Importance

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Abstract

A universal electronic transaction card ('UET card') is capable of serving as a number of different credit cards, bank cards, identification cards, employee cards, medical cards and the like. The UET card includes information storage elements, an input interface, a processor, a display, and a communications interface. In a preferred embodiment, the display is a touch-sensitive display which provides the user with a number of graphical images which enable the user to selectively chose the type of 'credit card' to use for a transaction, and to then choose a particular credit card to use with the transaction. After the choice is made, a graphic image appears on the display which looks like the face of a plastic credit card, including the account number, the user's name, the name of the credit card company and its logo. Thereafter, the user presents the UET card to the point of sales terminal for a sales transaction. After proper verification with the main computer of the service provider, the sales transaction information is transferred and stored in the UET card by the point of sales terminal to eliminate paper receipts and facilitate future storage, verification and analysis for billing, budgeting and financial management and using a home or office personal computer or other facilities. The invention also includes methods of issuing account authorization to a UET card, a method of transferring transactional and account information between a UET card and a personal computer or mainframe computer, a method of using the UET card as a remote terminal for a mainframe computer, and a method of conducting an electronic transaction.

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First Claim