Patent ID: 7530495
Filing Date: 2009-05-12
Classification: G06K,G06Q,G07F

Abstract:
1. A universal credit card apparatus for providing and receiving access to a plurality of accounts including a plurality of account services and account information to and from a host system, comprising: a carrier configured to support the components of the apparatus; at least one memory device, chosen from the group consisting of volatile memory and nonvolatile memory, carried by the carrier, for storing account data including account identifying information for more then one account; an emitter device, chosen from the group consisting of infrared LEDs, coils, antenna and transducers, carried by the carrier, user programmable responsive to a user command with account identifying information for transmitting the account identifying information to the host system; a receiver device, chosen from the group consisting of phototransistors and antenna, carried by the carrier, for receiving account data including account information from the host system; a display device, carried by the carrier, for selectively displaying account information; a control circuit, carried by the carrier, coupled to the memory, to the display device and to the receiver device and which is operable to store account data including account information received by the receiver device from the host system into the memory and to cause the account information stored in the memory to appear on the display device; and a power source, carried by the carrier, and coupled to at least one of the memory, the receiver device, the display device and the control circuit; wherein the emitter device is configured to provide programmable optical patterns to identify a user selected account to the host system.