Dual toll system

• US 20040153401A1
• Filed: 12/12/2003
• Published: 08/05/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Gila, Janos, Konrad, Wolfgang
• Granted Patent: US 7,630,918 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0284 Time or distance, e.g. usage of parking meters or taximeters
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/063 using wireless information transmission between the vehicle and a fixed station identification of vehicles G08G
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles

Abstract

A charging device (BEV) on an vehicle (FAR), for a dual toll system (SYS), is capable of receiving positional data from a position determining system (PES), concerning the actual location of the vehicle (FAR) and to calculate location co-ordinates (OKO) for the vehicle (FAR). Said charging device (BEV) is further capable of calculating a characteristic signature (SIG) for the stretch of road (STR) travelled by the vehicle (FAR) by means of location co-ordinates (OKO) for the vehicle (FAR) and transmitting the same to an accounting centre (ABZ), outside the vehicle.

Claims

1. A toll system (SYS) having a position finding system (PES) for finding the position of a vehicle (FAR) by means of a vehicle toll payment apparatus (BE2) which has a receiving unit (EM2) which is designed to receive position data from the position finding system (PES) and transmit this position data to a controller (ST2) for the toll payment apparatus, which is designed to use the position data to determine current position coordinates (OKO) for the vehicle (FAR), and the toll payment apparatus (BE2) has a transmitting unit (SEN) which is designed to transmit data to a billing center (ABZ) which is external to the vehicle and has a receiving unit (EM3) which is designed to receive data from the toll payment apparatus (BE2) and pass it to a controller (ST3) in the billing center (ABZ), characterized in that the controller (ST2) for the toll payment apparatus (BE2) and/or the controller (ST3) in the billing center (ABZ) are designed to use the position coordinates to calculate a signature (SIG) which is characteristic of a route (STR) traveled, with the controller in the billing center (ABZ) being designed to use the signature to determine whether the route (STR) is subject to a toll fee, and with the controller (STE) furthermore being designed, for the situation where the route (STR) traveled is subject to a toll fee, to use a user authorization (BER) which is stored in a memory (SPR) to check whether the vehicle (FAR) is authorized to use this route (STR).

2. A vehicle toll payment apparatus (BE2) for a toll system (SYS) which has a receiving unit (EM2) which is designed to receive position data from a position finding system (PES) and to transmit this position data to a controller (ST2) which is designed to use the position data to determine current position coordinates (OKO) for the vehicle (FAR), and which toll payment apparatus (BE2) has a transmitting unit (SEN) which is designed to transmit data to the billing center (ABZ), characterized in that the controller (ST2) for the toll payment apparatus is designed to use the position coordinates (OKO) to calculate a signature (SIG) which is characteristic of a route (STR) traveled, and to transmit this to the transmitting unit (SEN).

3. The toll payment apparatus as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the controller (ST2) is designed to calculate the signature at time intervals (INT) which can be predetermined.

4. The toll payment apparatus as claimed in claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the position finding system (PES) is a satellite navigation system.

5. The toll payment apparatus as claimed in one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that the toll payment apparatus is designed to transmit the signature (SIG) to the billing center (ABZ) via a radio network (FUN).

6. The toll payment apparatus as claimed in one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that the toll payment apparatus is designed to receive position correction data (KOR) via the radio network (FUN) in order to determine the position coordinates (OKO).

7. A vehicle-external billing center (ABZ) for a toll system (SYS), which has a position finding system (PES) for finding the position of a vehicle (FAR) and has a vehicle toll payment apparatus (BE2), with the billing center (ABZ) having a receiving unit (EM3) which is designed to receive data from the toll payment apparatus (BE2), characterized in that the billing center (ABZ) has a controller (ST3) which is designed to use a signature (SIG) which is characteristic of a route (STR) over which the vehicle (FAR) has traveled to determine whether the route (STR) is subject to a toll fee, with the controller (STE) also being designed, for the situation where the route (STR) traveled is subject to a toll fee, to use a user authorization (BER), which is stored in a memory (SPR), to check whether the vehicle (FAR) is authorized to use this route (STR).

8. The billing center as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that the receiving unit (EM3) is designed to receive position coordinates for the vehicle (FAR) from the toll payment apparatus (BE2) and to pass them to the controller (ST3), which is designed to use the position coordinates (OKO) to calculate the signature (SIG) which is characteristic of the route (STR) that the vehicle (FAR) has traveled.

9. The billing center as claimed in claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the usage authorization (BER) is an account (KON) which is associated with the vehicle (FAR), and the controller (ST3) is designed to debit any toll fee that is incurred from the account (KON).