Modular Payment Terminal Interface with Articulated Cover
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electronic payment terminals face high costs and limitations in using GPRS communication due to the need for dedicated subscriptions and limited mobility, as they require a dedicated telephone line for network connections to authorization or banking servers.
Innovation Solution
A modular interface is introduced that pairs a payment device with a communication terminal, such as a smartphone, eliminating the need for a dedicated telephone line by using a modular interface with a specific kinematics-based holding mechanism to secure the pairing, allowing for wireless communication via GPRS/UMTS while minimizing costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If GPRS communication is used in payment terminals, then wireless communication capability is achieved, but subscription costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the communication terminal from the payment terminal structure, allowing the payment terminal to use an external device's communication capabilities instead of having its own dedicated GPRS module, thereby avoiding subscription costs while maintaining wireless communication capability
Solution Approach 2:
The payment terminal leverages the universal communication capabilities of external terminals (smartphones, tablets) to perform banking communications, making the payment terminal itself simpler and eliminating the need for dedicated communication subscriptions
2Loss of energy
If WiFi network is used for communication, then subscription costs are reduced, but mobility is limited due to coverage area constraints
Solution Approach 1:
The communication terminal is extracted as a separate portable device that the user carries, enabling the payment terminal to access various communication networks (WiFi, GPRS, UMTS) depending on availability, thus restoring mobility while keeping costs low when WiFi is available
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adapts its communication method based on the external terminal's available networks, switching between WiFi (cost-effective) and mobile networks (mobile) as needed, optimizing both cost and mobility
3Loss of energy
If payment terminal is physically paired with communication terminal, then cost-effective wireless communication is achieved, but pairing security becomes a concern due to accidental separation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a spherical ball mechanism that must be manually manipulated to separate the covers, creating a physical barrier against accidental separation while allowing intentional separation when needed, thus securing the pairing without compromising usability
Solution Approach 2:
The ball mechanism acts as a pre-prepared mechanical safeguard that prevents accidental separation before it can occur, requiring deliberate user action to overcome the mechanical interlock and separate the paired devices
4Reliability
If modular interface with holding mechanism is used, then pairing security is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The spherical ball mechanism provides a compact, space-efficient solution that achieves secure pairing with minimal structural complexity, using geometry rather than complex mechanical linkages to prevent accidental separation
Solution Approach 2:
The cover structures with integrated ball mechanisms provide a sleek, minimalistic design that secures the pairing without adding bulk or complex visible components, maintaining aesthetic simplicity while ensuring reliability
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 1C~1D
Figure 2
AI summary
There is proposed a modular interface for pairing a payment device with a communication terminal (30) so as to form a payment terminal. This modular interface comprises: a support forming a hood (60-2), intended to be securely mounted on a pairing face of the payment device and defining a housing for the communication terminal; and a cover (60-3), that can take a closed position, in which it closes the housing and holds the communication terminal if it was previously inserted into the housing, and an open position, in which it makes it possible to insert into or extract from the housing the communication terminal. The cover and the support comprise means of articulation allowing the cover to pass: a) through a translation movement with respect to the support, from the closed position to an intermediate position, and vice versa; in the intermediate position the cover not holding the communication terminal, if it was previously inserted into the housing, but preventing it from coming out of the housing completely; and b) through a rotation movement (82) with respect to the support, from the intermediate position to the open position, and vice versa.