Add-on card with smartcard circuitry powered by a mobile device

• US 8,091,786 B2
• Filed: 05/24/2011
• Issued: 01/10/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: iCashe, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Tyfone Incorporated
• Inventors: Narendra, Siva G., Tadepalli, Prabhakar, Spitzer, Thomas N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Frech, Karl D.
• Application Number:
  US13/114,434
• Publication Number:
  US 20110220726A1
• Time in Patent Office: 231 Days
• Field of Search: 235/380, 235/375, 235/382, 235/492, 235/487, 235/493, 235/451, 235/472.01, 235/462.45, 235/472.02, 235/472.03, 235/379
• US Class Current: 235/451
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06187 with magnetically detectable marking
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06206 the magnetic marking being emulated
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07 with integrated circuit chips
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0703 the battery being onboard of a handheld device, e.g. a smart phone or PDA
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0727 the arrangement being a circuit facilitating integration of the record carrier with a hand-held device such as a smart phone of PDA
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/073 Special arrangements for circuits, e.g. for protecting identification code in memory protection against unauthorised use of computer memory G06F12/14
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07741 comprising a first part operating as a regular record carrier and a second attachable part that changes the functional appearance of said record carrier, e.g. a contact-based smart card with an adapter part which, when attached to the contact card makes the contact card function as a non-contact card
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07758 arrangements for adhering the record carrier to further objects or living beings, functioning as an identification tag
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07762 the adhering arrangement making the record carrier wearable, e.g. having the form of a ring, watch, glove or bracelet record carriers for insertion in the human body for medical purposes A61B90/00; record carriers adapted for attachment to animals A01K11/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0008 General problems related to the reading of electronic memory record carriers, independent of its reading method, e.g. power transfer
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/204 comprising interface for record bearing medium or carrier for electronic funds transfer or payment credit
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/327 Short range or proximity payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/353 Payments by cards read by M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces

Abstract

An electronic transaction card communicates with an add-on slot of an intelligent electronic device. The add-on slot may be a memory card slot. The intelligent electronic device may be a mobile phone or other device with or without network connectivity. The electronic transaction card may have magnetic field producing circuitry compatible with magnetic card readers, smartcard circuitry, other point-of-sale interfaces, or any combination thereof.

Claims

1. An add-on card compatible with an add-on slot in a mobile phone, the add-on card including smartcard circuitry accessible by the mobile phone, the smartcard circuitry including a point-of-sale interface to communicate with a point-of-sale terminal, wherein the point-of-sale interface receives power from the mobile phone.

2. The add-on card of claim 1 wherein the point-of-sale interface comprises circuitry to produce at least one time-varying magnetic field.

3. The add-on card of claim 2 further comprising memory accessible by the mobile phone.

4. The add-on card of claim 1 wherein the point-of-sale interface includes circuitry compatible with a hybrid smartcard reader.

5. The add-on card of claim 1 further comprising memory accessible by the mobile phone.

6. The add-on card of claim 1 further including software to be installed on the mobile phone.

7. An apparatus for performing a financial transaction comprising:

means for communicating through an add-on slot in an intelligent electronic device;

means for producing at least one time-varying magnetic field to represent financial transaction data, wherein the means for producing receives power from the add-on slot; and

means for storing the financial transaction data.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 further including software to be installed on the intelligent electronic device.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the software is configured to run on a mobile phone.

10. The apparatus of claim 7 further comprising nonvolatile memory accessible through the means for communicating through an add-on slot.

11. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein the means for producing at least one time-varying magnetic field includes circuitry compatible with a hybrid smartcard reader.

12. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein the means for producing at least one time-varying magnetic field includes smartcard circuitry.

13. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein the means for communicating through an add-on slot comprises a capacitor to be charged and to power the means for producing at least one time-varying magnetic field.

14. An electronic transaction card comprising:

an add-on slot interface compatible with an add-on slot in a mobile phone; and

circuitry powered by the add-on slot interface for producing a signal compatible with a card reader.

15. The electronic transaction card of claim 14 further comprising nonvolatile memory accessible via the add-on slot interface.

16. The electronic transaction card of claim 14 wherein the circuitry for producing a signal compatible with a card reader includes circuitry compatible with a hybrid smartcard reader.

17. The electronic transaction card of claim 14 wherein the circuitry for producing a signal compatible with a card reader includes smartcard circuitry.

18. The electronic transaction card of claim 14 further comprising software to be transferred to a device other than the electronic transaction card.

19. The electronic transaction card of claim 14 further comprising a capacitor to be charged by the add-on slot interface and to supply power to the electronic transaction card.

20. The electronic transaction card of claim 14 further comprising a battery to be charged by the add-on slot interface and to supply power to the electronic transaction card.