- |SS|FC|PAN|Name|FS|Additional Data|ES|LRC
  - with each being defined as:
  - SS=Start Sentinel “%” (1 character)
  - FC=Format Code
  - PAN=Primary Acct. Number (maximum of19 digits in accordance ISO 7812).
  - FS=Field Separator “̂”
  - Name=26 alphanumeric characters max.
  - Additional Data=Expiration Date, offset, encrypted PIN, userdefinable portion 166 with the subaccount identifier (SAI), etc.
  - ES=End Sentinel “?”
  - LRC=Longitudinal Redundancy Check

TheTrack2 Layout slightly differs but is as follows: p1 |SS|PAN|FS|Additional Data|ES|LRC|

- - SS=Start Sentinel “;”
  - PAN=Primary Acct. Number (maximum of 19 digits)
  - FS=Field Separator “=”
  - Additional Data=Expiration Date, offset, encrypted PIN, userdefinable portion 166 with the subaccount identifier (SAI), etc.
  - ES=End Sentinel “?”
  - LRC=Longitudinal Redundancy Check

TheTrack 3 Layout is similar to the layouts of

Tracks

1 and 2 and is almost never used. Thetracks170 for themagnetic strip162 are shown in more detail inFIGS. 3A and 3B. As shown inFIG. 3B, the userdefinable portion166 includes user definable portions of

tracks

170A,170B, and170C, which are denoted astracks170A′,170B′, and170C′.FIG. 3B also illustrates that the userdefinable portion166 receives an input from a userdefinable control module174 for providing the subaccount indicator SAI to the user definable portions astracks170A′,170B′, and170C′. Of course, as will be explained in greater detail below, the userdefinable tracks170A′,170B′, and170C′ can also include the End Sentinel and the LRC in some embodiments.

For the particular system described herein, an explanation will be described in more detail with regard toTrack 2 formatting.

As described, Track 2 (ABA) uses up to 40 binary coded digits 5-bit (including parity) characters (numeric) including for the SS, ES and LRC.

The primary account number PAN is defined by ISO 7812 and consists of a first 6 digits that are used as the Issuer Identification Number. This can include a Major Industry Identifier (MII) of up to 2 digits, which can include: Institutions other than card issuers; Airlines; Travel and entertainment; Banking/financial; Financial institutions not registered by ISO; Merchandising and banking; Petroleum; Telecommunications; and Telecommunications administrations and private operating agencies.

The Issuer Identifier Number (IIN) is the next 3 to 5 digits identify the issuer. In some cases the first digit indicates the length of the IIN or the responsibility of its assignment outside of ISO. If MII=9 then the first 3 digits are the country code (CC). The Individual Account Identification (IAI) is up to 12 digits in length. This number is assigned by the card issuing institution. A one digit Check Digit (CD) follows and is calculated using a Luhn formula for computing modulus 10 “double-add-double” check digit as is know to those skilled in the art to complete the primary account number PAN and to ensure accuracy of the number. Different companies use different codes. For example, one major credit card company has a variable number up to16 digits while another major credit card company uses 13 or 16 digits including the check digit (CD).

The next field in the Field Separator (FS) that is 1 character in length. The next field is the country code (CC) which is 3 digits in length and is defined in ISO 3166. The next field is the Expiration Date (ED) in the 4 digit format: YYMM. Next, optional digits can include a Service Code (SC) of 3 digits. The first digit of the SC from 0 to 9 is used for interchange and technology for financial transactions including bilateral agreements with various countries.

The second digit of the SC is used for authorization processing with

digits

1, 3, 5-9 being reserved for future use and 0 being for transactions that are authorized following the normal rules; 2 being for transactions are authorized by issuer and should be online, and 4 being for transactions are authorized by issuer and should be online, except under bilateral agreement.

The third digit of the SC is for the range of services and PIN requirements, including: No restrictions but a PIN is required; No restrictions; Goods and services only (no cash); ATM only and PIN required; Cash only; Goods and services only (no cash) and PIN required; No restrictions and require PIN when feasible; and Goods and services only (no cash) and require PIN when feasible. If this field in not used a Field Separator FS is used.

