BILLING A RENTED THIRD PARTY TRANSPORT INCLUDING AN ON-BOARD UNIT

• US 20140149190A1
• Filed: 01/31/2014
• Published: 05/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: American Traffic Solutions Consolidated LLC
• Original Assignee: Rent A Toll Ltd
• Inventors: ROBINSON, Benjamin P., BALACHANDRAN, Sarath K.
• Granted Patent: US 9,418,487 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/13
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0645 Rental transactions; Leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/06 Arrangements for road pricing or congestion charging of vehicles or vehicle users, e.g. automatic toll systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/063 using wireless information transmission between the vehicle and a fixed station identification of vehicles G08G

Abstract

A system, method, and computer readable medium for toll service activation using an on-board unit in a third party transport comprises, a third party entity, a toll rental entity, and an on-board unit communicably coupled to the third party entity and to the toll rental entity, wherein the on-board unit, receives a position signal, initiates a toll service request, converts the position signal to a toll usage, and stores the position signal, the toll service request and the toll usage.

Claims

1. A method for providing toll service to a third-party-operated transport user, the method comprising:

installing a toll service software in an on-board computer of at least one of a plurality of third-party-operated transports, wherein the toll service software is installed via a processor of the on-board computer;

activating the on-board computer for communication with a toll authority computer;

utilizing a toll authority via the activated on-board computer, wherein the activated on-board computer communicate with the toll authority computer;

storing toll usage data in a database of the on-board computer;

transferring the stored toll usage data from the on-board computer to at least one of a third-party entity computer and a toll-rental entity computer; and

billing the third-party-operated transport user, by at least one of the third-party entity computer and the toll-rental entity computer, a fee corresponding to a toll usage amount upon return of a third-party-operated transport of the plurality of third-party-operated transports to a third-party entity.