Magnetic emissive use of preloaded payment card account numbers

• US 8,998,096 B2
• Filed: 04/01/2010
• Issued: 04/07/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fitbit, Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: COIN, Inc (Reynolds & Reynolds Company)
• Inventors: Brown, Kerry D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mai, Thien T
• Application Number:
  US12/752,390
• Publication Number:
  US 20110240745A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,832 Days
• Field of Search: 235/380, 235/492, 235/439, 235/493, 382/115
• US Class Current: 235/492
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06206 the magnetic marking being emulated
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/202 Interconnection or interaction of plural electronic cash registers [ECR] or to host computer, e.g. network details, transfer of information from host to ECR or from ECR to ECR
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/325 using wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/327 Short range or proximity payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/34 using cards, e.g. integrated circuit [IC] cards or magnetic cards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/347 Passive cards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/352 Contactless payments by cards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3829 involving key management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/385 using an alias or single-use codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/409 Device specific authentication in transaction processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 2220/00 Business processing using cryptography
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/084 Additional components relating to data transfer and storing, e.g. error detection, self-diagnosis
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0886 the card reader being portable for interacting with a POS or ECR in realizing a payment transaction

Abstract

A thin-client access card has a card body with partial or fully emissive magnetic data tracks. An emissive element is disposed in the card body under the location of the legacy magnetic data tracks. An electronic signal conditioner converts audio signals from a mobile device into magnetic data applied to the emissive element. A swipe sensor detects when the thin-client access card is being swiped by a legacy card reader, and triggers an output of magnetic data from the emissive element while proximal to the POS reader head. A cable attaches the thin-client access card as a peripheral to the mobile device with an audio output jack.

Claims

1. A payment card system, comprising:

a mobile device; and

a payment card;

wherein the mobile device comprises a Bluetooth transmitter and the mobile device is configured to receive an encrypted account number, decrypt the encrypted account number, and to transmit the decrypted account number via the Bluetooth transmitter to the payment card;

wherein the payment card comprises;

a Bluetooth receiver for receiving the decrypted account number from the mobile device;

a card body with an electromagnetic stripe area;

an emissive inductive loop linearly disposed in the card body along the length of said, and configured for the serial output of dynamic magnetic data with a swipe data signal to spoof a read head of a legacy card reader into accepting the dynamic magnetic data as conventional track data;

a microcontroller configured to convert mobile device into magnetic data for serial output by the emissive element in which serially time encoded electro-magnetic fields are emitted to mimic those of a conventional magnetic recording being swiped past said read head; and

a swipe sensor configured to signal when the payment card has been swiped by a legacy card reader and for triggering an output that includes the decrypted account number magnetic data.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the payment card comprises a digital display.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the payment card comprises a piezo-electric generator.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the mobile device comprises a WiFi receiver and the mobile device is configured to receive the encrypted account number via the WiFi receiver.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the mobile device comprises a serial port and the mobile device is configured to receive the encrypted account number via the serial port.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the serial port is a universal serial bus port.

7. A payment card, comprising:

a Bluetooth receiver for receiving decrypted account number from a mobile device;

a card body with an electromagnetic stripe area;

an emissive inductive loop linearly disposed in the card body along the length of said electromagnetic stripe area, and configured for the serial output of dynamic magnetic data with a swipe data signal to spoof a read head of a legacy card reader into accepting the dynamic magnetic data as conventional track data;

a microcontroller configured to convert the decrypted account number received from the mobile device into magnetic data for serial output by the emissive element in which serially time encoded electro-magnetic fields are emitted to mimic those of a conventional magnetic recording being swiped past said read head; and

a swipe sensor configured to signal when the payment card has been swiped by a legacy card reader and for triggering an output that includes the decrypted account number magnetic data.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the payment card comprises a digital display.

9. The system of claim 7 wherein the payment card comprises a piezo-electric generator.