Author: claimsbot

1-12. (canceled)
13. A network system in which a router and a terminal apparatus are connected in a wireless manner, wherein
one identifier is recorded, a removable recording medium is provided,
said recording medium is loaded into said router and, thereafter, attached to the terminal apparatus, and
said router reads out said identifier, thereby allowing a link between the router and the terminal apparatus specified by said identifier to be established.
14. A network system according to claim 13, wherein
the identifier has previously been written onto said recording medium on a connecting apparatus side.
15. A network system according to claim 13, wherein
a point that said recording medium has been attached to said terminal apparatus is used as a condition for establishment of the link.
16. A router for exchanging information between terminal apparatuses connected in a wireless manner, wherein
one identifier is recorded, a removable recording medium is detachably provided,
said identifier is read out from said loaded recording medium, and
a link with the terminal apparatus which is specified by said identifier is established.
17. A router according to claim 16, wherein
the identifier has previously been written onto said recording medium on a connecting apparatus side.
18. A router according to claim 16, wherein
a point that said recording medium has been attached to said terminal apparatus is used as a condition for establishment of the link.
19. A terminal apparatus for exchanging information in a wireless manner, wherein
one identifier is recorded, a removable recording medium is detachably provided,
said identifier is read out from said loaded recording medium, and
a link is established by said identifier at the time of wireless communication.
20. A communicating method in a network system in which a router and a terminal apparatus are connected in a wireless manner, comprising:
a step wherein one identifier is recorded and a removable recording medium is provided;
a step wherein said recording medium is loaded into said router and said router reads out said identifier;
a step wherein said recording medium is attached to said terminal apparatus and said terminal apparatus reads out said identifier; and
a step wherein said router detects that said terminal apparatus is specified by said identifier, thereby establishing a link between said router and said terminal apparatus.
21. A program for a network system in which a router and a terminal apparatus are connected in a wireless manner, one identifier is recorded, and a removable recording medium is provided, wherein
said program allows said network system to execute:
a step wherein said recording medium is loaded into said router and said router reads out said identifier;
a step wherein said recording medium is attached to said terminal apparatus and said terminal apparatus reads out said identifier; and
a step wherein said router detects that said terminal apparatus is specified by said identifier, thereby establishing a link between said router and said terminal apparatus.
22. A recording medium on which a program for a network system in which a router and a terminal apparatus are connected in a wireless manner, one identifier is recorded, and a removable recording medium is provided has been recorded, wherein
said program allows said network system to execute:
a step wherein said recording medium is loaded into said router and said router reads out said identifier;
a step wherein said recording medium is attached to said terminal apparatus and said terminal apparatus reads out said identifier; and
a step wherein said router detects that said terminal apparatus is specified by said identifier, thereby establishing a link between said router and said terminal apparatus.
23-32. (canceled)

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A vehicle antenna system, comprising:
a first directional antenna and a second directional antenna, said first- and second-directional antennas being located on or within an exterior mirror of a vehicle and having first- and second-directional signal detection fields, respectively;
a switching network that selects one of said first- and second-directional antennas to be a selected antenna;
a receiver coupled to said switching network to receive a selected antenna signal from the selected antenna via said switching network; and
a controller coupled to the receiver to output a control signal corresponding to the antenna signal received by the receiver.
2. The vehicle antenna system of claim 1, further comprising:
a detector connected between said receiver and said controller; and
a peak detector connected between said detector and said controller,
wherein said detector detects an amplitude of the selected antenna signal and outputs a detector signal corresponding to the selected antenna signal’s amplitude to said peak detector and said controller,
wherein said controller compares the amplitude of the selected antenna signal’s amplitude to at least one previous peak amplitude, saves a peak value and outputs a peak detector signal corresponding to the peak value to said controller, and
wherein said controller compares the detector signal for each of said first- and second-directional antennas with the peak detector signal to identify which of said antennas outputs the strongest antenna signal.
3. The vehicle antenna system of claim 2, wherein the detector signal is a digital detector signal, and wherein the system further comprises an analog-to-digital converter connected between said peak detector and said controller to convert the peak detector signal into a digital peak detector signal.
4. The vehicle antenna system of claim 2, wherein said peak detector further comprises a reset portion for resetting the peak value.
5. The vehicle antenna system of claim 2, further comprising a plurality of tire pressure sensors, each tire sensor transmitting a sensor output signal detectable by at least one of said first- and second-directional antennas.
