FR2836259A1 - Computer-based payment data transaction system has card reader including uniform expenditure code, which assigns code to card identified within specific area and transmits to server which processes transaction data - Google Patents

Abstract

A card reader (102) including uniform expenditure (UEX) assignment code (210a), and Internet protocol (IP) v6 address (210d), identifies area of communicating card (200a), assigns UEX code and transmits to server. The server generates payment summaries by processing transaction data categorized according to the UEX code, and transmits to cardholders through Internet while storing processed information in database. Independent claims are also included for the following: (1) card payment transaction assigning method; (2) expenditure category transmitting system; (3) payment transaction data transmitting method; (4) expenditure category receiving system; (5) payment transaction data recording method; and (6) global network addresses structured hierarchy utilizing system.

Description

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SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CAPTURING PAYMENT DATA
ON CHIP CARRIED BY THE PAYER UNIQUE IDENTIFIED FOR PERIODIC DOWNLOADS
TOWARDS UPSTREAM AND DOWNSTREAM WITH INSTITUTIONS
The present invention relates to a uniquely identified payment device system and method for universally classifying exchange and payment transaction data between payment devices and financial institutions via ATM networks.

 For the purposes of this description, a chip is any microchip with integrated circuit which can store and process data relating to a payment initiator. A card comprises any portable stamped device, free of any physically attached connector which contains in its substrate a means, comprising a chip, for storing and processing information electronically. An ATM is a bank machine or an automatic transaction machine which is designed to accept and read a chip or electronic card and operates by design without any human intervention other than that of the holder.

 The prior art of the present invention covers two main areas, the automatic teller machine (ATM) and a card with a stamped integrated circuit chip, known as a smartcard or smart card. ATMs are almost ubiquitous in many countries. The cards reach monumental proportions around the world.

Use and functions of the ATM
In the United States, around 324,000 ATMs bring the customer's banking operations closer. With interbank access among ATMs, holders of an access card can do banking and transactions from almost any location. Annually, there are approximately 1.3 billion ATM transactions. Research shows most customers use ATM anywhere between two and four times

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 per month. Online banking customers use an ABM approximately 11 times a month, in part because online banking customers cannot make payments and withdrawals for paper-based items from home.

 The traditional functions of an ATM consist of cash withdrawals, money transfers and balance requests. These are strong reasons to avoid queues at the counter during working hours or to make transactions 24 hours a day and 7 days a week at any time convenient to the customer. However, the main convenience of an ATM to the customer is easy and secure monetary access. Consider the recent conversion of Western European currencies to the Euro. On January 1, 2002, these market economies converted to the Euro and the ATMs reached an unprecedented scale in a single day while economic units rushed to get the new Euro banknotes .

 ATMs have extended their functionality to create greater profitability for ATM owners, which include both banking and merchant businesses. Under pressure for more versatility, the banks gave the ATMs access to the Internet, to promote goods and to offer services, such as postage stamps and downloaded music. Self-service kiosks have an operating cost of between $ 5,000 for a cash-only ATM and $ 50,000 for a high-tech ATM. Even though these newer ATMs look like computers in terms of functionality, banks realize that the extended wait time in the ATM queue is a burden to their customers. This would in one way or the other contradict the creed of the objective of ATMs which is the speed to complete a transaction and to withdraw money.

 Until today, there are a myriad of patents for ATMs whose purpose is multifunctionality. US patent 6,308,887 issued to Korman, et al, in 2001, contemplates the use of proprietary standard protocols almost unlimitedly and some detectors, so

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 that the network of transaction machines can process all kinds of transactions. The claims do not cover the use of smart card detectors for any purpose in an interface with the ATM. US patent application number 20010014881 from Drummond et al, published on August 16, 2001, includes two claims relevant to the prior art. One covers a method for using an ATM with a card interface to change the value stored on a smart card and a second is an ATM that reads an account number from a card. However, these claims do not extend to downloading upstream to the institution operating the ATM or to downloading downstream to the card itself a generalized history of cardholder transactions. Ramachandran's US patent application number 20010013551 published August 16, 2001 claims a portable device for transferring and importing cardholder information onto a single card. This includes a device for operating an ATM and transferring values stored on smart cards. The claimed apparatus relating to smart cards is dedicated solely to adjusting the stored values.

 Many banking functions are now available via personal ATMs. VeriFone Personal ATMtm is one such device. With a serial port connecting a reader to a consumer device or device, the owner uses a smart card to initiate a wide variety of transactions.

 Multiple applications include electronic cash withdrawals, bill payments, stored values (electronic wallets), retail purchases, fund transfers, electronic commerce, portfolio management and other user-authenticated transactions. As long as there is connectivity, can freely carry out transactions at home, at the office, in a public place, at a terminal or in a trade.

 The merchant point-of-sale (POS) terminal can perform ATM functions similar to those of a bank. US patent number 5,992,570 issued to Walter, et al in 1999 is a free POS ATM machine.

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 service. The claimed apparatus allows the user to purchase items from a merchant to browse and pay for items independently without assistance from the store. The POS unit also performs a variety of ATM functions similar to those of a bank, including cash withdrawals, cash payments, transfers between accounts and balance requests. Even if the preferred embodiment includes the use of a smart card for a payment, the novelty does not extend to the download upstream of payment classification data to the bank nor to the download downstream of these on the smart card.

 Thus, almost all of the prior art on designing and using an ATM has focused on one-way transmission of traditional banking information. When the money is paid, the ATM offers a good or service while the customer performs an authentication instruction (for example password protection). In fact, the downloading of card information upstream from the read-only memory (ROM) is typically limited to the identity of the card, the identity of the holder and to certain means of authentication. Besides this information, the card can download upstream a remaining balance for equilibria of stored values, otherwise known as electronic purses. Financial institutions do not normally use their ATM networks to capture card transaction histories except for cash withdrawals and debits. A one-way channel delivery strategy requires the customer doing banking over the Internet to download important banking information to their own device or computer system, fixed or portable. The smart card can change everything.

Use and components of a smart card
Smartcards or smart cards around the world offer features affecting almost all facets of commerce. Cards are used for secure access, identification, transfer of

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 sums and secure payment transactions in a closed or semi-closed environment. Likewise, the prior art for smart cards is enormous. Smart cards provide enormous storage and processing power compared to their cost and compact size. The built-in microchip allows cards to operate in multiple network environments. In theory, this technical capacity allows a card processing infrastructure to drastically reduce the number of cards that an economic unit must transport.

