System and kiosk apparatus for collecting end-of-life mobile phones

• US 9,704,142 B2
• Filed: 01/11/2012
• Issued: 07/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Ecocityplus Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Eco-Save Inc.
• Inventors: Ahn, Sang-Won
• Primary Examiner(s): Labaze, Edwyn
• Application Number:
  US14/232,287
• Publication Number:
  US 20140143161A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,008 Days
• Field of Search: 235383, 235375, 235487, 23546201, 235381, 705 1437, 705306, 705308
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/30 Administration of product recycling or disposal
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/26 Government or public services business processes related to the transportation industry G06Q50/40
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/06 by returnable containers , i.e. reverse vending systems in which a user is rewarded for returning a container that serves as a token of value, e.g. bottles
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/009 User recognition or proximity detection
• CPC Class Codes: Y02W 90/00 Enabling technologies or technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to greenhouse gas [GHG] emissions mitigation

Abstract

A system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones includes a kiosk apparatus for performing an authentication procedure in which an authentication request is made using registration information including registrant information and end-of-life mobile phone information and a barcode label is issued when an authentication number is input according to the authentication request, and an identifying procedure for storing or discharging the end-of-life mobile phone by checking the presence of the barcode label attached thereto and identifying whether the mobile terminal is a normal mobile phone when the end-of-life mobile phone is put therein; and an integrated operation system having an operating system program to communicate with a plurality of kiosk apparatuses through a network, issue the authentication number corresponding to the authentication request of the kiosk apparatus, and check and statistically analyze an individual or integrated collection amount of kiosk apparatuses.

Claims

1. A system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones, comprising:

a kiosk apparatus for performing an authentication procedure in which an authentication request is made using registration information including registrant information and end-of-life mobile phone information and a barcode label is issued when an authentication number is input according to the authentication request, and an identifying procedure for storing or discharging the end-of-life mobile phone by checking the presence of the barcode label attached thereto and identifying whether the mobile terminal is a normal mobile phone when the end-of-life mobile phone is put therein; and

an integrated operation system having an operating system program to communicate with a plurality of kiosk apparatuses through a network, issue the authentication number corresponding to the authentication request of the kiosk apparatuses, and check and statistically analyze an individual or integrated collection amount of kiosk apparatuses, wherein

the kiosk apparatus includes;

a user interface panel having a touch screen and providing a user interface in association with the authentication procedure and the identifying procedure;

a barcode printer for printing the barcode label;

an authentication unit for making the authentication request when the registration information is transmitted;

a modem for transmitting the authentication request to the integrated operation system and making real-time communication with the integrated operation system;

a barcode printer for outputting a barcode label on which a barcode containing the registration information is printed when the authentication number corresponding to the authentication request is input to the user interface panel;

a data storage unit for storing information provided through the user interface, the registration information and the data corresponding to the barcode;

an identifying device for performing the identifying procedure in which the end-of-life mobile phone put therein is stored or discharged by checking the presence of the barcode label attached thereto and identifying whether the mobile phone is a normal mobile phone; and

a control unit for providing the user interface to the user interface panel with reference to the information of the data storage unit, controlling the authentication unit to transmit the authentication request corresponding to the registration information through the modem while storing the registration information input from the user interface to the data storage unit, controlling the barcode printer to output the barcode label when the authentication number is input through the user interface panel, and controlling the identifying device to perform the identifying procedure, wherein,

the identifying device includes;

a driving device having a motor for giving a rotation force and a conveyor driven by the rotation force, the driving device carrying an end-of-life mobile phone provided on the conveyor and changing a rotating direction of the motor according to an identification signal so that a normal end-of-life mobile phone is carried to a storage location and an abnormal end-of-life mobile phone is carried to a discharge location;

a storage device disposed at the storage location to store the end-of-life mobile phone;

a discharge device disposed at the discharge location to store an abnormal end-of-life mobile phone;

a barcode scanner for scanning the barcode of the barcode label attached to the end-of-life mobile phone put by the driving device and providing the scanned barcode to the control unit;

an authentication camera for obtaining a still image for authentication of the end-of-life mobile phone;

a mobile phone identification sensor for sensing whether the end-of-life mobile phone put by the driving device is a normal end-of-life mobile phone and providing the sensing signal to the control unit; and

a motor synchronization control unit for controlling the operation of the motor according to the control unit, receiving scan information input from the barcode scanner and the mobile phone identification sensor and identification information used for determining whether to store or discharge the end-of-life mobile phone according to the sensing signal from the control unit, and providing the identification signal to the driving device.

2. The system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones according to claim 1, wherein the storage device is configured so that a height of a plate thereof on which the put end-of-life mobile phone is placed is adjusted according to a weight of collected end-of-life mobile phones.

3. The system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones according to claim 2, wherein the height of the plate is adjusted by means of a spring.

4. The system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones according to claim 2, wherein a bottom surface of the plate is shaft-coupled to an electric motor, and the electric motor moves the plate upwards or downwards corresponding to the weight of collected end-of-life mobile phones.

5. The system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones according to claim 1, wherein when the end-of-life mobile phone is put onto the conveyor, the motor synchronization control unit controls the operation of the motor so that the end-of-life mobile phone reciprocates several times between the barcode scanner and the mobile phone identification sensor.

6. The system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones according to claim 1,

wherein the kiosk apparatus further includes a human body sensor for sensing approach of the registrant, and

wherein when the human body sensor senses the registrant, the control unit controls the user interface panel to give a screen for demanding an input of the registration information.

7. The system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones according to claim 6,

wherein the kiosk apparatus further includes a sponsorship advertisement storage unit for storing a sponsorship advertisement, and

wherein in a state where the human body sensor does not sense the registrant, the control unit controls so that the sponsorship advertisement of the sponsorship advertisement storage unit is provided to the user interface panel.

8. The system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones according to claim 1,

wherein the kiosk apparatus further includes a compensation card reader for reading a compensation card possessed by the registrant, and

wherein the control unit stores the compensation card information in the data storage unit to be included in the registrant information, and after the end-of-life mobile phone is stored in the storage device, the control unit transmits a mileage, already allocated to each kind of the end-of-life mobile phone, to the integrated operation system to be accumulated in the compensation card.

9. The system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones according to claim 1, wherein the integrated operation system includes:

an integrated operation web server for communicating with the kiosk apparatus through the network to obtain collection information including a collection amount of end-of-life mobile phones in real time, operating a tool for checking and statistically analyzing an individual or integrated collection amount of kiosk apparatuses, and issuing the authentication number corresponding to the authentication request of the kiosk apparatus through a wireless network;

an application server on which a program for counting an individual or integrated collection amount of kiosk apparatuses and statistically analyzing the collection amount to support the tool operated in the integrated operation web server is loaded; and

a database server for storing the individual or integrated collection amount of kiosk apparatuses and the statistically analyzed data, managed by the application server.

10. The system for collecting end-of-life mobile phones according to claim 9,

wherein the integrated operation system further includes a mileage server, and

wherein the mileage server receives a mileage transmitted to the integrated operation web server by the kiosk apparatus, and the mileage of the end-of-life mobile phone is accumulated in a compensation card of the registrant.