{
  "patent_number": "US 12737743",
  "country": "US",
  "title": "How Your Car Can Become a Payment Card",
  "original_title": "Connected car as a payment device",
  "summary": "This patent describes a system where a car's computer system can store your payment cards and use special short-range signals from external car parts to securely pay at places like gas stations or drive-thrus.",
  "what_it_does": "This patent details a method for using a vehicle as a payment device. It involves selecting a stored financial card or account from the car's main display, called a head unit. The system then sends a scrambled, secure version of the card number, known as a tokenized card number, to a payment terminal. This transfer happens over a very short-range wireless connection, using electronic parts attached to the outside of the car. For example, this external circuitry might be within a few inches or feet of the payment terminal, ensuring a secure, close-proximity transaction.",
  "what_it_does_not_cover": [
    "Does not cover payments made using a smartphone or smartwatch that is merely *inside* the vehicle.",
    "Does not cover payments where the financial card number is transmitted without first being converted into a 'tokenized card number'.",
    "Does not cover payments made over long-range wireless connections, such as cellular networks or Wi-Fi, for direct payment to a point-of-sale terminal.",
    "Does not cover payment systems that do not involve 'electronic circuitry attached to the exterior of the vehicle' for the final short-range transmission.",
    "Does not cover payment methods that do not require a 'very short-range communication link' with a 'threshold distance' (e.g., one inch to three feet) to the payment terminal."
  ],
  "filed": "2025-09-11",
  "granted": "2026-09-15",
  "expires": null,
  "status": "active",
  "holder": null,
  "holder_url": null,
  "inventors": [],
  "times_cited": 0,
  "tags": [
    "automotive",
    "consumer_electronics",
    "software",
    "finance",
    "telecommunications"
  ],
  "abstract": "Methods, systems, apparatus, and non-transitory computer readable media are described for using a vehicle as a payment device. Various aspects may include receiving a selection of a stored financial card or financial account at a vehicle head unit. The selected financial card or financial account may be transmitted to a point-of-sale (POS) terminal for making a payment by transmitting a tokenized card number to the POS terminal. The tokenized card number may be transmitted over a very short-range communication link to ensure that the transmission is secure. For example, electronic circuitry may be attached to the exterior of the vehicle, where the electronic circuitry may be within a threshold distance (e.g. one inch, three inches, six inches, one foot, three feet, etc.) of the POS terminal. The tokenized card number may be transmitted from the vehicle head unit to the electronic circuitry and then to the POS terminal.",
  "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12737743/connected-car-as-a-payment-device-12737743",
  "markdown_url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12737743/connected-car-as-a-payment-device-12737743/md",
  "google_patents_url": "https://patents.google.com/patent/US12737743",
  "relatedPatents": [
    {
      "patentNumber": "12737748",
      "countryCode": "US",
      "title": "Smart Payment Card with Transaction Info Locked to Payment Method",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12737748/multi-function-electronic-payment-card-and-device-system"
    },
    {
      "patentNumber": "12737570",
      "countryCode": "US",
      "title": "How a Store's Payment System Keeps Your Card Info Safe",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12737570/point-of-sale-system-transaction-processing"
    },
    {
      "patentNumber": "10147076",
      "countryCode": "US",
      "title": "Central Bank Digital Currency for Phones and Watches",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/10147076/airbnb-experiences"
    },
    {
      "patentNumber": "10176475",
      "countryCode": "US",
      "title": "How a Single Card Can Pay for Transit Using Loyalty Points",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/10176475/square-point-of-sale"
    },
    {
      "patentNumber": "12100000",
      "countryCode": "US",
      "title": "How Digital Wallets Pull Data From Multiple Sources for Payments",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12100000/starship-mars-edl"
    }
  ]
}