JP3115539B2 - Toll collection system - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle and the like when passing a toll gate for collecting tolls and entrance fees.
The present invention relates to a toll collection system that can automatically perform a toll payment process without passing through.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, a car using a highway or a toll road pays a predetermined usage fee at an entrance or an exit. In this case, at the toll booth, a clerk receives payment from the driver of the car. Almost the same system is adopted for a parking lot and the like. There is also a system that uses a prepaid card or the like for automatic charge collection. However, since each car temporarily stops at a tollgate on an expressway, congestion for toll collection often occurs. To solve these problems, when cars pass through toll gates without stopping,
A system has been developed to automatically execute the toll payment process (Non-stop Automatic Toll Collection System Joint Research Report, pp. 6-7, August 1996, Ministry of Construction and Road 4 Public Corporation).

[0003]

However, the conventional fee collection system as described above has the following problems to be solved. Systems that collect fees when passing through toll gates without stop include a prepaid card system and a credit system for debiting from a bank account at a later date. In the prepaid card system, when a fee shortage occurs, the vehicle is immediately guided to a booth where a clerk is present, and the payment of the shortage is requested or combined with a credit card method, and the shortage is deducted from the bank at a later date. In either case, it is necessary to notify normal billing information between the on-vehicle device mounted on the car and the roadside device installed at the tollgate, and to process the fee payment. For example, when an abnormality occurs in the communication between the vehicle-mounted device and the roadside device, a normal fee payment process may not be performed. In this case, the vehicle is guided to the booth where the attendant is present, but if the driver does not notice the instruction or intentionally ignores the instruction and passes through the toll booth, the collection of the toll becomes impossible. Further, in a system in which a vehicle passes through a tollgate without stopping to eliminate traffic congestion, the flow of vehicles cannot be smoothed if the corresponding vehicle is frequently stopped due to such a communication failure.

[0004]

The present invention employs the following structure to solve the above problems. <Structure 1> A roadside machine for notifying charging information indicating a charge to be collected from the toll gate to the mobile unit when the mobile unit passes through the tollgate, and a predetermined setting based on the charging information on the mobile unit side. And a vehicle-mounted device that executes a fee payment process and notifies the toll booth of the result of the fee payment process. The vehicle-mounted device includes at least the unpaid processing portion of the predetermined fee payment process result. Is provided, and the roadside device refers to the past fee payment processing result in the storage unit of the in-vehicle device before notifying the mobile unit of the billing information, and stores the past unpaid A fee collection system characterized by adding a processing amount to current billing information.

<Structure 2> When a moving object passes through a toll gate, a roadside machine that notifies the toll gate side of charging information indicating a charge to be collected from the toll gate side to the moving object side, and the mobile unit uses the charging information based on the charging information. And a vehicle-mounted device for notifying the toll booth side of the result of the payment process from the mobile unit to the toll booth. Out of the predetermined fee payment processing results,
A storage unit that stores a processing result including at least the unpaid processing amount is provided, and the roadside device refers to the past fee payment processing result in the storage unit before notifying the mobile unit of the billing information, A toll collection system characterized by adding an unpaid processing amount to current billing information.

<Structure 3> In the structure 2, the management center connected to each of the roadside units provided at the plurality of tollgates and controlling the operation of each of the roadside units is provided with each mobile unit passing through all the tollgates. Of the above-mentioned predetermined fee payment processing result,
A toll collection system including a storage unit for storing at least a processing result including an unpaid processing amount, and transmitting the stored content to all roadside units at a predetermined timing.

<Configuration 4> In Configuration 1 or 2, the storage unit stores the last unpaid processing amount, and the roadside unit adds the last unpaid processing amount to the current billing information and notifies the roadside unit. A toll collection system characterized by:

<Structure 5> A toll collection system according to any one of Structures 1 to 4, wherein the unpaid processing is caused by a communication error between the vehicle-mounted device and the roadside device.

