Abstract:
A method of dispensing valuable media from a self-service terminal. The method comprises: receiving a request from a customer at the self-service terminal to access an account held with a payment service provider. The terminal then forwards the request to the payment service provider and provides the payment service provider with authentication details from the customer at the self-service terminal. The terminal then receives a request to dispense valuable media from the payment service provider, and dispenses valuable media to the customer in response to the received request. The method may also involve charging the payment service provider an amount at least equal in value to the valuable media dispensed.

Description:
FIELD OF INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates generally to dispensing valuable media. 
       BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
       [0002]    Online payment service providers (such as Paypal (trademark)) provide mechanisms for their customers to pay for goods or services over the Internet without having to divulge their credit or debit card details to the vendor of those goods or services. 
         [0003]    To receive cash (physical currency) from a payment service provider, a vendor (who is also a customer of the payment service provider) first has to transfer funds from their account with the payment service provider to their bank account, then they can withdraw cash corresponding to the transferred amount from their bank account. 
         [0004]    It would be an advantage if customers of a payment service provider could receive funds from the payment service provider without first having to transfer the funds to a bank account. It would also be an advantage if customers of a payment service provider could receive funds from the payment service provider without requiring a bank account. 
       SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
       [0005]    Accordingly, the invention generally provides methods, systems, apparatus, and software for dispensing valuable media to a customer at a self-service terminal. 
         [0006]    In addition to the Summary of Invention provided above and the subject matter disclosed below in the Detailed Description, the following paragraphs of this section are intended to provide further basis for alternative claim language for possible use during prosecution of this application, if required. If this application is granted, some aspects of the invention may relate to claims added during prosecution of this application, other aspects may relate to claims deleted during prosecution, other aspects may relate to subject matter never claimed. Furthermore, the various aspects detailed hereinafter are independent of each other, except where stated otherwise. Any claim corresponding to one aspect should not be construed as incorporating any element or feature of the other aspects unless explicitly stated in that claim. 
         [0007]    According to a first aspect there is provided a method of dispensing valuable media from a self-service terminal, the method comprising: receiving a request from a customer at the self-service terminal to access an account held with a payment service provider; forwarding the request to the payment service provider; providing the payment service provider with authentication details from the customer at the self-service terminal; receiving a request to dispense valuable media from the payment service provider; dispensing valuable media to the customer in response to the received request; and charging the payment service provider an amount at least equal in value to the valuable media dispensed. 
         [0008]    As used herein, a payment service provider is not a bank, building society, savings provider, credit card issuer, charge card issuer, or the like. A payment service provider is an entity that holds funds for a customer until such funds are transferred to a bank or used for a purchase. 
         [0009]    The step of receiving a request from a customer at the self-service terminal to access an account held with a payment service provider may be implemented by displaying a screen on the self-service terminal having a menu option for accessing an account held with the payment service provider. 
         [0010]    The step of forwarding the request to the payment service provider may be implemented by forwarding the request directly to the payment service provider or by forwarding the request via a financial host that authorizes transactions for that self-service terminal. 
         [0011]    The step of providing the payment service provider with authentication details from the customer at the self-service terminal may include providing information read from a card or other token presented by the customer at the self-service terminal. Alternatively, the step of providing the payment service provider with authentication details from the customer at the self-service terminal may include forwarding details entered by the customer in response to a request from the payment service provider, such details may include a passcode provided to the customer by the payment service provider prior to the customer using the self-service terminal. The step of providing the payment service provider with authentication details from the customer may include providing information derived from a biometric reading from the customer, for example, a customer&#39;s iris pattern, fingerprint, vein pattern, or the like. 
         [0012]    The step of receiving a request to dispense valuable media from the payment service provider may include receiving a request in a predefined format. The request to dispense valuable media from the payment service provider may be received directly from the payment service provider, or via a financial host. 
         [0013]    The method may include the further step of charging an additional fee for executing the transaction. 
         [0014]    Communications between the payment service provider and the self-service terminal may be encrypted and/or protected by other conventional security mechanisms, such as using a hash value. 
         [0015]    According to a second aspect there is provided a computer program for a self-service terminal, the computer program being operable, when executed on a self-service terminal, to implement the method of the first aspect. 
         [0016]    According to a third aspect there is provided a system for dispensing valuable media from a self-service terminal, the system comprising: a payment service provider server, and a self-service terminal for receiving a request from a customer to access an account held with a payment service provider, the self-service terminal being operable to dispense valuable media to the customer in response to the received request; and charging the payment service provider an amount at least equal in value to the valuable media dispensed. 
         [0017]    According to a fourth aspect there is provided a method of dispensing valuable media from a self-service terminal, the method comprising: authenticating a customer at the self-service terminal; receiving a transaction request from the customer for conducting a transaction relating to an account held by the customer with a payment service provider; receiving from the customer a customer access code and a transaction identifier that corresponds to the transaction request; transmitting the transaction identifier corresponding to the transaction request to the payment service provider; receiving transaction details from the payment service provider, wherein the transaction details include a transaction access code and a correspondent transaction value; comparing the received customer access code with the received transaction code to ascertain if there is a match; and in the event of a match, dispensing to the customer an amount of valuable media corresponding to the transaction value. 
         [0018]    The method may further comprise the step of receiving confirmation from the customer to proceed with the transaction prior to dispensing to the customer the valuable media. 
         [0019]    Transmitting the transaction identifier may include sending the transaction value to the payment service provider for authorization and accessing the account held by the customer. 
         [0020]    According to a fifth aspect there is provided a method of authenticating dispensing of valuable media to a customer, the method comprising: receiving a customer identifier from a self service terminal; accessing a database storing a plurality of transaction entries, each transaction entry comprising a pending transaction value and an associated transaction access code; retrieving a transaction entry for the customer using the customer identifier; transmitting the retrieved transaction entry to the self-service terminal; receiving a response from the self-service terminal indicating that the pending transaction value has been dispensed to the customer; and updating the transaction entry in the database for that customer to indicate that the transaction has been fulfilled. 
         [0021]    The method may comprise the further step of electronically debiting the transaction value from an account held by the customer. 
         [0022]    The method may comprise the further step of providing a confirmation to the customer via a different communications channel after updating the transaction entry in the database for that customer. 
         [0023]    The step of providing a confirmation to the customer via a different communications channel may include sending an electronic mail message to an electronic mail account of the customer. 
         [0024]    According to a sixth aspect there is provided a method of dispensing valuable media to a customer, the method comprising: transmitting a transaction request to a payment service provider; receiving an access code corresponding to a transaction value from the payment service provider; providing the customer with an option to withdraw valuable media up to the transaction value; and dispensing an amount of valuable media in response to selection by the customer of the option to withdraw valuable media. 
         [0025]    By virtue of this aspect a customer can withdraw physical cash from his/her payment service provider account via a self-service terminal, without having to transfer the funds to a bank account. 
         [0026]    These and other aspects will be apparent from the following specific description, given by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0027]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a transaction system for dispensing valuable media from a self service terminal in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0028]      FIG. 2  is a flowchart illustrating steps performed by the system of  FIG. 1 ; and 
           [0029]      FIG. 3  is a block diagram of an entry in a part (the payment provider server) of the system of  FIG. 1 ; 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0030]    Reference is made to  FIG. 1  which is a block diagram of a transaction system  10  for dispensing valuable media (in the form of banknotes) from a self-service terminal in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0031]    The system  10  comprises a server  12  operated by a payment service provider (such as Paypal (trade mark)) coupled to a self service terminal  14  (in the form of an ATM) by a communication network  16  (such as the Internet). The ATM  14  is also connected to a financial institution host  18  for authorizing ATM transactions. A customer  20  of the ATM  14  is also illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
         [0032]    The payment service provider server  12  implements an e-commerce business. The payment service provider server  12  receives payments sent via the Internet  16 , and transfers funds to customer&#39;s bank accounts via the Internet  16 . 
         [0033]    Reference will now also be made to  FIG. 2 , which is a flowchart illustrating steps performed by the system of  FIG. 1 . Reference will also be made to  FIG. 3 , which is a block diagram of an entry in the payment provider server  12 . In this example, the customer  20  has an account with the bank that owns and operates the ATM  14 . 
         [0034]    Prior to using the ATM  14 , the customer  20  sold some goods over the Internet, and the purchaser paid fifty dollars ($50) to the customer&#39;s account with the payment service provider. The payment provider server  12  includes a database  30  (best seen in  FIG. 3 ) that records details of this transaction. The database  30  is illustrated as having a header row  32  indicating the fields available for each entry. These fields include: a customer identifier field  34 , a customer account number field  34 , a current balance field  38 , a transaction code field  40 , a date of last transaction field  42 , amongst other fields. 
         [0035]    Each entry in the database  30  relates to a customer account. For simplicity, only one customer entry  44  is illustrated in  FIG. 3 . 
         [0036]    The customer  20  can access at least some of the information contained in this database  30  via a Web site operated by the payment service provider  12 . The customer  20  can request the payment service provider  12  to create and send to the customer  20  a transaction code (which is then stored in transaction code field  40 ) to allow the customer to withdraw cash at an ATM such as ATM  14 . 
         [0037]    The payment service provider server  12  may send this transaction code (in this example it is “PQ12F4”) to the customer via any convenient channel. For example, the customer  20  may have registered a cellular telephone number with the payment service provider server  12  (stored in another field of the database  30 ) to which the transaction code may be sent via a text message. As another example, the customer  20  may have registered an electronic mail (email) address with the payment service provider server  12  (stored in another field of the database  30 ) to which the transaction code may be sent. 
         [0038]    Once the customer  20  has the transaction code, the customer  20  can approach the ATM  14 . Initially, the customer  20  inserts an ATM card into the ATM  14  and then enters his/her PIN. The ATM  14  then uses the bank host  18  to authenticate the customer  20  (step  50 ). The bank host  18  then instructs the ATM  14  to display a screen including an option for accessing an account the customer has with a payment provider. 
         [0039]    The customer  20  then selects the option for accessing the payment provider. The ATM  14  detects this selection and requests the customer  20  to enter his/her customer identifier (for the service provider) and transaction code (previously generated and issued by the service provider) by displaying a keyboard and instructions on how to enter letters and numbers using the ATM&#39;s keypad and/or FDKs (step  52 ). 
         [0040]    The ATM  14  then transmits a direct request to the payment provider (step  54 ) over the Internet  16 . This request includes the customer identifier and transaction code. In this example, the customer  20  entered “ABC123” as the customer identifier, and “PQ12F4” as the transaction code. 
         [0041]    The payment provider server  12  receives the request (including the customer identifier and transaction code) and accesses the database  30  (which stores transaction details for customers having an account with the payment provider) to retrieve the entry for the received customer identifier (step  56 ). 
         [0042]    The payment provider server  12  then ascertains if the entered customer identifier and transaction code match the contents of an entry in the database  30  (step  58 ). 
         [0043]    In this example, the entered customer identifier “ABC123” and transaction code “PQ12F4” match the contents of the corresponding fields  34 , 40  of entry  42 , so the payment service provider server  12  transmits an authorization message (step  60 ) authorizing the ATM  14  to dispense up to $50 (the contents of the current balance field  38 ) to the customer  20 . 
         [0044]    If the entered customer identifier and transaction code do not match the contents of an entry in the database  30  then the service provider server  12  transmits a denial message informing the ATM  14  that the request is not valid (step  62 ). The ATM  14  may record the customer&#39;s details, such as account number from the ATM card, in case the card is stolen or in case of some other irregularity. 
         [0045]    When the ATM  14  receives the authorization message sent in step  60 , then the ATM  14  parses the message to ascertain how much cash may be dispensed. In this example, up to $50 may be dispensed (step  64 ). 
         [0046]    The ATM then displays a screen inviting the customer  20  to indicate how much cash he/she wishes to withdraw, up to a maximum of $50 (step  66 ). 
         [0047]    The customer  20  then types in a transaction amount (in this example, $50), which is detected by the ATM  14  (step  68 ), and the ATM  14  then dispenses this amount of cash to the customer (that is, $50) (step  70 ). 
         [0048]    The customer  20  then retrieves his/her cash and ATM card from the ATM  14 . The ATM  14  then notifies the payment service provider server  12  that the transaction has been fulfilled for the full amount (that is, $50) (step  72 ). 
         [0049]    The payment service provider  12  then updates its database  30  to reflect this transaction (step  74 ) and the ATM  14  then notifies the host  18  of this transaction (step  76 ) so that the host  18  can charge the payment service provider for this transaction. The host  18  may also charge the payment service provider a transaction fee in addition to charging $50 for the amount of money dispensed. 
         [0050]    Various modifications may be made to the above described embodiment within the scope of the present invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the customer used an ATM card to authenticate himself/herself at the ATM, in other embodiments, the ATM may use a biometric reader to authenticate the customer, or some other credentials may be used, such as a social security number, a passport number, a driver&#39;s license number, a telephone number, a national insurance number, a bank account number, or the like. 
         [0051]    In the above embodiment, the ATM communicated directly with the payment service provider server; in other embodiments, the ATM may communicate with the payment service provider server via the financial institution host  18 . 
         [0052]    In the above embodiment, the only some of the details stored in the database  30  are shown. In other embodiments, the database  30  may store additional details, such as an expiry time and/or date for the transaction code, a list of all transactions, or all transactions in a predefined period, for example, the last thirty days, customer contact information such as a mailing address, telephone number, email address, and the like. 
         [0053]    In other embodiments, the payment provider server  12  may send a list of all pending transactions to the ATM  14  for display to the customer  20 . 
         [0054]    The payment service provider may levy its own charge on the customer for using an ATM to dispense cash. 
         [0055]    The transaction code may be a numeric code, an alphanumeric code, or any other convenient code or symbology. In some embodiments, a code may comprise several items of the customer&#39;s information including the customer&#39;s name, address, telephone number, social security number, account number, or the like. 
         [0056]    In other embodiments, the customer  20  may be permitted to create a transaction code, thereby ensuring that the code may be memorable for the customer. 
         [0057]    In other embodiments, the customer may use a cash deposit ATM to make payments to his/her account with the payment service provider. This can be achieved by the customer providing the customer identifier and the amount of money. The ATM can then verify that the correct amount of money has been deposited, provide a unique transaction code to the customer as a receipt, and then inform the payment service provider server  12  about the customer identifier and the amount of cash deposited. The payment service provider server  12  can then update the customer&#39;s entry in the database  30  to reflect the cash added by the customer.