Distributed transaction system

A method of a distributed transaction system that provides a plurality of different predetermined external services provided by a plurality of different service providers to a user at one of a plurality of kiosks, each kiosk having a processing platform, a data store, and physical devices mounted thereon, each of the physical devices having a physical system resource interface including hardware and software that enables the physical device to communicate with the processing platform that conducts a selected third party service provider transaction, the method comprising:

• storing, in a central office database with a central office processor, a plurality of service modules, each of the plurality of service modules specific to a third party service provider and a third party service provider transaction, and each of the plurality of service modules including one or more scripts defining a set of predetermined actions, wherein the one or more scripts include configuration information including a set of the physical devices corresponding to one or more of the physical devices included in the plurality of kiosks designated by the third party service provider that initiate and complete the third party service provider transaction, each of the plurality of service modules facilitating use of the physical devices by the processing platform in a third party service provider transaction between a user and a selected one of the plurality of different service providers, and wherein the physical devices included in the plurality of kiosks are separate devices from each kiosk that are installed within the plurality of kiosks, and wherein the central office processor has one or more central office communications interfaces, the central office processor communicating with the plurality of kiosks and the third party service providers through the one or more central office communications interfaces;
• identifying, with the central office processor, a given third party service provider service;
• accessing at least a portion of a service module of the plurality of service modules corresponding to the given third party service provider service;
• selecting a set of kiosks of the plurality of kiosks that provide a service module of the plurality of service modules, the service module corresponding to the given third party service provider service;
• transmitting, in a push operation, to the set of kiosks, at least a portion of the service module corresponding to the given third party service provider service;
• storing, with the processing platform of each of the set of kiosks, the at least a portion of the service module corresponding to the given third party service provider service in the data store of each kiosk in the set of kiosks;
• configuring, with the at least a portion of the service module corresponding to the given third party service provider service and the configuration information, the set of kiosks for the given third party service provider service;
• selecting, with a kiosk in use by a user, in response to a user initiation at the kiosk in use by the user, from the data store of the kiosk in use by the user, the service module corresponding to the given third party service provider service, wherein the kiosk in use by the user is one of the set of kiosks;
• running, with the processing platform of the kiosk in use by the user, the stored at least a portion of the service module corresponding to the given third party service provider service, wherein the at least a portion of the service module interfaces with a transaction engine, a distribution module, and a configuration and error management module in order to complete the given third party service provider service task using the at least one portion of the service module;
• running, with the central office processor, at least another portion of the service module corresponding to the given third party service provider service in response to the user initiation thereof at the kiosk in use by the user;
• completing the given third party service provider service at the kiosk in use by a user;
• receiving, by the central office processor, a heartbeat signal transmitted at predetermined intervals from a kiosk of the set of kiosks, a push signal, wherein the push signal includes an identification of the service module installed on the kiosk and at least one status regarding whether one or more of the physical devices included in the kiosk are operational, wherein the one or more physical devices included in the kiosk are devices controlled independently from the kiosk;
• and
• upon receipt of the heartbeat signal, enabling or disabling, by the central office processor, use of the service module at the kiosk, based on the at least one status regarding whether one or more of the physical devices included in the kiosk are operational, and based on whether the service module uses the one or more of the physical devices included in the kiosk.