WO2022200817A1

WO2022200817A1 - Online system for automated property rental and method for automated property rental

Info

Publication number: WO2022200817A1
Application number: PCT/HU2022/050001
Authority: WO
Inventors: Erika Zsuzsánna HÁGEN; Csaba RICHTER
Original assignee: Hagen Erika Zsuzsanna; Richter Csaba
Priority date: 2021-03-24
Filing date: 2022-01-13
Publication date: 2022-09-29
Also published as: HUP2100128A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to an online system (100) for automated property rental, said system (100) comprising a server computer (10) connectable to a user communication device (14) via a first communication channel (12'), said server computer (10) having stored thereon a property database (18) including at least one rental status data member (16), the system (100) comprises at least one electronically controllable locking device (30) for locking an entrance of the property, said locking device (30) is adapted to be in communication with the user communication device (14) via a second communication channel (12") and with the server computer (10) via a third communication channel (12"'); the locking device (30) is provided with an IT unit (32) and a digital display (34) connected thereto, wherein said IT unit (32) is configured to: - receive the rental status data member (16) related to the property from the server computer (10), - generate an optical code (40) encoding information about the rental status of the property using the received rental status data member (16), and - display the generated optical code (40) on the digital display (34). The invention further relates to a method of automated property rental.

Description

Online system for automated property rental and method for automated property rental

The invention relates to an online system for automated rental of a property, the system comprising a server computer connectable via a communication channel to a user communication device for data transmission, the server computer storing a property database including at least one rental status data member.

The invention further relates to a method of automated property rental using the online system according to the invention.

As a result of the development of information technology, a significant proportion of travel-related services are now sold over the Internet. This is particularly true for hotel and other accommodation reservations, which are increasingly made using online reservation systems. The latter typically maintain a website where users (prospective guests) can enter a location, a date of stay and other optional conditions, and then the system displays available rooms matching these search criteria, allowing them to be selected and booked by the user, and where applicable, online payment. Such a reservation system is implemented, for example, by the service, which is known under the trade name Booking.com and is available at www.booking.com.

Websites specializing in renting, such as the above have existed before, but their common feature is that the access of the guest to the rented property is not linked to the system, i.e., it can be done with human assistance (the key to the property has to be handed over). This is a significant time-consuming and human resource-intensive process when renting out several properties.

Electronic locks, which use digital identifiers ("digital keys") instead of physical keys, are a partial solution to this problem. There are several types of electronic locks, ranging from those using a simple PIN code to those using a phone app. An example of such an electronic lock is a product from Welockglobal called AirEkey Smart Lock, a smart locking device used in hotels. The idea is to use a mobile phone (via an app) or a card to unlock a hotel room door. The lock also has a key pad that can be used to program the lock manually. Another example of an electronic lock is the QR code-based locking device from LibeTech. The device contains a camera for scanning a QR code on a mobile device display. The locking device uses its camera to detect the code and the lock can be opened using it. Rakinda Electronic's 'Smart Door lock' is also an electronic lock with a camera, designed to scan a code displayed on a mobile device. The lock is opened by scanning the corresponding code.

Only a small proportion of these locks have Internet connectivity and those that do require a separate accessory developed by the lock manufacturer to be purchased and installed near the lock. Existing remote Internet management systems assume the use of the lock in a smart home and are therefore not suitable for handling special conditions arising from the rental of a property (i.e., regular user switching). Changing the identity of tenants require regular reprogramming of the locking device, which requires human intervention. Manual reprogramming causes a delay between reservation and check-in, which makes it impossible to occupy the property immediately when the guest standing in front of it.

It is recognised that in the case of room reservation systems using electronic locks, an additional problem may arise if the user (guest) wants to occupy the room he or she has already booked when it is not suitable (for example, the room is being or will soon be cleaned). Since the occupation of the room is done without human intervention, there is no one to warn the guest, nor is the guest informed when the room will be available.

Some users prefer to book accommodation on the spot, after a personal visit. In this case, it is particularly important that the user is informed about the current and future booking (rental) status of the property he/she wishes to rent. In other words, whether the property has already been rented out to someone else and, if so, when it will be available for reservation. It may also be the case, for example, that a forthcoming reservation has been cancelled, so that the guest concerned would have the possibility to extend his/her own reservation. This information is particularly difficult to reach the user when the user is offline (for example, there is no internet connection available to the user in the vicinity of the room).

