Abstract:
A terminal, such as an automated teller machine, comprises: a customer identification device; a sensor for detecting presence of a customer at the terminal; and a controller coupled to the customer identification device and the sensor. The controller is programmed to (i) track the customer&#39;s location, (ii) create a session on identification of a customer, and (iii) close the created session when a customer absence criterion is fulfilled. The functions of the customer identification device and the sensor may be performed by a single unit. The customer absence criterion may comprise a time period during which the customer is not detected at the terminal.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     The present invention relates to a terminal, such as a self-service terminal. 
     Self-service terminals are public access terminals that allow customers to conduct transactions. One popular type of SST is an automated teller machine (ATM). At an ATM, a customer typically initiates a transaction by inserting an identification card. 
     It is becoming more common for such ATMs to use dip card readers (where part of the card always protrudes from the reader) rather than motorized card readers (where the card is completely enclosed by the reader) because dip card readers do not require the customer to yield control of the card to the ATM. Dip card readers also have the advantage that the ATM does not need to capture the customer&#39;s card if the customer leaves his/her card in the ATM. 
     One problem with using dip readers is that a customer may initiate a transaction but leave before the transaction is completed. The ATM may not be able to ascertain that the customer has prematurely left the ATM, so the next customer may be able to continue a transaction or a session initiated by the previous customer. 
     SUMMARY 
     According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a terminal comprising: a customer identification device; a sensor for detecting presence of a customer at the terminal; and a controller coupled to the customer identification device and the sensor, and being programmed to (i) track the customer&#39;s location, (ii) create a session on identification of a customer, and (iii) close the created session when a customer absence criterion is fulfilled. 
     The customer identification device may be a media reader, such as a card reader. The card reader may be a motorized card reader, a dip card reader, a swipe card reader, or the like. The customer identification device may be used in combination with an encrypting keypad to receive a personal identification number (PIN) associated with the customer&#39;s card, so that a customer is identified based on entry of a correct PIN for a particular card. 
     Alternatively, or additionally, the customer identification device may be a biometric sensor, such as a fingerprint sensor, a palm sensor, an iris sensor, a facial recognition sensor, or the like. 
     The sensor for detecting the presence of a customer at the terminal may be an imaging device such as a camera (CCD, CMOS, or the like), a thermal imager, or the like. Alternatively, or additionally, the sensor may be a weight sensor (or an array of weight sensors) incorporated into a mat on which the customer stands, so that the presence and weight of a customer can be ascertained during a transaction. Any other convenient sensor may be used. 
     Where an imager is used as the sensor, the controller may create a template associated with the customer by using target acquisition routines that discriminate between a central person and other people in the background, and/or between a person who is closest and other people in the background. Where the imager is a camera, facial tracking software (which is available commercially) may be used to track the customer&#39;s face. The template may include details of the customer&#39;s size, face, or the like. Commercial software is available that performs facial identification and tracking, such as FaceIt (trademark) software available from Identix Incorporated of Identix Incorporated, 5600 Rowland Road, Minnetonka, Minn. 55343. 
     In some embodiments, the sensor for detecting the presence of a customer at the terminal may be combined with a customer identification device, so that a single unit is used both to identify a customer and sense the customer&#39;s continued presence at the terminal. 
     The customer absence criterion may comprise a time period during which the customer is not detected at the terminal. Such a time period may be one, two, three, or five seconds, or any other convenient time period. Alternatively, or additionally, the customer absence criterion may comprise a condition where one or more people are detected closer to the terminal than the customer. 
     The customer absence criterion may comprise a single condition or a series of conditions. 
     According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of operating a terminal, the method comprising: creating a session for a customer at the terminal; sensing at least one characteristic of the customer; creating a template for the customer using the sensed characteristic or characteristics to allow the terminal to discriminate between the customer and other people who may be in the vicinity of the terminal; and closing the created session in the event that a customer absence criterion is fulfilled. 
     According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided an assisted terminal system comprising a network of assisted terminals coupled to a supervisory terminal, where the supervisory terminal enables an operator to monitor customer activity at the terminals, the method comprising: (a) creating a session for a customer at one of the terminals; (b) entering session monitoring mode for that session, where session monitoring mode includes (i) sensing at least one characteristic of the customer, (ii) creating a template for the customer using the sensed characteristic or characteristics to allow the terminal to discriminate between the customer and other people who may be in the vicinity of the terminal, and (iii) closing the created session in the event that a customer absence criterion is fulfilled; and (c) exiting session monitoring mode in the event that the customer requests via the assisted terminal assistance from an operator of the supervisory terminal. 
