Dual interface mobile payment register

• US 9,881,287 B1
• Filed: 06/25/2015
• Issued: 01/30/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Square Inc (Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.))
• Inventors: Edwards, Troy J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mazumder, Tapas
• Application Number:
  US14/749,980
• Time in Patent Office: 950 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03 Arrangements for converting the position or the displacement of a member into a coded form
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/322 Aspects of commerce using mobile devices [M-devices]
• 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: G07G 1/01 Details for indicating displaying information in general G09F, G09G

Abstract

A mobile payment register can generate a first user interface on a display. The first user interface is adapted to accept an input to process a first operation by a first user associated with a payment transaction. The payment transaction requires inputs into the mobile payment register by at least two users. The mobile payment register detects, via a sensor, a re-orientation motion. The re-orientation motion can cause the display to change from a first orientation substantially facing the first user to a second orientation substantially facing a second user. In response to detecting the re-orientation motion, the display can replace at least a portion of the first user interface with at least a portion of a second user interface such that input elements on the second user interface are able to accept an input from the second user to authorize or modify the payment transaction.

Claims

1. A method of operating a mobile payment register, the method comprising:

generating a merchant interface on a display of the mobile payment register, the merchant interface adapted to accept inputs from a merchant user to process one or more merchant-related operations associated with a payment transaction between the merchant user and a consumer user, the payment transaction requiring inputs into the mobile payment register by both the merchant user and the consumer user;

detecting, via a sensor, a re-orientation motion of at least the display of the mobile payment register, the re-orientation motion causing the display to change from a first orientation substantially facing the merchant user to a second orientation substantially facing the consumer user; and

in response to detecting the re-orientation motion, replacing at least a portion of the merchant interface with at least a portion of a consumer interface such that input elements on the consumer interface are able to accept inputs from the consumer user to authorize or modify the payment transaction on behalf of the consumer user.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the re-orientation motion involves at least a partial rotation around an axis parallel to a top edge or a bottom edge of the display.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein replacing at least the portion of the merchant interface includes shifting in at least the portion of the consumer interface from a first edge of the display and shifting out at least the portion of the merchant interface from a second edge of the display opposite from the first edge.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said replacing progresses proportionally according to progression of the re-orientation motion.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting, via the sensor, a reversal of the re-orientation motion; and

replacing at least the portion of the consumer interface with at least the portion of the merchant interface, in response to detecting the reversal.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said replacing at least the portion of the merchant interface includes shrinking the merchant interface in height to free up space on the display for the portion of the consumer interface to expand into view.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising mapping the consumer interface and the merchant interface to equal and opposite sides of a virtual curved sheet surface;

and wherein said replacing at least the portion of the merchant interface includes rendering a portion of the virtual curved sheet surface through a virtual camera window moving along a curvature of the virtual curved sheet surface at a constant distance normal to the virtual curved sheet surface.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein said moving of the virtual camera window tracks the re-orientation motion by rotating the virtual camera window along a curvature of the virtual curved sheet surface according to progression of the re-orientation motion.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile payment register includes a mobile device having the display and the sensor;

and wherein the display is a touchscreen capable of accepting the inputs from the consumer user when the consumer interface is displayed and accepting the inputs from the merchant user when the merchant interface is displayed.

10. A method of operating a mobile payment register, the method comprising:

generating a merchant interface on a display of the mobile payment register, the merchant interface adapted to accept an input to process a merchant-related operation associated with a payment transaction between a merchant and a consumer, the payment transaction requiring inputs into the mobile payment register by at least two different users;

detecting, via a sensor, a re-orientation motion of at least the display of the mobile payment register, the re-orientation motion causing the display to change from a first orientation substantially facing a first user to a second orientation substantially facing a second user; and

in response to detecting the re-orientation motion, replacing at least a portion of the merchant interface with at least a portion of a consumer interface such that input elements on the consumer interface are able to accept inputs from the second user to authorize or modify the payment transaction on behalf of the second user, wherein said replacing progresses proportionally according to the re-orientation motion.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein a rotational speed of the re-orientation motion controls speed of said replacing.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the re-orientation motion involves at least a partial rotation of the mobile payment register.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

detecting a reversal in a rotation direction of the re-orientation motion; and

replacing at least the portion of the consumer interface with at least the portion of the merchant interface, in response to the reversal in the rotation direction.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein said replacing includes replacing at least a bottom portion of the merchant interface with at least a top portion of the consumer interface.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein said replacing includes displaying halves of the consumer interface and the merchant interface when the display is facing away from both the first user and the second user.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein said replacing includes introducing the consumer interface from a frontier edge of the display, the frontier edge being a closest edge of the display along a direction of the re-orientation motion.

17. A mobile payment register comprising:

a processor configured to generate a first user interface, the first user interface adapted to accept an input to process a first operation by a first user associated with a payment transaction, the payment transaction requiring inputs into the mobile payment register by at least the first user and a second user;

a display configured to display the first user interface; and

a sensor configured to detect a re-orientation motion of at least the display of the mobile payment register, the re-orientation motion causing the display to change from a first orientation substantially facing a first user to a second orientation substantially facing the second user; and

wherein, the processor is configured to, in response to detecting the re-orientation motion, replace at least a portion of the first user interface with at least a portion of a second user interface such that input elements on the second user interface are able to accept inputs from the second user to authorize or modify the payment transaction on behalf of the second user.

18. The mobile payment register of claim 17, wherein the display is configured to render said replacing of the first user interface according to a speed of the re-orientation motion.

19. The mobile payment register of claim 17, wherein said replacing includes the first user interface contracting in height to free up space on the display to fit at least the portion of the second user interface.

20. The mobile payment register of claim 17, wherein the first user interface is a merchant interface adapted to accept an input to process a merchant-related operation and the second user interface is a consumer interface adapted to accept an input to process, authorize, or modify the payment transaction on behalf of the second user.