VITAband

Last updated
A VITAband showing a Visa Debit card VITAband(1).jpg
A VITAband showing a Visa Debit card

VITAband is a silicone encircling strip worn on the wrist. It can be referred to a bracelet-like band of a wristwatch, to the cuff or other part of a sleeve that covers the wrist. It is a lightweight, waterproof and hypoallergenic [1] flexible wristband that is used when jogging, running, cycling or hiking, or when carrying a wallet is inconvenient. [2] [3] VITAband holds emergency medical information and Visa RFID credit card information. [2] The wristband has two unique features. [4] It comprises an integrated Visa Debit card with payWave wireless functionality and a toll-free phone number with unique identity code that can be used by EMTs to retrieve health information and contacts in case of an accident or health emergency. [4] [5] [6]

Contents

History

VITAband was created by David Waxman and Jason Brown in 2007 and was launched in September 2009. [7] [8] The idea was conceived from medical ID bracelet but the designers had targeted athletes. So, they set out to design a medical ID bracelet that was comfortable to wear while jogging, running, cycling, hiking, etc., along with being versatile enough to use during exercise. [9] VITAband is a combination of design and function which conveniently and securely stores emergency information remotely and offers access to money by contactless payment. [7]

VITAband VITAband(2).jpg
VITAband

Description

The designers wanted to set their product apart from others so they integrated contactless payment technology into the band. [8] A user has to set up his Emergency Response Profile (ERP),which includes basic contact information, blood type, allergies, insurance information, medications, and emergency contacts. [8] [9] Annual subscription is required to maintain the Emergency Response Profile (ERP) [1] In the case of an emergency, medical professionals are trained to look for the number on the user's VITAband and then would have instant access to their ERP. [10] It's a simple bracelet that is keyed to a remote website that holds vital information, such as name, address, and any medical conditions a user might have. [11] The system accepts insurance information. [4] [11] An integrated Visa debit card with payWave wireless functionality has been used. [5] Via this technology, the user makes a payment by waving the chip in front of a credit card terminal. To use the contactless payment via VITAband which is a prepaid card, the user must first set up a VITAband Visa prepaid card. [4] [12] Users can load the card with anywhere from US$25 to $500 via the company website. [9]

Size

VITAband comes in two sizes: [1] a small size of 180 mm (7.1 in) and a large size of 202 mm (8.0 in). [1] [3]

Related Research Articles

A debit card is a plastic payment card that can be used instead of cash when making purchases. It is similar to a credit card, but unlike a credit card, the money is immediately transferred directly from the cardholder's bank account when performing any transaction.

EFTPOS Type of electronic payment system

Electronic funds transfer at point of sale is an electronic payment system involving electronic funds transfers based on the use of payment cards, such as debit or credit cards, at payment terminals located at points of sale. EFTPOS technology originated in the United States in 1981 and was adopted by other countries. In Australia and New Zealand, it is also the brand name of a specific system used for such payments; these systems are mainly country-specific and do not interconnect.

Smart card Pocket-sized card with embedded integrated circuits for identification or payment functions

A smart card, chip card, or integrated circuit card is a physical electronic authorization device, used to control access to a resource. It is typically a plastic credit card-sized card with an embedded integrated circuit (IC) chip. Many smart cards include a pattern of metal contacts to electrically connect to the internal chip. Others are contactless, and some are both. Smart cards can provide personal identification, authentication, data storage, and application processing. Applications include identification, financial, mobile phones (SIM), public transit, computer security, schools, and healthcare. Smart cards may provide strong security authentication for single sign-on (SSO) within organizations. Numerous nations have deployed smart cards throughout their populations.

Mobile payment generally refer to payment services operated under financial regulation and performed from or via a mobile device. Instead of paying with cash, cheque, or credit cards, a consumer can use a mobile to pay for a wide range of services and digital or hard goods. Although the concept of using non-coin-based currency systems has a long history, it is only in the 21st century that the technology to support such systems has become widely available.

Visa Inc. Multinational financial company best known for credit and debit cards

Visa Inc. is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Foster City, California, United States. It facilitates electronic funds transfers throughout the world, most commonly through Visa-branded credit cards, debit cards and prepaid cards. Visa does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers; rather, Visa provides financial institutions with Visa-branded payment products that they then use to offer credit, debit, prepaid and cash-access programs to their customers. In 2015, the Nilson Report, a publication that tracks the credit card industry, found that Visa's global network processed 100 billion transactions during 2014 with a total volume of US$6.8 trillion.

Stored-value card

A stored-value card (SVC) is a payment card with a monetary value stored on the card itself, not in an external account maintained by a financial institution. This means no network access is required by the payment collection terminals as funds can be withdrawn and deposited straight from the card. Like cash, payment cards can be used anonymously as the person holding the card can use the funds. They are an electronic development of token coins and are typically used in low-value payment systems or where network access is difficult or expensive to implement, such as parking machines, public transport systems, closed payment systems in locations such as ships or within companies.

Mastercard American multinational financial services corporation

Mastercard Incorporated is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in the Mastercard International Global Headquarters in Purchase, New York, United States. The Global Operations Headquarters is located in O'Fallon, Missouri, United States, a municipality of St. Charles County, Missouri. Throughout the world, its principal business is to process payments between the banks of merchants and the card-issuing banks or credit unions of the purchasers who use the "Mastercard" brand debit, credit and prepaid cards to make purchases. Mastercard Worldwide has been a publicly traded company since 2006. Prior to its initial public offering, Mastercard Worldwide was a cooperative owned by the more than 25,000 financial institutions that issue its branded cards.

Near-field communication Radio communication established between devices by bringing them into proximity

Near-Field-Communication (NFC) is a set of communication protocols for communication between two electronic devices over a distance of 4 cm or less. NFC offers a low-speed connection with simple setup that can be used to bootstrap more-capable wireless connections.

