CN1238055A - Portable debit terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

A pocket value terminal comprises a pocketable case (10), a display (11) and a keyboard (12). The case is designed to receive and electrically connect with contact chip cards to carry out various transactions. The case has a multi-pin connector (14) enabling the terminal to be connected to external devices. The central microprocessor may be mounted on a plastic board that also caries a contactless chip. Alternatively, the contactless chip may be mounted on a separate board and held and supported in convenient proximity with the terminal. In this way the terminal acts as a value transfer and communicating device, and can also be used, in contactless mode, to purchase rail journeys and the like.

Description

Portable debit terminal

The present invention relates to a portable debit terminal associated with an electronic transaction card comprising a memory often referred to as a smart card or chip card and associated handheld device.

These cards consist of a thin rectangular section (typically 85.6mm x 53.98mm x 0.76mm) of plastic material within which is embedded an integrated circuit containing complex memory and logic circuits according to various ISO standards work, enabling users to conduct commercial transactions with a service provider. Such integrated circuits are hereinafter referred to as "chips".

Various technologies are used in the two-way communication with the smart card chip, two of which are known as "contact" and "contactless".

Contact chip cards have contact pads on the surface of the card that are connected to the chip. This communication is accomplished through physical electrical connections to these contact pads. In contrast, communication with the contactless card chip is accomplished over a long distance, typically around 6 to 10 centimeters, by radio frequency signals sent from an external reader. The signal is received via a thin, tuned antenna in the form of a multilayer loop embedded around the chip card and connected to the chip.

The invention can be applied to any number of chip cards employing the techniques described above and other related hand-held devices. Such cards can have many applications, typical applications include financial transaction cards, stored value cards for transportation, telecommunications, car parking meters, and identity cards, to name a few. Such cards are prepared and used separately, and generally each function includes a separate card.

The need for a multi-function chip can be achieved by developing a combo card that combines the features of the various chips into a single microprocessor chip. Such a combination of management protocols for various functions would cause additional difficulties and in some cases greatly increase costs. In terms of mass production etc. there is also a considerable design outlay involved since for each form of combination a specially designed chip is required.

In addition, many service providers are unwilling to take the risk of combining their technology with another untested technology because of the untested acceptance of individual technologies. This is especially true in current integration efforts in transportation and finance.

Industry observers expect service providers to move from the use of individual chip cards to a possible eventual single combined chip card, a solution that will take several stages of development.

These stages are typically:

From a single card containing a dedicated chip, to a single card containing two separate chips, and finally to a single combo card combining these technical features.

The present invention solves the need for an organization that allows service providers to integrate their technologies during the development phase from a stand-alone card to a possible combination card.

By providing a common interface that is both independent of these technologies and safe for each service provider, the financial, legal, operational and technical problems that have long been involved in their business integration can be solved.

Typical business issues regarding ownership of the card, what rights the owner has over the data stored on any single application, and who is responsible for establishing the data structures and security authorities need to be carefully considered before committing to the structure of the combo chip. problems and economic benefits from shared ownership.

A variety of handheld devices are now in use every day, and these devices may take the form of pagers, mobile phones, calculators, electronic wallets, organizers, card value readers, and the like. These devices typically contain components such as displays, input interfaces, printed circuit boards, and processors. The cards and associated handheld devices involved in the present invention may be considered to have their respective communication, storage and processing components consolidated in one electronic module mounted on a plastic card or printed circuit board.

In any case, broadly speaking, each chip card relating to the invention can be considered as a simple suitable package of chips and other components as may be employed. The package ensures the integrity of the chip and its components, allows the chip card to be manually handled and, where appropriate, electrically "plugged" into a device or device or simply placed in a socket, e.g. , for the financial transaction device to be inserted in a slot of an automatic cash payment device.

Some chip cards use so-called "contactless technology" for remote sensing, interrogation and monitoring. Contactless chip cards are already used for train station entrances, road toll collection and electronic driver's licenses, where the cardholder only needs to "show" the card at a distance or attach it to a car A static reader or monitor communicates automatically.