<Structure 6> In any one of Structures 1 to 4, the unpaid process is caused by unauthorized traffic on the vehicle-mounted device side, and the storage unit stores all or one of the moving objects passing through the tollgate. A fee collection system, wherein an image of a part is stored together with a processing result including an unpaid processing amount.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below using specific examples. <Specific Example 1> FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of a fee collection system according to the present invention. The present invention is a system suitable for collecting tolls for vehicles passing through a highway or a toll road, or entering or leaving a parking lot. Further, the present invention can be widely used for a system for collecting a fee when various moving objects (including a person) other than a car pass through a predetermined place. In this specific example, a car 3 will be described as an example of the moving body 1. The vehicle 3 communicates with the roadside device 2 when passing through a tollgate on a toll road to execute a toll payment process. In this example, for example, the roadside unit 2- is provided at the entrance tollgate 4-1 and the exit tollgate 4-2, respectively.
1, 2-2, 2-3 and 2-4 are arranged. Between the roadside machines 2-3 and 2-4 at the exit tollgate, there is a booth 8
-1 is arranged.

Further, in this specific example, when a toll payment process is hindered in the past when passing through a toll road, an unpaid fee is collected when the toll road is used again. . On the left side of the figure, processing when the vehicle passed the last time is shown, and on the right side of the figure, processing when the vehicle passed this time. The toll booths to pass are not limited to the same, and are optional.
At the entrance tollgate 4-3 for this time, the roadside machine 2-5
2-6 is provided, and the roadside machine 2-
7, 2-8 are provided. A booth 8-2 of a clerk is arranged between the roadside machines 2-7 and 2-8.

Each of the roadside devices 2 is connected to the management center 5 via a network (not shown), and exchanges necessary data. Here, for example, the processing of the previous traffic will be described. When the car 3 enters the entrance tollgate 4-1,
First, communication with the roadside device 2-1 is started. The roadside machine 2-1 includes:
As will be described later, radio waves are periodically transmitted, and the in-vehicle device of the car 3 receives the radio waves. At this time, the vehicle-mounted device information is transmitted from the vehicle 3 to the roadside device 2-1 as a response. Then, the entrance information is transmitted from the roadside device 2-1 to the vehicle 3. Also, when vehicle-mounted device information is transmitted from the car 3 to the roadside device 2-2 provided near the exit of the entrance tollgate 4-1,
The vehicle type is notified from the roadside device 2-2 to the vehicle 3.
By these communications, the presence or absence of a towed vehicle in the case of a vehicle type or a trailer, and various other data vehicles 3 necessary for calculating tolls are transmitted to the roadside machines 2-1 and 2-2. You. On the other hand, from the roadside machines 2-1 and 2-2 to the onboard machine of the car 3, entrance information indicating from which entrance the vehicle has entered the toll road, information received from the car 3 and external cameras and other sensors. Information on the discriminated vehicle type obtained by integrating the obtained information is transmitted. The content is stored in the vehicle-mounted device. Thus, the car 3 uses the toll road and heads for the exit tollgate 4-2.

In the first roadside machine 2-3 of the exit tollgate 4-2, the car 3 transmits the entrance information stored in the entrance tollgate 4-1 to the roadside machine 2. As a result, the roadside machine 2-3 receives information on the vehicle type serving as the basis of the toll calculation and from which entrance the vehicle has entered the toll road. Then, the charge is calculated and the billing information is transmitted to the car 3. In a system that collects a fixed amount of toll, such complicated processing is not necessary, and there is no entrance tollgate, and a method of unconditionally notifying the vehicle of constant charging information at the exit tollgate. Become. When the car 3 receives the billing information, a fee payment process is executed inside the car 3. This is, for example, a prepaid card reduction processing. The processing result is transmitted to the roadside machine 2-4 on the exit side of the exit tollgate 4-2. Here, for example, if the toll payment process fails for any reason, the roadside device 2-4 receives the notification, and
The final result is notified to the car 3. The result is car 3
Is stored on the side.

