IP Library Granted Patent US 11,010,778
Granted Patent B2
US 11,010,778 · App. 15/451,158 · Granted May 18, 2021

Blockchain data

Inventors: Jay Webster (Pacifica, CA); Alexander J. Olson (San Carlos, CA); Tobias Speckbacher (San Carlos, CA); Andreas Binnewies (San Carlos, CA)
Assignee: Valassis Communications, Inc.
G06Q30/0207G06Q20/02G06Q20/0655G06Q20/36G06Q20/3674G06Q20/387G06Q20/3829H04L9/0816H04L9/30G06Q2220/00
View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,010,778
App. No.
15/451,158
Granted
May 18, 2021
Kind
B2
Abstract

A coupon-minter is configured to perform operations including: generating a coupon comprising encrypted discount information, wherein the encrypted discount information is encrypted with a discount key; generating, for the coupon, a hashlock from a preimage; introducing the coupon to a blockchain in association with the hashlock, wherein the blockchain is configured to permit claiming of the generated coupon only upon receiving access to the preimage used to generate the hashlock. A store-manager configured to perform operations including: claiming, using the preimage, the coupon in the blockchain; encrypting the discount key with a clearing-house public key; updating the coupon with the encrypted discount key. A clearing-house-manager configured to perform operations comprising: detecting the store-manager's claiming of the coupon; decrypting the encrypted discount key with a clearing-house private key to re-generate the discount key; and decrypting the encrypted discount information with the preimage.

Claims (68)

1. A system comprising:

a coupon-minter configured to perform operations including:

generating a coupon comprising encrypted discount information, wherein the encrypted discount information is encrypted with a discount key;

generating, for the coupon, a hashlock from a preimage;

introducing the coupon to a blockchain in association with the hashlock, wherein the blockchain is configured to permit claiming of the generated coupon only upon receiving access to the preimage used to generate the hashlock, wherein to introduce the coupon to the blockchain in association with the hashlock, the coupon-minter is configured to introduce the coupon to the blockchain in a wallet assigned to the coupon-minter;

a store-manager configured to perform operations including:

claiming, using the preimage, the coupon in the blockchain;

encrypting the discount key with a clearing-house public key;

updating the coupon with the encrypted discount key; and

a clearing-house-manager configured to perform operations comprising:

detecting the store-manager's claiming of the coupon;

decrypting the encrypted discount key with a clearing-house private key to re-generate the discount key; and

decrypting the encrypted discount information with the discount key.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the coupon-minter, the store-manager, and the clearing-house-manager are each further configured to authenticate records of claims submitted to the blockchain.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein:

the coupon-minter is further configured to:

receive an order to generate a plurality of coupons, each having the discount information; and

generate a plurality of coupons, including the coupon, each of the plurality of coupons having the discount information and each of the plurality of coupons having a different preimage.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein to claim the coupon in the blockchain, the store-manager is configured to move the coupon from the wallet assigned to the coupon-minter to a wallet assigned to the store-manager.

5. The system of claim 4 , wherein to observe the store-manager claim of the coupon, the clearing-house-manager is configured to monitor the wallet assigned to the store-manager.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the system is configured to not publicly disclose the discount key or the discount information.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the store-manager is further configured to transfer, to a wallet associated with the clearing-house-manager, the coupon; and

to detect the store-manager's claiming of the coupon, the clearing-house-manager is configured to detect the transfer, to a wallet associated with the clearing-house-manager, the coupon.

8. A method performed by data processing apparatus, the method comprising:

generating, by a coupon-minter, a coupon comprising encrypted discount information, wherein the encrypted discount information is encrypted with a discount key;

generating, by the coupon-minter, for the coupon, a hashlock from a preimage;

introducing, by the coupon-minter, the coupon to a blockchain in association with the hashlock, wherein the blockchain is configured to permit claiming of the generated coupon only upon receiving access to the preimage used to generate the hashlock, wherein introducing the coupon to a blockchain in association with the hashlock further comprises introducing the coupon to the blockchain in a wallet assigned to the coupon-minter;

detecting, by a clearing-house-manager, a store-manager's claiming of the coupon;

decrypting, by the clearing-house-manager, an encrypted discount key with a clearing-house private key to re-generate the discount key; and

decrypting, by the clearing-house-manager, the encrypted discount information with the discount key.

9. The method of claim 8 , the method further comprising;

claiming, by the store-manager, the coupon in the blockchain;

encrypting, by the store-manager, the discount key with a clearing-house public key; and

updating, by the store-manager, the coupon with the encrypted discount key.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the coupon-minter, the store-manager, and the clearing-house-manager are each further configured to authenticate records of claims submitted to the blockchain.

11. The method of claim 9 , the method further comprises:

receiving, by the coupon-minter, an order to generate a plurality of coupons, each having the discount information; and

generating, by the coupon-minter, a plurality of coupons, including the coupon, each of the plurality of coupons having the discount information and each of the plurality of coupons having a different preimage.