It is recognised that if the opening of the property to be rented is provided by a locking device having a digital display and an IT unit controlling it, which IT unit receives a rental status data member from the server computer of the rental system, the user can be informed about the rental status of the property even if he or she does not have internet access.

It is also recognised that if an optical code is generated using the received rental status data member to encode information about the rental status of the property and this code is displayed on the digital display, it is sufficient to provide the locking device with a small display suitable for displaying the code, as the information that can be interpreted by the user will be displayed on the user's own device. The optical code on the digital display is simply scanned by the user with their own mobile device (e.g., smartphone), allowing for convenient and easy operation. The optical code also has the advantage of allowing easy and clear identification of the locking device (and thus the property), which is particularly useful in the case of accommodation with many rooms, for example.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an online system and method of automated rental of a property which is free from the disadvantages of the prior art. In particular, the invention aims at providing a system and method that allows to easily identify the rented property and to track its rental status even when the user is offline.

The invention relates to a system comprising a locking device with a digital display and an IT unit controlling the locking device, the IT unit receiving a rental status data member from server computer of the rental system and converting it into an optical code to be displayed on the digital display.

According to the invention, the object is achieved by a system for the automated rental of a property according to claim 1 and a method according to claim 13.

Some preferred embodiments of the invention are defined in the dependent claims. Further details of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawing is

Figure 1 is a schematic view of the main elements involved in the method according to the invention;

Figure 2a is a schematic view of a first exemplary embodiment of a locking device according to the invention; Figure 2b is a schematic view of a second exemplary embodiment of a locking device according to the invention;

Figure 2c is a schematic view of a third exemplary embodiment of a locking device according to the invention;

Figure 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a possible embodiment of a method according to the invention.

Figure 1 shows a schematic view of the main elements involved in a method according to the invention. The method is implemented by an online system 100 according to the invention which system 100 is for the automated rental of a property. In the context of the present invention, "property" means a place provided by any catering establishment to accommodate one or more guests, such as an apartment, hotel room, flat, etc.

The system 100 comprises a server computer 10 that can be in data communication with a user communication device 14 via a first communication channel 12', the server computer 10 storing at least one property database 18 including at least one rental status data member. Preferably, the communication channel 12' may be the Internet, but may also be any other IP-based or even other technology (GSM) based solution, and according to the present invention, the communication channel 12' may be provided using any suitable communication technology and architecture, such as, for example, mobile or fixed network, extranet, intranet, satellite communication, wireless communication, radio frequency communication, local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), communication between networked or directly connected devices. The protocols, standards, and applications used in connection with the Internet are known to those skilled in the art and need not be described in detail here. If the network is a public network, such as the Internet, it is advisable to implement encryption procedures to increase security and protect data. These are also solutions known to the person skilled in the art, e.g., use the Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocol. The data sent via the communication channel 12 'can be provided with a password as well as a digital signature in order to further increase security.

In the context of the present invention, the communication device 14 is understood to be a conventional portable computing device (e.g., PDA, tablet) or telecommunication device (e.g., mobile phone, in particular a smartphone) having a camera capable of scanning an optical code. It is obvious to the person skilled in the art that the user communication device 14 also contains some kind of operating system (e.g., Windows, Android, iPhone OS, etc.) and is capable of processing data and running programs.

The server computer 10 is defined as a set of hardware and/or software components, which may be a personal computer, network computer, workstation, minicomputer, mainframe, laptop, tablet or the like. The server computer 10 includes a processor for processing digital data, memory for storing digital data and a back up storage coupled to the processor, as is known to the skilled person. In Figure 1 , the server computer 10 is depicted as a single server, however, the server computer 10 may also be a network of computers. The server computer 10 is preferably configured to store digital content that can be displayed by the communication device 14, such as a room reservation web page, and to make it available to the user communication device 14 via the data link.

The server computer 10 stores a property database 18 including at least one rental status data member 16 that contains information on the properties that can be rented using the system 100. Each property in the property database 18 is assigned a rental status data member 16, containing information on the occupancy and availability of the property (e.g., start and end date of rental, tenant details, etc.). The rental status data member 16 may also include information on the location, facilities, services of the property (e.g., type of accommodation, rental price, number of stars, parking, airport shuttle, public transport, Internet, Wi-Fi, TV, etc.), as well as a floor plan or photos of the property. The property database 18 also contains digital key 50 required for the electronic opening of the property, which will be discussed in detail later. The property database 18 can be any type of database, such as relational, hierarchical, graphical, object-oriented and/or other configurations as known to those skilled in the art. Known database products that may be used to implement the database include, for example, IBM's DB2 product, various database products from Oracle Corporation, Microsoft Corporation's Microsoft Access or Microsoft SQL Server product, or any other suitable database product. Further, the property database 18 can be organized in any suitable manner, for example, by data table or lookup table.

