Completely anonymous purchasing of goods on a computer network

• US 7,454,356 B2
• Filed: 10/24/2001
• Issued: 11/18/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Clickshare Service Corp.
• Original Assignee: Clickshare Service Corp.
• Inventors: Lerner, Richard A., Densmore, William P. Jr., Fields, Helen B.
• Primary Examiner(s): PLUCINSKI, JAMISUE A
• Application Number:
  US10/415,203
• Publication Number:
  US 20040034544A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,582 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/26
• US Class Current: 705/330
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6254 by anonymising data, e.g. decorrelating personal data from the owner's identification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0834 Choice of carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0615 Anonymizing

Abstract

The present invention discloses a system for the anonymous purchase of goods. A Customer requests to purchase some physical goods, the Vendor determines the cost of the goods, and asks the Customer to select a Carrier. The Vendor requests a Customer Token and redirects the Customer'"'"'s browser to the Carrier, with the Customer Token, a Vendor Token and a description of the package. The Carrier validates the Vendor'"'"'s Token and uses the Customer'"'"'s token to request information about the Customer, including shipping instructions. The Carrier assigns a shipping identifier and shipping cost and redirects the Customer'"'"'s browser back to the Vendor along with the identifier and shipping cost. The Vendor adjusts the cost to include shipping, packages the goods, and labels the packages with the shipping identifier. The Carrier picks up the packages, prints a complete label using the Customer information associated with the shipping identifier and delivers the goods.

Claims

1. A method for anonymous purchase of goods involving a Carrier who delivers the goods to the Customer, comprising the steps of:

a) requesting, by a Customer, a Vendor'"'"'s Universal Resource Locator representing the desire to purchase some physical goods,

b) validating, by the Vendor, a Customer'"'"'s token which determines access rights, and determining a cost of the goods to be delivered,

c) checking, by the Vendor, at least one Credit Limit threshold, and asking the Customer to confirm the purchase price,

d) receiving from the Customer, by the Vendor, a selection of a Carrier from a list including a plurality of Carriers,

e) requesting, by the Vendor from a Central Validation Server, a Vendor'"'"'s Token that represents the capability to ask a Carrier for a shipping identifier, the Vendor'"'"'s Token comprising parcel information,

f) redirecting the Customer'"'"'s browser to the selected Carrier'"'"'s server by the Vendor, sending the Customer'"'"'s Token, and the Vendor'"'"'s Token,

g) validating, by a Carrier'"'"'s server, the Vendor'"'"'s Token and using the Custome'"'"'s Token to request information about the Customer, comprising a shipping address,

h) assigning a shipping identifier and shipping costs by the Carrier Server, based on at least the Customer'"'"'s Token and the Vendor'"'"'s Token,

i) redirecting the Customer'"'"'s browser back to the Vendor by the Carrier Server, along with a message containing at least the Carrier Server'"'"'s response comprising the shipping identifier and shipping costs,

j) using the Central Validation Server to authenticate the message and

k) logging the transaction with the Central Validation Server, along an identifier to allow the Carrier to receive the shipping costs, and

l) generating a shipping label by the Carrier to identify the Customer for delivery of the physical goods.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein a Vendor receives anonymous physical delivery status information from the Carrier.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of communicating between the Vendor and a remote Validation Server to verify the integrity of information communicated with the Customer and the Carrier.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer communicates with a third party, wherein the Customer is identified to the third party and maintains an account therewith, to establish a user session to generate a Customer'"'"'s token.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer'"'"'s token comprises an anonymous Customer identifier, and a set of permissible transaction parameters.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer communicates with a third party, to establish a user session to generate a Customer'"'"'s token and the third party creates a digital signature associated with communications of the Customer.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer communicates with a third party, to establish a user session to generate a Customer'"'"'s token and the third party maintains a set of restriction associated with each Customer.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein a Customer'"'"'s token identifies at least one of a plurality of third parties for authentication of the transaction.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer communicates with a third party, to establish a user session to generate a Customer'"'"'s token and the third party aggregates Customer-associated transactions into a single account.

10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising the step of the third party settling aggregated Customer-associated transactions with a Customer credit or debit account.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer communicates with a third party, to establish a user session to generate a Customer'"'"'s token, further comprising the step of the third party settling a Customer account with a Customer credit or debit account.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer communicates with a third party, to establish a user session to generate a Customer'"'"'s token, and the third party maintains an account with the Customer, further comprising the step of compensating a set of affiliates, by the third party, based a transaction between Customer and Vendor.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer communicates with a third party, to establish a user session to generate a Customer'"'"'s token and the third party maintains information defining predefined shipping instructions for the Customer.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein a Customer has a plurality of predefined shipping instructions, and wherein the Customer communicates a selection of one of said predefined shipping instructions to the Vendor without communicating the predefined shipping instructions themselves.

15. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Vendor and Carrier communicate information to define a shipping cost, the shipping cost being passed to the Customer.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer communicates with a third party, to establish a user session to generate a Customer'"'"'s token and communications between Customer and Vendor, Customer and third party, Vendor and third party, and Vendor and Carrier all pass through the Internet.

17. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer communicates with the Vendor using a hypertext browser and defines communication sessions using uniform resource locators.

18. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of using the information about the customer to define a shipping label for a package containing the physical goods.

19. The method according to claim 1, wherein the Customer communicates with a third party, to establish a user session to generate a Customer'"'"'s token, further comprising the step of providing, by the third party, a site specific customer identifier that uniquely identifies the Customer to the Vendor, but that differs for each other Vendor such that multiple Vendors sites cannot combine information about the Customer.

20. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the steps of communicating, from the Customer to the Vendor, information sufficient to determine an Affiliation, the Affiliation representing a group membership having an economic impact on the transaction.

21. The method according to claim 1, wherein communications between Customer and Vendor occur through a proxy.

22. The method according to claim 1, wherein a Customer directly provides customer-identifying information to a Carrier.

23. A method for anonymous purchase of goods involving a Carrier who delivers the goods to the Customer, comprising the steps of:

a) receiving, from a Customer, a communication of a desire to purchase some physical goods through an Internet communication;

b) validating, by the Vendor, a Customer'"'"'s token which determines access rights, determining a cost of the goods to be delivered,

c) checking, by the Vendor, at least one Credit Limit threshold,

d) receiving by the Vendor, from the Customer, a selection of a Carrier from a list including a plurality of Carriers,

e) requesting, by the Vendor, from a Central Validation Server, a Vendor'"'"'s Token that represents the capability to ask a Carrier for a shipping identifier and comprising parcel information,

f) redirecting the Customer'"'"'s browser to the selected Carrier'"'"'s server by the Vendor, sending the Customer'"'"'s Token, and the Vendor'"'"'s Token,

g) validating the Vendor'"'"'s Token by a Carrier'"'"'s server and using the Customer'"'"'s Token to request information about the Customer, comprising a shipping address, and assigning a shipping identifier and shipping costs by the Carrier Server based on at least the Customer'"'"'s Token and the Vendor'"'"'s Token, and communicating from the Customer'"'"'s browser to the Vendor a message containing at least the Carrier Server'"'"'s response comprising the shipping identifier and shipping costs,

h) redirecting the Customer'"'"'s browser back to the Vendor by the Carrier Server after said validating step,

i) authenticating the message using the Central Validation Server,

j) logging the transaction with the Central Validation Server, along with an identifier to allow the Carrier to receive the shipping costs, and

k) generating a shipping label to identify the Customer for delivery of the physical goods.

24. The method according to claim 23, wherein the Customer communicates with a third party that maintains an account for the Customer, to establish a user session to generate a Customer'"'"'s token.