Systems and methods for distributing information to a diverse plurality of devices

• US 20050135345A1
• Filed: 01/27/2005
• Published: 06/23/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/1998
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Citicorp Development Center Incorporated (Citigroup Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Citibank NA & Citicorp Development Center
• Inventors: Tompkins, Peter, Young, Alan, Grandcolas, Michael
• Application Number:
  US11/043,088
• Publication Number:
  US 20050135345A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/16 Payments settled via telecommunication systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/306 using TV related infrastructures external card used for payment with client device H04N21/4185
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/327 Short range or proximity payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/363 with the personal data of a user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0866 by active credit-cards adapted therefor G07F7/1008 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0886 the card reader being portable for interacting with a POS or ECR in realizing a payment transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0281 Proxies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/085 specially adapted for interworking of IP-based networks with other networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 : in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 : Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 : Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0012 : Details of application programming interfaces [API] for telephone networks; Arrangements which combine a telephonic communication equipment and a computer, i.e. computer telephony integration [CPI] arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/12 : for working between exchanges having different types of switching equipment, e.g. power-driven and step by step or decimal and non-decimal

Abstract

The present invention allows a customer to use any of a number of a plurality of devices to access data and make transactions using an institution'"'"'s computers and databases from many different locations throughout the world. As an example, a banking customer may use either a telephone, a palm computer or a television to determine his checking account balance while vacationing in a foreign country. The present invention operates by connecting the customer to the desired computer and database using universal protocol so that location becomes irrelevant. Another feature of the present invention is the efficient use of different networks with varying transmission speeds.

Claims

1-6. -6. (canceled)

7. A method for rerouting a communication path comprising:

establishing a communication path to a first server via a first network;

receiving input data from a source;

determining if the input data correlates to data associated with the first server;

broadcasting a query that includes portions of the input data from the first server over a second network;

receiving the query at a second server;

determining if the broadcast portions of the input data correlate to data associated with the second server;

issuing an instruction from the second server to the first server via the second network indicating that the source of the input data should be coupled to the second server; and

acting upon those instructions at the first server and within the second network to couple the source of the input data to the second server.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the second network contains routers that are used to couple the source of the input data to the second server.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein the data formats of the input data and the query are different.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the first network has a greater capability to carry data than the second network.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the greater capability is measured in bandwidth.

12-17. -17. (canceled)