 Countries such as France and Venezuela have made the smart card almost universal for their citizens. The total number of cards manufactured for use in the United States and Canada increased from approximately 20 million in 1999 to approximately 28 million in 2000, a growth of 37%. The fastest growing market segment was circulation in the financial market sector, with a growth rate of 244%. However, this only includes smart cards with chips in circulation, in opposition to the current demand for and use of data on this integrated chip. As in the United States, the reduction in fraud and other payment benefits is only achieved when a sufficient number of networked readers can accept and read the smart card.

 Smart cards appear in two versions for technical functionality. The basic version contains a microcontroller semiconductor device which performs calculations, secure data storage, encryption and decision-making. A microcontroller acts quite similar to a central processing unit of a personal computer, with a microprocessor, memory, and other functional hardware. A very smart card has an accumulator that charges and conserves energy when it is connected to a terminal device.

 The weakness of the prior art for electronically directed payments is demonstrated by tracing the emergence of technology in the payment process. The main dual functions of

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 payments are authentication and transmission of value. Only one form of payment performs the two functions instantaneously, the supply of money (the absence of counterfeiting does not require authentication of the bearer and the transmission of value is simply the nominal value of the money). Then the magnetically coded stripe card arrived. This card authenticates the holder but the verification is limited to efforts at POS. Verification includes signatures, personal identification numbers (PIN) and biometric procedures. Magnetic stripe cards are already vulnerable to widespread fraud. Now, with online commerce, authentication creates a new exposure to fraud.

 Smart cards can enhance the security of their authorized holders and beneficiary merchants. Whatever the type of card presented, there must be an electronic reader. Smart card readers are now not only predominant among POS merchants but are installed inside bank ATMs and are placed either on site or off site. In order to allow consumers and businesses to carry out transactions independently of personal commercial participation, smart cards can now be read by devices managed by the bearer, including readers connected to a computer, mobile phones and the like. consumer devices.

 The suitability among the prior art for the smart card and the smart card readers is not easily discerned. Chip cards are only one of several choices for payment authentication, but offer greater security and better privacy. Even the use of a card for authentication of payments is now questioned, at least for online transactions.

Credit cards valid for a single use are now available for authentication, the initial connection being made with the smart card. The singular advantage of the smart card is the exchange and storage of dynamic data, which takes place as soon as the card is accepted

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 by the reader. As the cost of smart cards continues to decrease, multiple applications are becoming more and more promising. However, this cost directly depends on the amount of storage capacity required by the manufacturer of the smart card to perform the desired functions and applications.

The problem of multiple cards for holders
In the current payment environment, a frequently paying card payer is challenged to judiciously manage card-generated payment transaction data from many cards. The holder has several credit cards, ATM and ATM cards, telephone cards, transfer cards, gift cards, loyalty cards and merchant cards. TPV transactions sometimes print statements and sometimes do not. The porter can try to keep painful records but he must sort the statements transmitted electronically on his personal computer or sent by post every month with the mass of sheets accumulated at the POS. If the customer is an active Internet customer, the printers generate A4-size papers and not the typical slip or sales receipt. Each month, the appropriate data capture must emerge from paper invoices from a multitude of readers, printers, devices and devices, in addition to paperless transactions processed electronically.

 The proliferation of multiple cards with multiple functions is a continuing burden for economic units. In the magnetic stripe market, the prior art tries to consolidate the reproduction of cards. In the invention described in US patent number 6,189,787 issued to Dorf in 2001, the prior art is the creation of multifunctional cards.

This invention, however, is limited to the electronically coded stripe card and does not consider smart cards. In addition, it does not give a card issuer or merchant an incentive to give up the loyalty and brand enhancement benefits separate from a dedicated card.

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 The prior art for smart cards emphasizes the combination of multiple applications, including payment, on one card. Without a parliamentary mandate, merchants and card issuers as well as sellers on competitive platforms find little advantage in merging branding and purchasing possibilities on the same card. The proliferation of smart card readers does not bring any obvious benefit to the economic unit unless it can use multiple applications and / or capture transaction data in a standardized format for financial management. Transaction, loyalty, payment, credit and debit cards as well as ATM cards all compete for space in the wallet. These cards have a production cost which decreases for the issuer, as long as the data storage capacity is as low as possible. Issuers find little benefit in allowing other business data to occupy the card. This leaves the economic unit without a universal issuer-trader card which is interoperable for capturing transaction data.

Smart card data capture
The prior art allows smart cards to capture and present transaction data to the holder, but no universal indexing and classification system exists to benefit the holder. Three patents relate to the recording of transaction data on smart cards. None take away the laborious task of initially classifying such data. US patent number 5,649,118 issued to Carlisle et ai in 1997 provides consolidation of transactional capacity with multiple merchants on a single card carrying appropriate firewall security on the same chip. This does not provide a movement of all transactional data to a single merchant or bank for further processing or analysis for the benefit of the holder. US patent number 6,129,274 issued to Suzuki in 2000 presents a new way for the smart card to capture transactional data at POS terminals. Those data

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 are downloaded downstream to the carrier's computer but are not downloaded upstream to an institution.

 The purpose of US patent number 5,859,419 issued to Wynn in 1999 is to consolidate multiple account transaction activity with a single smart card. This prior art recommends the use of categories for the convenience of the card holder. However, assigning a category to a transaction or payment is purely discretionary and left to the holders, who use their personal computer or other device. This task is not delegated to their financial institution, card issuer or merchant.

 US Patent 5,559,313 issued to Claus et al in 1996 has the closest concept to the present invention. The smart card tracks items purchased individually and classifies them with a series of conversion tables. There is no classification code linked to the card reader that helps in the conversion. The bearer's personal computer extracts transaction data in tabular form for later use and presentation to the bearer. However, there is no uploading of this data to the bearer's bank or to the card issuer for processing and subsequent return of a bearer report.

