Now Google could change how we pay for dinner: 'Smart calculator' works out amount owed and makes automatic payments
- Google's patent is called 'Tracking and managing group expenditures'
- It was originally filed in March 2012 but has just been made public
- The system - thought to be an app - could divide the bill and automatically take necessary payments
By VICTORIA WOOLLASTON PUBLISHED: 14:45 GMT, 7 October 2013 | UPDATED: 18:41 GMT, 7 October 2013
Last week Apple successfully patented a staircase - and this week, rival Google is the latest firm applying for unusual rights - this time, to control how people pay for their dinner. Google's patent, called Tracking and managing group expenditures, was originally filed in March 2012 but has only just been made public. The files detail an automated system - most likely an app - that works out what everyone in a group owes towards a bill.It works out if there are any outstanding debts that still need to paid between individual members and can make payments, or transfer money between accounts, automatically.
Google's latest patent attempts to make splitting the bill in a restaurant easier. The automated system works out what everyone in a group owes and if there are any outstanding debts that still need to paid between individual members and can make payments automatically
'Often, people engage in activities as a group. For example, a group of friends may go on vacation together, plan an event together, or go to dinner,' the patent explains. 'When the group incurs a bill, typically one of the group members will pay the bill out of convenience and expects to be paid back by the other group members.
'However, some group members may not pay back their entire share of the bill or may forget and not pay back their share at all. 'This is unfair for the group member that paid the bill. Thus, there is a need in the art for an efficient way to track group expenditures and settle balances between group members.'There is already an app that uses a similar process, called Cover.
HOW WOULD GOOGLE'S PATENT WORK?
According to the patent: 'Assume that a group is created to track and manage the expenditures of four friends while on vacation in Miami.
'While on vacation, one of the days only three of the friends go eat lunch at a restaurant because Friend 4 is not hungry at the time.
'The bill for lunch is $60 and Friend 1 pays the bill using a mobile payment service.
'Friend 1 adds the lunch as an expenditure of the group. When the form is presented to Friend 1 for the lunch, Friend 1 indicates that the lunch should be allocated to Friends 1-3.
The lunch is not allocated to Friend 4 because Friend 4 did not participate in the lunch.
'Friend 1 provides the following amounts of allocation in the form: Friend 1 $25, Friend 2 $16, and Friend 3 $19.'
It launched out of beta last week on iOS and is currently only available in New York.Once a customer sets up an account with Cover, they can check themselves into a participating restaurant. Before dinner, one person in the group tells the waiter they plan to pay using Cover. After dinner, the app splits the bill between how many people are in the group and the payment is made to the restaurant automatically, meaning the group can just leave.A default tip can also be specified, but the percentage can be adjusted depending on the service.
This diagram shows how Google's system could work. It would keep track of who owes money to each member of the group, and how much. When a new bill is added, the system works out if any money needs to be deducted from previous debts before totalling up, and taking the payment
Last week Apple successfully patented a staircase - and this week, rival Google is the latest firm applying for unusual rights - this time, to control how people pay for their dinner. Google's patent, called Tracking and managing group expenditures, was originally filed in March 2012 but has only just been made public. The files detail an automated system - most likely an app - that works out what everyone in a group owes towards a bill.It works out if there are any outstanding debts that still need to paid between individual members and can make payments, or transfer money between accounts, automatically.
Google's latest patent attempts to make splitting the bill in a restaurant easier. The automated system works out what everyone in a group owes and if there are any outstanding debts that still need to paid between individual members and can make payments automatically
'Often, people engage in activities as a group. For example, a group of friends may go on vacation together, plan an event together, or go to dinner,' the patent explains. 'When the group incurs a bill, typically one of the group members will pay the bill out of convenience and expects to be paid back by the other group members.
'However, some group members may not pay back their entire share of the bill or may forget and not pay back their share at all. 'This is unfair for the group member that paid the bill. Thus, there is a need in the art for an efficient way to track group expenditures and settle balances between group members.'There is already an app that uses a similar process, called Cover.
HOW WOULD GOOGLE'S PATENT WORK?
According to the patent: 'Assume that a group is created to track and manage the expenditures of four friends while on vacation in Miami.
'While on vacation, one of the days only three of the friends go eat lunch at a restaurant because Friend 4 is not hungry at the time.
'The bill for lunch is $60 and Friend 1 pays the bill using a mobile payment service.
'Friend 1 adds the lunch as an expenditure of the group. When the form is presented to Friend 1 for the lunch, Friend 1 indicates that the lunch should be allocated to Friends 1-3.
The lunch is not allocated to Friend 4 because Friend 4 did not participate in the lunch.
'Friend 1 provides the following amounts of allocation in the form: Friend 1 $25, Friend 2 $16, and Friend 3 $19.'
It launched out of beta last week on iOS and is currently only available in New York.Once a customer sets up an account with Cover, they can check themselves into a participating restaurant. Before dinner, one person in the group tells the waiter they plan to pay using Cover. After dinner, the app splits the bill between how many people are in the group and the payment is made to the restaurant automatically, meaning the group can just leave.A default tip can also be specified, but the percentage can be adjusted depending on the service.
This diagram shows how Google's system could work. It would keep track of who owes money to each member of the group, and how much. When a new bill is added, the system works out if any money needs to be deducted from previous debts before totalling up, and taking the payment