     The method may comprise the further step of (d) authorizing the operator prior to allowing the operator to provide assistance to the customer at the assisted terminal. 
     The method may comprise the further step of (e) re-entering session monitoring mode after the operator has completed providing assistance to the customer. 
     By virtue of this aspect of the invention, the session monitoring mode may be disabled when the customer requests a member of staff (the operator of the supervisory terminal) to assist with a transaction. This avoids the terminal closing the session when the customer moves to one side of the terminal (potentially outside the sensing area) to let the operator interact with the terminal. 
     According to a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provided a terminal comprising: a device for identifying and detecting continued presence of a customer; a controller coupled to the device, and programmed to create a template associated with the customer using data captured by the device, thereby allowing the terminal to identify and track the customer; the controller being operable to create a session on identification of a customer and to close the created session when a customer absence criterion is fulfilled. 
     The device may be a facial tracking and recognition device that tracks a customer&#39;s face during a transaction and identifies the customer based on characteristics of the face. 
     The terminal may be a self-service terminal. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       These and other aspects of the present invention will be apparent from the following specific description, given by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of a self-service terminal according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a part (the controller) of the terminal of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIGS. 3A and 3B  are flowcharts illustrating a main flow and a monitor flow (respectively) of an application executing on the controller of  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a block diagram illustrating a network of assisted terminals according to another embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 5  is a schematic diagram showing one of the terminals of  FIG. 4  in more detail. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Reference is now made to  FIG. 1 , which illustrates an SST  10  in the form of an ATM being operated by a customer  12 . 
     The ATM  10  includes a user interface  14  for receiving input from, and outputting information to, the customer  12 . 
     The user interface  14  comprises: a moulded fascia  16  defining slots (not shown in detail) for accessing devices located within the ATM  10  and in registration with the slots; a sensor  18  in the form of a CCD camera; a display  20  aligned with opposing columns of function defined keys (FDKs); an encrypting keypad  22 ; a customer identification device  24  in the form of a dip card reader; a printer  26 , and a media dispenser  28  in the form of a cash dispenser. 
     The ATM  10  also includes an internal journal printer  30  for creating a record of all transactions executed by the ATM  10 , a network connection  32  (in the form of a network card) for communicating with a remote transaction host (not shown) for authorizing transactions, and an ATM controller  34  for controlling the operation of the various devices ( 18  to  32 ). All of the devices ( 18  to  34 ) within the ATM  10  are interconnected by an internal bus  36  for securely conveying data. 
     The ATM controller  34  is shown in more detail in  FIG. 2 . The controller  34  comprises a BIOS  40  stored in non-volatile memory, a microprocessor  42 , associated main memory  44 , and storage space  46  in the form of a magnetic disk drive. 
     In use, the ATM  10  loads an operating system kernel  50  and an ATM application program  52  into the main memory  44 . 
     The ATM application program  52  includes conventional routines and objects for controlling the operation of the ATM  10 , such as providing the sequence of screens used in each transaction (referred to as the application flow) and monitoring the condition of each device within the ATM  10  (state of health monitoring), as is known to those of skill in the art. 
     In addition to these conventional functions, the ATM application program  52  includes a sensing application  54  associated with the sensor  18  (the CCD camera in this embodiment). The sensing application  54  is based on FaceIt (trademark) software available from Identix Incorporated of 5600 Rowland Road, Minnetonka, Minn. 55343. 
     The sensing application  54  uses the FaceIt (trademark) software to provide both face finding (it finds a face from an image) and face recognition (it compares a face in an image with a pre-processed facial template, and computes the match score that indicates the likelihood that the two faces correspond to the same person). 
     The sensing application  54  provides a monitor routine that triggers an exception in the event that the customer  12  leaves the ATM  10  during a transaction. This will be described in more detail with reference to  FIGS. 3A and 3B , which are flowcharts illustrating a main flow  100  of the ATM application program  52 , and a monitor flow  200  associated with the sensing application  54 . 
     The sensing application  54  executes the monitor flow  200  in parallel with the main flow  100 , for example, as a separate thread. For ease of understanding, the main flow  100  will be described first, then the monitor flow  200 , although the skilled person will be aware that both flows occur simultaneously. 
     Main Flow—Transaction 
     Initially, the ATM  10  displays an attract screen on the ATM display  20  inviting a customer to execute a transaction. 
     To initiate a transaction, the customer  12  inserts his/her card into the dip reader  24 . The ATM  10  responds by reading data from the customer&#39;s card (step  100 ) and opening a session (step  102 ) for that customer. 
