GB2541172A

GB2541172A - Ticket vending machine

Info

Publication number: GB2541172A
Application number: GB1513326.7A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Oldroyd Philip; Dickinson James
Original assignee: Parkeon Transit Ltd
Current assignee: Flowbird Transport Ltd
Priority date: 2015-07-29
Filing date: 2015-07-29
Publication date: 2017-02-15
Anticipated expiration: 2035-07-29
Also published as: GB201513326D0; GB2541172B

Abstract

A ticket vending machine includes: a vertical touchscreen; a sensor system for acquiring information about a user; and a control system configured to define an active portion within the vertical touchscreen, wherein the user is able to interact with the vertical touchscreen by touching the active portion; and wherein the control system is further configured to set the height of the active portion within the vertical touchscreen according to the height of the user as derived from the information acquired by the sensor system about the user. The sensor may be a 3d imaging system, or infrared system, performing face detection of approaching user, and may determine age, gender, number of users or mood and adjust interaction accordingly. Users may also drag interface to desired height.

Description

TICKET VENDING MACHINE

Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention relates to a ticket vending machine.

Background of the Invention [0001] Ticket vending machines are used in public locations such as stations, car parks, hotels, cinemas, etc. for selling tickets and other closely related items. Such a ticket vending machine may include a touchscreen to allow a user to interact with the machine. It can be desirable to display information on the touchscreen even if no user is currently interacting with the machine - for example, displaying advertising or information about available tickets. This information may be displayed most effectively on larger screens, for example so as to be more visible to users further away from the ticket vending machine.

[0002] Many existing ticket vending machines have a touch-screen at an inclined angle for ease of visibility and touch operation. However, having a vertical screen can make is easier for the ticket vending machine to accommodate a larger screen, and may also improve visibility of displayed information at a greater distance from the ticket vending machine. On the other hand, having such a vertical and larger screen should not compromise the usability and ergonomics of the ticket vending machine for its core purpose, namely as a machine for selling tickets.

Summary of the Invention [0003] The invention is defined in the appended claims.

[0004] A ticket vending machine is provided which includes: a vertical touchscreen; a sensor system for acquiring information about a user; and a control system configured to define an active portion within the vertical touchscreen, wherein the user is able to interact with the vertical touchscreen by touching the active portion; and wherein the control system is further configured to set the height of the active portion within the vertical touchscreen according to the height of the user as derived from the information acquired by the sensor system about the user.

[0005] Positioning the active portion of a touchscreen according to an estimated height of a user, as derived from the information acquired by the sensor system, allows display information and interaction targets (e.g. buttons to be pressed/touched) to be positioned appropriately for each user - both in terms of good visibility and also in terms of convenient and comfortable touch operation. This facilitates the touchscreen having a vertical orientation, and so helps to provide a powerful display platform, which in turn allows more flexible use of the ticket vending machine, as well as providing a bespoke interaction experience for each user.

[0006] The ticket vending machine may allow the user to manually adjust the height of the active portion of the vertical touchscreen, for example, to change the automatic height setting as determined by the machine based on the information acquired by the sensor system. This allows the user to position the height of the active portion of the vertical touchscreen at a preferred height, especially if the height positioning provided by the machine itself is less effective - e.g. because there are multiple users together in front of the ticket vending machine, and the height setting of the active portion does not correspond to the height of the person who is actually going to perform the vending transaction.

[0007] The ticket vending machine may detect whether or not a person is approaching the ticket vending machine. This then provides an indication of whether the person is likely to want to use the machine (and may serve as a trigger for then starting to sense information that could be used for the height adjustment).

[0008] The sensor system may comprise an infrared sensor system, an imaging system, or any other appropriate facility. The sensor system may provide a three-dimensional detection field, which can help to provide better height estimates, e.g. by discriminating between shorter people who are nearby and taller people who are further away.

[0009] In some embodiments, the information acquired includes the number of users in the vicinity of the machine, for example by performing a face detection analysis. If multiple people appear to be queueing to use the machine, the control system may adjust the mode of operation of the ticket vending machine to try to enhance the throughput of customers, such as by speeding transitions between screens, etc.

