GB2284919A - Electronic parking meter - Google Patents

Abstract

An electronic parking meter has means for storing purchased credits, means for deducting credits at a current metering rate when a vehicle is parked, and means for adjusting the rate of metering according to predetermined conditions (eg time of day). The credits are purchased from either one or two prepaid cards inserted into slots (10, 12), each containing a certain number of parking units which are electronically reduced by the device for as long as the car is parked. When one card runs out units are deducted from the other card. A display (4, 24) indicates to the user and warden what parking unit rate is being used to ensure that it is appropriate for the parking area. Other information is displayed such as an indication of how much longer the cards will have units to allow parking. Means may be provided to disable the meter on detection of vehicle movement. <IMAGE>

Description

ELECTRONIC PARKING METER The present invention relates to an electronic meter.

In particular it relates to an electronic parking meter (EPM) for display from within a parked vehicle, and which meters the length of time for which the vehicle is parked.

Whilst the parking time is metered, parking time units are simultaneously deducted from a prepaid card.

There are several methods of paying for and metering parking. Usually, with on-street parking, individual bays are each metered by stationary parking meters into which coins are fed to buy a certain amount of parking time.

Such parking meters suffer from a variety of disadvantages. They are expensive devices to install since a meter is required for each parking bay. They are expensive to maintain since, if parking rates change, each meter must be adjusted individually, and further someone must be employed to empty them of coins. Because a meter is assigned to a bay rather than to a car, no matter what the sizes the cars are, only a certain number may park along a set distance of road. The meters accept only a limited number of coins, with the disadvantage that if someone does not have any of the correct coins he cannot park by a parking meter. Finally, such meters are attractive to vandals both for the enjoyment of destruction and the possibility of emptying them of money.

Other machines exist, so called "Pay and Display", whereby, upon payment of certain amounts of money, tickets are printed which indicate from what time and for how long a car may be parked in the area. These tickets are then placed inside the windscreen of the vehicle to indicate to a warden whether or not the car is permitted to park there.

The "Pay and Display" machines are more efficient than conventional parking meters in that one machine may serve a number of parking bays. Varying numbers of cars may be parked according to the size of the cars and the system is less expensive to install. However, they suffer from the same problems of the correct coins being necessary, although usually such machines may accept a greater variety of coins than conventional parking meters will. Again such machines require emptying and are attractive to vandals. Further they suffer from the disadvantage of requiring paper to produce a ticket for every usage. This can run out occasionally and whilst the amounts of paper may be small for every ticket this is still environmentally unsatisfactory.

An older system involves displaying an adjustable disc within a vehicle, which disc shows the time of arrival in a first window and a limit for the time of departure in a second window. Such parking is frequently free but limited in time. The system is also open to abuse by someone who may attempt to reuse such discs.

A further disadvantage associated with all of these systems is that the user may often pay for more time than he parks for, either because he leaves earlier than intended or the only possible units of time for which he can pay are too large.

A parking meter according to the present invention is intended not to suffer from at least some of these disadvantages.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided an electronic meter for metering use of a commodity, comprising: metering means for determining a number of purchase units used to purchase said commodity in accordance with a current metering rate; and rate setting means for setting a plurality of metering rates each for use by said metering means according to predetermined conditions; wherein said metering means is arranged to change the current rate, at which said number of used purchase units is determined, when said predetermined conditions are met.

With this first aspect there may be first entering means for entering a first store of said purchase units for purchasing said commodity; and deducting means for deducting units from said first store according to the number determined by said metering means.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided an electronic meter for metering use of a commodity, comprising: first entering means for entering a first store of purchase units for purchasing said commodity; second entering means for entering a second store of said purchase units; metering means for determining a number of purchase units used to purchase said commodity in accordance with a current metering rate; and deducting means for deducting units from said first store according to the number determined by said metering means; wherein said deducting means is arranged to deduct units from said second store when said first store is empty of units.

With the second aspect there may be rate setting means for setting one or more metering rates; wherein said metering means is adjusted to change the current metering rate when predetermined conditions are met.

The stores may be in the form of cards which fit into slots in the device. Information may be read from these and displayed on displays.

The commodity may be the length of time a vehicle is parked or otherwise doing or involved in something.

Alternatively the meter may not be for use with a vehicle but for other purposes.

Thus, there may be provided an electronic parking meter for indicating various information about a parked car. Either one or two prepaid cards are inserted into slots. Each of these cards contains a certain number of parking units which are electronically reduced by the device for as long as the car is parked. When one card runs out units are deducted from the other card. A display indicates to the user and warden what parking unit rate is being used to ensure that it is appropriate for the parking area. Other information is displayed such as an indication of how much longer the cards will have units to allow parking.

