System, method and computer readable medium for billing tolls

• US 8,768,753 B2
• Filed: 09/06/2006
• Issued: 07/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: American Traffic Solutions Consolidated LLC
• Original Assignee: Rent A Toll Ltd
• Inventors: Robinson, Benjamin P., Lemon, Debbie, Balachandran, Sarath K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Allen, Akiba
• Application Number:
  US11/516,380
• Publication Number:
  US 20070124198A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,855 Days
• Field of Search: 705/13, 705/1, 705/7.11, 705/1.1
• US Class Current: 705/13
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/14 specially adapted for billing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0645 Rental transactions; Leasing transactions
• 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: G07B 15/04 comprising devices to free a barrier, turnstile, or the like turnstiles with registering means G07C9/10; coin-freed aspects G07F17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/063 using wireless information transmission between the vehicle and a fixed station identification of vehicles G08G
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0175 by photographing vehicles, e.g. when violating traffic rules
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles

Abstract

Billing tolls accumulated during a rental period comprises a third party entity, a toll authority, and a toll rental entity coupled to the third party entity and to the toll authority, wherein the third party entity sends a request for service to the toll rental entity, wherein the toll rental entity sends the request for service during the rental period to the toll authority, wherein the toll authority stores the request, wherein the toll authority sends toll data to the toll rental entity based on the request, wherein the toll rental entity sends toll rental data to the third party entity based on the toll data, and wherein the third party entity generates a bill based on the toll rental data.

Claims

1. A method for providing third-party-operated vehicle users an automatic toll service utilizing vehicle license plate information, the method comprising:

transferring license plate numbers of third-party-operated vehicles from a third party entity computer to a toll authority computer via a toll rental entity computer;

sending, from the toll rental entity computer to the toll authority computer, pre-payment for future toll usage by third-party-operated vehicles, wherein the pre-payment is sent by the toll rental entity computer to the toll authority computer prior to the third-party-operated vehicles using the toll authority;

capturing, via an image capture module at the toll authority, license plate images of vehicles using the toll authority;

extracting, via the image capture module, license plate numbers from the captured license plate images;

receiving a service request, wherein the service request comprises subscription for the automatic toll service with the toll authority by the third-party-operated vehicles for which license plate numbers have been transferred to the toll authority;

determining, by the toll authority, if the extracted license plate numbers match the license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles associated with the service request; and

responsive to a determination that the extracted license plate numbers match the license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles associated with the service request, sending toll usage data associated with the license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles for billing.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the service request includes at least one of:

an individual'"'"'s name requesting the service;

a license plate number of the third-party-operated vehicle that is to be utilized;

a payment for the service; and

rental contract information related to the third-party-operated vehicle, wherein the rental contract includes at least one of;

a start date and a start time; and

an end date and an end time.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the service begins at a date and a time that the third-party-operated vehicle leaves a particular area, and wherein the service ends at a date and a time that the third-party-operated vehicle returns to the particular area.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the service begins at a date and a time that the third-party-operated vehicle leaves a particular area, and wherein the service ends at a date and a time that the third-party-operated vehicle returns to a different area.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the toll usage data includes at least one of:

information related to a third-party-operated vehicle;

information related to the license plate number of the third-party-operated vehicle;

a location of the third-party-operated vehicle;

a direction of the third-party-operated vehicle;

a time stamp related to the third-party-operated vehicle; and

a toll amount incurred by the third-party-operated vehicle.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the toll usage data includes information related to a third-party-operated vehicle based on at least one of:

a reading of a license plate of the third-party-operated vehicle, an individual associated with the service request, and an entity associated with the service request.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the third party entity comprises at least one of:

a rent-a-car entity;

an entity that rents vehicles comprising license plates;

an entity that rents vehicles comprising information that can be acquired;

an entity or individual that owns vehicles;

an entity or individual that leases vehicles;

an entity or individual that loans vehicles;

an entity or individual that lends vehicles; and

an entity or individual that operates vehicles.

10. The method of claim 1 comprising:

determining, by the toll rental entity, if the pre-payment is sufficient to cover a fee for the toll usage associated with the matched license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles; and

responsive to a determination that the pre-payment is insufficient to cover the fee for the toll usage associated with the matched license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles, forwarding, by the toll rental entity to the toll authority, additional payment.

2. The method of 1 comprising receiving time stamps and location information from the toll authority.

3. The method of claim 2 comprising collecting the time stamps and the location information when the third-party-operated vehicles utilize the toll authority.

11. A system for providing third-party-operated vehicle users an automatic toll service utilizing vehicle license plate information, the system comprising:

a third party entity operable to transfer license plate numbers of third-party-operated vehicles to a toll authority via a toll rental entity;

an image capture module at the toll authority operable to capture license plate images of vehicles using the toll authority and extract license plate numbers from the captured license plate images;

wherein the third party entity is operable to send to the toll authority, pre-payment for future toll usage by third-party-operated vehicles, wherein the pre-payment is sent by the toll rental entity to the toll authority prior to the third-party-operated vehicles using the toll authority;

wherein the third party entity is operable to send a service request to the toll authority, wherein the service request comprises subscription for the automatic toll service with the toll authority by the third-party-operated vehicles for which license plate numbers have been transferred to the toll authority;

wherein the toll authority is operable to determine if the extracted license plate numbers match the license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles associated with the service request; and

responsive to a determination that the extracted license plate numbers match the license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles associated with the service request, sending toll usage data associated with the license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles for billing.

12. An article of manufacture for providing third-party-operated transport users an automatic toll service utilizing vehicle license plate information, the article of manufacture comprising:

at least one computer readable medium;

processor instructions contained on the at least one computer readable medium, the processor instructions configured to be readable from the at least one computer readable medium by at least one processor and thereby cause the at least one processor to operate as to perform the following steps;

transferring license plate numbers of third-party-operated vehicles from a third party entity to a toll authority via a toll rental entity;

sending, from the toll rental entity to the toll authority, pre-payment for future toll usage by third-party-operated vehicles, wherein the pre-payment is sent by the toll rental entity to the toll authority prior to the third-party-operated vehicles using the toll authority;

capturing, via an image capture module at the toll authority, license plate images of vehicles using the toll authority;

extracting, via the image capture module, license plate numbers from the captured license plate images;

receiving a service request, wherein the service request comprises subscription for the automatic toll service with the toll authority by the third-party-operated vehicles for which license plate numbers have been transferred to the toll authority;

determining, by the toll authority, if the extracted license plate numbers match the license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles associated with the service request; and

responsive to a determination that the extracted license plate numbers match the license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles associated with the service request, sending toll usage data associated with the license plate numbers of the third-party-operated vehicles for billing.

13. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein the processor instructions are configured to cause the at least one processor to operate as to perform the following steps:

receiving the service request before a transport is rented.

14. The article of manufacture of claim 13, wherein the payment-deposit coincides with a first rate.

15. The article of manufacture of claim 12, wherein the processor instructions are configured to cause the at least one processor to operate as to perform the following steps:

receiving the service request after a transport is rented.

16. The article of manufacture of claim 15, wherein the payment-deposit coincides with a second rate.