 Even if the smart card captures expenditure data at the point of payment, the holder must nevertheless download this data downstream and use personal financial management software (GFP). If the bearer decides to transfer this charge to the financial institution, this channel requires the active use of a personal computer or other Internet device requiring either the connection step which takes time, or the more expensive solution of being continuously connected. A more efficient, electronically transparent channel must exist and a financial institution could take on this task for the economic unit / card holder. This would unify the capture and presentation of payment data, especially if the financial institution is a source of confidence and is prepared to seize the opportunity.

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Expense tracking by cards
Tracking expenses for homes and businesses is accomplished through a variety of patented and non-patented PFM tools. GFP tools include Pocket Quicken @ which works on a Palm Pilot. The electronic pen is faster at entering transactional data than the manual process. However, this solution does not electronically connect the POS terminal with the portable personal digital assistant (PDA). A correct solution would remove any manual movement or involvement of the customer other than that consisting in presenting the smart card for payment processing.

 Online access devices such as credit cards and debit cards authorize payment with an account number stamped on one side and a magnetic stripe containing account information in a machine-readable form on the machine. 'other side. Debit cards deduct funds directly from an end user bank account using an ATM or POS terminal. Whatever the type of card, the merchant taking care of the transaction has a relationship with the bank and the card association. Credit card associations have traditionally offered an expense classification for cardholders. The production of such card data depends only on the identity of the merchant, that is to say, his standard industrial classification code (CIN).

 Credit card associations and providers such as Visa, MasterCard and American Express all provide periodic classification of balances on a periodic basis for individual or corporate cardholders. However, these summaries are incomplete according to two key aspects: firstly the classification is imposed on the card holder on the basis of the identity of the merchant, who can sell multiple goods and services. The most critical problem is that the only transactions classified are those processed by the network. On average, Americans carry at least five, sometimes even 10 debit cards. Therefore, only manual or indexed consolidation by spending key

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 classified is available. Categories are not universal among different card products. Nor are card payments automatically consolidated.

 Another US patent number 5,748,908 issued to YU in 1998 tracks spending on credit and debit cards and sends data over the network, but does not consider a card that includes multiple data capture capabilities merchants to store classified data on a single card.

 Individual economic units cannot accurately track their spending without the use of a computer or immense manual effort to sort and assemble cash, check, credit, debit, and card transactions smart and electronic devices. Even if the management of individualized payments via GFP software is reliable, there is no effective channel to collect data that resides on personal computers or laptops at home.

 The prior art has no effective and uniform means for uniquely identifying cards. US patent number 6 189787, issued to Dorf in 2001, offers different types of cards, each with a unique identification number approved for use by the American Banking Association. The utility restrictions are obvious. The number system cannot provide a globally unique, unique address. In addition, the address may not be able to be easily converted or used in an Internet environment where communication must be rapid and targeted.

 Generally, the prior art does not give economic units a standardized user-friendly classification tool based on a single card with a single address which can efficiently and conveniently send these data for management by the bearer's financial institution or at the base. of data managed by the holder itself.

 It is an object of the present invention to establish a global network addressing system which extends to all essential components of the communication network.

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 payment by card from the payment device carried by its holder at the electronic junctions networked to the final destination where the transaction data rests in an institution.

 Another object of the present invention is to logically assign in a card network to any ATM / POS reader a Universal Expenditure Code (UEX) in a numerical range of the UEX code assignments. The logical mapping of each of these ATM / POS terminals is accomplished via a telecommunications network programming the internal operating system of each ATM / POS terminal.

 Yet another object of the present invention is to allow smart card readers managed by the merchant and smart card readers managed by the bearer with UEX codes to automatically classify card payment transactions during the time of payment. interface between the trader and the holder.

 Another object of the present invention is to use a multi-application smart card to record and store card payment transaction data when payments are made at commercial POS terminals or at card terminals connected to the computer device. managed by the holder.

 An additional object of the present invention is to allow the holder to carry a single smart card, independent of all other cards, for recording and storing payment transaction data which are classified according to the UEX code.

 Another object of the present invention is to upload card payment transaction data, via ATMs, to the cardholder's financial institution.

 Another object of the present invention is to allow ATMs to download downstream classified payment transaction data kept by a financial institution onto a smart card of the card holder, who can then download downstream such data on a

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 personal computer device for further processing and presentation.

récapitulatif des transactions de payement classifiées à l'initiative du porteur de carte. In addition, the present invention uses ATMs to print a

summary of classified payment transactions on the initiative of the card holder.

 In the drawings, closely related figures have the same reference number but different alphabetic suffixes.

 Figure 1 shows the layout of the card payment network for assigning and managing global network addresses for different network components.

 Figure 2 displays a dynamic representation showing how the data components of a card change when a transaction is processed by a card reader to assign a UEX code.

 FIGS. 3A and 3B represent the download upstream and the download downstream of classified transaction data via a smart card when the latter is inserted inside a cash distribution ATM connected to the bearer's financial institution.

 FIG. 4 is a diagram of the prior art, US patent number 5,559,313, where a card holder downloads downstream classified payment transaction data from a smart card to a payment device. computer managed by the carrier.

 Figure 5 shows how the global network addresses are assigned to different components of a card payment network, starting from the card, the card holder, the POS terminal, the ATM and the card reader managed by the user.

 The figures describe preferred embodiments of the present invention for illustrative purposes only. Those skilled in the art will readily recognize from the following debate that alternative embodiments, structures and methods shown herein can be used without departing from the principles of the invention described herein.

 Figure 1 shows an embodiment of the network for assigning and managing unique global network addresses to network components.

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Card readers 102,104 and 106 can accept cards to read, write and process a payment. The card reader 102 can be a POS terminal of a merchant who processes credit card transactions. The card reader 104 is a device connected to a computer at the home of the card holder. The card reader 106 is located inside a kiosk on a campus. Via the network 120 and a wired / wireless connection 130, the terminal 140 database server can monitor the location of the card readers 102, 104 and 106 on the entire network. Via the connection 150, the code table of the terminal 160 maintains a unique and specific global network address for each of the card readers 102, 104 and 106. The table 160 also contains a program for assigning the UEX code 210a of FIG. 2 for each of the card readers across the network. Via connection 170, the database server of terminal 140 has access to the Internet protocol table version 6 (IPv6) 180. Then, the database server of terminal 140 assigns a UEX code to the readers 102,104 and 106. Table 180 assigns unique global IPv6 addresses to each of the card readers and other essential components of network 120. For the IPv6 address assignment in Figure 1, the database server 160 assigns and uniquely identifies card readers 102,104 and 106. Card reader 102 can have an IPv6 network address corresponding to AA01: 9090: 1111: 1212: 0192: 0168: 0123: 0101. Card reader 104 can be assigned to an Ipv6 network address corresponding to AA01: 9090: 1111: 1212: 0192: 0168: 0123: 0203. Similarly, the card reader 106 can be assigned to an Ipv6 network address corresponding to AA01: 9090: 1111: 1212: 0192: 016 8: 0123: 0222. Each physical card reader requires a single unique address.

