Systems and methods for use in acquiring credentials from a portable user device in unlocking door lock systems

Abstract

Some embodiments comprises methods of providing a guest with security credentials to gain access to a guest room, the methods comprise: identifying a user; identifying a guest room of multiple guests rooms at a property and with which the user is intended to occupy; acquiring a first security credential intended to be validated by a door lock system of a door to the identified guest room; and causing the first security credentials to be communicated, over a distributed network, to a portable consumer electronic user device associated with the user to be stored on the user device such that the user device is configured to wirelessly communicate the first security credential to the door lock system to gain access to the guest room.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of providing a guest with security credentials to gain access to a guest room, the method comprising:
 identifying a user;   identifying a guest room of multiple guests rooms at a property and with which the user is intended to occupy;   causing a first security credential intended to be validated by a door lock system of a door to the identified guest room to be generated;   confirming that the user authorized receiving security credentials on a remote a portable consumer electronic user device associated with the user through a selection of an authorization option displayed through the user device;   causing a first notification to be communicated to the user device associated with the user that the first security credential is available to be retrieved and causing the user device to present, as controlled in accordance with a mobile application, a first option to the user in response to the first notification of the availability of the first security credential;   receiving a retrieval request from the user device based on an activation of the first option presented to the user through the user device in response to the first notification of the availability of the first security credential;   causing, in response to receiving the retrieval request, the first security credential to be communicated over a distributed network to the user device associated with the user to be stored on the user device such that the user device is configured to wirelessly communicate the first security credential to the door lock system to gain access to the guest room.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 identifying the user device; and   confirming the user device is associated with the user.   
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 authenticating the user device as being associated with the user prior to the causing the first security credential to be communicated to the user device.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the acquiring the first security credential comprises communicating, over the distributed network to a security credential service, a request for one or more security credentials;
 identifying, to the security credentials service, the door lock system associated with the identified guest room; and   receiving the first security credential from the security credentials service.   
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the causing the first security credential to be communicated to the user device comprises communicating, over the distributed network, the first security credential to a credential distribution service that is configured to distribute the first security credential to the user device and causing the credential distribution service to communicate the first security credential in response to the credential distribution service receiving the retrieval request. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , further comprising:
 confirming that the guest room is available;   wherein the causing the first security credential to be communicated comprises communicating the first security credential in response to confirming the guest room is available; and   preventing the first security credential from being communicated at least to the user device when the guest room is not available.   
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 receiving, from the user device and through the mobile application implemented on the user device configured to facilitate an exchange of relevant information with the user device and display a user interface, a request to perform a check-in procedure for the guest room communicated in response to a selection of a check-in option made available through the user interface;   wherein the acquiring the first security credential comprising the first security credential in response to the request to initiate the check-in procedure and as part of the check-in procedure.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 communicating the first security credential to a card programming system at the property to be used by the card programming system in programming a key card to include the first security credential as a primary security credential, wherein the door lock system is configured to read the primary security credential from the key card to provide access to the guest room.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising causing the first security credential to be communicated to a separate credential distribution service operated separate from an entity operating the property and causing the first security credential to be communicated from the credential distribution service to the user device. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising causing first authentication information corresponding to the first security credential to be communicated to the credentials distribution service; and the causing the first notification to be communicated to the user device comprises causing second authentication information, corresponding to the first security credential, to be communicated to the user device that is to be communicated by the user device to the credentials distribution service in authenticating a request from the user device requesting the first security credential be communicated to the user device. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , further comprising:
 causing an application program interface remote from and communicatively coupled with the user device to generate a push notification comprising the first notification that the first security credential is available through the credentials distribution service.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the causing the first notification to be communicated to the user device comprises confirming, prior to causing the first notification to be communicated to the user device, that the user authorized receiving security credentials on the user device through a selection of the authentication option displayed through the user device. 
     
     
         13 . A method of allowing a user to gain access to a guest room, the method comprising:
 accessing, from a portable consumer electronic user device communicating over a distributed network, a remote service;   communicating, through the user device, authentication information to the remote service;   communicating a confirmation that the user authorized receiving security credentials on the user device associated with the user in response to detecting a selection by the user of an authorization option displayed through the user device;   requesting a security credential configured to be communicated by the user device to a door lock system of the guest room to allow a user to gain access to the guest room; and   receiving, at the user device and from the remote service, a first notification identifying that a security credential is available to be retrieved, which is generated as a function of the user being checking in;   causing the user device to present, as controlled in accordance with a mobile application, a first option to the user in response to receiving the first notification of the availability of the security credential;   detecting an activation, by a user, of the first option presented to the user through the user device in response to the first notification of the availability of the security credential;   causing a retrieval request to be communicated over the distributed network, in response to the detected activation of the first option, for the security credential, wherein the security credential is configured to be communicated by the user device to a door lock system of the guest room to allow a user to gain access to the guest room;   receiving, at the user device in response to the retrieval request, the security credential and storing within the user device the security credential configured to be wirelessly communicated by the user device to the door lock system to gain access to the guest room when the security credential is verified by the door lock system.   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , further comprising:
 implementing the mobile application on the user device, wherein the mobile application during implementation is configured to establish the communication with the remote service and control options available to the user through the user device in acquiring the security credential.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising:
 displaying on the user device, as controlled in accordance with the mobile application, a check-in interface.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the communicating the authentication information comprises accessing, through the mobile application operated on the user device, a user account maintained by the remote service and corresponding to the user;
 wherein the requesting the security credential comprises requesting the security credential for the door to the guest room corresponding to a reservation associated with the user account.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 13 , further comprising:
 receiving, at a portable consumer electronic user device, an instruction to communicate a security credential to a door lock system configured to unlock a lock of the door lock system on a door to a guest room upon verifying the security credential;   accessing the security credential stored local on the user device; and   wirelessly communicating the security credential to the door lock system to be verified by the door lock system in response to the instruction to communicate the security credential.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the receiving the instruction comprises detecting a user selection of an option to initiate the wireless communication of the security credential. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , further comprising:
 communicating with a remote service and requesting from the remote service the security credential;   providing authentication information to the remote service; and   receiving and locally storing the security credential.   
     
     
         20 . A system for use in distributing security credentials, the system comprising:
 hospitality server communicationally coupled with a distributed network and configured to communicate at least with a portable consumer electronic user device configured to receive one or more security credentials and to wirelessly transmit at least one of the one or more security credentials to a first door lock system;   confirming that a user associated with the user device authorized receiving security credentials on the user device associated with the user through a selection of an authorization option displayed through the user device;   a property server communicationally coupled with the hospitality server and configured to cause the one or more security credentials to be distributed and to cause a first notification to be communicated to the user device that the first security credential are available to be retrieved, and to cause, based on an activation by the user of a first option presented to the user through the user device in response to the first notification of the availability of the first security credential, the first security credential to be communicated over a distributed network to the user device associated with the user to be stored on the user device such that the user device is configured to wirelessly communicate the first security credential to the first door lock system to gain access to a guest room; and   a security credentials server coupled with the property server and configured to generate the one or more security credentials and release the one or more security credentials to be distributed to the user device.