Card holder-type balance reader

• US 6,016,954 A
• Filed: 02/28/1997
• Issued: 01/25/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Hanyu, Hiroyuki, Urushibara, Atsuhiko, Hoshino, Takeshi, Ohki, Masayuki, Abe, Yuhei
• Primary Examiner(s): Pitts, Harold I.
• Application Number:
  US08/808,832
• Time in Patent Office: 1,061 Days
• Field of Search: 235/379, 235/380
• US Class Current: 235/379
• 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: 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 card holder provides a balance reader for an IC card utilized for a system for settling cash utilizing the IC card. The balance reader is provided with the card holder-type body having a card slot provided in the body. A liquid-crystal display and at least one push-button are arranged on the body for user interface. A cover member is attached to the body via a hinge so that it can be opened or closed. When an IC card is inserted into the body and the push-button is pressed, the liquid-crystal display is lit and the current balance of currency is displayed on the liquid-crystal display. When the cover member is opened and the IC card is extracted, the display of the balance is switched to a blinking display. When a settlement is performed using the IC card, a microcomputer in the body can operate to display the balance after the settlement as well as a paid or received amount, in addition to the previous balance before the settlement.

Claims

1. A card holder-type balance display, comprising:

a body for housing a card having recorded information of an electronic currency;

a screen for displaying said information recorded in said card, said screen being arranged on said body;

a cover member arranged on said body so as to be opened or closed to permit insertion and extraction of the card into and from the body;

a detector for detecting a condition whether said cover member is opened or closed; and

a microcomputer located in said body for communicating with said card via a terminal,

wherein said microcomputer further comprises;

a first storing area for storing a first balance recorded in said card before a financial settlement using said card; and

a control unit to control a display on said screen to display the balance during a predetermined time when said cover member is opened.

3. A card holder-type balance display according to claim 1, wherein said microcomputer further includes a second storing area for storing a second balance recorded in said card after the settlement, an operating unit based upon said first balance and said second balance, and a control unit to control a display on said screen to display the result when the card is re-inserted in said body.

9. A card holder-type balance display according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the display on the screen to display the balance as a blinking display for a second predetermined time when said card is extracted from said body.

2. A card holder-type balance display, comprising:

a body for housing a card having recorded information of an electronic currency;

a screen for displaying said information recorded in said card, said screen being arranged on said body; and

a microcomputer located in said body for communicating with said card via a terminal,

wherein said microcomputer further comprises;

a first storing area for storing a first balance recorded in said card before a financial settlement using said card; and

a control unit to control a display on said screen to display the balance during a predetermined time when said card is extracted from said body.

4. A card holder-type balance display according to claim 2, wherein said microcomputer further includes a second storing area for storing a second balance recorded in said card after the settlement, an operating unit based upon said first balance and said second balance, and a control unit to control a display on said screen to display the result when the card is re-inserted into said body.

7. A card holder-type balance display according to claim 2, wherein the control unit operates to control the display to operate as a blinking display during the predetermined time when the card is extracted from said body.

5. A card holder-type balance display, comprising:

a body for housing a card having recorded information of an electronic currency;

a screen for displaying said information recorded in said card, said screen being arranged on said body;

a cover member arranged on said body so as to be opened or closed to permit insertion and extraction of the card into and from the body;

a detector for detecting a condition whether said cover member is opened or closed; and

a microcomputer located in said body for communicating with said card via a terminal;

wherein said microcomputer further comprises;

a first storing area for storing a first balance recorded in said card before a financial settlement using said card; and

a second storing area for storing a second balance recorded in said card after the settlement; and

a control unit to control a display on said screen to display the balance during a predetermined time when said cover member is opened, and to display the operating result based upon said first balance and said second balance only if a card inserted in the body before the settlement and a card inserted in the body after the settlement are identical.

8. A card holder-type balance display according to claim 5, wherein the control unit operates to control the display to operate as a blinking display during the predetermined time when the card is extracted from said body.

10. A card holder-type balance display according to claim 5, wherein the control unit controls the display on the screen to display the balance as a blinking display for a second predetermined time when said card is extracted from said body.

6. A card holder-type balance display, comprising:

a body for housing a card having recorded information of an electronic currency;

a screen for displaying said information recorded in said card, said screen being arranged on said body; and

a microcomputer located in said body for communicating with said card via a terminal,

wherein said microcomputer further comprises;

a first storing area for storing a first balance recorded in said card before a financial settlement using said card; and

a second storing area for storing a second balance recorded in said card after the settlement; and

a control unit to control a display on said screen to display the balance during a predetermined time when said card is extracted from said body and to display the operating result based upon said first balance and said second balance only if a card inserted in the body before the settlement and a card inserted in the body after the settlement are identical.