Electronic money transaction system with a radio transmitter and receiver using a portable telephone

• US 6,536,661 B1
• Filed: 12/14/1999
• Issued: 03/25/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 09/18/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Matsumoto, Kenji, Takami, Yutaka, Itoh, Shigeyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Michael G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): St. Cyr, Daniel
• Application Number:
  US09/459,852
• Time in Patent Office: 1,197 Days
• Field of Search: 235/379, 235/378, 235/377, 235/382, 235/384, 235/385, 235/449, 235/493, 902/4, 902/10, 705/39, 705/41, 705/42
• US Class Current: 235/379
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/06 Private payment circuits, e.g. involving electronic currency used among participants of a common payment scheme
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/065 using e-cash
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/322 Aspects of commerce using mobile devices [M-devices]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3226 Use of secure elements separate from M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/04 comprising devices to free a barrier, turnstile, or the like turnstiles with registering means G07C9/10; coin-freed aspects G07F17/00

Abstract

A terminal 2 held by the user is provided with a radio transmitter and receiver 3. Electronic money information is transferred via the radio transmitter and receiver 3. By using a portable telephone, it is unnecessary to directly insert an IC card 1 into service supply equipment 17. In addition to the service supply equipment 17, a device 9 for storing electronic money information in a lump is provided. Since the electronic money information is transferred into the device 9 for storing the electronic money information in a lump, it is unnecessary to collect the electronic money information stored in terminals one by one.

Claims

1. An electronic money transaction device useable with an IC card storing electronic money information, and a portable telephone which transmits and receives electronic information to/from outside by using electromagnetic waves for performing transactions of the electronic money information in said IC card, said electronic money transaction device comprising:

a transmitter and receiver which transmits a signal indicating a specific service to a service supply equipment, and transmits at least one of an ID information identifying the electronic money transaction device and an ID information identifying the IC card;

an electronic money store which stores at least electronic money information concerning the electronic information transmitted and received via the transmitter and receiver;

said service supply equipment being operated by said signal indicating the specific service, based upon at least one of the received ID information identifying the electronic money transaction device and the received ID information identifying the IC card, including;

a time information generator which starts to generate a time information when said specific service indicated by the signal is started;

a memory which stores the generated time information; and

a processing unit which counts the amount of money to be paid for said specific service based on the generated time information;

wherein said ID information is payer discriminating information transmitted by said portable telephone.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the electronic money store and the service supply equipment are separately provided.

3. The device according to claim 1, comprising:

a user prompter to prompt an operator of the electronic money transaction device to perform an operation at least once to show desire of receiving the service from the service supply equipment before completion of the transaction of the electronic money.

4. The device according to claim 3, comprising:

a display which prompts the operator to perform the operation to show the desire of receiving the service.

5. The device according to claim 4, wherein after the operator performs the operation to show the desire of receiving the service, the electronic money store receives electronic information indicative of the operation via said portable telephone, and the electronic money store generates a confirmation signal indicative of receipt of the electronic information indicative of the operation.

6. The device according to claim 5, comprising:

a confirmation signal display which displays the confirmation signal showing the receipt of the electronic information indicative of the operation.

7. The device according to claim 6, the confirmation signal display is provided at a position so that the operator to receive the service of the service supply equipment can discriminate the service contents.

8. The device according to claim 3, comprising:

a display provided at a position so that the operator to receive the service of the service supply equipment can discriminate the service contents.

9. The device according to claim 8, wherein the promptor has an input unit of a character string, a number, or a code, wherein said character string, number, or code is displayed on the display, and the operator may input the displayed character string, number, or code from an input means, thereby performing the operation to show the desire of receiving the service.

10. The device according to claim 1, wherein said ID information is unique information stored in said portable telephone.

