Miniaturized Card Reader for Single-Entry Mobile Payments
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current magnetic stripe card readers are cumbersome and limited to merchant transactions, lacking the ability to facilitate payments between individuals without requiring re-entry of financial account information for subsequent uses.
Innovation Solution
A miniaturized card reader connected to a mobile device that allows for single-entry financial account information, enabling secure and efficient financial transactions between individuals by decoding magnetic stripe data and communicating with payment services for fund transfers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If magnetic stripe card readers are used for financial transactions, then transaction capability is provided, but the device is cumbersome and requires re-entry of financial account information for each use
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the card reader, mobile device, and payment service into an integrated system. The mobile device communicates with the payment service to store and retrieve financial account information, eliminating the need for separate cumbersome card readers and repeated information entry.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by storing financial account information in the payment service during an initial setup phase. This allows subsequent transactions to use stored information without re-entry, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and device complexity.
2Loss of time
If financial account information is re-entered for each transaction, then transaction security is maintained, but time is lost and convenience is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
Financial account information is entered once during initial setup and stored securely in the payment service. This preliminary action eliminates repeated entry time while maintaining security through controlled access and verification processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a secure copy of the financial account information stored in the payment service, which can be retrieved for transactions without requiring the user to re-enter the original information, thus saving time while maintaining security through the copying mechanism.
3Adaptability or versatility
If magnetic stripe cards are used for merchant transactions, then payment capability is provided, but the ability to facilitate payments between individuals is lacking
Solution Approach 1:
The payment service system is designed to be universal, supporting both traditional merchant transactions and new peer-to-peer payment functionality. The mobile device and payment service combination enables versatile transaction types without requiring different systems or repeated information entry.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables convenient, secure, and efficient financial transactions between individuals without the need for re-entering financial account information, leveraging mobile device technology for decoding and processing magnetic stripe data to complete transactions.
Implementation Method 1
The magnetic stripe card is capable of storing data by modifying the magnetism of magnetic particles embedded in the stripe. The data stored on the magnetic stripe may be sensed or read by swiping the stripe past a read head. The analog waveform obtained by sensing the magnetic stripe must undergo a process known as decoding to obtain the digital information stored in the magnetic stripe of the card.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of conducting a financial transaction includes a first party's financial account information being entered once, e.g, with a single initial entry to the payment service. For future uses of the first party's financial account to transfer funds using the payment service to a second party, the first party's financial account information need not be entered again with the payment service. The second party's personal identifying information is entered. Funds are transferred from the first party's financial account to an account of the second party with the use of the payment service.