Abstract:
A method includes receiving a contactless smart card. The method further includes bringing the contactless smart card into proximity with a merchant device so as to transfer information from the contactless smart card to the merchant device. The transferred information enables the merchant device to receive contactless payments.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No. 61/016,865, filed Dec. 27, 2007, which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     Payment cards such as credit or debit cards are ubiquitous. For decades, such cards have included a magnetic stripe on which the relevant account number is stored. To consummate a purchase transaction with such a card, the card is swiped through a magnetic stripe reader that is part of a point of sale (POS) terminal. The reader reads the account number from the magnetic stripe. The account number is then used to route a transaction authorization request that is initiated by the POS terminal. 
     In pursuit of still greater convenience and more rapid transactions at POS terminals, payment cards have more recently been developed that allow the account number to be automatically read from the card by radio frequency communication between the card and a so-called “proximity reader” which may be incorporated with the POS terminal. In such cards, often referred to as “proximity payment cards” or “contactless payment cards”, a radio frequency identification (RFID) integrated circuit (IC, often referred to as a “chip”) is embedded in the card body. A suitable antenna is also embedded in the card body and is connected to the RFID chip to allow the chip to receive and transmit data by RF communication via the antenna. In typical arrangements, the RFID chip is powered from an interrogation signal that is transmitted by the proximity reader and received by the card antenna when the card is brought close to (typically tapped against) the proximity reader. 
     MasterCard International Incorporated, the assignee hereof, has established a widely-used standard, known as “PayPass”, for interoperability of contactless payment cards and proximity readers. 
     Contactless payment functionality may be incorporated in other devices besides cards. Such other devices include key fobs, wristwatches, wristbands, and mobile telephones. 
     It has been proposed that at least some of the capabilities of a POS terminal/proximity reader be incorporated into a mobile telephone, thereby turning the mobile telephone into a merchant device that is able to receive contactless payments from a contactless payment card or from another mobile device that incorporates contactless payment functionality. A merchant device may, for example, be useful for merchants who have a low volume of transactions, or for those, such as a flea market seller, itinerant merchant, taxi driver, etc., who do not have a fixed store location. In mobile-to-mobile transactions, or when a contactless payment card is presented to a merchant device, the latter device plays the part of the proximity reader, and receives the customer&#39;s payment card account number from the customer&#39;s card or device via wireless communication. The merchant device then initiates an authorization request for a purchase transaction to an acquirer financial institution that is part of a conventional payment system. The merchant device may do so by using the conventional mobile telephone network. After the payment system routes the authorization request to the financial institution that issued the customer&#39;s payment card account, a response to the authorization request is returned to the merchant device, and the transaction may be consummated in a similar manner to a transaction which occurs via contactless payment at a POS terminal. 
     One issue that exists with respect to mobile merchant devices is how to load such devices with merchant-and/or acquirer-specific information required to set up the devices for operation as described above. Loading of a suitable application program into the merchant device may also be necessary. It may be inconvenient or infeasible to load such a program or specific information at the factory or at a mobile telephone store upon the merchant&#39;s acquisition of the mobile device. It may also be contemplated to load the programming or specific information into the mobile device “over-the-air” (‘OTA’) via the mobile network, but the necessary computer infrastructure may be expensive and may take a considerable period of time to establish. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  schematically illustrates personalization of a merchant device, according to some embodiments, by using a suitably programmed contactless smart card. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic plan view of the contactless smart card shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a flow chart that illustrates a process for loading the smart card of  FIG. 2  with information and/or programs required for the personalization process illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a flow chart illustration of the personalization process shown in  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In general, a contactless smart card is loaded with an application program and/or merchant-and/or acquirer-specific information and is then sent to the merchant. The merchant presents the smart card to a mobile phone or other device that is owned by the merchant and that has short range communication capability such as NFC. The smart card and the mobile phone engage in wireless communication such that the mobile phone is set up to operate as a merchant device that receives contactless payments. 
