Posts Tagged: "atm"

Is being called a ‘patent troll’ defamatory? NH inventor files suit against banking industry to find out

In a New Hampshire State Superior Court, this so-called ‘patent troll’ has decided to fight back. Automated Transactions and Dave Barcelou have filed a defamation complaint against the crème de la crème of those deemed “too big to fail” and who many might consider to be too big to defeat… The minute Barcelou was able to enforce his patented technologies in court, winning a sizable settlement from the biggest bank in his hometown of Buffalo, NY, a veritable “Who’s Who” of the financial services leaders joined forces to destroy both Barcelou and his company economically. Besides encouraging one another to ignore Automated Transaction’s demand letters, false and misleading statements started to appear in prominent business publications, which went so far as to say the company had purchased its patents, or alternatively, that the patents were invalid. Over time a unified battle cry arose from the ‘poor little community banks’ he allegedly targeted; “He’s nothing but a patent troll.”

American innovation has been fueled by immigrant inventors

Without immigrants and the influx of knowledge brought by them to our country’s shores, American innovation and the overall economy would look nothing like it does today. The current election cycle, as with many recent ones, has seen a great deal of focus turned towards the issue of immigration reform, with much of the debate centered on 11 million undocumented workers currently in America. But we wanted to take some time to explore how foreigners have been able to contribute to our nation’s spirit of innovation. Surprisingly, we found that some of these inventions encompass products that are about as American as apple pie.

Financial Innovation: From Smarter ATMs to Investing Casino Winnings

Today, we thought that we would spend some time scoping out a wider breadth of invention from entities outside of the two banking giants which typically earn most of our focus… Most of the technologies we explore below are directed at improvements to ATMs, including ATM platforms on mobile devices, enhanced commercial banking services available through ATMs and increased security features for discouraging theft or fraud. Other intriguing financial innovations include smarter credit cards which can conduct transactions using wireless communications, an investment system for online gambling services and a classroom kit for teaching financial literacy to students.

Innovation Focus: Financial Sector Giants Like Patents Too

Rather than profile a single company we looked at patents and patent applications from the likes of Bank of America, American Express, Capital One and more. Our recent review of the sector continues to show us some astonishing inventions. Today’s featured patent application comes from Capital One and protects an attachment to mobile devices which establishes a network for handing digital transactions. This attachment would enable a user’s device to be retrofitted so that it can be easily operated as a digital wallet. Methods of tracking online payments through mobile devices, as well as a system for quickly processing loans for online auto sales, are discussed in other patent applications we discuss.

Bank of America Seeks Patent on ATM with a USB Port

Our featured patent application today discusses the operation of an automatic teller machine, or ATM, that includes a universal serial bus (USB) port. This USB port would enable the ATM to connect to external security devices, such as a fingerprint scanner, to provide authentication. We’ve pulled up two applications that deal with providing targeted shopping offers digitally, one that provides offers while browsing an online store and another that can provide discounts after the purchase has been made. Other patent applications describe a marketplace for exchanging gift cards, as well as a system for vehicle navigation to points of interest along a driving route. The recent additions to Bank of America’s patent portfolio include a number of very interesting new systems designed to help those in economic need. Two issued patents discuss methods of preventing economic loss because of unforeseen circumstances, one that applies to any credit account and the other which can prevent foreclosure proceedings specifically. Mobile banking units for access to financial accounts during catastrophes are prevented in another patent. Another issued patent provides for a financial product referred to as “goal insurance,” designed to motivate policy holders to achieve defined goals.