It is to be noted that the failure of the fee payment processing may be caused by a failure in communication such as notification of billing information or a failure in the vehicle-mounted device of the car 3 for some reason that the payment processing cannot be executed. Can be In this case, the result is notified to the management center 5 as a negative list and registered. The content is then notified to all toll booths. Then, when the vehicle enters the toll road again, the normal processing as before is executed at the entrance tollgate 4-3, but the settlement process as shown in this figure is performed at the exit tollgate 4-4. Will be That is, information indicating that the final result has failed in the previous payment processing is stored in the on-vehicle device of the car 3. In addition, since it is necessary to pay the toll this time, that information is also stored. These are notified to the first roadside machine 2-7 of the exit tollgate 4-4. As a result, the roadside device 2-7 notifies the car 3 of the billing information in which the previous traffic and the current traffic are combined. And
At the booth 8-2, a notice to the effect that payment will be made is sent. This notification is displayed on a display or the like provided in the car.
In accordance with this, the driver stops at the booth 8-2 and executes necessary payment processing.

The above is an outline of this specific example.
The contents will be described more specifically. FIG. 2 shows a plan view of the tollgate. To realize the above system, for example, a tollgate having a configuration as shown in FIG. The vehicle 3 in FIG. This vehicle-mounted device 6 executes a fee payment process. The tollgate 4 is provided with a tollgate island 7 along the traveling lane 9. At the center of the tollgate island 7, a booth 8 packed by a staff member is arranged. Also, Tollgate Island 7
The first roadside machine 2-1 and the second roadside machine
The roadside device 2-2 is disposed. The signal output from the first roadside device 2-1 reaches a range of several meters. This is referred to as a first roadside unit communication range 11-1. The second roadside unit 2
-2 reaches the second roadside unit communication range 11-2. When the vehicle 3 passes through the communication range, the communication as described above is performed between the vehicle-mounted device 6 of the vehicle 3 and the roadside devices 2-1 and 2-2. The traveling lane 9 is set to have a width that allows only one vehicle 3 to pass. In the known non-stop automatic toll collection system already described, the car 3
When the vehicle passes through the traveling lane 9 for about 50 km to about 80 km, it communicates with the roadside devices 2-1 and 2-2 to complete necessary processing.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main part of the fee collection system. As shown in the figure, for example, a prepaid card 13 is mounted on the in-vehicle device 6 mounted on the car 3. The prepaid card 13 is composed of, for example, an IC card. The in-vehicle device 6 is further provided with a storage unit 15. Here, the entrance information, the billing information, and other various information described above are stored. In this specific example, a processing result corresponding to an unpaid portion of the fee payment processing result is stored in the storage unit 15. The command M1 is transmitted from the roadside device 2 to the vehicle-mounted device 6 at a very short interval. The in-vehicle device 6 returns a necessary response M2 to the roadside device 2. The storage unit 16 is also provided on the roadside device 2 side, and stores the toll payment information as described above. Further, a camera 18 is provided to capture an image of the car 3 when an illegal traffic as described later is performed.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the vehicle-mounted device. The in-vehicle device 6 includes an antenna 21, a radio unit 22, a control unit 23, and a storage unit 15. As described above, the payment processing result is stored in the storage unit 15. The control unit 23 mounts a card 13 such as a prepaid card. The command from the roadside device received from the antenna 21 is transmitted to the control unit 23 via the wireless unit 22. Thus, the control unit 23 executes the fee payment processing.
Specifically, a process of subtracting the amount corresponding to the current toll from the amount corresponding to the balance stored in the card 13 and rewriting the card 13 is executed.
In addition, the processing result of the unpaid portion described above is stored in the storage unit 15, and is read out and transmitted to the roadside machine at the next passage through the tollgate.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the structure of the roadside unit. The roadside device 4 is provided with an antenna 25, a radio unit 26, a control unit 27, and a storage unit 16. The control unit 27 is connected to a booth collection / receipt terminal 28 of the booth 8. The control unit 27 is connected to the management center 5 via a communication line or the like. The roadside machine of this configuration
As described above, under the control of the wireless unit 26, the radio wave for inquiring the car is repeatedly transmitted from the antenna 25 in a short cycle. Then, when the vehicle passes through the communication range of the roadside device, a response from the vehicle is received by the roadside device. As a result, the control unit 27 generates necessary entrance information or generates charging information and notifies the vehicle of the generated information, and stores the unpaid portion of the fee in the storage unit 16 when it occurs. The fact is notified to the management center 5. When this type of information is centrally managed by the management center 5, the storage unit 16 is provided on the management center 5 side. The control unit 27 is connected to the booth collection / receipt terminal 28 in order to notify the attendant when toll collection for the previous time and this time is executed in the booth.

