Device and system for toll payment

• US 20050168351A1
• Filed: 12/29/2004
• Published: 08/04/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/26/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Saze, Hiroki, Isobe, Norihiro
• Granted Patent: US 7,250,876 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/928
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
• 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 1/0967 Systems involving transmission of highway information, e.g. weather, speed limits transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• 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 navigation device stores road data that includes positions of toll roads where payback of a part of a toll is provided based on a used distance of each of the toll roads. The navigation device computes a traveled distance of the relevant toll road to thereby compute the used distance of the toll road based on the computed traveled distance. Thus, the used distance of a toll road can be accurately computed, even when a vehicle travels a loop line within the toll road by multiple circles. Information that relates to the payback and includes the used distance of the toll road is then transmitted to a center to thereby receive a partial payback of the toll.

Claims

1. A toll payment device that is provided in a vehicle for paying a toll at an electronic toll collection gate that the vehicle passes when using a toll road, and is able to receive a partial payback of the paid toll based on a used distance that is used on the toll road, the toll payment device comprising:

an in-vehicle unit that automatically pays a toll by communications with a roadside unit disposed at the electronic toll collection gate;

a road data storing unit that stores road data including position information of the toll road;

a position detector that detects a current position of the vehicle;

a used-distance information generating unit that generates used-distance information relating to a used distance of the toll road that the vehicle uses, based on the detected current position and the stored road data; and

a transmitting unit that transmits the generated used-distance information.

2. The toll payment device of claim 1,

wherein the road data storing unit, the position detector, the used-distance information generating unit, and the transmitting unit are included in a navigation device.

3. The toll payment device of claim 1, further comprising:

a vehicle-state detecting unit that detects a vehicle state of at least one of a speed, an angular speed, and an acceleration; and

an entrance and exit designating unit that designates an entrance and an exit where the vehicle starts and ends a use of the toll road, respectively, based on at least one of the detected vehicle state and passing-confirmation information that is outwardly transmitted by the in-vehicle unit when the vehicle passes an electronic toll collection gate,

wherein the used-distance information generating unit generates the used-distance information relating to a used distance used from the designated entrance to the designated exit.

4. The toll payment device of claim 3,

wherein the road data storing unit stores the road data including a position and a length of each of a plurality of links included in the toll road,

wherein the used-distance information generating unit generates used-distance information relating to a total length of links included from the designated entrance to the designated exit.

5. The toll payment device of claim 3, further comprising:

a traveled-distance detecting unit that detects a traveled distance of the vehicle,

wherein the used-distance information generating unit generates used-distance information relating to a traveled distance detected from the designated entrance to the designated exit.

6. The toll payment device of claim 3, further comprising:

a traveled-track storing unit that stores a traveled track of the vehicle based on the a detection result by the position detector,

wherein the road data storing unit stores the road data including a position and a length of each of a plurality of links included in the toll road, and

wherein the used-distance information generating unit generates used-distance information based on an entire traveled track included in the stored traveled track from the designated entrance to the designated exit and road data corresponding to the entire traveled track included in the stored traveled track from the designated entrance to the designated exit.

7. The toll payment device of claim 3,

wherein, in a case where the in-vehicle unit outwardly does not transmit passing-confirmation information relating to passing an electronic toll collection gate corresponding to an exit of the toll road at a certain toll-road use occasion, the transmitting unit transmits used-distance information relating to a used distance of the toll road that the vehicle uses at the certain toll-road use occasion when a toll is paid by using the in-vehicle unit at a toll-road use occasion subsequent to the certain toll-road use occasion.

8. The toll payment device of claim 7, further comprising:

a determining unit that determines whether a part of the toll is paid back based on the generated used-distance information; and

a notifying unit that notifies of an effect based on a determination result by the determining unit,

wherein, in a case where the in-vehicle unit outwardly does not transmit passing-confirmation information relating to passing an electronic toll collection gate corresponding to an exit of the toll road at a certain toll-road use occasion though a part of the toll is determined to be paid back, the notifying unit notifies an effect that a payback should be received at a toll-road use occasion subsequent to the certain toll-road use occasion.

9. The toll payment device of claim 3,

wherein the transmitting unit transmits the used-distance information relating to the used distance of the toll road, in a case where the in-vehicle unit outwardly transmits passing-confirmation information relating to passing an electronic toll collection gate corresponding to an exit of the toll road.

