How a Store's Payment System Keeps Your Card Info Safe
This patent describes a store payment system where your touchscreen inputs, like your PIN, are encrypted by a special processor before being sent for payment, keeping your information secure.
Original patent title: “Point of sale system transaction processing”
This patent describes a store payment system where your touchscreen inputs, like your PIN, are encrypted by a special processor before being sent for payment, keeping your information secure. Granted in 2026.
Coverage
What does this patent actually cover?
The patent describes a point-of-sale (POS) system with a merchant terminal and a consumer terminal. The consumer terminal has a touchscreen display where you enter information, such as a PIN or signature. A 'touch controller' receives these user inputs from the touchscreen. This controller then selectively sends the inputs to a dedicated 'second processor'. The second processor's specific job is to encrypt these sensitive user inputs immediately. After encryption, the second processor sends the scrambled data to a 'first processor', which then transmits the encrypted inputs to an external payment system for processing.
The gap
What does this patent NOT cover?
- Does not cover payment systems that rely solely on physical keypads for PIN entry, as it specifies a 'touch screen display' for user inputs.
- Does not cover systems where a single processor handles both receiving user inputs and encrypting sensitive data.
- Does not cover general data encryption methods not specifically tied to point-of-sale transaction input from a consumer terminal.
- Does not cover systems where user inputs are encrypted only after being fully processed or transmitted by the main 'first processor'.
- Does not cover payment systems that do not separate functions into distinct merchant and consumer terminals.
These exclusions are unique to PatentBrief — derived from the actual claim language, not patent-office boilerplate.
Key facts
What made this novel
The clever part is using a dedicated 'second processor' to encrypt user inputs immediately after they are received by the touch controller, before they even reach the main 'first processor'. This creates an isolated and secure path for sensitive data, making it much harder for malicious software on the primary system to intercept unencrypted information.
Schematic visualization of the patent's claim structure. Hand-drawn diagrams in progress for each landmark patent.
Where you've seen this
Real-world examples
Modern payment terminals at grocery stores
Self-checkout kiosks in retail environments
Restaurant tableside payment devices
Gas station payment terminals with touchscreens
Why it matters
The bigger picture
This technology is important because it aims to protect sensitive consumer information, like credit card numbers and PINs, right at the point of entry. By encrypting data early in the process, it significantly reduces the risk of fraud and data breaches during retail transactions. This builds trust for consumers and helps merchants comply with strict security standards for handling payment data.
Filed
April 5, 2024
Granted
September 15, 2026
Market context
Who's building on this
Companies in this space
Companies like Verifone, Ingenico, Square, and NCR are continuously developing and implementing secure point-of-sale systems. Payment processing companies such as Stripe and PayPal also invest heavily in the underlying security infrastructure for transactions, often incorporating similar multi-processor architectures to protect sensitive data.
Market impact
This type of technology contributes to increased consumer trust in digital payments and helps merchants meet stringent data security standards like PCI DSS. It enables the widespread adoption of touchscreen payment terminals by providing a robust defense against data interception, which is critical for the growth of electronic transactions and reducing financial fraud in retail.
Claim 1 — Plain English
What this patent covers
The patent describes a point-of-sale (POS) system with a merchant terminal and a consumer terminal. The consumer terminal has a touchscreen display where you enter information, such as a PIN or signature. A 'touch controller' receives these user inputs from the touchscreen. This controller then selectively sends the inputs to a dedicated 'second processor'. The second processor's specific job is to encrypt these sensitive user inputs immediately. After encryption, the second processor sends the scrambled data to a 'first processor', which then transmits the encrypted inputs to an external payment system for processing.
The clever bit
The clever part is using a dedicated 'second processor' to encrypt user inputs immediately after they are received by the touch controller, before they even reach the main 'first processor'. This creates an isolated and secure path for sensitive data, making it much harder for malicious software on the primary system to intercept unencrypted information.
What it does not cover
- Does not cover payment systems that rely solely on physical keypads for PIN entry, as it specifies a 'touch screen display' for user inputs.
- Does not cover systems where a single processor handles both receiving user inputs and encrypting sensitive data.
- Does not cover general data encryption methods not specifically tied to point-of-sale transaction input from a consumer terminal.
- Does not cover systems where user inputs are encrypted only after being fully processed or transmitted by the main 'first processor'.
- Does not cover payment systems that do not separate functions into distinct merchant and consumer terminals.
