Patent Application
20240242205
The following relates generally to mobile electronic devices, and more particularly to a mobile device, system and method for currency exchange.
Currency exchange has historically been done through the exchange of physical currencies. Improvements are desirable.
An aspect of the disclosed embodiments is a mobile device comprising: a first account module configured to a store a first account information associated with a first pre-established account, wherein the first pre-established account comprises funds denominated in a first currency; a user interface comprising a display device; and at least one computing device processor operatively connected to the first account module and the user interface and configured to: receive a first selection via the user interface of the first account module for at least a first transaction; responsive to the first selection, send the first account information using a first machine-readable code, from the mobile device to a first transaction machine to perform the first transaction, wherein the first transaction is conducted in the first currency to purchase funds denominated in a second currency, wherein the second currency is different from the first currency; receive a second account information, the second account information associated with a second account, the second account information being electronically received by the mobile device after the second account is created, the second account being created responsive to the first transaction machine confirming a completion of the first transaction, wherein the second account comprises the funds denominated in the second currency purchased during the first transaction; configure a second account module of the mobile device to store the second account information; receive a second selection via the user interface of the second account module for at least a second transaction; and responsive to the second selection, send the second account information using a second machine-readable code, from the mobile device to a second transaction machine to perform the second transaction using the funds denominated in the second currency.
Another aspect of the disclosed embodiments is a method for currency exchange comprising: storing, in a mobile device having a user interface with a display device, a first account information associated with a first pre-established account, wherein the first pre-established account comprises funds denominated in a first currency; receiving a first selection via the user interface of the first pre-established account for use for at least a first transaction; responsive to the first selection, sending the first account information using a first machine-readable code from the mobile device to a first transaction machine to perform the first transaction, wherein the first transaction is conducted in the first currency to purchase funds denominated in a second currency, wherein the second currency is different from the first currency; receiving a second account information, the second account information associated with a second account, the second account information being electronically received by the mobile device after the second account is created, the second account being created responsive to the first transaction machine confirming a completion of the first transaction, wherein the second account comprises the funds denominated in the second currency purchased during the first transaction; configuring a second account module of the mobile device to store the second account information; receiving a second selection via the user interface of the second account module for at least a second transaction; and responsive to the second selection, sending the second account information using a second machine-readable code, from the mobile device to a second transaction machine to perform the second transaction using the funds denominated in the second currency.
Another aspect of the disclosed embodiments is non-transitory processor-readable medium embodying a computer program for currency exchange, the computer program comprising: computer program code for storing, in a mobile device having a user interface with a display device, a first account information associated with a first pre-established account, wherein the first pre-established account comprises funds denominated in a first currency; computer program code for receiving a first selection via the user interface of the first pre-established account for use for at least a first transaction; computer program code for, responsive to the first selection, sending the first account information using a first machine-readable code from the mobile device to a first transaction machine to perform the first transaction, wherein the first transaction is conducted in the first currency to purchase funds denominated in a second currency, wherein the second currency is different from the first currency; computer program code for receiving a second account information, the second account information associated with a second account, the second account information being electronically received by the mobile device after the second account is created, the second account being created responsive to the first transaction machine confirming a completion of the first transaction, wherein the second account comprises the funds denominated in the second currency purchased during the first transaction; computer program code for configuring a second account module of the mobile device to store the second account information; computer program code for receiving a second selection via the user interface of the second account module for at least a second transaction; and computer program code for, responsive to the second selection, sending the second account information using a second machine-readable code, from the mobile device to a second transaction machine to perform the second transaction using the funds denominated in the second currency.
These and other aspects of the present disclosure are provided in the following detailed description of the embodiments, the appended claims, and the accompanying figures.
Other aspects and embodiments will become apparent upon reading the following description.
The following discussion is directed to various embodiments of the invention. Although one or more of these embodiments may be preferred, the embodiments disclosed should not be interpreted, or otherwise used, as limiting the scope of the disclosure, including the claims. In addition, one skilled in the art will understand that the following description has broad application, and the discussion of any embodiment is meant only to be exemplary of that embodiment, and not intended to intimate that the scope of the disclosure, including the claims, is limited to that embodiment.
In some embodiments, the first transaction is conducted in a first currency, such as in Canadian dollars (CAD), to purchase funds denominated in a second, different, currency, such as United States dollars (USD). Exchanges between other currencies, such as between a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin, and a national currency such as British Pounds Sterling, may be conducted using system 5. Other exchanges of denominations are possible.
