SYSTEM, METHOD AND COMPUTER READABLE MEDIUM FOR BILLING BASED ON A DURATION OF A SERVICE PERIOD

• US 20090222331A1
• Filed: 05/08/2009
• Published: 09/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/13/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: American Traffic Solutions Consolidated LLC
• Original Assignee: Rent A Toll Ltd
• Inventors: Lemon, Debbie, Robinson, Benjamin P., Balachandran, Sarath K.
• Granted Patent: US 8,374,909 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/13
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/14 specially adapted for billing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/28 Pre-payment schemes, e.g. "pay before"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0284 Time or distance, e.g. usage of parking meters or taximeters
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/02 taking into account a variable factor such as distance or time, e.g. for passenger transport, parking systems or car rental systems G07B15/06 takes precedence; taximeters G07B13/00; parking meters per se G07F17/24; car rental systems per se G07B15/00

Abstract

A system, method, and computer readable medium for billing based on a duration of a service period, comprises sending fleet data from a third party entity to a toll authority via a toll rental entity, matching toll data with the fleet data by the toll authority, if the toll data matches the fleet data: charging an account by the toll authority and sending the matched data to the toll rental entity, determining, by the toll rental entity, if the sent matched data is related to an opt-in for duration based tolling or an opt-out for duration based tolling, if the sent matched data is related to an opt-in for duration based tolling, charging the third party entity for the duration based tolling, and if the sent matched data is related to an opt-out for duration based tolling, applying at least one of: a fee for the duration based tolling, a toll usage amount, a service fee for the duration based tolling, and a service fee for the toll usage.

Claims

1. A system for billing based on a duration of a service period, comprising:

a toll authority;

a toll rental entity; and

wherein the toll rental entity sends a payment to the toll authority irrespective of toll usage.

2. A computer readable medium comprising instructions for:

capturing toll usage;

validating the toll usage;

sending the validated toll usage; and

receiving a payment based on the validated toll usage for an opt-out service period related to a rented transport.

3. The computer readable medium of claim 2 comprising instructions for receiving the validated toll usage for the opt-out service period and sending customer information related to the opt-out service period.

4. The computer readable medium of claim 3 comprising instructions for charging a customer based on the customer information.