ProjectProposal-ChenChang
From CS160 User Interfaces Fa06
Contents |
Digital Banking Background:
Digital banking has never been heard of in terms of withdrawing cash or depositing a check INSIDE a physical bank location. Up until now, the only banking available digitally has been ATMs or through online banking with a computer which constitutes viewing account balances, making balance transfers, paying bills, and viewing account activity archived up to half a year. Currently at the local bank, human tellers provide customers with all kinds of service. The Anoto digital pen can make a stride forward towards digital banking while still preserving the tradition of using pen and paper that all humans are accustomed to.
Target User Group:
Any UC Berkeley students or any general public with a bank (Bank of America on Telegraph/Durant) savings and/or checking account. Anyone in a rush or has limited time and patience would be a good test to see how fast they can get in and out of the bank. Any bank customer stopping by the local bank looking to make a deposit or withdrawal at the teller rather than through the ATM will also be applicable. No technical expertise is required, the customer will be able to use the Anoto pen like a regular pen and the deposit/withdrawal forms just like ordinary paper.
Problem Description:
Have you ever walked into your local bank needing to deposit a check and withdraw some cash only to see a long winding line of customers in front of you? This is a common problem in reality, during busy hours the ratio of number of tellers to number of customers waiting to be assisted is a nightmare. Don't fret because this is where the Anoto digital pen and paper come into play to provide a much faster "self-service" solution rather than wait for a teller.
Problem Context and Forces:
The locations of all local banks are stationary and each are equipped with multiple computer terminals. Having a computer terminal receive the bluetooth signal broadcast from the Anoto digital pen and then display it on a large monitor or plasma tv as a digital receipt is definitely possible. Anoto pens do cost a budget but bank customers will not have to purchase them by any means as they will be available to use on the spot at the location. A computer or tablet pc is not necessary in this case because it will be something new customers have to adapt to in order to deposit or withdraw some money, add the fact that it will drive up space limitations and costs out the roof. Banking inside at a physical banking location has its advantages while the bank is open during daytime hours over the ATM which is open 24/7 because it is much safer and more secure (less chance of getting robbed while taking out cash, no risk of getting a check deposit lost). Overall banking experience will be exactly the same as before, the customer doesn't need to learn anything new nor make any adaptations as its still your good ol' pen and paper.
Solution and Solution Sketch:
The proposed solution is that Anoto digital pens will give customers a digital banking experience that eliminates waiting in line for tellers. The process is faster and the customer can self serve himself/herself. Upon entering the bank, the customer goes up to the counter and takes a withdrawal or deposit form (printed on Anoto digital paper) and writes down the desired transaction with an Anoto digital pen also available at the counter (probably 15-20 of these will be provided maximum per location to accomodate for maximum busy hour traffic). The ideal bank will have replaced their teller stations with anoto pens and digital paper versions of withdrawal/deposit forms. While the customer is writing, bluetooth streaming is activated as all the pen strokes the customer makes are transferred to the nearby computer terminal which ends up serving as the digital version the bank retains. When the customer is done writing up a deposit form, he/she then grabs an envelope and puts the check(s) and/or cash to be deposited inside and writes his/her account number on the outside, then finally seals the envelope and drops it into the depository slot awaiting human verification of accurate figures written down vs amount actually deposited. Now that the customer is done with the transaction, he/she retains the deposit form just written as a receipt. The bank gets the digital version from the pen writing on the digital paper and will then post the digital version online so the customer can check online banking at leisure in case he/she loses the original. Since the digital paper is unique and has an identification number per sheet, the id could be recorded as the customer's transaction id. In this new banking implentation, the teller is only needed for verification purposes in the last stage before the transaction gets approved. However, it is a good idea to have at least one customer service representative working to be a physical person and answer any questions customers may have. With less tellers needed, bank costs of hiring and employment wages can be saved drastically as the price of one Anoto pen is far cheaper than an employee's daily salary (plus the pen is reusable over and over again without having to pay it more over time). A big lcd screen will display your digital deposit form on the spot for confirmation before you leave the computer terminal and bank.
Current Limitation: At the moment only "self service" deposits will work because withdrawals must be processed with the assistance of a teller to verify the account has enough balance before distributing the correct amount of cash in the desired denominations by the customer. However, having 1 or 2 tellers distributing cash should be enough per location, the customer would just bring his/her withdrawal receipt there to request cash. This is still improvement in speed than before because the customer receipt is instantaneous as the withdrawal form is written so all the teller has to do is verify bank balance before giving out the cash and subtracting the amount from the account.
