Secured transaction using color coded account identifiers

• US 7,896,238 B2
• Filed: 04/03/2007
• Issued: 03/01/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/03/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Xylon LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Intellectual Ventures Holding 32 LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Merritt, Edward, Fein, Gene S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kim; Ahshik
• Application Number:
  US11/695,984
• Publication Number:
  US 20080245861A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,428 Days
• Field of Search: 235/379, 235/380, 705/14.17, 705/14.18
• US Class Current: 235/380
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3278 RFID or NFC payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/342 Cards defining paid or billed services or quantities
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/352 Contactless payments by cards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40 Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentials; Review and approval of payers, e.g. check credit lines or negative lists
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/025 by means, e.g. cards, providing billing information at the time of purchase, e.g. identification of seller or purchaser, quantity of goods delivered or to be delivered
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/086 by passive credit-cards adapted therefor, e.g. constructive particularities to avoid counterfeiting, e.g. by inclusion of a physical or chemical security-layer for security documents G07D7/00; for the reading of record-carriers in general G06K7/00; for the design of coded credit-cards G06K19/10
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/122 Online card verification

Abstract

A method and system provides coded access to a transactional or other type of system by acquiring account identification data corresponding to a combination of a plurality of colors. The account identification data is transmitted to, for example, a remote server to correlate the account identification data against an account database to evaluate corresponding account information. Based on the account information, access to the transactional or other type of system may be controlled.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving account identification data corresponding to a twelve color array of colors;

correlating the account identification data against an account database to evaluate corresponding account information; and

controlling access to a transactional system based on the evaluated account information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the account identification data comprises audio data stored on an identification card.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the transactional system comprises a credit card system, a debit card system, or a banking system.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the twelve color array of colors is selected from a range of multiple thousands to multiple millions of individual colors.

5. A method, comprising:

acquiring account identification data comprising a series of sounds, wherein the account identification data corresponds to a combination of colors appearing on an account card, and wherein the series of sounds corresponds to the combination of colors;

comparing the account identification data against an account database to confirm a corresponding account; and

controlling access to the corresponding account based on the account identification data.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein each sound of the series of sounds corresponds to a color of the combination of colors.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the series of sounds comprises voice data stored on the account card.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the series of sounds comprises audio tones stored on the account card.

9. The method of claim 5, further comprising optically scanning the combination of colors from the account card.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising converting the optically scanned combination of colors into the series of sounds.

11. The method of claim 5, further comprising receiving color selection information from a user interface, wherein the color selection corresponds to the combination of colors.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the user interface comprises a graphical user interface.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the user interface comprises a voice activated interface.

14. A tangible computer readable medium having stored therein computer executable instructions that, in response to being executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to perform operations comprising:

identifying account identification data corresponding to a plurality of colors appearing on an identification card, wherein the plurality of colors uniquely identify an account corresponding to the account identification data;

correlating the account identification data against an account database to confirm the corresponding account; and

controlling access to the corresponding account based on the account identification data.

15. The computer readable medium of claim 14, further comprising acquiring the account identification data as a series of sounds stored on the identification card, wherein the series of sounds uniquely identifies the account.

16. An identification card comprising:

account identification data, wherein the account identification data comprises a number of colors that appears on the identification card, wherein the number of colors corresponds to a number of characters associated with an account, and wherein the account identification data uniquely identifies the account in an account database to validate a transaction associated with the identification card.

17. The identification card of claim 16, further comprising audio data stored on the identification card as machine readable information, wherein the machine readable information also uniquely identifies the account.

18. The identification card of claim 16, wherein the characters comprise an account number that uniquely identifies the account.

19. A system for conducting a transaction comprising:

means for acquiring account identification data, wherein the account identification data corresponds to a number of colors appearing on an account card, and wherein the number of colors equals a number of characters associated with an account;

means for transmitting the account identification data;

means for receiving confirmation that the account identification data correlates to the account; and

means for receiving authorization to complete the transaction.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising means for storing the account identification data as audio data on the account card, wherein either of the stored audio data or the number of colors uniquely identifies the account.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein the characters comprise a number of digits that uniquely identifies the account.

22. A system, comprising:

an acquisition unit configured to acquire account identification data during a transaction, wherein the account identification data is stored on a card as audio data, wherein the account identification data corresponds to a plurality of colors displayed on the card, and wherein the acquisition unit is configured to transmit the account identification data;

an account database configured to store account information; and

a transaction unit configured to correlate the account identification data against the account database to confirm the corresponding account information in the account database, and wherein the transaction unit is further configured to authorize completion of the transaction.

23. The system of claim 22, further comprising an audio acquisition device configured to process the account identification data, wherein the account identification data comprises voice data.

24. The system of claim 22, further comprising an optical scanner configured to acquire the account identification data by identifying the plurality of colors on the card, wherein the plurality of colors uniquely identify an account associated with the account information in the account database.

25. The system of claim 24, further comprising a look up table that correlates the audio data to the plurality of colors, wherein the acquisition unit is further configured to convert the plurality of colors acquired from the optical scanner into the audio data.

26. The system of claim 22, further comprising a conversion look up table that associates the audio data with the plurality of colors, wherein the transaction unit is further configured to convert the audio data into the plurality of colors using the conversion look up table.

27. A method, comprising:

receiving audio information corresponding to a plurality of colors, wherein the plurality of colors are displayed on an identification card;

correlating the audio information against an account database to confirm corresponding account information; and

controlling access to a transactional system based on the account information.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein individual labels for the plurality of colors are provided on the identification card.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the individual labels provide a written description of the plurality of colors.

30. The method of claim 27, wherein the audio information is stored on a magnetic strip of the identification card.