Memory holder for credit card or the like

• US 5,272,319 A
• Filed: 12/19/1991
• Issued: 12/21/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/1991
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Jean-Yves Rey
• Original Assignee: Jean-Yves Rey
• Inventors: Rey, Jean-Yves
• Primary Examiner(s): Shepperd, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chin, Esther
• Application Number:
  US07/846,491
• Time in Patent Office: 733 Days
• Field of Search: 364/705.01, 364/705.02, 364/705.06, 364/706, 235/379, 235/380, 235/437, 235/381, 235/441, 235/486, 235/482, 235/483, 902/24
• US Class Current: 235/379
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/025 adapted to a specific application
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0021 for reading/sensing record carriers having surface contacts
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/006 the housing being a portable casing
• 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 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0833 Card having specific functional components
• 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

Abstract

A device for holding credit cards, bank cards, charge cards, or any similar type of card is disclosed having a compartment for holding the card, switching elements which are activated by the card, and a warning device that is activated by the switching elements. The holding device also performs calculation via a keypad, a display, a memory, an arithmetic and/or logic processor for keeping track of the financial transactions regarding the use of the card such that before the card is reinserted into the holding device, the warning device alerts the user to update the memory with the latest financial transactions for the card.

Claims

1. Holder for credit card, bank card, charge card, or charge card comprising:

a compartment designed to accommodate said card,

switching means arranged in said compartment for activation by said card, and

warning means activated by the switching means, characterized in that the holder also comprises means (12,41) equipped with a memory of which contents remain in memory even when calculating means are switching off, arithmetical and/or logic means for carrying out, via a keyboard (14, 13, 17,

     34) operations of which the results are recorded in said memory, as well as means (16,18,33) for displaying the contents of the memory, and in that said warning means (28,

     43) are connected to the calculating means (12,

     41) and to the switching means (35,

     38) by a circuit such that the warning means are activated when said card (C), after having been removed from said compartment (39) is re-inserted therein, and are turned off by the input of an operation, via said keyboard (14,

     34) to the memory.

2. Holder as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the memory comprises several registers in which the results of the operations carried out are chronologically recorded and dated according to a clock and a dater associated with the calculating and memory means (12, 41) and in that the holder comprises means for calling and displaying the contents of each of these registers.

3. Holder as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the memory comprises a first register in which the initial amount of an account and a first recording date of this amount are recorded, a second register in which the balance of the account and a second recording date are recorded, and a series of registers in which the amounts and dates of the operations carried out between the first recording date and the second recording date are chronologically recorded.

4. Holder as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the memory comprises a first register in which the initial amount of an account and a first recording date of this amount are recorded, a second register in which the balance of the account and a second recording date are recorded, and a series of registers in which the amounts and dates of the operations carried out between the first recording date and the second recording date are chronologically recorded.

5. Holder as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the memory can only be accessed after a secret code has been entered.

6. Holder as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the memory can only be accessed after a secret code has been entered.

7. Holder as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that the memory can only be accessed after a secret code has been entered.

8. Holder as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that the memory can only be accessed after a secret code has been entered.

9. Holder as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the switching means (35, 38) are at least one of the mechanical and optical type with photocell.

10. Holder as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the switching means (35, 38) are at least one of the mechanical and optical type with photocell.

11. Holder as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that the switching means (35, 38) are at least one of the mechanical and optical type with photocell.

12. Holder as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that the switching means (35, 38) area at least one of the mechanical and optical type with photocell.

13. Holder as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that the switching means (35, 38) are at least one of the mechanical and optical type with photocell.

14. Holder as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that the switching means (35, 38) are at least one of the mechanical and optical type with photocell.

15. Holder as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that the switching means (35, 38) are at least one of the mechanical and optical type with photocell.

16. Holder as claimed in claim 8, characterized in that the switching means (35, 38) are at least one of the mechanical and optical type with photocell.

17. Holder as claimed in claim 1 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

18. Holder as claimed in claim 2 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

19. Holder as claimed in claim 3 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

20. Holder as claimed in claim 4 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

21. Holder as claimed in claim 5 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

22. Holder as claimed in claim 6 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

23. Holder as claimed in claim 7 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

24. Holder as claimed in claim 8 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

25. Holder as claimed in claim 9 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

26. Holder as claimed in claim 10 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

27. Holder as claimed in claim 11 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

28. Holder as claimed in claim 12 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

29. Holder as claimed in claim 13 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

30. Holder as claimed in claim 14 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

31. Holder as claimed in claim 15 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

32. Holder as claimed in claim 16 characterized in that the calculating means and the memory are organized to enable the cancellation of at least one of the operations recorded in memory.

33. Holder for credit card, bank card, or charge card comprising:

a compartment designed to accommodate said card,

switching means arranged in said compartment for activation by said card, and

warning means activated by the switching means, characterized in that the holder comprises qalculating means (12,

     41) equipped with a memory of which contents remain in memory even when the calculating means are switched off, arithmetical and/or logic means for carrying out, via a keyboard (14, 13, 16, 17,

     34) operations of which the results are recorded in said memory, as well as means (16, 18,

     33) for displaying the contents of the memory, and in that said warning means (28,

     43) are connected to the calculating means (12,

     41) and to the switching means (35,

     38) by a circuit such that the warning means are activated either after a certain time interval has elapsed from a removal of the card from its holder, or when the card is re-inserted into its holder.