Electronic commerce system and electronic commerce method

• US 7,308,424 B2
• Filed: 03/12/2002
• Issued: 12/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Urabe, Akio
• Primary Examiner(s): Zeender; Florian R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Champagne; Luna
• Application Number:
  US10/094,653
• Publication Number:
  US 20020128929A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,100 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705/18, 705/64, 235/379, 235/382
• US Class Current: 705/26.35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0609 Buyer or seller confidence or verification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0613 Third-party assisted
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing

Abstract

A message, including ordering data regarding a price of a product that a purchaser wants to purchase and personal information including a credit card number of the purchaser, is given to a settlement agency computer from a purchaser computer used by the purchaser. The settlement agency computer determines whether to pay for the product for the purchaser, based on the ordering data and the personal information. In a case where it is determined to pay for the product for the purchaser, the settlement agency computer sends settlement permission information representing that payment can be made for the purchaser, to a seller computer used by a seller, while keeping the credit card number to be confidential. Hence, before delivering the product to the purchaser, the settlement is completed, and the credit card number of the purchaser is kept secret from the seller.

Claims

1. A one-time ID (identification) information issuing system to be used in a transaction wherein:

a one-time ID information is issued to a purchaser who has been assigned original ID information for making payments by an original ID information issuer;

the issued one-time ID information is sent to the purchaser and to a payment agency;

the purchaser sends the issued one-time ID information to a seller in a business transaction;

the seller sends the one-time ID information of the purchaser to the payment agency;

the payment agency obtains the original ID information for the purchaser based on the sent one-time ID information and

determines whether to pay to the seller for the business transaction based on the obtained original ID information for the purchaser, and pays to the seller for the business transaction, in a case where it is determined to pay for the business transaction,

said one-time ID information issuing system comprising;

one-time ID information providing means for receiving a purchaser request for one-time ID information, the purchaser request including the original ID information, for checking whether the original ID information included in the purchaser request is valid as to the purchaser submitting the purchaser request, for generating one-time ID information only if it is determined that the original ID information included in the purchaser request is valid as to the purchaser submitting the purchaser request, and for providing thus generated one-time ID information to the purchaser, the one-time ID information providing means also providing the payment agency with the thus generated one-time ID information and the original ID information corresponding to the thus generated one-time ID information in a secure manner.

2. The one-time ID information issuing system according to claim 1, further comprising:

one-time ID-information storage means for storing the one-time ID information provided by the one-time ID information providing means;

one-time storage means for storing the original ID information of the purchaser provided by the one-time ID information providing means; and

means for deleting the one-time ID information stored in said one-time ID-information storage means, in a case where the one-time ID information is used by the payment agency and said payment agency informs that the one-time ID information has been used.

4. The one-time ID information issuing system according to claim 1, wherein the one-time ID information providing means generating the one-time ID information includes means for generating random number information to generate the one-time ID.

3. An electronic commence system including a purchaser system, a one-time ID information issuing system, a seller system, and a payment agency system, wherein,

said purchaser system comprises:

an order data creator configured to create order data and to attach one-time ID information issued by said one-time ID information issuing system;

a recorder configured to write the created order data; and

an order data sender configured to send the created order data with attached one-time ID to said seller system,

said one-time ID information issuing system comprises;

one-time ID information providing means for receiving a purchaser request for one-time ID information, the purchaser request including the original ID information, for checking whether the original ID information included in the purchaser request is valid as to the purchaser system submitting the purchaser request, for generating one-time ID information only if it is determined that the original ID information included in the purchaser request is valid as to the purchaser system submitting the purchaser request, and for providing thus generated one-time ID information to the purchaser system, the one-time ID information providing means also providing the payment agency system with the thus generated one-time ID information and the original ID information corresponding to the thus generated one-time ID information in a secure manner, said seller system comprises;

an order data receiver means for receiving order data with attached one-time ID information from said purchaser system;

a settlement requester means for creating a settlement request message, including the one-time ID information received from the purchaser system, based on the received order data, and to send the created settlement request message to said payment agency system; and

a payment permission issuer means for issuing payment permission to said purchaser system if settlement-permission information is issued by said payment agency system, and

said payment agency system comprises;

a storage means for storing the one-time ID information and the original ID information corresponding to the one-time ID information received from said one-time ID information issuing system;

a settlement request receiver means for receiving the settlement request message from said seller system;

a determiner means for determining whether the settlement request message for the purchase is allowable or not based on the original ID information obtained from said storage means using the one-time ID information in the settlement request message received from said seller system; and

a settlement-permission information issuer means for issuing settlement-permission information to said seller system if said determiner means determines that the requested payment is allowable.

5. The one-time ID information issuing system according to claim 3, wherein the one-time ID information providing means generating the one-time ID information includes means for generating random number information to generate the one-time ID.

6. The one-time ID information issuing system according to claim 3, wherein Internet is used for communications among the purchaser system, the seller system, and one-time ID information issuing system and private line or public network is used for communications between the payment agency system and the seller system, and for communications between the payment agency system and the one-time ID information issuing system.