system 12. At step 122, the system 12 automatically generates an NFT associated with the gifted product and links the NFT to the recipient's account. The NFT may be generated by the system 12 itself or may be generated by the NFT platform 16 and sent to the system 12. NFT platform 16 may also be updated with information related to the NFT and provided by system 12. Information regarding the NFT and the link to the account is stored in database 120.

[0017] It is noted that the system 10 can be used to sell products that have already been produced, or to sell the right to receive a predetermined number of future releases from a particular product line. Additionally, the system can be used to sell specific products that are known to the customer at the time of purchase, or parts of a collectible product model, where one or more products are randomly selected from a pool of products, and different products in the pool are displayed with various rarities using a predefined matching formula that assigns a particular rarity to each product in the pool. In a collectible product model, the exact product or products from the collection on the platform are revealed to the consumer after the token is registered on the platform.

[0018] At the time of purchase, the customer is given the option to have the product shipped to an address of the customer's choice or to have the vendor store it for a predefined period of time, the cost of which is included in the price of the purchase. It is also noted that the system provides a way for vendors to sell physical products to other consumers, through auctions or direct sales, along with the corresponding tokens purchased using the platform, using the tokens to verify ownership. The system creates an account for the buyer in the secondary marketplace and transfers the tokens to that account, creating a clear chain of ownership for the purchased product. The platform may use the Polygon blockchain to identify and verify such secondary market sales.

[0019] It is further noted that the system may provide the user with a cryptocurrency wallet for storing tokens corresponding to the products in the collection. The system also provides the customer with a dashboard for viewing the collection of products purchased through the platform, which dashboard indicates which products have been shipped to the customer, which products have been stored for the customer, and how much storage time remains. The collection may be used by the user to create a listing for selling the products to other consumers. The dashboard may also display customer service information for the product vendors who manufactured one or more products in the consumer's collection.

[0020] Using the system, a retailer may apply to sell voucher cards for platform products at a retail store. The system provides a dashboard to participating retail partners to view sales of one or more products at that retail store via the platform. Additionally, a product vendor may apply for a participating retail partner to list a product for sale on the system and via voucher cards at a retail store. The system provides a dashboard to participating product vendors to view sales of the product via the platform. The dashboard shows participating product vendors which products are to be shipped to customers, which products are in storage for customers, and how much storage time is remaining. Additionally, the system may provide notifications to product vendors with links to transactions on the system. The system may export a CSV file of transaction reports for product vendors to import into their own sales and inventory management systems.

[0021] When a consumer purchases one or more products from a participating product vendor on the system, the system receives a predefined share of the transaction as a platform service fee. If such a sale is made via a voucher card at a participating retailer's retail store, the retailer receives a portion of the transaction as a retailer service fee. The product vendor receives the remainder of the transaction. By paying an additional predefined platform service fee, the participating product vendor may choose whether the platform service provider will store the product and subsequently ship it to the consumer, or store the product for the consumer on behalf of the product vendor. When a consumer sells a product from his / her collection to another consumer on the platform, the system receives a predefined share of the transaction as a platform service fee. The system may provide participating product vendors and participating retailers with a share of secondary market sales made by consumers on the system for products corresponding to a particular product vendor or retailer, if such products were originally sold at the retailer's retail store via a voucher card. It is further noted that the system may include security features, including but not limited to two-factor authentication, to protect access to the system, including sales by consumers to other consumers on the system. All transactions involving tokens on the system are securely verified against a blockchain, such as the Polygon blockchain or any other suitable blockchain.

[0022] Although the system and method have been described in detail, it should be understood that the foregoing description is not intended to be limiting in spirit or scope. It will be understood that the embodiments of the present disclosure described herein are merely exemplary, and that those skilled in the art may make any variations and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. All such variations and modifications, including those described above, are intended to be included within the scope of the present disclosure. What is desired to be protected by this patent is set forth in the following claims.

Claims

1. 1. A system for product purchases and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), comprising: a purchasing platform computer system in communication with the purchaser computer system; a purchasing software module executed by the purchasing platform computer system, the purchasing software module providing to the purchasing platform computer system: displaying information about currently available products on said purchaser computer system; enabling a user of said purchaser computer system to purchase said product electronically; automatically generating an NFT responsive to the user's electronic purchase of the product, the NFT verifying the user's ownership of the purchased product; The NFT is electronically accessible to the user and links the NFT to an account associated with the user.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the buyer computer system comprises a mobile phone.

3. further comprising a voucher redeemable by said user; The system of claim 1 , wherein the voucher enables access to the purchasing platform computer system for the purchase of the product.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the voucher comprises a voucher card redeemable by the user.

5. 10. The system of claim 1, further comprising a Quick Response (QR) code scannable by the purchaser computer system, the QR code enabling access to the purchasing platform computer system for purchase of the product.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the purchasing platform computer system is capable of communicating with one or more vendor computer systems or point of sale computer systems.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the product is redeemable by the user as a pre-purchased gift.

8. 1. A method for product purchases and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), comprising: displaying information about currently available products on a purchaser computer system via a purchasing platform computer system; enabling a user of said purchaser computer system to purchase said product electronically; In response to the user electronically purchasing the product, automatically generating an NFT verifying the user's ownership of the purchased product; the NFT is electronically accessible to the user, and linking the NFT to an account associated with the user.

9. providing a voucher redeemable by said user; The method of claim 8 , wherein the voucher enables access to the purchasing platform computer system for the purchase of the product.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the voucher comprises a voucher card redeemable by the user.

11. 10. The method of claim 8, further comprising providing a QR code scannable by the purchaser computer system, the QR code enabling access to the purchasing platform computer system for purchase of the product.

12. 10. The method of claim 8, further comprising the step of allowing the user to redeem the product as a pre-purchased gift.

13. 1. A system for auctioning products and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), comprising: a purchasing platform computer system in communication with the purchaser computer system; a purchasing software module executed by the purchasing platform computer system, the purchasing software module providing to the purchasing platform computer system: displaying information on said purchaser computer system regarding products currently available for bid in the auction; enabling users of said buyer computer systems to participate in said auction electronically; automatically generating an NFT responsive to the user winning a bid in the auction related to the product, the NFT verifying the user's ownership of the won product; The NFT is electronically accessible to the user and links the NFT to an account associated with the user.

14. 14. The system of claim 13, wherein the purchaser computer system comprises a mobile phone.

15. 14. The system of claim 13, wherein access to the auction is protected by a user account and password.

16. The system of claim 13 , wherein the purchasing platform computer system is capable of communicating with one or more vendor computer systems.

17. 1. A method for auctioning products and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), comprising: displaying information about currently available bid products on a buyer computer system via a purchasing platform computer system; enabling a user of the buyer computer system to participate in the auction electronically; In response to the user winning the auction related to the product, automatically generating an NFT verifying the user's ownership of the won product; the NFT is electronically accessible to the user, and linking the NFT to an account associated with the user.

18. 18. The method of claim 17, further comprising protecting access to the auction with a user account and password.

19. 18. The method of claim 17, further comprising the step of electronically obtaining and presenting information relating to the available products from a vendor computer system in communication with the purchasing platform computer system.

20. 1. A method for product purchases and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), comprising: providing a voucher for purchase at a point of sale; authorizing a purchaser to purchase said voucher at said point of sale; and processing said voucher with a point of sale computer system to electronically activate said voucher; The voucher (1) is redeemable to purchase a product or participate in an auction related to the product, and (2) redeems an electronically generated NFT associated with the purchased or won product, which NFT verifies ownership of the product.

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