Maestro (debit card)

Maestro is a brand of debit cards and prepaid cards owned by Mastercard that was introduced in 1991. Maestro debit cards are obtained from associate banks and are linked to the cardholder's current account while prepaid cards do not require a bank account to operate. Maestro cards can be used at point of sale (POS) and ATMs. Payments are made by swiping cards through the payment terminal, insertion into a chip and PIN device or by a contactless reader. The payment is authorized by the card issuer to ensure that the cardholder has sufficient funds in their account to make the purchase. The cardholder then confirms the payment by either signing the sales receipt or entering their 4- to 6-digit PIN, except with contactless transactions below a specified amount for which no further verification is required.

Payment card Card issued by a financial institution that can be used to make a payment

Payment cards are part of a payment system issued by financial institutions, such as a bank, to a customer that enables its owner to access the funds in the customer's designated bank accounts, or through a credit account and make payments by electronic funds transfer and access automated teller machines (ATMs). Such cards are known by a variety of names including bank cards, ATM cards, MAC, client cards, key cards or cash cards.

Contactless smart card

A contactless smart card is a contactless credential whose dimensions are credit-card size. Its embedded integrated circuits can store data and communicate with a terminal via NFC. Commonplace uses include transit tickets, bank cards and passports.

NETS (company)

Network for Electronic Transfers or more commonly known as NETS; is a Singaporean electronic payment service provider founded in 1985 by a consortium of local banks to establish the debit network and drive the adoption of electronic payments in Singapore. It is owned by DBS Bank, OCBC Bank and United Overseas Bank (UOB).

Contactless payment

Contactless payment systems are credit cards and debit cards, key fobs, smart cards, or other devices, including smartphones and other mobile devices, that use radio-frequency identification (RFID) or near field communication for making secure payments. The embedded integrated circuit chip and antenna enable consumers to wave their card, fob, or handheld device over a reader at the point of sale terminal. Contactless payments are made in close physical proximity, unlike mobile payments which use broad-area cellular or WiFi networks and do not involve close physical proximity.

Green Dot Corporation American issuer of prepaid debit cards

The Green Dot Corporation is an American financial technology and bank holding company headquartered in Pasadena, California. It is the world's largest prepaid debit card company by market capitalization. Green Dot is also a payments platform company and is the technology platform used by Apple Pay Cash, Uber, and Intuit. The company was founded in 1999 by Steve Streit as a prepaid debit card for teenagers to shop online. In 2001, the company pivoted to serving the "unbanked" and "underbanked" communities. In 2010, Green Dot Corporation went public with a valuation of $2 billion. Since its inception, Green Dot has acquired a number of companies in the mobile, financial, and tax industries including Loopt, AccountNow, AchieveCard, UniRush Financial Services, and Santa Barbara Tax Products Group.

The National Payments Corporation of India is an umbrella organisation for operating retail payments and settlement systems in India.

Debit Mastercard

The Debit Mastercard is a debit card. It uses the same systems as the standard Mastercard credit card but does not use a line of credit to the customer, instead relying on funds that the customer has in their bank account.

RuPay is a international card payment service conceived and launched by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) on 26 March 2012. It was created to fulfil the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) vision of establishing a domestic, open and multilateral system of payments.

RFID skimming is a method to unlawfully obtain someone's payment card information.

Carta Worldwide

Carta Worldwide is a Canadian software company that offers digital transaction processing, specializing in mobile and prepaid transactions. In addition to their Canadian headquarters, Carta has offices in London, Dubai, San Francisco and Casablanca. Carta operates internationally, providing financial technology and mobile payment software.

Apple Pay Mobile payment and digital wallet service

Apple Pay is a mobile payment and digital wallet service by Apple Inc. that allows users to make payments in person, in iOS apps, and on the web using Safari. It is supported on the iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, and Mac. It digitizes and can replace a credit or debit card chip and PIN transaction at a contactless-capable point-of-sale terminal. It does not require Apple Pay-specific contactless payment terminals; it works with any merchant that accepts contactless payments. It adds two-factor authentication via Touch ID, Face ID, PIN, or passcode. Devices wirelessly communicate with point of sale systems using near field communication (NFC), with an embedded secure element (eSE) to securely store payment data and perform cryptographic functions, and Apple's Touch ID and Face ID for biometric authentication.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Ultra-rock-tri. "Nathan VITAband ID Band at". Rei.com. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  2. 1 2 "VITAband Holds Emergency Medical Info, Visa RFID Credit Card for Joggers". Lifehacker.com. 2011-09-22.
  3. 1 2 "Convenient cash + safety with VITAband … sweet! - Family Health Guy - Site Home - MSDN Blogs". Blogs.msdn.com. 2011-11-17.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Vitaband « Not Fast But Not Last". Notfastbutnotlast.com. 2012-02-27. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  5. 1 2 "WIRED Store". Store.wired.com. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  6. Austin (2011-10-21). "enjoy the ride: Product Review: Vitaband". Enjoytheridetri.blogspot.com.[ dead link ]
  7. 1 2 "VITAband". CoolBusinessIdeas.com. 2009-07-31. Archived from the original on October 10, 2009.
  8. 1 2 3 "Detailed Review of VITAband". TriBomb. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  9. 1 2 3 "VITAband is a cash/ID combo you wear on your wrist". Gizmag.com. 2012-02-06.
  10. "VITAband". VITAband. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  11. 1 2 "Combine Medical Alerts, Cashless Payment with VITAband". TechNewsDaily.com. 2012-02-17.
  12. Steve Casimiro (2011-09-21). "Fresh Goods: VITAband Emergency Bracelet (and Cash)". Adventure-journal.com.