Registers – Systems controlled by data bearing records – Credit or identification card systems
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-18
2001-09-25
Pitts, Harold I. (Department: 2876)
Registers
Systems controlled by data bearing records
Credit or identification card systems
C235S492000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06293462
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention pertains in general to the use of electronic smart cards for the storage of information pertaining to electronic commerce and consumer identification, and in particular, but not by way of limitation, to a method and apparatus for the warehousing and retrieval of information pertaining to credit cards, debit cards, identification cards and other selected data.
This application is a continuation of co-pending prior application Ser. No. 09/087,193, filed May 29, 1998 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,131,811 entitled WALLET CONSOLIDATOR.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In today's electronic commerce there has been a proliferation in the use of various types of credit, debit, identification and other types of authorization cards. For example, an average individual is likely to carry a driver's license, several credit and/or debit cards, an identification card for access to a health club, an identification card to gain access to a place of employment and an access card to gain entry into a parking garage, among others. Furthermore, with advances in electronic commerce, smart cards are likely to replace paper and coin money resulting in an additional card for consumers to carry. Each of these cards typically incorporates a magnetic stripe or bar code to facilitate easy recognition of the card and to store various types of data. Although the use of these cards allow for easy and efficient electronic commerce, the number of such cards quickly becomes cumbersome and many individuals find carrying the large number of cards inconvenient.
Attempts have been made to use a single smart card to hold the various information contained on several cards. These attempts, however, involve the downloading of information from the smart card provider and do not allow a smart card user to control the contents of the device by adding additional information from newly issued cards or removing information from discontinued cards.
It would be advantageous, therefore, to devise a method and apparatus for consolidating the various cards, and other types of information, which individuals typically carry in a wallet or purse. It would further be advantageous if such a method and apparatus stored the information in a central location and facilitated the use of a single multi-purpose card. It would still further be advantageous if such a method and apparatus allowed the user of the method and apparatus the ability to control the stored information.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention comprises a method and apparatus for warehousing information in a wallet consolidator. The wallet consolidator includes a controller for controlling operation of the wallet consolidator, a magnetic stripe reader/writer for reading and writing magnetic stripes, a bar code scanner for scanning bar codes, a keypad for inputting user selections and commands, a memory for storing information provided to the wallet consolidator, a smart card interface for effectuating communication between the wallet consolidator and a smart card and a display screen for displaying text and graphics, the display screen further for displaying a bar code pattern capable of being scanned by a bar code scanner.
To store information in the wallet consolidator, or alternatively in a smart card interfaced to the wallet consolidator, information is read from magnetic stripes on various types of cards such as, but not limited to, credit, debit and identification cards. A bar code scanner allows a bar code to be scanned from a card and stored in memory. Additionally, images of the cards including, but not limited to, signatures, portraits can be downloaded, and with sufficient memory, stored for future use. A user retrieves information from any of the stored magnetic stripes and writes the information to a single magnetic stripe for use in a point of sale transaction. Similarly, stored images are retrieved and displayed on a display screen including a bar code which can be scanned by a bar code scanner.
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E-Micro Corporation
Pitts Harold I.
Smith ,Danamraj & Youst, P.C.
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