12. The method of claim 8 , wherein claiming the coupon in the blockchain comprises moving the coupon from the wallet assigned to the coupon-minter to a wallet assigned to the store-manager.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein to observe the store-manager claim of the coupon, the clearing-house-manager is configured to monitor the wallet assigned to the store-manager.

14. The method of claim 9 , wherein the blockchain is configured to not publicly disclose the discount key or the discount information.

15. The method of claim 9 , the method further comprising:

transferring, by the store-manager, the coupon to a wallet associated with the clearing-house-manager;

wherein detecting the store-manager's claiming of the coupon comprises transferring, by the clearing-house-manager, the transfer, to a wallet associated with the clearing-house-manager, the coupon.

16. A non-transitory computer storage media encoded with computer program instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause a computer device to perform operations comprising:

generating, by a coupon-minter, a coupon comprising encrypted discount information, wherein the encrypted discount information is encrypted with a discount key;

generating, by the coupon-minter, for the coupon, a hashlock from a preimage;

introducing, by the coupon-minter, the coupon to a blockchain in association with the hashlock, wherein the blockchain is configured to permit claiming of the generated coupon only upon receiving access to the preimage used to generate the hashlock, wherein introducing the coupon to a blockchain in association with the hashlock further comprises introducing the coupon to the blockchain in a wallet assigned to the coupon-minter;

detecting, by a clearing-house-manager, a store-manager's claiming of the coupon;

decrypting, by the clearing-house-manager, an encrypted discount key with a clearing-house private key to re-generate the discount key; and

decrypting, by the clearing-house-manager, the encrypted discount information with the discount key.

17. The computer storage media of claim 16 , the operations further comprising;

claiming, by the store-manager, the coupon in the blockchain;

encrypting, by the store-manager, the discount key with a clearing-house public key; and

updating, by the store-manager, the coupon with the encrypted discount key.

18. The computer storage media of claim 17 , wherein the coupon-minter, the store-manager, and the clearing-house-manager are each further configured to authenticate records of claims submitted to the blockchain.

19. The computer storage media of claim 17 , further comprises:

receiving, by the coupon-minter, an order to generate a plurality of coupons, each having the discount information; and

generating, by the coupon-minter, a plurality of coupons, including the coupon, each of the plurality of coupons having the discount information and each of the plurality of coupons having a different preimage.

20. The computer storage media of claim 16 , wherein claiming the coupon in the blockchain comprises moving the coupon from the wallet assigned to the coupon-minter to a wallet assigned to the store-manager.

21. The computer storage media of claim 20 , wherein to observe the store-manager claim of the coupon, the clearing-house-manager is configured to monitor the wallet assigned to the store-manager.

22. The computer storage media of claim 17 , wherein the blockchain is configured to not publicly disclose the discount key or the discount information.

23. The computer storage media of claim 17 , the operations further comprising:

transferring, by the store-manager, the coupon to a wallet associated with the clearing-house-manager;

wherein detecting the store-manager's claiming of the coupon comprises transferring, by the clearing-house-manager, the transfer, to a wallet associated with the clearing-house-manager, the coupon.

24. The system of claim 1 , the system further comprising one or more computing devices configured to operate the blockchain such that the blockchain is configured to permit claiming of the generated coupon only upon receiving access to the preimage used to generate the hashlock.

25. The method of claim 8 , the method further comprising operating the blockchain such that the blockchain is configured to permit claiming of the generated coupon only upon receiving access to the preimage used to generate the hashlock.

26. The computer storage media of claim 17 , the operations further comprising operating the blockchain such that the blockchain is configured to permit claiming of the generated coupon only upon receiving access to the preimage used to generate the hashlock.