6. The vehicle antenna system of claim 5, further comprising:
a threshold detector that compares the detector signal for each of said first- and second-directional antennas with a predetermined threshold; and
a low pressure warning indicator coupled to the threshold detector to indicate when the detector signal falls below the predetermined threshold, indicating low tire pressure.
7. The vehicle antenna system of claim 5, wherein each tire pressure sensor has a sensor transmission field, and wherein the sensor transmission field overlaps at least one of said first- and second-directional signal detection fields.
8. The vehicle antenna system of claim 1, further comprising at least one matching network connected between said first- and second-directional antennas and said switching network.
9. The vehicle antenna system of claim 8, wherein each of said first- and second-directional antennas has a corresponding matching network.
10. The vehicle antenna system of claim 1, further comprising:
a signal generator that generates a system output signal for reception by a remote circuit external to the vehicle; and
a transmitter for transmitting the system output signal to the remote circuit via said at least one of said first- and second-directional antennas over first- and second-directional transmission fields, respectively.
11. The vehicle antenna system of claim 10, wherein the remote receiver is located on a vehicle diagnostic computer, and wherein said signal generator generates vehicle diagnostic data.
12. The vehicle antenna system of claim 10, wherein the remote receiver is located on a garage door opener, and wherein said signal generator generates conventional garage door opener operation data.
13. The vehicle antenna system of claim 10, wherein the remote receiver is located on a traffic control system, and wherein said signal generator generates a presence signal to indicate the presence of the vehicle at a street intersection.
14. The vehicle antenna system of claim 1, wherein at least one of said first- and second-directional antennas receives an input signal from a remote location outside of the vehicle.
15. The vehicle antenna system of claim 14, wherein the input signal is transmitted by an emergency vehicle.
16. The vehicle antenna system of claim 15, wherein a remote receiver is located on a traffic control system, and wherein the emergency vehicle transmits the input signal to both the remote receiver and at least one of said first- and second-directional antennas.
17. The vehicle antenna system of claim 1, further comprising:
a signal generator that generates a system output signal for reception by a remote receiver external to the vehicle; and
a transmitter for transmitting the system output signal to the remote circuit via said first- and second-directional transmission fields, wherein at least one of said first- and second-directional signal detection fields detects a signal from the remote circuit.
18. The vehicle antenna system of claim 17, wherein the remote circuit is located in a vehicle access gate, and wherein the signal generator generates and transmits an access code, vehicle identification andor payment information.
19. The vehicle antenna system of claim 17, wherein the first- and second-directional antennas transmit and receive telephone signals to and from the remote circuit.
20. The vehicle antenna system of claim 17, wherein the remote circuit is in a global positioning satellite, and wherein the first- and second-directional antennas transmit and receive global positioning information to and from the satellite.
21. The vehicle antenna system of claim 1, wherein said first directional antenna is a forward-directed antenna and said second directional antenna is a rearward-directed antenna.
22. A vehicle antenna system, comprising:
a first directional antenna and a second directional antenna, said first- and second-directional antennas being located on or within an exterior mirror of a vehicle and having first- and second-directional signal transmission fields, respectively;
a signal generator that generates a system output signal for reception by a remote receiver outside to the vehicle; and
a transmitter for transmitting the system output signal to the remote circuit via at least one of said first- and second-directional antennas.
23. The vehicle antenna system of claim 22, wherein the remote circuit is located in a vehicle access gate, and wherein the signal generator generates an access code and the system output signal is vehicle identification andor payment information.
24. The vehicle antenna system of claim 22, wherein said first- and second-directional antennas transmit telephone signals to the remote circuit.
25. The vehicle antenna system of claim 22, wherein the remote circuit is in a global positioning satellite, and wherein at least one of said first- and second-directional antennas receives global positioning information therefrom.
26. A vehicle antenna system, comprising:
a first first-directional antenna and a corresponding first second-directional antenna, said first first- and second-directional antennas being located on or within a first exterior mirror of a vehicle and having first first- and second-directional signal detection fields, respectively;
a second first-directional antenna and a corresponding second second-directional antenna, said second first- and second-directional antennas being located on or within a second exterior mirror of a vehicle and having second first- and second-directional signal detection fields, respectively;
a switching network that selects one of said first and second first-directional and second-directional antennas to be a selected antenna;
a receiver coupled to said switching network to receive a selected antenna signal from the selected antenna via said switching network; and
a controller coupled to the receiver to output a control signal corresponding to the antenna signal received by the receiver.