Brief Description of the Drawings [0010] Various embodiments of the invention will now be described in detail byway of example only with reference to the following drawings: [0011] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a ticket vending machine in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.

[0012] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a vertical touchscreen of a ticket vending machine such as shown in Figure 1.

[0013] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a vertical touchscreen of a ticket vending machine such as shown in Figure 1.

[0014] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a vertical touchscreen of a ticket vending machine such as shown in Figure 1.

[0015] Figure 5 illustrates certain software components for a ticket vending machine such as shown in Figure 1 in accordance with some embodiments.

[0016] Figure 6 is a flow diagram of a method for adjusting the height of an active portion of a vertical touchscreen on a ticket vending machine such as shown in Figure 1 in accordance with some embodiments.

Detailed Description [0017] Figure 1 illustrates a ticket vending machine 100 in accordance with some embodiments of the invention. The ticket vending machine comprises a vertical touchscreen 102, a sensor system 104 and a control system located internally within the machine (and hence not visible in Figure 1).

The control system may be based, for example, on a personal computer system or similar, running the Microsoft Windows operating system or any similar software platform such as Linux. The ticket vending machine may also comprise other standard components for generating tickets and facilitating ticket vending transactions. For example, the ticket vending machine may also comprise one or more of a card payment machine 106, a coin payment slot 108 and return tray 114, a contactless or NFC card reader 112, a ticket printer (again located internally within the machine, and hence not visible in Figure 1) and a ticket collection tray 114.

[0018] The tickets sold by the ticket vending machine 100 may be for a wide range of purposes, for example, tickets fora form of transport, such as train, tram, bus, ferry or other forms of public transport, tickets for parking or for any other type of tickets, such as cinemas and sporting events.

The ticket vending machine 100 may sell tickets for just a single purpose, or for different or multiple purposes. For example, a ticket vending machine 100 may sell both rail travel tickets and parking tickets.

[0019] The ticket vending machine 100 may offer multiple different types of tickets, including dispensing physical tickets, such as printed paper tickets and/or contactless smartcard tickets, and/or some form of digital (non-physical) ticket, such as mobile payment and digital wallet tickets. The tickets may relate to individual items (journeys, shows, etc.), or may instead represent some form of (pre)payment card or facility, e.g. which can be used to pay for future train or bus trips within appropriate limits of time, geography and/or cost. The ticket vending machine may also be used to make on-line reservations, and so on.

[0020] The ticket vending machine 100 is intended to be sited and used in a public or shared space, such as a port or airport, train or bus station, shopping centre, theatre foyer, hotel lobby, car park, place of employment, etc. The ticket vending machine 100 is available for use by a wide range of people who pass through or into the public or shared space in which the machine is located. It is therefore important that vending machine 100 is designed to cope with a variety of potential users.

[0021] The ticket vending machine 100 may be located proximate to the service for which the tickets sold are to be used, for example in a train or bus station where the tickets are to be used on public transport. Similarly, the ticket vending machine 100 may be located in a shopping mall where the tickets are to be used for parking. Alternatively, the ticket vending machine 100 may be located away from the service for which the tickets are to be used. For example, a ticket vending machine 100 to sell theatre tickets in London might be located at a railway station which provides train routes to London, thereby helping people to buy tickets in advance and avoiding them having to queue for the tickets in London itself.

[0022] The ticket vending machine includes a vertical touchscreen 102 to provide to display information to the user of the ticket vending machine 100 and to receive touch input from a user of the ticket vending machine. Vertical refers to the mounting of the touchscreen such that the plane or surface of the screen includes a substantially vertical axis. The touchscreen 102 may have a landscape or portrait configuration (for example), whilst still being mounted in the vertical configuration. The vertical touchscreen 102 may in practice not be exactly vertical, but will usually be offset by no more than 5 degrees, more commonly by no more than 2 degrees, and often by no more than 1 degree from the true vertical.