       FIG. 1  schematically illustrates personalization of a merchant device  102 , according to some embodiments, by using a suitably programmed contactless smart card  104 . Both the merchant device  102  and the contactless smart card  104  may be conventional in terms of their hardware aspects. For example, the merchant device  102  may be a conventional mobile telephone with NFC (Near Field Communication) functionality. The contactless smart card  104  may be passive in the sense that it is powered entirely from an interrogation signal from another device (in this instance, from the merchant device  102 ). Some details of the contactless smart card  104  will be described below with reference to  FIG. 2 . An exchange of wireless communication between the merchant device  102  and the contactless smart card  104  is indicated at  106 . 
       FIG. 2  is a schematic plan view of the contactless smart card  104 . In some embodiments, the contactless smart card  104  may be the same, in terms of its hardware, as a conventional contactless payment card. For example, the contactless smart card  104  may include a card-shaped plastic body  202 . The contactless smart card  104  may further include an integrated circuit (IC)  204  embedded in and/or supported by the plastic body  202 . In addition, the contactless smart card  104  may include an antenna  206  that is coupled to the IC  204  and is embedded in and/or supported by the plastic body  202 . For example, the antenna  206  may be coupled to the IC  204  at terminals  208 ,  210  on the IC  204 . 
     As seen from the example embodiment shown in  FIG. 2 , the antenna  206  may be a loop antenna consisting of a few turns of a conductive material. 
     The IC  204  may include a control/data storage portion (not separately shown) and transmit/receive circuitry (not separately shown) by which the IC  204  may transmit and/or receive communications via the antenna  206 . The transmit/receive circuitry may for example operate in accordance with an NFC standard. 
     Also not separately shown, but included in the IC  204 , is circuitry that supplies power for the IC  204  from an interrogation signal received via the antenna  206 . The contactless smart card  104  may be “passive” in the sense that it derives all of its power needs from the interrogation signal, and is inactive when not being interrogated or otherwise supplied with a power signal. Thus, in a preferred embodiment, the contactless smart card  104  does not include a battery. 
     The control/data storage portion of the IC  204  may store one or more application programs, and data, required to be wirelessly transferred to the merchant device  102  to enable the merchant device  102  to receive contactless payments. The control/data storage portion of the IC  204  may in some embodiments substantially function as a microcontroller, or may alternatively be a simpler device that responds to interrogation signals by transmitting information stored in the control/data storage portion. 
     The functionality ascribed herein to the IC  204  may alternatively be embodied in a chip set, rather than in a single IC. 
     The card-shaped plastic body  202  may be of any convenient size, but preferably has the same dimensions as a standard identification card format such as the commonly used ID-1 standard format. Providing the contactless smart card  104  in such a standard form factor may facilitate loading of the required information into the contactless smart card  104  by use of conventional personalization equipment, such as the Model 9000 available from Datacard Group, Minnetonka, Minn. 
       FIG. 3  is a flow chart that illustrates a process for loading the contactless smart card  104  with information and/or programs required for the personalization process illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
     At  302  in  FIG. 3 , a financial institution (or a contractor or service provider acting on behalf of the financial institution) may receive an application from a merchant to enroll the merchant&#39;s mobile device  102  as a device that receives contactless payments. The financial institution may already act, pursuant to a pre-existing relationship with the merchant, as an acquirer for purchase transactions initiated by the merchant. Alternatively, the merchant-acquirer relationship may be established as part of the enrollment process. In at least some cases, the enrollment process may be conducted online, with the merchant accessing a website maintained by or on behalf of the financial institution. The merchant may enter identifying information such as name and address, etc., and/or may enter a merchant identifier by which the financial institution already knows the merchant. The merchant may also enter, e.g., a mobile telephone number assigned to the merchant device  102 , or another type of data that uniquely identifies the merchant device  102 . 