27. The vehicle antenna system of claim 26, further comprising:
a detector connected between said receiver and said controller; and
a peak detector connected between said detector and said controller,
wherein said detector detects an amplitude of the selected antenna signal and outputs a detector signal corresponding to the selected antenna signal’s amplitude to said peak detector and said controller,
wherein said peak detector saves a peak value and outputs a peak detector signal corresponding to the peak value to said controller, and
wherein said controller compares the peak detector signal for each of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas to identify which of said antennas outputs the strongest antenna signal.
28. The vehicle antenna system of claim 27, wherein the detector signal is a digital detector signal, and wherein the system further comprises an analog-to-digital converter connected between said peak detector and said controller to convert the peak detector signal into a digital peak detector signal.
29. The vehicle antenna system of claim 28, wherein the digital detector is a pulse width modulated signal.
30. The vehicle antenna system of claim 27, wherein said peak detector further comprises a reset portion for resetting the peak value.
31. The vehicle antenna system of claim 27, further comprising a plurality of tire pressure sensors, each tire sensor transmitting a sensor output signal detectable by at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas.
32. The vehicle antenna system of claim 31, further comprising:
a threshold detector that compares the detector signal for each of said first- and second-directional antennas with a predetermined threshold; and
a low pressure warning indicator coupled to the threshold detector to indicate when the detector signal falls below the predetermined threshold, indicating low tire pressure.
33. The vehicle antenna system of claim 31, wherein each tire pressure sensor has a sensor transmission field, and wherein said sensor transmission field overlaps at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional signal detection fields.
34. The vehicle antenna system of claim 26, further comprising at least one matching network connected between said first and second first- and second-directional antennas and said switching network.
35. The vehicle antenna system of claim 34, wherein each of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas has a corresponding matching network.
36. The vehicle antenna system of claim 26, further comprising:
a signal generator that generates a system output signal for reception by a remote circuit external to the vehicle; and
a transmitter for transmitting the system output signal to the remote circuit via at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas over first and second first- and second-directional transmission fields, respectively.
37. The vehicle antenna system of claim 36, wherein the remote circuit is located on a vehicle diagnostic computer, and wherein said signal generator generates vehicle diagnostic data.
38. The vehicle antenna system of claim 36, wherein the remote circuit is located on a garage door opener, and wherein said signal generator generates conventional garage door opener operation data.
39. The vehicle antenna system of claim 36, wherein the remote receiver is located on a traffic control system, and wherein said signal generator generates a presence signal to indicate the presence of the vehicle at a street intersection.
40. The vehicle antenna system of claim 26, wherein at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas receives an input signal from a remote location outside of the vehicle.
41. The vehicle antenna system of claim 40, wherein the input signal is transmitted by an emergency vehicle.
42. The vehicle antenna system of claim 41, wherein a remote receiver is located on a traffic control system, and wherein the emergency vehicle transmits the input signal to both the remote receiver and at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas.
43. The vehicle antenna system of claim 26, further comprising:
a signal generator that generates a system output signal for reception by a remote circuit external to the vehicle; and
a transmitter for transmitting the system output signal to the remote receiver, and wherein at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas receives an input signal from a remote location outside of the vehicle.
44. The vehicle antenna system of claim 43, wherein the remote circuit is located in a vehicle access gate, and wherein the signal generator generates an access code and the input signal is vehicle identification andor payment information.
45. The vehicle antenna system of claim 43, wherein at least one of first and second first- and second-directional antennas transmits and receives telephone signals to and from the remote circuit.
46. The vehicle antenna system of claim 43, wherein the remote circuit is in a global positioning satellite, and wherein at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas receives global positioning information from the satellite.
47. The vehicle antenna system of claim 26, further comprising at least one matching network connected between said switching network and said receiver.
48. The vehicle antenna system of claim 47, further comprising at least one matching network connected between said first and second first- and second-directional antennas and said switching network.
49. A vehicle antenna system, comprising:
a first first-directional antenna and a corresponding first second-directional antenna, said first first- and second-directional antennas being located on or within a first exterior mirror of a vehicle and having first first- and second-directional signal transmission fields, respectively;
a second first-directional antenna and a corresponding second second-directional antenna, said second first- and second-directional antennas being located on or within a second exterior mirror of a vehicle and having second first- and second-directional signal transmission fields, respectively;
a signal generator that generates a system output signal for reception by a remote receiver external to the vehicle; and
a transmitter for transmitting the system output signal to the remote receiver via at least one of said first and second first-directional and second-directional antennas.
