Intelligent charging system and method for use in a parking lot

• US 8,589,216 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2011
• Issued: 11/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Beijing Watch Data System Co. Ltd. (Watchdata System Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Beijing Watch Data System Co. Ltd. (Watchdata System Company Limited)
• Inventors: Yu, Zhilu, Xu, Daxing
• Primary Examiner(s): Bartley, Kenneth
• Application Number:
  US13/213,946
• Publication Number:
  US 20120054098A1
• Time in Patent Office: 823 Days
• Field of Search: 705/13, 705/40
• US Class Current: 705/13
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0962 having an indicator mounted inside the vehicle, e.g. giving voice messages
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/14 indicating individual free spaces in parking areas

Abstract

The present invention provides an intelligent charging system and method for use in a parking lot. The system comprises a detecting unit, an on-board unit and a corresponding means of payment. The on-board unit is disposed on a vehicle and configured to acquire a parking time parameter, derive a parking fee according to the parking time parameter and a rate parameter stored in the on-board unit, and deduct the parking fee from the means of payment. The detecting unit is configured to, through information interaction with the on-board unit, determine whether the on-board unit operates normally. The present invention can be used to reduce the investment cost and improve the monitoring management of public parking lots.

Claims

1. An intelligent charging system for use in a parking lot, the intelligent charging system comprising:

an on-board unit,

a detecting unit, and

a means of payment,

wherein;

the on-board unit is disposed on a vehicle and configured to calculate a total parking duration of the vehicle as a parking time parameter, derive a parking fee according to the parking time parameter and a rate parameter stored in the on-board unit, and deduct the parking fee from the means of payment via a payment module;

the detecting unit is configured to, through information interaction with the on-board unit, determine whether the on-board unit operates normally;

the detecting unit comprises a query module configured to send a query to the on-board unit;

the on-board unit comprises a responding module configured to send status information of the on-board unit to the detecting unit in response to the query; and

the detecting unit further comprises a processing module configured to determine whether the on-board unit operates normally based on the status information of the on-board unit and legal information of the on-board unit stored in the detecting unit.

2. The intelligent charging system of claim 1, wherein the query comprises one or more of vehicle query information, operating status query information of the on-board unit, rate standard query information, and clock query information.

3. The intelligent charging system of any one of claim 1 and claim 2, further comprising one or more of:

an issuing unit comprising an activating module configured to activate the on-board unit; and

a background server configured to process data, wherein the data is from any one or more of the on-board unit, the detecting unit and the issuing unit.

4. The intelligent charging system of claim 3, wherein:

the background server comprises;

a background database;

an acquiring module configured to acquire and save vehicle information and vehicle owner information of the on-board unit into the background database; and

an import module configured to import the vehicle information and the vehicle owner information of the on-board unit from the background database into the detecting unit as the legal information; and

the issuing unit further comprises a write module configured to write the vehicle information and the vehicle owner information into the corresponding on-board unit when the on-board unit is activated.

5. The intelligent charging system of claim 4, wherein:

the detecting unit further comprises a transmission module, which is configured to transmit a determination result of the determination made on the on-board unit by the processing module to the background server;

the background server comprises a feedback module, which is configured to feed back the determination result to a vehicle owner according to the vehicle owner information of the on-board unit.

6. The intelligent charging system of claim 3, wherein the detecting unit further comprises one or more of:

a ticket generating module configured to generate a ticket when a determination result of the determination made on the on-board unit by the processing module is “

No”

;

an alerting module configured to give an alert when the determination result of the determination made on the on-board unit by the processing module is “

No”

;

a clock correcting module configured to correct a clock of the on-board unit through information interaction when the query is a clock query information and the determination result of the determination made on the on-board unit by the processing module is “

No”

;

a rate updating module configured to correct a rate standard through information interaction when the query is a rate standard query information and the determination result of the determination made on the on-board unit by the processing module is “

No”

; and

a purchase secure access module (PSAM) configured to encrypt and/or authenticate the data in the detecting unit.

7. The intelligent charging system of claim 3, wherein the on-board unit further comprises:

an embedded secure access module (ESAM) configured to encrypt and/or authenticate the data in the on-board unit.

8. An intelligent charging method for use in a parking lot, the intelligent charging method comprising steps of:

calculating a total parking duration of a vehicle as a parking time parameter by an on-board unit disposed on the vehicle, wherein the parking time parameter is based on user inputs;

deriving a parking fee according to the parking time parameter and a rate parameter stored in the on-board unit, and deducting the parking fee from a means of payment via a payment module; and

determining whether the on-board unit operates normally by a detecting unit through information interaction with the on-board unit;

wherein the step of determining whether the on-board unit operates normally comprises;

sending a query by the detecting unit to the on-board unit;

sending status information of the on-board unit by the on-board unit to the detecting unit in response to the query; and

determining by the detecting unit whether the on-board unit operates normally based on the status information of the on-board unit and legal information of the on-board unit stored in the detecting unit.

9. The intelligent charging method of claim 8, wherein the query comprises vehicle query information, operating status query information of the on-board unit, rate standard query information, or clock query information.

10. The intelligent charging method of any one of claim 8 and claim 9, further comprising:

activating the on-board unit by an issuing unit; and

processing data by a background server, wherein the data is from any one or more of the on-board unit, the detecting unit and the issuing unit.

11. The intelligent charging method of claim 10, further comprising:

acquiring and saving, by the background server, vehicle information and vehicle owner information of the on-board unit;

importing the vehicle information and the vehicle owner information of the on-board unit by the background server as the legal information into the detecting unit; and

activating the on-board unit and writing the vehicle information and the vehicle owner information into the corresponding on-board unit by the issuing unit.

12. The intelligent charging method of claim 11, further comprising:

transmitting to the background server by the detecting unit a determination result of the determination made on the on-board unit; and

feeding back the determination result to the corresponding vehicle owner by the background server according to the vehicle owner information of the on-board unit.

13. The intelligent charging method of claim 10, further comprising:

generating a ticket when a determination result of the determination made on the on-board unit is “

No”

;

or

giving an alert when the determination result of the determination made on the on-board unit is “

No”

;

or

correcting a clock of the on-board unit through information interaction when the query is the clock query information and a determination result of the determination made on the on-board unit is “

No”

;

or

correcting a rate standard through information interaction when the query is a rate standard query information and the determination result of the determination made on the on-board unit is “

No”

.

14. The intelligent charging method of claim 10, further comprising:

encrypting and/or authenticating the data in the on-board unit by an embedded secure access module (ESAM) disposed in the on-board unit.