In order that the present invention may be more readily understood the following description is given, merely by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of the top of an electronic parking meter according to one embodiment of the invention; and Figure 2 is a perspective view of the underside of the electronic parking meter of Figure 1.

Figure 1 shows an electronic parking meter (EPM) having a box-like plastic body (2). On its top surface there is a display (4) which is preferably an LCD display, but could be of any other suitable type. On one side of the body (2) there is a battery compartment (6) for sufficient dry cells to power the EPM. A DC input plug (8) is provided for use with an alternative supply of power, such as from the lighter socket of a car. At one end of the box (2) there is a pair of card slots (10,12) each of which has associated with it an ejection button (14,16).

On the underside of the EPM, as shown in Figure 2, there is a keypad (18) for programming certain aspects of the EPM. The keypad (18) includes a number of function buttons (20) and integer buttons (22).

In Figure 1 the display (4) is shown to have seven sub-displays. These are the "Rate/Hour" display (24), the "Time Left" display (26), the "Card Currency" display (28), the "Start Time" display (30), the "End Time" display (32), the "Time Now" display (34) and the "Status" display (36).

In Figure 2, amongst the function buttons (20) on the keypad (18), there are a "Set Rate" button (38), a "Start Time Adjust" button (40), an "End Time Adjust" button (42), a "Set Clock" button (44), an "Enter" button (46), a "Clear" button (48) and an "On/Off" button (50).

When in use, the display (4) displays a variety of information about the meter to an attendant or anyone else who is checking the status of the parking of the vehicle.

When someone parks his car, he inserts a prepaid card into one of the two card slots (10,12) and starts the device. He leaves it so it can be viewed by someone looking in through a window. On the prepaid card there is information about the number of usable units remaining on the card; the units correspond to an amount of money to pay for parking, and when the card is new they correspond to the amount of money paid for the card. As time passes so the EPM reduces the number of units on the card in accordance with a predetermined rate so that if a card is withdrawn from the slot and used later it will have fewer units. The amount of time which the "money" remaining on the card can pay for is one of the items of information displayed on the display (4).

Frequently a card will run low on units and there will not be enough remaining for the owner to leave his vehicle legally parked for as long as he might wish. For this reason the second slot (12) is provided for the insertion of a second prepaid card. When there is a card in each of the two card slots (10,12) the device will determine which card has the smaller number of units and, when operating, will deduct units only from that card.

Once all the units on a card have been used up the device will continue to work, taking units from the other card.

When a card has no units left on it, it may be ejected by the EPM. Alternatively, a light (not shown) may indicate that the card is finished. At any time the user may remove either or both cards from the slots (10,12) using the ejection buttons (14,16). If there is only one card and that has run out, or both cards have run out the EPM may indicate this by an audible or visible alarm.

Prepaid cards may be bought in shops or from special machines as determined by the organisation which runs the EPM system. It also may be possible for cards to be recharged at recharge machines, thereby to cut down on any wastage. The EPMs themselves will be available from outlets as determined by the organisation which runs the EPM system.

Charges associated with parking may not be uniform from location to location, from day to day, or even from time of day to time of day. For instance, in order to discourage parking in central areas of a town the parking may be very expensive compared with parking further out.

Also, peak time parking may be more expensive than off-peak time parking. The "Rate/Hour" display (24) indicates the charging rate the EPM is using at any particular time. The "Set Rate" button (38) on the base of the EPM, may be used to set this rate at which units are deducted from the prepaid card. Thus the user may set the rate to 1/hour or 2/hour etc., according to the appropriate rate for the time and place. In all parking areas where the system is operated the parking rates and the hours for which they apply may be indicated quite clearly.

The "Time Left" display (26) indicates the number of hours, at the present rate (or under the present program if multiple rates are stored), that a card will continue to allow a vehicle to park in an area. The number that is displayed may be indicative of the amount of time left on the card which is being used or, if two cards are in the slots, as a total of the amount of time of both cards.

The "Card Currency" display (28) indicates the monetary units of the card which is being used. This will usually be the local currency code which is pre-coded on the card itself and is not changeable by the device user.

Each EPM may be programmed by an issuing authority for a number of acceptable currency codes. A foreigner using his own EPM in another country may then buy the local card and insert it into his own EPM to allow himself to be legally parked there. The currency code tells a warden that it is the local currency unit which is being used and not a foreign one. This enables cross-border visitors to park easily. The EPM can be standardised to accept regional card formats, for example in the EU or between Singapore and Malaysia where vehicles cross borders regularly.

