Client-side use of customer preferences

• US 9,589,290 B1
• Filed: 12/31/2014
• Issued: 03/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hipschman, Daniel, Butts, James F. III
• Primary Examiner(s): Zeender, Ryan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Buchanan, Christopher
• Application Number:
  US14/587,984
• Time in Patent Office: 797 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• 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 20/209 Specified transaction journal output feature, e.g. printed receipt or voice output
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/34 using cards, e.g. integrated circuit [IC] cards or magnetic cards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/405 Establishing or using transaction specific rules
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0621 Item configuration or customization
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0637 Approvals
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/12 Hotels or restaurants

Abstract

This disclosure describes, in part, techniques for collecting item preferences of users at a centralized location and propagating these item preferences to users and merchants in an intelligent manner. In some instances, the centralized location is a payment service that functions to both authorize payment instruments of users for costs of transactions conducted at the merchant, and collect and propagate the item preferences to the merchants and the users.

Claims

1. A point-of-sale (POS) device comprising:

a reader to receive a payment instrument of a user to satisfy a cost of a transaction between the user and a first merchant;

a display;

one or more processors; and

one or more computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the one or more processors to perform acts comprising;

receiving, from the reader, a payment identifier associated with the payment instrument of the user;

sending, to a payment service;

the payment identifier;

an indication of an item ordered by the user as part of the transaction between the user and the first merchant; and

a request to authorize the payment instrument for the cost of the transaction between the user and the first merchant;

determining that the user is present at a premises associated with the first merchant by automatic communication between the POS device and the user device;

in response to determining that the user is present at the premises associated with the first merchant, identifying, from the payment service, an item preference associated with the user and pertaining to the item, the item preference associated with the user based at least on a previous transaction between the user and a second merchant using the payment service, the previous transaction associated with acquiring the item or a similar item from the second merchant, the item preference comprising a customization to the item requested by the user; and

causing a display of the item preference associated with the user on the display.

2. A POS device as recited in claim 1, wherein the item preference comprises a size of the item, an ingredient to include or not include in the item, a preparation type of the item, a color of the item, or a flavor of the item.

3. A POS device as recited in claim 1, wherein the item preference comprises a first item preference, and the acts further comprising sending, to the payment service, a second item preference pertaining to the item, the user having expressed the second item preference when acquiring the item from the first merchant.

4. A method comprising:

at a point-of-sale (POS) device of a first merchant;

receiving, at the POS device of the first merchant, an indication that a user has ordered an item;

receiving, at a reader of the POS device, a payment instrument of the user to pay for a cost of the item, the payment instrument including an identifier;

sending, from the POS device of the first merchant over a network, to a payment service, data including an indication of the item, the identifier, and a request to authorize the payment instrument of the user for the cost of the item, wherein the data causes the payment service to map the identifier of the payment instrument to a profile corresponding to the user stored at the payment service and to identify an item preference associated with the user included in the profile, the item preference comprising a customization of the item previously requested by the user when ordering the item or a similar item from a second merchant using the payment service;

determining that the user is visiting a premises associated with the first merchant by automatic communication between the POS device and the user device;

in response to determining that the user is visiting the premises associated with the first merchant, identifying, from the payment service, the item preference associated with the user; and

causing a display, on the POS device of the first merchant, of the item preference associated with the user.

5. A method as recited in claim 4, wherein the item preference comprises a size of the item, an ingredient to include or not include in the item, a preparation type of the item, a color of the item, or a flavor of the item.

6. A method as recited in claim 4, further comprising:

the receiving an indication of the item preference.

7. A method as recited in claim 4, wherein:

the user is associated with multiple item preferences based on the user previously ordering multiple items from multiple merchants; and

the item preference received by the POS device of the first merchant selected among the multiple item preferences based on the item preference pertaining to the item ordered by the user at the first merchant.

8. A method comprising:

at a point-of-sale (POS) device of a merchant;

receiving, at a reader of the POS device, a payment instrument of a user located at the merchant for satisfying a cost of an item requested by the user from the merchant;

sending, to a payment service over a network, a request to authorize the payment instrument for the cost of the item, wherein the request causes the payment service to identify an item preference associated with the user and pertaining to a class of one or more items offered by the merchant, the item preference based at least on a previous transaction between the user and a different merchant using the payment service;

detecting that a user is present at a premises associated with the POS device by automatic communication between the POS device and the user device;

at least partly in response to sending the request and detecting that the user is at the premises associated with the POS device, identifying, from the payment service, the item preference and that the user is associated with the item preference; and

causing a display, on the POS device of the merchant, of the item preference.

9. A method as recited in claim 8, further comprising receiving an indication of the item preference.

10. A method as recited in claim 9, wherein the indication is received at the device of the merchant based at least in part on the user having checked in at the merchant.

11. A method as recited in claim 9, wherein the indication is received from a payment service that authorizes payment instruments of customers of the merchant and the different merchant.

12. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein the user expressed the item preference when ordering an item of the class of one or more items from the different merchant.

13. A method as recited in claim 8, further comprising:

not receiving an indication of the item preference from the payment service when the class of one or more items is not offered by the merchant.

14. A method comprising:

receiving, at an instance of an application executable on a device of a user, a first request for a first item of a first merchant, the first request specifying a customization to the first item requested by the user, wherein the instance of the application on the device of the user is associated with a profile of the user, the profile comprising one or more item preferences;

sending, over a network from the instance of the application, to a device of the first merchant, the first request for the first item specifying the customization to the first item, wherein the first request causes the device of the first merchant to send an indication that the first merchant has received the first request from the instance of the application;

receiving, over the network from the device of the first merchant, the indication;

receiving, at the instance of the application, a second request for a second item of a second merchant, the second request received after the first request;

determining that the user is present at a premises associated with the second merchant by automatic communication between the POS device and the user device; and

in response to receiving the second request for the second item of the second merchant and determining that the user is present at the premises associated with the second merchant;

identifying the profile of the user based at least in part on the instance of the application; and

causing a display, by the instance of the application on the device of the user, an indication of an item preference in the profile of the user, the item preference based at least in part on the customization previously specified in the first request by the user when requesting the first item from the first merchant.

15. A method as recited in claim 14, wherein the first item and the second item comprise the same or different items.

16. A method as recited in claim 14, wherein the first and second item are of a common class of items.

17. A method as recited in claim 14, wherein the indication of the item preference comprises an inquiry as to whether the customization should also be applied to the second item when requesting the second item from the second merchant.

18. A method as recited in claim 14, wherein the customization to the first item comprises a size of the first item, an ingredient to include or not include in the first item, a preparation type of the first item, a color of the first item, or a flavor of the first item.

19. A method as recited in claim 14, wherein:

the first merchant utilizes a payment service to authorize a payment instrument of the user for a cost of the first item at the first merchant;

the payment service identifies the item preference from the customization; and

the instance of the application executable on the device of the user receives the indication of the item preference from the payment service.