Assignments (19)
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ASSIGNMENT AGREEMENT Recorded Apr 22, 2025
From: WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
To: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.
Reel/Frame 070919/0394 →
PATENT SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Aug 9, 2024
From: R. R. DONNELLEY & SONS COMPANY; CONSOLIDATED GRAPHICS, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
To: APOLLO ADMINISTRATIVE AGENCY LLC
Reel/Frame 068533/0812 →
PATENT SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Aug 9, 2024
From: R. R. DONNELLEY & SONS COMPANY; CONSOLIDATED GRAPHICS, INC.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.
To: U.S. BANK TRUST COMPANY, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Reel/Frame 068534/0447 →
PATENT SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Aug 9, 2024
From: R. R. DONNELLEY & SONS COMPANY; CONSOLIDATED GRAPHICS, INC.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.
To: U.S. BANK TRUST COMPANY, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Reel/Frame 068534/0366 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Aug 6, 2024
From: VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.
To: WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Reel/Frame 068200/0923 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jul 29, 2024
From: COMPUTERSHARE TRUST COMPANY, N.A., AS SUCCESSOR TO WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
To: NCH MARKETING SERVICES, INC.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.
Reel/Frame 068177/0738 →
PARTIAL RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jul 29, 2024
From: COMPUTERSHARE TRUST COMPANY, N.A., AS SUCCESSOR TO WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
To: NCH MARKETING SERVICES, INC.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.
Reel/Frame 068177/0784 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jul 29, 2024
From: COMPUTERSHARE TRUST COMPANY, N.A., AS SUCCESSOR TO WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
To: HARLAND CLARKE CORP.; VERICAST CORP.; CHECKS IN THE MAIL, INC.; NCH MARKETING SERVICES, INC.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.
Reel/Frame 068103/0460 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jul 19, 2024
From: JEFFERIES FINANCE LLC, AS SUCCESSOR TO CREDIT SUISSE AG, CAYMAN ISLANDS BRANCH
To: VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 068030/0297 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jul 19, 2024
From: MIDCAP FUNDING IV TRUST, AS THE AGENT
To: NCH MARKETING SERVICES, INC.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.
Reel/Frame 068031/0932 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Apr 25, 2024
From: CITIBANK, N.A.
To: VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 067228/0898 →
ASSIGNMENT OF SECURITY INTEREST IN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY COLLATERAL RECORDED 9-8-2017 Recorded Feb 23, 2024
From: CREDIT SUISSE (AG) CAYMAN ISLANDS BRANCH, AS ASSIGNOR
To: JEFFERIES FINANCE LLC, AS ASSIGNEE
Reel/Frame 066663/0034 →
FIRST LIEN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Jun 20, 2023
From: GROWMAIL, LLC; HARLAND CLARKE CORP.; NCH MARKETING SERVICES, INC.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.; VERICAST CORP.
To: COMPUTERSHARE TRUST COMPANY, N.A.
Reel/Frame 064024/0319 →
SECOND LIEN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Aug 12, 2021
From: CHECKS IN THE MAIL, INC.; CLIPPER MAGAZINE LLC; HARLAND CLARKE CORP.; NCH MARKETING SERVICES, INC.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.; VERICAST CORP.; VALASSIS IN-STORE SOLUTIONS, INC.
To: WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Reel/Frame 057181/0837 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Apr 21, 2021
From: CHECKS IN THE MAIL, INC.; CLIPPER MAGAZINE LLC; HARLAND CLARKE CORP.; NCH MARKETING SERVICES, INC.; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL CORP.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.; VERICAST CORP.; VERICAST IN-STORE SOLUTIONS, INC.
To: MIDCAP FINANCIAL TRUST
Reel/Frame 055995/0898 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Sep 8, 2017
From: HARLAND CLARKE CORP.; SCANTRON CORPORATION; CHECKS IN THE MAIL, INC.; NCP SOLUTIONS, LLC; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.; VALASSIS IN-STORE SOLUTIONS, CIN.; MAILCOUPS, INC.; NCH MARKETING SERVICES, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL, INC.; RETAILMENOT, INC.; GIFTCARDZEN INC.; YSL VENTURES, INC.; CSB ACQUISITION CO., LLC; SMALLPONDS, LLC; RNOT, LLC; SPECTRAWIDE ACQUISITION CO., LLC; CLTD ACQUISITION CO., LLC; DEALS.COM, LLC
To: WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Reel/Frame 043791/0085 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Sep 8, 2017
From: HARLAND CLARKE CORP.; SCANTRON CORPORATION; CHECKS IN THE MAIL, INC.; NCP SOLUTIONS, LLC; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.; VALASSIS IN-STORE SOLUTIONS, INC.; MAILCOUPS, INC.; NCH MARKETING SERVICES, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL, INC.; RETAILMENOT, INC.; GIFTCARDZEN INC.; YSL VENTURES, INC.; CSB ACQUISITION CO., LLC; SMALLPONDS, LLC; RNOT, LLC; SPECTRAWIDE ACQUISITION CO., LLC; CLTD ACQUISITION CO., LLC
To: CREDIT SUISSE AG, CAYMAN ISLANDS BRANCH
Reel/Frame 043791/0187 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Sep 8, 2017
From: HARLAND CLARKE CORP.; SCANTRON CORPORATION; CHECKS IN THE MAIL, INC.; NCP SOLUTIONS, LLC; VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.; VALASSIS DIRECT MAIL, INC.; VALASSIS IN-STORE SOLUTIONS, INC.; MAILCOUPS, INC.; NCH MARKETING SERVICES, INC.; VALASSIS DIGITAL, INC.; RETAILMENOT, INC.; GIFTCARDZEN INC.; YSL VENTURES, INC.; CSB ACQUISITION CO., LLC; SMALLPONDS, LLC; RNOT, LLC; SPECTRAWIDE ACQUISITION CO., LLC; CLTD ACQUISITION CO., LLC; DEALS.COM, LLC
To: CITIBANK, N.A.
Reel/Frame 043790/0953 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Apr 20, 2017
From: WEBSTER, JAY; OLSON, ALEXANDER J.; SPECKBACHER, TOBIAS; BINNEWIES, ANDREAS
To: VALASSIS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 042087/0456 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20180253745A1 · Sep 6, 2018