Electronic toll collection system adapted to plural types of protocols employed by various on-vehicle units

• US 7,349,669 B2
• Filed: 11/26/2002
• Issued: 03/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Toyama, Kazumasa
• Primary Examiner(s): Anderson; Matthew
• Assistant Examiner(s): Yun; Eugene
• Application Number:
  US10/304,002
• Publication Number:
  US 20030109223A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,946 Days
• Field of Search: 455/66.1, 455/405, 455/406, 455/407, 455/41.2, 455/41.3, 455/408, 455/575.9, 455/95, 455/96, 455/97, 455/98, 455/99, 455/344, 455/345, 455 301- 306, 340/905, 340/904, 340/928, 340/988
• US Class Current: 455/66.1
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/063 using wireless information transmission between the vehicle and a fixed station identification of vehicles G08G

Abstract

An electronic toll collection (ETC) system comprises an on-vehicle unit mounted on a vehicle and a stationary-station communication system. This communication system operates to perform communication for accounting processing toward the on-vehicle unit mounted on the vehicle that passes a predetermined communication area. The stationary-station communication system comprises a controller and an antenna unit. The controller includes a protocol controller configured to produce a protocol selection signal and a communication controller configured to control the communication based on the produced communication protocol selection signal. The antenna unit includes a modem unit configured to selectively have a plurality of types of modulation/demodulation techniques corresponding to a plurality of types of protocols for the communication and control means configured to selectively allow the modem unit to be switched into a particular modulation/demodulation technique specified by the protocol selection signal.

Claims

1. A stationary-station communication system for performing communication with a plurality of on-vehicle units mounted on a plurality of vehicles each passing through a predetermined communication area, each on-vehicle unit operating on one of a plurality of types of protocols for the communication, the communication being directed to predetermined processing, the system comprising:

an antenna unit including i) a modem unit configured to selectively perform a plurality of types of modulation/demodulation techniques respectively based on the plurality of types of protocols for the communication with each of the on-vehicle units, and ii) control means configured to allow the modem unit to perform, of the plurality of types of modulation/demodulation techniques, a specified modulation/demodulation technique based on, of the plurality of types of protocols, a protocol selectively specified by a protocol selection signal so that the antenna unit performs the communication with each of the on-vehicle units based on the specified protocol, when each of the plurality of vehicles is within the communication area, and

a protocol controller comprising;

first producing means for producing the protocol selection signal to cause the modem unit to cycle through the plurality of types of protocols over a predetermined period of time in at least one slot of the communication, such that the communication is performed in turn with a plurality of on-vehicle units,

determining means for determining two or more types of protocols employed by two or more of the plurality of on-vehicle units when two or more responses are received from the two or more of the plurality of on-vehicle units in response to the protocol selection signal produced by the first producing means, and

second producing means for producing the protocol selection signal to specify use of each of the two or more types of determined protocols in one or more time-division slots following the slot in which the determining means determines the two or more types of protocols, the second producing means producing the protocol selection signal until the predetermined processing for the two or more on-vehicle units that employ the determined two or more protocols are completed, respectively, the protocol selection signal produced by the second producing means enabling the control means of the antenna unit to perform the predetermined processing.

2. The stationary-station communication system of claim 1, wherein the antenna unit is configured to communicate with each of the on-vehicle units for performing accounting processing as the predetermined processing.

3. The stationary-station communication system of claim 2, wherein the modem unit is provided with a plurality of modem circuits performing the modulation/demodulation based on the plurality of types of protocols, respectively.

4. An electronic toll collection system comprising:

a plurality of on-vehicle units configured to be mounted on a plurality of vehicles; and

a stationary-station communication system performing communication with the on-vehicle units mounted on the vehicles passing thorough a predetermined communication area, each on-vehicle unit operating on one of plurality of types of protocols, the communication being for accounting processing, wherein

the stationary-station communication system comprises;

an antenna unit including i) a modem unit configured to selectively perform a plurality of types of modulation/demodulation techniques respectively based on the plurality of types of protocols for the communication with each of the on-vehicle units, and ii) control means configured to allow the modem unit to perform, of the plurality of types of modulation/demodulation techniques, a modulation/demodulation technique based on, of the plurality of types of protocols, a protocol selectively specified by a protocol selection signal so that the antenna unit performs the communication with each of the on-vehicle units based on the specified protocol, when each of the plurality of vehicles is within the communication area, and

a protocol controller comprises;

first producing means for producing the protocol selection signal allowing the modem unit to selectively cycle through each of the plurality of types of protocols over a predetermined period of time in at least one slot of the communication such that the communication is performed in turn with the plurality of on-vehicle units,

determining means for determining two or more types of protocols adopted by two or more of the on-vehicle units when two or more responses are received from the two or more of the on-vehicle units in response to the protocol selection signal produced by the first producing means, and

second producing means for producing the protocol selection signal specifying use of each of the two or more types of determined protocols in one or more time-division slots following the slot in which the determining means determines the two or more types of protocols, until the accounting processing for the two or more on-vehicle units that operates on the determined two or more protocols are completed, respectively, the protocol selection signal produced by the second producing means enabling the control means of the antenna unit to perform the accounting processing.

5. A communication method for electrically collecting a toll, in which accounting processing is performed in communication performed between a plurality of on-vehicle units respectively mounted on a plurality of vehicles and a stationary-station communication system when the vehicles pass through a predetermined communication area, each on-vehicle unit operating on one of a plurality of types of protocols, the stationary-station communication system being provided with a modem unit capable of selectively communicating on a plurality of types of modulation/demodulation techniques respectively using the plurality of types of protocols, when each of the vehicles is within the communication area, the communication method being performed by the stationary-station communication system and comprising steps of:

first producing a protocol selection signal allowing the plurality of types of protocols to be selected in turn over a predetermined period of time in at least one slot of the communication, such that the communication is performed in turn with the plurality of on-vehicle units,

determining two or more types of protocols adopted by two or more of the on-vehicle units when two or more responses are received from the two or more of the on-vehicle units in response to the protocol selection signal produced by the first producing step, and

second producing the protocol selection signal specifying use of each of the two or more types of determined protocols in one or more time-division slots following the slot in which the determining step determines the two or more types of protocols, until the accounting processing for the two or more on-vehicle units that operates on the determined two or more protocols are completed, respectively, the protocol selection signal produced by the second producing step enabling the accounting processing to be performed.