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US-12619973-B2 - Transaction object reader with configurable amplifier

US12619973B2US 12619973 B2US12619973 B2US 12619973B2US-12619973-B2

Abstract

Systems and methods for reading from a transaction instrument are disclosed. In some examples, a system receives a signal from a reader interface in response to an interaction between the reader interface and the transaction instrument. The system amplifies the signal using an amplifier and based on a gain of the amplifier to generate an amplified signal. In some examples, the system converts the amplified signal. The system decodes data from the amplified signal. The system adjusts the gain of the amplifier based on the data. The system outputs the data, in some cases in an encrypted form.

Inventors

  • Mani Razaghi
  • Joseph Laucks
  • Jeremy Martin

Assignees

  • BLOCK, INC.

Dates

Publication Date
20260505
Application Date
20250102

Claims (20)

  1. 1 . A method of reading from a transaction instrument, the method comprising: receiving a signal from a reader interface in response to an interaction between the reader interface and the transaction instrument; amplifying the signal using an amplifier and based on a gain of the amplifier to generate an amplified signal; converting the amplified signal to decode data from the amplified signal; adjusting the gain of the amplifier based on the data decoded from the amplified signal; encrypting the data to generate encrypted data; and outputting the encrypted data.
  2. 2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein converting the amplified signal includes converting the amplified signal from an analog form to a digital form using an analog-to-digital converter (ADC).
  3. 3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the amplifier is an operational amplifier, wherein the operational amplifier receives the signal from a first input of the operational amplifier, wherein the operational amplifier outputs the amplified signal through an output of the operational amplifier, and wherein the operational amplifier receives a second signal through a second input of the operational amplifier to adjust the gain of the operational amplifier.
  4. 4 . A method comprising: amplifying a signal using an amplifier and based on a gain of the amplifier to generate an amplified signal, wherein the signal is based on an interaction between a reader interface and a transaction instrument; decoding data from the amplified signal; adjusting the gain of the amplifier based on the data decoded from the amplified signal; and outputting the data.
  5. 5 . The method of claim 4 , further comprising: receiving the signal from the reader interface in response to the interaction.
  6. 6 . The method of claim 4 , further comprising: converting the amplified signal, wherein decoding the data from the signal is based on converting the amplified signal.
  7. 7 . The method of claim 6 , wherein converting the amplified signal includes converting the amplified signal from an analog form to a digital form using an analog-to-digital converter (ADC).
  8. 8 . The method of claim 4 , further comprising: encrypting the data to generate an encrypted form of the data, wherein outputting the data includes outputting the data in the encrypted form.
  9. 9 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the amplifier is an operational amplifier.
  10. 10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the operational amplifier receives the signal from a first input of the operational amplifier, wherein the operational amplifier outputs the amplified signal through an output of the operational amplifier, and wherein the operational amplifier receives a second signal through a second input of the operational amplifier to adjust the gain of the operational amplifier.
  11. 11 . The method of claim 4 , wherein decoding the data from the amplified signal includes converting the amplified signal into a string, wherein the string includes a plurality of alphanumeric characters.
  12. 12 . The method of claim 4 , wherein outputting the data includes outputting the data as an analog signal.
  13. 13 . The method of claim 12 , further comprising: processing the data decoded from the amplified signal using a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) to generate the analog signal.
  14. 14 . The method of claim 4 , wherein outputting the data includes outputting the data as a digital signal.
  15. 15 . A system comprising: an amplifier that receives a signal from a reader interface in response to an interaction between the reader interface and a transaction instrument, wherein the amplifier amplifies the signal based on a gain of the amplifier to generate an amplified signal; an integrated circuit (IC), wherein the IC decodes data from the amplified signal, wherein the IC adjusts the gain of the amplifier based on the data decoded from the amplified signal, and wherein the IC encrypts the data to generate encrypted data; and an output interface that outputs the data.
  16. 16 . The system of claim 15 , further comprising: an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) that converts the amplified signal from an analog form to a digital form.
  17. 17 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the IC encrypts the data to generate an encrypted form of the data, wherein the output interface outputs the data in the encrypted form.
  18. 18 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the amplifier is an operational amplifier, wherein the operational amplifier receives the signal from a first input of the operational amplifier, wherein the operational amplifier outputs the amplified signal through an output of the operational amplifier, and wherein the operational amplifier receives a second signal through a second input of the operational amplifier to adjust the gain of the operational amplifier.
