Networked Vending Control System for Real-Time Cashless Transaction Metering
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vending control systems for unmanned locations, such as hotel business centers, face challenges in efficiently managing and monitoring cashless transactions across multiple devices, particularly in environments where the cost of each transaction needs to be dynamically measured and reported in real-time, without the need for batch processing.
Innovation Solution
A networked vending control system that includes a local controller, output device interface, and card reader, connected to a remote server, enabling real-time monitoring and authorization of transactions through a secure payment gateway, with the ability to meter and report usage of output devices like copiers, printers, and other services, using protocols like TCP/IP and SSL for secure data transmission.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If batch processing is used for transaction settlement, then system complexity is reduced, but transaction reporting speed and operational efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides transaction processing into two independent segments: real-time transaction monitoring and reporting at the local controller, and batch settlement processing at the remote server. This segmentation allows the local system to report transactions immediately while the remote system handles settlement in batches, resolving the contradiction between real-time reporting speed and system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The network connection acts as an intermediary between the local controller and remote server, enabling real-time transaction data transmission without requiring the entire settlement process to occur in real-time. This intermediary approach allows immediate reporting while maintaining the simplicity of batch settlement processing.
2Productivity
If real-time monitoring and reporting is implemented across multiple vending devices, then operational efficiency improves, but device complexity and network infrastructure requirements worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple vending devices under a single networked control system with a centralized remote server. This merging approach allows real-time monitoring of multiple devices through a unified interface, improving operational efficiency while managing complexity centrally rather than at each individual device.
Solution Approach 2:
The remote server performs multiple functions including transaction authorization, real-time monitoring, settlement processing, and reporting generation. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate specialized systems, thereby improving operational efficiency without proportionally increasing overall system complexity.
3Speed
If credit card authorization is performed at the time of transaction, then transaction processing speed improves, but system reliability worsens due to external dependency
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary authorization checks with the credit card clearing house before enabling the output device. This preliminary action ensures that transactions are pre-authorized, allowing fast processing during actual use while maintaining reliability through prior verification. The system stores authorization results and uses them for subsequent transactions without requiring repeated external calls.
Data Source
AI summary
A local area network has a first node to receive an input in the form of account identification data, and a second node to receive this input from the first node via a transport layer protocol. A vending control device connected to the second node includes a relay to be activated and deactivated by the second node. The relay is to enable and disable the functioning of an output device. A circuit is to meter an amount of output processed by the output device. The vending control device is to communicate the amount of output that has been processed to the second node. The second node calculates a cost of the processed output and sends the cost via the transport layer protocol to a remote server. The remote server in turn sends the costs to a gateway through which a payment transaction is settled. Other embodiments are also described and claimed.