The invention can also be applied to pagers, mobile phones, calculators, electronic wallets, organizers, card value readers, etc., and to circuit boards carrying one or more chips and some other components where applicable. For the purpose of defining embodiments of the present invention, any chip card and applicable associated handheld device will be referred to as a "portable communication device" to indicate their size, size and functionality.

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a combination of two or more distinct discrete portable communication devices, each having a microprocessor chip performing its independent function, the devices being arranged in physical association with each other, and One of these devices is a contactless chip card.

Each device may have a single chip and a single holder or wallet which physically holds the chips together.

Each device may comprise a single support card of plastics material and a housing for receiving and carrying two or more cards closely connected to each other.

In some devices, the contactless chip card may be formed or carried on the same plastic card as the other device or one of the other devices.

The antenna of the contactless device may be formed by a conductor printed on a plastic card or one of the plastic cards of the other device.

A device may include a manually operable portable debit terminal containing a separate microcomputer. One of the functions of the microcomputer is to communicate directly with one or more portable communication devices, or to allow communication between two or more of these devices, during which the device and the microcomputer are placed in close proximity.

The portable debit terminal may be arranged to include a mechanism for receiving and holding in place at least two chip cards. The portable debit terminal preferably includes a means for communicating between at least one chip and the microcomputer, in which case the contact chip card is electrically connected to the portable debit terminal via exposed contacts during the communication process.

The portable debit terminal also preferably includes a multi-pin connection to other devices.

The housing may include a wallet for receiving the portable debit terminal.

In this combination, one of these devices preferably comprises a conventional electronic device that fits in a person's pocket.

One of these devices preferably contains a central processor card. The central processor card may have means for communicating directly with a chip in another card which is placed adjacent to the central processor card during communication.

A device may contain a central processor and have a mechanism for receiving and holding in place other cards with similar chips.

A chip card value reader may be provided and arranged to display the value residing in the memory of the chip card actually placed within the device.

A holder or wallet can be used to control and transfer values between various other cards placed adjacent to the central processor, or to transfer the value into a common access area within the central processor.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an isometric top view of a portable debit terminal;

Figure 2 shows an isometric top view of a printed circuit board for the device and forming the combined central processing unit and contactless chip;

Figure 3 shows an isometric bottom view of the printed circuit board of the device;

Figure 4 shows an isometric bottom view of the terminal;

Figure 5 shows an isometric bottom view of a contact chip card of type ISO 7816;

Figure 6 shows an isometric top view of a Mini or SIM type contact chip card;

Figure 7 is a clamp-type battery board of the terminal;

Figures 8a and 8b are portable debit terminals connected to a cellular phone handset;

Figure 9 is a portable debit terminal connected to a PSTN phone and modem; and

Fig. 10 is a portable debit terminal connected to a personal computer.

Referring to the drawings, a debit terminal is provided in a sheet-shaped portable case 10, the area of which is approximately equal to that of a conventional credit card, and a liquid crystal display 11 and a keyboard 12 are provided. A multi-pin connector 14 mounted at one end of the housing 10 enables the terminal to be electrically connected to a flat panel 15 mounted in a container 16 which forms a convenient support or support for the housing 10. Install. Another multi-pin connector 25 is mounted on the other end of the housing 10 . The housing 10 can also be connected to various devices such as mobile phones or personal computers. In the latter case, the housing 10 will be connected in the usual manner to a compatible computer socket, preferably a 68-pin PCMCIA socket or an RS232 socket for a personal computer. (see Figure 10)

In Fig. 3, a contact chip connector 13 of the ISO7816 type is installed on a printed circuit board 17 and a second contact chip connector of the Mini or SIN type which can be inserted into a Mini or SIM type contact chip card 19 Device 18.