Processor 1018 of mobile device 10 is also configured to receive second account information that is associated with a second account, with the second account including the funds denominated in the second currency that had been purchased during the first transaction using the first currency. Processor 1018 is also configured to, responsive the receipt of the second account information, configure a second account module of mobile device 10 to store the second account information. Processor 1018 is also configured to, when a second transaction is to be conducted, send the second account information from mobile device 10 to a second transaction machine, such as transaction machine 20B (see
In some embodiments, the second account is created in respect of the user of mobile device 10 by currency exchange provider server 40 upon confirmation with payment provider server 50 that the first transaction has been completed. Variations are possible. In some embodiments, pursuant to the creation of the second account, and the provision by currency exchange provider server 40 via network 2000 to mobile device 10 of the second account information, the second account information may be transmitted via network 2000 to mobile device 10. In some embodiments, where there is two-way communications between scanning device 30A and mobile device 10, the second account information may be sent to mobile device 10 via first transaction machine 20A and first scanner 30A.
The mobile device 10 receiving the second account information enables electronic access, via mobile device 10, to the funds denominated in the second currency that had been purchased with the first currency using mobile device 10. In this way, a user does not have to worry about receiving and handling physical currency from a chosen currency exchange provider, and yet the funds can be deployed from the mobile device 10 itself, as will be described herein.
In some embodiments, where mobile device 10 includes an NFC (Near Field Communications) device, processor 1018 of mobile device 10 may send the first account information and/or the second account information to first transaction machine 20A or second transaction machine 20B similar equipped, via NFC. Other methods of sending first account information and second account information are possible. In some embodiments, where mobile device 10 and the transaction machines are so equipped, first account information may be sent by mobile device 10 for the first transaction via NFC while second account information may be second by mobile device 10 for the second transaction by displaying and scanning a machine-readable code. In some embodiments, first account information may be sent by mobile device 10 for the first transaction by displaying and scanning a machine-readable code while second account information may be second by mobile device 10 for the second transaction via NFC.
In some embodiments, mobile device 10 includes a positioning system, such as a global positioning system (GPS), that determines a physical location of mobile device 10. Processor 1018 may display, via user interface 1012, a plurality of currency-exchange service options that are selected for display based at least on the physical location of mobile device 10. For example, when disembarking from an airplane at a vacation destination, a user may be presented with currency-exchange service options local to the destination. Information about the currency-exchange service options may include exact locations, rates, incentives, and the like. Such currency-exchange service options may pay to be displayed on mobile device 10 as one of the options selectable by a user.
In some embodiments, the second account information is sent from the mobile device to a second transaction machine to perform the second transaction using the funds denominated in the second currency. In some embodiments, a first machine-readable code corresponding to the first account information for scanning by the first transaction machine is displayed. In some embodiments, a second machine-readable code corresponding to the second account information for scanning by the second transaction machine is displayed. In some embodiments, the first account information to the first transaction machine is sent via an NFC device associated with the mobile device. In some embodiments, the second account information is sent to the second transaction machine via the NFC device. In some embodiments, the mobile device presents a user interface. In some embodiments, a first indication that the user wants to use the first account to engage in the first transaction is received via the user interface, and the first account information is caused to be sent to the first transaction machine responsive to the first indication. In some embodiments, a second indication that the user wants to use the second account to engage in the second transaction is received via the user interface, and the second account information is caused to be sent to the second transaction machine responsive to the second indication.
In some embodiments, a physical location of the mobile device is automatically determined, and a plurality of currency-exchange service options, wherein the plurality of currency-exchange service options is selected for display based at least on the physical location of the mobile device, is displayed via the user interface.
Computing system 1000 includes a bus 1010 or other communication mechanism for communicating information, and a computing device processor 1018 coupled with the bus 1010 for processing the information. The computing system 1000 also includes a main memory 1004, such as a random access memory (RAM) or other dynamic storage device (e.g., dynamic RAM (DRAM), static RAM (SRAM), and synchronous DRAM (SDRAM)), coupled to the bus 1010 for storing information and instructions to be executed by processor 1018. In addition, the main memory 1004 may be used for storing temporary variables or other intermediate information during the execution of instructions by the processor 1018. Processor 1018 may include memory structures such as registers for storing such temporary variables or other intermediate information during execution of instructions. The computing system 1000 further includes a read only memory (ROM) 1006 or other static storage device (e.g., programmable ROM (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), and electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM)) coupled to the bus 1010 for storing static information and instructions for the processor 1018.
