Information system for golf carts and system for calculation of use and/or acquisition of use data

• US 6,230,081 B1
• Filed: 08/07/1998
• Issued: 05/08/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 02/15/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Christian Albertshofer
• Original Assignee: Christian Albertshofer
• Inventors: Albertshofer, Christian
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Beaulieu, Yonel
• Application Number:
  US09/125,063
• Time in Patent Office: 1,005 Days
• Field of Search: 701/1, 340/825.31, 340/825.34, 340/991, 340/992, 235/375, 235/378, 235/380, 235/382, 235/382.5, 235/435, 705/50, 705/52, 705/30, 705/32
• US Class Current: 701/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2102/32 Golf
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/13 Relative positions
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/20 Distances or displacements
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/305 Remote servicing
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 55/60 Wheeled carriers specially adapted for golf bags
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 55/61 motorised
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 22/004 for golf carts
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1091 Recording time for administrative or management purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/363 with the personal data of a user
• 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: G07C 5/0858 wherein the data carrier is removable
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0042 for hiring of objects
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0866 by active credit-cards adapted therefor G07F7/1008 takes precedence

Abstract

The invention concerns an information system for displaying in a vehicle used to transport at least one person playing golf. This system comprises a base station which is located in the area of a club or a course and which has a control and a memory for the acquisition of travel data and other information; a control unit arranged in the vehicle which has at least a first control logic for processing and displaying the travel data and a second control logic for processing and displaying further information on a graphic display arranged in the vehicle; an interface provided at both the base station and the vehicle for the transmission of at least travel data and further information between the base station and the control unit, where the control unit compares the travel data transmitted and/or generated by the operation of the vehicle with predetermined reference values and, depending on the result of the comparison, stores/changes and/or displays actual travel data on the display and/or directly affects the operation of the vehicle, and the second control logic displays the additional information on the graphic display depending on the travel data and/or the operating state of the vehicle. The invention also concerns a chip-card based accounting system for driven machines and vehicles, especially golf carts.

Claims

1. A system for acquiring usage data relating to an item of powered equipment provided to a user by an equipment provider, comprising:

a chip card to be issued to a user of the item of powered equipment,

a base station in the area of the equipment provider, said base station including a memory for storing usage data and a read means for reading data from said chip card,

a control unit provided on the item of powered equipment for acquiring usage data, and

a write means provided on said item of powered equipment for writing usage data acquired by the control unit to said chip card,

and wherein the control unit controls the write means to write usage data generated during operation of the item of powered equipment to the chip card for reading from the chip card by the read means at the base station.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the chip card stores authenticating data, the write means provided on said item of powered equipment is a read/write means for reading the authenticating data from the chip card, and the control unit stores validating data and includes a means for comparing the authenticating data with the validating data and releasing the item of powered equipment for operation by the user only in the event that the comparison returns a predetermined result.

3. A system according to claim 2, wherein the chip card includes a storage location for validating data, and the read means at the base station is a read/write means for writing validating data to the chip card, for transferring the validating data from the base station to the item of powered equipment.

4. A system according to claim 1, wherein the item of powered equipment includes a clock connected to said control unit for generating usage data.

5. A system according to claim 4, wherein the control unit includes a means for generating a set of data including duration of usage.

6. A system according to claim 5, wherein the write means provided on the item of powered equipment is a read/write means and the control unit converts the set of data into accounting data and writes the accounting data to a storage location of the chip card.

7. A system according to claim 5, wherein the write means provided on the item of powered equipment is a read/write means and the control unit converts the set of data into accounting data and combines the accounting data with accounting data previously stored at a storage location of the chip card.

8. A system according to claim 5, wherein the write means provided on the item of powered equipment is a read/write means, and the control unit stores the set of data on the chip card.

9. A system according to claim 1, wherein the item of powered equipment includes a power sensing means for generating usage data, the power sensing means being connected to the control unit whereby the usage data can be acquired.

10. A system according to claim 1, wherein the item of powered equipment includes a means for sensing distance traveled, the sensing means being connected to the control unit for acquiring usage data.

11. A system according to claim 1, including a central server and wherein the base station is connected via an interface to a data transfer network for transferring data between the central server and the base station.

12. A system according to claim 1, wherein the item of powered equipment includes sensors for sensing usage of the equipment and generating usage data to be acquired by the control unit.

13. A system according to claim 12, wherein the sensors sense one or more of battery voltage, current flow, fuel level, distance traveled, direction of travel and temperature of drive components.

14. A system according to claim 1, wherein the item of powered equipment is a powered golfing vehicle and the base station is located in a clubhouse of a golf course.

15. A system according to claim 1, wherein the write means provided on said item of powered equipment is a read/write means and the control unit includes a memory which stores reference data and the read/write means reads data from the chip card, compares the data read from the chip card with the reference data and activates said item of powered equipment if the comparison returns a predetermined result.

16. A system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit includes a means for encoding the usage data and the write means writes the usage data in encoded form to said chip card.

17. A system according to claim 1, wherein said chip card includes a storage location for the specific item of powered equipment.

18. A system according to claim 1, for providing accounting data to the base station, and wherein the chip card stores accounting data specific to the user of the item of powered equipment.

19. A system according to claim 18, wherein the write means provided on the item of powered equipment writes accounting data specific to said item of powered equipment to said chip card.

20. A method of acquiring usage data relating to an item of powered equipment provided to a user by an equipment provider, there being a base station in the area of the equipment provider, said method comprising:

issuing a chip card to the user of the item of powered equipment,

providing the item of powered equipment with a control unit for acquiring usage data and a write means for writing usage data acquired by the control unit to the chip card,

employing the control unit to control the write means to write usage data generated during operation of the item of powered equipment to the chip card, and

providing said base station with a memory for storing usage data and a read means for reading data from the chip card.

21. A method according to claim 20, wherein the chip card stores authenticating data, the write means on the item of powered equipment is a read/write means, and the control unit stores validating data, and the method further comprises employing the read/write means to read the authenticating data from the chip card, comparing the authenticating data with the validating data, and releasing the item of powered equipment for operation by the user only in the event that the comparison returns a predetermined result.

22. A method according to claim 20, comprising generating data including duration of usage and writing the data to the chip card.

23. A method according to claim 20, wherein the base station is connected via an interface to a data transfer network and the method comprises transferring data between the base station and a central server over the data transfer network.