Reprogrammable point-of-sale transaction flows

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018032984-A1
Application number	US-201615224078-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 29, 2016
Priority date	Jul 29, 2016
Publication date	Feb 1, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

Techniques and arrangements for allowing modification of transaction flows, user interfaces (UIs), receipt configuration and control of buyer-facing displays associated with transactions between a payment service, a merchant and a buyer are provided. Payment service payment functionality is exposed by the payment service via one or more application programming interfaces (API)s, software development kits (SDKs), or some other web-based communication technique (e.g., a uniform resource locator). The payment service payment functionality exposed by the payment service allows a merchant to customize one or more steps of a transaction between a user and a merchant. A merchant can use the exposed payment service payment functionality to configure and modify the look and feel and/or the steps within a transaction flow. The merchant can also modify a receipt to include other information from the information that is included in a default receipt.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A system comprising:
a buyer-facing display; one or more processors; and a merchant application that is executable by the one or more processors to run as a background process and cause the one or more processors to perform acts including: determining that an input has been received at least partly via the buyer-facing display, the input associated with a transaction between a merchant and a buyer; sending, to a merchant device, an indication of the input; receiving, from the merchant device and based at least in part on the input, one or more instructions for controlling a payment service payment application; and sending the one or more instructions to the second application; wherein the payment service payment application is executable by the one or more processors to run as a foreground process, and cause the one or more processors to perform acts including:
presenting, at least partly via the buyer-facing display, a first user interface (UI) associated with the transaction between the merchant and the buyer; and
sending transaction information associated with the transaction to one or more of:
the merchant device; or
one or more computing devices associated with the payment service, the one or more computing devices operative to process payments from multiple merchants including the merchant;

receiving from the merchant application, the one or more instructions; and
presenting, at least partly via the buyer-facing display and based at least in part on the one or more instructions, a second UI that is different from the first UI.

2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the merchant application is operative to communicate with the payment service payment application via an application programming interface (API) provided by the payment service.

3 . The system of claim 2 , wherein the one or more computing devices associated with the payment service provide at least a portion of the functionality of the API via a web API provided by the payment service.

4 . The system of claim 2 , further comprising a payment hardware device, and causing the payment hardware device to transition from an idle state to an active state based at least in part on the one or more instructions.

5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein one or more elements of the first UI and one or more elements of the second UI are specified at least in part via functionality exposed via the API.

6 . A point-of-sale (POS) device, comprising:
one or more processors; a first application that is executable by the one or more processors to run as a background process and cause the one or more processors to perform acts including:
determining that an input has been received at least partly via a buyer-facing display, the input associated with a transaction between a merchant and a buyer; and
sending one or more instructions to the second application;
wherein the second application is executable by the one or more processors to run as a foreground process, and cause the one or more processors to perform acts including:
presenting, at least partly via the buyer-facing display, a first user interface (UI) associated with the transaction between the merchant and the buyer;
sending transaction information associated with the transaction to one or more computing devices associated with the payment service, the one or more computing devices operative to process payments from multiple merchants including the merchant;
receiving from the first application, the one or more instructions; and
presenting, at least partly via the buyer-facing display and based at least in part on the one or more instructions, a second UI that is different from the first UI.

7 . The POS device of claim 6 , wherein the first application is operative to communicate with the second application via an application programming interface (API) provided by the payment service.

8 . The POS device of claim 6 , wherein the one or more computing devices associated with the payment service provide at least a portion of functionality exposed by the API via a web API.

9 . The POS device of claim 6 , wherein the first application is a merchant application developed by or for the merchant by a third-party that is different from the payment service.

10 . The POS device of claim 6 , wherein the second application is a payment service payment application provided by the payment service.

11 . The POS device of claim 6 , wherein the acts performed by the first application further comprise sending, to a merchant device associated with the merchant, an indication of the input and receiving, from the merchant device and based at least in part on the input, one or more instructions for controlling a second application.

12 . The POS device of claim 6 , wherein the second UI is specified at least in part by the merchant.

13 . A method comprising:
determining, using a first application, that an input has been received at least partly via a buyer-facing display, the input associated with a transaction between a merchant and a buyer, wherein the first application runs as a background process on one or more processors; sending, from the first application to a second application, one or more instructions, wherein the one or more instructions are determined based at least in part on the input; wherein the second application is executable by the one or more processors to run as a foreground process, and cause the one or more processors to perform acts including:
presenting, at least partly via the buyer-facing display, a first user interface (UI) associated with the transaction between the merchant and the buyer;
sending transaction information associated with the transaction to one or more computing devices associated with the payment service, the one or more computing devices operative to process payments from multiple merchants including the merchant;
receiving from the first application, the one or more instructions; and
presenting, at least partly via the buyer-facing display and based at least in part on the one or more instructions, a second UI that is different from the first UI.

14 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the first application is operative to communicate with the second application via an application programming interface (API) provided by the payment service.

15 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the one or more computing devices associated with the payment service provide at least a portion of functionality exposed by the API via a web API.

16 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the first application is a third-party application developed by a third-party that is different from the payment service.

17 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the second application is provided by the payment service.

18 . The method of claim 13 , further comprising sending, by the first application to a merchant device associated with the merchant, an indication of the input and receiving, from the merchant device the one or more instructions.

19 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the second UI is specified at least in part by the merchant.

20 . The method of claim 13 , further comprising utilizing functionality exposed by the API to modify a transaction flow associated with the transaction between the buyer and the merchant.

Assignees

• Square Inc

Inventors

• Wolter Jonathan Andrew
• Ricau Pierre-Yves
• Dickerson Rob

Classifications

• G06Q20/102

  Bill distribution or payments · CPC title

• G06Q20/20 Primary

  Point-of-sale [POS] network systems · CPC title

• G06Q20/405 Primary

  Establishing or using transaction specific rules · CPC title

• G06F3/0484

  for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range · CPC title