Electronic payment system, a recording medium recording an electronic payment program and an electronic payment apparatus

• US 7,788,185 B2
• Filed: 08/06/2004
• Issued: 08/31/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Frontech Limited (Fujitsu Limited)
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Frontech Limited (Fujitsu Limited)
• Inventors: Kashiwada, Takeshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Elisca; Pierre Eddy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kamal; Shahid
• Application Number:
  US10/913,237
• Publication Number:
  US 20050038742A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,216 Days
• Field of Search: 705 64- 79, 705/27, 705/51, 713/156, 713/159, 713/172, 340/571
• US Class Current: 705/77
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/027 involving a payment switch or gateway
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/085 involving remote charge determination or related payment systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3674 involving authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3821 Electronic credentials
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3829 involving key management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/42 for ticket printing or like apparatus , e.g. apparatus for dispensing of printed paper tickets or payment cards

Abstract

The computer of a relay agency holds the money which a buyer pays for a commodity in a relay account. Then, the computer of the relay agency makes a payment transfer card and a notification card, and sends the notification card together with the request of purchase of the commodity to a seller. The relay agency sends the payment transfer card to the buyer. The buyer, after receiving the commodity, inserts the payment transfer card and the notification card into an automated teller machine of a bank, and gives instructions on the payment transaction to the computer of the relay agency. The computer of the relay agency transfers the money for the commodity from the relay account to the seller'"'"'s account.

Claims

1. An apparatus used in an electronic payment system in which a buyer of a commodity pays money for the commodity to a seller of the commodity via a relay agency, the apparatus including a computer of the relay agency comprising:

a holding device holding the money for the commodity that the buyer has paid in a relay account to be established every time a transaction is conducted;

a card issue device issuing a payment transfer card to the buyer recording a relay account number into which the buyer pays money, a payment account number of the seller, and a notification card certification data, and a notification card to the seller recording comparison data for comparing with the notification card certification data of the payment transfer card;

a receiving device receiving data, transmitted from a teller machine, recorded on the payment transfer card and the notification card; and

a payment device paying the money for the commodity from the relay account to the seller'"'"'s account when receiving a comparison results that the notification card certification data of the payment transfer card matches the comparison data of the notification card;

wherein

when the payment transfer card and the notification card are inserted into the teller machine to pay the money for the commodity, the teller machine determines whether or not the notification card certification data of the payment transfer card matches the comparison data of the notification card, and transmits the determination result to the computer of the relay agency.

2. The apparatus used in an electronic payment system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a transmission device in the teller machine reading the information stored in the payment transfer card and the notification card when the buyer or a recipient designated by the buyer inserts the payment transfer card and the notification card into the teller machine, and transmitting the read information to the computer of the relay agency;

wherein the receiving device of the computer in the relay agency receives the information in the payment transfer card and the notification card which is transmitted from the teller machine.

3. The apparatus used in an electronic payment system according to claim 1, wherein when the seller sends a transaction nonperformance notification to the relay agency, the payment device cancels the repayment of the money for the commodity to the buyer or the payment on credit from the relay account.

4. The apparatus used in an electronic payment system according to claim 1, wherein when the payment device receives the suspension of a transaction from the buyer before the buyer receives a commodity dispatch notification from the seller, the payment device repays the money for the commodity from the relay account to the buyer'"'"'s account or cancels the payment on credit.

5. The apparatus used in an electronic payment system according to claim 1, wherein when the payment device does not receive a commodity dispatch notification from the seller by a designated date, the payment device automatically repays the money for the commodity to the buyer'"'"'s account from the relay account, or cancels the payment on credit.

6. The apparatus used in an electronic payment system according to claim 1, wherein the payment device automatically transfers the money for the commodity from the relay account to the seller'"'"'s account in a specific period of time after the commodity is sent.

7. The apparatus used in an electronic payment system according to claim 1, wherein when the payment device receives a commodity return notification from the buyer or the recipient, the payment device suspends the payment of the money for the commodity from the relay account to the seller'"'"'s account, and when the return of the commodity to the seller is confirmed, the payment device repays the money for the commodity from the relay account to the buyer'"'"'s account, or cancels the payment on credit.

8. The apparatus used in an electronic payment system according to claim 1, wherein the electronic payment system has a device which sends the notification card to the seller, and which sends the payment transfer card to the buyer or the recipient.

9. A computer readable recording medium which records an electronic payment program by which a buyer pays money for a commodity to a seller via a relay agency, the electronic payment program including the steps comprising:

holding the buyer'"'"'s money for the commodity in the relay account to be established every time a transaction is conducted;

issuing a payment transfer card to the buyer recording a relay account number into which the buyer pays money, a payment account number of the seller, and a notification card certification data, and a notification card to the seller recording comparison data for comparing with the notification card certification data of the payment transfer card;

receiving data, transmitted from a teller machine, recorded on the payment transfer card and the notification card; and

paying the money for the commodity from the relay account to the seller'"'"'s account when receiving a comparison result that the notification card certification data of the payment transfer card matches the comparison data of the notification card;

wherein

when the payment transfer card and the notification card are inserted into the teller machine to pay the money for the commodity, the teller machine determines whether or not the notification card certification data of the payment transfer card matches the comparison data of the notification card, and transmits the determination result to the computer of the relay agency.

10. An electronic payment program recorded on a computer readable storage medium for enabling a buyer of a commodity to pay the money for a commodity to a seller of the commodity via a relay agency, the electronic payment program including the steps comprising:

holding the money for the commodity that the buyer has paid in a relay account to be established every time a transaction is conducted;

issuing a payment transfer card to the buyer and a notification card in which information necessary to implement the transfer of the money for the commodity by the payment transfer card is recorded to the seller;

receiving the payment transfer card which is sent to the buyer or a recipient designated by the buyer from the relay agency and the information recorded on the notification card which is sent from the seller to the buyer or the recipient; and

paying the money for the commodity from the relay account to the seller'"'"'s account based on the information of the payment transfer card and notification card which are received by the receiving device;

wherein the buyer or the recipient instructs a computer of the relay agency to pay the money for the commodity using the payment transfer card and the notification card after the buyer or the recipient receives the commodity.

11. The electronic payment program according to claim 10, further comprising the steps of reading the information stored in the payment transfer card and the notification card when the payment transfer card and the notification card are inserted by the buyer or a recipient designated by the buyer transmitting the read information from an automated teller machine to the computer of the relay agency, and receiving the information in the payment transfer card and the notification card which is transmitted from the automated teller machine.