FIG. 6 shows a data explanatory view of the vehicle-mounted device.
The storage unit 15 provided in the in-vehicle device stores a processing result having contents as shown in FIG. In this example, for example, information 31 including the current billing information and the like and information 32 including the previous unpaid processing amount are stored. This previous information 32
Includes, for example, an entrance date and time 33, an entrance tollgate number 34, an exit date and time 35, an exit tollgate number 36, an error type 37, a fee 38, and others 39 as shown in the figure. The reason why the entry date and time 33 and the exit date and time 35 are included is to match the previous unpaid processing result with the content stored in the roadside device. Entrance tollgate number 34 and exit tollgate number 36
Is used for fee calculation. Error type 37
Is information for distinguishing, for example, that necessary charging information was not notified due to a communication error, or that the driver did not correctly install the card 13 in the control unit 23 of the vehicle-mounted device 6 shown in FIG. It is. The fee 38 is an unpaid fee. When one pass ends and the next pass starts, the current information 31 becomes the previous information 32 and the newly created information becomes the current information. In some cases, the fee collection may fail two or more times. Therefore, all the results of the failure in the past fee collection may be stored in this way.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of data of the roadside device.
In the roadside machine, at least the processing result for the unpaid fee is classified and stored for each vehicle using this toll road. Such data is generally called a negative list. In other words, a list is created for the unpaid bills due to deliberate or negligence, and then a request is made to request the corresponding car to pay the bills. For this purpose, this data includes the on-board unit ID 41,
A current negative level 42 and histories 43, 44, 45 are provided. The in-vehicle device ID 41 is a set of numbers and symbols assigned to distinguish each vehicle. The current negative level 42 indicates information indicating how much unpaid processing has actually been accumulated by the car. History 43, 44, 4
Reference numerals 5 are the same as the configurations of the previous information and the current information, respectively, described in FIG. That is, it is composed of an entrance date and time 33, an entrance tollgate number 34, an exit date and time 35, an exit tollgate number 36, an error type 37, a fee 38, and others 39. The data of the histories 43 to 45 shown in FIG. 7 has the same configuration as the data of the processing result shown in FIG.

[0021] Such a negative list is obtained by collecting cases collected from road users who were unable to collect a toll for any reason.
Fees are stored until successfully collected. This negative list is notified to the management center and stored, and is periodically sent from the management center to each roadside device so that all the roadside devices hold the same negative list. That is, each roadside machine collects and accumulates a negative list of vehicles passing through the tollgate where it is located, and the data is once sent to the management center, classified, and then distributed again to each roadside machine. You. In this way, any of the roadside units can similarly prevent unauthorized traffic of vehicles.

