GB2393309A

GB2393309A - A car park security system comprising ticket with photo

Info

Publication number: GB2393309A
Application number: GB0221612A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Eric Smith
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-09-18
Filing date: 2002-09-18
Publication date: 2004-03-24
Also published as: GB0221612D0

Abstract

A ticket system for a car park comprises a digital camera 1 for taking a photograph 7 of a vehicle entering the car park. The photograph 7 is printed on a parking ticket. The photograph 7 shows the colour make and registration of the vehicle. A check of the ticket and vehicle on exit reduces the possibility of theft. If the ticket and the vehicle do not match, ramps (11, Fig 3) and spikes (11, Fig 3) may stop the vehicle from leaving. In another aspect, the digital camera 1 recognises the characters of the registration number and the colour of the vehicle.

Description

CAR THEFT PREVENTION FROM AIRPORTS AND MUNICIPAL CAR PARKS

(MANNED BOOTH OR AUTOMATED SYSTEMS!

This invention relates to, a ticket type machine utilising digital technology to control the release of vehicles from a secure park.

Manned booth and automated car parks are well known throughout the country, especially at airports, whose long stay car parks are always manned. Access to these car parks is simple. You drive up to the barrier, press button on the ticket machine; a ticket appears showing date and time. Pull ticket from machine, the barrier goes up. Drive through and park your car. When you wish to leave you, drive your car to the exit barrier, (in an automated system your ticket should be prepaid before hand, and just insert into ticket machine), hand your ticket to the car park attendant who works out your fee. Pay him/her your fee, barrier is raised and proceed out of the car park. N.B. The car park attendant does not know what car you entered with. As long as you have a ticket, you can drive out in any car! If a thief decides to breach the exit barrier and drive away, he/she can! The object of this invention is to provide a system where, a digital camera which is linked to the ticket printer takes a photo or encoded information of the front of your car, and prints it on to your ticket showing colour (if printer is colour), make of vehicle I.E.-FORD, BMW, VW, RENAULT, and registration number. An automated system using suitable software for registration number characture recognition, with the addition of colour recognition, can be encoded on to half of ticket, the other half of ticket prints date and time, pull ticket from machine, the barrier goes up, drive through and park your car.

Now when you exit the park you would drive your car up to the exit barrier, insert ticket in to ticket machine or, hand your ticket to the car park attendant. Who has inside his/her booth a split screen processor, a video recorder (for police action if necessary), and a monitor which is linked to the two out side digital cameras positioned front and rear of the car. He/she will check your ticket, your ticket shows colour of car (if printer is colour), make of vehicle, and registration number. For an automated system the encoded ticket is read by the computer in ticket machine for a comparison. The attendant on looking at hislher monitor can visually check for colour of car, make, and registration number. If the ticket and monitor or computer does not match up, an alarm button is activated along with a siren and two hydraulic ramps front and rear of the car. Effectively preventing that car from being stolen.

If a thief has stolen a car, and has no intentions of stopping at the ticket booth, and decides to breach the barrier before the two hydraulic ramps are activated, his/her lyres will be punctured. Underneath the exit barrier are a series of steel spikes protruding from the ground, which will be retracted when the exit barrier is raised.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawing in which: Figure I Shows two digital cameras, one barrier mounted the other fixed to the floor. Either option can be used. You can see that both are connected to the ticket printer via a secure cable activated when the ticket button is pressed.

Figure 2 Illustrates a sample ticket, taken from either digital camera showing colour of car (if printer is colour,) make (RENAULT) registration number (ABC 123,) date and time. An automated system will encode registration number and colour of car on to the ticket, along with date and time. Figure 3 Shows a stolen car cannot breach the exit barrier due to the raised steel spikes. The hydraulic ramps are in the down position, and the secure cables can be seen linked to their respective activator buttons, one to operate the barrier and spikes and the other to activate the hydraulic ramps and siren 23.

Figure 4 Shows that the hydraulic ramps 1 IA and 12A have been activated along with the automatic siren 23, because the ticket did not match the monitor, linked to the front 9 and rear 8 digital cameras by pressing button 20.

Figure 5 Shows an automated system, where by a ticket has been prepaid for, and has encoded on it the registration number and colour of car along with date and time. Insert ticket in to computer ticket machine, which is linked to digital cameras 8 and 9, if the codes match, barrier will be raised.

Figure 6 Shows an automated system, where by the ticket did not match up with camera's 8 and 9, the barrier 14 is in the down position, steel spikes are protruding 13, ramps 11A and 12A are up, the siren 23A is sounding, effectively stopping any car from leaving the park.

Figure 7 Shows a manned booth and the barrier is in the up position 14A, the steel spikes are retracted 13A, the two hydraulic ramps 11 and 12 are in the down position, and the way is clear for the driver to exit the airport or municipal car park.

Referring to the drawing in Fig 1, which comprises a digital camera in a secure housing, fixed to the ground beneath the barrier Fig 1- 1, or fixed to the barrier Fig 1-2, these cameras will be linked via a secure cable 4 to the ticket printer 5.

order to activate the car park entry barrier, you drive up to the ticket printer, and depress the button. A digital picture of the front of the vehicle will be printed on to the ticket along with the date and time Fig 2. In the automated system car registration and colour would be encoded on to ticket. Pull your ticket from the machine, the barrier raises 3, drive through and park your car.

On leaving the car park drive to the exit bamer in Fig 3. Insert your ticket in to ticket machine as in Fig 6, or hand your ticket to the attendant Fig 4, he/she will check the details on the ticket to see if they match with the details on the monitor i.e. colour of car (if printer is colour) make and registration number. If the details don't match up, button 20 is depressed as shown in Fig 4, a siren sounds 23 activating the two hydraulic ramps 11A and 12A, physically preventing the car from moving.

In an automated system where by using digital technology, and security software, the camera at the entrance barrier encrypts the colour and registration number of the vehicle by a secure means e.g. (barcode) onto the ticket along with date and time. So that at the exit barrier, the two camera's one front the other at the rear can pick up the same encoded information and transfer it to the computer in the ticket machine for a comparison of information. If all is correct the barrier will raise Fig 5, but if the encoded information doesn't match, the two hydraulic ramps will be activated Fig 6, keeping the exit barrier down and the metal spikes protruding sealing the exit, at the same time an automatic alarm siren will sound 23A, to alert car park security.

If a car has been stolen and the thief has no intentions of stopping at the manned booth or automated barrier, and intends to breach the barrier (which is usually made of thin plastic). A series of steel spikes are protruding from the ground underneath the barrio, due to the barrio being in the down position as shown in Fig 4-14 and Fig 6-14, effectively stopping any car from leaving the car park.

If all is in order, and ticket and car are a match, button 19 in Fig 7 is depressed lifting the barrio 14A and detracting the steel spikes 13A, or in the automated system the barrier would raise automatically, allowing the driver to exit the car park.

All of the above could be automated using suitable software.

Claims

1. An airport or municipal car park car security system, utilising digital camera technology where by a picture is printed of the colour, make and registration number of a car on to a ticket.

2. An airport or municipal car park security system, utilising digital camera technology with number plate characture recognition and colour recognition for an automated system.

3. An airport or municipal car park car security system as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2,wherein two more digital cameras are used on the exit procedure to confirm that the car driven into car park, is the same one driving out.

4. An airport or municipal car park car security system as claimed in claim 1,2 or claim 3, wherein the exit barrier has a dual purpose i.e.when barrier is in the down position, steel spikes are protruding from the ground beneath the barrier, and when barrier is raised the steel spikes are retracted.

5. An airport or municipal car park car security system as claimed in claim 2,3 or claim 4, wherein two hydraulic ramps are activated, effectively penning in a vehicle.

6. An airport or municipal car park car security system substantially as described herein with reference to Figures l -7 of the accompanying drawings.