# US 11,308,462 B2 · Secure electronic payment

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- Number: US 11,308,462 B2
- Document ID: US11308462B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 15/416,367
- Filed: 2017-01-26
- Published: 2017-05-18
- Granted: 2022-04-19
- Earliest claimed: 2014-05-13
- Assignees: Clear Token Inc
- Applicants: Clear Token Inc.
- Inventors: Lawrence Berman; Stanley J. Wolfson
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11308462B2

## CPC

- G06Q 20/0855: {involving a third party}
- G06Q 20/18: involving self-service terminals [SST], vending machines, kiosks or multimedia terminals
- G06Q 20/20: Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
- 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}
- G06Q 20/308: {using the Internet of Things}
- G06Q 20/325: {using wireless networks}
- G06Q 20/326: {Payment applications installed on the mobile devices}
- G06Q 20/36: using electronic wallets or electronic money safes
- G06Q 20/367: {involving electronic purses or money safes}
- G06Q 20/3821: {Electronic credentials}
- G06Q 50/188: {Electronic negotiation}
- G07F 9/001: {Interfacing with vending machines using mobile or wearable devices}
- 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
- 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

Secure electronic payment is disclosed as it may be implemented for a point of sale machine such as but not limited to, vending machines/devices, parking devices/facilities, and laundry machines/facilities. An example secure electronic payment system includes a remote payment processor to confirm payment for a transaction at a point of sale device and issue a token to a mobile device for completing the transaction. A wireless interface module at the point of sale device is configured to receive the token from the mobile device for the transaction via a wireless communications protocol. A token processing module at the point of sale device confirms validity of the token. A transaction processing module negotiates the transaction at the point of sale device by actuating the point of sale device.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A secure electronic payment method comprising:
receiving, at a vendor processor configured as a computing device, a request from a mobile device of a user for a transaction at a point of sale device;
issuing, by the vendor processor, an electronic token for the transaction to the mobile device, the electronic token encoding a transaction index and a transaction code;
receiving, at the point of sale device, the electronic token from the mobile device via a local wireless communications protocol separate from a communications network established between the mobile device and the vendor processor;
confirming by the vendor processor with a third party payment processor having no communication with the point of sale device, a payment for the transaction identified by the request, by:
reading the transaction index in the electronic token and locating a corresponding index location in a device index stored in memory at the point of sale device;
comparing the transaction code in the electronic token to a stored transaction code at the corresponding index location in the device index at the point of sale device;
confirming validity of the electronic token at the point of sale device if the stored transaction code at the corresponding index location matches the transaction code in the electronic token;
wherein confirming validity is by processing a first command, the first command having at least a command code component, a component with parameters for the command, a validating token index component, and a validating token component; and
negotiating the transaction in response to a second command after confirming payment for the transaction at the point of sale device, wherein negotiating the transaction according to the second command is by at least one of closing an electrical contact or changing time on a timer.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising clearing the index location, by the point of sale device, after negotiating the transaction so that the electronic token cannot be reused.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising, storing, by a secure field procedure, a new transaction code at the index location at the point of sale device.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the transaction code in the token is a hex value, and the transaction code in the point of sale device is a hex value, wherein the hex values must match to validate the token by the point of sale device.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein negotiating the transaction comprises at least actuating mechanics of the point of sale device to dispense a purchased product from a vending machine.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein negotiating the transaction comprises at least starting a timer for a parking meter device.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein negotiating the transaction comprises at least actuating an electric motor at the point of sale device.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein negotiating the transaction comprises at least actuating a laundry machine by the point of sale device.

### Claim 9

A secure electronic payment method for a parking meter, comprising:
receiving a request for a transaction from a mobile device of a customer, the request received at a vendor processor configured as a computing device;
confirming, between the vendor processor and a third party payment processor, a payment for the transaction identified by the request, wherein confirming the payment comprises the vendor processor sending the payment authorization to the third party payment processor, and receiving a payment approval from the third party payment processor;
issuing, by the vendor processor, an electronic token to the mobile device of the customer for the transaction, the electronic token encoding a transaction index and a transaction code to be independently verified at the parking meter;
receiving the electronic token from the mobile device at the parking meter via a local wireless communications protocol that is separate from a communications network established between the mobile device and the vendor processor;
reading by a token processing module at the parking meter, the transaction index in the electronic token and locating a corresponding index location in a device index stored in memory at the parking meter;
comparing the transaction code in the electronic token to a stored transaction code at the corresponding index location in the device index at the parking meter;
confirming validity of the electronic token at the parking meter if the stored transaction code at the corresponding index location matches the transaction code in the electronic token;
wherein confirming validity is by processing a first command, the first command having at least a command code component, a component with parameters for the command, a validating token index component, and a validating token component; and
negotiating the transaction for the customer by changing a time on the parking meter according to a second command specifying the time to change.

### Claim 10

A secure electronic payment system comprising:
a vending machine comprising a first computer processor;
a vendor computer comprising a second computer processor;
wherein the second computer processor is configured to receive a request from a mobile device of a user for a transaction at the vending machine;
wherein the second computer processor is further configured to confirm a payment for the transaction identified by the request with a third party payment processor having no communication with the vending machine;
wherein the second computer processor is further configured to issue an electronic token to the mobile device for the transaction, wherein the electronic token encodes a transaction index and a transaction code;
wherein the first computer processor is configured to receive the electronic token from the mobile device via a local wireless communications protocol separate from a communications network established between the mobile device and the vendor computer;
wherein the first computer processor is configured to confirm payment for the transaction at the vending machine and negotiate the transaction at the vending machine device, without the first computer processor contacting the third party payment processor, by:
reading the transaction index in the electronic token and locating a corresponding index location in a device index stored in memory at the vending machine device;
comparing the transaction code in the electronic token to a stored transaction code at the corresponding index location in the device index at the vending machine device;
confirming validity of the electronic token at the vending machine device if the stored transaction code at the corresponding index location matches the transaction code in the electronic token;
wherein confirming validity is by processing a first command having at least a command code component, a component with parameters for the command, a validating token index component, and a validating token component; and
wherein negotiating the transaction is by processing at least a second command.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The system of claim 10, wherein the first computer processor is configured to clear the index location after negotiating the transaction so that the electronic token cannot be reused.

### Claim 12 (depends on 10)

The system of claim 10, wherein the first computer processor is further configured to store a new transaction code at the index location during a secure update procedure.

### Claim 13 (depends on 10)

The system of claim 10, wherein the transaction code in the token is a hex value, and the transaction code in the vending machine is a hex value, wherein the hex values must match to validate the token by the first computer processor.

### Claim 14 (depends on 10)

The system of claim 10, wherein processing the second command causes a purchased product to be dispensed from the vending machine.

### Claim 15 (depends on 10)

The system of claim 10, wherein processing the second command causes an electric motor to be actuated.

### Claim 16 (depends on 10)

The system of claim 10, further comprising the first computer processor returning a status command in response to processing the first command.