FIG. 8 shows a normal roadside device-vehicle device communication sequence chart. With reference to this figure, the operation when the car normally passes through the entrance tollgate and the exit tollgate in the above system will be described. First, when the car 3 passes through the entrance first roadside machine 2-1 of the entrance tollgate 4-1, as described above, the type of the vehicle, the presence or absence of towing, and other information are entered into the entrance first roadside machine 2. -1 is notified. Roadside machine 2
From -1, the in-vehicle device 6 is notified of entrance information and the like indicating the entrance name of the tollgate. Next, when another in-vehicle device information is notified from the on-vehicle device 6 when passing through the second entrance-side device 2-2, the second vehicle-side entrance device 2-2 discriminates the vehicle type and other information. Information is notified. These are stored in the storage unit of the car. Thereafter, when passing through the exit tollgate 4-2, entrance information is transmitted from the car 3 at the exit first roadside machine 2-3. Here, in addition to the information received from the entrance tollgate 4-1 and indicating from which entrance, the current information 31 and the previous information 32 as shown in FIG. 6 are notified. Here, if the content indicates that the fee was normally paid the previous time, the vehicle 3 is notified of the current billing information, and the vehicle 3 is notified of the normal result of the fee payment processing. Car 3 passes through this tollgate.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the normal fee payment processing has not been performed, the fact is notified to the vehicle-mounted device of the car 3 and stored in the storage unit 15. On the other hand, when it is determined that the unpaid amount has occurred in the previous information, the billing information including the unpaid amount is notified to the vehicle-mounted device of the car 3. Then, the fee payment processing is executed. Such processing may be performed automatically, or may be performed by a clerk at the booth 8. When the previous unpaid process is collected and the collection of the fee is completed normally, the corresponding information is deleted from the storage unit of the vehicle-mounted device, and the corresponding information of the roadside device and the management center is further deleted. On the other hand, if the unpaid portion remains without executing the toll payment process due to a communication error or the like, it is settled the next time the vehicle passes through the toll road in the manner described with reference to FIG. In addition,
A communication error that occurs due to a failure of a communication antenna or a wireless unit of a vehicle-mounted device or a roadside device may not be able to receive necessary information on the vehicle-mounted device. In such a case, when the vehicle passes through the entrance tollgate next time, the previously unpaid processing portion is notified and recorded to the vehicle-mounted device. As a result, at the exit tollgate, it is possible to collect tolls as in the specific examples so far.

If there is no entrance information due to a communication error between the roadside unit and the on-board unit at the entrance tollgate, or if there is no information on the discriminated vehicle type, the registered vehicle type registered in the on-board unit and the vehicle type determined by the entrance tollgate In the case where the numbers do not coincide with each other, the information may be registered in the negative list, a caution may be urged by a predetermined method at the exit tollgate, and a clerk or the like may perform the settlement.

<Effects of Specific Example 1> In the case of a vehicle-mounted device, regardless of the prepaid card system or the credit card system, if any trouble occurs in the payment processing when passing through the toll booth, the previous information is stored in the vehicle-mounted device. It is stored in the roadside machine or the management center, etc., and is settled the next time the vehicle passes through the road, so it is possible to settle in the past when the toll could not be collected due to intentional or negligence in the subsequent passage. .

The storage unit for storing the data of the past unpaid processing may be in the vehicle, that is, in the moving body, in the roadside machine, or in the management center. If it is on the car side, the burden of storing data on the roadside machine is reduced. In a toll road or a parking lot where there is only one entrance, only the roadside machine needs to store the data. In a large-scale system such as a highway, it is preferable that the management center performs centralized management.

<Embodiment 2> FIG. 9 shows a sequence chart of Embodiment 2. This sequence chart is a communication / payment sequence at the time of a previous error in the entrance ticketing / exit collection method. Entrance tollgate 4-
The procedure at 1 and the procedure at the exit tollgate 4-2 are the same as the previous examples. That is, at the entrance tollgate 4-1, information stored in the on-vehicle device 6 is transmitted to the roadside device 2, and necessary entrance information is transmitted to the on-vehicle device 6. And
At the exit tollgate 4-2, the in-vehicle device 6 notifies entrance information to the first exit roadside device 2-3, and in response, the charging result is transmitted to the on-vehicle device 6. As described above, the vehicle 3 is notified of predetermined billing information, and the vehicle 3 notifies the vehicle 2 of the processing result to the second exit roadside 2-4.

