PASSENGER TRANSPORTING SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR OBTAINING TICKETS IN SUCH A SYSTEM

• US 20120024951A1
• Filed: 08/22/2011
• Published: 02/02/2012
• 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
• Granted Patent: US 9,123,185 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/384
• 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 which comprises stations for entering and/or 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 and/or at least one transport means of the system is assigned at least one contactlessly readable data carrier, wherein the contactlessly readable data carriers contain ticket information items, and one of the contactlessly readable data carriers is read by a mobile reader in at least one station and/or in at least one transport means, and the corresponding ticket information item or items is/are stored in the mobile reader.

Claims

1-16. -16. (canceled)

17. A system for obtaining tickets for journeys in a passenger transportation system which comprises stations for entering and/or leaving one or more transport vehicles of the passenger transportation system for journeys between the stations, the system comprising:

at least one contactlessly readable data carrier containing a ticket information item, wherein the at least one contactlessly readable data carrier is assignable to a station and/or to a transport vehicle and is configured to store a station-specific or transport vehicle-specific ticket information item which uniquely identifies the respective station or the respective transport vehicle,

wherein the at least one contactlessly readable data carrier is readable by a mobile reader in at least one station and/or in at least one transport vehicle, and

wherein the corresponding ticket information item is storable in the mobile reader.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the at least one contactlessly readable data carrier is configured to store position information.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the at least one contactlessly readable data carrier and the mobile reader are near field communication (NFC) devices.

20. The system of claim 17, wherein the ticket information item readable by the mobile reader is for calculating a fare.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein:

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

b) in an arrival station, a contactlessly readable data carrier assigned to said station is read and a corresponding second ticket information item is at least buffer-stored in the mobile reader, and

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

22. The system of claim 21, wherein, if no ticket information item of a contactlessly readable data carrier of an arrival station is available to determine the fare, a fixedly predefined fare is determined.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the determination of the fare from the ticket information items is carried out in the mobile reader.

24. The system of claim 17, wherein the ticket information item is transmitted to a remote calculation server in order to determine a fare.

25. The system of claim 17, wherein the ticket information item is storable in a secure memory of the mobile reader.

26. The system of claim 17, wherein at least one transport vehicle is selected from the group consisting of a train, a bus, a ship, a boat, a plane, a car, a taxi, and a bicycle.

27. The system of claim 17, wherein no information is transmitted between the at least one contactlessly readable data carrier and a background system.

28. The system of claim 17, wherein no information is transmitted between the at least one contactlessly readable data carrier and a background system for generating the ticket information item.

29. The system of claim 17, wherein the at least one contactlessly readable data carrier has no communications with any other device except the mobile reader.

30. A contactlessly readable data carrier for use in a passenger transportation system which comprises one or more transport vehicles and/or stations for entering and/or leaving the transport vehicles, the contactlessly readable data carrier is assignable to a transport vehicle or to a station and is configured to store at least one readable ticket information item, and wherein the contactlessly readable data carrier is a near field communication (NFC) device.

31. The contactlessly readable data carrier of claim 30, wherein the ticket information item uniquely identifies the respective station or the respective transport vehicle.

32. A mobile reader that is to be carried by a passenger, the mobile reader comprising:

an antenna configured to receive an electromagnetic signal transmitted from a contactlessly readable data carrier which is located at a station and/or a transport vehicle;

a communication interface configured to read a ticket information item from the received electromagnetic signal;

a memory configured to store the ticket information item; and

an evaluating unit configured to determine a fare from the ticket information item and/or a transmission unit configured to transmit the ticket information item to a remote calculation server which determines a fare.

33. The mobile reader of claim 32, wherein the mobile reader comprises a mobile phone.

34. The mobile reader of claim 32, wherein the mobile reader comprises a smartphone.

35. A near field communications (NFC) device that is to be carried by a passenger comprising:

an antenna configured to receive an electromagnetic signal transmitted from a contactlessly readable data carrier which is located at a station and/or a transport vehicle;

a communication interface configured to read a ticket information item from the received electromagnetic signal;

a memory configured to store the ticket information item; and

an evaluating unit configured to determine a fare from the ticket information item and/or a transmission unit configured to transmit the ticket information item to a remote calculation server which determines a fare.

36. The NFC device of claim 35, wherein the NFC device comprises a mobile phone.

37. The NFC device of claim 35, wherein the NFC device comprises a smartphone.

38. A system for obtaining tickets for journeys in a passenger transportation system which comprises one or more transport vehicles for journeys, the system comprising:

a contactlessly readable data carrier assignable to a transport vehicle of the passenger transportation system,

wherein the contactlessly readable data carrier is configured to store a ticket information item that identifies the position of the transport vehicle,

wherein the contactlessly readable data carrier is readable by a mobile reader carried by a passenger, and

wherein the corresponding ticket information item is storable in the mobile reader.

39. The system of claim 38, wherein the contactlessly readable data carrier and the mobile reader are near field communication (NFC) devices.

40. The system of claim 38, wherein the system comprises a receiver, which determines the position of the transport vehicle and transmits the position of the transport vehicle to the contactlessly readable data carrier.

41. The system of claim 38, wherein the system comprises a GPS receiver, which determines the position of the transport vehicle and provides the position of the transport vehicle to the contactlessly readable data carrier.