Adaptive Payment Card Virtual Number Product Switching

Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional payment card systems require customers to wait for a new physical card to be provisioned when changing financial products, which is inconvenient and costly for both customers and issuers, and lack proactive product recommendations based on usage history, leading to potential customer loss to competitors.

Innovation Solution

An adaptive payment card system that uses a transaction processing device with a product recommendation engine to analyze transaction data and recommend alternative financial products to customers, allowing them to change products without needing a new physical card, and providing usage reports to enhance customer engagement.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If a customer changes to a different card-based product, then the customer can access new financial benefits and features, but the customer must wait for a new physical card to be provisioned and the issuer incurs manufacturing and distribution costs

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveproduct change capabilityVSAvoidcard provisioning time

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system uses a virtual copy of the payment card (virtual card number) that can be dynamically reassociated with different financial products without requiring a physical card replacement. The virtual card number acts as a digital replica that can be reassigned in the system, allowing immediate product changes while the physical card remains with the customer.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The system introduces a virtual card number as an intermediary between the physical card and the financial product. This intermediary layer allows the physical card to remain static while the virtual card number is dynamically linked to different financial products, decoupling the physical card from product changes and enabling instant product switching.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Adaptability or versatility

If a customer changes to a different card-based product, then the customer can access new financial benefits and features, but the issuer incurs costs for manufacturing and distributing new physical cards

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveproduct change capabilityVSAvoidcard manufacturing and distribution resources

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The system uses a virtual copy of the payment card (virtual card number) that can be dynamically reassociated with different financial products without requiring a physical card replacement. The virtual card number acts as a digital replica that can be reassigned in the system, allowing immediate product changes while the physical card remains with the customer.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The system introduces a virtual card number as an intermediary between the physical card and the financial product. This intermediary layer allows the physical card to remain static while the virtual card number is dynamically linked to different financial products, decoupling the physical card from product changes and enabling instant product switching.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Reliability

If the issuer provides proactive product recommendations based on usage history, then customer retention improves and customers can make informed decisions, but the system requires advanced analytics and data processing capabilities

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecustomer retentionVSAvoidproduct recommendation system complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements a feedback mechanism that continuously monitors customer transaction data and usage patterns, then provides proactive product recommendations back to the customer. The feedback loop includes: collecting transaction data, analyzing usage patterns, generating product recommendations, presenting options to the customer, and updating the system based on customer responses and subsequent behavior.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary analysis of customer usage patterns and pre-calculates suitable product recommendations before the customer actively seeks to change products. By proactively preparing and presenting relevant product options based on existing usage data, the system enables customers to make informed decisions without having to initiate a product change request.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS11023948B2Adaptive payment card system and process

Publication Date: 2021.06.01 MASTERCARD INT INC

AI summary

The present invention provides an adaptive payment card system and process for providing a customer (referred to herein as a “cardholder”) with a payment card (referred to herein as an “adaptive” payment card) that is issued by an issuing financial institution (an “issuer”), and linked to a card entity (such as MasterCard), where the product associated with the adaptive payment card can be changed without modification to the corresponding payment card and without requiring issuance of a new payment card.