     The ATM  10  then initiates the sensing application  54  (step  104 ) by providing the sensing application  54  with unique customer identification information read from the customer&#39;s card. This triggers the monitor flow  200 , which will be described in more detail below. 
     The next stage in the transaction is for the ATM  10  to receive a PIN from the customer  12  entered via the encrypting keypad  22  (step  106 ). 
     The ATM  10  then invites the customer  12  to select a transaction, and detects the customer&#39;s selection (step  108 ) using either the encrypting keypad  22  or one of the FDKs aligned with the display  20 . In this example, the customer  12  selects a cash withdrawal transaction. 
     The ATM  10  then executes the transaction (step  110 ) by communicating the transaction request, an encrypted version of the entered PIN, and the account details to a remote authorization host. In the event that the transaction is authorized by the remote host, the ATM  10  fulfils the transaction (step  112 ) by dispensing the requested amount of cash to the customer  12 . 
     The ATM  10  then closes the session  114  for that customer  12 . 
     Monitor Flow—Customer Tracking 
     The monitor flow  200 , which is initiated by the main flow  100  (in step  104 ), occurs simultaneously with the main flow  100 , and will now be described with reference to  FIG. 3B . 
     The sensing application  54  receives the unique customer identification information transmitted from the main flow  100  (step  202 ) and uses this information to access a pre-stored template associated with that customer  12  (step  204 ). The pre-stored template may be stored in the magnetic disk drive  46  and loaded into the memory  44 . 
     In this embodiment, the pre-stored template comprises a fixed amount of data representing essential facial characteristics of a particular customer. The pre-stored template is created during an enrolment process. In the enrolment process, an image of the customer&#39;s face is captured and analyzed. An algorithm is used to convert essential characteristics (for example, distances between facial features) of the customer&#39;s face into a fixed amount of data. 
     Once the customer&#39;s template has been retrieved, the sensing application  54  then captures an image of the customer  12  using the CCD camera  18  and processes the captured image to locate the customer&#39;s face (step  206 ). 
     The sensing application  54  then creates a template from the image of the customer&#39;s face by employing the algorithm that was used in the enrolment process. This newly created template is compared with the retrieved template for that customer  12  to ascertain if there is a match (step  208 ). 
     If there is a match (within permissible tolerances) between the created template and the retrieved template, then the sensing application  54  tracks any movements of the customer&#39;s head (step  210 ). Provided the customer  12  remains in front of the ATM  10 , without anyone else entering the field of view, the sensing application  54  continues to track the customer  12  (step  212 ), and the monitoring flow  200  does not trigger any exceptions. 
     If there is not a match (within permissible tolerances) between the created template and the retrieved template, or if there is a match but the customer  12  cannot be tracked, then the sensing application  54  triggers an exception that aborts the transaction in the main flow (step  214 ), which is illustrated by arrow  216 , and closes the session for that customer (step  218 ). 
     The particular steps taken to abort a transaction may depend on what step the transaction is currently executing. For example, if a transaction has been authorized and the ATM  10  is ready to dispense cash (having counted out the required banknotes), then on receipt of an exception from the monitor flow  200 , the ATM application program  52  may retract the cash (for example to a purge bin) and inform the remote host that the cash was not presented to the customer  12  (illustrated by arrow  116 ). 
     Reference will now be made to  FIG. 4 , which illustrates an assisted service system  300  comprising a network of assisted terminals  302   a, b, c . . . n  coupled to a supervisory terminal  304  by a wired or wireless network  306 . The supervisory terminal  304  is operated by a staff member authorized to fulfill transactions. In this embodiment the system  300  is located within a bank branch, and the assisted terminals  302  are provided to enable customers to pre-stage a transaction. 
     Reference will also be made to  FIG. 5 , which shows one of the assisted terminals  302  in more detail. Each terminal  302  comprises a display  314 , a touch-sensitive panel  316 , a customer identification device  318  in the form of a CCD camera, and a controller  320  executing application software  322  that controls the operation of the terminal  302  and handles communication with the supervisory terminal  304 . 
     On approaching the terminal  302 , a customer  312  initiates a transaction by touching an area of the display  314  labeled “Start”. This causes the CCD camera  318  to capture an image of the customer. This captured image is then converted to a facial biometric template and compared with a database of pre-stored templates for enrolled customers until a match is found. 
     Once the customer  312  has been identified (matched to a pre-stored template), the display  314  presents one or more transaction options to the customer and the application software  322  tracks movements of the customer&#39;s face in a similar way to that described with reference to  FIG. 3 . When a transaction has been selected and is ready to be fulfilled, the customer  312  is advised by the terminal  302  to approach a staff member at the supervisory terminal  304  who will fulfill the transaction (for example, by handing over a requested amount of cash). This enables one staff member to fulfill multiple transactions quickly and efficiently. 
     If the customer  312  leaves the assisted terminal  302  before completing a transaction request, then the application software  322  detects the absence of the customer&#39;s face, and after a predetermined time period, for example, three seconds, the application software  322  may abort the transaction and/or notify the supervisory software of the absence of the customer from the assisted terminal  302 . This ensures that the next customer cannot use details entered by the customer  312  who left the terminal  302  part-way through a transaction. 
     If, part-way through a transaction, the customer  312  desires help in preparing and/or entering the transaction, the customer  312  can touch an option labeled “Help” presented on the display  314 . In response to the customer  312  requesting help, the controller  320  relays a help request to the supervisory terminal  304  and disables the routines in the application software  322  that track movements of the customer&#39;s face (that is, the controller  320  exits session monitoring mode). This is to ensure that the customer&#39;s session is not closed if the customer moves to one side of the terminal  302  to allow a staff member to enter details at the terminal  302 . 
     The application software  322  may require the staff member to provide identification, such as a password, or the staff member&#39;s face may be identified based on pre-stored templates, prior to allowing the staff member to continue with the customer&#39;s transaction. 
     It will now be appreciated that the above embodiment has the advantage that a customer who leaves an assisted terminal prior to completing a transaction will be logged out (that is, the session will be automatically closed), thereby protecting the security of the customer&#39;s information and reducing the possibility of a third party conducting a transaction using the customer&#39;s personal details. 
     Various modifications may be made to the above described embodiment within the scope of the invention, for example, in other embodiments, additional customer sensing devices may be used, such as pressure sensitive mats to detect whether the customer is still standing near the terminal, but not in front of the terminal. 
     In other embodiments, the sensing application  54  may be developed using library routines from the Open Source Computer Vision Library available from Intel Corporation (trademark) at the website http://www.intel.com/technology/computing/opencv/. 
     In other embodiments, the sensing application  54  may be developed using face tracking software available from the Computer Vision Laboratory of the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, (http://cvlab.epfl.ch/software/index.php). 
     In other embodiments, commercial face tracking software for use with webcams may be used, such as that provided by Logitech (www.logitech.com). Other machine vision face tracking solutions include those provided by A4Vision, 840 West California Ave, Suite 200, Sunnyvale, Calif. 94086, USA (http://www.a4vision.com/). 
     In the above embodiments, the customer absence criterion used was absence of a customer&#39;s face from the area in front of the terminal. In other embodiments, a different or additional customer absence criterion may be used; for example, the sensing application  54  may trigger an exception if a face other than the customer&#39;s face is detected in front of the terminal. 
     In other embodiments, alternative customer identification devices may be used. For example, an RFID reader may be used instead of a card reader. 
     In other embodiments, the sensing application may be used to identify the customer in addition to tracking the customer during a transaction. This would obviate the requirement for a card reader or any other customer identification device. 
     In some embodiments the dip card reader may lock the customer&#39;s card during a transaction. This may occur if the customer&#39;s card is an integrated circuit card. In other embodiments, the card may be inserted and removed immediately, with the card details read from the card&#39;s magnetic stripe when the card is inserted and/or removed. 
     In other embodiments, the system  300  may be situated in locations other than a bank branch, for example, a retail outlet, a car rental office, a hotel, an airline check-in area, or the like. 
     In the embodiment of  FIGS. 1 to 3B , the biometric sensor was used in verification mode (that is, there is a one-to-one comparison of created template to retrieved template); whereas, in the embodiment of  FIGS. 4 and 5 , the biometric sensor was used in identification mode (that is, there is a one-to-many comparison of created template to pre-stored templates). However, to accelerate identification, a customer may provide some details about himself/herself, such as address, name, age, or such like, even if those details are not unique to the customer. This would reduce the number of pre-stored templates that must be compared with the created template to locate a match (that is, there would be a one-to-few comparison). 
     In other embodiments, the SST  10  may be other than an ATM, for example, the SST may be an information kiosk, a postal services terminal, or such like. 
     In other embodiments where the SST is an ATM, the ATM may include devices additional and/or different to those described. For example, a touchscreen may be used instead of FDKs. 
     In other embodiments, the customer templates may not be pre-stored. A template may be created on-the-fly during a transaction, and used to track the customer for that transaction only. This would avoid the requirement to store templates, thereby saving storage space and avoiding privacy issues relating to storing personal information.