     At  304  in  FIG. 3 , the financial institution, or more likely a service provider hired by the financial institution, makes available for processing a “blank” contactless smart card like the card  104  described above. Then, at  306 , information and/or programs are loaded into the contactless smart card  104 , preferably by using automated equipment such as the above-mentioned personalization equipment. In some embodiments, step  306  includes two or more stages, roughly corresponding to pre-personalization and personalization as applied to contactless payment cards. That is, in a first batch mode, programs, data, etc. to be loaded into every card in the batch are loaded by wireless transmission into the contactless smart card  104 . Then, in a second batch mode, merchant-specific information, such as a merchant identifier and one or more encryption keys, may be loaded into each card, again by wireless transmission. In the first batch mode, for example, two application programs may be loaded, one to control the contactless smart card  104  in its subsequent interaction with the merchant device  102 , and a second application program to be downloaded to the merchant device  102  from the contactless smart card  104  to control the merchant device  102  in its operations for receiving contactless payments. The first batch mode may also include addressing information to be used by the merchant device in transmitting transaction authorization requests to the financial institution in connection with receiving contactless payments. The addressing information may be, for example, a telephone number for a call-in system operated by or on behalf of the financial institution, or a web address of a website at which the financial institution receives transaction authorization requests. 
     The card-specific information, loaded into the contactless smart card  104 , as part of a batch process (for example) at step  306 , may have previously been downloaded from the financial institution to the service provider, to be fed to the personalization equipment, and may be derived from a batch of merchant and/or merchant device enrollment information received from various merchants in various instances of step  302 . 
     At  308  in  FIG. 3 , the service provider mails the now-personalized contactless smart card  104  to the merchant who enrolled at  302 . 
     Next, at  310  in  FIG. 3 , it is determined whether the merchant device has phoned in to a financial institution computer to confirm that the merchant device has been personalized through interaction with the contactless smart card  104 . Once such a phone call has occurred, then step  312  follows. At step  312 , the financial institution considers the merchant device  102  identified at  302  to be fully enrolled, and is prepared to accept authorization requests from the merchant device  102 . 
       FIG. 4  is a flow chart illustration of the personalization process shown in  FIG. 1 . 
     At  402  in  FIG. 4 , the merchant receives the contactless smart card  104  that was loaded with information specific to the merchant in the process of  FIG. 3 . 
     At  404 , the merchant presents the contactless smart card  104  to the merchant device  102  in such a manner that an exchange of wireless communications takes place between the contactless smart card  104  and the merchant device  102 . For example, the merchant may hold the contactless smart card  104  against the merchant device  102 . In other words, the merchant brings the contactless smart card  104  into proximity with the merchant device so that information is transferred from the contactless smart card  104  to the merchant device  102 . The wireless communication may, for example, be in accordance with an NFC standard. 
     At  406 , via the exchange of communications between the contactless smart card  104  and the merchant device  102 , a procedure may occur in which at least one of the contactless smart card  104  and the merchant device  102  is authenticated. That is, one or both of the contactless smart card  104  and the merchant device  102  may inquire of the other device for information that establishes that the other device is authentic. For example, the contactless smart card  104  may query the merchant device  102  for information which identifies the merchant device, and the contactless smart card  104  may compare that information with information which was originally entered by the merchant during enrollment (step  302 ,  FIG. 3 ) and subsequently loaded into the contactless smart card  104  (step  306 ,  FIG. 3 ). Alternatively, the authentication procedure may involve prompting the user to enter into the merchant device an authentication code that was previously disclosed to the user during the enrollment process. 
     At  408 , the contactless smart card  104  may determine whether the merchant device  102  has stored therein an application program for controlling the merchant device  102  in connection with receiving contactless payments. For example, the contactless smart card  104  may query the merchant device  102  as to whether the merchant device  102  has the necessary application program stored therein. (This inquiry may also include inquiring whether the application program, if present, is an up-to-date version of the program.) If the contactless smart card  104  determines that the required application program is not already stored in the merchant device (or, if stored in the merchant device, is not up-to-date), then step  410  follows decision block  408 . At step  410 , the contactless smart card  104 , via wireless communication with the merchant device  102 , loads the required application program into the merchant device  102 . 