 The code table of the terminal 160 and the IPv6 table 180 are components of a relational database. The logical key for this database is the logical terminal address. As soon as the network 120 is formed of routers, switches and computers, the conversion table is produced with a query language command

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 structured known as joining tables. For performance reasons and physical memory constraints, it is advisable to divide a database into smaller tables that can be managed.

In the IPv6 180 table, there are two columns. A column is the primary key of the table which is the address of the terminal code. The other column represents the values of IPv6 addresses. In the 128-bit address, there is ample space to logically identify the latitude, longitude coordinates, store the identification, the country code, the province code and the department code. The nomenclature of the IPv6 address is 8 groups of 4 hexadecimal numbers. The eight groups are separated by seven colons in total. The colon does not mean anything for a router or a computer except serving as a visual aid. For reduced notation, due to the expandability of the address, a colon can replace one or more groups of hexadecimal zeros. For example, card reader 102 can have an IPv6 address corresponding to FFAE:: 090F. The card reader 104 can have the address BBBB:: OOOC. These two addresses would appear as an entry in the IPv6 180 table. Colons are used between groups when there are one or more groups of consecutive sets of hexadecimal zeros. Additionally, double colons appear only once in an IPv6 address.

 IPv6 is the most recent international data network addressing system being widely used and logically increased by the group for participation in Internet standardization (IETF group). The IETF group is mainly composed of high-tech companies such as Sun Microsystems and Cisco Systems. Other key members include Nokia, ATT and NTT from Japan. The IEFT group is responsible for establishing Internet network protocols (IP) such as FTP, POP and SMNP so that computer systems around the world can communicate on the Internet. Without these basic standards in place, the global web is impossible. IP is the network foundation based on an open set of standards that any computer vendor can choose to

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 to follow. Towards the end of the 20th century, proprietary network protocols such as IBM's Unified Network Architecture (SNA) and Digital Equipment Decnet made it possible for monolithic computer networks to come from a single vendor. As personal computers and LANs (LANs) exploded in terms of network complexity and topology and as companies consolidated and sold, IT leaders had to merge computer systems and disparate network systems. This phenomenon, along with the growth of websites, has led to the gradual depletion of Ipv4 addresses, which in turn has led to the birth of IPv6 addressing.

 From a network perspective, if there is no common protocol between two different and geographically distinct data centers, there can be no efficient and fast transfer medium other than the transfer of raw data from magnetic tapes . For computer systems requiring intensive transactions this is clearly unworkable. The IP protocol allows overnight transfers of tens of thousands of transaction files to a corporate database.

However, the proliferation and rapid rise of the open standard Ip known as IPv4 has caused a serious and potentially global problem for private and public network planners. The IPv4 protocol is based on the well-known 32-bit addressing scheme. Based on binary arithmetic, 2 raised to the power of 32 gives exactly 4,294,967,294 unique host addresses. However, population growth and the worldwide favorable reception of mobile phones are rapidly depleting single addresses. The mobile phones used are currently estimated at 1 billion. When these and other devices do not have their own intelligence, network architects demand that the next generation of Internet addresses understand the global requirements for uniqueness. Thus, the IETF group has proposed a new set of Internet addresses known as IPv6.

Technically, IPv4 despite its load is the Internet network standard

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 current. Numerically, IPv4 is a 48-bit addressing scheme. IPv6 addressing is 6 bytes compared to the 4 byte IPv4 scheme. In order to give a relative magnitude of IPv4 addresses compared to the proposed IPv6 addresses, the IPv4 addressing scheme can hardly currently manage today's global Internet addresses. IPv6 can manage more than 4 billion IPv4 Internet addressing schemes. Another even more striking mathematical analogy is that for every square meter of planet Earth, Ipv6 can host 1500 unique and distinct IPv6 addresses. So it is obvious that the present invention allows generous IPv6 addressing of readers and cards without worrying about future growth that may affect global payment environments.

 Prior art network addressing schemes such as those based on satellite radio frequency are inferior because they are analog in design. Technically, radio transmission frequencies must be unique and integrated circuits must translate a series of sine waves subject to unpredictable weather conditions into a logically consistent binary data stream. Look at the current problems with cellular networks and the frequency of dropped calls for no apparent reason. Similarly, IT companies such as Microsoft have developed proprietary nomenclature for marking computers. This may be fine in a computer network built exclusively around Microsoft operating systems but this naming convention may be equipped for tagging computer devices, portable devices and cards all connected via the Internet. The present invention avoids the ambiguity and incompatibility of network address schemes and responds to the threshold of interoperability beyond borders.

 Figure 2 is a visual layout of the architecture of the card reader 102. Its card slot 240 is where the card holder inserts his card 200a before the specific transaction. The internal components of the card reader 102 include a uniform expenditure code (UEX) 21 Oa, a merchant code 21 Ob, a network operating system

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 210c, an IPv6 address 210d and a UEX 210e assignment program. The network operating system 210c reads the card 200a during the authorization process to read the card holder's account and accept the transaction. For card reader 102, its UEX 210e assignment program accepts a uniform expenditure classification for all transactions processed by card reader 102, unless and until it is reprogrammed with a different UEX code. . The terminal code table 160 of FIG. 1 uses the network 120 and the network links 130 and 112 to pre-program the card reader 102 with a single category selected from a set of categories UEX. A universal set is used for the economic units that are households. Another universal set is used for commercial entities.