The system 100 according to the invention comprises at least one electronically controllable locking device 30 for locking the entrance of the property, said locking device 30 being configured for data communication with the user communication device 14 via a second communication channel 12" and with the server computer 10 via a third communication channel 12"'. Preferably, the second communication channel 12" between the locking device 30 and the user communication device 14 is provided via a short-range wireless connection known per se, such as Bluetooth or NFC. The third communication channel 12"' is preferably implemented in a similar manner to the first communication channel 12'.

The locking device 30 preferably includes components commonly used in remotely operated locks, such as an electrically operated actuator, locking tongue, etc. (not shown in the figures), as known to the person skilled in the art. The actuator may, for example, be a solenoid coil and the locking tongue may be a pin connected to an iron core which extends into the solenoid coil. When a voltage is applied to the solenoid coil, the magnetic field generated retracts the iron core and with it the locking tongue. The locking device 30 also includes a power supply for its operation, as will be apparent to the person skilled in the art. It is noted that the locking device 30 is electrically operated, but can preferably also be opened by a physical key.

The locking device 30 according to the invention is provided with an IT unit 32 and a digital display 34 connected thereto, as shown, for example, in Figure 2a. The IT unit 32 may be, for example, a microcontroller or other mini-computer (e.g., Raspberry Pi) which is configured to:

- receive the rental status data member 16 related to the property from the server computer 10,

- generate an optical code 40 encoding information about the rental status of the property using the received rental status data member 16, and

- display the generated optical code 40 on the digital display 34. The IT unit 32 is equipped with a communication unit suitable for data transmission (not shown in the drawings), which enables the IT unit 32 to establish a data link to the communication device 14 and the server computer 10 via the 12", 12'" communication channels, respectively. The communication unit can be either a wireless module (e.g., Wi-Fi module and/or GSM module) or a wired network module, as known to the skilled person.

The digital display 34 can be any known type of display (e.g., LCD, OLED), that is preferably a few centimetres in diameter. The digital display 34 is controlled by the IT unit 32. In the embodiment shown in Figure 2c, the locking device 30 is provided with a secondary digital display 35 on the side opposite the digital display 34, on which the status of the locking device 30 (open-closed status, remaining rental time, etc.) and other information can be displayed. In the context of the present invention, the optical code 40 displayed on the digital display 34 is understood to be a sequence of signals optically readable and decodable by the communication device 14, wherein a given distribution of areas of different sizes, colours and shapes carries the encoded information. Such an optical code 40 can be, for example, a 1 -dimensional bar code, a 2-dimensional QR code, or an alphanumeric character string containing letters, numbers or other characters. The IT unit 32 is configured to convert the rental status data member 16 (its text or image content) received from the server computer 10 into optical code 40. Preferably, coding algorithms known per se can be used for this purpose, as is known to the skilled person. The decoding of the optical code 40 by the communication device 14 is preferably also performed using decoding algorithms known per se. A dedicated application (computer program) can be installed on the communication device 14 for this purpose, which also provides access to the property database 18 stored on the server computer 10, and through which the entire rental process can be carried out.

In a preferred embodiment, the rental status data member 16 and the optical code 40 generated therefrom comprise a data member indicating the end of the current rental period of the property. Then, after the optical code 40 has been scanned and decoded, the user's communication device 14 displays the time after which the user is no longer authorized to open the locking device 30. In another possible embodiment, the optical code 40 comprises a data member for the rent of the property and preferably a data member for identifying the locking device 30. The latter allows the user to accurately and unambiguously identify from which locking device 30 of the system 100 the optical code 40 has been read.

The locking device 30 can be opened in different ways. In one possible embodiment, the locking device 30 is designed to be openable via the second communication channel 12 "and, optionally, the third communication channel 12". That is, by sending the digital key 50 required to open the locking device 30 to the locking device 30 via the communication channel 12", 12"', the locking device 30 is opened. Preferably, the digital key 50 is stored on the user's communication device 14 and is sent by the communication device 14 to the locking device 30 via the communication channel 12", which may preferably be, for example, a Bluetooth connection.