The "Start Time" display (30) is an indication of when charges start. At the start time the "Status" display (36) changes from "free" to "in-use" (or may use any other suitable wording). The "Start Time Adjust" button (40) on the base of the body (2) is used to set the start time and can set multiple start times to provide for several changes from free parking to charged parking or from one rate to another. This display (30) can also indicate when the parking rate changes. Again a number of such times of charging may be held in the memory of the device and the next time a change is to occur is the time that is displayed.

The "End Time" display (32) indicates when parking charges cease and thereby when units will cease to be deducted from the card. Once that time is reached the EPM switches off or may switch to a waiting state. The "End Time" time is entered via the "End Time Adjust" button (42) and, as with the "Start Time", a number of different times may be set. Again this display (32) and button (42) can be used to indicate the end of charging at one rate before free parking or charging at another rate.

The "Time Now" display (34) displays the current local time. The EPM needs to have a clock so that it knows when to start charging at different rates and how much to deduct from a card at any time. A separate backup battery may be necessary to keep the clock going when the main battery is changed or it may be powered from the main battery or DC input. The "Set Clock" function button (44) allows the time to be set or changed according to changes from summer to winter time and/or crossing time zones.

There may be further buttons and memory to allow the display to switch between times in different countries.

The final display, the "Status" display (36), displays "in use" when the EPM is in use and parking is being charged. When there are no valid cards inserted in the slots it will display a message such as "expired".

When setting the rate on the EPM, the user can set more than just one rate and can set a number of different rates with associated times. If the charging rates vary between off-peak and peak times the owner will not then have to return to his vehicle in order to change the rate to the new rate but would be able to programme the change into the EPM before leaving the vehicle in the first place.

For example, to set a rate of 1 per hour commencing at 14:20 and ending at 17:00 and again setting rate of 50 pence per hour commencing at 17:00 and ending at 22:00, the following button sequence could be used: Step 1. Press "Set Rate" Press "1" ...... Indicates ready Press 1,Enter" to accept 1st rate.

Press "1.00" Press "Enter" ..... To accept in memory & BR< display the rate in LCD.

Press "Start Time Adjust" Press "1" ..... Indicates ready to accept 1st start time Press "Enter" Press "14:20" ..... To accept and display Press "Enter" 1st start time.

Press "End Time Adjust" Press "1" Press "Enter" ..... Indicates ready to accept 1st end time.

Press "17:00" Press "Enter" ..... To accept and display 1st end time.

Step 2. Repeat Step 1 by replacing In with "2" with the correct rates and start/end times, and the second rates and start/end times will be saved in memory. The second start/end times and rate will not be displayed until the clock reaches 17:00.

If there is only one parking rate to be applied, then the operator does not have to perform Step 2 and neither does he need to enter "1" after pressing "Set Rate", "Start Time Adjust" and the "End Time Adjust" buttons (38,40,42).

They have a default value of "1".

The above is only a simple illustration on the setting of rates and times. Other functions may be set in a similar fashion, or any or all of the functions may be set differently.

There are a number of other displays which might occur on the main display (2). For example there may be a display for what time a vehicle was parked. This will be useful where there is a limit to the amount of time a vehicle may stay in a particular parking area. There may be a display, instead of the "Time Left" display (26), to indicate the actual time the card(s) are expected to expire. A further or alternative display may display the amount of money left on a card, rather than the amount of time. Any display may be altered according to the issuing authority of the EPM or may be altered according to the current card being used in the card slot. The display (2) itself can change the separate display headings or not. If it does then, for instance, if languages change from place to place, a local card will be encoded to use the local language on the display.Or, if display requirements change from place to place, cards can be encoded to show on the display the locally required data.

The other function buttons (20) "enter" and "clear" and the integer buttons (22) are used when setting the display or any of the particular functions. The "On/Off" button (50) is used by a user as he leaves his car and when he returns to it to drive off.

Because there are times when someone may use the same parking area frequently and would need to programme in a number of different parking rates it is envisaged that a memory and a number of program keys may be provided. These are programmable by the user whereby, rather than having to set the times and rates every day, he uses a parking programme by simply pressing the appropriate program button. Additionally, or alternatively an input/output port could be provided to connect the device to a computer to allow programming.

The EPM itself should be a closed unit and made tamper-proof so than no-one can misuse it. It is also envisaged that wardens may be issued with electronic keys which, when brought close to the EPMs, may indicate more about either the card which is in use or any other feature which the authority deems useful.

The DC input plug (8) can be used to recharge batteries within the EPN rather than to power the device directly. Any power may be boosted or occasionally replaced with that furnished by solar cells. The shape of the main body (2) is unimportant, as long as this can receive cards or whatever else may be used in their stead and provide sufficient display. It can also be made from a variety of materials if required. Both the display and the buttons on the keypad (18) on the underside can be covered or protected, in which case removable or flip-over covers may be provided.

