Distributed transaction system

Abstract

A distributed transaction system for enabling users to conduct transactions using services from third party service providers includes a central processing center with one or more communications interfaces to facilitate transactions initiated by users at a plurality of kiosks wherein each of the kiosks includes a user interface enabling a user to access a user selected service and a data store for storing configurations associated with services provided by the third party service providers, whereby a user interfaces with one or more of physical system resources of the kiosk to open a user identity session such that the kiosk is operative to facilitate at least one first user action with the physical resources to initiate a financial transaction and the central processing center is operative to execute at least a second action to facilitate the transaction and to communicate with a financial institution.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for providing predetermined external services provided by service providers to a user whereby a user may complete a service provider transaction, comprising:
 selecting a transactional mode of operation at a user terminal operable to function in multiple transactional modes, each associated with a service provider and a corresponding service provider transaction;   providing a plurality of physical resources at the user terminal necessary to operate the terminal in each of the transactional modes;   configuring the user terminal to interface with at least the available physical resources necessary to operate the terminal in the selected transactional mode;   each transactional mode having associated therewith a unique script used to interface between the necessary physical resources for the associated transactional mode and the service provider to complete a selected service provider transaction at the user terminal;   storing, at the user terminal, at least an associated portion of the script for each transactional mode utilized to interface between the physical resources necessary for the transactional mode and the service provider;   storing the remainder of the associated script necessary to interface between the physical resources utilized for the transactional mode and the service provider at a central office processor;   selecting the associated stored portion of the script at the user terminal for a selected transactional mode;   running the selected associated stored portion of the script for the selected transactional mode at the user terminal and running the selected associated remainder portion of the script for the selected transactional mode at the central office processor to interface the physical resources utilized in the selected transactional mode with the selected service provider to complete the selected service provider transaction.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising identifying the physical resources available at the user terminal and communicating the available resources to the central office processor. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2  wherein the physical resources available at the user terminal are communicated from the user terminal to the central office processor at predetermined intervals. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 2  further comprising disabling a transactional mode at the user terminal if the physical resources utilized for the transactional mode are not available. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising receiving authentication information from the user and authenticating the user's identity. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5  wherein the step of receiving authentication information from the user further comprises receiving a biometric parameter of the user at the user terminal. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 5  wherein the step of authenticating the user's identity further comprises initiating a single user identity session wherein a user conducts multiple service provider transactions in a single user identity session using multiple service provider services provided by multiple service providers. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 transmitting confirmation of the selected transaction from the user terminal to the central office processor; and 
 transmitting confirmation of the selected transaction from the central office processor to the service provider. 
 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising selectively enabling and disabling service provider transactions at a user terminal, independent of other user terminals, based upon selected predetermined criteria unique to the user terminal. 
     
     
         10 . A method for providing predetermined external services provided by service providers to a user whereby a user may complete a service provider transaction, comprising:
 selecting a transactional mode of operation at a user terminal operable to function in multiple transactional modes, each associated with a service provider and a corresponding service provider transaction;   interfacing, with the user terminal, a plurality of physical resources required by each of the transactional modes;   initiating a user session at the user terminal and receiving a request for a selected service provider transaction corresponding to a selected transactional mode;   configuring the user terminal to interface with at least the available physical resources necessary to operate the terminal in the selected transactional mode;   each transactional mode having associated therewith a unique script required to interface between the required physical resources for the associated transactional mode and the service provider to complete a selected associated service provider transaction at the user terminal;   storing, at the user terminal, at least a portion of the script for each transactional mode required to interface between the physical resources required for the transactional mode and the service provider;   storing the remainder of script required to interface between the physical resources required for the transactional mode and the service provider at a central office processor;   selecting the associated stored portion of the script at the user terminal for the selected transactional mode;   running the selected associated stored portion of the script at the user terminal and running the selected associated remainder portion of the script at the central office processor;   interfacing the required physical resources at the user terminal with the service provider associated with the selected transactional mode to complete the selected service provider transaction; and   updating a user record to include the selected transaction in a user database at the central office processor independent of the service provider.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10  further comprising initiating a user identity session at the user terminal, receiving authentication information from the user and transmitting the authentication information to the central office processor for authentication of the user identity. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11  wherein the authentication information received from the user includes a personal identification number and a biometric parameter. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11  wherein a user conducts multiple service provider transactions in a single user identity session using multiple service provider services provided by multiple service providers. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 10  further comprising transmitting, from the central office processor, a request for a script corresponding to the selected transaction, receiving the script from the service provider and transmitting at least a portion of the script to the user terminal for execution. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 10  further comprising monitoring, with the operating system, the physical system resources available at the user terminal and disabling transactions at the user terminal requiring unavailable physical resources. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 10  further comprising:
 transmitting confirmation of the selected transaction from the user terminal to the central office processor; and 
 transmitting confirmation of the selected transaction from the central office processor to the service provider. 
 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 10  further comprising selectively enabling and disabling service provider transactions at a user terminal, independent of other user terminals, based upon selected predetermined criteria unique to the user terminal. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 10  further comprising selectively enabling and disabling service provider transactions at a user terminal, independent of other user terminals, based upon the value of transactions conducted by users utilizing the user terminal over a predetermined time period. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 12  further comprising selectively enabling and disabling service provider transactions at a user terminal, independent of other user terminals, based upon the number of transactions conducted by users utilizing the user terminal over a predetermined time period. 
     
     
         20 . A method for providing predetermined external services provided by service providers to a user whereby a user may complete a service provider transaction, comprising:
 selecting a transactional mode of operation at a user terminal operable to function in multiple transactional modes, each associated with a service provider and a corresponding service provider transaction;   providing a plurality of physical resources at the user terminal necessary to operate the terminal in each of the transactional modes;   configuring the user terminal to interface with at least the available physical resources necessary to operate the terminal in the selected transactional mode;   each transactional mode having associated therewith a unique transaction specific sequence of functional steps to interface between the necessary physical resources for the associated transactional mode and the service provider to complete a selected service provider transaction at the user terminal;   storing, at the user terminal, at least an associated portion of the unique transaction specific sequence of functional steps to interface between the necessary physical resources for the associated transactional mode and the service provider for each transactional mode;   storing the remainder of the associated unique transaction specific sequence of functional steps to interface between the necessary physical resources for the associated transactional mode and the service provider at a central office processor;   selecting the associated stored portion of the unique transaction specific sequence of functional steps to interface between the necessary physical resources for the associated transactional mode and the service provider;   executing the selected associated stored portion of the unique transaction specific sequence of functional steps to interface between the necessary physical resources for the associated transactional mode and the service provider at the user terminal and executing the selected associated remainder portion of the unique transaction specific sequence of functional steps at the central office processor to complete the selected service provider transaction.