Background Art Nowadays, along with rapid progress of computer and communication technology, the Internet, which is the limitless and open sea of information, has been propagated to all worKplaces and even homes. And with Internet bookseller companies like Amazon. com heading the way, the Internet is used for business transactions and bill payment. Also, devices like mobile phones and PDA's become more and more commonplace and are used in many areas.

Meanwhile, though vending machines for cigarettes, soft

drinks, etc., have become commonplace because they do not require a person to be present at a place of sale, it is inconvenient that the machines take cash only but do not allow credit transactions.

Besides, some machines only take coins, but do not take bills, and this is even more inconvenient, requiring customers to carry coins with themselves. If one takes this into account and purchases a machine that takes both coins and bills, the price of it increases significantly. Further, visiting the machines and collecting coins that are sitting in the machines is another inconvenience, and finally, there is still another problem in that it is very difficult to know the total stock of goods in the machine in the remote place on the spot.

One method of making payment by credit cards in a vending machine is disclosed in Korean Patent Laid-open Publication No.

2001-7851, which comprises a card reader and a wired/wireless communication device for using credit cards for transaction in the vending machine, and wired/wireless communication networks to enable sending/receiving of data.

However, the above method of making payment using credit cards has been little commercialized because the commission on

each transaction is too high for products of very low value as goods to be dealt in by the vending machines.

Disclosure of Invention Accordingly, the present invention is made in order to solve the above problems, and one object of the present invention is to provide a method of making payment using a mobile communication company as an authentication agency, in which payment between purchasers who possess their mobile phones and vending machines is automatically made by using a mobile communication company, which the purchasers is affiliated with, as authentication agency.

To accomplish the object of this invention, a method of making payment using a mobile communication company as an authentication agency is provided in accordance with one embodiment of the invention, which is executed in a system wherein a goods/service provider having a mobile communication means, a mobile communication device of a purchaser and a mobile communication company are connected to each other via a wireless communication network, and a transactions server for settlement, which accounts for the goods/service provider and the purchaser

are established in, and the mobile communication company are connected to each other via a wired communication network, said method being characterized by comprising the steps of: (a) transmitting a mobile telephone number of the purchaser and information on a goods/service price which the purchaser selects to the mobile communication company and requesting a purchaser authentication ; (b) calling the mobile telephone number in the mobile communication company and having the purchaser input his own password; (c) transmitting information on approval of the purchaser authentication and the information on a goods/service price to the transaction server from the mobile communication company when the password inputted in the step (b) and a pre-registered password are coincided; and (d) transferring the goods/service price from the purchaser's account to the account of the goods/service provider by the transaction server.

In the above-mentioned construction, said goods/service provider is preferably a vending machine.

Brief Description of Drawings Fig. 1 is a block diagram for a network configuration of a system of making payment using a mobile communication company as

an authentication agency according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a flowchart for explaining a method of making payment using a mobile communication company as an authentication agency according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Best Mode for Carrying out the Invention Now, a method of making payment using a mobile communication company as an authentication agency according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a block diagram for a network configuration of a system of making payment using a mobile communication company as an authentication agency according to one embodiment of the present invention. In accordance with the network configuration of a system of making payment using a mobile communication company as an authentication agency as illustrated in Fig. 1, a transaction server (400) for settlement of a goods/service price and an exchange server (220) of the mobile communication company (200) are connected to each other via the Internet or an exclusive line, and said transaction server (400) may also be connected to a bank

server (500) via the Internet or the exclusive line. Furthermore, an exchange department (210) of the mobile communication company (200), a vending machine (100) and a mobile communication device (300) are connected to each other via a wireless communication network.

To explain such a construction more specifically, the mobile communication company (200) comprises the exchange department (210) for executing a wireless communication between the vending machine (100) and the mobile communication device (300), an exchange server (220) for executing a data communication with the transaction server (400) via the Internet, and databases (230,232) for storing telephone numbers and passwords of subscribers.

The vending machine (100) may have a mobile communication means (130) for a wireless communication in addition to the current configuration. That is, the vending machine (100) comprises as elements of the conventional vending machine, a function selector means (110) for selecting one of several functions of the vending machine (100) such as a selection of goods for purchase, a product output means (120) for outputting

the selected goods and a central control means (140) for controlling the above means. And, the vending machine (100) further comprises the mobile communication means (130), which under collaboration with the central control means (140), performs a wireless communication with the exchange department (210) of the mobile communication company (200).

The mobile communication means (130) comprises a telephone controller (131) for controlling overall operations of the mobile communication means (130), a wireless transmitter (133) for executing the wireless communication with the exchange department (210), a key input means (132) for inputting several functions included in the mobile communication means (130) such as an input of the telephone number, etc., an LCD means (134) for indicating an acting state of the mobile communication means (130) and a transmission controller (135) for communicating internally with the central control means (140).

The transaction server (400) is linked to a member DB (410) <BR> <BR> for storing information about mobile telephone numbers, etc. , of the purchasers and the mobile communication means of the vending machines who are members, and an account DB (412) for storing information relating to accounts of the members.

A method of making payment using a mobile communication company as an authentication agency in accordance with the present invention is described hereinafter.

Fig. 2 is a flowchart for explaining a method of making payment using a mobile communication company as an authentication agency according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which a solid lines represent a wired communication, dotted lines represent a wireless communication, and the steps in the upper part in the flowchart precede the steps in the relatively lower part. In the method of making payment using a mobile communication company as an authentication agency according to one embodiment of the present invention as shown in Fig. 2, the purchaser and the vending machine (100) have to subscribe for, and have been assigned their own individual telephone numbers through, the mobile communication company (200) in advance, and also, have to register a password or an authorization code for execution of functions in the mobile communication company (200). Further, the purchaser and the vending machine (100) have to affiliate with, and establish their own accounts in, the transaction server (400) in advance.

