# US 10,395,234 B1 · Mobile device enablement of universal prepaid cards

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- Number: US 10,395,234 B1
- Document ID: US10395234B1
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B1
- Application number: 15/457,083
- Filed: 2017-03-13
- Granted: 2019-08-27
- Earliest claimed: 2016-03-15
- Assignees: Cray Pay Inc.
- Applicants: Cray Pay Inc.
- Inventors: Marshall Greenwald; Jared McClure; Michael Greenwald
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10395234B1

## CPC

- G06Q 20/3224: {Transactions dependent on location of M-devices}
- G06K 7/1413: {1D bar codes}
- G06K 19/06028: {using bar codes}
- G06Q 20/28: Pre-payment schemes, e.g. "pay before"
- G06Q 20/342: {Cards defining paid or billed services or quantities}
- G06Q 20/349: {Rechargeable cards}
- G06Q 20/36: using electronic wallets or electronic money safes
- G06Q 30/0238: at point-of-sale [POS]
- G07F 17/26: for printing, stamping, franking, typing or teleprinting apparatus (ticket printing or the like apparatus G07F17/42)
- G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G06K: GRAPHICAL DATA READING (image or video recognition or understanding G06V); PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS
- G07F: COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS (coin sorting G07D3/00; coin testing G07D5/00; {handling coins or paper currencies apart from payment activated apparatus G07D; payment architectures, schemes or protocols G06Q20/00})

## Abstract

An example embodiment may involve receiving a representation of a location of the mobile device as provided by way of location-determining hardware of the mobile device; transmitting, to the mobile device, representations of one or more merchants with physical presence within a radius of the location; receiving, from the mobile device, representations of a gift card request, a first amount, and a merchant, where the merchant was selected from the one or more merchants; transmitting, to the mobile device, a digital gift card branded by the merchant, where the digital gift card is associated with a code; receiving, from a point-of-sale device associated with the merchant, a request to validate the code, where the code was obtained by the point-of-sale device scanning the code as displayed by the mobile device; and transmitting, to the point-of-sale device, validation of the code.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method comprising:
receiving, by a computing system and from a mobile device, a representation of a location of the mobile device as provided by way of global positioning system (GPS) hardware of the mobile device;
transmitting, by the computing system and to the mobile device, representations of one or more merchants with physical presence within a given radius of the location;
receiving, by the computing system and from the mobile device, representations of a gift card request, a first amount, and a merchant, wherein the merchant was selected from the one or more merchants by way of a user interface of the mobile device;
debiting, by the computing system, an account associated with the mobile device by a second amount, wherein the second amount is less than the first amount;
transmitting, by the computing system and to the mobile device, a digital gift card branded by the merchant, wherein the digital gift card is for the first amount and is associated with a code;
receiving, by the computing system and from a point-of-sale device associated with the merchant, a request to validate the code, wherein the code was obtained by the point-of-sale device scanning the code as displayed by the mobile device;
transmitting, by the computing system and to the point-of-sale device, validation of the code; and
providing, by the computing system, a universal prepaid card for a third amount to an account associated with the merchant, wherein the third amount is less than the first amount.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the third amount is determined by subtracting a marketing fee, a transaction fee, or both, from the first amount.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the universal prepaid card is redeemable by the merchant for face value within a network of merchants, and wherein the universal prepaid card is redeemable by the merchant for less than the face value in cash.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising:
before transmitting the digital gift card branded by the merchant, allocating, by the computing system, a second universal prepaid card for the first amount to the mobile device; and
exchanging the second universal prepaid card with the digital gift card.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the first amount is a value of goods or services purchased from the merchant by way of the mobile device, and wherein the second amount is the first amount minus a discount applied to the value of the goods or services purchased.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the code as displayed by the mobile device is a barcode that identifies the digital gift card.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising:
transmitting, by the computing system and to the mobile device, a second validation of the code, wherein the validation of the code and the second validation of the code both indicate that a purchase of goods or services for the first amount has been successful.

### Claim 8

A method comprising:
transmitting, by an application operating on a mobile device and to a computing system, a representation of a location of the mobile device as provided by way of global positioning system (GPS) hardware of the mobile device;
receiving and displaying on a user interface, by the application, representations of one or more merchants with physical presence within a given radius of the location;
receiving, by the application, selection of a merchant and a first amount, wherein the merchant was selected from the one or more merchants by way of the user interface;
transmitting, by the application and to the computing system, a representation of a gift card request, the merchant, and the first amount;
receiving, by the application and from the computing system, a digital gift card branded by the merchant, wherein the digital gift card is for the first amount and is associated with a code;
displaying, by the application, the code for scanning by a point-of-sale device of the merchant; and
receiving, by the application and from the computing system, an indication that the merchant has been paid, wherein transmission of the indication was caused by the computing system receiving a representation of the code as scanned by the point-of-sale device, wherein a second amount is credited to an account associated with the merchant as a universal prepaid card, and wherein the second amount is less than the first amount.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The method of claim 8, wherein a user of the mobile device is a representative of another merchant.

### Claim 10 (depends on 8)

The method of claim 8, wherein reception of the representation of the gift card request, the merchant, and the first amount causes an account associated with the mobile device to be debited by a third amount, and wherein the third amount is less than the first amount.

### Claim 11 (depends on 8)

The method of claim 8, wherein the universal prepaid card is redeemable by the merchant for face value within a network of merchants, and wherein the universal prepaid card is redeemable by the merchant for less than the face value in cash.

### Claim 12 (depends on 8)

The method of claim 8, wherein the code as displayed by the mobile device is a barcode that identifies the digital gift card.

### Claim 13 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein the third amount is determined by subtracting a marketing fee, a transaction fee, or both, from the first amount.

### Claim 14

A method comprising:
receiving, by a computing system and from a mobile device, a representation of a location of the mobile device as provided by way of global positioning system (GPS) hardware of the mobile device;
transmitting, by the computing system and to the mobile device, representations of one or more merchants with physical presence within a given radius of the location;
receiving, by the computing system and from the mobile device, representations of a gift card request, a first amount, and a merchant, wherein the merchant was selected from the one or more merchants by way of a user interface of the mobile device;
debiting, by the computing system, an account associated with the mobile device by a second amount, wherein the second amount is less than the first amount;
allocating, by the computing system, a universal prepaid card for the first amount to the mobile device;
exchanging, by the computing system, the universal prepaid card with a digital gift card branded by the merchant;
transmitting, by the computing system and to the mobile device, the digital gift card, wherein the digital gift card is for the first amount and is associated with a code;
receiving, by the computing system and from the mobile device, an instruction to pay the merchant from the digital gift card; and
transmitting, by the computing system and to a point-of-sale device associated with the merchant, validation that the merchant was paid a third amount, wherein the third amount is less than the first amount.

### Claim 15 (depends on 14)

The method of claim 14, wherein the third amount is determined by subtracting a marketing fee, a transaction fee, or both, to the first amount.

### Claim 16 (depends on 14)

The method of claim 14, wherein the first amount is a value of goods or services purchased from the merchant by way of the mobile device, and wherein the second amount is the first amount minus a discount applied to the value of the goods or services purchased.

### Claim 17 (depends on 14)

The method of claim 14, further comprising:
transmitting, by the computing system and to the mobile device, a second validation, wherein the validation and the second validation both indicate that a purchase of goods or services for the first amount has been successful.