11. The device according to claim 1, wherein said ID information is an unique number stored in said IC card.

12. An electronic money transaction device useable with a first IC card storing electronic money information, a first transmitter and receiver that is connected to the first IC card and transmits and receives the electronic money information via wireless communications, and a second IC card which records the electronic money information that passed through a connecting unit, comprising:

a second transmitter and receiver for transmitting and receiving the electronic money information via the first transmitter and receiver;

a terminal for controlling transfer of the electronic money information via the second transmitter and receiver;

the connecting unit for passing the electronic money information from the terminal;

wherein the first IC card has a memory for storing electronic information of the first IC card, the electronic information in the first IC card memory is transferred to the terminal via the first transmitter and receiver and the second transmitter and receiver, the terminal has a passing means for transmitting the electronic information of the first IC card which passed the first transmitter and receiver to the second IC card via the second transmitter and receiver and specific electronic information which is recorded in a memory for verification of permissible IC cards is compared with the electronic information sent from the first IC card, and when a verification condition is satisfied in the comparison, the electronic money information is transferred from the second IC card to the first IC card;

wherein the electronic money information is transferred from the first IC card to the second IC card irrespective of the result of the comparison of the electronic information sent from the first IC card with the electronic information recorded in the second IC card.

13. The device according to claim 12, wherein the electronic money information sent from the first IC card is compared with the electronic information recorded in the second IC card by an information processing unit in the second IC card for controlling the second IC card.

14. The device according to claim 13, wherein a portable telephone terminal has particular information, the particular information is sent from the portable telephone terminal, and a service supply equipment manages supply of service on the basis of the particular information.

15. The device according to claim 14, wherein the portable telephone terminal has particular information, the particular information is sent from the portable telephone terminal, the service supply equipment is provided with means for generating time information, the device comprising time storing means for storing the particular information sent and the time information as an output from the time information generating means, and the service supply equipment records the information into the time storing means, thereby managing the service supply.

16. The device according to claim 12, wherein said specific electronic information recorded in said memory is recorded in said second IC card.

17. An electronic money transaction device useable with a first IC card in which electronic money information is stored, a first transmitter and receiver that is connected to the first IC card and transmits and receives the electronic money information via wireless communications, and a second IC card which records the electronic money information passed through a connecting unit, comprising:

a second transmitter and receiver for transmitting and receiving the electronic money information via the first transmitter and receiver;

a terminal for controlling transfer of the electronic money information via the second transmitter and receiver;

the connecting unit for passing the electronic money information from the terminal;

wherein the first IC card has a memory for storing coded electronic information of the first IC card, the coded electronic information in the first IC card memory is transferred to the terminal via the first transmitter and receiver and the second transmitter and receiver, the terminal has a decoding and passing means for decoding the coded electronic information of the first IC card that passed through the transmitter and receiver and transmitting decoded electronic information of the first IC card to the second IC card via the second transmitter and receiver, specific electronic information which is recorded in a memory for verification of permissible IC cards is compared with the electronic information sent from the first IC card, and when a verification condition is satisfied in the comparison, the electronic money information is transferred from the second IC card to the first IC card;

wherein the electronic money information is transferred from the first IC card to the second IC card irrespective of the result of the comparison of the electronic information sent from the first IC card with the electronic information recorded in the second IC card.

18. The device according to claim 17, comprising:

means for specifying a location of a first communicating means; and

said service supply equipment further having means for storing the specified location of said first communicating means in said storage means, thereby managing the service supply with said specified location.

19. The device according to claim 17, wherein said specific electronic information recorded in said memory is recorded in said second IC card.

20. An electronic money transaction device useable with an IC card storing electronic money information, and a portable telephone which transmits and receives electronic information to/from outside by using electromagnetic waves for performing transactions of the electronic money information in said IC card, said electronic money transaction device comprising:

a transmitter and receiver which transmits a signal indicating a specific service to a service supply equipment, and transmits at least one of an ID information identifying the electronic money transaction device and an ID information identifying the IC card;

an electronic money store which stores at least electronic money concerned in the electronic information transmitted and received via said transmitter and receiver;

said service supply equipment having a gate operated by said signal indicating the specific service, and is operated based upon at least one of the received ID information identifying the electronic money transaction device and the received ID information identifying the IC card, said service supply equipment comprising;

a time information generator which starts to generate time information when said specific service indicated by said signal is started;

a memory which stores said the generated time information; and

a processing unit which counts the amount of money to be paid for said specific service based on the generated time information, and operates said gate based upon said signal indicating said specific service and at least said one of an ID information identifying said electronic money transaction device and said ID information identifying said IC card;

wherein said ID information is a payer discriminating information transmitted by said portable telephone.

21. The device according to claim 20, wherein said ID information is unique information stored in said portable telephone.

22. The device according to claim 20, wherein said ID information is an unique number stored in said IC card.