 In the preferred embodiment, the card 200a is a plastic, paper, or other non-metallic card, having a size suitable for a wallet which contains an electronic read / write component. A magnetically coded strip 202 on the card 200a processes legal transactions. Since magnetically coded tapes do not offer the possibility of read / write programming, a common choice is a card with a programmable integrated circuit chip inserted 218, also known as a microcontroller. The microcontroller chip 218 includes a microprocessor 220, a random access memory (RAM) 222, a read only memory (ROM) 224, a non-volatile memory 226 and a card reader interface 228. Other elements of the microcontroller 218 may include a clock , a random number generator, an interrupt command, a control unit, a charge pump and power connections.

The card reader interface 228 allows the card to communicate with various electronic devices. The microprocessor 220 is the CPU of the card 200a. RAM 222 stores calculated results as a memory stack. ROM 224 has the card operating system, fixed data, standard routines and lookup tables. Non-volatile memory 226 (such as EPROM and EEPROM) retains a

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 information which is not lost when the card does not receive current via the card reader 102. Such information can typically be modified based on the card or on other events such as an identification number of card, personal identification number, authorization levels, balances, credit limits, etc. The card reader interface 228 includes the software and hardware necessary for communication with the outside world.

 The preferred embodiment uses ROM 224 to add transaction domain software logic 224a, a UEX table utili224b, and a unique and specific IPv6 global network address in IPv6 224c.

With the prior art, the card holder carries many kinds of credit cards, loyalty cards and membership cards in his wallet. Without promoting or discouraging the development of multifunctional smart cards, the card holder can use a 200a card to record payment and transaction data even if the card is not used for actual payment. In this sense, the card 200a can be used as an electronic register of all transactions made with any kind of card as long as the card reader 102 can read and write on the card 200a. The non-volatile memory 226 records and stores all of these transactions. Later, in FIG. 3, these data are either downloaded upstream or downloaded downstream, according to the needs of the card holder and the capacities of their financial institution.

 The present invention also recognizes the practical aspect of the wireless communications used between the card 200a and the card reader 102. Contact communications require that the card holder or the merchant slide the card 200a inside the slot 240 physical located in reader 102. This type of contact technology is predominantly present in the form of PCMCIA type 2 and type 3 locations, in millions of laptops. Manufacturing tolerances allow for a good, secure fit for transferring electrical signals between the card and the remaining circuit board. The antenna

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 short range, low power 250 provides a wireless, contactless solution between card 200a and card reader 102. Using available surface mount and CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) technology as part of the physical realization of the chip 218, wireless communications can be carried out without exorbitant signal losses. Sophisticated error correction algorithms can be carried by the card reader 102 in opposition to the chip 218, to provide asymmetrical, but nevertheless reliable communications between the card 200a and the wireless antenna 250. Industrial initiatives such as that Bluetooth standards with a transmission range of 4 meters and more robust WIFI 802.11 standards for wireless Ethernet demonstrate that wireless communications increase mobility, flexibility, and convenience over time for the end user, the merchant and the client.

Other advances in contactless communications can be extended to watches, calculators, laptops, cell phones, and virtually any device that is light, portable, and requires relatively small amounts of electrical energy to perform communications and calculations required on behalf of the user or client.

 As the technology progresses, an alternative embodiment for a microcontroller 218 in the card 200a dispenses with the use of an integrated circuit chip. Instead, the storage would reside in the substrate of card 200a in the form of a logical structural arrangement of molecular and atomic structures. This would provide even smaller and less expensive means for data processing and storage.

 In an alternative embodiment, the chips containing the processing power and memory suitable for payment transactions do not even need to reside on the card. As long as the chip is retained and managed by the payment initiator, it can reside on or in any other non-metallic support, in possession and under the control of the initiator. It could reside in a keychain accessory,

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 a token or a piece of jewelry. As discussed above, the card reader 102 does not need to have a physical slot as long as an optical beam can read the contents of the chip. Typically, the card payments initiated at the POS allow an ease to the initiator when the latter briefly hands the card 200a to the merchant for authorization via the reader 102. However, if the merchant carries a wireless card reader, the mode Alternative implementation can reduce fraud because the initiator identifies with the scan and immediately sees details of the currently authorized payment on the merchant's screen. In the prior art, the manipulation of the card by the merchant without the presence of the payment initiator allows the merchant to keep the carbon of the invoice or to record the card number for a subsequent payment transaction, not authorized.

 The embodiment of the card 200a can be an additional characteristic of a smart card with several applications, especially if the issuing of the card becomes universal among a large population.

Or, even if multiple cards are not, independently of this invention, consolidated into a single card solution, card 200a can be completely independent and manufactured and distributed separately.

This type of registration card 200a can be inserted immediately after the main payment device has been used or presented by the initiator, either in cash, check, payment card, etc. This embodiment can be used for the dedicated use of the electronic payment register for the holder as an economic unit. The 200a card becomes a universal tool for capturing payment data with a single condition. The payment point allows the 200b card to register a UEX code, regardless of whether the payment channel was in cash, by check, wirelessly or with another payment tool or medium.

 With a universal card network platform, special attributes can be attached to all transactions that are processed with the card and even those that are processed by the issuing bank on behalf of the holder in other bank payment channels used by the same carrier. Returning to Figure 2, after card 200a has been

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 inserted into the card slot 240 and accepted by the card reader 102, the UEX code assignment 210a sends a signal to the card transaction account journal 226a for the particular uniform expense code for the specific transaction. The card 200b now contains in its non-volatile memory 266b the card transaction data which includes the expense code for the transaction.

 With respect to each card in progress 200a, the non-volatile memory 226 stores and keeps the card transaction log 226a. If the distribution of the card 200a is limited to a single card for purposes of identification and payment by its holder, the card 200a can also be used as a personal and unique identification device for individuals, worldwide.

 In Fig. 3A, the card 200b contains card transaction data residing in the transaction log 266a accumulated over a period of time. The bearer of the 200b card has a current account with a financial institution 302 which has issued the bearer the 200b card. This card has ATM capacities and houses a chip 218 with a configuration according to FIG. 2. The non-volatile memory 266 in the card 200b has a series of payment transactions, classified according to the table UEX 224b.