Next, a PIN Verification Value (PVV) field of 5 digits is used by some financial institutions. Finally, the remaining characters onTrack 2 are used for Discretionary Data that includes the Additional Data such as theExpiration Date160, an encrypted PIN, the userdefinable portion166 that includes the subaccount identifier (SAI). Finally, the coding of thetrack170 ofmagnetic strip162 ends with a 1 character End Sentinel (ES) and a 1 character Longitude Redundancy Check (LRC). As the LRC addresses the entire coding of thetrack170 that includes both thepredefined portion164 that is established by the card issuer and the userdefinable portion166 that is encoded by the user with each use of thecard110 for defining the particular subaccount SA via a subaccount identifier SAI to be used for the particular transaction, the userdefinable portion166 can include both the End Sentinel and the recalculated LRC that is required for processing and compliance with the ISO standards for the track formatting.

Referring now toFIGS. 4A and 4B, afinancial card110 suitable for use with the present disclosure systems and methods, can include acard user interface126 that is comprised ofblister buttons174 positioned on one of thesides152 or154 (practically will be the front side152) of thebody150 of thecard110. Eachblister button174 can be formed on a surface and within thecard110 and connected and include an electronic interface (not shown) to the userdefinable controller173 for providing the selection of a particular blister button input from the user to specify the particular subaccount identifier to the userdefinable portion166. Thecard user interface126 receives the user selection when the user presses one of theblister buttons174 at the time of purchase and prior to swiping thecard110 with itmagnetic strip162 in thecard reader122 of thetransaction processing system104. Thecontroller173 receives the user input from the selected blister button input, and creates the internal electronic circuitry, composes the magnetic coding on the userdefinable portion166 to include the information ontracks170A′,170B′ and170C′ that includes the user selected subaccount identifier SAI. When the user pushes anotherblister button174 of thecard user interface126, thecontroller173 composes new encoding for the information ontracks170 of the userdefinable portion166 for the next payment transaction PT.

As shown inFIG. 4B, theblister buttons174 can include indicia176 on thecard110 that provides a textual description of the expenditure category there by enabling the user to select the subaccount SA within having to remember the subaccount identifier SAI at the time of the transaction. All the user need to do is to push theblister button174 with the describing indicia176 for the particular purchase. Thecontroller173 will handle the composing of the user definable portion as described above.

FIGS. 5A,5BG, and5C illustrate additional embodiments of acard110 havingvarious user interfaces126 andvarious controllers173 for composing the userdefinable portion166 of themagnetic strip162 for use with the present disclosure.

As shown ininternal portions178 of thecard110,FIGS. 5A,5B, and5C shows the interworkings of thecard user interface126 that include one or morerotatable wheels180 that rotate on apivot182 embedded within thebody150 of thecard110. Themagnetic strip162 include a mechanicallyadjustable portion184 associated with the userdefinable portion166, and in this example, includes a variety of predefined user selectedportions186 each of which is pre-coded with a userdefinable portion166 corresponding to one of the subaccount identifier SAI as selected by the user by rotation of thewheels180. One of thewheels180 can be auser input wheel180A that is thecard user interface126 and that is rotatable by the user to select one of the subaccount indicators SAIs. By so operating theuser input wheel180A, the corresponding predefined user selectedportion186 is moved into the position of the userdefinable portion166 of themagnetic strip162 so that theappropriate tracks170A′,170B′, and170C′, are positioned for reading of the user selected subaccount identifier SAI.FIG. 5B illustrates embodiments wherein there aremultiple wheels180, each being gears and coupled together for movement of thepredefined portions164 of themagnetic strip162.

FIG. 5C illustrates another embodiment. As shown, thewheel180 has spaced apartmagnetic sections190 each having anend191 containing a different predefined userdefinable portion186 having the userdefinable tracks170A′,170B′, and170C′, that can be positioned with themagnetic strip162 and aligned withpredefined portion164 and its

predefined tracks

170A,170B, and170C, for providing the userdefinable portion166 with the user selected subaccount identifier SAI. Each spaced apartmagnetic section190 can be, for example, a paddle having themagnetic section190 positioned on thefree end191. Themagnetic section190 includes the userdefinable portion166 each having one of the subaccount indicators SAIs and possibly can also include any necessary sentinel character SC and the required longitude redundancy check LRC character.