At this state, the vending machine (100) executes step S10, in

which, when the purchaser selects a credit transaction function using the mobile communication device (300) and desired goods, the vending machine (100) calculates a price of the goods, and stores a mobile telephone number of the purchaser inputted via a key input means (132) of the mobile communication means (130). Then, the vending machine (100) executes step S20 of transmitting the mobile telephone number of the purchaser and his own, and information on the goods price to the exchange department (210) of the mobile communication company (200), for example by means of a <BR> <BR> short message service (SMS), etc. , via a wireless communication, and then requesting a purchaser authentication.

Subsequently, the exchange department (210) executes step S30 of calling the mobile telephone number transmitted from the vending machine (100) and instructing the purchaser to input his own password by means of ARS, SMS, etc. And, in response to such instructions, the purchaser inputs a password using his own mobile communication device (300), which is then transmitted to the exchange department (210) via the wireless communication (step S40).

Next, the mobile communication company (200) refers to the

phone number DB (230) and the password DB (232), and determines whether the password inputted by the purchaser in step S30 and a pre-registered password of the subscriber having the mobile telephone number are coincided. If they are coincided, the mobile communication company (200) executes step S50 of transmitting information on result of the purchaser authentication and the information on the goods price to the transaction server together with the telephone numbers of the purchaser and the vending machine (100).

In step S60, the transaction server (400) confirms whether both parties are members using the transmitted mobile telephone numbers of the purchaser and the vending machine (100) from the mobile communication company (200) and whether reserved money in the account of the purchaser who is a member remains sufficiently to pay for the goods, that is, the balance is sufficient. At this time, where the balance is sufficient, the transaction server (400) transfers the goods price from the purchaser's account to the account of the owner of the vending machine (100) automatically, and then executes step S70 of transmitting the processing details to the exchange server (220) of the mobile

communication company (200).

In step S80, the mobile communication company (200) transmits instructions of outputting the goods to the vending machine (100) by means of the exchange department (210), and the mobile communication means (130) of the vending machine (100) to have received such instructions transfers the instructions to the central control means (140) via the transmission controller (135), and thus the central control means (140) controls the product output means (120), so as to output the goods (step S90).

In the above-described construction, the mobile communication company (200) refuses the audentication when the password inputted by the purchaser and the pre-registered password of the subscriber are not coincided in step S30, and the refused fact is reported to the mobile communication device (300) of the purchaser by means of ARS, SMS, etc. In the vending machine (100), the program ends after instructing a refusal against an output of the goods. And, in result of an inquiry of the transmitted information at step S50, in case that the owner of the vending machine (100) or the purchaser is not a member of the transaction server (400), or the balance is not sufficient to pay for the

goods although they are members, the transaction server (400) transmits such a fact to the mobile communication company (200), the mobile communication company (200) reporting the fact to the mobile communication device (300) of the purchaser using ARS, SMS, etc. In the vending machine (100), the program ends after instructing a refusal against an output of the goods.

Meanwhile, differently from the embodiment shown in Fig. 2, an authentication can also be executed by the vending machine (100) and the mobile communication company (200) only without intervening the mobile communication device (300) of the purchaser. In this case, the vending machine (100) receives information on selection of goods, the mobile telephone number and the password to be inputted by the purchaser instead of step S10, and then the vending machine (100) transmits mobile telephone numbers of his own and the purchaser and the inputted password of the purchaser, and information on the goods price to the mobile communication company (200), and requests a purchaser authentication, instead of the above-mentioned step S20. Next, the mobile communication company (200) refers to the phone number DB (230) and the password DB (232), and determines whether the

inputted password and a pre-registered password of the subscriber having the mobile telephone number are coincided. According to the determination, other steps below step S50 are executed. Therefore, step S30 and step S40 are omitted in this embodiment.

Furthermore, it is also possible to allow the vending machine (100) to carry out the function of the mobile communication device (300) as a modified embodiment of Fig. 2.

That is, instead of step S30 in Fig. 2, the mobile communication company (200) calls the vending machine (100) instead of the mobile communication device (300) of the purchaser and instructs the purchaser to input his password in the vending machine (100).

If the purchaser inputs his password via the key input means (132) of the vending machine (100) according to such instructions, the inputted password can also be transmitted to the mobile communication company (200) from the vending machine (100).

The invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, but rather various changes or modifications thereof are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention.

For example, the description is explained for, but not limited to, the vending machine as the goods/service provider, which can also

be applied to a cash drawer, etc. That is, the conventional cash <BR> <BR> drawer, etc. , may comprise a mobile communication means and determine whether to output cashes according to a result of executing an authentication of a demander himself of a service by the above-mentioned method. Besides, the present invention can also be applied to a cash register operated by a person in a goods store, a ticket sale store, etc. Also, the mobile telephone number of the purchaser can be inputted and stored to the vending machine (100) by means of a bar code scan means, an IR communication means, an RF communication means, etc., instead of the key input means (132).

According to the configuration and acting of the method of making payment using a mobile communication company as an authentication agency in accordance with the embodiments of the present invention described above, a payment method will be diversifed by executing an authentication using mobile communication devices carried with most modern people, thereby having an effect of increasing security and promotion of transactions.