50. The vehicle antenna system of claim 49, wherein the remote receiver is located in a vehicle access gate, and wherein the signal generator generates an access code and the input signal is vehicle identification andor payment information.
51. The vehicle antenna system of claim 49, wherein the first- and second-directional antennas transmit telephone signals to the remote circuit.
52. The vehicle antenna system of claim 49, wherein the remote circuit is in a global positioning satellite, and wherein the first- and second-directional antennas receive global positioning information from the satellite.
53. The vehicle antenna system of claim 49, wherein said first and second first-directional antennas are forward-directed antennas and said first and second second-directional antennas are rearward-directed antennas.
54. A vehicle antenna system, comprising:
a first first-directional antenna and a corresponding first second-directional antenna, said first first- and second-directional antennas being located on or within a first exterior mirror of a vehicle and having first first- and second-directional signal detection fields, respectively;
a second first-directional antenna and a corresponding second second-directional antenna, said second first- and second-directional antennas being located on or within a second exterior mirror of a vehicle and having second first- and second-directional signal detection fields, respectively;
at least one matching network corresponding to at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas and said receiver;
a switching network coupled to said at least one matching network, wherein said switching network selects one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas to be a selected antenna;
a detector connected between said receiver and said controller;
a peak detector connected between said detector and said controller;
a receiver coupled to said switching network to receive a selected antenna signal from the selected antenna via said switching network; and
a controller coupled to the receiver to output a control signal corresponding to the antenna signal received by the receiver,
wherein said detector detects an amplitude of the selected antenna signal and outputs a detector signal corresponding to the selected antenna signal’s amplitude to said peak detector and said controller,
wherein said peak detector compares the amplitude of the selected antenna signal’s amplitude to at least one previous peak amplitude of a previous selected antenna signal, saves a peak value and outputs a peak detector signal corresponding to the peak value to said controller, and
wherein said controller compares the detector signal for each of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas with the peak detector signal to identify which of said antennas outputs the strongest antenna signal.
55. The vehicle antenna system of claim 54, wherein the detector signal is a digital detector signal, and wherein the system further comprises an analog-to-digital converter connected between said peak detector and said controller to convert the peak detector signal into a digital peak detector signal.
56. The vehicle antenna system of claim 54, wherein said peak detector further comprises a reset portion for resetting the peak value to a predetermined value after the strongest antenna signal has been identified.
57. The vehicle antenna system of claim 54, further comprising a plurality of tire pressure sensors, each tire sensor transmitting a sensor output signal detectable by at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas.
58. The vehicle antenna system of claim 57, further comprising:
a threshold detector that compares the detector signal for each of said forward and rearward-directed antenna with a predetermined threshold; and
a pressure warning indicator coupled to the threshold detector to indicate when the detector signal passes the predetermined threshold, indicating an unsafe tire pressure.
59. The vehicle antenna system of claim 57, wherein each tire pressure sensor has first- and second-directional transmission fields, and wherein at least one of said first- and second-directional transmission fields overlaps one of said first and second first- and second-directional signal detection fields.
60. The vehicle antenna system of claim 54, further comprising:
a signal generator that generates a system output signal for reception by a remote receiver external to the vehicle; and
a transmitter for transmitting the system output signal to the remote receiver.
61. The vehicle antenna system of claim 59, wherein the remote receiver is located on a vehicle diagnostic computer, and wherein said signal generator generates vehicle diagnostic data.
62. The vehicle antenna system of claim 59, wherein the remote receiver is located on a garage door opener, and wherein said signal generator generates conventional garage door opener operation data.
63. The vehicle antenna system of claim 59, wherein the remote receiver is located on a traffic control system, and wherein said signal generator generates a presence signal to indicate the presence of the vehicle at a street intersection.
64. The vehicle antenna system of claim 54, wherein at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas receives an input signal from a remote location outside of the vehicle.
65. The vehicle antenna system of claim 64, wherein the input signal is transmitted by an emergency vehicle.
66. The vehicle antenna system of claim 64, wherein a remote receiver is located on a traffic control system, and wherein the emergency vehicle transmits the input signal to both the remote receiver and at least one of said first and second first- and second-directional antennas.