Thebody150 of thecard110 can include thewheel180 that has anaperture192 that is dimensioned for receiving a key (not shown) or other mechanism for enabling the user to rotate thewheel180, such as with a finger or finger nail of the user. While not shown, thewheel180 can be restricted in various manners from arbitrarily moving or rotating without user input, such as known to those skilled in the art. Thewheel180 can be selectively held in place after positioning by the user either by friction or possibly a selective or limited locking portion or stop mechanism that can include a ratchet or similar device. In this manner, thewheel180 is held in place until the user intentionally makes a change to the subaccount to be used for the next transaction. Additionally, each spaced apartmagnetic section190 can includeindicia194 that can be visible to the user for aiding in selection of the subaccount SA for the particular payment transaction PT.

As shown inFIG. 6, adisplay window196 can be positioned on thefront152 of thecard110 proximate to one of thewheels180 such thatindicia194 on one of thewheels180 is visible to the user of thecard110 at the time of each use. Theindicia194 can be the subaccount indicator SAI or can be a textual description or a symbol or drawing indicating the subject matter of the subaccount. This can aid the user in selecting the subaccount SA at the time of use of thecard110 and therefore in managing their personal financials.

In other embodiments while not shown in the figures, thefinancial card110 as described herein is a smart card. In such embodiments, thecard reader122 is configured to receive from thesmart card110 the primary account number PAN and the user selected subaccount indicator SAI. In one such exemplary smart card embodiment, afinancial transaction card110 includes abody150 and an integrated microprocessor (not shown but known to those skilled in the art) and memory including a primary account number PAN having a plurality of subaccounts SAs, each subaccount SA having a different subaccount indicator SAI. Auser interface124 is configured to receive a user selection of one of the subaccount indicators SAIs and providing the user selected subaccount indicator SAI to the integrated microprocessor. An output interface (not shown but know to those skilled in the art) is configured to provide the primary account number PAN and the user selected subaccount indicator SAI to thetransaction processing system104 that is configured for processing smart cards for user transactions.

It should also be understood that while the exemplary embodiments as described herein relate to prefunded primary account PA and subaccounts SAs, the systems and methods hereof can also be suitable for use with credit card payment andprocessing systems104. The primary difference in such embodiments is that there is not necessarily a check on the amount of prefunded amounts in a subaccount. However, as described herein, the user can establish subaccounts limits within his primary credit card account or credit card limit, and in such a manner, can personally manage his credit and/or expenditures. This can also be utilized to aid in the user allocating and managing his credit expenditures at least with regard to subdividing his monthly statements into subtotals or allocations on his monthly billing statements.

The transaction amount for a purchase by the user is determined at the point of sale that can include an on-linetransaction processing system108 or third party agent who enters the payment transaction PT information. The on-linetransaction processing system108 includes acommunication interface132 that can be a telephone line or a web portal or webpage. The user provide the primary account PA, and the subaccount indicator SAI to complete the payment transaction PT and the payment of the transaction amount TA from the user selected subaccount SA. As described above, the user can provide the subaccount indicator SAI either verbally, or via thecommunication interface132 such as an entry into a webpage. Of course other user information can also be provided such as may be required for the particular application. The on-line processing system108 processes the payment transaction PT in a similar manner as described above, including the provision of the subaccount identifier SAI as provided by the user for use with the particular payment transaction PT.

Thetransaction processing system104 is configured to receive a personal identification number having at least one variable character selected by the user from among a plurality of available variable characters each of which is associated with a different subaccount. The financial account management system is configured to receive the personal identification number (PIN) from thetransaction processing system104 to verify the payment of the transaction amount from the primary account PA and from the subaccount responsive to the received personal identification number.

The herein thetransaction processing system104 is an online internet-based payment transaction system having a hosted user interface configured for prompting the user to input both the primary account PA and the particular subaccount for payment of the transaction amount.

Thetransaction processing system104 is configured to receive a personal identification number at the time of the payment transaction PT, the personal identification number having two portions, a fixed predefined portion and a user definable portion, the user definable portion being user defined at the time of the transaction by specifying one of the available subaccount indicators SAIs.