A terminal microcomputer 24 mounted on the printed circuit board 17 allows direct communication with the contact chip cards 19 and 22 plugged into the contact chip connectors 18 and 13 . In use, the chip cards 19 and 22 are designed to communicate with the terminal in a completely secure manner according to the known Mondex (trade mark) system or other similar chip card systems.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a non-contact chip circuit is provided, which respectively includes a single non-contact chip 20 and an antenna 21 mounted and formed on a printed circuit board 17 . The chip 20 is completely separated and independent from the microcomputer 24, and the antenna 21 is also electrically isolated from the microcomputer 24. In fact, to facilitate general versatility, the contactless chip card is preferably formed in a separate manufacturing or assembly operation before the microcomputer 24 and its components are added to the plastic board. However, after the microcomputer 24 and the non-contact chip 20 have been mounted on the same printed circuit board, they may be packaged in resin.

A second contact smart card 22 is shown in FIG. 5 . When the contact chip card 22 is inserted between the back of the housing 10 and the battery board 15 , the contact chip card 22 is placed in place opposite the contact chip connector 13 . According to the Mondex system, the second card 22 can belong to another person, and this structure is through a separate communication link between the contact chip cards 19 and 22 and the microcomputer 24, according to the instructions manually entered by the keyboard 12 of the terminal , enabling cash value to be transferred between cards. In this way, cash, especially for goods or business, can be passed between two people. As mentioned above, structures are known which allow the secure transfer of cash values between two chip cards.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the described structure represents a typical example in which a contactless chip card is used, for example, to buy a railway ticket or to book a ticketless flight. A user of the device can use a contact chip card to effect transactions such as obtaining cash on a cash automatic disbursement device or transferring cash to another similar cash holder, these transfers of value or data can also be done by inserting a portable debit terminal Connecting to a cellular mobile phone, as shown in Figures 8a and 8b, enables the transfer between the contact card inserted in the portable debit terminal and the financial device to be done remotely via a digital cellular network.

A typical cellular system would be a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) with Short Message Service and possibly over the air data transmission under phase 2+ of the GSM standard.

The user can also obtain information about the remaining value or recent transaction data stored on the contact chip card via the display of the terminal. In addition, in contactless mode, the cardholder can also obtain information about the remaining value or recent transaction data stored on the contactless chip card, or can enter or leave a train station or board an airplane without routine air ticket. It is also possible to design and use the contactless chip unit as an identification card for the entrance of "secret" offices or the like.

In addition, when the user conducts transactions with the terminal's contact card or contactless card component, the user can accumulate credits having a predetermined relationship to the value he purchases with the terminal's contact card or contactless component.

These points can be transformed by the relevant service provider into a value format that can be stored in a common partition of the microprocessor 24, wherein the common partition is accessible by the contact card service provider and the contactless card service provider, And these points are used jointly or individually by the service providers for distribution among themselves and/or with users.

The contactless device in the above embodiments is formed on the same plastic board that supports the electronic components of the terminal. In other applications, the contactless device can be formed on the same printed circuit board that supports pagers, mobile phones, calculators, card value readers, electronic wallets or organizers, electronic components. On the other hand, a contactless device may be quite self-contained, and also discrete in the manner described above, so as to be placed or used only in close proximity to the chip pads of other "communication" devices, including those associated with devices such as 19 A terminal for communicating with the chip card at 22 (as described above).

In any event, it should be understood that, in embodiments of the present invention, the contactless functionality is an "addition" to a communication device, such as a portable debit terminal. There are at least three advantages to providing such a device. First, there is no need to redesign and technically prove contact chips or contactless chips, as they are known and generally available. Secondly, several different contactless chip cards can be selected and added to one of a variety of contact chip cards. Third, because contactless operation does not require batteries, or in general, can be provided next to the standard printed circuit of a pager, mobile phone, calculator, card value reader, electronic wallet, electronic organizer, or other device. Contact function. In this way a pager etc. can be used for its normal functions and also for gaining access to a train station using the included or added contactless chip card component.

Yet another advantage of keeping the chip components separate is that it maintains privacy and security between the various service providers and/or users.

