# US 2019/0244197 A1 · Electronic payment method and system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2019/0244197 A1 - Document ID: US20190244197A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 16/047,879 - Filed: 2018-07-27 - Published: 2019-08-08 - Earliest claimed: 2018-02-02 - Inventors: Cyril ROBITAILLE - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20190244197A1 ## CPC - G06Q 20/3829: {involving key management} - G06Q 20/322: {Aspects of commerce using mobile devices [M-devices]} - G06Q 20/3278: {RFID or NFC payments by means of M-devices} - G06Q 20/34: using cards, e.g. integrated circuit [IC] cards or magnetic cards - G06Q 20/3433: {the counter having monetary units} - G06Q 20/3674: {involving authentication} - G06Q 20/385: {using an alias or single-use codes} - G06Q 20/409: {Device specific authentication in transaction processing} - G06Q 20/4093: {Monitoring of device authentication} - 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 ## Abstract The present disclosure relates to an electronic payment method and to an electronic payment system. A central server generates a secret number based on a payment card number. The central server associates the secret number with a transaction. A copy of the association between the secret number and the transaction is stored at a remote terminal. An access is detected at the remote terminal by acquiring the payment card number at the remote terminal. The remote terminal generates an identifier based on the payment card number. The remote terminal verifies whether the identifier matches the secret number. When the identifier matches the secret number, the remote terminal determines whether a provision of a product or service offered at the remote terminal is authorized based on a content of the transaction. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An electronic payment method, comprising: generating, at a central server, a secret number based on a payment card number; associating, at the central server, the secret number with a transaction; storing a copy of the association between the secret number and the transaction at a remote terminal; detecting an access at the remote terminal by acquiring the payment card number at the remote terminal; generating, at the remote terminal, an identifier based on the payment card number; verifying, at the remote terminal, whether the identifier matches the secret number; and when the identifier matches the secret number, determining, at the remote terminal, whether a provision of a product or service offered at the remote terminal is authorized based on a content of the transaction. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising obtaining payment for the transaction, at the central server, from an issuer of a debit card or credit card bearing the payment card number. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the content of the transaction comprises a time-limited pass for the provision of the product or service, the method further comprising authorizing the provision of the product or service when the access occurs within a time period covered by the time-limited pass for the service. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the content of the transaction comprises a number of instances of the provision of the product or service, the method further comprising: if the number of instances is insufficient to authorize the provision of the product or service, denying the provision of the product or service at the remote terminal; and if the number of instances is sufficient to authorize the provision of the product or service: authorizing the provision of the product or service at the remote terminal, decrementing, at the remote terminal, the number of instances of the provision of the product or service, forwarding, from the remote terminal to the central server, the decremented number of instances of the provision of the product or service, and updating, at the central server, the association between the secret number and the transaction based on the decremented number of instances of the provision of the product or service. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein: the central server generates the secret number by applying an encryption algorithm on the payment card number; and the remote terminal generates the identifier by applying the encryption algorithm on the payment card number. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the association between the secret number and the transaction is transmitted to the remote terminal by one of a wired or wireless connection. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the payment card number is acquired at the remote terminal by use of a radio frequency identification (RFID) signal. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: generating, at the central server, a plurality of secret numbers, each secret number being based on a distinct payment card number; associating, at the central server, each distinct secret number with a corresponding transaction; and storing a copy of each association between the distinct secret numbers and their corresponding transactions to each of the plurality of remote terminals. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, further comprising denying the provision of the product or service at the remote terminal when the identifier does not match any secret number stored at the remote terminal. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The method of claim 9, further comprising; receiving, at the remote terminal, an operator command for requesting authorization for a single provision of the product or service; forwarding, from the remote terminal to the central server, a request for authorizing the single provision of the product or service; obtaining, at the central server from an issuer of a debit card or credit card bearing the payment card number, a payment for the single provision of the product or service; and forwarding, from the central server to the remote terminal, an authorization for the single provision of the product or service. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising storing copies of the association between the secret number and the transaction at each of a plurality of remote terminals, each of the plurality of remote terminals being adapted for: detecting the access by acquiring the payment card number; generating the identifier based on the payment card number; verifying whether the identifier matches the secret number; and determining whether the provision of the product or service is authorized based on the content of the transaction when the identifier matches the secret number. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, further comprising denying the provision of the product or service at a given terminal when the content of the transaction for the payment card number does not match any given product or service provided at the given remote terminal. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, further comprising; receiving, at the remote terminal, an operator command for requesting authorization for a single provision of the product or service; forwarding, from the remote terminal to the central server, a request for authorizing the single provision of the product or service; obtaining, at the central server from an issuer of a debit card or credit card bearing the payment card number, a payment for the single provision of the product or service; and forwarding, from the central server to the remote terminal, an authorization for the single provision of the product or service. ### Claim 14 An electronic payment system, comprising: a first communication link; a central server adapted to generate a secret number based on a payment card number and to associate the secret number with a transaction; and at least one remote terminal operatively connectable to the central server via the first communication link, the at least one remote terminal being adapted to: receive, from the central server while connected thereto via the first communication link, a copy of the association between the secret number and the transaction, store the copy of the association between the secret number and the transaction, detect an access by acquiring the payment card number, generate an identifier based on the payment card number, verify whether the identifier matches the secret number, and provided that the identifier matches the secret number, determine whether the provision of the product or service is authorized based on a content of the transaction. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The electronic payment system of claim 14, wherein: the at least one remote terminal is mobile; and the first communication link is selected from a detachable wired connection and a short-range wireless connection; wherein the at least one remote terminal is further adapted to communicate with the central server via the first communication link when in close proximity to the central server. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The electronic payment system of claim 15, further comprising: a second communication link; wherein the at least one remote terminal is further adapted to communicate with the central server via the second communication link when not in close proximity to the central server. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The electronic payment system of claim 16, wherein the second communication link is on a cellular network. ### Claim 18 (depends on 16) The electronic payment system of claim 16, wherein the content of the transaction comprises a number of instances of the provision of the product or service, wherein the at least one remote terminal is further adapted to: deny the provision of the product or service when the number of instances is insufficient to authorize the provision of the product or service; and if the number of instances is sufficient to authorize the provision of the product or service: authorize the provision of the product or service, decrement the number of instances of the provision of the product or service, and forward to the central server, via the second communication link, the decremented number of instances of the provision of the product or service; wherein the central server is further adapted to update the association between the secret number and the transaction based on the decremented number of instances of the provision of the product or service. ### Claim 19 (depends on 16) The electronic payment system of claim 16, wherein the at least one remote terminal is further adapted to deny the provision of the product or service when the identifier does not match the secret number stored at the at least one remote terminal. ### Claim 20 (depends on 19) The electronic payment system of claim 19, wherein: the at least one remote terminal further comprises an operator console adapted to receive an operator command requesting authorization for a single provision of the product or service; the at least one remote terminal is further adapted to forward to the central server, via the second communication link, a request for authorizing the single provision of the product or service; and the central server is further adapted to obtain, from an issuer of a debit card or credit card bearing the payment card number, a payment for the single provision of the product or service and to forward to the at least one remote terminal, via the second communication link, an authorization for the single provision of the product or service. ### Claim 21 (depends on 14) The electronic payment system of claim 14, wherein the central server is adapted to obtain a payment for the transaction from an issuer of a debit card or credit card bearing the payment card number by using a payment card industry (PCI) protocol. ### Claim 22 (depends on 14) The electronic payment system of claim 14, wherein the central server further comprises a portal adapted to receive the payment card number and the content of the transaction from a user. ### Claim 23 (depends on 14) The electronic payment system of claim 14, wherein at least one remote terminal comprises a radio frequency identification (RFID) receiver adapted to receive a RFID signal carrying the payment card number.