If the contents indicate that the fee payment processing has failed, the settlement processing is performed in the next traffic.
In the specific examples so far, the settlement process was performed in the booth. Here, the settlement process is automatically executed by communication between the roadside device and the vehicle-mounted device 6. That is, the first exit roadside machine 2-7 receives the current information and the previous information from the car 3 and sends the billing information including both the information to the car 3. As a result, the vehicle 3 performs necessary fee payment processing, and outputs the processing result to the second roadside device 2.
Tell -8. When the final result is taken out to the car 3 in this way, these processes are completed. If there is a so-called illegally passing vehicle that intentionally passes without paying the fee, that fact is registered in the negative list, and a photograph is taken when passing through the exit tollgate 4-2 or 4-4. Is performed, and a process such as photographing the license plate of the driver or the car and making it proof of the billing can be performed at a later date.

<Effect of Specific Example 2> As in this specific example,
When the unpaid fee is detected by the notification of the current information and the previous information, the billing information including both of them is notified to the car 3 so that the toll collection is automatically performed. , The fee can be automatically settled. In addition, measures for preventing unauthorized traffic can be automatically performed, and a more reliable toll collection system can be established. In the above specific example, an example is described in which the entrance is clearly indicated at the entrance tollgate and the system is suitable for collecting the toll according to the traffic section at the exit tollgate. The above system may be provided only at the entrance or only at the entrance tollgate. In this case, in any case, only the roadside machine at the exit tollgate needs to be provided. Further, the above system can be applied to the management of parking lots or the management of entrance fees of vehicles and various theaters when a moving object is viewed as a human. When the mobile object is a person, the in-vehicle device includes a computer or a communication circuit mounted on an admission ticket, a commuter pass, or the like.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of a fee collection system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a tollgate.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main part of the fee collection system.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an in-vehicle device.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a roadside unit.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of data of a vehicle-mounted device.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of data of a roadside device.

FIG. 8 is a normal roadside device-vehicle device communication sequence chart.

FIG. 9: Communication at the time of the previous error in the entrance ticketing exit collection method
It is an adjustment sequence chart.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Moving body 2 Roadside machine 3 Car 4-1-4-4 Tollgate 5 Management center

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G07B 1/00-9/02 G07B 11/00-17/04 G06F 17/00 G06F 19/00 G06F 17 / 60 G08G 1/00-9/02

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A roadside machine for notifying charging information indicating a charge to be collected from a tollgate to a mobile unit when the mobile unit passes through a tollgate, and a predetermined value based on the charging information on the mobile unit side. And an in-vehicle device for notifying the toll booth side of the result of the fee payment from the mobile unit. A storage unit for storing the processing result including the minutes is provided, and the roadside device refers to the past fee payment processing result in the storage unit of the in-vehicle device before notifying the charging information to the mobile unit,
A fee collection system characterized by adding a past unpaid process amount to current billing information. 2. A roadside machine for notifying charging information indicating a charge to be collected from a tollgate to a mobile body when the mobile body passes through a tollgate, and a predetermined value based on the charging information on the mobile body side. And a vehicle-mounted device for notifying the tollgate side of the result of the payment process from the mobile unit to the tollgate side. A storage unit for storing at least a processing result including a part of the unpaid processing among the payment processing results is provided, and the roadside device transmits the past payment processing result in the storage unit before notifying the mobile unit of the billing information. , A past unpaid processing amount is added to the current billing information. 3. The management center connected to each roadside unit provided at each of a plurality of tollgates and controlling the operation of each roadside unit according to claim 2, A storage unit for storing a processing result including at least an unpaid processing result of the predetermined fee payment processing result, and transmitting the stored content to all roadside devices at a predetermined timing. Toll collection system. 4. The roadside machine according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit stores a previous unpaid processing amount, and the roadside unit adds the previous unpaid processing amount to the current billing information and notifies the roadside unit. A fee collection system characterized by the following. 5. The toll collection system according to claim 1, wherein the unpaid processing is caused by a communication error between the vehicle-mounted device and the roadside device. 6. The non-payment processing according to claim 1, wherein the unpaid processing is caused by unauthorized traffic on the vehicle-mounted device side, and the storage unit stores all or a part of the moving object passing through the tollgate. The fee collection system is characterized in that an image obtained by photographing is stored together with a processing result including an unpaid processing amount.