Patent ID: 7085731

Claim:
A system for operating with a plurality of portable cards each having a card memory, and a store having a plurality of products, the system comprising: a plurality of cash register stations, each cash register station including an electromagnetic detector for generating first signals corresponding to product pricing and for generating second signals identifying products selected for purchase; a card interface for reading third signals corresponding to product pricing from the card memory of one of the portable cards; a first processing unit that executes a first program in a first memory to correlate second signals with first signals, wherein the system also includes a plurality of second processing units different from the first processing units, each second processing unit executing a second program in a second memory, to determine a discount quantity by correlating second signals from the electromagnetic detector, in a respective one of the cash register stations, with the third signals read by the card interface, in the respective one of the cash register stations, wherein each second processing unit is in the respective one of the cash register stations.