Thetransaction processing system104 is configured to receive the subaccount indicator SAI, an associated end sentinel character, and an associated longitude redundancy check (LRC) character.

As described, the various userfinancial cards110 for personal financial management can include using a debit card. To accomplish this, the use would open a debit card primary account PA having a primary account number PAN with a financial institution. The financial institution would then issue to the use. The financial institution would issue a suitablefinancial card110 to the user. At the same time, the user could establish a plurality of subaccounts SAs within the primary account PA with each being uniquely identified with a separate subaccount indicator SAI. The client and/or financial institution would then provide for a prefunding of each of the subaccounts SAs and maintain such prefunding on a monthly or bimonthly pre-funded amount. The method also includes selecting one of the subaccount indicators SAIs for use as payment of a transaction amount TA. A payment of a transaction amount TA is initiated from the primary account PA using thedebit card110 along with the user selected subaccount indicator SAI.

Referring toFIG. 7, an operating environment for an illustrated embodiment of thetransaction processing system104 and/or the financialaccount management system102 can include, in one embodiment, acomputer system700 with acomputer702 that comprises at least one high speed processing unit (CPU)704, in conjunction with amemory system706 interconnected with at least onebus structure708, aninput device710, and anoutput device712. These elements can be interconnected by at least onebus structure712.

The illustratedCPU704 is of familiar design and includes an arithmetic logic unit (ALU)714 for performing computations, a collection ofregisters714 for temporary storage of data and instructions, and acontrol unit716 for controlling operation of thesystem700. Any of a variety of processors, including at least those from Digital Equipment, Sun, MIPS, Motorola, NEC, Intel, Cyrix, AMD, HP, and Nexgen, are equally preferred for the CPU X. The illustrated exemplary embodiment operates on an operating system designed to be portable to any of these processing platforms.

Thememory system706 generally includes high-speedmain memory720 in the form of a medium such as random access memory (RAM) and read only memory (ROM) semiconductor devices, andsecondary storage722 in the form of long term storage mediums such as floppy disks, hard disks, tape, CD-ROM, flash memory, etc. and other devices that store data using electrical, magnetic, optical or other recording media. Themain memory720 also can include video display memory for displaying images through a display device. Those skilled in the art will recognize that thememory system706 can comprise a variety of alternative components having a variety of storage capacities.

Theinput device710 andoutput device712 are also familiar. Theinput device710 can comprise a keyboard, a mouse, a physical transducer (e.g. a microphone), etc. and is interconnected to thecomputer702 via aninput interface724. Theoutput device712 can comprise a display, a printer, a transducer (e.g. a speaker), etc, and be interconnected to thecomputer702 via anoutput interface726. Some devices, such as a network adapter or a modem, can be used as input and/or output devices.

As is familiar to those skilled in the art, thecomputer system700 further includes an operating system and at least one application program. The operating system is the set of software which controls the computer system's operation and the allocation of resources. The application program is the set of software that performs a task desired by the user, using computer resources made available through the operating system. Both are resident in the illustratedmemory system706.

In accordance with the practices of persons skilled in the art of computer programming, the present disclosure is described below with reference to symbolic representations of operations that are performed by thecomputer system700. Such operations are sometimes referred to as being computer-executed. It will be appreciated that the operations which are symbolically represented include the manipulation by theCPU704 of electrical signals representing data bits and the maintenance of data bits at memory locations in thememory system706, as well as other processing of signals. The memory locations where data bits are maintained are physical locations that have particular electrical, magnetic, or optical properties corresponding to the data bits. The system or components thereof as described herein can be implemented in a program or programs, comprising a series of instructions stored on a computer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium can be any of the devices, or a combination of the devices, described above in connection with thememory system706.

When describing elements or features and/or embodiments thereof, the articles “a”, “an”, “the”, and “said” are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements or features. The terms “comprising”, “including”, and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements or features beyond those specifically described.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that various changes can be made to the exemplary embodiments and implementations described above without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings should be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is further to be understood that the processes or steps described herein are not to be construed as necessarily requiring their performance in the particular order discussed or illustrated. It is also to be understood that additional or alternative processes or steps may be employed.