Patent ID: 8348162

Claim:
A device for detecting a foreign object of a card reader, comprising: an emission module embedded in a wall of a card socket of the card reader and adapted to emit a detection wave to a detection area in front of the card socket of the card reader; a reception module embedded in the wall of the card socket of the card reader and adapted to receive the detection wave emitting from the emission module; and a control processing module adapted to determine whether the reception module receives the detection wave reflected by a foreign matter in the detection area and to determine from a determination result whether the foreign matter is present in the detection area; wherein: the reception module comprises a detection wave receiver embedded in and flush with a front wall of the card socket of the card reader, with a reception side of the detection wave receiver facing the detection area, the detection wave receiver adapted to receive the detection wave emitting from the emission module and reflected by the foreign matter; the emission module comprises a second detection wave emitter embedded in the front wall of the card socket of the card reader, with an emission side of the second detection wave emitter facing the detection wave receiver, the second detection wave emitter adapted to emit to the detection area a second detection wave which traverses the detection area and is received by the detection wave receiver when it is not reflected by the foreign matter; and the control processing module comprises a second processing unit adapted to: determine whether the wave detection receiver receives the second detection wave, if the second processing unit determines that the wave detection receiver receives the second detection wave, determine absence of the foreign matter in the detection area, and if the second processing unit determines that the wave detection receiver does not receive the second detection wave, determine that the second detection wave is reflected by the foreign matter present in the detection area.