It should be noted that the microcomputer 24 can be employed to inform the user or cardholder of the above-mentioned device about the status of the value remaining in his chip card, also having means of secretly obtaining the latest transaction data about his card. Currently, the means for accessing this information are generally located at the service provider, and in many cases this information is not readily available.

The equipment related to the above can be realized by a combination of the display and the key input part of the portable debit terminal.

Other variations based on the portable debit terminal can be provided to enhance its overall utility. The portable debit terminal can be connected to an information system for the transfer of data and/or value via one of two multi-pin connectors provided on the terminal. In one construction, the portable debit terminal can be connected via a 68-pin PCMCIA connector 14 to an information system. The information system may be accessed by a device such as a personal computer, personal digital assistant or any other device containing a connection socket compatible with the terminal's 68-pin PCMCIA connector and associated with a unique connector alignment.

Alternatively, the information system can be accessed through the telephone network. To achieve this, the terminal is connected to the telephone network via a telephone handset, which may be a mobile phone or a special handset designed for this purpose. The latest mobile digital telephones are equipped with a data transmission connection slot. When in use, the portable debit terminal is connected to the slot by a second multi-pin connector 25 located at the peripheral equipment of the terminal, as shown in FIG. 8a, through The proprietary software driver provided by the cellular phone manufacturer is integrated into the portable debit terminal which is compatible with the communication protocol of the cellular phone, so that data transmission can be carried out.

Alternatively, the portable debit terminal can be connected via a 68-pin PCMCIA connector 14 to a mobile digital phone with a PCMCIA compatible slot located on the bottom or side of the cellular handset, as shown in Figure 8b.

There is also a similar structure where the telephone handset is connected to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) which contains a modem designed for data transmission, as shown in Figure 9.

In any of these data transfer structures, the portable debit terminal facilitates a significant increase in computing power that cannot be achieved with a chip card in its stand-alone state. This increased computing power enables the portable debit terminal to act as a "smart" for relatively simple chip cards by performing functional workloads such as the implementation of security measures, especially fully asymmetric cryptographic techniques that require a large number of computing tools partner.

It is also necessary to have a large enough power supply for the portable debit terminal. This is achieved with a rechargeable high-capacity plug-in power strip, and its specifications will not have a significant impact on the weight or volume of the terminal. Connector 14.

In addition, the portable debit terminal is held in a data transfer structure (the components of which have been described in the preceding embodiments) capable of accommodating several chip cards at the same time and capable of communicating with inserted chip cards or Communication between information systems. This can lead to the transfer of value via communication systems, in particular between chip cards and financial devices. The remaining value on the chip card can be read from the display of the terminal before the card is removed from the portable debit terminal and the card is then used in the normal transaction mode.

In yet another embodiment, the portable debit terminal is used in a communication system connectable to an interactive marketplace or similar virtual network. This can be done by means of the aforementioned transmission systems or by large market devices designed especially for this interactive medium. Such devices include TV set top boxes and Internet connection devices. By connecting a portable terminal to these devices, small debit payments can be transferred instantly from inserted chip cards used to pay for services such as watching movies or paying for special TV sports coverage. Portable debit terminals can also be used to pay for many of the goods and services being and to be obtained from this medium over the Internet. Typically, most payments over these networks are "micropayments," of only small amounts, which are economically unused by conventional credit card devices due to the relatively high cost of their associated transaction processing capabilities. deal with.

The above-mentioned means related to all connections with the communication system can be realized by the combined application of the display and keyboard input parts of the portable debit terminal or computer terminal, telephone or other connected equipment.

Computers and digital technology have opened up new markets requiring secure and rapid remote payment devices. Remote payments require a high degree of security to protect the bond from counterfeiting and fraud, from criminals or computer hackers who would seek to intercept or transfer value transfers between legitimate users. Clearly, with the exponential growth of remote payments over virtual networks, it is critical to improve security.

