Topic: Bitcoin at the Pump, ideas (Read 2456 times)

Surely in the actual store of a gas station there is some kind of way of being able to gain an internet connection? Couldn't gas stations have something actually in the store where you have to go through the store clerk to pay for your gas using bitcoins? Would definitely be ideal for those of who whom want to use bitcoins for uses like this.

I don't know if such ways are available currently but it can surely happen in future..if you are a regular customer..

I would think this would no be compliant with VISA/MC rules. A merchant must keep data encrypted that contains the credit card information, and if data is sent from the pump to inside the store then it would either need to be unencrypted during this time or something inside the store must be able to decrypt the data. I think having some kind of device that can decrypt any CC data (the POS would likely need to be replaced often) would be a security risk. 

I wish I could pay for the gas with BTC, nice idea.

It won't take forever for btc to be accepted, because world is progressing too fast since last 25 years or so.

It might take time for btc to be accepted in remote pump locations.

The process is definitely great.But off course the problem is you would need an internet connection to keep the price updated otherwise it is difficult to count how many liters of gas just convert into btc equivalent.

Just do what we do best. Stay united. Bitcoin rules

No the dispenser does not do any transactions of any kind. The POS handles all the credit/debit transactions. All the card reader does is just that...it reads the card, sends the data to the POS and then waits for authorization.

I think a lot of pumps have internet access... I am assuming that is how you are able to currently stick your credit/debit card directly into the pump machine (rather than having to walk into the gas station itself).

I'm sure a one of those bitcoin debit cards would solve this problem and allow people to purchase gas with BTC, but getting a Gasoline Company to accept BTC themselves is a different beast entirely...

It wouldn't even need to be this complicated. The gas station could just accept bitcoin payments the same way that coffee shops, bars and restaurants accept bitcoin in physical locations today. If BTC payment at the pump is not an option then the clerk could show a customer a QR code that the customer would send BTC to, and upon receipt of a TX with an appropriate TX fee the clerk could authorize the US dollar equivalent worth of gas to be disbursed. 

That's a good idea, but the confirmation wait time would be tremendous if they were playing it safe. 10 minutes is quite the length of time to be standing around for especially if you're in a hurry. I think Bitcoin credit cards are going to be the way to solve this, though, as they don't rely on the customer being legitimate.

I've read about some gas stations already accepting Bitcoins.
Never cared about getting into what POS system they use to accept BTC though.

http://www.coindesk.com/pump-gas-for-bitcoin-in-the-us/

http://www.kunc.org/post/welcome-colorado-gas-station-where-you-can-fill-your-tank-bitcoins

http://bitcoinmalaysia.com/2014/08/19/1st-petrol-station-to-accept-bitcoin-btc-in-malaysia/

The pumps already have connectivity.

In order for the pump to "pull the bitcoins" afterwards it would need to know your private key, which is a big no-no. Honestly you don't have to get internet all the way out to the pump machines. Just have the cash register (which is usually a computer nowadays that has an ethernet connection for sales reporting purposes) connected to the internet and be aware of incoming bitcoin payments and to what wallet address (1 per pump). Upon you sending bitcoins to the wallet address the cash register turns the pump on (they already can do this) for the amount of dollars of bitcoins you sent them, done and done

Are you serious? There's internet access anywhere you can get a signal from a satellite. All the gas stations have to do is put the equipment to accept and transact payments.

QR code would make it very easy but it would be required.

I like your idea, such as coinbase offers a merchant app that will give you a QR then alert you once it has been payed.

Definitely! I figured this method would allow the internet connectivity to remain far enough removed from the actual pump, that the effectiveness would be minimal.  However - what would stop anyone from slapping their own QR code overtop the original?


That's really awesome, it definitely would be a minimal changeover IMO.


Yeah, but I'm not worried about driving the price of bitcoin up, since I'm a daily currency styled user, the actual price per bitcoin hardly means anything to me, whether it's at $5 per or $1000 per, I just changeover the amount I need in order to pay for the transaction, or get paid for the transaction.  The individual price is negligible as far as I can tell.  While it would be nice for the amount of BTC i am holding to go up in value, I typically never hold more than 1 BTC at a time, meaning my gains would be minimal.


That would definitely be great, and truly the same process could be applied at a self-checkout aisle.  The only reason I came up with this is because on the other thread, they were discussing how a pay at the pump solution would increase adoption since most people don't want to go inside and talk to the clerk...many of us have social anxiety you know! 

10 cents is lucky...most of the stations here in WA only make about 5 cents. Plus gas is the lowest money making item a store sells. The fuel is just an added convenience. Cigarettes and beer the 1 and 2 money making items. I used to work on Gilbarco and Tokheim/GASBOY (and there are not called pumps anymore as they do not actually "pump", but "dispense" fuel...as why they are now called dispensers) dispensers and Gilbarco used to have color displays on the CRINDS. It also had the ability to offer internet via the G-Site but it really never took off. The RUBY console which is made by Verifone is a generic console. It has proprietary software dependent to the station branding (TEXACO, SHELL, CONOCO...etc) but you can load it with generic software.

QR displays and NFC would be great ways to initiate a bitcoin transaction at the dispenser. Too bad newer models with those capabilities are very rare to find in the wild. In US markets anyway. Perhaps with all the changes we'll no doubt see with the conversion to EMV will be a catalyst for dispenser upgrades across the nation.

There are pumps in service that are intelligent enough to accept QR codes (like Dresser Wayne & Gilbarco)... Mobile uses this type of technology for their speed pass system... several brands offer loyalty programs that are fairly sophisticated...there are also pumps that can be retrofitted with a side box for passing payment codes to the POS system.
Besides the cost and durability challenges (would you stick a computer outside in minus 20 temp & freezing rain?) you have to deal with proprietary POS systems (the largest being RUBY)... these systems have to be able to map all types of transactions that are unique to the petroleum industry (ie underground fuel storage inventories, fuel shrink, agriculture tax discounts etc).... hence very little competition.
You simply can not afford to have delays at the pump with 4 cars stacked at each island.
If the demand is large enough it will force their hand... it took 8 years for Ruby to come out with an upgraded model...
I wouldn't count on the Petroleum fat cats to be early adapters.
The best way to start is to bypass the pump and go inside for your payment (they also accept cc inside)... then you can have a small device attached to a COM port and map the transaction as a separate payment key
btw, never blame a convenience store for the cost of gas... it is so competitive that they are lucky if they make 10 cents on a gallon (after numerous taxes)