In another possible embodiment, the locking device 30 includes a user interface 36 for inputting data, whereby the user can manually enter a code sequence representing the digital key 50. In the embodiment shown in Figure 2a, the user interface 36 is preferably provided as part of the digital display 34 such that the digital display 34 is a touch display. In the embodiment shown in Figure 2b, the user interface 36 is provided as a key pad, which may preferably be, for example, a numeric or alphanumeric key pad.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, the locking device 30 is configured such that until the optical code 40 is scanned by the user communication device 14, the opening of the locking device 30 is blocked. That is, in this embodiment, the locking device 30 can only be opened and the user can only enter the property after the information carried by the optical code 40 has been displayed by the user on the communication device 14. This information may, for example, be a consent form or a notice from the operator of the system 100 or the lessor of the property, the receipt of which can be guaranteed. The aforementioned blocking of the locking device 30 may be implemented, for example, in such a way that the password for opening the locking device 30, or a part thereof, is contained in the optical code displayed on the digital display 34, which is only visible after the optical code 40 has been displayed on the communication device 14. The digital key 50 required to open may be, for example, a sequence of signals generated from the above password and the user ID. This also ensures that the optical code 40 has been read by the given user.

The method according to the invention is described below with reference to the exemplary system 100 and Figure 3.

In step 301 of the method, the user selects and books the desired property from the available properties from the database 18 stored on the server computer 10. The reservation can be made, for example, from the user's home using a personal computer. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the selection and reservation of the room is performed by the user via the communication device 14 as follows. A data communication link is established between the server computer 10 and the user communication device 14 via the third communication channel 12"'. Preferably, the communication device 14 is a smartphone with an internet connection and the server computer 10 stores the above-mentioned room reservation web page. In other words, the server computer 10 makes an online room reservation web page available to the user communication device 14 via the communication channel 12"', in the present example via the Internet. The web page stored on the server computer 10 is displayed using the communication device 14 in the form of a smartphone, preferably using a separate application. The user then selects the desired property from the database 18 of properties using the user communication device 14. There may be several options for searching for a property to rent, as is known to the person skilled in the art. The search can be made by address, neighbourhood or the ID number of the locking device 30, or refinement can be made by specifying a time interval.

After providing identification and a time period, the user makes the payment using PayPal™ or another online transaction service, for example. Upon successful payment, the system 100 stores this information and registers the reservation and sends to the user (preferably its communication device 14) the digital key 50 required to open the locking device 30. In a preferred embodiment, the digital key 50 is a temporary password valid only during the rental period. In the next step of the method, based on the reservation data, the server computer 10 is used to generate the rental status data member 16 for the reserved property. Note that the above reservation steps, including payment, can be carried out standing in front of the property, immediately before the rental, provided that the communication device 14 is connected to the Internet.

Then, in step 302, the rental status data member 16 is sent via the communication channel 12"' to the IT unit 32 of the locking device 30. It is noted that the rental status data member 16 is not necessarily sent to the IT unit 32 immediately after its generation. For example, in the case where the date of the booking entry and the start of the actual rental period do not coincide, the rental status data member 16 is sent to the IT unit 32 only later, preferably immediately before the start of the rental period. Of course, an embodiment is also conceivable in which the rental status data member 16 is sent to the IT unit 32 immediately after their generation, which stores it and processes it only before the start of the rental period.

In the next step of the method, an optical code 40 encoding the rental status information of the occupied property is generated by the IT unit 32 using the received rental status data member 16, which is displayed on the digital display 34. It is noted that the display of the optical code 40 occurs after the previous rental period, preferably immediately at the start of the current rental period or all the time before.

Upon arrival at the property, a potential user reads and decodes the optical code 40 displayed on the digital display 34 in step 303 using the communication device 14. The decoded information is displayed on the display of the communication device 14, based on which the user determines the rental status of the property. Based on the decoded information, the user learns, for example, whether the property is currently rented out and, if so, when it will be available. In one possible embodiment, the decoded information is a call or important message from the operator of the system 100 or the landlord of the property, which the user must acknowledge before occupying the property. Acknowledgment of the message can be guaranteed in the embodiments in which the locking device 30 is designed to block the opening of the locking device 30 until the optical code 40 is read by the user communication device 14.