In some or most embodiments, it is necessary to have a security tool. This is generally a basic need for most users of cash transactions. The improved card system uses an encrypted security device combined with the user's personal identification. Personal identification systems are generally based on three parameters that are associated with: something that a person knows, such as a personal identification number (PIN), something that a person has, such as a badge or card, or a personal identification number. some biometrics such as fingerprints or language patterns.

In one embodiment of the invention, a portable debit terminal with a plug-in battery pack as shown in FIG. 7 has a biometric template of the card user based on the user's fingerprint, voice, or other such data. This template is used to compare the corresponding biometric data entered by the user in real time before using the card. A positive result of this biometric comparison produces a time-based link to the activation of the value portion of the inserted chip card. After removing the plug-in power strip from the 68-pin connector, the portable debit terminal can be plugged into a compatible connection slot in the personal computer to complete the transfer of value within a specified period.

Alternatively, a portable charge terminal with a plug-in power strip can be connected via the multi-pin connector 25 to a compatible telephone. As described above, the biometric authentication is performed simultaneously with the connection to the telephone network, or the biometric authentication is performed independently and then connected to the telephone network.

In all cases, unless the user has been accepted by the biometric authentication process and the user's chip card is inserted into the portable debit terminal while the portable debit terminal is connected to a PC computer or compatible telephone, no transfers can take place. Removing the chip card from the portable debit terminal will disconnect it.

It is also possible to use biometric authentication together with a unique identifier on the integrated circuit of the inserted chip card to generate a session key for a transaction session selected by the user during the authentication process. This session key further enhances the security currently present in some chip card transaction protocols. For each new login to the communication system, a new session number is generated and used only for a period defined by the user.

Additionally, the memory can be expanded for more biometrics involved by storing the biometric template on any exposed small form factor flash memory card that can be additionally inserted into the portable debit terminal.

It should be understood that although a particular contactless device has been described herein with a chip mounted on a board and an antenna formed on the board by printed circuit or other techniques, other contactless configurations may be used. Such other contactless structures include cards read during recent inductive coupling, where the card is usually presented in close proximity to a reader. In all cases, a non-contact device is any device that does not actually come into direct contact with a reader, and is a separate or separately operable device, as described in the specification.

Claims (13)

1. A combination of two or more portable distinct discrete communication devices, each having a corresponding microprocessor chip for performing its discrete functions, wherein the devices are arranged in physical association with each other , and one of the devices is a contactless device. 2. 3. The combination of claim 1 wherein each of said devices has a separate chip and a single holder or wallet is provided to hold the chips in physical interrelationship close to each other. 3. 3. A combination as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said devices is formed on or carried by a respective single printed circuit board. 4. 3. A combination as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the antenna of the contactless device is formed by a conductor printed on or on one of the printed circuit boards. 5. 4. A combination as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein one of said devices comprises a conventional electronic device which can be placed in a person's pocket. 6. 5. A combination as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein one of said devices comprises a central microprocessor card. 7. A combination as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein said central processor card is provided with means for communicating directly with a chip in another card, wherein the other card communicates with said central microprocessor during communication. The processor cards are placed next to each other. 8. 6. A combination as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7, comprising a device comprising a central microprocessor, said device having means for receiving and holding in place other cards bearing the same chip. 9. 8. A combination as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, including a device comprising a clamp-on rechargeable battery panel to provide power. 10. 9. A combination as claimed in claim 9, including a chip card value reader arranged to display the value residing in the memory of the chip of the card placed in said device. 11. 9. A combination as claimed in claim 9, including a wallet arranged to transfer legal value between various other cards located physically adjacent to the central microprocessor. 12. A combination as claimed in claim 9, including a connector allowing communication to a cellular mobile phone to facilitate data or value passing through a cellular network between financial institutions or other cardholders to be physically adjacent to the central processing unit Placed card transport. 13. The combination of claim 9 including a connector allowing communication to a personal computer for data or value to be physically connected to the central processing unit via a personal computer communications network between financial institutions or other cardholders. Ortho-placed card transfers.

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