WO2019035781A1

WO2019035781A1 - Closed loop mobile payment system using qr code

Info

Publication number: WO2019035781A1
Application number: PCT/TR2017/050386
Authority: WO
Inventors: Ahmet Emir BASMACI
Original assignee: Basmaci Ahmet Emir
Priority date: 2017-08-14
Filing date: 2017-08-14
Publication date: 2019-02-21

Abstract

A safe, fast and user friendly closed loop payment system, which is used between an employer (101), a personnel (104), and points of sale (107), like restaurants, etc., where the spending process will be performed and a service provider (110), and by means of which payment is done via a QR code on smart devices (106) such as a mobile, tablet, etc. and a personnel mobile application (105) operating on these devices, and also a point of sale smart device (109) and point of sale mobile application (108) operating on this device.

Description

CLOSED LOOP MOBILE PAYMENT SYSTEM USING QR CODE Field of the Invention

The invention enables performing mobile payment operations with QR code among stakeholders (employer, personnel/employee, points of sale such as restaurants, markets etc. where expenditures are to be made, and service provider i.e. meal voucher firms) of the closed loop, and it contains the process for the management of safe money transfer from the money pool.

State of the Art

In the existing system, meal voucher firms offer tickets or cards in accordance with the contract between the client-employer and the firm. Employers distribute these cards and tickets among the personnel for them to make their expenditures at tied up points of sale (restaurants).

Technical problems to be solved by the invention

The solution of the existing systems for payment is either by cards or tickets. The card printing process and its cost mean an extra burden for meal voucher firms. The physical features of the cards may also be damaged in time. On the other hand, meal voucher firms tackle with ticket printing and distribution issues every month. The common aspect of these firms is that they have designed mobile application as a solution for the purpose of enabling their user to view his balance and account movements. The result is that the payment process cannot be accomplished without a card or a ticket.

Other firms in the sector providing payment solutions through mobile applications make compulsory the use of additional hardware such as a POS device etc. At the same time, management of these systems are difficult, commission rates are high, and the reconciliation process of stakeholders is slow. Some safety problems may emerge with firms that give payment services through smart devices of users. Also, payment operations are suspended in case internet service is interrupted on the user device. Closed Loop Mobile Payment System Using QR Code which is able to work offline is developed to overcome such difficulties.

This invention is a closed loop system which is managed from a centre (the service provider), and in which the payment procedure is accomplished between the employer, the personnel, the restaurant, and the like. The personnel do not have to be online. The invention which enables payment to be made through QR Code on mobile devices does not bring any additional burden in terms of hardware and is particularly safe, fast and user-friendly.

Description of the figures: Figure 1 : Accomplishment of mobile payment operations among closed loop stakeholders (employer, personnel, points of sale like restaurants, markets etc., for expenditures and the service provider) with QR code and money transfer management.

Description of references in the figures

101 : Employer

102: Employer Web Application

103: Employer Computer

104: Personnel / Employee

105: Personnel Mobile Application

106: Personnel Smart Device

107: Point of sale / workplace

108: Point of sale Mobile Application

109: Point of sale Smart Device

1 10: Service Provider

1 1 1 : Service Provider Host

1 12: Service Provider Computer

201 : Introduction of the employers into the system and having them deposit money to the service provider account

202: Registration of personnel by the employers 203: Personnel making expenditures at points of sale

204: Reconciliation between points of sale and service provider

Description of the Invention

This system is an online or offline working payment system. It is designed to decrease the work load of business owners in terms of payment processes. There is no need for third parties like credit card firms to be engaged in the system, and therefore neither the employers nor the points of sale are required to pay any membership fee to be a part of this closed loop system. Furthermore, because the system works with the existing smart devices without any additional hardware or device, the cost due to the use of additional hardware and devices, for the personnel and workplace, is brought down to zero. For membership, it is sufficient for parties to download the application and undersign the distance contract.

Registries of employer, personnel and points of sale identifications, money transfers (transfer from the employer to the service provider, loading money for the personnel by the service provider, payment to points of sale by the service provider), expending (personnel spending money at points of sale), invoicing; all these operations can be actualized through the system.

Introduction of the employers (101 ) into the system:

Following related contracts (204) with the service provider (1 10), the employer (101 ) becomes part (201 ) of this particular payment system through a web interface (1 1 1 ) on his organization's computer hardware (103). The service provider (1 10) determines an employer number and password for the employer (101 ). The employer (101 ) is directed straightly to the password change screen upon first entrance. After changing the password, he registers personnel information and performs the necessary arrangements (202) using the "Personnel Information" option, deposits the amount to be used by the personnel for payments with the "Money Transfer" option, view all past operations with the "Past Operations" option, and view privatized and advanced settings with the "Setttings" option. The service provider (1 10) keeps the money deposited for the personnel in his account blocked and makes necessary payments in due time. All employer (101 ) accounts are viewed on the service provider host (1 1 1 ) interface which is accessed through the service provider computer (1 12).

