METHOD, APPARATUS AND COMPUTER SOFTWARE FOR RAPIDLY SELECTING FUNCTIONALITIES AVAILABLE IN OPERATIONS WITH PORTABLE DATA CARRIERS WITH CONTACTLESS INTERFACE

摘要

The invention relates to a method, an apparatus and computer software for rapidly selecting the functionalities available in operations with portable data carriers with contactless interface. The claimed method comprises directly or indirectly receiving at least one signal transmitted by at least one sensor (S1-Sn) which can detect the presence or the passage of certain items through a certain spatial domain in the area of the contactless reader of the contactless terminal (100, 110, 400, 410) and, optionally, by an antenna (101, 111, 401, 411), then identifying a logic event correlated with a combination of signals or a series of combinations of signals coming from a sensor (S1-Sn) and from an antenna (101, 111, 401, 411) of the contactless reader as a consequence of a physical movement described by the portable data carrier with contactless interface (CC) in the area of proximity of the contactless reader of the contactless terminal (100, 110, 400, 410). The claimed apparatus comprises a special contactless terminal (100, 400) which includes a contactless reader provided with an antenna (101, 401) in order to carry out operations with a portable data carrier with contactless interface (CC) and it is provided with at least one sensor (S1-Sn) which is placed in the proximity of the antenna (101, 401) of the contactless reader, at a distance at which a sensor (S1-Sn) may detect the presence or the passage of the portable data carrier with contactless interface (CC) through a space of a size comparable with the size of the space in which the portable data carrier with contactless interface (CC) can be read by the contactless reader, where at least one sensor (S1-Sn) can be connected to an interface for data input to the terminal (100, 400) or an external equipment (EE) which can have a data connection, and the software program determines the reading of data, the identification of an event in a memory and the selection of an application from a memory.