Point-of-sale system
AssigneeSquare, Inc.
InventorsTroy Edwards, Lukas Skoog, Amish Babu, Jesse Dorogusker
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A point-of-sale system includes a stand that supports a tablet computer. The tablet computer can run a merchant application to provide the typical functionality for a point-of-sale system. The stand can be rotatable to face either the merchant or the customer. The stand can incorporate a card reader. The tablet computer can be connected through a hub to other peripheral components, such as a controllable cash drawer, a printer and/or a bar code reader. The cash drawer can include a slidable drawer having sliding rails that are hidden from a top view of the drawer.
Claims20
A point of sale device comprising:
- a base that includes a planar surface;
- a frame pivotably coupled to the base, wherein the frame is configured to pivot between a first orientation to a second orientation relative to the base and about an axis that extends outward from a point within the planar surface of the base;
- a touchscreen device cradle integrated with the frame, the touchscreen device cradle configured to support a touchscreen device with a touchscreen display, wherein the frame pivoting between the first orientation and the second orientation about the axis causes a direction that the touchscreen display faces to change;
- a payment medium reader integrated with the frame, wherein the payment medium reader is configured to retrieve payment information from a payment medium;
- a processor integrated with the frame, the processor to receive the payment information from the payment medium reader;
- and
- a peripheral connection hub configured to communicate a peripheral dataset between the point of sale device and an electronic peripheral.
A system comprising:
- a peripheral communication hub;
- a base that includes a planar surface;
- and
- a frame pivotably coupled to the base, wherein the frame is configured to pivot between a first orientation to a second orientation relative to the base and about an axis that extends outward from a point within the planar surface of the base, the frame comprising:
- a payment medium reader is configured to retrieve payment information from a payment medium,
- a processor to receive the payment information from the payment medium reader and to communicate a peripheral dataset between the peripheral communication hub and an electronic peripheral, and
- a touchscreen display, wherein the frame pivoting between the first orientation and the second orientation about the axis causes a direction that the touchscreen display faces to change.
A method for point of sale operations, the method comprising:
- receiving payment information at a point of sale device by reading a payment medium via a payment medium reader of the point of sale device;
- swiveling a touchscreen display of the point of sale device relative to a base of the point of sale device and about an axis following the receipt of payment information at the point of sale device, wherein the touchscreen display swivels about the axis from a customer-facing orientation in which the touchscreen display faces a direction of a customer to a merchant-facing orientation in which the touchscreen display faces a direction of a merchant, and wherein the axis extends outward from a planar surface of the base of the point of sale device;
- and
- conveying a peripheral dataset between the point of sale device and an electronic peripheral that is connected to the point of sale device via a peripheral communication hub of the point of sale device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.