Introduction of the personnel (104) into the system:

There must be a smart device (106) belonging to each one of the personnel (104). That device (106) may be a smart phone, a tablet, a POS or a similar mobile or stationary device. The employees (104) may download the mobile application (105) from online shops with that smart device (106). The system works with Android and IOS operating systems. The personnel (104) activate their accounts by accessing with the personnel number and password (202) identified beforehand by the employers (101 ). All passwords are blocked after three incorrect trials, and only the employer (101 ) can reset it under his own authority through the web interface (102). In case the employer (101 ) password is also blocked, the service provider (1 10) gives a new password as a result of certain applications.

The activated account is first directed to the password change screen. The employee

(104) forms his own entrance password on this screen and the application can be accessed with this password from then on. The application (105) keeps the employee information except the password information due to safety reasons. The application

(105) must be online during the first entrance. Upon first entrance, the application (105) synchronizes with the service provider host (1 1 1 ) and downloads the employee's current account and balance information. The main screen of the personnel application (105) shows the balance information. "Spend" option is for making expenditures, "Account Summary" option is for showing past expenses and their places of expenditure, and "Settings" option is for arranging privatized settings.

Introduction of points of sale (107) into the system: The service provider (1 10) makes contracts with points of sale (107); the subject being their acceptance of payment for meals through the application. In accordance with the contract, the service provider (1 10) collects money from the employer (101 ) account on behalf of the point of sale (107), keeps it in his account and makes payment to the point of sale in due time based on a predetermined commission amount. Each member point of sale (107) keeps a smart device (109) which is in its safe or is mobile. That point of sale device (109) may be a smart phone, a tablet, a pos or a similar mobile or stationary device. With the help of the application loaded (108) on such devices, the point of sale collects payments done in its account. After being a member of the system, the point of sale (107) receives payments with the "Receive Payments" option; views past incomes, total revenue, and ratings given by the personnel with the "Account Summary" option; arranges privatized settings with the "Settings" option; and performs entries and other organizational procedures of the workplace (107) employees with the "Employee Information" option. "Refund" option is used for repayments, and "End of Day" option for end of day operations. The service provider host (1 1 1 ) keeps track of application entries and exits and account movements of all personnel and member points of sale.

The service provider (1 10) is responsible for transferring the amount of expenditures made at the member points of sale (107) to their account. Member points of sale (107), on the other hand, undertake to make a certain amount of reduction. At the end of the month, during reconciliation, member points of sale (107) collect their money due (204) from the service provider (1 10) on the basis of a predetermined commission amount. The web interface (108) provided for the points of sale enables viewing all account movements, money transfers and reports of the member points of sale.

Spending process of the personnel When any one of the personnel (104) wishes to make a payment in a member point of sale (107), he accesses the application (105) from his own personnel smart device (106). He signs in by using the personnel number and password taken previously. He can view the amount defined by the employer (101 ) to his account using the "Balance Display" option on the application main page (105). After this stage, the personnel (104) does not have to stay online. If "Make Payment" option is chosen on the personnel application (105), password entry screen comes up. When correct password is entered, numpad appears in order to enter the amount of payment. The amount to be paid is entered in this field. Upon confirmation of the amount, a QR code is formed. Each QR code is unique for each transaction and for every personnel. The same code cannot be used more than once as it will contain varying information. QR code is securely created in relation to the user number, password, date and the amount entered. After the QR code is created, the member point of sale (107) simultaneously opts for "Take Payment" on its own application (108). The amount to be paid is entered. This amount is confirmed by the point of sale application (108). The point of sale application (108) moves on to the camera scanning screen of the personnel application (105) in order to read the QR code. And, the QR code in the personnel application (105) is read by the point of sale application (108). If the entries of the amount are different between the point of sale application (108) and the personnel application (105), the transaction is terminated. If the amount entered is the same on both sides, a balance inquiry is done by the point of sale (107) application from the service provider host (1 1 1 ). In case the balance is insufficient, the transaction is terminated following a warning of "Insufficient Balance" given to the point of sale (107). If the personnel application (105) is online, "Insufficient Balance" warning is also seen by the employee (104). If there is sufficient balance, payment is completed (203). After that, if the personnel application (105) is online, the remaining balance and the screen for rating that particular workplace appear. In case of being offline, no message appears.

