System for Incentive Eligibility and Validation for Transport Demand Management (TDM) programs

• US 20190318376A1
• Filed: 04/11/2018
• Published: 10/17/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/2017
• Status: Active Application

• Current Assignee: Rideflag Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Rideflag Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Papineau, Michael, Feltham, Mark
• Application Number:
  US15/950,559
• Publication Number:
  US 20190318376A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/51 Relative positioning
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0295 Proximity-based methods, e.g. position inferred from reception of particular signals
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0226 Incentive systems for frequent usage, e.g. frequent flyer miles programs or point systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

The present invention is a method and system to confirm commuter eligibility for municipal transportation incentives. In an embodiment the present invention uses a Reward Threshold in combination with an API-bearing mobile device to create and send positional, temporal, and identifying information to a central Server. The Server maintains a record of information received and uses said information to apportion and track progress toward municipal transportation incentives. Upon a user'"'"'s accumulation of a pre-authorized number, type, or kind of awards, the Server determines a user'"'"'s having qualified for one or more rewards and/or incentives and enables redemption thereof.

Claims

1. A method for confirming and incentivizing commuter behavior, comprising:

communicating to a server proximity confirmation of one or more mobile devices to one or more reward thresholds;

communicating to the server unique location information of the one or more reward thresholds;

maintaining a record of reward threshold communication;

calculating reward eligibility based upon a supplied algorithm; and

communicating calculated reward via a user interface.

2. The method of claim 1 where the mobile devices include any device equipped with a radio frequency (RF) transmitter module.

3. The method of claim 1 where the proximity confirmation is determined wholly or in part by application of geo-fencing, GPS validation, sensor validation, stand-alone beacons, custom signals such as beacon to phone signaling, and mobile device Bluetooth beacons, whether applied singly or in combination.

4. The method of claim 1 where communications to mobile devices are received through a mobile application.

5. The method of claim 1 where a user may accumulate multiple rewards.

6. The method of claim 1 where reward eligibility may be accurately calculated regardless of a user'"'"'s mode of transportation.

7. A system of verifying and incentivizing commuter behavior, comprising:

a user interface;

one or more mobile devices;

one or more reward thresholds;

a server having a processor in wireless communication with one or more mobile devices and one or more reward thresholds;

the one or more reward thresholds communicating proximity confirmation of the one or more mobile devices to the server;

the one or more reward thresholds communicating unique location information to the server;

maintaining a record of reward threshold communication;

calculating reward eligibility based upon a supplied algorithm; and

communicating calculated reward via the user interface.

8. The system of claim 7 where the mobile devices include any device equipped with a radio frequency (RF) transmitter module.

9. The system of claim 7 where the proximity confirmation is determined wholly or in part by application of geo-fencing, GPS validation, sensor validation, stand-alone beacons, custom signals such as beacon to phone signaling, and mobile device Bluetooth beacons, whether applied singly or in combination.

10. The system of claim 7 where the user interface is a mobile application.

11. The method of claim 7 where a user may accumulate multiple rewards.

12. The method of claim 7 where reward eligibility may be accurately calculated regardless of a user'"'"'s mode of transportation.