67. The vehicle antenna system of claim 54, further comprising:
a signal generator that generates a system output signal for reception by a remote receiver external to the vehicle; and
a transmitter for transmitting the system output signal to the remote receiver via said first- and second-directional antennas over first- and second-directional fields, wherein at least one of said first- and second-directional signal detection fields detects a signal from the remote circuit.
68. The vehicle antenna system of claim 66, wherein the remote circuit is located in a vehicle access gate, and wherein the signal generator generates and transmits an access code, vehicle identification andor payment information.
69. The vehicle antenna system of claim 66, wherein at least one of the first and second first- and second-directional antennas transmits and receives telephone signals to and from the remote circuit.
70. The vehicle antenna system of claim 66, wherein the remote location is a global positioning satellite, and wherein the first and second first- and second-directional antennas receive global positioning information from the satellite.
71. A vehicle antenna system, comprising:
a first first-directional antenna and a corresponding first second-directional antenna, said first first- and second-directional antennas being located on or within a first exterior mirror of a vehicle and having first first- and second-directional signal transmission fields, respectively;
a second first-directional antenna and a corresponding second second-directional antenna, said second first- and second-directional antennas being located on or within a second exterior mirror of a vehicle and having second first- and second-directional signal transmission fields, respectively;
a signal generator that generates a system output signal for reception by a remote circuit external to the vehicle; and
a transmitter for transmitting the system output signal to the remote circuit via at least one of said first and second first-directional and second-directional antennas.
72. The vehicle antenna system of claim 71, wherein the remote circuit is located in a vehicle access gate, and wherein the signal generator generates an access code and the input signal is vehicle identification andor payment information.
73. The vehicle antenna system of claim 71, wherein the first- and second-directional antennas transmit telephone signals to the remote circuit.
74. The vehicle antenna system of claim 71, wherein the remote circuit is in a global positioning satellite, and wherein the first- and second-directional antennas receive global positioning information from the satellite.
75. The vehicle antenna system of claim 71, wherein said first and second first-directional antennas are forward-directed antennas and said first and second second-directional antennas are rearward-directed antennas.

1. An image forming apparatus which is connected to a memory unit in which a plurality of images is stored, forms an image which is selected by a user from the plurality of images and forms an index image in which a plurality of images which are not selected by the user is disposed, the apparatus comprising:
a group acquisition unit which acquires a group to which the plurality of image belongs from among a plurality of groups into which images are classified;
a history registration unit which associates a formed image with the acquired group to be registered as an image forming history when an image selected by the user is formed; and
an image forming unit which determines a group from which an image used in the index image is extracted, among the plurality of groups, based on the number of formed images of the respective groups which is registered as the image forming history, extracts an image from the determined group, and disposes the extracted images of each of the plurality of groups together to form the index image when instructed to form the index image.
2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming unit is a unit which determines the group which has the largest number of formed images as the group from which the image is extracted.
3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming unit is a unit which extracts an image from the determined group at a ratio which is approximately identical to a ratio of the numbers of formed images of the respective groups.
4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming unit is a unit which extracts an image from the determined group at a rate which is approximately identical to a ratio of image forming rates of the respective groups in which the number of formed images of each group is divided by the number of images of each group.
5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming unit is a unit which extracts an image from the determined group excluding the foamed image.
6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the history registration unit is a unit which registers an image processed by the user when an image is formed by multiplying the number of the formed images by a weighting coefficient of more than 1.
7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an image classification unit which classifies the plurality of images into the plurality of groups,
wherein the group acquisition unit is a unit which acquires an image classification result from the image classification unit.
8. A program for operating a computer as the image forming apparatus according to claim 1.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A method of processing a transaction among a consumer, a merchant point-of-sale system and a transaction-processing entity, the method comprising:
generating a token encrypted with data identifying a financial account of the consumer and trust data for the consumer;
receiving and storing the token by a device of the consumer;
reading and decrypting, by the merchant system, the token upon presentation thereof by the consumer’s device in connection with the transaction;
authorizing, by the merchant system, the transaction based on (i) successful decryption of the token and (ii) the trust level without communication with the transaction-processing entity;
subsequent to authorization of the transaction by the merchant system, communicating, by the merchant to the transaction-processing entity, a record of the transaction and authorization thereof; and
following the communication from the merchant system to the transaction-processing entity, completing the authorized transaction by causing funds to be transferred from the consumer’s financial account to the merchant.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the authorized transaction is completed upon approval by the transaction-processing entity of a basis for the authorization by the merchant system.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein approval by the merchant system is also based on a time of generation of the token and a time of the reading.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the trust data contains at least one of (i) a token generation time, (ii) a transaction history of the consumer, (iii) a spending limit of the consumer or (iv) a home region of the consumer.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the trust data is a single trust-factor value.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the token is encrypted using public key cryptography.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the token is displayed as a QR code on the consumer device.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the token is a one-time-use token.
9. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating and storing, on the consumer device, a plurality of tokens.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein following presentation of a first token, the first token is marked for deletion and a second token is marked for display on a subsequent presentation.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein presentation of the first token comprises receiving confirmation from the merchant system that the token was received.
12. The method of claim 10, wherein the token is not marked for deletion until a deletion communication is received from the transaction-processing entity.
13. The method of claim 9, wherein following presentation of a first token, the first token is marked for deletion and a second token is marked for display after a predetermined time period.
14. The method of claim 1, further comprising marking a token for deletion and generating a token to replace the token marked for deletion.
15. The method of claim 1, wherein the tokens are stored in a stack for sequential access on a first in, first out basis.
16. The method of claim 1, wherein the tokens are stored in a stack for sequential access on a first in, last out basis.
17. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying the consumer prior to generating the token.
18. A system for processing a transaction among a consumer, a merchant and a transaction-processing entity, the system comprising:
a token server for (i) generating a token encrypted with data identifying a financial account of the consumer and trust data for the consumer, and (ii) communicating the token to a device of the consumer;
a point-of-sale system for reading and decrypting the token upon presentation thereof by the consumer in connection with the transaction, the point-of-sale system being configured to authorize the transaction based on (i) successful decryption of the token and (ii) the trust level without communication with the transaction-processing entity; and
a transaction-processing server configured to (i) receive, from the point-of-sale system subsequent to transaction authorization, a record of the transaction and authorization thereof, and (ii) cause completion of the authorized transaction by causing funds to be transferred from the consumer’s financial account to the merchant.
19. The system of claim 18, wherein the point-of-sale system is configured to authorize the transaction based at least in part on a time of generation of the token and a time of the reading.
20. The system of claim 18, wherein the token server is configured to encrypt the token using private key cryptography.
21. The system of claim 18, wherein the token server is configured to embed an expiration time in the generated token.
22. The system of claim 18, wherein the token server is configured to embed a creation time in the generated token.
23. The system of claim 18, wherein the token server is configured to generate and communicate a series of tokens to the device.
24. The system of claim 18, wherein the token server is configured to verify the consumer’s identity prior to token generation.
25. A method of processing a transaction among a consumer, a merchant point-of-sale system and a transaction-processing entity, the method comprising:
generating a token with a digital signature, encrypted using a private key, with data identifying a financial account of the consumer and trust data for the consumer;
receiving and storing the token and the signature by a device of the consumer;
reading the token and decrypting the signature, by the merchant system, upon presentation of the token by the consumer’s device in connection with the transaction;
authorizing, by the merchant system, the transaction based on (i) successful verification of the signature and (ii) the trust level without communication with the transaction-processing entity;
subsequent to authorization of the transaction by the merchant system, communicating, by the merchant to the transaction-processing entity, a record of the transaction and authorization thereof; and
following the communication from the merchant system to the transaction-processing entity, completing the authorized transaction by causing funds to be transferred from the consumer’s financial account to the merchant.
26. A system for processing a transaction among a consumer, a merchant and a transaction-processing entity, the system comprising:
a token server for (i) generating a token with a digital signature, encrypted using a private key, with data identifying a financial account of the consumer and trust data for the consumer, and (ii) communicating the token to a device of the consumer;
a point-of-sale system for reading and decrypting the signature upon presentation of the token by the consumer in connection with the transaction, the point-of-sale system being configured to authorize the transaction based on (i) successful verification of the signature and (ii) the trust level without communication with the transaction-processing entity; and
a transaction-processing server configured to (i) receive, from the point-of-sale system subsequent to transaction authorization, a record of the transaction and authorization thereof, and (ii) cause completion of the authorized transaction by causing funds to be transferred from the consumer’s financial account to the merchant.