 The holder of the 200b card now has three choices for publishing classified payment transaction data on a secure site for further processing. First, it can present the card 200b to the merchant 310 who has a POS terminal with a smart card reader. The prior art includes a processing managed by the merchant or a self-service processing of the card transaction. Via the telecommunications link 312, the card 200b may be able to transmit the content of the transaction log 266a. However, this embodiment may not be desired, in particular when the merchant does not perceive the need to help the financial institution of the holder. When the bearer chooses to take on the task with a self-service verification device according to the prior art (US patent number 5,992,570), the device does not consider the uploading of transaction data.

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 multiples at the bank. Communication is limited to authorizing access to credit or payment for the single transaction in question, not for previous transactions.

 The second possibility also considers the prior art. The card 200b is inserted into the smart card reader managed by the customer or portable 400 which can read smart cards. Figure 4 includes a partial diagram of US patent number 5559313 issued to Claus et al in 1996. Stored expenditure classifications associated with specific purchased items are available since the data is passed to the personal computer, laptop, computer personal digital assistant of the wearer or other consumer device. The holder uses personal financial management software to process and analyze this data and generate reports.

 The third and last solution describes the novelty and the utility of the present invention. The financial institution 302 owns and manages an ATM with multiple applications which can read smart cards and more particularly the 200b card. The 200b card holder usually wants to withdraw money from the GAB 320. The GAB 320 can perform basic banking functions for the 200b card holder who selects the key 320a for deposits, 320b for withdrawals and 320c for balance requests. The 320d key allows the wearer to perform a variety of retail functions, such as purchasing postage stamps, show tickets and transportation cards.

 By frequenting the ATM of a financial institution to have cash change once a month, not to say weekly, the holder of the 200b card is assured that with each visit to the ATM, the transaction data of payments processed in the payment transaction log 226c are downloaded upstream to its financial institution via upload processing 324. If the multi-function ATM 320 opens its data channel, this avoids the tedious and time-consuming task of using the computer at the bearer's home to make an Internet connection to upload transaction data upstream

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 institution. Of course, the customer always keeps the option of downloading upstream via a home device which can read the transaction data from the card 200b.

 Similarly, the card 200a with read / write capability will accept, once inserted into the GAB 320, bank transaction data during the downstream download process 334, having the same purpose as the process 324. Now the card holder 320 has an updated transaction file which can be transferred to the card reader 400 connected to his computer or other device managed by the card holder.

 Figure 3B shows why uploading transaction data over the financial institution's ATM network may be better than using a personal Internet connection. An ATM data download relies on the rapid connection of the same financial institution 335 (T-1 or higher) to transmit data. The upload process 324 in Figure 3A is instantaneous and concurrent during a current ATM transaction. In FIG. 3B, the server 330 of the financial institution directs the data flow. The server 330 sends all the transactions downloaded by the card via the link 345 in the transactional current account payment / debit account 340. If the financial institution 302 is also the supplier of the card holder, the credit card transaction data in the institution in the database 360 can be returned to the card holder 200a during the downstream download process 334 while the card holder is conducting a transaction through the ATM 320.

 All of the typical steps of transferring data to someone's computer for these transactions are common in the prior art. The bank client database 350 provides the logical link between the current account database 340 and the credit card transaction database 360. The upstream upload process 324 and the upload process downstream 334 in the figure

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 3A begin immediately upon insertion of the card 200a into the card reader 310, while the server software 330 interrogates the client account database 350 in order to search the transaction database of the current account 340 and timely credit / debit card database 360. This allows the downstream download process 334 and the upstream download process 324, which is for all purposes and purposes, to be performed simultaneously for the customer while the customer is engaged with the GAB.

 The financial institution 302 can also use the upload process 324 to capture all of the transaction data stored on the card 200b, even for transactions that are not actually processed by the institution. The interface of the card 200a and the ATM 320 allows the transfer of such data to a universal customer payment database 370 via the link 375. This database browses all the customer's payment transactions, processed or not by institution 302, as long as a UEX code 266a has been assigned by the server 330. In the prior art, in US patent application number 09965100 filed by YU et al in 2001, the server 330 can apply a post-processing filter for payment transactions under universal expenditure categories for households or businesses.

Since the transaction data is correctly channeled in the institution 302, the latter can use the server 330 and can assemble marketing profiles to increase its services vis-à-vis its customers.

 FIG. 4 represents the prior art where the card 200b is a smart card with tables on its chip for classified payment transactions. The card holder 200b inserts the card, during the process 380, into the card reader connected to the PC 400. The cable 405 connects the reader to the client's computer 410. US patent number 5,559,313 issued to Claus et al in 1999 captured classified smart card payments and transferred the data to the personal computer 410 for processing and analysis with GFP software, such as Money @ or Quicken @. The personal printer 420 which is connected by a printer cable 415 to

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 the personal computer 410 can generate printed summaries of classified payments.

 FIG. 5 represents the hardware and software components of the IPv6 addressing scheme as applied to the network of cards and devices according to the present invention. Server 180 is the assign and primary repository for all IPv6 addresses used in the payment system. There will be a pole of addresses available to be assigned to each set of newly created 200a cards. For example, an arbitrary IPv6 address could be CCOO: 0002: 1111: 5555: 0222: 0001: 767A: 2222. Once this address is assigned, server 180 will keep a separate database table for the IPv6 addresses assigned to it. smart cards. The IDE (integrated development environment) 730 is readily available from Gemplus, Hypercom and VeriFone. The newly manufactured card 200a before a card client uses it, will have engraved in its non-volatile memory 226a the unique IPv6 address BB. 09.09. 11.22. 01. Similarly, IDE 140 can come from Hypercom, Ingenico (Fr) and VeriFone. The IDE 730 will download the IPv6 address CCOO: 0002: 1111: 5555: 0222: 0001: 767A: 2222 to the non-volatile memory 224c on the card 200a. This is done before the cardholder's financial institution card is sent for personal or commercial use. Globe 1000 contains the universe of assigned unique IPv6 network addresses. Conceivably, there can be several IPv6 addresses for each person, commercial establishment, legal entity and economic unit, with an unalterable IPv6 address for a device and a card in their possession.

 Wherever there is a person as an economic unit, a single uniquely addressed smart card can be assigned by a bank or a government or ministerial entity in each jurisdiction.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the security advantages for government and the trade of unique addresses for each person will have to be balanced against legitimate concerns regarding the protection of personal data.

