Vehicle sharing system

• US 6,185,487 B1
• Filed: 04/27/1999
• Issued: 02/06/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Nakai, Tomoaki, Kondo, Shugo, Asakura, Suguru
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hernandez, Olga
• Application Number:
  US09/300,390
• Time in Patent Office: 651 Days
• Field of Search: 701/22, 701/30, 701/1, 701/123, 701/200, 701/29
• US Class Current: 701/22
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/62 Vehicle position
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/305 Communication interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/65 involving identification of vehicles or their battery types
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/67 Controlling two or more charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/102 a signal being sent to a remote location, e.g. a radio signal being transmitted to a police station, a security company or the owner
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/20 Means to switch the anti-theft system on or off
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/2081 combined with personal settings of other vehicle devices, e.g. mirrors, seats, steering wheels
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/127 Shopping or accessing services according to a time-limitation
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/00 Arrangements or apparatus for collecting fares, tolls or entrance fees at one or more control points handling coins or valuable papers, e.g. banknotes, G07D; apparatus for vending or hiring articles or services activated by coins, credit cards, paper currency or the like G07F7/00, G07F17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0014 for vending, access and use of specific services not covered anywhere else in G07F17/00 meter-controlled dispensing of liquid, gas or electricity G07F15/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/72 Electric energy management in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/167 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for supporting the interoperability of electric or hybrid vehicles, i.e. smartgrids as interface for battery charging of electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 30/14 Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

If an IC card unit detects when an inherent IC card is inserted in an IC card slot, then the IC card unit outputs a signal to a vehicle control unit to inhibit a vehicle from being automatically driven. If the IC card unit detects when no inherent IC card is inserted in the IC card slot, then the IC card unit outputs a signal to the vehicle control unit to permit a vehicle to be automatically driven upon elapse of a predetermined period of time.

Claims

1. A vehicle sharing system comprising:

a plurality of shared vehicles;

a standby station for keeping said shared vehicles;

operating means for performing a lending process for the vehicles;

a card key for storing management information for managing lending of a vehicle;

automatic driving means for automatically driving the vehicle between said standby station and a position where a user gets on and off the vehicle;

management information reading means mounted on said vehicle for reading said management information stored in said card key when the card key is inserted in said management information reading means; and

automatic driving inhibiting means for inhibiting said automatic driving means from operating while the card key is being inserted in said management information reading means.

2. A vehicle sharing system according to claim 1, wherein said card key stores inherent identification data as said management information, and functions as a key to the vehicle which corresponds to said inherent identification data.

3. A vehicle sharing system according to claim 1, wherein said automatic driving means comprises means for detecting a planned route in said standby station and driving said vehicle along the detected planned route.

4. A vehicle sharing system according to claim 1, further comprising a navigation unit mounted on said vehicle for storing map information, wherein said automatic driving means comprises means for driving said vehicle according to the stored map information.

5. A vehicle sharing system according to claim 1, wherein said automatic driving inhibiting means comprises means for canceling inhibition of operation of said automatic driving means a predetermined period of time after said card key is detected as being not inserted in said management information reading means.

6. A vehicle sharing system according to claim 1, wherein said automatic driving inhibiting means comprises means for detecting when the vehicle is returned based on an operation performed on said operating means by said user, and then canceling inhibition of operation of said automatic driving means.