[0023] The vertical touchscreen may be relatively big, for example, extending by 0.6m or more in the vertical direction, 0.8m or more in the vertical direction, or over 1 m in the vertical direction. This is a large screen size compared with many existing ticket vending machines, and offers a considerable area for providing information to a user or to passers-by, whether instructions, maps, advertising, slogans, public information, artwork, etc.. In some cases, a plurality of vertical touchscreens 102 may be provided to create an image wall, for example to increase the overall height and/or width of the display.

[0024] The vertical touchscreen 102 may be polarised or coated in a polymerisation film to allow the information displayed on the vertical touchscreen 102 to be seen only when viewed from a particular angle. For example, the vertical touchscreen 102 may be polarised or coated in a polymerisation film to prevent people standing alongside (rather than in front of) the ticket vending machine 100 from seeing the information displayed on the screen, such as when a number of ticket vending machines 100 are arranged side-by-side in a row.

[0025] The ticket vending machine 100 may comprise a second screen 116 which may be used to display a video call or similar interaction between a user at the ticket vending machine and an external assistant remotely located at a help centre or similar. The ticket vending machine 100 may also comprise a microphone 118, speaker 120, and/or webcam 122 to enable voice and video communications between the user and such an external assistant.

[0026] The locations of the various components of the vending machine 100 are presented in Figure 1 by way of example only and it will be appreciated that these may be varied as appropriate depending upon the requirements of any given installation. Similarly, it will be appreciated that different components may be present in any given vending machine, again depending upon the particular requirements of any given installation [0027] The use of a vertical touchscreen typically provides a greater display area for information than can be achieved with screens that have an inclined or sloped configuration. In particular, an inclined screen is limited in size (in practice) because such an inclined screen extends not only upwards but also inwards into the machine, and hence occupies depth as well as height. On the other hand, a user is able to look downwards onto such an inclined screen. This makes such a screen more easily usable by people of varying heights, in that taller people can still look down onto the inclined screen, even though it is slightly further from their eyes than for shorter people. However, this facility is not shared by a vertical touchscreen, in that if information is displayed to users at a different height from their eye level, then not only is such information further away, but it is also seen in a fore-shortened (distorted) manner.

[0028] Accordingly, the ticket vending machine 100 includes sensor system 104, which is configured to detect a (potential) user near the ticket vending machine 100. The sensor system 104 is also configured to acquire information about the user of the ticket vending machine (when detected). For example, the sensor system 104 may comprise motion sensing apparatus to detect the motion of a person near the ticket vending machine, e.g. within 6 or 10 metres of the ticket vending machine. The sensor system 104 may utilise infrared, optical, radio or other waves (ora combination of such techniques) to detect the presence of, and other relevant information about, a person near the ticket vending machine.

[0029] In some implementations, the sensor system 104 may comprise an infrared projector and camera configured to provide a three-dimensional scanning system. This enables volumetric scanning of the region around the ticket vending machine to detect the size of an object as well the distance the object is away from the sensor system 104.

[0030] In some implementations, the sensor system 104 comprises a commercially available unit, for example the Microsoft Kinect™ system from Microsoft Corporation, along with appropriate software for controlling the unit. For details about this system can be found at https://www.microsoft.com/en-tjs/kinectfo windows/ and in “Kinect for Windows: Human Interface Guidelines v2.0”, 2014, available from Microsoft Corporation.

[0031] The sensor system 104 may use a wireless communication technology, such as Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (BTLE) or Wi-Fi, to detect the presence of a mobile phone or personal electronic device near the ticket vending machine. The sensor system 104 may be configured to detect whether the mobile phone or personal electronic device has a ticketing application installed which is compatible with the ticket vending machine 100. If so, such an application may facilitate further interaction between the user and the ticket vending machine 100.

[0032] The sensor system 104 generally detects people within a certain range of the ticket vending machine 100 and/or within a certain viewing angle from the ticket vending machine. For example, the sensor system 104 may be configured to only detect people within say 3, 5 or 8 metres of the ticket vending machine 100. Similarly, if multiple ticket vending machines 100 are located next to or near one other, the sensor system 104 of a given ticket vending machine 100 may be configured to detect only people within a given range and/or direction of the ticket vending machine 100 - in essence, those who are directly in front of this particular ticket vending machine. This prevents multiple ticket vending machines 100 from detecting the same person as they approach one of a group of ticket vending machines 100.

[0033] There are various ways in which the sensor system 104 may be constrained to only detect people only within a given range or position/angle relative to the ticket vending machine 100. For example, the sensing mechanism may be limited in aperture or viewing angle, so that it can only receive input from a limited range of positions. Alternatively (or additionally), the software associated with the sensor system 104 may be configured to discard from the detection process certain portions of the field of view of the camera and/or certain depths (or to discard any identification of people found within such portions of the field of view).

[0034] The information acquired by the sensor system 104 may be used to derive additional information about the user, either by the sensor system 104 itself, and/or by the control system. For example properties such as height, age range and gender may be derived from the information acquired by the sensor system 104. Facial detection or recognition may also be utilised to determine the presence of a user and/or the direction that the user is facing relative to the ticket vending machine 100. For example, it may be determined whether a user is walking towards the ticket vending machine 100, away from the ticket vending machine, or abeam the ticket vending machine. Facial detection/recognition may also be utilised to identify a number of features on the face of the user, such as eyes, ears, mouth, nose and chin. Facial recognition may further be utilised to determine the mood of the user, for example whether the user is smiling, frowning or crying. Such information my impact how the machine interacts with the user. Similarly, information acquired by the sensor system 104 may be used to determine the location of various parts of the user, for example their shoulders, arms, torso and legs.

[0035] The information acquired by the sensor system 104 may also be used to determine the number of users near the ticket vending machine, e.g. based on facial detection. More particular, the vending machine may be able to determine whether there is one current user of the ticket vending machine 100, or multiple such users, or whether there are several people waiting to use the ticket vending machine 100.

[0036] The additional derived information may be used to tailor or personalise the user experience of the ticket vending machine 100. For example, if multiple users are detected as being present, the system may provide information on group discounts, etc., or if a queue of users is detected, the system may progress through a script more quickly and/or omit optional extras, such as inquiring whether a user would like to make any further purchases. The information acquired may also be stored, such as in a database or sensor library, and analysed or compared to information acquired about other users of the ticket vending machine 100, in order to improve future user interactions and ticket vending transactions.

[0037] The derivation of information about the user may be performed in an appropriate order. For example, the sensor system 104 may detect first that a user is near the ticket vending machine 100, and then try to ascertain whether or the user is approaching the ticket vending machine 100. If the user is approaching the ticket vending machine, then the system may assume that the user intends to use the ticket vending machine 100 and accordingly additional information about the user, such as his/her height, may be derived. On the other hand, if it is determined that the user is not approaching the ticket vending machine 100, for example, if the user is walking away from the ticket vending machine 100, then it may be determined that the user does not intend to use the ticket vending machine 100 and no further action may be taken.

[0038] Note that an estimation of user height by ticket vending machine 100 may take into account depth (z) information, i.e. distance from the vending machine. This depth information, which can be provided by sensor units such as the Microsoft Kinect™ system, can help to distinguish between a smaller person who is relatively close to the machine, and a larger person who is relatively far from the machine.

[0039] Figure 2 illustrates an example of a display on the vertical touchscreen 102. The control system is configured to determine a portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 which is active for touch input. For example, the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen may be a section of the vertical touchscreen 102 containing a graphic user interface, or one or more interaction targets for the user to interact with (e.g. touch) during the ticket vending transaction. The active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 may comprise a window, buttons, menus or a combination thereof, on the vertical touchscreen 102. Such elements provide a graphical user interface (GUI) that allows the user to provide touch input through the GUI during a ticket vending transaction. For example, the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 may contain buttons which, when touched by the user, allow the user to buy a ticket 204, collect a pre-paid or pre-booked ticket 206, indicate that the user has a smartcard or contactless ticket 208, or allow the user to change the language of the information 210 on the vertical touchscreen 102, etc.

[0040] The control system may be configured to display other information on the vertical touchscreen 102 alongside the active portion 202 to assist the user, for example the date 212, the time 214 and information about the types of credit or debit card that the ticket vending machine accepts 216. In other words, other portions of the vertical touchscreen 102, besides the active portion, may be utilised for displaying information and control options to a user, and also for receiving touch input. However, the active portion 102 is generally utilised for the primary input/output interaction with the user, for example, with respect to the core application flow as a user operates the machine with respect to ticket vending.

[0041] The information acquired by the sensor system 104 may be used to derive an estimated height of user. For example, the height of the user may be estimated based on the size of object detected by the sensor system 104 and determined to be a person, or based on a number of facial features detected by facial detection/recognition. In response to the estimated or determined height of the user, the control system is configured to set a height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 according to the height of the person derived from the acquired information about the person. (The height of the active portion represents its location within the vertical touchscreen in terms of its up/down positioning, i.e. parallel to the vertical axis).

[0042] The active portion 202 may be positioned within the vertical touchscreen 102 by the control system according to the height of one or more detected parts of the user’s body. For example, the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 may be positioned at the height of the user’s chin, shoulders or elbow. The active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 may also be positioned a predetermined height below the detected height of the user’s eyes, for example 0.3m. This enables the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 to be at a comfortable position both for reading and also for operating (by touching or pressing). The active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 may also be positioned a predetermined distance between the detected height of the user’s eyes and the detected height of another part of the user’s body, for example, his/her hand. This allows the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 to be positioned at a height which is both easy to read and also comfortable for the user to interact with.

[0043] Having the vertical touchscreen 102 extend a relatively large distance in the vertical direction helps to accommodate a wider range of user heights. In addition, ticket vending machines 100 are generally subject to regulations regarding use by people with disabilities, for example, wheel-chair users, and supporting a wide range of user heights helps to comply with these regulations.

[0044] In some cases, the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 set by the control system may not be appropriate for a user. Accordingly, the ticket vending machine 100 may allow a user to manually adjust the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102.

For example, if an adult and a child approach the ticket vending machine 100 at the same time, the sensor system 104 may detect the child and the control system may set the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 according to the determined height of the child. However, the adult may then wish to adjust the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 to a more comfortable or convenient position for the adult’s height.

[0045] The machine may allow a user to move the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 to a desired height by touching the vertical touchscreen 102 at a point within the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 and dragging active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 to the desired height. A plurality of adjustment buttons may also be provided, such as physical buttons adjacent to the vertical touchscreen 102, and/or buttons in the active portion of the vertical touchscreen 102 to allow the user to adjust the height of the screen further. For example, one button may be provided to move the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 up and one button may be provided to move the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 down. The control system may then configured to receive an input from the user, either by touching the vertical touchscreen 102 or by pressing a physical button, and then move the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 vertically on the touchscreen in response to the desired height.

[0046] The screen shown in Figure 2 also includes a button 218 located centrally at the bottom of the vertical touchscreen 102, which is provided for a user in a wheelchair to touch. In response to a user touching this button 218, the control system can set the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 to a low height, for example at the bottom of the vertical touchscreen 102. This allows such a user to reduce the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 if it is initially set at too high a level, for example because the sensor system 104 has determined a height based on some other (taller) person in the vicinity. A physical button located below the vertical touchscreen may also be provided for the same purpose.

[0047] Note that the height positioning of the input buttons, relative to the height of a user, is generally more sensitive than the height positioning of information or other visual output. Thus information may be read from some distance (if presented in a suitably large format), when height then becomes less of issue. However, touch input is constrained by the physical length (and manoeuvrability) of a user’s arm, and hence better height matching should be achieved. Accordingly, the control system may give primary weight to the position of the buttons or other user input facility based on the estimated height of a user (with the information output then being positioned at a suitable location having regard to the position of the buttons as already determined).

[0048] If a user is detected by the sensor system 104, but the machine is unable to estimate a reliable value of the height of the user, the control system may place the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 at the mid-height of the vertical touchscreen. The user can then be allowed to adjust the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 to suit his or her preference using the means described above.

[0049] The control system may store, for example in a database or machine learning system, information about the estimated height of a user of the ticket vending machine 100, and the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 as used by that user, along with further information as to whether the height of the active portion was used as set by the machine, or whether the user manually (re)set the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102. This stored information may then be used, in effect as a form of training system, for improving the estimation of the height at which to set the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 for future users of the ticket vending machine 100. For example, if a large number of users adjust the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 to be lower than the height set by the control system, the control system may update the calculations it uses to determine the height at which to set the location of the active portion. Such updates may take various forms, including altering the relative weighting given to different pieces of derived information, such as total height, eye level, hand level, etc., and/or altering the distance of a user away from the ticket vending machine at which the height is estimated. For example, it may be found that height estimates lose reliability if a user is more than a distance of say 8m away from the machine, so that the height estimates might be limited to users who are closer to vending machine than this distance. Adjusting and enhancing in this manner the height estimation procedure for the active portion 202 by ticket vending machine102 can help to improve the user experience when using the ticket vending machine.

[0050] Figure 3 and 4 illustrate examples where the control system has detected the height of a user and set the height of the active portion of the vertical touchscreen 102 accordingly. In the example illustrated in Figure 3, the active portion 302 of the vertical touchscreen 102 has been set towards the top of the vertical touchscreen 102. In the example illustrated in Figure 4, the active portion 402 of the vertical touchscreen 102 has been set towards the bottom of the vertical touchscreen 102. The positioning shown in Figure 4 may also arise if the user has pressed the button 218 in order to set the height of the active portion 402 according to the particular needs of that user, e.g. if the user is short or in a wheelchair.

[0051] Other information about the user may be derived based on the information acquired by the sensor system 104, and this additional information may likewise be used to tailor the user experience for the currently detected user of the ticket vending machine 100. For example, a determined age range of the one or more users of the ticket vending machine 100 may be used to offer or recommend particular services or tickets to the users. For example, if the derived age information indicates that a user is child or young adult (or is accompanied thereby), and then the ticket vending machine may display a recommendation or offer for a young person’s ticket to the user in the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102. Similarly, if the derived age information indicates that a user is relatively old, then the ticket vending machine may display a recommendation or offer for a concession for such a person. A determined gender of a user of the ticket vending machine 100 may also be used to offer additional information or services to the user, e.g., once the ticket sales process has been completed. For example, information relating to the location of male or female toilets may be displayed on the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102.

[0052] The sensor unit 104 (and/or associated control system) may determine a number of users currently present in the vicinity of the ticket vending machine 100. This information may then be used to offer or recommend particular services or tickets to the users, or to offer additional products or information to the users once the sales process has been completed. For example, the ticket vending machine may be configured to display a recommendation or offer for a group ticket to the users if the number of users detected is greater than the minimum requirement for such a group ticket.

[0053] As mentioned above, if the sensor system 104 detects a relatively large number of people who seem to be waiting to use the ticket vending machine 100, such as when people are queuing for the machine, the ticket vending transaction process may be simplified and/or sped up in order to increase the throughput of users. For example, the vending machine may no longer display recommendations or additional information on the vertical touchscreen 102 in order to simplify the ticket vending transaction process.

[0054] The information acquired about one or more users of the ticket vending machine 100 may be used in combination in order to offeror recommend particular services or tickets to the users. For example, if four users of the machine are detected and the derived age information indicates that two of them are children or young adults, the control system may be configured to display a recommendation or offer for a family ticket to the users in the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102.

[0055] The information acquired about one or more users of the ticket vending machine 100 may help to assist with statistical analysis and data capture. For example, the number of users passing a ticket vending machine 100 in a given time period, along with their age, gender and height may be captured and used to determine the audience and effectiveness of a particularly advertisement being shown on the vertical touchscreen 102. The information acquired may also be used to estimate the footfall in a given station, shopping mall, car park or other location where a ticket vending machine 100 is located. The footfall may be compared to the number of ticket vending transactions carried out on the ticket vending machine 100 to provide a measure of effectiveness for the ticket vending machine 100. For example, it may be determined that one ticket vending machine 100 located in a particular part of a train station has a high footfall and a high number of ticket vending transactions whilst another ticket vending machine 100 located in a different part of the same train station has a relatively low footfall and number of ticket vending transactions. The owner of the station or the ticket vending machines 100 may then elect to move one or more machines to the location of high footfall.

[0056] The information acquired by the ticket vending machine 100 may also be used to tailor advertising such as might be shown on the vertical touchscreen 102. For example, if a person is detected near the ticket vending machine 100, but apparently not approaching the ticket vending machine 100 (so perhaps not a user), the control system may change an advertisement displayed on the vertical touchscreen 102 based on additional information about such person derived from the sensor system 104. For example, if a man is determined to be passing near the ticket vending machine 100, the vertical touchscreen 102 might be used to advertise a male toiletry product.

[0057] The ticket vending machine may also be configured to display a message on the vertical touchscreen 102 to inform a user if their presence has been detected, for example a welcome message. The control system may be configured to change the welcome message based on any additional information detected about the user, such as their gender, age, mood, etc.

[0058] Additionally, if an act of vandalism or crime is carried out on or in the vicinity of the ticket vending machine 100, information acquired by the sensor system 104 might be used to determine the criminals or any witnesses that may have been present.

[0059] The control system may also be configured to display an image or screensaver on the vertical touchscreen 102 when the ticket vending machine 100 is not in use. For example, a map showing the station or shopping mall in which the ticket vending machine 100 is located may be displayed when the sensor system 104 does not detect any people as currently near to the ticket vending machine 100. Alternatively, or on a different portion of the vertical touchscreen 102, an advertisement may be displayed when no users are detected by the sensor system 104 to be near the ticket vending machine 100. The control system may then stop displaying such an advertisement when the sensor system 104 detects a person to be near the ticket vending machine 100. The control system may also display the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 and set the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 at the mid-height of the vertical touchscreen 102 in response to a user touching the vertical touchscreen 102. Therefore, if the user is not detected by the sensor system 104, they are still able to use the ticket vending machine 100.

[0060] The control system may display additional information to the user on the vertical touchscreen 102 when the ticket vending machine 100 is not in use for a ticket vending transaction and/or immediately following a ticket vending transaction. For example, the ticket vending machine may display on the vertical touchscreen 102 a map of a station showing the location or platform/stand number that a user’s train, bus or other form of transport is due to depart from and directions for how to get there. The control system may also display on the vertical touchscreen 102 arrival and departure information to inform the user whether their train, bus or other form of transport is on time, delayed or cancelled. The control system may display on the vertical touchscreen 102 a map of a station showing the location of a particular shop or facility that may be of interest to the user and directions for how to get there. When the ticket vending machine 100 has been used in conjunction with a mobile phone or personal electronic device, the control system may be configured to transmit such information to the mobile phone or personal electronic device via a wireless communication link, such as Bluetooth, NFC or Wi-Fi.

[0061] The ticket vending machine 100 may control the duration of time that the ticket vending machine 100 is able to provide additional information, such that the ticket vending machine 100 spends the majority of the time processing ticket vending transactions. This helps to prevent large queues forming at a ticket vending machine 100 and to ensure that users are able to carry out their ticket vending transactions in a timely fashion. The control system may utilise a timer such that the ticket vending machine 100 is only able to provide additional information for a fixed, short period of time, for example less than 5 minutes.

[0062] Figure 5 shows a component diagram of a ticket vending machine in accordance with various implementations. An operating system 502 is provided, which in turn supports a control application 504 running on ticket vending machine. The application 504 contains instructions which are communicated via the operating system 502 to a sensor device driver 506 to control the components of the sensor system 104. The application 504 also contains instructions which are communicated via the operating system 502 to a touchscreen device driver 508 to control the vertical touchscreen 102 and change the information displayed on it, such as the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102. A sensor library 510 may also be provided containing data which can be compared to data acquired by the sensor system 104 to detect the presence of a person.

[0063] Other software components may also be present for use in conjunction with other hardware components that may form part of the ticket vending machine 100, such as a card payment machine 106, a contactless or NFC card reader 112 or a ticket printer.

[0064] Figure 6 shows flow diagram of a method for adjusting the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 on a ticket vending machine 100. At step 602, the control system is configured to display an advertisement on the vertical touchscreen 102. The advertisement may be a still image or a video or a combination thereof.

[0065] At step 604 it is determined whether a person or user is detected by the sensor system 104.

If no person is detected by the sensor system 104, the method returns to step 602 and the control system continues to display an advertisement on the vertical touchscreen 102. If however a person is detected by the sensor system 104, the method continues to step 606.

[0066] At step 606 facial features of the person are detected. The method then continues to step 608 and additional information is derived to determine whether the person is approaching the ticket vending machine 100. If the person detected by the control system is determined not to be approaching the ticket vending machine 100, then it may be assumed that the person does not wish to use the ticket vending machine 100, and the method returns to step 602 where the control system continues to display an advertisement on the vertical touchscreen 102. However, if the person detected by the control system is determined to be approaching the ticket vending machine 100 then the method proceeds to step 610.

[0067] At step 610 method attempts to determine the height of the person. If the height of the person can be determined, the method continues to step 612 in which the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 is set according to the detected or estimated height of the user. If the height of the person cannot be determined, then the method continues to step 614, in which the height of the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 is set to the mid-height of the vertical touchscreen 102 (or to some other suitable default value). A ticket vending transaction may then commence.

[0068] At step 616 the user is able to manually adjust the active portion 202 of the vertical touchscreen 102 if required during the ticket vending transaction. When the ticket vending transaction is finished, the method may re-start at step 602 again.

[0069] The ticket vending machine described herein may perform a number of software-controlled operations. In such cases, the software may run at least in part on special-purpose hardware (e.g. GPUs) or on conventional systems with conventional processors. The software may be loaded into such hardware, for example, by a wireless or wired communications link, or may be loaded by some other mechanism - e.g. from a hard disk drive, or a flash memory device.

[0070] The skilled person will appreciate that these embodiments are provided only by way of example, and different features from different embodiments can be combined as appropriate. Accordingly, the scope of the presently claimed invention is to be defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A ticket vending machine comprising: a vertical touchscreen; a sensor system for acquiring information about a user; and a control system configured to define an active portion within the vertical touchscreen, wherein the user is able to interact with the vertical touchscreen by touching the active portion, and wherein the control system is further configured to set the height of the active portion within the vertical touchscreen according to the height of the user as derived from the information acquired by the sensor system about the user.

2. The ticket vending machine of Claim 1, wherein the sensor system acquires imaging information.

3. The ticket vending machine of Claim 2, wherein the sensor system acquires three-dimensional imaging information.

4. The ticket vending machine of Claim 2 or 3, wherein the sensor system and/or the control system is configured to perform a face detection analysis of the image information.

5. The ticket vending machine of any preceding Claim, wherein the sensor system comprises an infrared sensor system.

6. The ticket vending machine of any preceding Claim, wherein the sensor system detects if a user is approaching towards the ticket vending machine.

7. The ticket vending machine of any preceding Claim, wherein the control system is further configured to allow the user to manually adjust the height of the active portion within the vertical touchscreen.

8. The ticket vending machine of any preceding Claim, wherein the machine is configured to estimate the approximate age of the user and/or the gender of the user based on the information acquired by the sensor system.

9. The ticket vending machine of any preceding Claim, wherein the machine is configured to estimate the number of users in the vicinity of the machine based on the information acquired by the sensor system.

10. The ticket vending machine of Claim 9, wherein the machine is configured to change a mode of operation if the estimated number of users exceeds a certain threshold.

11. The ticket vending machine of any preceding Claim, wherein the effective field of view of the sensor system excludes people who are not substantially in front of the ticket vending machine.

12. A method of operating a ticket vending machine which includes a vertical touchscreen, the method comprising: using a sensor system to acquire information about a user; deriving an estimated height of the user from the acquired information; and setting the height of an active portion within the vertical touchscreen according to the estimated height of the user, wherein the user is able to interact with the vertical touchscreen by touching the active portion.