Computing system 1000 also includes a disk controller 1008 coupled to the bus 1010 to control one or more storage devices for storing information and instructions, such as a magnetic hard disk 1022 and/or a solid state drive (SSD) and/or a flash drive, and a removable media drive 1024 (e.g., solid state drive such as USB key or external hard drive, floppy disk drive, read-only compact disc drive, read/write compact disc drive, compact disc jukebox, tape drive, and removable magneto-optical drive). The storage devices may be added to the computing system 1000 using an appropriate device interface (e.g., Serial ATA (SATA), peripheral component interconnect (PCI), small computing system interface (SCSI), integrated device electronics (IDE), enhanced-IDE (E-IDE), direct memory access (DMA), ultra-DMA, as well as cloud-based device interfaces).
Computing system 1000 may also include special purpose logic devices (e.g., application specific integrated circuits (ASICs)) or configurable logic devices (e.g., simple programmable logic devices (SPLDs), complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs), and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs)).
Computing system 1000 also includes a display controller 1002 coupled to the bus 1010 to control a display device (or, “display”) 1012, such as an LED (light emitting diode) screen, organic LED (OLED) screen, liquid crystal display (LCD) screen or some other device suitable for displaying information to a computer user. In embodiments, display controller 1002 incorporates a dedicated graphics-processing unit (GPU) for processing mainly graphics-intensive or other parallel operations. Such operations may include rendering by applying texturing, shading and the like to wireframe objects including polygons such as spheres and cubes thereby to relieve processor 1018 of having to undertake such intensive operations at the expense of overall performance of computing system 1000. The GPU may incorporate dedicated graphics memory for storing data generated during its operations, and includes a frame buffer RAM memory for storing processing results as bitmaps to be used to activate pixels of display 1012. The GPU may be instructed to undertake various operations by applications running on computing system 1000 using a graphics-directed application-programming interface (API) such as OpenGL, Direct3D and the like.
Computing system 1000 may include input devices, such as a keyboard 1014 and a pointing device 1016, for interacting with a computer user and providing information to the processor 1018. The pointing device 1016, for example, may be a mouse, a trackball, or a pointing stick for communicating direction information and command selections to the processor 1018 and for controlling cursor movement on the display 1012. The computing system 1000 may employ a display device that is coupled with an input device, such as a touch screen. Other input devices may be employed, such as those that provide data to the computing system via wires or wirelessly, such as gesture detectors including infrared detectors, gyroscopes, accelerometers, radar/sonar and the like. A printer may provide printed listings of data stored and/or generated by the computing system 1000.
Computing system 1000 performs a portion or all of the processing steps discussed herein in response to the processor 1018 and/or GPU of display controller 1002 executing one or more sequences of one or more instructions contained in a memory, such as the main memory 1004. Such instructions may be read into the main memory 1004 from another processor readable medium, such as a hard disk 1022 or a removable media drive 1024. One or more processors in a multi-processing arrangement such as computing system 1000 having both a central processing unit and one or more graphics processing unit may also be employed to execute the sequences of instructions contained in main memory 1004 or in dedicated graphics memory of the GPU. In alternative embodiments, hard-wired circuitry, such as an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), may be used in place of or in combination with software instructions.
As stated above, computing system 1000 includes at least one processor readable medium or memory for holding instructions programmed according to the teachings of the description and for containing data structures, tables, records, or other data described herein. Examples of processor readable media are solid state devices (SSD), flash-based drives, compact discs, hard disks, floppy disks, tape, magneto-optical disks, PROMs (EPROM, EEPROM, flash EPROM), DRAM, SRAM, SDRAM, or any other magnetic medium, compact discs (e.g., CD-ROM), or any other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, or other physical medium with patterns of holes, a carrier wave (described below), or any other medium from which a computer can read.
Stored on any one or on a combination of processor readable media, is software for controlling the computing system 1000, for driving a device or devices to perform the functions discussed herein, and for enabling computing system 1000 to interact with a human user. Such software may include, but is not limited to, device drivers, operating systems, development tools, and applications software. Such processor readable media further includes the computer program product for performing all or a portion (if processing is distributed) of the processing performed discussed herein.
The computer code devices discussed herein may be any interpretable or executable code mechanism, including but not limited to scripts, interpretable programs, dynamic link libraries (DLLs), Java classes, and complete executable programs. Moreover, parts of the processing of the present invention may be distributed for better performance, reliability, and/or cost.