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 The invention is accomplished by using the uniqueness and extensibility of the IPv6 address also as a regular database key in a bank payment system. As described above, the IPv6 address provides ample logical space to identify individual physical smart cards 200a and uses the same key as the logical view of the UEX tables for payment classification.

 While the card system described herein is the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the claimed invention is not limited to the precise description in any way, and changes can be made to the embodiment without limit the scope of the invention as described in the claims which follow.

Claims (16)

1. Computer-based system, comprising: card means used by said card holders to capture payment transaction data which contain an electronic read / write component selected from a group consisting of a programmable integrated circuit chip and a structural logical arrangement of molecular and atomic structures; card reader means for communicating electronically with an electronic device among a plurality of electronic devices selected from a group consisting of a point of sale terminal, an automatic teller machine, a personal computer, a computer portable, portable computer device, wireless pocket personal digital assistant, cell phone, cable TV and consumer device; computer server means for accepting and processing payment transaction data stored by said card, which generates periodic summaries of payments classified according to at least one universal set from among a plurality of universal sets of native expense categories to one plurality of cardholders, and which transmits said summaries to said cardholders using a plurality of means selected from a group consisting of postal mail, fax, electronic cable transmission, wireless transmission cable, Internet, satellite, personal digital assistant and television set-top box. database means for storing said payment transaction data comprising at least one expense category from a plurality of expense categories in a universal set of expense categories assigned to each transaction, and communication network means for connecting said card reader means, said computer server means and said database means. <Desc / Clms Page number 29>  2. The system as claimed in claim 1, in which said card reader means throughout an interconnected card payment network are assigned remotely in a logical and electronic manner, on a global and universal basis, to at least one said universal sets of expense categories using telecommunication means.  The system of claim 1, wherein one of said categories of universal expenses relating to use for households or use for a commercial entity is assigned to said card reader means using a conversion table based on (A) l identity of the merchant who uses said card reader means to process a payment from said card holders and (B) the specific physical location of said card reader means using a plurality of indicators selected from a group consisting of a position personnel, employee identification, table, display box, cash register, hallway, terminal number, verification line, a floor section, a store section, a store location, branches of a business and physical street address, or (C) general purpose of operations and existence of the party using said means card reader to process a payment of said card holders, said card reader means being either a magnetic strip, an integrated circuit chip or atomic or molecular structures.  4. The system of claim 1, wherein an expenditure category among said universal expenditure categories for household or commercial use is assigned to said card reader means, whether it is a magnetic strip, d '' an integrated circuit or atomic or molecular structure chip, using a conversion table based on a structured global network hierarchy of <Desc / Clms Page number 30>  unique and specific manner of addresses associated with said card reader means.  5. The system as claimed in claim 1, in which a category of expenditure from said universal categories of expenditure, whether it is a use relating to households or a use by a commercial entity, is assigned to said reader means card, whether a magnetic strip, an integrated circuit chip or atomic or molecular structures, using a conversion table based on the identity of the holder of said card reader means.  6. Method for assigning to card payment transactions at least one category of expenditure among a plurality of categories of expenditure in a universal set of categories of expenditure, whether it is a use relating to households or a use for a commercial entity, relating to a plurality of card holders, the method comprising the steps consisting in: a) capturing the card payment transaction archives of said card holders, each of said archives comprising at least the identity of the card holder card, the date and time of payment processing, the amount of payment in local currency and one or more categories selected from said universal set of expense categories; b) transmit said card payment transaction archives via a telecommunications network to reside in a database. c) generate periodic summaries of individual cardholder payments according to said universal set of expense categories, and d) transmit said summaries to said cardholders using a plurality of means selected from a group consisting of postal mail, d '' fax, wired electronic transmission, <Desc / Clms Page number 31>  wireless transmission, Internet, satellite, cable, personal digital assistant and television set-top box.  7. System for transmitting to a financial institution a category of expenditure selected from a universal set of categories of expenditure, whether it is a use relating to households or a use for a commercial entity, native to a plurality cardholders, wherein said expense category is associated with card payment transactions initiated by cardholders who are customers of said financial institution, said system comprising: card means which includes an electronic reading component- writing selected from a group consisting of a programmable integrated circuit chip and a structural logical arrangement of molecular or atomic structures, in which said card means stores data of card payment transactions carried out by said card holders, said card data including at least the date and time, the transaction amount, the identi beneficiary's name and a selected expenditure category; electronic means for writing on said card means at least one of said expenditure categories for each of said card payment transactions, whereby said device is selected from a group consisting of a point of sale terminal, a personal computer , portable computer, wearable computer device, personal digital assistant, mobile phone, stationary phone, message receiver, television unit wired and a consumer device; automated / automatic transaction machine means for communicating electronically with a computer server of said financial institution, said machine means being able to perform at least two functions of distributing money to said card holders without human intervention on site by said financial institution, and to <Desc / Clms Page number 32>  receiving and accepting expense category data previously stored on said card means, and computer server means of said financial institution for accepting and processing payment transaction data generated by said card, which generates summaries of payments according to said universal set of expense categories and delivers said summaries to said card holders using a plurality of means selected from a group consisting of postal mail, fax, electronic cable transmission, wireless transmission of the Internet, satellite, cable, personal digital assistant and television, and database means of said financial institution which stores said expense category data.  The system of claim 7, wherein after said card means is accepted by said automated / automatic transaction machine, a buffer storage for payment transaction data which includes data of associated expense categories is erased. said card means during the transfer of said payment data from said automated / automatic transaction machine to said database means of said financial institution.  