Passive Tab Closure via Payment Token and Virtual Perimeter
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for managing pre-authorized tabs in businesses, such as bars and restaurants, are inefficient and insecure, particularly when patrons leave without paying or cannot pay, leading to inconvenience and increased burden on staff, and there is a risk of credit card theft or misuse.
Innovation Solution
A merchant system that uses a payment token to passively close pre-authorized tabs by determining if the patron's device is within a virtual perimeter associated with the merchant, generating a total amount spent, and sending this information to an online service for authentication and payment, thereby automating the payment process and ensuring secure closure of the tab.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a tab system is used to allow patrons to purchase multiple rounds of drinks, then the purchasing process becomes more efficient, but the risk of unpaid tabs and patron dissatisfaction increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs pre-authorization of the patron's credit card before opening the tab. This preliminary action ensures that the card is valid and has sufficient credit limit, establishing payment security before the efficient tab-based purchasing begins. The merchant system submits an authorization request to the online service with the payment token, and upon approval, the tab is opened with confidence that payment can be collected.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an online service as an intermediary between the merchant system and the payment network. This intermediary handles the complex authentication and payment processing, allowing the merchant to efficiently close tabs by simply sending a closure request with the payment token, while the intermediary ensures secure payment collection and fund transfer.
2Reliability
If credit cards are kept as security for tabs, then payment security is improved, but staff burden and operational complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of storing and managing physical credit cards, the system uses a copy or representation of the card information in the form of a payment token. This token is generated by the online service after authentication and can be stored and transmitted electronically. The token serves as a secure copy that enables payment processing without requiring physical card storage, thus reducing staff burden and operational complexity while maintaining payment security.
3Reliability
If manual tab closure and credit card retrieval is required, then payment authentication is ensured, but time loss and patron inconvenience increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables automated tab closure where the merchant system can close the tab and process payment by simply submitting a closure request with the payment token to the online service. The system automatically authenticates the payment, processes the transaction, and transfers funds without requiring manual intervention for card retrieval or authentication. This self-service approach maintains payment security through automated authentication while eliminating time loss and patron inconvenience associated with manual processes.
Data Source
AI summary
A merchant system for passively closing a patron's pre-authorized tab, with an associated payment token, set up with a computer device in communication with the merchant system, said system including one or more processors in communication with data storage, said processors being configured to execute computer readable instructions stored on said data storage for performing the steps of (a) determining if the pre-authorized tab should be passively closed; (b) if the pre-authorized tab should be passively closed, then performing the steps of (i) generating a total amount spent on goods and/or service ordered by the patron; (ii) sending the total amount spent and the payment token associated with the pre-authorized tab to an online service for authentication so as to pay the merchant; and (iii) closing the pre-authorized tab.