IMS DEVICE OPERABLE FOR FINANCIAL TRANSACTION AUTHORIZATION AND ID CARDS DISPLAY

• US 20100042525A1
• Filed: 08/18/2008
• Published: 02/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Cai, Yigang, Hua, Shiyan
• Granted Patent: US 8,175,975 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40 Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentials; Review and approval of payers, e.g. check credit lines or negative lists
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/405 Establishing or using transaction specific rules
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting

Abstract

IMS networks and methods are disclosed for authorizing financial transactions. Credit card information, debit card information, and other purchasing data may be consolidated into an IMS device for conducting financial transactions, such as the purchasing of items from a merchant. Before a financial transaction can be completed, an IMS device transmits transaction data for the financial transaction to the IMS network. The IMS network then processes predefined purchasing rules to determine whether or not the financial transaction is authorized. If the financial transaction is authorized, then the IMS network transmits a confirmation message to the IMS device indicating that the financial transaction is authorized. If the financial transaction is not authorized, then the IMS network transmits a cancel message to the IMS device indicating that the financial transaction is not authorized.

Claims

1. An IMS charging system of an IMS network that is operable to authorize financial transactions initiated by an IMS device, the IMS charging system comprising:

purchasing rules indicating the purchases allowed by the user of the IMS device; and

a processing system operable to receive transaction data from the IMS device regarding the attempted purchase of an item from a merchant through the IMS device, to identify the purchasing rules for the user of the IMS device, to process the purchasing rules and the transaction data to determine whether the financial transaction is authorized, and to transmit authorization data to the IMS device indicating whether or not the financial transaction is authorized.

2. The IMS charging system of claim 1 further comprising:

a Diameter interface operable to receive the transaction data from the IMS device in a Diameter charging request.

3. The IMS charging system of claim 2 wherein:

the Diameter interface is further operable to generate a Diameter charging response, to insert the authorization data in the Diameter charging response, and to transmit the Diameter charging response to the IMS device.

4. The IMS charging system of claim 1 wherein:

the processing system is further operable to query a third party to determine whether the financial transaction is authorized based on the purchasing rules.

5. The IMS charging system of claim 1 wherein:

the processing system is further operable to query a financial institution to determine whether the financial transaction is authorized based on the purchasing rules.

6. The IMS charging system of claim 1 wherein the processing system is implemented in a Charging Collector Function (CCF) used for offline charging in the IMS network.

7. The IMS charging system of claim 1 wherein the processing system is implemented in an Online Charging System (OCS) used for online charging in the IMS network.

8. A method for authorizing financial transactions in an IMS network that are initiated by an IMS device, the method comprising:

receiving transaction data from the IMS device regarding the attempted purchase of an item from a merchant through the IMS device;

identifying purchasing rules for the user of the IMS device, wherein the purchasing rules indicate the purchases allowed by the user of the IMS device;

processing the purchasing rules and the transaction data to determine whether the financial transaction is authorized; and

transmitting authorization data to the IMS device indicating whether or not the financial transaction is authorized.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

receiving the transaction data from the IMS device in a Diameter charging request.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

generating a Diameter charging response;

inserting the authorization data in the Diameter charging response; and

transmitting the Diameter charging response to the IMS device.

11. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

querying a third party to determine whether the financial transaction is authorized based on the purchasing rules.

12. An IMS device operable to authorize financial transactions, the IMS device comprising:

a purchasing data storage system operable to store purchasing data that is used to purchase items from a merchant; and

a purchasing function operable to identify a set of the purchasing data that has been selected for purchasing an item from a merchant, to provide the purchasing data to a point-of-sale device for the merchant, to receive transaction data for an attempted purchase of the item from the merchant, and to transmit the transaction data to an IMS network requesting authorization for the financial transaction;

the purchasing function is further operable to receive authorization data from the IMS network, to process the authorization data to determine whether the financial transaction is authorized, to transmit a confirmation message to the point-of-sale device if the financial transaction is authorized, and to transmit a cancel message to the point-of-sale device if the financial transaction is not authorized.

13. The IMS device of claim 12 further comprising:

a Diameter interface operable to generate a Diameter charging request, to insert the transaction data in the Diameter charging request, and to transmit the Diameter charging request to the IMS network.

14. The IMS device of claim 13 wherein:

the Diameter interface is further operable to receive a Diameter charging response from the IMS network that includes the authorization data.

15. The IMS device of claim 12 wherein the purchasing data includes at least a credit card number, an expiration date of the credit card, a cardholder name, and a card security code.

16. The IMS device of claim 12 wherein the purchasing data includes at least a debit card number, an expiration date, a cardholder name, card security code, and a PIN.

17. The IMS device of claim 12 wherein the purchasing data includes a scanned image of a credit card, debit card, or bank card.

18. The IMS device of claim 12 wherein:

the purchasing function is further operable to display a menu to the user indicating the available purchasing options based on the purchasing data, and to receive a selection by the user indicating the set of purchasing data that has been selected for the purchase.

19. The IMS device of claim 12 wherein the purchasing function transmits the purchasing data to the point-of-sale device using a Bluetooth connection.

20. The IMS device of claim 12 wherein:

the purchasing function is further operable to receive an electronic receipt of the financial transaction from the point-of-sale device, and to store the electronic receipt in a transaction record;

in response to a request to view the transaction record, the purchasing function is further operable to access the transaction record to generate a report of the transactions, and to display the transaction report.