9. A method for transmitting payment transaction data from cardholders who are customers of a financial institution, the method comprising the steps of: a) capturing payment transaction archives for storage on cards with a electronic read-write component selected from a group consisting of a programmable integrated circuit chip and a structural logical arrangement of molecular and atomic structures, each of said archives comprising at least one data field from a plurality of data fields selected from one group consisting of the identity of the card holder, the <Desc / Clms Page number 33>  date and time of payment processing, payment amount in local currency and one or more expense categories selected from universal sets of expense categories, whether for household use or use for a commercial entity, relating to a plurality of card holders; b) read said payment transaction archives using an automated banking machine which is linked to a card network to which said financial institution belongs; c) record said payment transaction archives on a database of said financial institution; d) generate periodic summaries of said payment transaction archives by individual card holders according to said universal set of expenditure categories, whether for use relating to households or for use for a commercial entity, and e) transmitting said summaries to said card holders using a plurality of means selected from a group consisting of postal mail, fax, wired electronic transmission, wireless transmission, the Internet, satellite, cable, personal digital assistant and television set-top box.  10. System for receiving from a financial institution a category of expenditure selected from a universal set of categories of expenditure, whether it is a use relating to households or a use by an entity commercial, relating to a plurality of customers, in which said category of expenditure is associated with payment transactions initiated via a plurality of payment channels selected from a group consisting of cash, paper check, electronic check , payment and presentation of electronic invoices and automatic debit by clients of said financial institution through their current accounts, said system comprising: <Desc / Clms Page number 34>  database means of said financial institution which stores said payment transaction data and said expense category data; automated / automatic transaction machine means which can communicate electronically with a computer server and said database means of said financial institution holding said current account of said client, said machine being able to perform at least two functions consisting in: distribute money to said card holders without human intervention on site by the financial institution and to transmit and write on said card means said expenditure category data previously stored in said database means of said financial institution ; card means provided by said financial institution to said customers which contains an electronic read-write component selected from a group consisting of a programmable integrated circuit chip and a structural logic arrangement of molecular and atomic structures; card reader means capable of reading and writing on said card means; database means managed by said client which stores said expense category data for transactions processed by said financial institution, whereby said database means resides on electronic devices selected from a group consisting of a personal computer , a portable computer, a portable computer device, a personal digital assistant, a portable telephone, a landline telephone, a receiver, a cable television unit and a consumer appliance, and electronic means for generating a summary of payments made by said customer according to said universal set of expense categories derived from said database means managed by said customer.  11. The system of claim 10, wherein after said cards have been physically inserted into said card reader, a <Desc / Clms Page number 35>  buffer storage for payment transaction data which includes associated category data is cleared from said cards upon acceptance of said payment transaction data using said card reader and said electronic device in said managed database means by said customer.  12. Method for recording payment transaction data of clients of a financial institution who carry at least one card with an electronic read-write component selected from a group consisting of a programmable integrated circuit chip and an arrangement structural logic of molecular and atomic structures, the method comprising the steps of: a) recording in a database of said financial institution a plurality of archives of payment and debit transactions of a plurality of its customers, each of its archives comprising at least one data field from a plurality of data fields selected from a group consisting of the identity of the client, the date and time of the processing of the payment or debit, the amount of the payment or debit in local currency and one or more expense categories selected from universal sets of rel expense categories atives to a plurality of customers, and b) write on said card, when this is inserted or in interface with an automated / automatic banking machine which is connected to a network of cards to which the financial institution belongs, said transaction records payment and debit.  13. The method of claim 12 further comprising the step of a) transmitting said payment and debit transaction records from said card via an electronic card reader into a computer device managed by the card holder and b ) generate with said device periodic summaries of said archives according to said universal set of expenditure categories. <Desc / Clms Page number 36>  14. System for using a structured hierarchy of global network addresses selected from a group consisting of Internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) and Internet protocol version 6 (IPv6) to identify at least one card means from among a plurality of means of cards, whether they are magnetically coded tapes, integrated circuit chips, or molecular and atomic structures, that use a universal set of expense categories, whether for household use or for a commercial entity, relating to a plurality of card holders of said card means issued to a plurality of cardholders selected from a group made up of people, entities, businesses, government bodies and ministries, organizations , clubs, associations or any combination thereof, said system comprising: card means which comprises in its substrate in a non-volatile format one of said global network addresses for uniquely and permanently identifying said card means, and additional data associated with the bearer of said card means; network means for organizing, managing and routing said global network address using a plurality of components selected from a group consisting of public telephone switches, routers, computers, digital transmission trunks, analog transmission trunks , satellite transmissions, microwave transmissions and modems.  15. The system as claimed in claim 14, wherein said system can perform at least one function among a plurality of functions selected from a group consisting of a global identification of carriers, storage of demographic data, storage of financial transaction data, medical data storage, education level data storage, job data storage, payment processing, telecommunications, retail promotion, authorized access to physical locations, authorized access and <Desc / Clms Page number 37>  use of computer systems and authorized use of public transport.  16. System for using a structured hierarchy of global network addresses selected from a group consisting of Internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) and Internet protocol version 6 (IPv6) to uniquely identify (A) each member of a set designated of components in global electronic network selected from a group made up of switches of public telephones, routers, computers, digital transmission trunks, analog transmission trunks, satellite antennas, microwave transmitters and modems, (B) the whole universe of global automatic teller machines which are operated by a plurality of intermediate transaction processors, (C) a designated subset of said set of the universe of global automatic teller machines, (0) the whole universe of global electronic point of sale terminal devices which are operated by people and merchants who ac receive payments, said devices being selected from a group consisting of card readers, registers, terminals, portable devices and scanners, (E) a designated subset of the entire universe of terminal devices global electronic outlets, (F) the entire universe of personal computers selected from a group consisting of desktop personal computers, portable computers, portable computers, and personal digital assistants , (G) a designated subset of the entire universe of personal computers, (H) the entire universe of global electronic devices that facilitate two-way transmission, said devices being selected from a group consisting of fixed telephones , cellular telephones, satellite telephones, portable telephones and videophones (1) a designated subset of said unit of the unit rs of global electronic devices, (J) the whole universe of global devices and components operating an integrated circuit selected from a group made up <Desc / Clms Page number 38>  public telephone switches, routers, computers, digital transmission trunks, analog transmission trunks, satellite antennas, microwave transmitters, modems, ATMs, card readers , registers, terminals, wearable devices, scanners, desktop personal computers, laptops, wearable computers, personal digital assistants, desk phones, cellphones, satellite telephones, portable telephones and videophones, and (K) a designated subset of said set of the universe of global devices and components. a) in which said system is used to allow the processing of payment transactions via at least one ATM network among a plurality of ATM networks operated by at least one financial institution among a plurality of financial institutions, and b) in which said system is used to assign at least one expenditure category among a selected plurality of expenditure categories from a set of universal categories for at least one payment of a plurality of payments made by card holders which are used for at least one function among a plurality of functions selected from a group consisting of registration, promotion and authorization in relation to a payment transaction.