Hands-free transactions

• US 9,652,759 B2
• Filed: 11/12/2014
• Issued: 05/16/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Chitilian, Varouj, Setchell, William Hartley, Tao, Yangui, Chandrasekaran, Sashikanth, Lee, Johnie, Bhat, Phalachandra Sreepada
• Primary Examiner(s): Hayes, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Winter, John M
• Application Number:
  US14/539,997
• Publication Number:
  US 20160012414A1
• Time in Patent Office: 916 Days
• Field of Search: 705 76
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/322 Aspects of commerce using mobile devices [M-devices]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3224 Transactions dependent on location of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3227 using secure elements embedded in M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3278 RFID or NFC payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3674 involving authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3821 Electronic credentials
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/38215 Use of certificates or encrypted proofs of transaction rights
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4014 Identity check for transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4015 using location information
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4016 involving fraud or risk level assessment in transaction processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 2220/00 Business processing using cryptography postage metering system using cryptography G06Q2250/05

Abstract

Conducting hands-free transactions comprises a server at a payment processing system, a user computing device, and a merchant computing device. The payment processing system registers a merchant system as a hands-free payment participant and provides a beacon identifier. The payment processing system receives a communication from a hands-free payment application on a user computing device, the communication comprising a transaction token, an identification of a user account, and the beacon identifier received by the user computing device via a wireless communication from a device associated with the merchant system and transmits the transaction token to the merchant system computing device. The payment processing system receives from the merchant system computing device, a transaction request, the transaction request comprising the token and transaction data associated with the transaction request and conducts the transaction between the user account and the merchant system based on the received token and transaction request.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method to broadcast beacon signals to user computing devices and to receive, in response, data from the user computing devices via intermediary processing systems without a required input of the user, comprising:

transmitting, by one or more computing devices associated with a merchant computing system, a beacon signal comprising a beacon identifier to a user computing device associated with a user, the beacon signal comprising information suitable to allow the user computing device to generate a token;

receiving, by an application operating on the user computing device, the beacon signal comprising the beacon identifier from the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system;

generating, by the application operating on the user computing device, the token without input from the user in response to receiving the transmitted beacon signal from the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system, the token comprising the beacon identifier and an identification of a user account associated with the user;

transmitting, by the application operating on the user computing device, the token to a payment processing system associated with the user account associated with the user;

receiving, by the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system and from the payment processing system associated with the user account associated with the user, a communication comprising the token generated by the application operating on the user computing device;

receiving, by the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system, an input specifying transaction details for a pending transaction and a selection of the token to associate with the transaction;

transmitting, by the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system and to the payment processing system associated with the user account, a transaction request, the transaction request comprising the token generated by the application operating on the user computing device and at least a portion of the transaction details; and

receiving, by the one or more computing devices associated with a merchant computing system, an authorization for the transaction request from the payment processing system based on the token provided in the transaction request.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising communicating, by the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system, a receipt for the transaction to the user computing device.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system receives the beacon identifier from the payment processing system.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the beacon identifier is transmitted, via a wireless communication, by a device associated with the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system that is separate from the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the beacon identifier is received, via a wireless communication, by the application operating on the user computing device from the merchant computing system computing device.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the beacon signal is transmitted via a Wi-Fi direct communication.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the beacon signal is transmitted via a Wi-Fi communication or a BLUETOOTH communication.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising installing, by the user computing device, a hands-free payment application on the user computing device.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the token generated by the application operating on the user computing device comprises a time at which the token is no longer usable in a transaction.

22. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising displaying, by the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system, information associated with the user from the token.

23. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein the display comprises a picture of the user.

24. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein the display comprises an identification of the user.

25. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein receiving the selection of the token to associate with the transaction comprises receiving, by the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system, an input of a selection of the information from the token.

8. A system to broadcast beacon signals to user computing devices and to receive, in response, data from the user computing devices via intermediary processing systems without a required input of the user, comprising:

a merchant storage device; and

a merchant processor communicatively coupled to the merchant storage device, wherein the merchant processor executes application code instructions that are stored in the merchant storage device to cause the system to;

transmit a beacon signal comprising a beacon identifier to a user computing device associated with a user, the beacon signal comprising information suitable to allow the user computing device to generate a token;

receive, from a payment processing system associated with a user account associated with the user, a communication comprising a token generated by the application operating on the user computing device;

receive an input specifying transaction details for a pending transaction and a selection of the token generated by the application operating on the user computing device to associate with the transaction;

transmit to a payment processing system associated with the user account a transaction request, the transaction request comprising the token and at least a portion of the transaction details; and

receive an authorization for the transaction request from the payment processing system based on the token provided in the transaction request, and

an application operating on the user computing device, wherein the application executes application code instructions to;

receive the beacon signal comprising the beacon identifier from the merchant processor;

verify the beacon identifier;

generate the token without input from the user in response to receiving the transmitted beacon signal from the merchant processor, the token comprising the beacon identifier and an identification of the user account associated with the user;

transmit the token generated by the application operating on the user computing device to the payment processing system associated with the user account associated with the user; and

receive a notification that the transaction has been conducted based on the transmitted token.

9. The system of claim 8, further comprising application code instructions to cause the system to communicate a receipt for the transaction to the user computing device.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the processor receives the beacon identifier from the payment processing system.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the beacon identifier is transmitted, via a wireless communication, by a device associated with the processor that is separate from the merchant processor.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the beacon identifier is received, via a wireless communication, by the user computing device from the processor.

13. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the token comprises a time at which the token is no longer usable in a transaction.

16. A computer program product, comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable storage device having computer-executable program instructions embodied thereon that when executed by a computer cause the computer to broadcast beacon signals to user computing devices and to receive, in response, data from the user computing devices via intermediary processing systems without a required input of the user, the computer-executable program instructions comprising;

computer-executable program instructions to transmit a beacon signal comprising a beacon identifier to a user computing device associated with a user, the beacon signal comprising instructions to the user computing device to generate a token and communicate the token to the one or more computing devices associated with a merchant computing system via a payment processing system;

computer-executable program instructions to receive, from the payment processing system associated with a user account associated with the user, a communication comprising the transaction token, the token having been generated by the user computing device in response to receiving the transmitted beacon signal from the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system and having been communicated from the user computing device to the payment processing system, and the token comprising an identification of the user account associated with the user and the beacon identifier;

computer-executable program instructions to receive an input specifying transaction details for a pending transaction and a selection of the token generated by the user computing device to associate with the transaction;

computer-executable program instructions to transmit to a payment processing system associated with the user account a transaction request, the transaction request comprising the token generated by the user computing device and at least a portion of the transaction details; and

computer-executable program instructions to receive an authorization for the transaction request from the payment processing system based on the token provided in the transaction request.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, further comprising computer-readable program instructions to communicate a receipt for the transaction to the user computing device.

18. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the one or more computing devices associated with the merchant computing system receives the beacon identifier from the payment processing system.

19. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the beacon identifier is transmitted, via a wireless communication, by a device associated with the non-transitory computer-readable storage device that is separate from the non-transitory computer-readable storage device.

20. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the beacon identifier is received, via a wireless communication, by the user computing device from the merchant computing system computing device.

21. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the beacon signal is transmitted via a Wi-Fi direct communication.