Passenger transportation system and method for obtaining tickets in such a system

• US 8,027,872 B2
• Filed: 08/02/2005
• Issued: 09/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/04/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NXP B.V. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Original Assignee: NXP B.V. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Inventors: Graeber, Frank
• Primary Examiner(s): Hayes; John W
• Assistant Examiner(s): FLYNN, KEVIN H
• Application Number:
  US11/573,191
• Publication Number:
  US 20080215380A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,247 Days
• Field of Search: 705/5, 705/13, 705/417, 235/384
• US Class Current: 705/13
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 2240/00 Transportation facility access, e.g. fares, tolls or parking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0284 Time or distance, e.g. usage of parking meters or taximeters
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 11/00 Apparatus for validating or cancelling issued tickets
• 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 method for obtaining tickets for journeys in a passenger transportation system (VSY) which comprises stations (S11 . . . S00) for entering and/or leaving transport means (VM1, VM2) of the system (VSY) for journeys between the stations (S11 . . . S00), wherein at least one station (S11 . . . S00) of the system (VSY) is assigned at least one contactlessly readable data carrier (T11 . . . T00) and/or at least one transport means (VM 1, VM2) of the system (VSY) is assigned at least one contactlessly readable data carrier (T10, T20), wherein the contactlessly readable data carriers (T11 . . . T00; T10, T20) contain ticket information items (IN11, IN23, INOO), and one of the contactlessly readable data carriers (T11 . . . T00; T10, T20) is read by a mobile reader (MOD) in at least one station (S11 . . . S00) and/or in at least one transport means (VM1, VM2), and the corresponding ticket information item or items (IN11, IN23, IN00) is/are stored in the mobile reader (MOD).

Claims

1. A method for obtaining tickets for journeys in a passenger transportation system which comprises stations for at least one of entering and leaving transport means of the system for journeys between the stations,

wherein at least one station of the system is assigned at least one passive contactlessly readable data carrier, the at least one passive contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to a station only stores a station-specific ticket information item which uniquely identifies the station;

wherein one of the at least one passive contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to the station is read by a mobile reader; and

wherein the corresponding ticket information item or items is/are stored in the mobile reader;

wherein a transport means of the system is assigned a passive contactlessly readable data carrier, wherein the passive contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to the transport means only stores a transport means-specific ticket information item which uniquely identifies the transport means, and wherein the passive contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to the transport means is read by the mobile reader.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ticket information item or items read by the mobile reader is/are used to calculate a fare.

3. A method as claimed in claim 2, wherein

a) in a departure station, a contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to said station is read and corresponding first ticket information items are stored in the mobile reader, and

b) in an arrival station, a contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to said station is read and corresponding second ticket information items are stored in the mobile reader, and

c) a fare for the journey is determined from the first and second ticket information items.

4. A method as claimed in claim 3, wherein, if no ticket information items of a contactlessly readable data carrier of an arrival station are available to determine the fare, a fixedly predefined fare is determined.

5. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein determination of the fare from the ticket information items is carried out in the mobile reader.

6. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ticket information items stored in the mobile reader are transmitted to a remote calculation server in order to determine the fare.

7. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ticket information items are stored in a secure memory of the mobile reader.

8. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein no information is transmitted between the at least one passive contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to the station and a background system for generating the station-specific ticket information item.

16. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ticket information items are collected into the mobile reader over a period of time and a fare for the journey is determined from the ticket information items collected into the mobile reader over the period of time, wherein the period of time is over 30 days.

17. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the contactlessly readable data carriers are fixed at easily accessible positions and at sites that are often frequented by passengers, and wherein the contactlessly readable data carriers are marked by corresponding posters or corresponding signs that indicate locations of the contactlessly readable data carriers.

9. A passenger transportation system which comprises stations for at least one of entering and leaving transport means of the system for journeys between the stations, wherein at least one station of the system is assigned at least one contactlessly readable data carrier which contains at least one readable ticket information item, wherein no information is transmitted between the at least one contactlessly readable data carrier and a background system for generating the at least one ticket information item;

wherein a transport means is assigned a contactlessly readable data carrier, which only stores a transport means-specific ticket information item that uniquely identifies the transport means, and wherein no information is transmitted between the contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to the transport means and the background system for generating the transport means-specific ticket information item.

10. A system as claimed in claim 9, which comprises at least one calculation server for determining fares based on the ticket information items of the contactlessly readable data carriers which are transmitted from a mobile reader.

11. A system as claimed in claim 9, wherein access barriers which are coupled to the contactlessly readable data carriers are provided in the stations and an access barrier is opened to allow entering or leaving of the station only after a contactlessly readable data carrier has been read.

12. A calculation server for a system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the calculation server is designed to receive ticket information items of the contactlessly readable data carriers which are read by a mobile reader, and to determine fares on the basis of these ticket information items.

14. A system as claimed in claim 9, wherein each of the at least one contactlessly readable data carrier includes a near field communication device.

15. A system as claimed in claim 10, wherein each of the at least one contactlessly readable data carrier is configured to store a secret key to authenticate the contactlessly readable data carrier to the mobile reader, wherein the secret key is known only to an operator of the system.

13. A system comprising:

a mobile reader comprising;

means for reading a ticket information item that is contained in passive contactlessly readable data carriers,

means for securely storing the ticket information item, and

means for determining a fare from the ticket information item or means for transmitting the stored ticket information item to a remote calculation server which determines a fare,

wherein at least one of the passive contactlessly readable data carriers is assigned to at least one station of a passenger transportation system, wherein at least one of the passive contactlessly readable data carriers is assigned to at least one transport means of the passenger transportation system, wherein the at least one passive contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to a station only stores station-specific ticket information items which uniquely identify the station, and wherein the at least one passive contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to a transport means only stores transport means-specific ticket information items which uniquely identify the transport means.