Authorization of service using vehicle information and/or user information

• US 8,912,924 B2
• Filed: 09/25/2012
• Issued: 12/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Inrix Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Inrix Incorporated
• Inventors: Scofield, Christopher L., Sedlik, Scott Marshall, Jordan, Dominic Jason, Lavee, Uri
• Primary Examiner(s): HUNNINGS, TRAVIS R
• Application Number:
  US13/626,355
• Publication Number:
  US 20140085110A1
• Time in Patent Office: 812 Days
• US Class Current: 340/932.2
• 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

Abstract

Among other things, one or more techniques and/or systems are provided for authorizing an action using vehicle identification information (e.g., supplied by a vehicle) and user identification information (e.g., supplied by a mobile device associated with a user of the vehicle). Such an action may relate to, among other things, refueling the vehicle, parking the vehicle, using a fee-based road segment, and/or other vehicle-centric actions, for example. Moreover, in one embodiment, as part of the authorization, a payment transaction may be initiated by an authorization system configured to authorize the action.

Claims

1. An authorization method, comprising:

receiving a request to authorize an action, the request comprising;

user identification information pertaining to a user and yielded from a mobile device associated with the user, and

vehicle identification information pertaining to a vehicle of the user and yielded from the vehicle; and

authorizing the action in response to receiving the request when the user as identified by the user identification information and the vehicle as identified by the vehicle identification information are, in combination, authorized to perform the action.

2. The method of claim 1, the action related to at least one of:

refueling the vehicle;

parking the vehicle;

transporting the vehicle;

accessing a restricted area using the vehicle;

or

using a fee-based road segment.

3. The method of claim 1, comprising:

accessing payment information associated with the user based upon the user identification information in response to receiving the request; and

initiating a payment transaction based upon the payment information in response to authorizing the action.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising:

communicating an authorization generated in response to authorizing the action to a mechanism configured to perform the action.

5. The method of claim 4, the mechanism comprising at least one of:

a fueling mechanism,

a parking meter,

a parking gate,

a toll road provider, or

a congestion zone provider.

6. The method of claim 4, communicating the authorization to the mechanism comprising at least one of:

communicating the authorization to the vehicle and the vehicle configured to communicate the authorization to the mechanism, or

communicating the authorization to the mobile device and the mobile device configured to communicate the authorization to the mechanism.

7. The method of claim 1, authorizing the action comprising authorizing the action for a specified period of time and the method comprising at least one of:

communicating to the user an alert when the specified period of time is within a predetermined time of lapsing, or

providing the user with an option to extend the specified period of time when the specified period of time is within the predetermined time of lapsing.

8. An authorization method, comprising:

receiving, at a vehicle, user identification information identifying a user of the vehicle;

identifying an action to be performed with respect to the vehicle;

sending at least some of the user identification information and vehicle identification information identifying the vehicle to an authorization system configured to determine whether to authorize the action based upon the at least some of the user identification information and the vehicle identification information, in combination; and

receiving, at the vehicle, authorization information authorizing the action to be performed when the user and the vehicle, are, in combination, authorized to perform the action.

9. The method of claim 8, the action related to at least one of:

refueling the vehicle;

parking the vehicle;

accessing a restricted area using the vehicle;

or

using a fee-based road segment.

10. The method of claim 8, comprising communicating at least some of the authorization information from the vehicle to a mechanism configured to perform the action.

11. The method of claim 8, comprising receiving authorization to perform the action for a specified period of time and the method comprising:

notifying the user when the specified period of time is within a predetermined time of lapsing.

12. The method of claim 11, comprising:

providing the user with an option to extend the specified period of time.

13. The method of claim 8, comprising providing a set of one or more service providers configured to assist in performing the action when the action is authorized.

14. The method of claim 13, the action related to parking the vehicle, and the method comprising:

reserving a parking location with at least one of the one or more service providers.

15. An authorization method, comprising:

receiving an authorization to perform an action, the authorization based upon user identification information pertaining to a user and yielded from a mobile device associated with the user and vehicle identification information pertaining to a vehicle of the user and yielded from the vehicle, the authorization comprising a spending limit associated with the action, the spending limit determined based upon the user identification information and the vehicle identification information; and

allowing the action to be performed until the spending limit is satisfied based upon the authorization.

16. The method of claim 15, comprising:

receiving the user identification information;

receiving the vehicle identification information; and

sending at least some of the user identification information and at least some of the vehicle identification information to an authorization system configured to determine whether to authorize the action based upon the user identification information and the vehicle identification information, in combination.

17. The method of claim 16, comprising receiving the user identification information and receiving the vehicle identification information from the vehicle.

18. The method of claim 15, receiving the authorization to perform the action comprising receiving the authorization to perform the action from the vehicle.

19. An authorization method, comprising:

receiving a first request to authorize an action when a first user is associated with a vehicle, the first request comprising;

first user identification information pertaining to the first user, and

vehicle identification information pertaining to the vehicle;

determining, based upon the first user identification information and the vehicle identification information, that the first user and the vehicle, in combination, are authorized to perform the action;

receiving a second request to authorize the action when a second user is associated with the vehicle, the second request comprising;

second user identification information pertaining to the second user, and

the vehicle identification information pertaining to the vehicle;

determining, based upon the second user identification information and the vehicle identification information, that the second user and the vehicle, in combination, are not authorized to perform the action.

20. The authorization method of claim 19, comprising:

issuing a transaction ID responsive to the first request based upon the first user and vehicle, in combination, being authorized to perform the action.