10. The toll payment device of claim 9, further comprising:

a determining unit that determines whether a part of the toll is paid back based on the generated used-distance information; and

a notifying unit that notifies of an effect based on a determination result by the determining unit,

wherein the notifying unit notifies an effect that a payback should be received, in a case where the in-vehicle unit outwardly transmits passing-confirmation information relating to passing an electronic toll collection gate corresponding to an exit of the toll road while a part of the toll is determined to be paid back.

11. The toll payment device of claim 3,

wherein the transmitting unit transmits to a roadside unit disposed at the electronic toll collection gate via the in-vehicle unit route information including the generated used-distance information, the designated entrance, and the designated exit.

12. The toll payment device of claim 11, further comprising:

a use-frequency storing unit that stores use-frequency information relating to a use frequency with which the vehicle uses the toll road,

wherein the transmitting unit transmits the use-frequency information in addition to the route information.

13. The toll payment device of claim 11,

wherein the road data storing unit, the position detector, the used-distance information generating unit, and the transmitting unit are included in an associated navigation device that is associated with a function included in the in-vehicle unit, and

wherein the transmitting unit transmits information indicating that the associated navigation device is present, in addition to the route information.

14. A toll payment system for a vehicle executing, at an electronic toll collection gate that the vehicle passes when using a toll road, a toll payment for paying a toll for the toll road where a payback of a part of the paid toll is able to be received based on a used distance that is used on the toll road, the toll payment system comprising:

a toll payment device that is provided in the vehicle and includes

an in-vehicle unit that automatically pays a toll by communications with a roadside unit disposed at the electronic toll collection gate and outwardly transmits passing-confirmation information when the vehicle passes an electronic toll collection gate,

a road data storing unit that stores road data including position information of the toll road,

a position detector that detects a current position of the vehicle,

a vehicle-state detecting unit that detects a vehicle state of at least one of a speed, an angular speed, and an acceleration,

an entrance and exit designating unit that designates an entrance and an exit where the vehicle starts and ends a use of the toll road, respectively, based on at least one of the detected vehicle state and the passing-confirmation information that is outwardly transmitted by the in-vehicle unit,

a used-distance information generating unit that generates used-distance information relating to a used distance of the toll road that the vehicle uses from the designated entrance to the designated exit, based on the detected current position and the stored road data, and

a transmitting unit that transmits the generated used-distance information; and

a center that includes a processing unit that interfaces with the roadside unit and executes via the roadside unit a process relating to the payback when the used-distance information is received via the roadside unit in addition to a process relating to the toll payment.

15. A toll payment system of claim 14,

wherein, in a case where the in-vehicle unit outwardly does not transmit passing-confirmation information relating to passing an electronic toll collection gate corresponding to an exit of the toll road at a certain toll-road use occasion, the transmitting unit transmits used-distance information relating to a used distance of the toll road that the vehicle uses at the certain toll-road use occasion when a toll is paid by using the in-vehicle unit at a toll-road use occasion subsequent to the certain toll-road use occasion.

16. A toll payment system of claim 14,

wherein the transmitting unit transmits the used-distance information relating to the used distance of the toll road, in a case where the in-vehicle unit outwardly transmits passing-confirmation information relating to passing an electronic toll collection gate corresponding to an exit of the toll road.

17. A toll payment system of claim 14,

wherein the transmitting unit transmits to a roadside unit disposed at the electronic toll collection gate via the in-vehicle unit route information including the generated used-distance information, the designated entrance, and the designated exit.

18. A toll payment system of claim 17,

wherein the toll payment device further includes a use-frequency storing unit that stores use-frequency information relating to a use frequency with which the vehicle uses the toll road,

wherein the transmitting unit transmits the use-frequency information in addition to the route information, and

wherein, when the processing unit included in the center receives the use-frequency information via the roadside unit and a use frequency indicated by the received use-frequency information is a given frequency or more, the processing unit executes a discount from the toll.

19. A toll payment system of claim 17,

wherein the road data storing unit, the position detector, the used-distance information generating unit, and the transmitting unit are included in an associated navigation device that is associated with a function included in the in-vehicle unit,

wherein the transmitting unit transmits certain information indicating that the associated navigation device is present, in addition to the route information, and

wherein, when the processing unit included in the center received the certain information, the processing unit increases payback.