Controlled offer redemption system

• US 7,877,289 B1
• Filed: 08/12/2005
• Issued: 01/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cunningham Electronics Corp.
• Original Assignee: Cunningham Electronics Corp.
• Inventors: White, Richard W., Cunningham, William R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Weiss; John G
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hamilton; Matthew L
• Application Number:
  US11/202,768
• Time in Patent Office: 1,992 Days
• Field of Search: 705/14, 705/14.26
• US Class Current: 705/14.26
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0225 Avoiding frauds
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions

Abstract

A controlled offer redemption system used to validate, verify, and redeem manufacturers'"'"' offers, retailers'"'"' offers, and cooperative offers, to restrict the redemption of retailers'"'"' offers and cooperative offers to particular retailers, and to authenticate the offer redemption transactions. The system is a closed system in a controlled environment. The system includes a master registry where offers are registered, an offer redemption terminal in communication with a retailer'"'"'s point-of-sale (“POS”) system, a store portal and an offer clearinghouse. The store portal communicates with the registry to maintain an updated database of valid offers. The POS system communicates with the offer redemption terminal to validate and verify offers presented for redemption. The offer redemption terminal includes a means to generate an encrypted identifier (“token”) which is unique to each offer redemption transaction. The encrypted token is attached to the purchase event transaction, and the purchase event transaction (including the token) is transmitted to the offer clearinghouse. The clearinghouse independently recreates the token based on the offer redemption record and the purchase event transaction log and authenticates the transaction as having originated under the controlled conditions imposed by the system, which includes destruction of the redeemed offer and limited redemption of retailers'"'"' and cooperative offers to the authorized retailer(s).

Claims

1. A controlled offer redemption system for the redemption of an offer, the offer having at least one redemption requirement, the system comprising:

an offer registry;

a point of sale system, the point of sale system having at least one store portal and configured to generate a transaction log during a product purchase transaction;

an offer redemption terminal; and

an offer clearinghouse;

wherein the offer redemption terminal is configured to generate an initial token, the initial token based on and comprising data generated by the point of sale system during the purchase transaction, and wherein the offer clearinghouse is configured to create a regenerated token and to compare said regenerated token with said initial token to authenticate an offer redemption transaction, and wherein the at least one store portal is configured to compare the offer against the offer registry to validate the offer, to compare the at least one redemption requirement to the transaction log to verify that the at least one redemption requirement has been satisfied, and to verify that said offer is being redeemed through a retailer properly authorized to redeem said offer.

2. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 1 wherein the offer clearinghouse is stored in a central data center.

3. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 1 wherein said offer registry comprises an electronic database of offers stored on a computer.

4. The controlled offer redemption system of the claim 3 wherein said electronic database of offers comprises at least one database record comprising identifying information regarding at least one offer.

5. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 4 wherein said at least one database record comprising identifying information regarding at least one offer further comprises:

an offer product family item code;

an offer product identification number;

an offer product family code;

an offer product value code;

an offer issue number;

an offer start date;

an offer expiration date; and

an identification of at least one retailer authorized to redeem said offer.

6. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 1 wherein said point of sale system comprises at least one point of sale system controller and at least one point of sale terminal, the at least one store portal in communication with said point of sale system controller.

7. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 6 wherein said point of sale system controller is configured to maintain a copy of said offer registry.

8. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 7 wherein said point of sale system controller is configured to update said copy of said offer registry.

9. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 6 wherein said at least one point of sale terminal is configured to communicate with said offer redemption terminal.

10. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 1 wherein said offer redemption terminal comprises:

a microprocessor;

a laser scanner;

an offer detector;

an alert device;

a direct current motor control;

a direct current motor connected to an offer destruction device; and

an interface to said point of sale system,

wherein the offer redemption system is configured to monitor the destruction of an offer, and wherein the offer redemption system is configured to store data comprising a hardware configuration.

11. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 1 wherein said offer redemption terminal is configured to read and decode barcode data on an offer.

12. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 11 wherein said offer redemption terminal is further configured to communicate said barcode data to said point of sale system.

13. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 12 wherein said offer redemption terminal is further configured to permanently destroy said offer.

14. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 12 wherein said offer redemption terminal further comprises a shredder configured to permanently destroy said offer.

15. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 13 wherein said offer redemption terminal is further configured to generate said initial token only after said offer is permanently destroyed.

16. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 1 wherein said offer redemption terminal and said offer clearinghouse are configured to generate said initial token and said regenerated token using a mathematical algorithm based on data collected during the redemption of said offer.

17. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 16 wherein said mathematical algorithm based on data collected during the redemption of said offer comprises a plurality of variables.

18. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 17 wherein said plurality of variables comprises:

a manufacturer'"'"'s Uniform Code Council number;

a manufacturer'"'"'s offer family code;

a manufacturer'"'"'s offer value code;

a manufacturer'"'"'s offer issue number;

a retailer'"'"'s Uniform Code Council number;

a retailer'"'"'s division number;

a retailer'"'"'s store number;

a current transaction date; and

,

a current transaction number.

19. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 1 wherein said offer clearinghouse is configured to communicate with said point of sale system through said at least one store portal.

20. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 19 wherein said offer clearinghouse system is further configured to communicate with said offer registry.

21. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 20 wherein said offer clearinghouse is further configured to authenticate, validate and verify said offer.

22. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 21 wherein said offer clearinghouse is further configured to compare said offer against said offer registry and to compare said at least one redemption requirement of said offer to said transaction log to authenticate, validate and verify said offer.

23. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 22 wherein said offer clearinghouse is further configured to segregate offers which cannot be authenticated, verified, or validated.

24. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 1 wherein said offer clearinghouse is configured to create a manufacturer'"'"'s invoice.

25. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 1 wherein said offer clearinghouse is configured to create a retailer'"'"'s statement.

26. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 1 wherein said offer clearinghouse is configured to automate payment from a manufacturer to a retailer for said manufacturer'"'"'s offer redemption transactions.

27. The controlled offer redemption system of claim 24, 25, or 26 wherein said offer clearinghouse is configured to generate a ledger.

28. A method for verifying, validating, and authenticating manufacturers, retailers'"'"', and cooperative offer redemption transactions comprising the steps of:

providing an offer registry stored as a database on a computer, the offer registry having at least one offer, the offer having at least one redemption requirement;

validating an offer presented to a redeeming retailer by comparing said presented offer to said offer registry;

verifying said presented offer by comparing said at least one redemption requirement of said offer against a transaction log generated from a product purchase transaction and by comparing said redeeming retailer of said presented offer to a database of authorized retailers;

offer redemption terminal permanently destroying said presented offer after said presented offer is validated and verified, the offer redemption terminal configured to permanently destroy said presented offer so that said presented offer cannot be reused;

the offer redemption terminal generating an initial token after said presented offer is permanently destroyed, the initial token based upon and comprising data generated by the point of sale system during the purchase transaction;

offer clearinghouse creating a regenerated token; and

authenticating said offer redemption transaction by comparing said initial token and said regenerated token.

29. The method according to claim 28 further comprising the steps of:

generating a manufacturer'"'"'s invoice;

generating a retailer'"'"'s statement; and

automating payment from a manufacturer to a retailer for said offer redemption transactions.