On the other hand, in case of cancellation, the amount is again entered both by the personnel application (105) and the point of sale (107) application; then the point of sale (107) application reads the QR code of the personnel application (105). Refund order is received for the amount to be repaid.

Money flow among the service provider, the employer, personnel and the point of sale:

The employer (101 ) deposits the total amount of money required for the meal expenses of each employee (104) to the service provider account (201 ) at the beginning of every month. Throughout the month, the personnel (104) make expenditures (203) at points of sale like restaurants, markets etc. (107) by using the mobile application (105). At the end of the month, the service provider (1 10) reaches an agreement (204) with points of sale (107). Here, the amounts with a predetermined discount rate are transferred to the account of the owners of the point of sale (107). The points of sale (107) make out invoices in return to total payment received. Objections duration is three work days; in case no objections are claimed within three work days, payment is accepted as approved. The employer (101 ) collects invoice from the service provider (1 10) at the end of the month for that part of the amount spent by his personnel in return to his payment at the beginning of the month. If the deposit is left out the invoice will be billed if used in the next month and until that time, the service provider (1 10) keeps this account on behalf of the employer (101 ). Once payment is completed by the employer, the service provider does not reimburse in the case of an employee (104) leaving his job for any reason.

The present invention is not limited to the scope of the disclosure. In this context, the invention can be used in all types of shopping places for food, clothing etc. It can also be used for purposes like gifts and charity. It can be used in any shopping environment as well as in the restaurants as the point of sale (107). The person who will spend can be any one of the personnel (104) of a corporation or any individual (the client, business owner) who is not working in an office. It can be used as means of payment in stead of a cheque, card or cash. It can be arranged to be used only once or several times, as unlimited, or limited monthly. Not only corporations but individuals may also be the employer (101 ). Corporations can be all kinds of corporations, not only private corporations but also public corporations. Identification of the amount of expenditure for the personnel (104) can be performed automatically or manually each time. The personnel (104) and the point of sale (107) employees may use a mobile as well as a tablet, laptop, or computer as hardware. A certain amount of commission may be applicable by the service provider (1 10) to the employer (101 ) and/or the point of sale (107) during transfer of money. The personnel (104) might be motivated to spend more by the point of sale (107) with special campaigns.

The inventive QR-code closed-loop mobile payment system comprises the following process steps, operating in a closed loop without the use of special equipment and devices, so as to enable online or offline spending between the service provider (1 10), the employer (101 ), the personnel (104) and the point of sale (107):

- identifying an employer number and password by the service provider (1 10) for the employer (101 ),

- directing the employer (101 ) to the password change screen upon first entrance over the internet (web) page of the service provider using the computer (103) belonging to his corporation, - after changing the password, registering and arranging (202) the personnel information entries by the employer (101 ) using "Personnel Info" option,

- making payments to the personnel (104) using the "Money Transfer" option,

- keeping the personnel payment made by the employer (101 ) blocked (201 ) by the service provider (1 10) until due time,

- downloading the personnel mobile application (105) by the employees (104) to the personnel smart devices (106),

- signing in and activating the accounts by the employees (104) using the personnel number and password previously determined by the employers (101 ) and given to them by the employer (101 ),

- directing the activated account first to the password change screen,

- creating a password by the employee (104) on the password change screen,

- downloading the current account and balance information by the employee (104) firstly by signing in the personnel mobile application (105) online and then, allowing the personnel mobile application (105) to synchronize with the service provider (1 10) host (1 1 1 ),

- entering by the employee (104) the personnel mobile application (105) from his own personnel smart device (106) using the number and password taken previously, whenever he wishes to make payment at a member point of sale (107),

- viewing the amount identified by the employer (101 ) to the personnel's account and the remaining balance after expenditures with the "Balance Display" option on the main page of the personnel mobile application (105),

- selecting the "Make Payment" option on the personnel mobile application (105) by the employee (104), without the need to be online,

- upon entry of the password, writing the amount to be paid using the numpad that appears on the screen,

- following confirmation of the amount, creating a QR code special to the transaction and the employee (104) by the personnel application (105) , - Once the QR Code is created, simultaneously selecting "Take Payment" on the point of sale mobile application (108) by the member point of sale (107), and entering and confirming the amount to be paid,

- reading the QR code on the personnel application (105) by the point of sale application (108) moving on to the camera scanning screen to read it, - terminating the transaction if entries of the amount are different between the point of sale application (108) and the personnel application (105),

- performing the balance inquiry in relation to the employee (104) by the point of sale application (108) from the service provider host (1 1 1 ) if the amount entered is the same on both sides,

- terminating the transaction by providing an "Insufficient Balance" warning to the point of sale mobile application (108) by the system in case of insufficient balance,

