Combined reliable and unreliable data transmission

• US 10,366,383 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2016
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.)
• Inventors: Glashan, Ross, Hebner, Nicholas
• Primary Examiner(s): Frenel, Vanel
• Application Number:
  US15/088,021
• Publication Number:
  US 20170286943A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,216 Days
• Field of Search: 705 16, 705 18, 705 21, 705 34, 370328, 370252, 370312, 370350, 455 412, 455 78, 455411, 455416
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/327 Short range or proximity payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/00 Arrangements for detecting or preventing errors in the information received correcting synchronisation H04L7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/12 by using return channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1628 List acknowledgements, i.e. the acknowledgement message consisting of a list of identifiers, e.g. of sequence numbers H04L1/1614 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1685 the supervisory signal being transmitted in response to a specific request, e.g. to a polling signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup

Abstract

A payment reader and a merchant device may communicate over a wireless connection. Reliable and unreliable packets may be transmitted over a single messaging path. Each of a plurality of unreliable packet may include a data payload and a packet identifier. The unreliable packets and a reliable packet may be transmitted over the single messaging path during a first connection event. A response to the reliable packet may be received during the second event and may include a received packet listing. If the received packet listing indicates that any of the unreliable packets were not received, any unreliable packet that was not received may be retransmitted.

Claims

1. A method of wireless communications between a payment reader and a merchant device, the method comprising:

establishing a wireless connection between the payment reader and the merchant device, wherein one or more connection events are associated with the wireless connection;

generating, at the merchant device, a plurality of data portions;

generating, at the merchant device, a plurality of payload packets, wherein each of the plurality of payload packets includes a packet identifier, one of the data portions, and information indicating that the respective payload packet does not require an acknowledgement before an additional payload packet may be transmitted;

generating, at the merchant device, an acknowledgement packet, wherein the acknowledgement packet includes acknowledgement information indicating that an acknowledgement is required before any additional packets may be transmitted;

transmitting the plurality of payload packets to the payment reader;

transmitting the acknowledgement packet to the payment reader after transmitting the plurality of payload packets, wherein the plurality of payload packets and the acknowledgement packet are exchanged through a single messaging path, and wherein the plurality of payload packets and the acknowledgement packet are transmitted during a first connection event;

determining, for each of the one or more payload packets successfully received at the payment reader, the packet identifier associated with the successfully received payload packet;

generating, at the payment reader, a received packet listing based on the one or more determined packet identifiers;

generating, at the payment reader, an acknowledgement response packet, wherein the acknowledgement response packet is responsive to the acknowledgement information and wherein the acknowledgement response packet includes the received packet listing;

transmitting the acknowledgement response packet from the payment reader to the merchant device during a second connection event;

identifying, at the merchant device, one or more failed data packets of the payload packets based on the received packet listing of the acknowledgement response packet; and

transmitting, from the merchant device, the one or more failed data packets to the payment reader.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a maximum transmission unit for the plurality of payload packets, wherein the maximum transmission unit defines the size of each of the payload packets; and

determining the size of each of the data portions based on the maximum transmission unit.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the single messaging path comprises a single characteristic.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, at the merchant device, that all of the payload packets were received based on the received packet listing of the acknowledgement response packet; and

transmitting, from the merchant device, a second plurality of payload packets during a third connection event when all of the payload packets were received.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of payload packets is sent in an unacknowledged mode and the acknowledgment packet is sent in an acknowledged mode.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, at the payment reader, whether a received packet is a payload packet or an acknowledgment packet based on whether the received packet contains (a) information indicating that the respective payload packet does not require an acknowledgement or (b) acknowledgement information indicating that an acknowledgement is required.

7. A method, comprising:

establishing a wireless connection between a first wireless device and a second wireless device, wherein one or more connection events are associated with the wireless connection;

generating, at the first wireless device, a plurality of data portions;

generating, at the first wireless device, a plurality of payload packets, wherein each of the plurality of payload packets comprises one of the data portions and information indicating that the respective payload packet does not require an acknowledgement before an additional payload packet may be transmitted;

generating, at the first wireless device, an acknowledgement packet, wherein the acknowledgement packet includes acknowledgement information indicating that an acknowledgement is required;

transmitting the plurality of payload packets from the first wireless device to the second wireless device;

transmitting the acknowledgement packet from the first wireless device to the second wireless device after transmitting the plurality of payload packets, wherein the plurality of payload packets and the acknowledgement packet are exchanged through a single messaging path, and wherein the plurality of payload packets and the acknowledgement packet are transmitted during a first connection event;

receiving, at the first wireless device, an acknowledgement response packet from the second wireless device during a second connection event, wherein the acknowledgement response packet is responsive to the acknowledgement information, and wherein the acknowledgement response packet comprises a received packet listing;

identifying, at the first wireless device, one or more failed data packets based on the received packet listing; and

transmitting the one or more failed data packets from the first wireless device to the second wireless device.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

determining a maximum transmission unit for the plurality of payload packets, wherein the maximum transmission unit defines the size of each of the payload packets; and

determining the size of each of the data portions based on the maximum transmission unit.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the single messaging path comprises a single characteristic.

10. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

determining, at the first wireless device, that all of the payload packets were received based on the received packet listing; and

transmitting, at the first wireless device, a second plurality of payload packets during a third connection event when all of the payload packets were received.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the acknowledgement information indicates that an acknowledgement must be received at the first wireless device before any additional packets may be transmitted by the first wireless device.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein a connection interval is associated with the wireless connection, and wherein the connection interval determines the time between consecutive connection events.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein a packet identifier is associated with each of the plurality of payload packets, and wherein identifying the one or more failed packets comprises identifying the one or more failed packets based on the received packet listing and the packet identifiers.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein each payload packet includes its associated packet identifier, and wherein the received packet listing is based on one or more of the packet identifiers.

15. A wireless device, comprising:

a wireless communication interface configured to transmit and receive payload packets and acknowledgement packets through a single messaging path, wherein each acknowledgement packet includes acknowledgement information indicating that an acknowledgement is required, and wherein each payload packet includes information indicating that the payload packet does not require an acknowledgement before an additional payload packet may be transmitted;

a memory configured to store wireless instructions;

a processing unit configured;

(a) to execute the wireless instructions to establish a wireless connection between the wireless device and a second wireless device, wherein one or more connection events are associated with the wireless connection,

(b) to generate a plurality of data portions,

(c) to generate a plurality of payload packets, wherein each of the plurality of payload packets comprises one of the data portions,

(d) to generate an acknowledgement packet,

(e) to transmit the plurality of payload packets to the second wireless device,

(f) to transmit the acknowledgement packet to the second wireless device after transmitting the plurality of payload packets, wherein the plurality of payload packets and the acknowledgement packet are transmitted during a first connection event,

(g) to receive an acknowledgement response packet from the second wireless device during a second connection event, wherein the acknowledgement response packet is responsive to the acknowledgement information, and wherein the acknowledgement response packet comprises a received packet listing,

(h) to identify one or more failed data packets based on the received packet listing, and

(i) to transmit the one or more failed data packets from the first wireless device to the second wireless device.

16. The wireless device of claim 15, wherein the processing unit is further configured to determine a maximum transmission unit for the plurality of payload packets, wherein the maximum transmission unit defines the size of each of the payload packets, and to determine the size of each of the data portions based on the maximum transmission unit.

17. The wireless device of claim 15, wherein the single messaging path comprises a single characteristic.

18. The wireless device of claim 15, wherein the processing unit is further configured to determine that all of the payload packets were received based on the received packet listing, and transmit a second plurality of payload packets during a third connection event when all of the payload packets were received.

19. The wireless device of claim 15, wherein the acknowledgement information indicates that an acknowledgement must be received at the wireless device before any additional packets may be transmitted by the wireless device.

20. The wireless device of claim 15, wherein a connection interval is associated with the wireless connection, and wherein the connection interval determines the time between consecutive connection events.

21. The wireless device of claim 15, wherein each payload packet includes an associated packet identifier, wherein the received packet listing is based on one or more of the packet identifiers, and wherein the one or more failed packets are identified based on the received packet listing and the packet identifiers.

22. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored therein, which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

establishing a wireless connection between a first wireless device and a second wireless device, wherein one or more connection events are associated with the wireless connection;

generating a plurality of data portions;

generating a plurality of payload packets, wherein each of the plurality of payload packets comprises one of the data portions and information indicating that the respective payload packet does not require an acknowledgement before an additional payload packet may be transmitted;

generating an acknowledgement packet, wherein the acknowledgement packet includes acknowledgement information indicating that an acknowledgement is required;

providing the plurality of payload packets to be transmitted from the first wireless device to the second wireless device;

providing an acknowledgement packet to be transmitted from the first wireless device to the second wireless device after transmitting the plurality of payload packets, wherein the plurality of payload packets and the acknowledgement packet are exchanged through a single messaging path, and wherein the plurality of payload packets and the acknowledgement packet are transmitted during a first connection event;

receiving an acknowledgement response packet from the second wireless device during a second connection event, wherein the acknowledgement response packet is responsive to the acknowledgement information, and wherein the acknowledgement response packet comprises a received packet listing;

identifying one or more failed data packets based on the received packet listing; and

providing the one or more failed data packets to be transmitted from the first wireless device to the second wireless device.

23. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, wherein the instructions further comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

determining a maximum transmission unit for the plurality of payload packets, wherein the maximum transmission unit defines the size of each of the payload packets; and

determining the size of each of the data portions based on the maximum transmission unit.

24. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, wherein the single messaging path comprises a single characteristic.

25. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, wherein the instructions further comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

determining that all of the payload packets were received based on the received packet listing; and

providing a second plurality of payload packets to be transmitted during a third connection event when all of the payload packets were received.

26. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, wherein the acknowledgement information indicates that an acknowledgement must be received at the first wireless device before any additional packets may be transmitted by the first wireless device.

27. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, wherein a connection interval is associated with the wireless connection, and wherein the connection interval determines the time between consecutive connection events.

28. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, wherein a packet identifier is associated with each of the plurality of payload packets, and wherein identifying the one or more failed packets comprises identifying the one or more failed packets based on the received packet listing and the packet identifiers.

29. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 28, wherein each payload packet includes its associated packet identifier, and wherein the received packet listing is based on one or more of the packet identifiers.