A processor readable medium providing instructions to a processor 1018 may take many forms, including but not limited to, non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media. Non-volatile media includes, for example, optical, magnetic disks, and magneto-optical disks, such as the hard disk 1022 or the removable media drive 1024. Volatile media includes dynamic memory, such as the main memory 1004. Transmission media includes coaxial cables, copper wire and fiber optics, including the wires that make up the bus 1010. Transmission media also may also take the form of acoustic or light waves, such as those generated during radio wave and infrared data communications using various communications protocols.
Various forms of processor readable media may be involved in carrying out one or more sequences of one or more instructions to processor 1018 for execution. For example, the instructions may initially be carried on a magnetic disk of a remote computer. The remote computer can load the instructions for implementing all or a portion of the present invention remotely into a dynamic memory and send the instructions over a wired or wireless connection using a modem. A modem local to the computing system 1000 may receive the data via wired Ethernet or wirelessly via Wi-Fi and place the data on the bus 1010. The bus 1010 carries the data to the main memory 1004, from which the processor 1018 retrieves and executes the instructions. The instructions received by the main memory 1004 may optionally be stored on storage device 1022 or 1024 either before or after execution by processor 1018.
Computing system 1000 also includes a communication interface 1020 coupled to the bus 1010. The communication interface 1020 provides a two-way data communication coupling to a network link that is connected to, for example, a local area network (LAN) 1500, or to another communications network 2000 such as the Internet. For example, the communication interface 1020 may be a network interface card to attach to any packet switched LAN. As another example, the communication interface 1020 may be an asymmetrical digital subscriber line (ADSL) card, an integrated services digital network (ISDN) card or a modem to provide a data communication connection to a corresponding type of communications line. Wireless links may also be implemented. In any such implementation, the communication interface 1020 sends and receives electrical, electromagnetic or optical signals that carry digital data streams representing various types of information.
The network link typically provides data communication through one or more networks to other data devices, including without limitation to enable the flow of electronic information. For example, the network link may provide a connection to another computer through a local network 1500 (e.g., a LAN) or through equipment operated by a service provider, which provides communication services through a communications network 2000. The local network 1500 and the communications network 2000 use, for example, electrical, electromagnetic, or optical signals that carry digital data streams, and the associated physical layer (e.g., CAT 5 cable, coaxial cable, optical fiber, etc.). The signals through the various networks and the signals on the network link and through the communication interface 1020, which carry the digital data to and from the computing system 1000, may be implemented in baseband signals, or carrier wave based signals. The baseband signals convey the digital data as unmodulated electrical pulses that are descriptive of a stream of digital data bits, where the term “bits” is to be construed broadly to mean symbol, where each symbol conveys at least one or more information bits. The digital data may also be used to modulate a carrier wave, such as with amplitude, phase and/or frequency shift keyed signals that are propagated over a conductive media, or transmitted as electromagnetic waves through a propagation medium. Thus, the digital data may be sent as unmodulated baseband data through a “wired” communication channel and/or sent within a predetermined frequency band, different from baseband, by modulating a carrier wave. The computing system 1000 can transmit and receive data, including program code, through the network(s) 1500 and 2000, the network link and the communication interface 1020. Moreover, the network link may provide a connection through a LAN 1500 to a mobile device 1300 such as a personal digital assistant (PDA) laptop computer, or cellular telephone.
Alternative configurations of computing system may be used to implement the systems and processes described herein.
Electronic data stores implemented in the database described herein may be one or more of a table, an array, a database, a structured data file, an XML file, or some other functional data store, such as hard disk 1022 or removable media 1024.
Upon selection by a user of one of the payment method options in the mobile wallet application, a user thereby provides a first indication that the user wants to use a first account to engage in a first transaction. In
Although embodiments have been described, those of skill in the art will appreciate that variations and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit, scope and purpose of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/196,190 filed on May 11, 2023 entitled “MOBILE DEVICE, SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CURRENCY EXCHANGE”, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/378,645 filed on Jul. 16, 2021 entitled “MOBILE DEVICE, SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CURRENCY EXCHANGE” and granted on Jun. 27, 2023 as U.S. Pat. No. 11,687,917, which claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 63/052,849 filed on Jul. 16, 2020 entitled “SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR FOREIGN EXCHANGE MOBILE APPLICATION”, the contents of each of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63052849 | Jul 2020 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 18196190 | May 2023 | US |
| Child | 18621384 | US | |
| Parent | 17378645 | Jul 2021 | US |
| Child | 18196190 | US |
