JP2009015490A - Etc card, etc in-vehicle machine with non-contacting card accessing function and etc system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ETC card and an ETC in-vehicle machine with a non-contacting card accessing function capable of diversifying the settlement method by introducing a prepaid card settlement method using a noncontact IC card as the toll settlement method and also developing the ETC in-vehicle machine with the non-contacting card accessing function. <P>SOLUTION: The card dedicated for the ETC is prepared on the premise of utilizing the existing ETC system in which the IC card with contract information, and the like, recorded in an ETC is inserted the in-vehicle machine 1 mounted in the vehicle and via wireless communication between a roadside antenna, installed at the tollgate of the toll road, and the ETC in-vehicle machines 1, information regarding the toll, and the like, is recorded both in a computer system for the toll road, connected to the roadside antenna, and the IC card. In the card dedicated for the ETC, the toll accounting information is recorded as before in the IC chip, the toll settlement information is also recorded in the non-contacting IC chip in association, the IC chip and the non-contacting IC chip are equipped with the function for deducting from the prepaid charge amount of money is mounted. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ETC card, an ETC on-board device with a contactless card access function, and an ETC system for diversifying toll road toll settlement methods, and more particularly to an existing toll road automatic toll collection system (hereinafter referred to as “ETC system”). ETC card, ETC on-board unit with contactless card access function, and ETC that introduces a prepaid payment method using a contactless IC card and controls the safety and unauthorized use of the ETC system. It is about the system.

  Conventionally, an ETC system inserts an ETC card issued by a credit card company (an IC card that records contract information, etc.) into an ETC on-board device (paid road automatic toll collection system land mobile station equipment) mounted on a vehicle, and charges Wireless communication is performed between the roadside antenna installed at the toll gate of the toll gate on the road and the ETC on-board unit. By this wireless communication, information such as tolls is recorded on both the toll road computer system connected to the roadside antenna and the ETC card (IC card), and without stopping to pay the fee at the toll gate, It is possible to pass.

  In such an ETC system, the toll billing information is billed in a lump sum to the credit card company that issued the ETC card by the road operator at a later date, and the credit card company individually charges the toll to the toll road user. A credit (post-payment) method is used.

  That is, in the prior art, since all are collected by credit (postpay) settlement, a toll road user who cannot hold a credit card cannot inevitably use the ETC system.

  Those who cannot receive credit at a credit company for any reason cannot use the ETC system, so all toll road charges must be settled in cash. It was necessary to exchange cash with staff, and the toll booth was congested.

  For this reason, there has been a problem that the advantage of eliminating congestion in the vicinity of the toll gate, which is one aim of the ETC system, is hindered for the above-described reason.

  In addition, the ETC system gives users the benefits of the ETC discount system such as commuting discount early in the morning, but those who cannot receive credit at these credit companies have enough cash to pay tolls. In spite of this, there was a problem that public road benefits such as the ETC discount system could not be received, and there was an unfairness among toll road users.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described points, and an object of the present invention is to provide an ETC card for promoting the use of an ETC system by a prepaid method without changing the ETC system, and an ETC in-vehicle with a contactless card access function. And providing an ETC system.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide an ETC card, an ETC on-board device with a contactless card access function, and a non-contact card access function for introducing a toll payment method that allows a person who cannot receive credit at a credit company to use the ETC system. To provide an ETC system.

  Furthermore, another object of the present invention is to diversify settlement methods, to solve unfair problems in the use of public ETC systems and ETC discount systems, and to establish an environment for further promoting the spread of ETC. ETC card, ETC on-board device with contactless card access function, and ETC system.

  The present invention is a system in which an IC chip corresponding to the current ETC system and a non-contact IC chip capable of prepaid card settlement are mounted on an ETC dedicated card and linked in a dedicated ETC on-vehicle device with a non-contact card access function. As a result, the infrastructure of the current ETC system is not required to be reinvested, and the convenience of the toll road toll collection system is improved and the use is promoted.

  That is, the ETC dedicated card of the present invention includes an ETC compatible IC chip that stores ETC contract information and a non-contact IC chip that stores a prepaid charge amount in an ETC card that is set in an ETC onboard device mounted on a vehicle. Have

  The ETC on-board device of the present invention includes a mechanism for reading and writing data between an ETC compatible IC chip for storing ETC contract information of an ETC dedicated card and a non-contact IC chip for storing a prepaid charge amount, ETC that confirms the ID of the contact IC chip, recognizes that the prepaid charge amount of the non-contact IC chip is equal to or more than a predetermined amount, and starts up the ETC function according to the read content of the ETC compatible IC chip The ETC control circuit, when the ID of the non-contact IC chip is different from the ID recognized by the vehicle-mounted device and when the remaining amount is less than or equal to the amount determined for the non-contact IC chip In addition, the user is notified by voice or display without starting up the ETC function.

  Furthermore, the ETC system according to the present invention includes an ETC dedicated card having an ETC compatible IC chip for storing ETC contract information, a non-contact IC chip for storing a prepaid charge amount, and an ETC function by inserting the ETC dedicated card. The ETC on-board device subtracts the toll received at the road exit from the prepaid charge balance of the non-contact IC chip by the ETC function, and Update the amount.

  Furthermore, the ETC vehicle-mounted device of the present invention is preferably provided with a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver and a highway toll table, and the ETC control circuit is traveling on the road based on position information from the GPS receiver. The position of the vehicle is recognized, and from that position, the toll charge information is obtained by referring to the expressway toll table, and compared with the prepaid charge balance recorded in the non-contact IC chip, the charge amount is If there is a shortage, notify the user by voice or display.

  Furthermore, in the ETC on-board device of the present invention, it is preferable that the ETC control circuit selectively executes post-payment with the ETC-compatible IC chip and pre-payment with the non-contact IC chip.

  In addition to the current system where the toll payment method in the ETC system is limited to the credit card payment (post-payment) method, by introducing the prepaid card payment (pre-payment) method, the ETC on-board device with contactless card access function Through development, non-credit card holders can use the ETC for general purposes.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block configuration diagram of an ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 with a contactless card access function according to an embodiment of the present invention, an IC chip used for the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 and an ETC dedicated card 100 equipped with a contactless IC chip. . 2 is a diagram showing a comparison of the toll payment method using the credit method and the prepaid method, FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the ETC card confirmation processing with the configuration of FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is the ETC card with the configuration of FIG. FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the ETC-dedicated IC card 100 includes an ETC compatible IC chip 110 and a prepaid non-contact IC chip 112. The ETC-compatible IC chip 110 in the ETC-dedicated IC card 100 is electrically connected to the IC card connector 20 at the card insertion slot of the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 mounted on the vehicle via a contact-type connector (not shown) of the IC card 100. Connecting.

  The ETC compatible IC chip 110 records ETC contract information (vehicle equipment ID, issue ID, credit number, expiration date, etc.) in a built-in memory in advance.

  On the other hand, the prepaid non-contact IC chip 112 has an IC chip core having a memory and a CPU, and a planar antenna connected to the IC chip core. That is, the non-contact IC chip 112 in the ETC dedicated IC card 100 exchanges data with the IC card antenna 21 at the card insertion slot of the ETC on-vehicle device 1 by short-range wireless communication. The memory of the non-contact IC chip 112 stores an ID assigned by an ETC card issuer, a prepaid charge amount (balance) charged by wireless communication, and the like.

  The ETC-dedicated IC card 100 incorporates an ETC-compatible IC chip 110 and a prepaid non-contact IC chip 112 core and antenna, and the connector of the ETC-compatible IC chip 110 is exposed to the outside.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 includes an IC card connector 20 that is connected to a connector of an ETC-compatible IC chip 110 of the ETC dedicated IC card 100, an antenna and a radio of the non-contact IC chip 112 of the ETC dedicated IC card 100 And an IC card antenna 21 for communication.

  The ETC control circuit 23 is connected to the IC card connector 20 and is connected to the IC card antenna 21 via the wireless communication controller 22. Further, the ETC control circuit 23 is connected via an RF (Radio Frequency) circuit 24 to the RF antenna 3 that performs radio communication with a roadside antenna installed at a toll gate of a toll gate on a toll road.

  Further, the ETC control circuit 23 is connected to the buzzer 25 and the lamp 26 and controls them. These are mounted on the control board 2 of the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 and receive power from the power supply terminal 4. A ground potential is obtained by the fuse 40 and the tap 41.

  As will be described later, the ETC control circuit 23 confirms the ETC-compatible IC chip 110, activates the ETC function (processing), and wirelessly connects to the roadside antenna installed at the toll gate of the toll gate of the toll road via the RF antenna 3. Communicate and record information such as toll billing information on both the toll road computer system connected to the roadside antenna and the ETC compatible IC chip 110 of the IC card 100. This is the current ETC system.

  Further, the ETC control circuit 23 wirelessly communicates with the non-contact IC chip 112 of the ETC dedicated IC card 100 via the IC card antenna 21, judges the validity of the non-contact IC chip 112, activates the ETC function, and A configuration having a function (processing) for subtracting the toll charge information recorded in the ETC compatible IC chip 110 from the prepaid charge amount of the contactless IC chip 112 and updating the charge amount of the contactless IC chip 112; It has become.

  Further, as will be described later, the system using the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 and the ETC dedicated card 100 reads the ID of the non-contact IC chip 112 that is in one-to-one correspondence with the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1, and the non-contact IC chip 112. Recognize that there is a remaining amount more than the amount decided in ETC, and launch the ETC function. Conversely, when the ID of the non-contact IC chip 112 is different from the ID recognized by the vehicle-mounted device 1 and when there is only a remaining amount equal to or less than the amount determined for the non-contact IC chip 112, the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 does not start up. It is. When the ETC function does not start, the user is notified by the sound of the buzzer 25 and the LED lamp 26 that the in-vehicle device ETC function does not start or the operation is stopped.

  In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, a road operator (toll roadside device / accounting system), a road system advancement promotion mechanism / ORSE (key information management system) 14, a credit company ( (Payment settlement system) 12 and other current systems can be used.

  That is, in the current credit (post-payment) method, the road operator 14 passes the toll charge information to the credit company 12 and receives a collective payment of the toll from the credit company 12. In addition, the credit company 12 charges the toll fee to the toll road user 10 individually and receives a toll payment from the toll road user 10.

  In addition to this, in the ETC card 100 adopting a prepaid method, the toll road user 10 prepays and charges the card 100 with a dedicated terminal (reader / writer) installed in a convenience store or the like. . This charge amount is deposited with the credit card company 12 (who has been entrusted with the toll settlement service). The road operator 14 passes the toll charge information to the credit company 12 and receives a collective payment of the toll from the credit company 12.

  Therefore, it is a configuration that enables ETC use by prepaid using the current fee settlement system.

  In this embodiment, as a function of the ETC dedicated card and the ETC on-board device with a contactless card access function, a system that collects a certain “management fee” from the prepaid charge amount of the ETC dedicated card each time according to the toll road toll It has become.

  As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to diversify the toll road toll settlement method on the premise that the current ETC system is used without requiring reinvestment of infrastructure in the current ETC system. It is possible to improve the convenience of the toll road toll collection system and promote its use.

Next, the process of the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 will be described with reference to FIG.
(S10) The ETC control circuit 23 of the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 detects whether a card has been inserted into the card insertion slot.

  (S12) When the ETC control circuit 23 detects a card in the card insertion slot, it reads the data of the ETC compatible IC chip 110 of the inserted card 100 via the IC card connector 20.

  (S14) The ETC control circuit 23 determines whether it is a valid ETC card from the read data. For example, the ETC contract information (vehicle equipment ID, issue ID, credit number, expiration date) stored in the ETC compatible chip 110 is checked to determine whether it is a valid ETC card. If the ETC control circuit 23 determines that the ETC card is not a valid ETC card by these checks, the ETC control circuit 23 issues an alarm by the buzzer 25 or a warning by the LED lamp 26.

  (S16) When the ETC control circuit 23 determines that the card is a legitimate ETC card, the ETC control circuit 23 performs reading by wireless communication with the non-contact IC chip 112 of the card 100 from the IC card antenna 21.

  (S18) The ETC control circuit 23 determines whether reading is successful. The case where reading has failed is, for example, a case where the card 100 is not equipped with the non-contact IC chip 112 or a case where communication is not possible even if the non-contact IC chip 112 is mounted. The former is a case where the prepaid ETC dedicated card is not used, and the latter is a case where a failure occurs in the non-contact IC chip 112 even if the prepaid ETC dedicated card is used. If the ETC control circuit 23 determines that reading is not successful by this determination, the ETC control circuit 23 issues an alarm by the buzzer 25 or a warning by the LED lamp 26.

  (S20) When the reading is successful, the ETC control circuit 23 checks the ID of the non-contact IC chip 112 that is in one-to-one correspondence with the ETC on-board unit 1 in the read data.

  (S22) In this confirmation, when the ID of the non-contact IC chip 112 is different from the ID recognized by the vehicle-mounted device 1, the ETC control circuit 23 is not valid, so the alarm by the buzzer 25 or the LED lamp 26 Warning by.

  (S24) If the ID is valid, the ETC control circuit 23 compares the balance stored in the non-contact IC chip 112 with the predetermined amount of the read data, and the predetermined amount is larger than the predetermined amount. It is determined whether there is a remaining amount. The ETC control circuit 23 notifies the user with the sound of the buzzer 25 and the LED lamp 26 when the non-contact IC chip 112 has a remaining amount less than or equal to the amount determined.

  (S26) The ETC control circuit 23 activates the ETC function (processing) when the balance is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount.

  Next, the prepaid balance update process will be described with reference to FIG. In the following description, the wireless communication method and procedure between the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 and the roadside antenna installed at the toll gate of the toll road toll gate are the same as in the prior art, and thus the description thereof is omitted.

  (S30) When the vehicle arrives at the exit toll gate on the toll road, as is well known, the ETC control circuit 23 of the ETC onboard device 1 is installed at the toll gate of the toll gate via the RF circuit 24 and the RF antenna 3. Wirelessly communicate with the roadside antenna and receive information such as exit information and toll billing information from a toll road computer system connected to the roadside antenna.

  (S32) The ETC control circuit 23 writes the exit information and toll charge information in the ETC compatible IC chip 110 of the ETC dedicated IC card 100.

  (S34) Next, the ETC control circuit 23 recognizes that it is a prepaid card in the process of FIG. 3 and obtains a balance from the non-contact IC chip 112, so the toll received from this balance is calculated. Subtract and calculate new balance.

  (S36) Then, the ETC control circuit 23 rewrites the balance of the memory of the non-contact IC chip 112 of the ETC dedicated IC card 100 to the new balance via the wireless communication controller 22 and the IC card antenna 21. And it ends.

  In this way, since the prepaid IC chip is mounted on the ETC dedicated card, the toll payment method in the ETC system is added to the current system, which is limited to the credit card payment (postpay) method, and the prepaid card payment (prepayment) method Can be introduced.

  For this reason, even those who cannot obtain credit can use the ETC, thereby improving the convenience of the user and further spreading the ETC.

  In addition, in this embodiment, a non-contact IC chip is provided for prepaid separately from the ETC compatible IC chip of the ETC dedicated card, so that it can be realized without changing the ETC function of the ETC compatible IC chip and the ETC on-board device. It is possible to prevent the loss of the safety of the ETC function. Furthermore, the ETC on-board unit can also be realized with a simple configuration in which an antenna for a non-contact IC chip and a wireless controller are added, and a prepaid payment function linked to the ETC function is added to the ETC control circuit. Can provide the function.

  In addition, since the ETC in-vehicle device is provided with a function for identifying whether it is a legitimate prepaid ETC card, the use of other prepaid IC cards can be prevented, and the ETC function can be executed smoothly. Furthermore, since the ETC on-board device checks the prepaid balance when the card is inserted (usually before entering the toll road), it is possible to prevent the balance from becoming insufficient at the exit of the toll road.

  Next, if the reference amount of the balance check is large (for example, several tens of thousands of yen), it is necessary for the user to frequently charge, which is inconvenient. Also, if the reference amount is small, there is a risk that the balance will be insufficient for long distance use.

  For this reason, it is preferable to provide a configuration in which the user checks whether the balance is insufficient during traveling on the toll road. For example, the ETC in-vehicle device 1 with a contactless card access function is equipped with a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver in which necessary functions are integrated into a microchip and an expressway toll table. The ETC control circuit 23 recognizes the position of the vehicle traveling on the toll road by using the GPS position information system, and refers to the expressway toll table from that position, and obtains toll charge information. It is obtained and compared with the prepaid charge balance recorded on the non-contact IC card 112. If the charge amount is insufficient, the user is notified by voice or LED.

  Further, the ETC vehicle-mounted device 1 of FIG. 1 can be postpaid using the above-described ETC dedicated IC card 100. Recognize ID of card 100 equipped with credit (post-payment) IC chip 110 and prepaid non-contact IC chip 112, and use current post-pay ETC system function and access function of non-contact IC card It is possible to prepay.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims and the specification and drawings. Is possible. It should be noted that any configuration not directly described in the specification and drawings is within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention as long as the effects and advantages of the present invention are exhibited.

1 is a block configuration diagram of an ETC vehicle-mounted device with a contactless card access function according to an embodiment of the present invention, an IC chip used for the ETC vehicle-mounted device, and an ETC dedicated card equipped with a contactless IC chip. It is a figure which compares and shows the toll payment method by the credit system and prepaid system by one embodiment of this invention. It is a card | curd confirmation process flowchart of the ETC onboard equipment of FIG. FIG. 2 is a flow chart of a toll fee settlement process for the ETC on-vehicle device of FIG. 1.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ETC onboard equipment 3 RF antenna 100 ETC exclusive card 110 ETC corresponding IC chip 112 Non-contact IC chip 20 IC card connector 21 IC card antenna 23 ETC control circuit 24 RF circuit

Claims (5)

In the ETC card that is set in the ETC on-board unit installed in the vehicle,
An ETC-compatible IC chip for storing ETC contract information;
A non-contact IC chip for storing a prepaid charge amount. An IC chip dedicated to an ETC equipped with an IC chip and a non-contact IC chip. A mechanism for reading and writing data between an ETC compatible IC chip for storing ETC contract information of an ETC dedicated card and a non-contact IC chip for storing a prepaid charge amount;
Confirm the ID of the non-contact IC chip, recognize that the prepaid charge amount of the non-contact IC chip is equal to or more than a predetermined amount, and activate the ETC function according to the read contents of the ETC-compatible IC chip. An ETC control circuit to raise,
The ETC control circuit activates the ETC function when the ID of the non-contact IC chip is different from the ID recognized by the vehicle-mounted device and when the remaining amount is less than or equal to the amount determined for the non-contact IC chip. An on-board ETC device that notifies the user by voice or display without raising it. An ETC-dedicated card having an ETC-compatible IC chip for storing ETC contract information and a non-contact IC chip for storing a prepaid charge amount;
An ETC on-board unit that activates an ETC function by inserting the ETC card,
The ETC on-board device updates the amount of the non-contact IC chip by subtracting the toll received at the road exit from the prepaid charge balance of the non-contact IC chip by the ETC function. . The ETC vehicle-mounted device according to claim 2,
A GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver and an expressway toll table,
The ETC control circuit recognizes the position of the vehicle traveling on the road from the position information from the GPS receiver, and refers to the expressway toll table from the position to obtain toll charge information, An ETC in-vehicle device characterized in that, when compared with a prepaid charge balance recorded in a non-contact IC chip, the user is notified by voice or display when the charge amount is insufficient. The ETC vehicle-mounted device according to claim 2,
The ETC control circuit selectively executes post-payment with the ETC-compatible IC chip and pre-payment with the non-contact IC chip.

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