  19. 19 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the IC decoding the data from the amplified signal includes the IC converting the amplified signal into a string, wherein the string includes a plurality of alphanumeric characters.
  20. 20 . The system of claim 15 , further comprising: a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) that processes the data decoded from the amplified signal to generate an analog signal, wherein the output interface outputting the data includes the output interface outputting the analog signal.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/410,447 filed Jan. 11, 2024, which is a Continuation of, and claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/110,236 filed Feb. 15, 2023, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,922,397, which is a Continuation of, and claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/360,473 filed Jun. 28, 2021, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,610,194, which is a Continuation of, and claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/564,553, filed Sep. 9, 2019, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,100,298, which is a Continuation of, and claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/836,691, filed Dec. 8, 2017, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,410,021, and all of which are expressly incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. BACKGROUND Point of sale (POS) terminals allow customers to easily pay merchants, and typically include a card reader, such as the magnetic stripe card reader or a Europay/Mastercard/Visa (EMV) integrated circuit (IC) chip card reader. POS terminals also typically include a computer and a network interface through which the computer can communicate the information read from the card to a payment server that then authorizes and completes the transaction. Portable POS terminals sometimes use an existing mobile device, such as a smartphone, to fill the role of the computer and network interface, where a separate card reader device communicates with the mobile device. Increasingly, mobile devices are manufactured to be as small as possible and with as few ports as possible. Most modern mobile devices only include a single port-either a Universal Serial Bus Type C (USB-C) port or an Apple® Lightning® port. There is a need for card reader devices with USB-C plugs and Apple® Lightning® plugs. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1A illustrates a magstripe card reader with an Apple® Lightning® plug to be plugged into an Apple® Lightning® port of a mobile device. FIG. 1B illustrates a magstripe card reader with a Universal Serial Bus Type-C (USB-C) plug to be plugged into a USB-C port of a mobile device. FIG. 1C illustrates an integrated circuit (IC) chip card reader plugged into a mobile device via Apple® Lightning® connectors or USB-C connectors. FIG. 1D illustrates a near field communication (NFC) object reader plugged into a mobile device via Apple® Lightning® connectors or USB-C connectors. FIG. 2A illustrates a cross-section view of a magstripe card reader with an Apple® Lightning® plug and an audio breakout circuitry connector interface. FIG. 2B illustrates a cross-section view of a magstripe card reader with an Apple® Lightning® plug and a microcontroller and authorization chip. FIG. 2C illustrates a cross-section view of a magstripe card reader with an Apple® Lightning® plug, a flex circuit, and an interposer. FIG. 3A illustrates a cross-section view of a magstripe card reader with a Universal Serial Bus Type-C (USB-C) plug and a connector interface operating in audio adapter accessory mode. FIG. 3B illustrates a cross-section view of a magstripe card reader with a Universal Serial Bus Type-C (USB-C) plug and a connector interface and a microcontroller. FIG. 4 illustrates a block diagram of an integrated circuit used in the magstripe card reader. FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating operation of a magstripe card reader with a digital connector and an internal audio signal path. FIG. 6 is a block diagram of exemplary components that may be present on the circuit board. DETAILED DESCRIPTION A card reader includes a digital connector such as a Universal Serial Bus (USB) plug or an Apple® Lightning® plug. The digital connector includes a corresponding connector interface, which provides voltage to at least a card reader interface and an integrated circuit (IC) of the card reader. The card reader interface outputs an analog transaction information signal upon reading the card. The IC generates a digital version of the analog transaction information signal, encrypts the digital version, converts that into an analog audio signal. The audio signal can then be sent to the connector interface, which converts it into a digital signal such as a USB or Apple® Lightning® signal that is sent by the digital connector to a mobile device. Alternately, the audio signal can be sent to a microcontroller that converts the audio signal to a digital format such as USB, and then to the digital connector. FIG. 1A illustrates a magstripe card reader with an Apple® Lightning® plug to be plugged into an Apple® Lightning® port of a mobile device. In particular, FIG. 1A illustrates a card reader device 110 with an Apple® Lightning® plug 120 as well as a mobile device 105A with an Apple® Lightning® port 125. A magnetic stripe transaction card 130 is illustrated partially inside a card slot of the reader device 110. White block arrows to the left of the card reader device 110 and the mobile device 105A indicate that the plug 120 is meant to