In step 304, the opening of the locking device 30 is initiated by the user, depending on the defined status, using the user communication device 14. For example, in the case where the decoded information indicates that the property is not currently rented, the user can initiate a reservation as described above and at the end of the reservation, the user can open the locking device 30 with the digital key 50 received from the system 100. If the property is not available, for example because it is currently rented out or cannot be occupied for other reasons, the user can look for another accommodation or come back later at the time specified.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, the rental status data member 16 for the booked property is modified after the reservation and the modified rental status data member 16 is sent to the IT unit 32 of the locking device 30. In this case, the optical code 40 is generated using the modified rental status data member 16. For example, the next reservation may be cancelled and the rental status of the property may be modified. In this case, the current tenant has the possibility to extend his/her reservation. In another possible example, the modified rental status data member 16 contains information about the current cleaning or maintenance period of the property. The decoded information could be, for example, a text message about the fact that the room is being cleaned or maintained and when it will be available for re-occupation. Note that the data transmission link between the locking device 30 and the server computer 10, and preferably the data transmission link between the locking device 30 and the user communication device 14, is encrypted using Transport Layer Security protocol, and preferably digitally signed to verify the integrity of the data. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that alternative solutions to the other embodiments shown herein are contemplated, but fall within the scope of protection defined by the claims.

Claims

1 . An online system (100) for automated property rental, said system (100) comprising a server computer (10) connectable to a user communication device (14) via a first communication channel (12'), said server computer (10) having stored thereon a property database (18) including at least one rental status data member (16), characterized in that, it comprises at least one electronically controllable locking device (30) for locking an entrance of the property, said locking device (30) is adapted to be in communication with the user communication device (14) via a second communication channel (12") and with the server computer (10) via a third communication channel (12"'); the locking device (30) is provided with an IT unit (32) and a digital display (34) connected thereto, wherein said IT unit (32) is configured to:

- receive the rental status data member (16) related to the property from the server computer (10),

- generate an optical code (40) encoding information about the rental status of the property using the received rental status data member (16), and

- display the generated optical code (40) on the digital display (34).

2. The system (100) according to claim 1 , characterized in that the optical code (40) displayed on the digital display (34) is a QR code or bar code.

3. The system (100) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the locking device (30) is configured to block opening of the locking device (30) until the optical code (40) is scanned by the user communication device (14).

4. The system (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the optical code (40) comprises a data member indicating the end of the current rental period of the property.

5. The system (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the optical code (40) comprises a data member for the rent of the property.

6. The system (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the optical code (40) comprises a data member for identifying the locking device (30).

7. The system (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the locking device (30) is provided with a secondary digital display (35) on the opposite side of the digital display (34).

8. The system (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the communication channel (12"') between the locking device (30) and the server computer (10) is provided via the Internet.

9. The system (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the second communication channel (12") between the locking device (30) and the user communication device (14) is provided by a short-range wireless connection, preferably via Bluetooth or NFC.

10. The system (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the locking device (30) comprises a user interface (36) for inputting data, and the user interface (36) is preferably provided as part of the digital display (34).

11. The system (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the locking device (30) comprises a user interface (36) for inputting data, and the user interface (36) is configured as a key pad.

12. The system (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 11 , characterized in that the locking device (30) is configured to be openable via the communication channel (12", 12"').

13. A method of automated property rental using an online system (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the method comprises:

(a) selecting and reserving a desired property from a database (18) of available properties stored on a server computer (10), (b) based on the reservation, creating a rental status data member (16) for the reserved property using the server computer (10),

(c) sending the rental status data member (16) to the IT unit (32) of the locking device (30) via the third communication channel (12""), which is used to generate an optical code (40) encoding the rental status information of the reserved property, and displaying the optical code (40) on the digital display (34),

(d) reading and decoding the optical code (40) displayed on the digital display (34) by the user communication device (14), and on this basis determining the rental status of the property, and initiating the opening of the locking device (30) by the user communication device (14) depending on the determined status.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that the selection and reservation of the property is performed by the user communication device (14).

15. The method according to claim 13 or 14, characterized in that modifying the rental status data member (16) for the reserved property after the reservation and steps c) and d) of the method are performed using the modified rental status data member (16).

16. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 15, characterized in that encrypting the data communication link between the locking device (30) and the server computer (10) and preferably the data communication link between the locking device (30) and the user communication device (14) using a Transport Layer Security protocol.