Electronic Device Readable by Magnetic Card Readers

Abstract

An electronic card uses a magnetic stripe communication device in which either a horizontal magnetic field generator or a vertical magnetic field generator is selectively activated on a transaction specific basis as determined by the electronic card to transmit data to a magnetic reader to emulate a magnetic stripe

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 : An apparatus, comprising:
 a magnetic stripe communication device carried by an electronic device, said magnetic stripe communication comprising:
 a horizontal magnetic field generator; 
 a vertical magnetic field generator; and 
   means for selective activation of either the horizontal magnetic field generator or the vertical magnetic field generator to transmit data to a magnetic reader to emulate a magnetic stripe card function depending upon a characteristic of the magnetic reader as detected by sensing system.   
     
     
         2 : The apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a computer carried by the electronic device;   a computer-readable memory accessible by the computer; and   a transmission algorithm residing in the computer-readable medium;   wherein said transmission algorithm controls the rate of transmission of data by the magnetic stripe communication device to the magnetic reader.   
     
     
         3 : The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the means for selective activation is comprised of the transmission algorithm. 
     
     
         4 : The apparatus of  claim 2  wherein the computer-readable memory is contained in the computer. 
     
     
         5 : The apparatus of  claim 2  wherein the computer-readable memory is contained apart from the computer. 
     
     
         6 : The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the horizontal magnetic field generator is used when the magnetic reader uses a horizontal field read head and the vertical magnetic field generator is used when the magnetic reader uses a vertical field read head. 
     
     
         7 : The apparatus of  claim 6  wherein the horizontal field read head is comprised of a c-core ferromagnetic read head and the vertical field read head is comprised of a vertically wound read head. 
     
     
         8 : A method, comprising:
 detecting whether a magnetic reader used during a card transaction between an electronic device and a magnetic reader uses a horizontal field read head or a vertical field read head; and   emulating a magnetic stripe card function by either using a horizontal magnetic field generator if the horizontal field read is detected or by using a vertical magnetic field generator if the vertical field read head is detected.   
     
     
         9 : The method of  claim 8  wherein the horizontal magnetic field generator is used when the magnetic reader uses a read head with a c-core ferromagnetic read head and the vertical magnetic field generator is used when the magnetic reader uses a vertically wound read head. 
     
     
         10 : An apparatus, comprising:
 a magnetic stripe communication device carried by an electronic device, said magnetic stripe communication comprising:
 a horizontal magnetic field generator; 
 a vertical magnetic field generator; 
   a non-secure processor carried by the electronic device for controlling the magnetic stripe communication device; and   at least one sensor for detecting a characteristic of a magnetic reader;   wherein the non-secure processor activates either the horizontal magnetic field generator or the vertical magnetic field generator to transmit data to the magnetic reader to emulate a magnetic stripe card function depending upon the characteristic of the magnetic reader detected by the at least one sensor.   
     
     
         11 : The apparatus of  claim 10  wherein the horizontal magnetic field generator is used when the magnetic reader uses a horizontal field read head and the vertical magnetic field generator is used when the magnetic reader uses a vertical field read head.