- displaying the "Insufficient Balance" warning also by the personnel mobile application (105) if the employee (104) is online,

- completing the payment in case of sufficient balance,

- displaying the remaining balance and the rating screen for that point of sale on the personnel mobile application (105) if the employee (104) is online,

- collecting the payments by the member point of sale (107) in its account via the point of sale mobile application (108) loaded onto the point of sale smart device

(109),

- using "Refund" option in case that repayments are to be done,

- paying the personnel (104) money kept blocked in the service provider (1 10) in due time to the member points of sale (107),

- carrying the totals to the account according to a predetermined reduction rate, if any,

- performing the invoicing process between the employers (101 ) and the points of sale (107) through the system. Industrial Applicability

The invention is applicable among all industrial, commercial and service-oriented corporations and contracted points of sale (107) that wish to make use of tax advantages. All parties easily benefit from this system which offers a safe and fast solution.

Claims

A safe, fast and user friendly closed loop payment system which is used between an employer (101 ), a personnel (104), and points of sale (107), like restaurants, etc., where the spending process will be performed and a service provider (1 10), and by means of which payment is done via a QR code on smart devices (106) such as a mobile, tablet, etc. and a personnel mobile application (105) operating on these devices, and also a point of sale smart device (109) and point of sale mobile application (108) operating on this device, characterized by the following steps;

- directing the employer (101 ) to the password change screen upon first entrance over the internet (web) page of the service provider using the computer (103) belonging to his corporation,

- after changing the password, registering and arranging (202) the personnel information entries by the employer (101 ) using "Personnel Info" option,

- making payments to the personnel (104) using the "Money Transfer" option.

- directing the activated account first to the password change screen,

- creating a password by the employee (104) on the password change screen,

- downloading the current account and balance information by the employee (104) firstly by signing in the personnel mobile application (105) online and then, allowing the personnel mobile application (105) to synchronize with the service provider host (1 1 1 ),

viewing the amount identified by the employer (101 ) to the personnel's account and the remaining balance after expenditures with the "Balance Display" option on the main page of the personnel mobile application (105), selecting the "Make Payment" option on the personnel mobile application (105) by the employee (104), without the need to be online,

upon entry of the password, writing the amount to be paid using the numpad that appears on the screen,

following confirmation of the amount, creating a QR code special to the transaction and the employee (104) by the personnel application (105), once the QR Code is created, simultaneously selecting "Take Payment" on the point of sale mobile application (108) by the member point of sale (107), and entering and confirming the amount to be paid,

reading the QR code on the personnel application (105) by the point of sale application (108) moving on to the camera scanning screen to read it, terminating the transaction if entries of the amount are different between the point of sale application (108) and the personnel application (105), performing the balance inquiry in relation to the employee (104) by the point of sale application (108) from the service provider host (1 1 1 ) if the amount entered is the same on both sides,

terminating the transaction by providing an "Insufficient Balance" warning to the point of sale mobile application (108) by the system in case of insufficient balance,

displaying the "Insufficient Balance" warning also by the personnel mobile application (105) if the employee (104) is online,

completing the payment in case of sufficient balance,

displaying the remaining balance and the rating screen for that point of sale on the personnel mobile application (105) if the employee (104) is online, collecting the payments by the member point of sale (107) in its account via the point of sale mobile application (108) loaded onto the point of sale smart device (109),

using "Refund" option in case that repayments are to be done,

paying the personnel (104) money kept blocked in the service provider (1 10) in due time to the member points of sale (107),

- performing the invoicing process between the employers (101 ) and the points of sale (107) through the system.

2. The closed loop mobile payment system of Claim 1 , wherein cancellation of a transaction is characterized by the following steps:

- entering the refund amount both by the personnel mobile application (105) and the point of sale mobile application (108),

- reading the QR code on the personnel mobile application (105) by the point of sale application (108),

receiving the refund order for the cancellation amount by the system.

3. The closed loop mobile payment system of Claim 1 , having a service provider host (1 1 1 ) interface with which the employer (101 ) can see all his accounts and arrange private settings over any computer hardware (103).

4. The closed loop mobile payment system of Claim 1 , having a personnel mobile application (105) with "Settings" option by means of which the personnel (104) can arrange and view private settings.

5. The closed loop mobile payment system of Claim 1 , having a point of sale application (108) with "End of Day" option to perform end of day operations,

"Account Summary" option to view past incomes, total revenue, and ratings given by the personnel, and "Employee Information" option by means of which the point of sale (107) employees perform entry and arrangement transactions.

6. The closed loop mobile payment system of Claim 1 , having a service provider host (1 1 1 ) which keeps track of entries and exits to the application and account movements of all personnel (104) and member points of sale (107).