Location-based ticket redemption

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10990905-B2
Application number	US-201514954565-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 30, 2015
Priority date	Nov 30, 2015
Publication date	Apr 27, 2021
Grant date	Apr 27, 2021

Abstract

When a consumer carrying a device is automatically detected within a pre-defined and constrained space, ticket identifying information is automatically obtained from the device and relayed to a backend ticket redemption server. The ticket redemption server validates a ticket for the consumer from the ticket-identifying information and relays a confirmation to a ticket redemption agent's device and the consumer is checked-in for ingress onto a transportation system or into a venue destination of the consumer.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method, comprising:
receiving a token that is initially acquired from a wireless beacon as a customer passes through an ingress point of a venue, wherein the token is generated by a portable device that is located in a pocket or bag of the customer, wherein the token is generated based on purchase information for the venue located on the portable device and the token provided by a mobile application of the portable device based on an Operating System (OS) of the portable device detecting a transmitted beacon identifier from the wireless beacon and passing the transmitted beacon identifier to the mobile application for initiating the mobile application for execution on the portable device, wherein the mobile application is not resident or executing on the portable device prior to the passing of the transmitted beacon identifier by the OS to the mobile application, wherein an interface to the OS of the portable device detects when the portable device is within a preconfigured geographical area associated with the wireless beacon and interacts with the OS and initiates wireless services of the portable device when the wireless services are turned off on the portable device and the interface interacts with the OS and initiates the mobile application on the portable device, wherein the wireless beacon is not capable of forwarding a first data size for ticket information that is mapped to the token and associated with the purchase information but is capable of forwarding a second data size associated with the token, wherein the first data size is greater than the second data size;
validating the token for customer ingress at the ingress point based at least in part a digital signature associated with the token;
providing an indication of success or failure of validation to an ingress device;
forwarding a confirmation of success and a beacon identifier for the wireless beacon to the wireless beacon, wherein the wireless beacon retransmits the beacon identifier and the confirmation, the portable device obtains the confirmation, and the mobile application indicates that the ticket information for the token has been properly identified for passing through the ingress point of the venue; and
when no cellular connection or WiFi signal is available for communicating with the portable device, sending a confirmation to the portable device as soon as a connection is available indicating that the token was redeemed.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein receiving further includes receiving the token from the wireless beacon.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein receiving further includes receiving the token from an ingress terminal that obtains the token from a transmission of the wireless beacon.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein receiving further includes receiving the token from a wireless transmission of the portable device in possession of the customer and relayed from the wireless beacon as the customer passes through the ingress point.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein validating further includes mapping the token to the ticket information for the customer and validating the ticket information.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein validating the ticket information further includes passing the ticket information to a third-party reservation system for validation.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein providing further includes sending the ticket information associated with a ticket of the customer to the ingress device when the token is successfully validated.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein providing further includes sending a distinctive tone that is played on an audio device of the ingress device as the indication.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein providing further includes sending a distinctive tone that is played on an audio device in proximity to but independent of the ingress device as the indication.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising, sending a redemption confirmation to the mobile application executing on the portable device that is possession of the customer when the token is successfully validated.

11. A method, comprising:
receiving, on an ingress device, a token relayed from a wireless beacon and obtained by the wireless beacon from a transmission of a portable device that is in a pocket or a bag of a customer as the customer passes through a portal of a venue, wherein the token is generated by the portable device based on ticket information for a ticket purchased by the customer and the token provided by a mobile application of the portable device based on an Operating System (OS) of the portable device detecting a transmitted beacon identifier from the wireless beacon and passing the transmitted beacon identifier to the mobile application for initiating the mobile application for execution on the portable device, wherein the mobile application is not resident or executing on the portable device prior to the passing of the transmitted beacon identifier by the OS to the mobile application, wherein an interface to the OS of the portable device detects when the portable device is within a preconfigured geographical area associated with the wireless beacon and interacts with the OS and initiates wireless services of the portable device when the wireless services are turned off on the portable device and the interface interacts with the OS and initiates the mobile application on the portable device, wherein the wireless beacon is not capable of forwarding a first data size for the ticket information that is mapped to the token but is capable of forwarding a second data size associated with the token, wherein the first data size is greater than the second data size;
forwarding, by the ingress device, the token to a ticket redemption system and forwarding a digital signature associated with the token for validation of the ticket;
receiving, by the ingress device, an indication of success or failure in redeeming the ticket associated with the token from the ticket redemption system;
providing a confirmation of success and a beacon identifier for the wireless beacon to the wireless beacon, wherein the wireless beacon retransmits the the beacon identifier and the confirmation, the portable device obtains the confirmation, and the mobile application indicates that the ticket information for the token has been properly identified for passing through the portal of the venue; and
when no cellular connection or WiFi signal is available to communicate with the portable device, sending, by the ticket redemption system, a confirmation to the portable device as soon as a connection is available indicating that the ticket was redeemed.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein receiving further includes receiving the token by listening on a wireless frequency for a beacon transmission that the wireless beacon uses to relay the token.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein receiving further includes presenting, on a display of the ingress device, ticket information for the ticket that accompanies the indication from the ticket redemption system when the ticket redemption system successfully redeems the ticket through validation of the token.

14. The method of claim 11 , wherein receiving further includes playing the indication as a distinctive audio on an audio device interfaced to the ingress device, wherein the distinctive audio provides a distinctive audible sound that indicates success or failure in redeeming the ticket.

15. The method of claim 11 , wherein receiving further includes wireless sending a distinctive audio file for immediate playing on an audio device in proximity to the portal, wherein the di

Assignees

• Ncr Corp

Inventors

• Borucki Robert Thomas
• Slaughter David Todd

Classifications

• G07B15/00

  Arrangements or apparatus for collecting fares, tolls or entrance fees at one or more control points (handling coins or valuable papers, e.g. banknotes, G07D; apparatus for vending or hiring articles or services activated by coins, credit cards, paper currency or the like G07F7/00, G07F17/00) · CPC title

• G06Q10/02 Primary

  Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events · CPC title

• G06Q50/14

  Travel agencies · CPC title

• H04W4/02 Primary

  Services making use of location information · CPC title