The units which are read off the card have so far been described as units of money. They are an indication of how much "moneys-worth" of parking is left on the card.

However, other units may be used instead. For example the units may instead be in lengths of time at a certain rate, for example "one hour of parking at the basic rate". Other rates, such as peak time rates, may for example be three times the base rate etc. The displays would be changed accordingly. Alternatively, units could simply be parking units and any parking rate per hour could be in terms of parking units per hour. This would mean that the card currency display would not be necessary. This, however, might require cooperation to ensure that units are the same price wherever the cards can be bought.

The EPM does. not need to be limited to two card slots, but it may have three or more such slots functioning similarly to the two slots hereinbefore described.

Starting the metering should not necessarily require the cards to be put into the slot meter beforehand but they can be left in when the meter is not in use.

As an alternative to what has been described before, it is also envisaged that units will not be deducted from cards simultaneously with the passage of time but that when a card is inserted all or some of the units on it are erased from the card and stored in the EPM and used gradually as required. This will also allow all charging to be done by an authorised body and/or at authorised places, for example such as a machine in a petrol station.

Individual cards would then not be required.

A motion sensor may be included in the EPM to ensure that it does not continue to meter parking when motion is detected. Therefore, if the driver has forgotten to turn the meter off when he has driven off the EPM will turn itself off.

In the drawings the EPM is working on a 24 hour clock. However, days of the week can also be included both in the display and in the memories for the different displays so that the device can be programmed for parking week by week or over several days, such as over the weekend, where parking restrictions may change each day.

Whilst the device of the present invention has so far been described as a parking meter, it is not limited to that function. For example, it could be used to pay for road use such as in towns, on toll roads or motorways or through tunnels and over bridges. The device does not even need to be used in or with a vehicle.

Further, activation could be managed by means external to the vehicle. For instance a first transmitter could turn the meter on to start deducting units when it enters a certain area for parking, or a certain area of a town or a certain stretch of road, and a second transmitter could stop the meter when it leaves the area or stretch of road. Entry to such an area could be barred, or an alarm could sound if no meter, an invalid meter, or a meter with no units, is detected in the vehicle either on entering or leaving.

Claims (15)

1. An electronic meter for metering use of a commodity, comprising: metering means for determining a number of purchase units used to purchase said commodity in accordance with a current metering rate; and rate setting means for setting a plurality of metering rates each for use by said metering means according to predetermined conditions; wherein said metering means is arranged to change the current rate, at which said number of used purchase units is determined, when said predetermined conditions are met.

2. A meter according to claim 1 further comprising first entering means for entering a first store of said purchase units for purchasing said commodity; and deducting means for deducting units from said first store according to the number determined by said metering means.

3. An electronic meter for metering use of a commodity, comprising: first entering means for entering a first store of purchase units for purchasing said commodity; second entering means for entering a second store of said purchase units; metering means for determining a number of purchase units used to purchase said commodity in accordance with a current metering rate; and deducting means for deducting units from said first store according to the number determined by said metering means; wherein said deducting means is arranged to deduct units from said second store when said first store is empty of units.

4. A meter according to claim 3 further comprising rate setting means for setting one or more metering rates; wherein said metering means is adjusted to change the current metering rate when predetermined conditions are met.

5. A meter according to claim 3 or 4, wherein said first and second stores comprise cards having a characteristic representative of a number of said units remaining thereon; and said first and second entering means comprise slots for receiving said cards into said meter.

6. A meter according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein said metering means is arranged to use metering rates of different units.

7. A meter according to any one of claims 3 to 6 further comprising reading means for reading information from first and/or second stores entered via said first and/or second entering means.

8. A meter according to claims 6 and 7 wherein said reading means is arranged to read data on the units of said metering rate to be used by said metering means from said first and/or second stores entered via said first and/or second entering means.

9. A meter according to any one of the preceding claims further comprising display means for displaying the current rate used by said metering means for purchase of said commodity.

10. A meter according to claim 9 and claim 7 or 8, wherein said display means is arranged to display information concerning the number of remaining units read by said reading means in either or both first and second stores entered via said entering means.

11. A meter according to claim 1 or 4, or any other of the preceding claims in combination with inter alia either claim 1 or claim 4, further comprising condition setting means for setting said predetermined conditions.

12. A meter according to any one of the preceding claims wherein said commodity is the length of time during which a particular circumstance occurs.

13. A meter according to claim 12, wherein said circumstance is that a vehicle is parked.

14. A meter according to claim 13 further comprising movement detecting means arranged to disable use of the metering means when movement is detected.

15. An electronic meter constructed and arranged substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.