     However, if at  408  the contactless smart card  104  determines that the required application program is already stored in the merchant device  102 , then step  412  may immediately follow  408 . (Alternatively, step  412  may follow step  410 .) At  412  the contactless smart card  104 , via wireless communication with the merchant device  102 , loads set up information into the merchant device  102 . This information may include information that was loaded into the contactless smart card  104  at  306  ( FIG. 3 ), such as (a) a merchant identifying code by which the merchant is, or is to be, identified to the acquirer financial institution; (b) addressing information which the merchant device  102  is to use to route transaction authorization requests to the acquirer financial institution; and (c) one or more encryption keys (used for data communication security and/or authentication purposes, and hence referred to as “security keys”) for use in communications between the acquirer financial institution and the merchant device  102 . 
     Once the loading of the information from the contactless smart card  104  to the merchant device  102  is complete, and the merchant device is thereby enabled to receive contactless payments from contactless payment cards, from mobile telephones with contactless payment functionality, etc., then step  414  may follow step  412 . At  414 , the merchant device  102  may telephone in to a system operated by or on behalf of the financial institution to report that personalization of the merchant device  102  has occurred. This, in turn, may trigger the financial institution to recognize (step  312 ,  FIG. 3 ) that enrollment of the merchant and/or his/her merchant device  102  is complete. The phone call from the merchant device  102  to the financial institution to report personalization of the merchant device  102  may occur automatically, or may alternatively be initiated in response to input from the user of the merchant device  102 . 
     By leveraging on the existing infrastructure for personalizing contactless payment cards, and avoiding the need to establish a complex OTA personalization system, the above-described card-based personalization technique for merchant devices may provide the advantage of being rather inexpensive to implement, with a short time-to-market. Further, the card-based personalization technique may avoid security issues that may be present with a network-based personalization system. 
     It will be noted that the process of  FIG. 4  is different from that involved in a purchase transaction. While both entail wireless communication between a contactless smart card and the merchant device, in the purchase transaction the smart card transmits a payment card account number to the merchant device, and this typically does not occur in the process of  FIG. 4 . 
     Up to this point, the merchant device  102  has generally been portrayed as being a mobile telephone. Alternatively, however, the merchant device may be a PDA (personal digital assistant) that has mobile communication and NFC (or the like) capability, or a BlackBerry. As another alternative, the merchant device  102  may be a POS terminal that includes a proximity reader. The POS terminal thus may be set up (or updated) for purposes of receiving contactless payments with data and/or software loaded into the POS terminal via its proximity reader from a contactless smart card. 
     In some embodiments, the contactless smart card used for personalizing the merchant device may be reusable for the purpose of setting up several merchant devices, with a respective merchant/device ID and a separate set of keys being loaded into each merchant device and accessed by entering a respective different access code with respect to setting up each merchant device. 
     In other embodiments, each set up of a merchant device may expire after a period of time, and the same contactless smart card may be used to renew the set up of the merchant device, with entry of a new access code each time, and a new set of identifiers/security keys being loaded into the merchant device each time. 
     In some embodiments, a merchant device, whether set up via a contactless smart card or in another way, may insert information into the discretionary data field of one or more transaction authorization requests so as to report a result of the set up operation, and/or other information, to the acquirer financial institution and/or to a service provider. 
     In some embodiments, a contactless smart card may be used to set up reading devices other than merchant devices. Examples of such readers may be devices that read contactless smart card transportation tickets, medical record smart cards, and so forth. 
     As used herein and in the appended claims, the term “contactless smart card” refers both to smart cards that communicate only wirelessly, and to so-called dual use smart cards that can be read either wirelessly or via contacts on the face of the card. “Contactless payments” should be understood to include both conventional payment card system purchase transactions using a contactless payment card or other contactless payment device, as well as mobile to mobile transactions—of a type described in commonly assigned provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/977,260 (filed Oct. 3, 2007; entitled “System for Personalized Payments Via Mobile Devices”)—in which the customer pays for a transaction by initiating a payment transaction in a payment card system using the customer&#39;s mobile device. 
     The above description and/or the accompanying drawings are not meant to imply a fixed order or sequence of steps for any process referred to herein; rather any process may be performed in any order that is practicable, including but not limited to simultaneous performance of steps indicated as sequential. 
     Although the present invention has been described in connection with specific exemplary embodiments, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions, and alterations apparent to those skilled in the art can be made to the disclosed embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.