US 5,025,373 A · Portable personal-banking system

Abstract

A portable personal banking system comprises a host computer and at least one portable terminal among a variety of terminals including automatic teller machines and personal computers. The portable terminal provides a range of banking services over an automatically dialed-up telephone connection to the host bank computer. The personal terminal comprises a keyboard and display capability with mininal key requirements and display capacity respectively. Furthermore, during a banking mode of operation, control resides in the host bank computer. Consequently, future modifications or additions to banking services may be implemented without any change to the personal terminal. Also, the costs of providing the present portable personal terminal banking terminals are minimal compared with known home information terminals such as videotex terminals or personal computers. Yet, a personal terminal serving system is compatible with a serving system including home or office personal computers equipped with modems, automatic teller machines and other bank service enhancements implemented by the serving bank. Also, during a local mode of operation without the banking system, the terminal serves as a personal banking manager. The personal terminal housing may comprise a front surface for data entry and display and a rear surface comprising a pocket for banking forms and a writing table.

Claims28

Dependent claims

A portable personal banking terminal for use in a banking terminal system comprising:

an m line by n character display where m is between one and four and n is between 12 and 32,
a data modulator and demodulator for transmitting data over a telephone line,
an automatic telephone dialer for supervising and actuating a switched telephone connection over a public switched telephone network to a host computer, a data entry means for providing ten plus i selectable choices, the choices comprising ten numerical choices and i functional elements wherein i is between two and ten and
a controller, coupled to the display, the data modulator and demodulator, the automatic telephone dialer and the data entry means, for encrypting and formatting data in packets for transmission to the host computer, for validating and controlling the display of data entered via the data entry means during any of a local, an initialization or a banking mode of operation, and for controlling actuation of the switched telephone connection to the host computer during the initialization mode of operation, the controller being further responsive to the host computer during the baking mode of operation for controlling the display and storage of text messages, prompts and data transmitted from the host computer,
the terminal adapted to be handheld and having a front and a rear surface, the front surface providing a location for the data entry means and display and the rear surface providing a pocket for banking forms and a writing table.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Portable personal-banking system

Life of this patent

Portable personal-banking system

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims28