JP2021140798A - Railroad use management system and management device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a railroad use management system and a management device which allow more safe usage by users.SOLUTION: The railroad use management system has one or more automatic ticket examination machines and a management device. Each automatic ticket examination machine optically reads information from an image displayed by a terminal device and controls passage blocking means on the basis of the information while transmitting information based on that information to the management device. The management device transmits to the terminal device information to cause the terminal device to display a first image on the basis of image request information received from the terminal device and transmits to the terminal device information to cause the terminal device to display a second image on the basis of the information received from the automatic ticket examination machine. The management device manages a balance of charge preliminarily accumulated for each user in association with each user of each terminal device, determines a billing amount to be billed to each user of each terminal device and determines to collect the determined billing amount from the charge balance.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to railway utilization management systems and management devices.

Conventionally, a technique of using an IC card charged with electronic money as a ticket is known. In this technology, on the side of the automatic ticket gate, wireless communication is performed with the IC chip built in the IC card to determine whether or not it can pass, and the charge balance stored in the IC chip to collect the usage fee. Rewrite the information.

In connection with this, there is a technology that uses an image such as a QR code (registered trademark) in which various information necessary for passing through an automatic ticket gate is encoded on the display screen of a terminal device as a ticket. Are known. In this technology, the automatic ticket gate side captures an image with a camera or the like, reads various information by image analysis, and determines whether or not the vehicle can pass through. With this technology, the procedure of purchasing a ticket in cash may be omitted, so there was a concern that the use of the railway would be unlimited.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2012-63873 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2005-18201

An object to be solved by the present invention is to provide a railway use management system and a management device that users can use with greater peace of mind.

The railway use management system of the embodiment has one or more automatic ticket gates and a management device. The automatic ticket gate has an optical reading unit, a passage control unit, and a communication unit on the ticket gate side. The optical reader optically reads information from the image displayed by the terminal device. The passage blocking means control unit controls the passage blocking means for blocking the passage of the user of the terminal device based on the information read by the optical reading unit. The ticket gate side communication unit transmits information based on the information read by the optical reader to the management device. The management device includes a management device-side communication unit, a management device-side control unit, a charge balance management unit, and a settlement processing unit. The communication unit on the management device side communicates with the terminal device or the automatic ticket gate. The control unit on the management device side is generated based on the user's operation on the terminal device, and the user of the terminal device enters the station yard based on the image request information received from the terminal device by the communication unit on the management device side. Information for displaying the first image for display on the terminal device is transmitted to the terminal device using the communication unit on the management device side, and the terminal device is based on the information received from the automatic ticket gate by the communication unit on the management device side. Information for displaying the second image for the user to participate in the outside of the station on the terminal device is transmitted to the terminal device using the communication unit on the management device side. The charge balance management unit manages the charge balance accumulated for each user in advance in association with the user of the terminal device. The payment processing unit determines the charge amount to be charged to the user of the terminal device, and determines to collect the determined charge amount from the charge balance managed by the charge balance management unit for each user of the terminal device.

The figure which shows an example of the structure of the railway use management system 1 in 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the structure of the terminal apparatus 10. The figure which shows the state that the input screen for the ticket purchase was displayed on the touch panel part of the terminal device 10 when the ticket purchase application 31 was activated. The figure which shows an example of the appearance that the input screen for the ticket purchase is displayed on the touch panel part 51 of the ticket vending machine 50. The figure which looked at the automatic ticket gate 100 in 1st Embodiment from above. The figure which looked at the reading part 111 of the automatic ticket gate 100 in 1st Embodiment from above. The figure which shows an example of the functional structure of the automatic ticket gate 100 in 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the functional structure of the center server apparatus 300 in 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the payment information database 332. The figure which shows an example of the efficacy information database 334. The figure which shows an example of the admission information database 336. The figure which shows an example of the participation information database 338. The sequence diagram which shows an example of the processing flow of the railway use management system 1 in 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which shows an example of the process flow by the terminal apparatus 10 in 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which shows an example of the processing flow by the automatic ticket gate 100 in 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which shows an example of the processing flow by the center server apparatus 300 in 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the state that the input screen for the ticket purchase was displayed on the touch panel part of the terminal device 10 when the ticket purchase application 31 was activated. The figure which shows an example of the functional structure of the center server apparatus 300A in 2nd Embodiment. The flowchart which shows an example of the processing flow by the center server apparatus 300A in 2nd Embodiment. The flowchart which shows an example of the processing flow by the automatic ticket gate 100 in 2nd Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the settlement information database 332A in the 3rd Embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing another example in which an input screen for purchasing a ticket is displayed on the touch panel unit of the terminal device 10 when the ticket purchase application 31 is activated.

Hereinafter, the railway utilization management system and the management device of the embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. The railway use management system of the embodiment is a system that manages entry and exit at a railway station.

(First Embodiment)
[overall structure]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the railway utilization management system 1 according to the first embodiment. The railway use management system 1 includes, for example, a terminal device 10, a plurality of automatic ticket gates 100, a plurality of station affairs server devices 200, and a center server device 300. At least one automatic ticket gate 100 and a station affairs server device 200 are installed at each station.

The terminal device 10 is a portable terminal device used by the user. The terminal device 10 is, for example, a mobile phone such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), or the like. The terminal device 10 is used as a medium to be held in the automatic ticket gate 100. That is, in the railway use management system 1, the terminal device 10 is used as a ticket. On the screen of the terminal device 10, a read image CD for making the terminal device 10 function as a ticket is displayed. This read image CD is read by the automatic ticket gate 100 when the user passes through the automatic ticket gate 100. The scanned image CD is, for example, a two-dimensional code such as a QR code, a one-dimensional code such as a barcode, or the like. These various codes are, for example, encoded validity information as a ticket, or information including validity information and other information. The validity information is, for example, information including a validity period, identification information of an entrance station (departure station), a usage section, a code identification information (code ID) for identifying each of the read image CDs, and the like. Further, the other information is information including, for example, a setting language in the terminal device 10. The content of the scanned image CD may be recognizable by a machine (automatic ticket gate 100) and may be in any form as long as the content cannot be recognized by human recognition.

The automatic ticket gate 100 is provided, for example, at the ticket gate of a station. The automatic ticket gate 100 permits or prohibits the passage of the user by reading information from the read image CD displayed on the display screen of the terminal device 10. In the present embodiment, the automatic ticket gate 100 will be described as a device capable of processing only the read image CD, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the automatic ticket gate 100 may be a device capable of processing a transportation IC card, a magnetic ticket, a paper ticket on which a code is printed, and the like in parallel.

The station affairs server device 200 communicates with the automatic ticket gate 100 via a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network). Further, the station affairs server device 200 transmits the information acquired from the automatic ticket gate 100 to the center server device 300 via a network NW including a LAN, a WAN (Wide Area Network), and the like. Further, the station affairs server device 200 transmits the information received from the center server device 300 to the automatic ticket gate 100 and the like.

The center server device 300 performs various processes based on the information received from the automatic ticket gate 100 via the station affairs server device 200 and the network NW. Further, the center server device 300 communicates with the terminal device 10 via the network NW. The center server device 300 is an example of a “management device”.

Hereinafter, the terminal device 10, the automatic ticket gate 100, and the center server device 300 will be described.

[Terminal device]
First, the terminal device 10 will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the terminal device 10. The terminal device 10 includes, for example, an operation unit 11, a display unit 12, a terminal-side communication unit 13, a ticket purchase processing unit 14, and a terminal-side storage unit 30. The operation unit 11 is, for example, a user interface such as a button, a keyboard, a mouse, a microphone, and a touch panel. When the display unit 12 is a touch panel, a part of the operation unit 11 is formed integrally with the display unit 12. The operation unit 11 accepts an input operation by the user for displaying the read image CD on the display unit 12.

The display unit 12 includes a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or an organic EL (Electroluminescence) display. The display unit 12 displays various images based on the information output by the ticket purchase processing unit 14. Hereinafter, a unit in which the operation unit 11 and the display unit 12 are formed will be referred to as a touch panel unit. The configuration of the touch panel unit and other operation units 11 is an example of the “reception unit”.

The terminal-side communication unit 13 communicates with the center server device 300 via a network NW such as a cellular network, a Wi-Fi network, a dedicated line, a provider, or the Internet, which is mediated by a wireless base station (not shown).

The ticket purchase processing unit 14 is realized by a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) executing a program (for example, a ticket purchase application 31) stored in the terminal side storage unit 30. The program may be downloaded from the application server via the network NW, or may be stored in a portable storage medium such as an SD card and installed in the terminal device 10. Further, even if some or all of the functions of the ticket purchase processing unit 14 are realized by hardware such as LSI (Large Scale Integration), ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), and FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array). It may be realized by the collaboration of software and hardware.

The terminal-side storage unit 30 is, for example, a non-volatile storage medium such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), a flash memory, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), or an SD card, and a volatile storage medium such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) or a register. It is realized by a storage medium. The terminal-side storage unit 30 stores programs such as the ticket purchase application 31 executed by the processor.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a state in which an input screen for purchasing a ticket is displayed on the touch panel unit of the terminal device 10 when the ticket purchase application 31 is activated. This input screen is displayed by registering a user in advance, for example, entering a user ID and password to log in, and then performing a predetermined operation. For example, when the ticket purchase application 31 is activated by a touch operation or the like, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 causes the terminal device 10 to display an input screen for purchasing the ticket. On the input screen, an area A1 for setting the setting language of the terminal device 10 such as Japanese or English, an area A2 for specifying the usage section, and a boarding date for valid start of the ticket validity are specified. Area A3, button B1 for confirming the ticket issuance request, and the like may be provided. The setting language of the terminal device 10 may be the setting language in the ticket purchase application 31, or the setting language of the OS (Operating System) of the terminal device 10.

Further, the input screen may be provided with an area A4 for designating the amount (charge amount) of the charge balance of the electronic money. The charge amount specified in the area A4 may be charged to the user by credit card payment or the like. Further, when the terminal device 10 is a mobile phone or a smartphone, the designated charge amount may be charged to the user by being added to the monthly communication carrier usage fee, for example. All of the areas A1 to A4 and B1 provided on the input screen may be displayed on the same screen as shown in the figure, or a part of them may be displayed on a separate screen.

Further, the input screen for purchasing a ticket may be displayed on the touch panel section 51 of the ticket vending machine 50 installed in the station yard. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a state in which an input screen for purchasing a ticket is displayed on the touch panel unit 51 of the ticket vending machine 50. For example, a user inputs a user ID and a password into the touch panel 51 to specify a charge amount, and inserts cash for the charge amount into a coin insertion slot 52 or a bill insertion slot 53, or a card insertion slot 54. When a credit card, a charged IC card, or the like is inserted into the user ID, the charge balance of the input user ID may be added by the charge amount.

In addition, the station staff at the station window or the operator of the payment service provider inputs the deposit amount of the electronic money applied by the user into the dedicated terminal as the charge balance, and the charge balance of the applied user is added. May be done.

The charged electronic money may be used to pay the cost of purchasing a ticket, or may be used to purchase a product sold at a store such as a station yard. When various information is input to the above-mentioned area on the input screen of the terminal device 10 and the "YES" button in the figure is operated, the ticket issuance request is confirmed. In this case, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 uses the terminal-side communication unit 13 to transmit the input information as image request information (image request) to the center server device 300.

[Automatic ticket gate]
Next, the automatic ticket gate 100 will be described. FIG. 5 is a view of the automatic ticket gate 100 according to the first embodiment as viewed from above. The automatic ticket gate 100 may include, for example, a main machine 110 and a slave machine 130 that are arranged so as to face each other across a passage. The main engine 110 includes, for example, a reading unit 111, a top surface display unit 112, a front display unit 113, door units 114 and 115, and a ticket gate side control unit 150. Further, the slave machine 130 includes a reading unit 131, a top surface display unit 132, a front display unit 133, and door units 134 and 135.

The reading unit 111 of the main engine 110 captures the read image CD displayed by the terminal device 10 held by the user who is going to pass in the a direction shown in FIG. 5, and transmits the image data to the ticket gate side control unit 150. do.

The top display unit 112 displays an image based on the result of processing by the ticket gate side control unit 150 or the information received from the center server device 300 when the terminal device 10 is held over the reading unit 111. The front display unit 113 displays marks, figures, characters, and the like indicating whether or not the vehicle can pass in the a direction shown in FIG. The display content or the presence / absence of the display of the front display unit 113 is determined by the ticket gate side control unit 150.

On the other hand, the reading unit 131 of the slave machine 130 takes an image of the read image CD displayed on the terminal device 10 held by the user who is going to pass in the b direction shown in FIG. 5, and outputs the image data to the ticket gate side control unit. Send to 150. The top display unit 132 displays an image based on the result of processing by the ticket gate side control unit 150 or the information received from the center server device 300 when the terminal device 10 is held over the reading unit 131. The front display unit 133 displays marks, figures, characters, and the like indicating whether or not the passage is possible in the b direction shown in FIG. The display content of the front display unit 133 or the presence or absence of the display is determined by the ticket gate side control unit 150.

When the automatic ticket gate 100 is set to the operation mode that allows the user to pass in the direction a shown in FIG. 5, the ticket gate side control unit 150 keeps the doors 115 and 135 in the open state and at the same time. By controlling the door portions 114 and 134 in the open state or the closed state, the passage of the user in the a direction is permitted or prohibited. Further, the ticket gate side control unit 150 keeps the door portions 114 and 134 in the open state when the automatic ticket gate 100 is set to the operation mode that allows the user to pass in the direction b shown in FIG. At the same time, by controlling the door portions 115 and 135 to be in the open state or the closed state, the passage of the user in the b direction is permitted or prohibited.

Further, the operation mode of the automatic ticket gate 100 may include an operation mode that allows both passage in the a direction and passage in the b direction shown in FIG. In this case, the ticket gate side control unit 150 controls to display, for example, a mark, a figure, a character, or the like indicating that both the front display unit 113 and the front display unit 133 are allowed to pass if the user is not passing. I do. Further, in the ticket gate side control unit 150, for example, when a user enters from either the a direction or the b direction, and the terminal device 10 is held by either the reading unit 111 or the reading unit 131. , The other reading unit is invalidated, and marks, figures, characters, etc. indicating that passage is prohibited are displayed on the display unit (front display unit 113 or front display unit 133) on the side where the user has not entered. Control to make it.

The automatic ticket gate 100 is not limited to the one that the user can pass in both directions as described above, but is composed of the main engine and the auxiliary machine (slave machine) and that the user can pass in only one direction. It may be.

FIG. 6 is a view of the reading unit 111 of the automatic ticket gate 100 according to the first embodiment as viewed from above. The reading unit 111 includes, for example, a touch surface display unit PN and a camera CAM. The touch surface display unit PN is, for example, an LCD or an organic EL display, and is arranged around the camera CAM when viewed from above. The camera CAM images an object held in front of the user by the user. For example, when the terminal device 10 in which the read image CD is displayed on the display screen is held by the user, the camera CAM images the display screen of the terminal device 10. The camera CAM has, for example, an image sensor such as a CCD (Charge-Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor). The configuration of the reading unit 111 shown in FIG. 6 may be similarly applied to the reading unit 131 of the slave machine 130. That is, the reading unit 131 of the slave machine 130 may be configured to include the touch surface display unit PN and the camera CAM.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the automatic ticket gate 100 according to the first embodiment. In addition to the configuration shown in FIG. 5, the automatic ticket gate 100 includes, for example, a ticket gate side communication unit 145 that communicates with an external device, a speaker 140 that outputs audio according to instructions from the ticket gate side control unit 150, and various other information. A storage unit 170 on the ticket gate side is further provided. The ticket gate side control unit 150 includes a communication control unit 152, an image processing unit 154, a passability determination unit 156, and a pass control unit 158. The combination of the reading units 111 and 131 and the image processing unit 154 described above is an example of an “optical reading unit”. Further, the passage control unit 158 is an example of the “passage prevention means control unit”.

A part or all of the components of the ticket gate side control unit 150 may be realized by executing a program stored in the ticket gate side storage unit 170 by a processor such as a CPU. Further, some or all of the components of the ticket gate side control unit 150 may be realized by hardware such as LSI, ASIC, FPGA, and may have a circuit configuration for realizing each function. Further, some or all of the components of the ticket gate side control unit 150 may be realized by the cooperation of software and hardware.

The ticket gate side storage unit 170 may be realized by, for example, a non-volatile storage medium such as a ROM, a flash memory, an HDD, or an SD card, and a volatile storage medium such as a RAM or a register. In addition to storing the program executed by the processor, the ticket gate side storage unit 170 stores identification information of the station where the machine is installed, image data or text data to be displayed on various display units, audio data to be output to the speaker 140, and so on. Stores the fare table 172 and the like. Image data, text data, and audio data may be prepared in a number corresponding to the number of setting languages of the terminal device 10 that can be set in the ticket purchase application 31. The fare table 172 is, for example, information in which the fare is associated with the usage section.

The communication control unit 152 uses the ticket gate side communication unit 145 to perform processing by the image processing unit 154, the time when the read image CD is held in the reading unit 111 (131), and the identification information of the station where the own machine is installed. Etc. are transmitted to the center server device 300 via the station affairs server device 200. Further, the communication control unit 152 may receive the information transmitted by the center server device 300 via the station affairs server device 200 by using the ticket gate side communication unit 145. The identification information (station ID) of the station where the own machine is installed may be stored in advance in the ticket gate side storage unit 170.

The image processing unit 154 analyzes, for example, a portion of the scanned image CD in the image captured by the camera CAM of the reading unit 111 (131) to acquire sequence information, decodes the sequence information, and represents it as a bit string or the like. Converts electronic information that can be recognized by a computer. The electronic information includes the above-mentioned efficacy information.

The passability determination unit 156 determines whether or not the user can pass through based on the information acquired by the image processing unit 154.

The passage control unit 158 controls to allow or prohibit the passage of the user based on the determination result by the passability determination unit 156. Further, the passage control unit 158 controls to prohibit the passage of the user when the scanned image CD is not extracted by the image processing unit 154, or when the extracted scanned image CD is not decoded or the decoded result is invalid. I do. The passage control unit 158 has door units 114, 115, 134, 135, a speaker 140, a top display unit 112, 132, a front display unit 113, 133, and a touch surface display unit PN, depending on the determination of permission or prohibition of passage. Or control a combination of these. At least the door portions 114, 115, 134, 135 are examples of "passage blocking means". If the information acquired by the image processing unit 154 includes the information of the setting language in the terminal device 10 (passenger ticket purchase application 31), the passage control unit 158 may display various display units according to the setting language. Image data (or text data) to be displayed on the screen or audio data to be output to the speaker 140 may be selected. For example, when the set language is English, the passage control unit 158 selects text data written in English from various data stored in the ticket gate side storage unit 170, and also selects English audio data.

[Center server device]
Next, the center server device 300 will be described. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the center server device 300 according to the first embodiment. The center server device 300 includes, for example, a server-side communication unit 305, a server-side control unit 310, and a server-side storage unit 330.

The server-side control unit 310 includes an application cooperation processing unit 312, a charge balance management unit 314, and a payment processing unit 316. Some or all of these components of the server-side control unit 310 are realized by executing a program stored in the server-side storage unit 330 by a processor such as a CPU. The program may be downloaded from the application server via the network NW, or may be stored in a portable storage medium such as an SD card and installed in the center server device 300. Further, a part or all of the components of the server-side control unit 310 may be realized by hardware such as LSI, ASIC, FPGA, or may be realized by the cooperation of software and hardware.

The server-side storage unit 330 is realized by, for example, a non-volatile storage medium such as a ROM, a flash memory, an HDD, or an SD card, and a volatile storage medium such as a RAM or a register. In addition to storing the program executed by the processor, the server-side storage unit 330 stores the payment information database 332, the validity information database 334, the admission information database 336, the entry information database 338, and the fare table 340, which will be described later. The fare table 340 has the same information as the fare table 172 stored in the ticket gate side storage unit 170. The fare table 340 is an example of "usage amount information".

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the payment information database 332. As shown in the figure, the payment information database 332 is information in which information such as a charge balance of electronic money is associated with a user ID which is identification information of a user of the ticket purchase application 31. The user ID may be, for example, the login ID of the ticket purchase application 31. The payment information database 332 may add records (data corresponding to one user ID) at any time by referring to the information transmitted by the terminal device 10 in which the ticket purchase application 31 is activated.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the efficacy information database 334. As shown in the figure, the validity information database 334 has validity information such as a validity period, identification information of each entry station and exit station designated as a usage section (entrance station ID, entry station ID), and code ID for the user ID. Is the associated information. For example, information transmitted by the terminal device 10 on which the ticket purchase application 31 is activated may be added as a record to the validity information database 334 at any time.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the admission information database 336. As shown in the figure, the entrance information database 336 is information in which information such as an entrance time, an identification information of an entrance station (entrance station ID), and an entrance / exit code is associated with a code ID. The admission information transmitted by the automatic ticket gate 100 that has performed the admission process may be added as a record to the admission information database 336.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the participation information database 338. As shown in the figure, the entry / exit information database 338 is information in which information such as the entry time, the identification information of the entry station (entry station ID), and the entry / exit code are associated with the code ID. In the participation information database 338, the participation information transmitted by the automatic ticket gate 100 that has performed the participation processing may be added as a record.

The server-side communication unit 305 communicates with the terminal device 10 and the automatic ticket gate 100 via the network NW described above.

The application cooperation processing unit 312 uses the server-side communication unit 305 to communicate with the terminal device 10 in which the ticket purchase application 31 is activated, and controls an image to be displayed on the screen of the terminal device 10. For example, when the image request information is received by the server-side communication unit 305, the application cooperation processing unit 312 generates image generation information in order to display the read image CD on the screen of the terminal device 10, and uses this as the image request information. Is transmitted to the terminal device 10 as a response to the above. The image generation information may be, for example, the image data itself of the scanned image CD, or compressed image data, or text data in which the efficacy information that is the source of the scanned image CD is converted into characters, numerical values, or the like. It may be binary data. Further, the image generation information may be the URL (Uniform Resource Locator) of the website displaying the read image CD. When the terminal device 10 receives the image generation information from the center server device 300, the terminal device 10 displays the read image CD based on the image generation information. When the image generation information is text data or binary data, the terminal device 10 encodes the effect information based on the data into a read image CD, and draws (renders) the read image CD on the touch panel unit.

The charge balance management unit 314 manages the charge balance accumulated in advance in association with the user of the terminal device 10. For example, the charge balance management unit 314 is charged (deposited) with electronic money, and each time the charged amount of electronic money and the user ID of the charged user are notified, the corresponding use is performed in the payment information database 332. Rewrite the charge balance of the person ID. Further, when the charge balance management unit 314 determines that the fare is to be collected by the payment processing unit 316, the charge balance of the corresponding user ID in the payment information database 332 is set to a value obtained by subtracting the amount of the fare. rewrite.

The payment processing unit 316 tells the user who is permitted to pass through both the automatic ticket gate 100 for admission and the automatic ticket gate 100 for entry, the fare (charged amount) for the section used from the entrance station to the exit station. One example) is calculated. For example, the settlement processing unit 316 refers to the fare table 340, refers to the validity information included in the image request information, and calculates the fare for the section to be used by the user. In addition, the payment processing unit 316 identifies the section actually used by the user based on the identification information of the entry station included in the entry information and the identification information of the entry station included in the entry information, and the section is used. Fares may be calculated.

Then, the settlement processing unit 316 refers to the validity information database 334, identifies the user (user ID) associated with the code ID included in any of the validity information, the entrance information, and the participation information, and uses the user (user ID). Decide to collect the fare from the person. For example, the payment processing unit 316 refers to the payment information database 332 and makes a payment by deducting the amount of the fare from the charge balance associated with the specified user ID. The actual payment processing may be performed by requesting an external device such as a payment server of a credit company or a telecommunications carrier company. Further, the payment processing by the payment processing unit 316 may be performed every time the user passes through the automatic ticket gate 100, or may be performed collectively after a predetermined period. Further, the payment processing by the payment processing unit 316 does not necessarily have to be performed at the timing when the user passes through the automatic ticket gate 100, and may be performed at any timing after the passage. Further, the payment processing unit 316 may settle the fare when the ticket is purchased by the ticket purchase application 31, that is, when the image request information is received from the terminal device 10.

[Processing details]
Hereinafter, a series of processes of the railway use management system 1 will be described. FIG. 13 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the processing flow of the railway utilization management system 1 according to the first embodiment. In this sequence, the description of the station affairs server device 200 that mediates the communication between the automatic ticket gate 100 and the center server device 300 is omitted.

First, the terminal device 10 displays an input screen when the ticket purchase application 31 is activated (step S100). Next, the terminal device 10 transmits the image request information including the information input to the input screen to the center server device 300 (step S102).

Next, the center server device 300 extracts the effect information from the image request information received from the terminal device 10, stores the effect information as a record in the effect information database 334, and fare required for the usage section indicated by the effect information. Is calculated (step S104). If the calculated fare is equal to or less than the charge balance associated with the user of the terminal device 10 that is the source of the image request information, the center server device 300 generates image generation information including the validity information (step S106). ). Next, the center server device 300 transmits the generated image generation information to the terminal device 10 as a response to the image request information (step S108).

Next, the terminal device 10 displays the image of the read image CD on the screen based on the image generation information received from the center server device 300 (step S110). As a result, the user can enter the station yard by holding the terminal device 10 displaying the read image CD over the automatic ticket gate 100. Hereinafter, the scanned image CD used when entering the station yard will be referred to as an “entrance scanned image” and will be described. The read image for admission is an example of the "first image".

When the terminal device 10 displaying the read image for admission is held, the automatic ticket gate 100 reads the read image for admission from the terminal device 10 and acquires the effect information from the read read image for admission (step S112). Next, the automatic ticket gate 100 enters based on the acquired validity information, the current time information, the identification information of the station where the own machine is installed (that is, the identification information of the entrance station), and the fare table 172. It is determined whether or not the user can pass through (step S114). In the following, it is assumed that passage is permitted.

Next, when the automatic ticket gate 100 permits the passage, the automatic ticket gate 100 displays the entrance information including the time when the read image for entrance is held (entrance time) and the identification information of the station where the own machine is installed, together with the acquired effect information. It is transmitted to the center server device 300 (step S116).

Next, the center server device 300 stores the validity information and the entrance information received from the automatic ticket gate 100 in the validity information database 334 and the entrance information database 336, respectively (step S118).

Next, the center server device 300 generates image generation information including efficacy information and admission information, and transmits the image generation information to the terminal device 10 (step S120).

When the terminal device 10 receives the image generation information including the validity information and the admission information from the center server device 300, the terminal device 10 generates an image of the read image CD based on the image generation information and displays it on the screen (step S122). As a result, the user can participate outside the station premises by holding the terminal device 10 on which the read image CD generated based on the validity information and the entrance information is displayed on the automatic ticket gate 100. Hereinafter, the read image CD used when participating outside the station premises will be referred to as a “participation read image” and will be described. The participation read image is an example of the "second image".

When the terminal device 10 on which the read image for entry is displayed is held, the automatic ticket gate 100 reads the read image for entry from the terminal device 10 and acquires the validity information and the entrance information from the read image for entry (step). S124). Next, the automatic ticket gate 100 includes, for example, the acquired validity information and admission information, the current time information, the identification information of the station where the own machine is installed (that is, the identification information of the participating station), and the fare table 172. Based on the above, it is determined whether or not the participating user can pass through (step S126). In the following, it is assumed that passage is permitted.

Next, when the automatic ticket gate 100 permits passage, along with the acquired validity information and entrance information, the time when the read image for participation is held (entry time) and the identification information of the station where the own machine is installed (that is, participation). Participation information including station identification information) is transmitted to the center server device 300 (step S128).

Next, the center server device 300 stores the validity information, the entrance information, and the participation information received from the automatic ticket gate 100 in the validity information database 334, the entrance information database 336, and the participation information database 338, respectively (step S130). ..

Further, the payment processing unit 316 of the center server device 300 calculates the fare related to the section of use based on the entry station identification information included in the entry information and the entry station identification information included in the entry information, and makes a payment. With reference to the information database 332, it is determined to collect the fare from the charge balance of the user (user ID) associated with the code ID included in the admission information or the entry information (step S132). The settlement processing unit 316 may decide to collect the fare from the charge balance at the time of receiving the image request information from the terminal device 10 and generating the image generation information in the processing of S106 described above.

Next, the center server device 300 transmits the participation information and the calculated fare information (hereinafter referred to as fare information) to the terminal device 10 (step S134). In response to this, the terminal device 10 displays an image or characters indicating that the boarding is completed on the screen, and also displays the fare required for the boarding (step S136). As a result, a series of processes from the entry of one user to the entry of the railway use management system 1 is completed.

Hereinafter, the processing of individual devices in the railway utilization management system 1 will be described. FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow by the terminal device 10 in the first embodiment. First, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 of the terminal device 10 is in a dormant state until the ticket purchase application 31 is activated (step S200), and is activated when the ticket purchase application 31 is activated to purchase the ticket. The input screen for the purpose is displayed and the purchase operation is accepted (step S202).

Next, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 uses the terminal-side communication unit 13 to transmit image request information including the input information to the center server device 300 (step S204). Next, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 waits until the terminal-side communication unit 13 receives the first image generation information (step S206), and when the image generation information is received, the touch panel unit reads the image for admission. Is displayed (step S208).

Next, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 waits until the terminal-side communication unit 13 receives the second image generation information (step S210), and when the image generation information is received, the image generation information is encoded into an image. Then, a read image for participation is generated, and the read image for participation is displayed on the touch panel unit (step S212). When the image generation information is the image data of the read image for participation, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 may omit the process of generating the read image CD.

Next, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 waits until the terminal-side communication unit 13 receives the participation information and the fare information (step S214), and when these information are received, the boarding is completed on the touch panel unit. Is displayed as an image or text, and the fare required for boarding is displayed (step S216). This completes the processing of this flowchart.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow by the automatic ticket gate 100 in the first embodiment. First, the image processing unit 154 waits until the read image CD is held by the reading unit 111 (131) (step S300), and when the read image CD is held, the image is captured by the camera CAM of the reading unit 111 (131). The scanned image CD is extracted from the imaged image, the extracted scanned image CD is decoded, and the information contained in the scanned image CD is acquired (step S302).

Next, the passability determination unit 156 determines whether or not the information acquired by the image processing unit 154 includes admission information (step S304). When the admission information is not included, the passability determination unit 156 determines that the read image CD held up is the admission read image. On the other hand, when the admission information is included, the passability determination unit 156 determines that the read image CD held up is the read image for entry.

Next, the passability determination unit 156 determines whether or not the passage is possible (step S306). For example, when the read image CD held up is a read image for admission, the passability determination unit 156 matches the identification information of the admission station included in the validity information with the identification information of the station where the own machine is installed. Furthermore, if the admission time is within the valid period indicated by the validity information, the user is allowed to enter, and in other cases, the admission is prohibited.

Further, when the read image CD held up is a read image for participation, the passability determination unit 156 matches the identification information of the participating station included in the validity information with the identification information of the station where the own machine is provided. Furthermore, if the participation time is within the valid period indicated by the validity information, the user is allowed to participate, and in other cases, the participation is prohibited.

In addition, when the passability determination unit 156 cannot acquire the entrance information from the read image CD held at the time of entry, that is, the read image for entry is displayed instead of the read image for entry that should be originally held in the reading unit inside the station yard. If so, participation will be prohibited. The passability determination unit 156 may allow entry or exit even if the identification information of the entrance station or exit station included in the validity information does not match the identification information of the own station. For example, when the passability determination unit 156 refers to the fare table 172 and the identification information of the transit station in the usage section from the entrance station to the exit station matches the identification information of the own station, that is, the user If you are going to board from a transit station that is different from the entry station specified at the time of purchase, you may be allowed to enter, and if you are going to get off from a transit station that is different from the entry station specified at the time of purchase, you may be allowed to enter. In this case, the payment processing unit 316 of the center server device 300 calculates the fare based on the entry station identification information included in the entry information and the entry station identification information included in the entry information, and thus inputs the fare at the time of purchase. It is possible to collect the fare for the section actually used without collecting the original fare corresponding to the section, and it is possible to improve the convenience of the user.

Next, when the passage control unit 158 is prohibited from passing by the passability determination unit 156, the door units 114, 115, 134, 135, the speaker 140, the upper surface display units 112, 132, the front display units 113, 133, and the touch. The surface display unit PN is controlled to prevent the user from passing through (step S308). On the other hand, when the passage control unit 158 is permitted to pass by the passability determination unit 156, the door units 114, 115, 134, 135, the speaker 140, the upper surface display units 112 and 132, the front display units 113 and 133, and the touch surface The display unit PN is controlled to pass the user (step S310).

Next, the communication control unit 152 uses the ticket gate side communication unit 145 to determine the information acquired by the image processing unit 154, the identification information of the station where the own machine is installed, and the time when the read image CD is held. The included information (entrance information or entry information) is transmitted to the center server device 300 (step S312). This completes the processing of this flowchart.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow by the center server device 300 in the first embodiment.

First, the application cooperation processing unit 312 determines whether or not the server-side communication unit 305 has received the image request information from the terminal device 10 (step S400). When the image request information is received from the terminal device 10, the payment processing unit 316 extracts the effect information from the information included in the image request information, refers to the usage section and the fare table 340 of the extracted effect information, and uses it from now on. The fare required for the section to be used by the person is calculated (step S402). Next, the application linkage processing unit 312 compares the fare calculated by the payment processing unit 316 with the charge balance managed by the charge balance management unit 314, and determines whether or not the fare is equal to or less than the charge balance. (Step S404).

When the fare is equal to or less than the charge balance, the application cooperation processing unit 312 generates image generation information for generating a read image for admission, and transmits the image generation information to the terminal device 10 (step S406). On the other hand, when the fare exceeds the charge balance, the application cooperation processing unit 312 ends the processing of this flowchart without transmitting the image generation information. As a result, when the charge balance is insufficient, the read image for admission is not displayed on the terminal device 10, so that the admission of the user can be prohibited. As a result, it is possible to prevent the user from defaulting on the settlement and improve the profitability of the railway operator.

On the other hand, when the image request information is not received from the terminal device 10, the application cooperation processing unit 312 determines whether or not the server-side communication unit 305 has received the information from the automatic ticket gate 100 (step S408). If no information is received from the automatic ticket gate 100, the processing of this flowchart ends.

On the other hand, when the information is received from the automatic ticket gate 100, the application cooperation processing unit 312 determines whether or not the participation information is included in the information (step S410). When the participation information is not included, the application cooperation processing unit 312 generates image generation information for generating a read image for participation using the validity information and the entrance information, and transmits the image generation information to the terminal device 10. (Step S412).

On the other hand, when the participation information is included, the application cooperation processing unit 312 uses the server-side communication unit 305 to terminal the fare information related to the fare calculated in S402 and the participation information received from the automatic ticket gate 100. It is transmitted to the device 10 (step S414).

Next, the payment processing unit 316 determines to collect the fare from the charge balance (step S416), and the charge balance management unit 314 of the terminal device that is the transmission source of the image request information in the payment information database 332. The charge balance corresponding to the user is rewritten (step S418). This completes the processing of this flowchart.

In the above-described embodiment, it is assumed that the same scanned image CD may be used in duplicate. For example, in the terminal device 10 on which any of the scanned image CDs is displayed, the scanned image CD is copied by a function such as screen capture, or the screen on which the scanned image CD is displayed is captured by a camera or the like. The read image CD may be used illegally by a third party. For example, when the entry information is registered in the entry information database 338, the payment processing unit 316 has a code ID in which a plurality of records are registered in the entry information database 338 even though there is only one record in the entry information database 336. In this case, the fare may be calculated and collected for all combinations of one entry information and each of the plurality of entry information. This makes it possible to prevent damage caused by unauthorized use by the purchaser's copy.

According to the first embodiment described above, the center server device 300 receives the image request information transmitted by the terminal device 10, and uses the image generation information of the read image for admission as a response to the image request information in the terminal device 10. Send to. The terminal device 10 displays a read image for admission based on the image generation information. When the terminal device 10 on which the read image for admission is displayed is held, the automatic ticket gate 100 reads the effect information from the read image for admission, determines whether or not to pass based on the read effect information, and permits the passage. In this case, the admission information is transmitted to the center server device 300 together with the read effect information. The center server device 300 transmits image generation information including validity information and admission information to the terminal device 10. The terminal device 10 displays the read image for participation based on the image generation information. When the terminal device 10 on which the entry read image is displayed is held, the automatic ticket gate 100 reads the validity information and the entrance information from the entry read image, determines whether or not to pass based on the read information, and passes. The entry information is transmitted to the center server device 300 together with the validity information and the entrance information read when the above is permitted. Further, the center server device 300 calculates the fare (billing amount) required for the usage section at a predetermined timing based on the validity information included in the image request information. For example, when the validity information is referred to when the image request information is received, the center server device 300 calculates the fare for the section to be used by the user. Then, the center server device 300 refers to the payment information database 332 in which the charge balance accumulated in advance is associated with each user, and the charge balance of the user of the terminal device 10 which is the transmission source of the image request information. Decide to collect the fare from. As a result, the user can use it with more peace of mind.

Further, according to the first embodiment described above, the charge balance of electronic money for the terminal device 10 used as a ticket is easily managed without communication between the terminal device 10 and the automatic ticket gate 100. be able to. As a result, it is no longer necessary for the terminal device 10 to have a function of communicating with the automatic ticket gate 100 (card emulation function), and an increase in the load on the device can be suppressed. That is, the system can be realized by using the function of accessing a network such as the Internet and the display function possessed by most of the terminal devices 10.

Further, according to the first embodiment described above, since the validity of the ticket is given to the terminal device 10 within the range of the charge balance of the electronic money accumulated in advance, the convenience of the user can be improved. At the same time, it is possible to prevent the default of payment by the user and improve the profit of the railway operator.

Further, according to the first embodiment described above, since the terminal device 10 is used as a medium for a ticket by displaying the read image CD on the terminal device 10 owned by the user, a paper ticket, an IC card, or the like can be used. It is possible to reduce the burden of issuance and the consumption of resources. Generally, when an IC card or magnetic ticket is issued, if the IC card is returned or the magnetic ticket is refunded, the burden of station affairs will increase and the cost of discarding the IC card or magnetic ticket will increase. There was a problem. In addition, there is a problem that resources such as trees as a raw material for paper, electronic parts of IC chips, and petroleum as a raw material for plastics are consumed. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, since the terminal device 10 owned by the user is used as a medium, various operating costs can be reduced.

Further, according to the first embodiment described above, since the entry / exit information is transmitted to the terminal device 10 via the center server device 300, it is not necessary to distribute the entry / exit information to the automatic ticket gate 100. For example, when the admission information is not included in the image generation information that is the source of the read image for participation, the admission management of the user who owns the terminal device 10 needs to be performed on the center server device 300 side. In this case, for example, by distributing the entrance information database 336 managed by the center server device 300 to the automatic ticket gate 100 at each station, the terminal device 10 that has been entered on the automatic ticket gate 100 side and the terminal device 10 that is not. It is conceivable to select and determine whether or not to pass. In this way, when the admission information database 336 is distributed to the plurality of automatic ticket gates 100, the communication load of the automatic ticket gates 100 and the center server device 300 increases, or the automatic ticket gates 100 are provided with a large-capacity storage medium. There may be a need to do so. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, since the terminal device 10 displays the read image for entry based on the image generation information including the effect information and the entry information, the automatic ticket gate 100 displays the read for entry at the time of entry processing. It is possible to judge whether or not the passage is possible only by the effect information and the admission information read from the image. As a result, the configuration of the automatic ticket gate 100 can be simplified, and the communication load between the automatic ticket gate 100 and the center server device 300 can be reduced.

Further, according to the first embodiment described above, when a ticket is purchased using the ticket purchase application 31 installed on the terminal device 10, the terminal device 10 is treated as a medium for the ticket. It is possible to improve the convenience of the person, suppress the occurrence of queues and the like that occur in front of the ticket issuing machine, and eliminate the congestion at the station.

(Modified example of the first embodiment)
Hereinafter, a modified example of the first embodiment will be described. In the first embodiment described above, the automatic ticket gate 100 determines whether or not the user can pass through, but the center server device 300 may make such a determination. That is, the passability determination unit 156 may have a configuration included in the center server device 300. In this case, the automatic ticket gate 100 transmits various information (part or all of those exemplified as entrance information and entry information) read from the read image CD to the center server device 300. The passability determination unit in the center server device 300 receives the information transmitted by the automatic ticket gate 100 using the server-side communication unit 305, and determines whether or not the user holding the terminal device 10 in the automatic ticket gate 100 can pass. judge. The passability determination unit in the center server device 300 uses the server-side communication unit 305 to transmit the determination result to the automatic ticket gate 100. Then, the passage control unit 158 in the automatic ticket gate 100 controls the passage of the user according to the passability determination result transmitted by the center server device 300.

Further, in the first embodiment described above, the read image CD is displayed by the function of the ticket purchase application 31 activated in the terminal device 10, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the scanned image CD may be displayed on a web page displayed by the web browser of the terminal device 10. In this case, the center server device 300 may function as a web server. For example, the terminal device 10 transmits an HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) request to the center server device 300 in order to access a web page in which the scanned image CD is displayed as an image. Then, the terminal device 10 causes the touch panel unit to display the web page based on the HTTP response returned from the center server device 300. The data transmitted as the HTTP response includes at least the image data of the scanned image CD. As a result, the terminal device 10 displays the read image CD based on the image data. The web page including the scanned image CD is returned to the terminal device 10 on condition that the user authentication by inputting a password or the like is obtained.

Further, in the first embodiment described above, the station affairs server device 200 has been described as simply relaying communication between the automatic ticket gate 100 and the center server device 300, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the station affairs server device 200 may include some or all of the components of the center server device 300.

(Second Embodiment)
Hereinafter, the railway utilization management system 1A according to the second embodiment will be described. The railway use management system 1A in the second embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that a part of the validity information is not included in the read image CD on the premise that electronic money or credit card payment is used. That is, although the image generation information of the read image for admission in the present embodiment includes the code ID, the validity period, the identification information of the admission station (departure station), the boardable section, and the like may be omitted. In the following, the differences will be mainly described, and the common parts will be omitted.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing another example in which an input screen for purchasing a ticket is displayed on the touch panel unit of the terminal device 10 when the ticket purchase application 31 is activated. This input screen is displayed by registering a user in advance, for example, entering a user ID and password to log in, and then performing a predetermined operation. In the input screen of the present embodiment, the area for inputting the boarding section, boarding date, etc. is omitted, and the area A1 for setting a language such as Japanese or English and the button B1 for confirming the ticket issuance request are provided. .. For example, when the input for confirming the issuance of the ticket (YES in the figure) is operated on the input screen, the terminal-side communication unit 13 of the terminal device 10 transmits the image request information to the center server device 300, and the center server. Image generation information including a code ID is received from the device 300 as a response corresponding to the image request information. The ticket purchase processing unit 14 encodes the code ID included in the image generation information into an image to generate a read image for admission, and displays it on the touch panel unit. The code ID may be stored in the terminal-side storage unit 30 in advance at the timing of installation of the ticket purchase application 31 or the like. In this case, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 reads the code ID stored in the terminal side storage unit 30 in advance, encodes the code ID into an image, and displays the read image for admission on the touch panel unit. Further, the image generation information including the code ID may be image data already encoded in the image. By such processing, the screen of the terminal device 10 displays the read image for admission including the code ID which is a part of the effect information.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the center server device 300A in the second embodiment. The center server device 300A includes a server-side communication unit 305, a server-side control unit 310A, and a server-side storage unit 330. The server-side control unit 310A includes an application cooperation processing unit 312, a charge balance management unit 314, a payment processing unit 316, and a passability determination unit 318.

The passability determination unit 318 compares the fare calculated by the settlement processing unit 316 with the charge balance managed by the charge balance management unit 314, and permits the user to pass when the fare is less than or equal to the charge balance. If the fare exceeds the charge balance, it is determined that the user is prohibited from passing. The passability determination unit 318 notifies the automatic ticket gate 100 of the passability determination result of the user by using the server-side communication unit 305. In response to this, the passage control unit 158 in the automatic ticket gate 100 controls the passage of the user based on the determination result of the passability determination unit 318 in the center server device 300.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow by the center server device 300A in the second embodiment.

First, the application cooperation processing unit 312 determines whether or not the server-side communication unit 305 has received the image request information from the terminal device 10 (step S500). When the image request information is received from the terminal device 10, the application cooperation processing unit 312 generates the image generation information for generating the read image for admission, and the server-side communication unit 305 uses the server-side communication unit 305 to generate the image generation information. It is transmitted to 10 (step S502). Note that the application linkage processing unit 312 does not generate image generation information when the charge balance of the user of the terminal device 10 that is the source of the image request information is less than the minimum fare (for example, the fare for one station). You may do so.

On the other hand, when the image request information is not received from the terminal device 10, the application cooperation processing unit 312 determines whether or not the server-side communication unit 305 has received the information from the automatic ticket gate 100 (step S504). If no information is received from the automatic ticket gate 100, the processing of this flowchart ends.

On the other hand, when the information is received from the automatic ticket gate 100, the application cooperation processing unit 312 determines whether or not the participation information is included in the information (step S506). When the participation information is not included, the application cooperation processing unit 312 generates image generation information for generating a read image for participation using the validity information and the entrance information, and transmits the image generation information to the terminal device 10. (Step S508).

On the other hand, when the entry information is included, the payment processing unit 316 has already been used by the user based on the entry station identification information included in the entry information and the entry station identification information included in the entry information. The usage section (the usage section for which the usage has been completed) is specified, and the fare for the usage section is calculated based on the fare table 340 (step S510).

Next, the passability determination unit 318 compares the fare calculated by the settlement processing unit 316 with the charge balance managed by the charge balance management unit 314, and determines whether or not the fare is equal to or less than the charge balance. (Step S512). The passability determination unit 318 determines that the passage of the user is prohibited when the fare exceeds the charge balance (step S514), and uses the server-side communication unit 305 to indicate the determination result of prohibition of passage. Information is transmitted to the automatic ticket gate 100 (step S516). In response to this, the passage control unit 158 in the automatic ticket gate 100 controls to prohibit the passage of the user. Next, the application cooperation processing unit 312 uses the server-side communication unit 305 to transmit information prompting the charging of electronic money to the terminal device 10 (step S518).

On the other hand, if the fare is less than or equal to the charge balance, the passability determination unit 318 determines that the user is permitted to pass through (step S520), and uses the server-side communication unit 305 to determine the result of the permission to pass. The indicated pass permission information is transmitted to the automatic ticket gate 100 (step S522).

Next, the application cooperation processing unit 312 uses the server-side communication unit 305 to transmit the fare information related to the fare calculated in S510 and the participation information received from the automatic ticket gate 100 to the terminal device 10 (step S524). ).

Next, the payment processing unit 316 determines to collect the fare from the charge balance (step S526), and the charge balance management unit 314 of the terminal device that is the transmission source of the image request information in the payment information database 332. The charge balance corresponding to the user is rewritten (step S528). This completes the processing of this flowchart.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow by the automatic ticket gate 100 in the second embodiment. The image processing unit 154 of the automatic ticket gate 100 waits until the read image CD is held by the reading unit 111 (131) (step S600), and when the read image CD is held, the camera of the reading unit 111 (131) The scanned image CD is extracted from the image captured by the CAM, the extracted scanned image CD is decoded, and the information contained in the scanned image CD is acquired (step S602).

Next, the passability determination unit 156 determines whether or not the information acquired by the image processing unit 154 includes the code ID and the admission information (step S604). When the admission information is not included, the passability determination unit 156 determines whether or not the process currently being performed is a process for managing the admission of the user (admission process) (step S606).

If the process currently being performed is an admission process, the passability determination unit 156 permits the user to pass. In response to this, the passage control unit 158 controls the door units 114, 115, 134, 135, the speaker 140, the upper surface display units 112 and 132, the front display unit 113 and 133, and the touch surface display unit PN to control the user. (Step S608). Then, the communication control unit 152 uses the ticket gate side communication unit 145 to display the code ID acquired by the image processing unit 154, the identification information of the station where the own machine is installed, and the time when the read image CD is held. The included admission information is transmitted to the center server device 300 (step S610).

On the other hand, the passability determination unit 156 prohibits the user from passing if the information acquired by the image processing unit 154 does not include the admission information and the processing currently being performed is not the admission processing. That is, the passability determination unit 156 determines that the read image for admission is erroneously held during the entry process. In response to this, the passage control unit 158 controls the door units 114, 115, 134, 135, the speaker 140, the upper surface display units 112 and 132, the front display unit 113 and 133, and the touch surface display unit PN to control the user. (Step S612).

On the other hand, when the information acquired by the image processing unit 154 includes both the code ID and the admission information, the passability determination unit 156 is currently performing a process of managing the user's participation (participation process). ) (Step S614).

If the processing currently being performed is not the participation processing, the passability determination unit 156 prohibits the user from passing through. In response to this, the passage control unit 158 uses various control targets to perform control for prohibiting the passage of the user (step S616).

On the other hand, when the processing currently being performed is the entry processing, the communication control unit 152 uses the ticket gate side communication unit 145 to install the code ID and entrance information acquired by the image processing unit 154 and its own machine. The identification information of the station and the participation information including the time when the read image CD is held are transmitted to the center server device 300 (step S618).

Next, the passage control unit 158 determines whether or not the passage prohibition information has been received by the ticket gate side communication unit 145 (step S620), and if the passage prohibition information is received, the process of S616 is performed. On the other hand, the passage control unit 158 determines whether or not the passage permission information has been received by the ticket gate side communication unit 145 when the passage prohibition information is not received (step S622), and if the passage permission information is not received, the passage permission unit is set to S620. When the process is transferred and the passage permission information is received, control for permitting the passage of the user is performed using various control targets (step S624). This completes the processing of this flowchart.

According to the second embodiment described above, on the input screen of the ticket purchase application 31, only an area for inputting the minimum necessary input items for displaying the read image CD is provided and is included in the read image CD. Since the fare related to the boarding section actually used by the user is calculated from the information obtained, the user can use the railway without knowing the fare for each boarding section in advance. As a result, the convenience of the user can be further improved.

(Third Embodiment)
Hereinafter, the third embodiment will be described. In the third embodiment, when the charge balance management unit 314 of the center server device 300 becomes less than the threshold value due to the fare collection by the settlement processing unit 316, the server-side communication unit 305 is used to associate the charge balance with the charge balance. It differs from the first and second embodiments in that predetermined information is transmitted to the terminal device 10 of the user. In the following, the differences will be mainly described, and the common parts will be omitted.

FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an example of the payment information database 332A according to the third embodiment. As shown in the figure, the payment information database 332A has a charge balance of electronic money, a threshold value referred to for determination at the time of notification, and an input at the time of charge for the user ID which is the identification information of the user of the ticket purchase application 31. This is information associated with information such as a fixed charge amount indicating the amount of money and a debit account for the charge amount. The threshold value, fixed charge amount, account, and the like may be arbitrarily set according to the user's operation on the terminal device 10, for example.

FIG. 22 is a diagram showing another example in which an input screen for purchasing a ticket is displayed on the touch panel unit of the terminal device 10 when the ticket purchase application 31 is activated. For example, the charge balance management unit 314 notifies the terminal device 10 of information prompting the charge when the charge balance becomes less than the threshold value due to the fare collection by the settlement processing unit 316. In response to this, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 of the terminal device 10 causes the touch panel unit to display an input screen as shown in the figure. For example, on the input screen, characters and images prompting the charging of the electronic money are displayed, and a button B2 or the like for confirming whether or not to charge the electronic money for a predetermined fixed charge amount is provided. For example, when an input for confirming the charge of electronic money (YES in the figure) is operated, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 uses the terminal-side communication unit 13 to notify the center server device 300 that the charge is permitted. Notice. When the notification is received by the server-side communication unit 305 of the center server device 300, the payment processing unit 316 refers to the payment information database 332A and withdraws the amount of the preset fixed charge amount from the account. Then, the charge balance management unit 314 rewrites the current charge balance in the settlement information database 332A to a value obtained by adding electronic money for the fixed charge amount. As a result, the user can be notified of the charge balance on a regular basis, and the charge balance can be kept above a certain amount. As a result, the convenience of the user can be further improved.

(Fourth Embodiment)
Hereinafter, the railway utilization management system 1C according to the fourth embodiment will be described. In the railway use management system 1C according to the fourth embodiment, when the terminal device 10 on which the read image for entry or the read image for entry is displayed by the user is held by the automatic ticket gate 100 and the passage is permitted, the center server The device 300 differs from the first to third embodiments in that the device 300 transmits a notification (hereinafter, referred to as non-display notification information) for hiding the read image CD to the terminal device 10. In the following, the differences will be mainly described, and the common parts will be omitted.

The application linkage processing unit 312 of the center server device in the fourth embodiment uses the server-side communication unit 305 to terminal when the entry information or entry information is received from the automatic ticket gate 100 by the server-side communication unit 305. Hidden notification information is transmitted to the device 10. In response to this, the ticket purchase processing unit 14 of the terminal device 10 hides the read image CD displayed on the touch panel unit. It is possible to prevent unauthorized use by the user handing over the read image for entry or the terminal device 10 itself on which the read image for entry is displayed to a third party.

According to at least one embodiment described above, the center server device 300 receives the image request information transmitted by the terminal device 10, and uses the image generation information of the read image for admission as a response to the image request information in the terminal device 10. Send to. The terminal device 10 displays a read image for admission based on the image generation information. When the terminal device 10 on which the read image for admission is displayed is held, the automatic ticket gate 100 reads the effect information from the read image for admission, determines whether or not to pass based on the read effect information, and permits the passage. In this case, the admission information is transmitted to the center server device 300 together with the read effect information. The center server device 300 transmits image generation information including validity information and admission information to the terminal device 10. The terminal device 10 displays the read image for participation based on the image generation information. When the terminal device 10 on which the entry read image is displayed is held, the automatic ticket gate 100 reads the validity information and the entrance information from the entry read image, determines whether or not to pass based on the read information, and passes. The entry information is transmitted to the center server device 300 together with the validity information and the entrance information read when the above is permitted. In addition, the center server device 300 calculates the fare (billing amount) required for the usage section that the user plans to use from now on, based on the validity information included in the image request information, at a predetermined timing. For example, when the validity information is referred to when the image request information is received, the center server device 300 calculates the fare for the section to be used by the user. Then, the center server device 300 refers to the payment information database 332 in which the charge balance accumulated in advance is associated with the user, and from the charge balance of the user of the terminal device 10 which is the transmission source of the image request information. , Decide to collect the fare. As a result, the user can use it with more peace of mind.

Although some embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, as well as in the scope of the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

1 ... Railway use management system, 10 ... Terminal device, 11 ... Operation unit, 12 ... Display unit, 13 ... Terminal side communication unit, 14 ... Ticket purchase processing unit, 30 ... Terminal side storage unit, 100 ... Automatic ticket gate, 111, 131 ... Reading unit, 145 ... Ticket gate side communication unit, 150 ... Ticket gate side control unit, 152 ... Communication control unit, 154 ... Image processing unit, 156 ... Passability determination unit, 158 ... Passage control unit, 170 ... Ticket gate side storage unit, 200 ... station affairs server device, 300 ... center server device, 305 ... server side communication unit, 310 ... server side control unit, 312 ... application cooperation processing unit, 314 ... charge balance management unit, 316 ... settlement Processing unit, 318 ... Passability judgment unit, 330 ... Server side storage unit

Claims (7)

An optical reader that optically reads information from the image displayed by the terminal device,
Based on the information read by the optical reading unit, the passage blocking means control unit that controls the passage blocking means for blocking the passage of the user of the terminal device, and the passage blocking means control unit.
A communication unit on the ticket gate side that transmits information based on the information read by the optical reader to the management device, and
One or more automatic ticket gates, and
A communication unit on the management device side that communicates with the terminal device or the automatic ticket gate,
A number for the user of the terminal device to enter the station yard based on the image request information generated based on the user's operation on the terminal device and received from the terminal device by the management device side communication unit. Information for displaying one image on the terminal device is transmitted to the terminal device using the management device side communication unit.
Based on the information received from the automatic ticket gate by the management device side communication unit, the information for displaying the second image for the user of the terminal device to participate outside the station premises is displayed on the terminal device. A control unit on the management device side that transmits information to the terminal device using the communication unit on the management device side,
A charge balance management unit that manages the charge balance accumulated for each user in advance in association with the user of the terminal device.
A settlement process that determines the charge amount to be charged to the user of the terminal device and determines to collect the determined charge amount from the charge balance managed by the charge balance management unit for each user of the terminal device. Department and
The management device having the above
Railway use management system. The image request information includes information on the section used from the entrance station where the user plans to enter to the entry station where the user plans to enter.
The payment processing unit refers to the usage amount information in which the usage amount is associated with the usage section, and refers to the usage section included in the image request information received from the terminal device by the management device side communication unit. The required usage amount is determined as the billing amount, and
The management device side control unit is for displaying the first image on the terminal device when the charge amount determined by the payment processing unit is equal to or less than the charge balance managed by the charge balance management unit. Information is transmitted to the terminal device using the management device side communication unit.
The railway use management system according to claim 1. Either the automatic ticket gate or the management device further has a passability determination unit that determines the passability of the user based on the information read by the optical reader.
The first image and the second image include information on the usage section.
The passability determination unit of the terminal device is based on the information of the usage section read by the optical reading unit and the station where the automatic ticket gate where the terminal device is held by the optical reading unit exists. Judging whether or not the user can pass,
The railway use management system according to claim 2. The ticket gate side communication unit transmits the information based on the information read by the optical reading unit and the identification information of the own station to the management device.
The payment processing unit is the station identification information received from the automatic ticket gate installed at the entrance station by the management device side communication unit, and the station identification information received from the automatic ticket gate installed at the exit station. Based on the identification information, the billing amount to be charged to the user of the terminal device is determined.
The management device allows the user of the terminal device to pass when the charge amount determined by the payment processing unit is equal to or less than the charge balance managed by the charge balance management unit, and the payment processing unit. Further has a passability determination unit that determines to prohibit the passage of the user of the terminal device when the charge amount determined by the above exceeds the charge balance managed by the charge balance management unit.
The passage blocking means control unit controls the passage of the user of the terminal device by controlling the passage blocking means based on the determination result by the passage passability determination unit.
The railway use management system according to claim 1. When the user of the terminal device enters the station yard, the ticket gate side communication unit uses the identification information of the own station as the identification information of the entrance station, together with the information based on the information read by the optical reading unit. Send to the management device
The management device side control unit generates the second image including the entrance information including the identification information of the entrance station based on the information received from the ticket gate side communication unit by the management device side communication unit. Information is transmitted to the terminal device using the management device side communication unit.
When the user of the terminal device enters from the station yard, the passability determination unit includes the entrance information in the information read from the second image by the optical reading unit, and the payment processing. When the charge amount determined by the department is less than or equal to the charge balance managed by the charge balance management department, the user is permitted to pass through.
The railway use management system according to claim 4. The charge balance management unit transmits predetermined information to the terminal device of the user whose charge balance managed by the charge balance management unit is less than the threshold value by using the management device side communication unit.
The railway use management system according to any one of claims 1 to 5. The communication unit on the management device side that communicates with the terminal device or automatic ticket gate,
Based on the image request information received from the terminal device by the management device side communication unit, the information for displaying the first image for the user of the terminal device to enter the station yard is displayed on the terminal device. It is transmitted to the terminal device using the management device side communication unit, and is transmitted to the terminal device.
The first image displayed on the terminal device is generated in response to being held by the automatic ticket gate, and based on the information received from the automatic ticket gate by the management device side communication unit, the terminal device A management device-side control unit that transmits information for displaying a second image for the user to participate outside the station on the terminal device to the terminal device using the management device-side communication unit.
A charge balance management unit that manages the charge balance accumulated for each user in advance in association with the user of the terminal device, and
A settlement process that determines the charge amount to be charged to the user of the terminal device and determines to collect the determined charge amount from the charge balance managed by the charge balance management unit for each user of the terminal device. Department and
A management device equipped with.

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