Patent timeline
Application submitted to the patent office
Patent officially issued
PatentBrief Score
Impact Score
Early stage
Citation count
0/40
No citations yet
Claim breadth
0/20
Narrow claimsclaimsThe numbered statements at the end of a patent that legally define what the inventor owns.Read more →
Recency
20/20
Granted within 5 years
Assignee scale
0/20
Independent or smaller assigneeassigneeThe entity that owns the patent — usually the inventor's employer or a company.Read more →
PatentBrief Impact Score — based on citation count, claim breadth, recency, and assignee scale. Not a legal assessment.
Heuristic Value Estimate
What this patent might be worth
$19K – $61K
Midpoint $38K · 17.5 yr remaining · industry ×1.6
Heuristic only — blends forward/backward citation counts, claim scope, time remaining, litigation history, and CPC-derived industry baseline. Real valuations need a professional appraisal.
Claim text not yet imported for this patent
Concepts involved
Cite this patent
(2026). How a Store's Payment System Keeps Your Card Info Safe (U.S. Patent No. 12,737,570). U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12737570/point-of-sale-system-transaction-processing
Auto-generated from the patent record. Double-check author order and the issue date against the official USPTO document before submitting.
Embed
Add this patent to your site
Drop this plain-English patent card into any blog post or article — free, no signup. It always links back to the full breakdown here.
<div data-patentlens-widget data-patent-number="US12737570"></div> <script src="https://patentbrief.org/embed.js" async></script>
Stay in the loop
Get a weekly digest of new patents.
One email per week. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Keep exploring
Related patents you should know
US 4683195 · 1987
How to Make Billions of Copies of a DNA Segment
This patent describes the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), a method to rapidly create many copies of a specific piece of DNA or RNA, enabling its detection and analysis.
Cetus Corp
US 8697359 · 2014
How to Edit Genes in Human Cells Using an Engineered CRISPR System
This patent describes an engineered CRISPR-Cas9 system for precisely cutting DNA in eukaryotic cells to change how genes work, opening the door for gene editing in complex organisms.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
US 7657849 · 2010
How the iPhone's Slide-to-Unlock Gesture Works
Apple's 2010 patent describes unlocking a device by dragging a specific graphical image across the touchscreen along a predefined path, a gesture that became iconic with the original iPhone.
Apple Inc
US 4733665 · 1988
How Doctors Implant a Permanent Stent Using a Balloon
This patent describes the method for placing a permanent, expandable wire mesh tube inside a blood vessel or other body tube using a balloon-tipped catheter to widen it and keep it open.
Expandable Grafts Partnership
US 4965188 · 1990
How to Make Many Copies of a DNA Piece with Heat
This patent describes the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) method, a technique to make millions of copies of a specific DNA segment using a heat-resistant enzyme and repeated temperature changes.
Cetus Corp
US 4235871 · 1980
How to Encapsulate Active Materials in Lipid Bubbles Efficiently
This patent describes a method for trapping biologically active substances inside tiny, multi-layered fat bubbles called liposomes, using a specific water-in-oil emulsion and gel-forming process to improve how much material gets captured.
Individual
Semantically similar
You might also find these interesting
US 12737748 · 2026
Smart Payment Card with Transaction Info Locked to Payment Method
US 12737743 · 2026
How Your Car Can Become a Payment Card
US 10198731 · 2019 · Square Inc
How Square Uses Your Phone's Location to Verify Credit Card Payments
US 9699159 · 2017 · OLogN Technologies AG
How Wearable Devices Act as Secure Bridges for Transactions
More to explore
More in Consumer Electronics
US 7657849 · 2010 · Apple Inc
How the iPhone's Slide-to-Unlock Gesture Works
US 7479949 · 2009 · Apple Inc
How Touchscreens Understand Your Finger Swipes and Scrolls
US 4528643 · 1985 · FPDC Inc
How Stores Make Custom Products On-Demand with Remote Approval
US 7469381 · 2008 · Apple Inc
How Touchscreens Show and Snap Back When You Scroll Past an Edge
New to patents?
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
What does How a Store's Payment System Keeps Your Card Info Safe cover?
This patent describes a store payment system where your touchscreen inputs, like your PIN, are encrypted by a special processor before being sent for payment, keeping your information secure.
When does this patent expire?
This patent is expected to expire on September 15, 2046, when the invention enters the public domain.
What problem does this patent solve?
This technology is important because it aims to protect sensitive consumer information, like credit card numbers and PINs, right at the point of entry. By encrypting data early in the process, it significantly reduces the risk of fraud and data breaches during retail transactions. This builds trust for consumers and helps merchants comply with strict security standards for handling payment data.
What does this patent NOT cover?
Does not cover payment systems that rely solely on physical keypads for PIN entry, as it specifies a 'touch screen display' for user inputs.
Patent monitoring