Today the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office published a patent application from Apple that relates to the management of movement states of an electronic device and, more particularly, to the management of movement states of an electronic device using data from a pass application, such as Apple Pay within Apple's Passbook. Apple makes the use of Passbook and Apple Pay look so easy, and it is. Yet behind this simplicity is a very complex set of technologies to ensure that Apple's Passbook is transmitting and receiving the right information, especially for an app as important as Apple Pay.

Apple Invents a System to Manage Movement States of an iDevice

Apple's patent application discusses Touch ID and NFC that relate to Apple Pay in context to Passbook applications. In Apple's patent FIG. 3 noted below we're able to see a schematic view of a movement management system #301 of electronic device such as an iPhone.

In addition to leveraging motion sensor data that may be provided by motion-sensing component 122, the movement management system #301 may leverage various other types of data accessible to an iDevice like an iPhone (device #100) in order to determine the current movement state of the device such as data provided by a pass application #103a of the iPhone – such as Passbook.

Movement module 340 may also be configured to leverage various other types of data accessible to an iDevice in addition to the motion sensor data #302, in order to determine the current movement state of an iDevice. As shown, movement module #340 may also be configured to receive pass data #306 from Passbook (pass application 103a).

Passbook includes many suitable applications such as passes (e.g., transportation boarding passes, event tickets, coupons, store cards, mobile payment cards, etc.). Pass application 103a may act as a digital wallet (e.g., in conjunction with NFC component 120) for enabling an iDevice to present information indicative of a pass to a merchant (e.g., via any suitable output component or antenna #116 or communications component #106, etc.), which may enable a merchant to redeem the pass, and/or which may enable an iDevice to update the pass with information from the merchant.

Passbook for Movie Example: For example, Passbook may include a movie ticket pass, which may enable an iDevice to electronically access a user's movie ticket and provide information to a movie theater merchant or administrator indicative of that movie ticket via an iDevice (e.g., as a barcode via display output component 112a), where the merchant may redeem the ticket and may provide specific information to Passbook indicative of the redemption. For example, when the movie ticket is redeemed via Passbook, the merchant may communicate information to Passbook that may update the appropriate movie ticket pass of Passbook with any suitable data indicative of the redemption, such as the time and place of the redemption, the currently scheduled start time of the movie, the currently scheduled end time of the movie, the specific theater number for the movie, and the like. Such a movie ticket pass of Passbook may also include various other types of data, such as the rating of the movie, the length of the movie, the stars of the movie, and the like.

Passbook for Apple Pay: As another example, Passbook may include a credit card pass, which may enable an iDevice to electronically access a user's credit card credential (e.g., in conjunction with NFC component #120) and provide payment information indicative of that credit card credential to a product merchant via device 100 (e.g., in conjunction with an NFC component as an NFC communication to a remote merchant terminal, such as via antenna #116), where the merchant may accept the payment and may provide specific information to pass application 103a indicative of the accepted payment.

For example, when the payment is accepted by the merchant via Passbook, the merchant may communicate information to Passbook that may update the appropriate credit card pass of Passbook with any suitable data indicative of the payment, such as the time and place of the payment, the amount of the payment, and the like.

Pass data #306 may be any suitable information indicative of a pass that has been or may be redeemed, updated, and/or invalidated via Passbook and the movement module may be configured to utilize such pass data independently or in combination with any received motion sensor data and/or any other suitable data accessible by an iDevice for determining a movement state of device. Such pass data may include any suitable information descriptive of any suitable characteristic of any suitable pass available to Passbook regardless of whether or not the pass has been redeemed, invalidated, updated, or otherwise utilized at the current moment in time that pass data was generated or at any other specific moment in time.

For example, such pass data may be indicative of a location with which the pass may be used (e.g., the name and location of a specific movie theater with which a movie ticket pass must be used), a date by which the pass must be used (e.g., a departure time of an airline ticket pass), a time at which the pass was redeemed, and the like.

As a consumer learning of Apple Pay looked simple. Now we're able to see that there's a lot of technology behind the simple system that involves a movement management system. For those who want to dive into this invention a little deeper could do so by reviewing patent application 20150065107 here.

Patent Credits

Apple credits Swapnil Dave, Loan Uilecan and Varun Vora as the inventors of this patent application which was originally filed in Q3 2013.

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