Methods for adjusting near field communications circuitry during mobile payment transactions

• US 10,019,699 B2
• Filed: 05/26/2014
• Issued: 07/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Reddy, Vusthla Sunil, Narang, Mohit, Agboh, Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): Hayles, Ashford S
• Application Number:
  US14/287,151
• Publication Number:
  US 20140304094A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,506 Days
• Field of Search: 705 17
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0068 Arrangements of plural sources, e.g. multi-colour light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0073 Light emitting diode [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0088 of the light guide or other optical sheets in the package
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0091 of the light source relative to the light guide G02B6/0021 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/204 comprising interface for record bearing medium or carrier for electronic funds transfer or payment credit
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3223 Realising banking transactions through M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/189 characterised by the use of a flexible or folded printed circuit H05K3/326 takes precedence

Abstract

Methods for operating a portable electronic device to conduct mobile payment transactions are provided. The electronic device may include near field communications circuitry having a transmitter, a receiver, and a field detector for detecting a field from a merchant terminal. The receiver is typically idle. The receiver may be activated when the field detector detects that the electronic device is within the field of the merchant terminal. The transmitter may then be used to perform link establishment and data transfer. If the payment transaction fails for any reason, one or more hardware settings on the electronic device may be adjusted to help increase the chance of a successful transaction in a subsequent payment attempt. Another transaction may be attempted when the user moves the device out of the field and back into the field or may be performed automatically as long as the device is still within the field.

Claims

1. A method for using an electronic device in a mobile payment transaction at a near field communications reader device, comprising:

initiating the mobile payment transaction when the electronic device is placed within a field generated by the near field communications reader device;

in response to a transfer of at least one packet between the electronic device and the near field communications reader device failing, operating the electronic device using at least one new control setting, including updating by the electronic device at least one of;

a transmit power control setting, a phase offset setting, a wakeup threshold setting, a damping coefficient setting, or a frame delay time setting; and

while the electronic device is located within the field, automatically reattempting by the electronic device the mobile payment transaction using the new control setting.

2. The method defined in claim 1, wherein operating the electronic device with the at least one new control setting comprises reconfiguring the electronic device with one or more new hardware settings according to a table of predetermined settings stored on the electronic device.

3. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the electronic device includes a near field communications receiver, wherein the near field communications receiver is normally in an idle state, and wherein the near field communications receiver is activated in response to detecting that the electronic device is placed within the field.

4. The method defined in claim 3, further comprising:

in response to detecting that the electronic device is no longer within the field after operating the electronic device using the at least one new control setting, placing the near field communications receiver back in the idle state.

5. The method defined in claim 4, further comprising:

while the near field communications receiver is in the idle state, periodically resetting hardware settings on the electronic device so that the electronic device is configured to operate using default hardware settings when performing a subsequent mobile payment transaction.

6. The method defined in claim 1, wherein automatically reattempting the mobile payment transaction using the new control setting comprises automatically retransmitting the at least one packet, by the electronic device, using the new control setting.

7. A method for using an electronic device in a mobile payment transaction at a near field communications reader device, comprising:

initiating the mobile payment transaction when the electronic device is placed within a field generated by the near field communications reader device;

attempting to transfer one or more data packets associated with the mobile payment transaction from the electronic device to the near field communications reader device; and

in response to a transfer of at least one data packet of the one or more data packets between the electronic device and the near field communications reader device failing, updating by the electronic device at least one control setting on the electronic device prior to performing a subsequent payment transaction attempt, including reconfiguring the electronic device with at least one new hardware setting according to a table of predetermined settings stored on the electronic device.

8. The method defined in claim 7, wherein reconfiguring the electronic device with at least one new hardware setting comprises reconfiguring the electronic device with an updated transmit power control setting.

9. The method defined in claim 7, wherein reconfiguring the electronic device with at least one new hardware setting comprises reconfiguring the electronic device with an updated phase offset setting.

10. The method defined in claim 7, wherein reconfiguring the electronic device with at least one new hardware setting comprises reconfiguring the electronic device with an updated wakeup threshold indicating the maximum distance that the electronic device can be located from the near field communications reader device in order for the electronic device to initiate the mobile payment transaction.

11. The method defined in claim 7, wherein reconfiguring the electronic device with at least one new hardware setting comprises reconfiguring the electronic device with an updated signal damping coefficient.

12. The method defined in claim 7, wherein reconfiguring the electronic device with at least one new hardware setting comprises reconfiguring the electronic device with an updated frame delay setting indicating a period of time that the electronic device waits before sending an acknowledgement in response to receiving a request from the near field communications reader device.

13. The method defined in claim 7, further comprising:

while the electronic device is located within the field, automatically reattempting the mobile payment transaction using the at least one updated control setting.

17. The method defined in claim 7, further comprising:

in response to the transfer of the at least one data packet between the electronic device and the near field communications reader device failing, waiting for the electronic device to be moved out of the field before starting a timer that sets forth a period of time within which the electronic device can be used to reattempt the mobile payment transaction at the near field communications reader device.

18. The method defined in claim 17, further comprising:

before the timer expires, detecting that the electronic device has been moved back within the field, wherein updating the at least one control setting on the electronic device comprises updating the at least one control setting on the electronic device in response to detecting that the electronic device has been moved back within the field before the timer expires.

14. A method for using an electronic device in a mobile payment transaction at a near field communications reader device, comprising:

initiating the mobile payment transaction when the electronic device is placed within a field generated by the near field communications reader device;

in response to a transfer of at least one packet between the electronic device and the near field communications reader device failing, updating by the electronic device at least one control setting on the electronic device prior to performing a subsequent payment transaction attempt; and

while the electronic device is located within the field, automatically reattempting by the electronic device the mobile payment transaction, wherein at least one control setting is changed before reattempting the mobile payment transaction.

15. The method defined in claim 14, wherein the electronic device includes a near field communications receiver and the near field communications receiver is normally in an idle state, the method further comprising:

returning, when the electronic device is moved out of the field, the near field communications receiver to the idle state.

16. A method for using an electronic device in a mobile payment transaction at a near field communications reader device, comprising:

attempting to transfer one or more data packets associated with the mobile payment transaction from the electronic device to the near field communications reader device when the electronic device is placed within a field generated by the near field communications reader device; and

in response to the transfer of at least one data packet of the one or more data packets associated with the mobile payment transaction failing, updating by the electronic device at least one control setting on the electronic device, while the electronic device is located within the field, before performing a subsequent payment attempt.