Method for controlling a machine dispensing good and charging of goods thus dispensed

• US 7,720,709 B1
• Filed: 09/28/2000
• Issued: 05/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: T-Mobile Deutschland GmbH (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: T-Mobile Deutschland GmbH (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Michel, Uwe, Reindl, Johann, Ljungström, Patrik, Schmickler, Leonhard, Langer, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Refai; Ramsey
• Application Number:
  US10/089,253
• Time in Patent Office: 3,519 Days
• Field of Search: 705/16, 705/53, 705/64
• US Class Current: 705/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/18 involving self-service terminals [SST], vending machines, kiosks or multimedia terminals
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/28 Pre-payment schemes, e.g. "pay before"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/322 Aspects of commerce using mobile devices [M-devices]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/363 with the personal data of a user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0866 by active credit-cards adapted therefor G07F7/1008 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/001 Interfacing with vending machines using mobile or wearable devices
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/002 Vending machines being part of a centrally controlled network of vending machines

Abstract

A method for controlling and operating a vending machine that incorporates a mobile radiocommunication transmit/receive unit and can be called from a user'"'"'s mobile telephone unit over a mobile telephone network via an abbreviated mobile telephone number affixed on the vending machine. The method includes, upon receipt of a call from the user'"'"'s mobile telephone unit to the abbreviated mobile telephone number on the vending machine, establishing a connection to a bank and determining if the user has an account at that bank, and if so, whether there are sufficient funds in the user'"'"'s account, if the user has an account and there are sufficient funds, prompting, via the vending machine, the user to select a merchandise item, after the merchandise item has been dispensed, generating, a billing entry in the vending machine, and settling the billing entry via a payment gateway, the step of settling comprising accessing a mini-payment account the user has opened with a bank, and determining the mini-payment account number based on the user'"'"'s mobile telephone number.

Claims

1. A method for controlling and operating a vending machine when a user has an account at a bank and there are sufficient funds in the user'"'"'s account, the vending machine incorporating a mobile radiocommunication transmit/receive unit and configured to be called from the user'"'"'s mobile telephone unit over a mobile telephone network via an abbreviated mobile telephone number affixed on the vending machine, comprising:

upon receipt of a call from the user'"'"'s mobile telephone unit to the abbreviated mobile telephone number on the vending machine, establishing a connection to the bank,

prompting, via the vending machine, the user to select a merchandise item,

after the merchandise item has been dispensed, generating a billing entry in the vending machine,

settling the billing entry via a payment gateway, the step of settling comprising accessing the user'"'"'s account, and determining the account number based on the user'"'"'s mobile telephone number,

issuing a request to the payment gateway, with a reference to the vending machine, to reserve a certain maximum amount from the account of the user who has been uniquely identified based on his telephone number,

determining the actual telephone number of the vending machine in an intelligent-network control point,

establishing a connection from the intelligent-network control point to the payment gateway,

making the reservation of the certain maximum amount with the reference to the telephone number of the vending machine,

positively acknowledging the reservation in the intelligent-network control point,

holding the reserved amount unavailable for other payments until the reserved amount has been cleared,

if an acknowledgement from the payment gateway is positive, informing, via the intelligent-network control point, a mobile switching center of an unabridged telephone number for the vending machine,

establishing a voice connection, via the mobile switching center, to the vending machine,

identifying, in the vending machine, from the ISDN signal, the telephone number of the user, and

wherein the step of prompting the user, via the vending machine, to select the merchandise item comprises prompting the user in such a way that the user communicates with the automatic vending machine via his mobile telephone unit,

wherein after the user is prompted to select a merchandise item, the GSM connection between the user and vending machine is initiated by the vending machine,

wherein when the user presses a selection button, the selected merchandise item is dispensed, and

wherein the step of generating a billing entry comprises causing the vending machine to generate an electronic billing entry.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein charging for the dispensed merchandise item takes place by combining standard IN traffic control with standard Internet payment systems.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the billing entry includes the vending machine telephone number, the GSM user'"'"'s telephone number, a merchandise identification and the price.

4. A method according to claim 1, further comprising transmitting the billing entry by the vending machine to the payment gateway via a GSM short message or GSM-USSD.

5. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

receiving the electronic billing entry at the payment gateway,

determining, at the payment gateway, based on the GSM telephone number of the user, the account of the user, and

recognizing and clearing, at the payment gateway, based on the vending machine telephone number, the reservation previously made by the intelligent-network service control point,

wherein the step of recognizing and clearing comprises;

debiting the cost of the merchandise item to the user'"'"'s account, and

crediting the cost of the merchandise item to an account of the vending machine operator via a credit entry.

6. A method according to claim 1, further comprising controlling the vending machine by a voice connection.