US6185545B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Electronic payment system utilizing intermediary account
Assignee: Noventis Inc
•
Filing: 1999-11-17
•
Granted: 2001-02-06
•
Expires: 2019-11-17
Abstract
Abstract Payments in cash are submitted to a merchant at a point of sale. The payment transaction is effected electronically to credit the end user's intermediary account. Subsequent electronic communications between the intermediary account and a vendor site effect payment to the vendor for goods or services on behalf of the end user. This system leverages the existing credit card payment system in reverse so as to provide the convenience of submitting cash payments at a multitude of merchant locations.
Inventors
- 👤 David Resnick
- 👤 Matt J. Callanan
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-27 17:25
CPC Classifications
G; G07; G07F; G07F7/00; G07F7/02; G07F7/025; G06; G06Q; G06Q20/00; G06Q20/02; G06Q20/04; G06Q20/08; G06Q20/085; G06Q20/10; G06Q20/102; G06Q20/20; G06Q20/204; G06Q20/22; G06Q20/28; G06Q20/30; G06Q20/34; G06Q20/342; G06Q20/38; G06Q20/40; G06Q40/00; G06Q40/12; G07F19/00; G07F19/20; G07F19/211
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 34
Claim 1
Independent Claim
190 words
A method for effecting payment for goods or services comprising: providing a centralized payment processor; establishing an intermediary account on the payment processor having a corresponding account identifier; associating the intermediary account with an end-user's account maintained by a vendor; conducting a payment transaction comprising receiving a payment from the end-user at a point-of-sale together with the account identifier; communicating data indicative of the payment transaction from the point-of-sale to the centralized payment processor; in the payment processor, validating the payment transaction data and transmitting a response to the point-of-sale, said response including an indication of approval if the validating step results in approval of the transaction; in the payment processor, if the validating step results in approval of the transaction, interfacing with the vendor so as to load value into the end-user's associated account responsive to the payment transaction; establishing an intermediary bank account at a financial institution for deposit of funds corresponding to the intermediary account established on the payment processor; and collecting an amount of money equal to the payment amount, subject to adjustment, from the point-of-sale proprietor into the intermediary bank account by electronic funds transfer.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
190 words
A method for effecting payment for goods or services comprising: providing a centralized payment processor; establishing an intermediary account on the payment processor having a corresponding account identifier; associating the intermediary account with an end-user's account maintained by a vendor; conducting a payment transaction comprising receiving a payment from the end-user at a point-of-sale together with the account identifier; communicating data indicative of the payment transaction from the point-of-sale to the centralized payment processor; in the payment processor, validating the payment transaction data and transmitting a response to the point-of-sale, said response including an indication of approval if the validating step results in approval of the transaction; in the payment processor, if the validating step results in approval of the transaction, interfacing with the vendor so as to load value into the end-user's associated account responsive to the payment transaction; establishing an intermediary bank account at a financial institution for deposit of funds corresponding to the intermediary account established on the payment processor; and collecting an amount of money equal to the payment amount, subject to adjustment, from the point-of-sale proprietor into the intermediary bank account by electronic funds transfer.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
15 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the payment is in the form of cash.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
16 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the payment is made as a debit card transaction.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
22 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the payment is made as a credit card transaction effected via communication with a computer.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
17 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the point-of-sale is a brick and mortar retail merchant site.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
13 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the point-of-sale is a vending machine.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
15 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the point-of-sale is an automated teller machine (ATM).
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
17 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the end-user account is a prepaid long-distance telephone service account.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
17 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the end-user account is a prepaid wireless telephone service account.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
39 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein said communicating data indicative of the payment transaction from the point-of-sale to the central payment processor includes communicating the data from the point-of-sale via a card association network to the payment processor.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
18 words
A method according to claim 10 wherein the communicating step includes forwarding the data through an acquiring processor.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
28 words
A method according to claim 10 wherein said communicating data from the point-of-sale to the payment processor comprises communicating an authorization request indicating the amount of the payment.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
35 words
A method according to claim 12 further comprising providing a data terminal at the POS for communicating transaction data to the payment processor; the data terminal including means for communicating data over a telephone line.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
25 words
A method according to claim 13 and further comprising printing a receipt at the point-of-sale that indicates the intermediary account number and the payment amount.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
23 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the intermediary account is represented by a physical token that displays the corresponding intermediary account identifier.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
22 words
A method according to claim 15 wherein the token has a machine-readable feature to enable automatic reading of the intermediary account identifier.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
27 words
A method according to claim 16 wherein the token comprises a card having a magnetic stripe that stores machine-readable data indicating at least the intermediary account identifier.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
16 words
A method according to claim 17 wherein the card complies with financial industry standard ANSI/ISO 7811.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
38 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the intermediary account identifier includes a BIN number within a predetermined range so as to identify the account as an intermediary account to support transaction message routing over the financial network.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
77 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein said communicating data indicative of the transaction from the point-of-sale to the centralized payment processor comprises: communicating a transaction message indicating the amount of the payment from the point-of-sale to the POS merchant's acquiring processor; routing the transaction message from the acquiring processor into a financial network; providing a network access point for the payment processor; and routing the transaction message via the network access point to the payment processor.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
16 words
A method according to claim 20 wherein the financial network is a credit card association network.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
28 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein establishing the intermediary account includes producing a plurality of cards, each card corresponding to a respective intermediary account on the processor.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
24 words
A method according to claim 22 including printing said cards in accordance with a predetermined design that displays a trademark associated with the customer.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
48 words
A method according to claim 22 including receiving a card order from the customer for a specified number of cards; initializing in the processor a number of new intermediary accounts equal to the number of cards ordered; and assigning unique account identifiers to each of the initialized accounts.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
30 words
A method according to claim 24 wherein said producing the cards includes affixing to each card an indication of the corresponding intermediate account identifier by embossing or by electronic storage.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
21 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein said collecting step is carried out in a batch mode on a daily basis.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
19 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein said collecting step is effecting via the ACH automated clearing house system.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
41 words
A method according to claim 1 and further comprising settling the payment transaction by transferring an amount of money equal to the payment amount, subject to adjustment, from the intermediary bank account into the vendor's bank account by electronic funds transfer.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
24 words
A method according to claim 1 and further comprising providing a customer care interface between the payment processor and the vendor's customer service provider.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
17 words
A method according to claim 29 wherein the customer care interface comprises a world-wide web browser interface.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
27 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein validating the payment transaction data includes communicating with the vendor to confirm that the end-user's associated account number is valid.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
24 words
A method according to claim 1 including, in the central processor, maintaining a database of intermediary payment accounts and a list of participating merchants.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
27 words
A method according to claim 32 wherein the intermediary payment account database does not include personal identification of the end-user in order to protect the end-user's privacy.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2004-02-06 | 2004-08-07 | 2005-02-06 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2008-02-06 | 2008-08-07 | 2009-02-06 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2012-02-06 | 2012-08-07 | 2013-02-06 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |