Abstract:
An electronic traveler&#39;s check system and method comprising an electronic travelers check card which is useable to retrieve money from point of service locations and banks. The system has a database of user information such as a pin number and the user&#39;s passport number which is used to verify the identity of the user before a transaction can take place.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/339,470, filed Dec. 14, 2001. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0003]    The present invention relates generally to electronic monetary systems. More specifically, the invention is business method and system for conducting monetary transactions electronically with a variety of safety and security features.  
           [0004]    2. Description of Related Art  
           [0005]    The related art of interest describes various bankcard systems, but none discloses the present invention of an electronic traveler&#39;s check system and method. The related art will be discussed in the order of relevance to the present invention.  
           [0006]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,182,891 B1 issued on Feb. 6, 2001, to Nobuo Furuhashi et al. describes a financial processing system comprising an electronic account bankbook, a money transfer card, a receipt file, and a checkbook utilizing an optical card, and an integrated circuit chip containing IC card, or a hybrid optical/IC card. The IC card memory has written validation keys, search keys, payee information, the upper limit amount of a check, and a program for processing transaction data. The history of various cash transactions is recorded in the optical recording sheet which is of write-once type, and rewriting or deletion thereof is impossible.  
           [0007]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,283,366 B1 issued on Sep. 4, 2001, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,528 issued on Dec. 26, 2000, to Robert R. Hill et al. describe a check writing point of sale system adapted for computerized reading by a point-of-sale by a sales terminal of a customer&#39;s check, credit card or by manual input with subsequent debiting of a consumer&#39;s account and crediting the merchant&#39;s account for the goods or services provided.  
           [0008]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,000,608 issued on Dec. 14, 1999, to Robert E. Dorf describes a multifunction card system capable of serving as a prepaid phone card, a debit card, a loyalty card for rewarding consumers for purchasing goods and services, and a medical information card, which is accessed by a merchant as a point-of-sale device.  
           [0009]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,684,291 issued on Nov. 4, 1997, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,988,509 issued on Nov. 23, 1999, to John M. Taskett describes a refundable prepaid telephone card.  
           [0010]    U.S. Pat. No. 4,926,031 issued on May 15, 1990, to Gerhard Stenzel describes a security document such as a credit card or an identification card having a signing stripe, a centered horizontal fluorescent line, a narrow vertical slot diaphragm traversing the horizontal line, and a vertical double arrow marker adjacent the narrow slot diaphragm.  
           [0011]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,264,689 issued on Nov. 23, 1993, to Philippe Maes et al. describes a rechargeable prepaid memory card with both unit and page counters for purchasing goods or services. A non-volatile electrically programmable memory (EPROM) circuit is included within the card.  
           [0012]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,455,407 issued on Oct. 3, 1995, to Sholom S. Rosen describes a complete electronic monetary system comprising (1) issuing banks coupled to a money generator device; (2) correspondent banks accepting and distributing the electronic money; (3) a plurality of transaction devices used by subscribers for storing electronic money; (4) teller devices for the issuing and correspondent banks; (5) a security arrangement for maintaining the integrity of the system; and (6) reconciliation and clearing processes to monitor and balance the monetary system.  
           [0013]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,644,118 issued on Jul. 1, 1997, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,257,487 B1 issued on Jul. 10, 2001, to Shoji Hayashida describes an electronic cashless system comprising an automatic transaction terminal device having a reading/writing unit for writing amount information to a cashless medium, and a center device having a unit for identifying the account balance of multiple accounts and for storing account information, a non-settled fund file unit for storing amount information written by the cashless medium, and a seller ledger file means for identifying the account balance of the multiple seller&#39;s accounts and for storing amount information.  
           [0014]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,850,077 issued on Dec. 15, 1998, to Bruce Tognazzini describes a portable card authorizer system comprising a portable unit having a credit card reader for reading an authorization code and a first wireless transceiver for transmitting the card authorization to a base unit. The base unit has a second wireless receiver. The base unit causes the second wireless transceiver to transmit a credit approval or denial.  
           [0015]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,018,717 issued on Jan. 25, 2000, to Alson Lee et al. describes a method and apparatus for acquiring access using a fast smart card transaction comprising the payment of goods or services by a credit card examined by a computerized system of an access device to read the card and perform first and second authentication processes.  
           [0016]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,741 issued on Nov. 14, 2000, to Juanita J. Wisdom et al. describes a universal pre-paid gasoline and oil travel card system comprising an encoded card and a data bank for purchases made at member gas stations for gas, oil and sundry items.  
           [0017]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,223,169 B1 issued on Apr. 24, 2001, to Toru Mori et al. describes an electronic transaction processing system for transferring a monetary value between a payer and a receiver including a first memory apparatus storing a payer&#39;s digital cash, a second memory apparatus storing a receiver&#39;s digital cash, and a third memory apparatus storing temporarily the payer&#39;s digital cash transferred from the first memory apparatus. The credit card has an integrated circuit and terminal for processing the transaction.  
           [0018]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,224,109 B1 issued on May 1, 2001, to James Y. Yang describes a credit card with a driver&#39;s license or identification comprising a photograph, a magnetic strip storing information providing access to the credit of the holder and personal information.  
           [0019]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,266,647 issued on Jul. 24, 2001, to Alberto Fernandez describes methods and apparatus for a value storage system in which information is directly written to a portable card as a reference fingerprint. The system includes a plurality of read/write units for storing and retrieving the value information. Each of the read/write units include a data authenticator for authenticating information previously stored on the storage medium. The authentication information consists of a numerical representation of a level of trapped charges in an EEPROM representing the reference fingerprint. The read/write units are connected to a central server which retrieves information from each read/write unit, stores information, and provides various accounting and statistical analyses, and reconciling transactions between the plurality of read/write units. The stored value represents units of value employed in a company loyalty program which are stored on a portable media during a sales transaction, and later redeemed for purchase of or discounts on merchandise or a gaming player&#39;s points or winnings.  
           [0020]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,268,927 issued on Jul. 31, 2001, to Robin Lo et al. describes method and apparatus for overlaying a data image on a form image, and includes a form enhancement module that interfaces to a PostScript drive and a forms overlay plug in the module. A change of address card is filled out and recorded in the system.  
           [0021]    None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0022]    The present invention is directed to an electronic traveler&#39;s check (ETC) system and method having verification characteristics that is usable in conjunction with various other foreign and domestic electronic monetary systems including the issuing financial institution. The ETC is adapted for withdrawing monetary funds from foreign and domestic subscribers with automated teller machines (ATM), point of sale (POS) systems and banks.  
           [0023]    The ETC card has two variations, the first is the multi-withdraw, single deposit card. The customer purchases an ETC card and deposits as much money as desired in an account linked to the card. The customer is allowed to make as many bank withdrawals, ATM withdrawals, or Points of Sales (POS) purchases as required to deplete the account. When the linked account is depleted, the card becomes invalid and may be disposed of. The next time the customer needs another ETC card, the customer simply repeats the purchasing process given above.  
           [0024]    The second variation of the ETC card is a multi-use, recharge-able card. A customer purchases an ETC card and deposits as much money as desired in an account linked to the card. The customer is allowed to make as many withdraws or POS purchases as desired. When the funds are depleted, the customer has the option to add additional funds to their linked account. A second important difference between the two abovementioned ETC cards is that the rechargeable card has an expiration date that coincides with the expiration date of the customer&#39;s passport.  
           [0025]    In addition to purchasing an ETC card and making a deposit into a linked account the customer must also provide verification data and security data. This data is used to prevent fraudulent transactions and to provide card security.  
           [0026]    Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide an electronic traveler&#39;s check comprising a ETC card.  
           [0027]    It is another object of the invention to provide an electronic traveler&#39;s check suitable for financial use when traveling domestically or in other countries.  
           [0028]    It is a further object of the invention to provide an electronic traveler&#39;s check usable domestically or in foreign countries with a passport and a personal identity number (PIN).  
           [0029]    Still another object of the invention is to provide an electronic traveler&#39;s check usable at an ATM or inside a bank of a domestic or foreign country.  
           [0030]    It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.  
           [0031]    These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0032]    [0032]FIG. 1A is a perspective front view of an electronic traveler&#39;s check card according to the present invention.  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 1B is a perspective rear view of an electronic traveler&#39;s check card according to the present invention.  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of an application form for applying for the electronic traveler&#39;s check from a specific bank.  
         [0035]    [0035]FIG. 3 is a block diagram depicting the preferred method of using the present invention.  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 4 is a diagram depicting the components of the present system. 
     
    
       [0037]    Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.  
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0038]    The present invention is directed to an electronic traveler&#39;s check (ETC) system and method having verification characteristics and usable in conjunction with various other foreign and domestic electronic monetary systems including the issuing financial institution. The ETC card is adapted for withdrawing monetary funds from foreign and domestic subscribers with automated teller machines (ATM), point of sale (POS) systems and banks.  
         [0039]    The ETC card itself, as depicted in FIGS. 1A (front face) and  1 B (rear face) to an Electronic Traveler&#39;s Check Card  10  comprising a rectangular plastic electronic traveler&#39;s check (ETC) card having verification characteristics such as the Electronic Traveler&#39;s check indicia  12 , account number  14  and printed user&#39;s name  16  as John Doe on the front face (FIG. 1A) of the ETC  10 . An period of use  17  such as three years is stamped as a necessary security measure. In this example, the ETC  10  will expire in January of 2003.  
         [0040]    As shown in FIG. 1B, the rear face of the ETC  10  has indicia  12 , John Doe&#39;s signature  20  over the printed signature indicia  22 . There is a conventional magnetic strip  18  to identify the cardholder.  
         [0041]    In order to obtain an ETC card a user must go to a participating vender and fill out an application form  24  illustrated in FIG. 2 which applies to both types of bank cards, and pay the amount of money credit requested. In form  24 , the title  26  identifying the application as an ETC Application is located at the top. The user&#39;s name, address, phone number, and date of birth must be entered in the area marked  28 . The user&#39;s passport number or numbers and expiration date(s)  30  must be entered. If the user has dual citizenship in different countries, the user must supply both passport numbers. If the user has a spouse or another person traveling with him, the second address, et cetera  32  and passport number(s)  34  must be filled out together with the birth date.  
         [0042]    A 12 or 24 hour maximum withdrawal amount  42  is provided under the title  38 , “AMOUNT DEPOSITED ON ELECTRONIC TRAVELER&#39;S CHECK” in terms of hours and minutes for the “12 or 24 HR. CHANGE OVER TIME” and in time of the day in “AM” and “PM” “FOR THE 24 HR. CHANGE OVER TIME”. Signature(s)  40  of the user(s) must be filled out. The application  24  is authenticated upon receipt of the money by the signature  44  of a bank employee and dated at  46 . The rationale for limiting the withdrawal is that in the event that the ETC  10  and the PIN number are stolen, the criminal can only withdraw the maximum amount of money permitted during the 12 or 24 hour period, giving the legal card owner time to cancel the stolen ETC  10 .  
         [0043]    [0043]FIG. 3 illustrates an overview of the method of obtaining and using the ETC system. Once the application  24  has been properly filled out  80  the user must transfer funds  82  to the card vender who gives the ETC card to the user. The card vender then places  84  the transferred funds into an account linked to an ETC card and activates the card. This account is stored on a database accessible by a server. The server would preferably be connected to the Internet or accessible by telephone.  
         [0044]    Withdrawing funds  86  from the electronic travelers check account at a banking institution or a point of sale has the following security precautions, numbered as in FIG. 3:  
         [0045]    [0045] 88  The user must present the ETC  10  and his passport to the appropriate bank or vender clerk.  
         [0046]    [0046] 90  The clerk then takes the ETC and uses a magnetic reader with an attached key pad to read the magnetic strip  18  on the back of the card and input that information into a computer network.  
         [0047]    [0047] 92  The clerk will then enter the user&#39;s passport number into the key pad on the magnetic reader and verify that the passport picture matches the user.  
         [0048]    [0048] 92  The user then enters his PIN into the keypad and the amount of currency requested for withdraw from the traveler&#39;s check account.  
         [0049]    [0049] 94  The server then verifies the users passport number and PIN, and if both are correct electronically transfers the funds and generates a receipt.  
         [0050]    Optionally, the receipt is sent to the reader and printed where the user may then sign a receipt. The signature can be compared to the signature on the back of the ETC by the clerk for further security. If sufficient funds are present the funds  102  are deducted from the linked account and given  104  to the user of the merchant.  
         [0051]    The ETC card has two variations, the first is the multi-withdraw, single deposit card. The customer purchases an ETC card and deposits currency in an account linked to the card. The customer is allowed to make as many bank withdrawals, ATM withdrawals, or Points of Sales (POS) purchases as required to deplete the account. When the linked account is depleted, the card becomes invalid  98  and can be disposed of. The next time the customer needs another ETC card, the customer simply repeats the purchasing process given above.  
         [0052]    The second variation of the ETC card is a multi-use, recharge-able card. A customer purchases an ETC card and deposits currency in an account linked to the card. The customer is allowed to make as many withdraws or Points of Sales purchases as desired. When the funds are depleted, the customer has the option  100  of adding additional funds to the linked account.  
         [0053]    The important difference between the two abovementioned ETC cards is that the rechargeable card has an expiration date that coincides with the expiration date of the customer&#39;s passport. By having the ETC card expire on the same date as the passport the ETC card issuing company can issue a new ETC card prior to the expiration of the cardholder&#39;s passport, which will also serve as a reminder to the customer that their passport is soon to expire.  
         [0054]    [0054]FIG. 4 shows all the components present in the ETC system  72 . The information from the check application  24  is entered into an account database  70  which is accessed by a server  69 . A server is well known in the art and ordinarily comprises a processor, area main memory, hard disk memory and a power source. The server is connected preferably to the Internet  71 . A card reader  62  having a screen  68 , a keypad  64  and a magnetic strip reader  66  is used to read the ETC card  10  and input passport  60  data into the server  69 . A sample card reader  66  is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,850,077 to Tognazzini.  
         [0055]    The server  69  compares the information sent by the card reader  62  to the information present in the database  70  and determines whether the data is correct. The server  69  also determines whether there are sufficient funds present in the account to complete the proposed transaction. The process may also be completed without the use of the Internet  71  by establishing a direct dial communications link between the reader  62  and the server  69 .  
         [0056]    It is well within the ability of one skilled in the art to substitute the card reader  62  of the present invention with an ATM machine. The only difference being that there would be a present limit on the amount of funds which could be withdrawn from the linked account. This limit is not present in POS and bank transactions.  
         [0057]    The convenience of this ETC system eliminates the problems associated with conventional ATM cards while traveling with card theft increasing in a foreign or domestic country. The difficulties associated with ATM card replacement in a foreign country and even domestically, are considerable. Issuers of paper traveler&#39;s checks are rapidly losing business and profits to ATM cards. It seems the best way to ensure future profit and growth from the traveler&#39;s check industry is to adapt and convert to ETC systems. The ETC card is compatible with ATM machines. The use of ETC cards offers issuing banks the opportunity to use the deposited capital until the ETC card is activated.  
         [0058]    It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the sole embodiment described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.