WO1995020204A1

WO1995020204A1 - Parking meter

Info

Publication number: WO1995020204A1
Application number: PCT/EP1995/000218
Authority: WO
Inventors: Andreas Jank; Thomas Jank
Original assignee: Andreas Jank; Thomas Jank
Priority date: 1994-01-25
Filing date: 1995-01-21
Publication date: 1995-07-27
Also published as: DE4401993A1

Abstract

The proposed parking meter has a sensor (18) which detects the presence of a vehicle in the parking space. It also has a camera (16) pointing at the area of the vehicle's licence plate. The camera takes a series of pictures and uses only those which indicate that a vehicle has been parked for longer than the time paid for or a particular maximum period. Staff are no longer needed to check parking times.

Description

parking meter

The invention relates to a parking meter with which a parking space is made available for a limited period of use.

The conventional parking meters contain a clockwork which is activated by inserting a coin and actuating a starter and which in each case indicates the remaining parking time and, if the remaining parking time is exceeded, indicates that this has been exceeded, for example by a red disc. Monitoring parking meters by control personnel and punishing unpaid parking space use a lot of control personnel and is time-consuming. If payment is delayed after entering the parking lot, the parking lot will be used without payment until then. If the paid parking time is not fully used, the parking meter continues to run and the remaining time can be reduced by one Successor can be used. These are significant shortcomings of the usual parking meters.

A parking clock is known from patent application EP 0 275 210 A2, which can be used with authorization cards, is activated by a start switch and shows the unused parking time on a display. Such a parking meter is very complex, but in principle does not avoid the disadvantages of conventional parking meters described above.

Patent application DE 34 37 539 AI describes a parking device with a keyboard, in which e.g. the license plate of the vehicle in question can be entered, which is then printed on a parking ticket. The parking time is not monitored by a parking meter.

A parking meter is known from patent application EP 0 329 129 A2, which has a sensor that detects the presence of a vehicle in the parking lot. The parking meter is automatically reset when the vehicle leaves the parking lot. In this way it is prevented that the remaining parking time can be used by a successor.

The invention has for its object to provide a parking meter that enables more effective use of parking spaces and significantly reduces the control effort.

This object is achieved according to the invention with the features specified in claim 1. The parking meter according to the invention is equipped with an automatic camera which is aimed at the number plate area of a vehicle using the parking lot. When parking, at least one picture is taken if the paid parking time or a preset maximum time has been exceeded. The date and time and possibly also an indication of the location are preferably superimposed on the image, so that this documentation (photo, video film, video printer image, etc.) represents usable evidence that the parking time has been exceeded. The camera is built into the housing or the column of the parking meter, but it can also be attached to a remote or concealed location independently of the operating part of the parking meter, so that the parking space can be better seen on the one hand and unauthorized measures on the other hand to make manipulations, for example covering the camera lens, more difficult. The parking meter according to the invention is an active electronic parking meter, which at the same time fulfills a control and documentation task. The personnel usually used for parking control can be saved. It is only necessary to take the recorded documentation of parking time violations from the parking meter at certain time intervals. However, such a physical removal can also be omitted if the camera is an electronic camera which stores the images in an electronic memory, from which they are connected via a data cable or via a wireless link which is connected to a control center , can be called up.

When using a complex central station, complex functions (payment system, image processing, data storage, time recording, display, etc.) run computer-controlled, while the remote parking sensors only carry out the data recording for reasons of cost minimization. The functionality is divided according to expediency criteria with regard to costs, acceptance (as short a route as possible for the driver) and feasibility (power consumption with battery operation). If the payment is processed at the central station, the driver must enter the number of his parking space there using a numeric keypad.

Since all the information about the parking spaces controlled by it converge in the control center, it is also possible to display the number of free parking spaces or to forward them to a higher-level unit (parking guidance system).

In this sense, a sensor is provided in a preferred further development of the invention, which monitors the use of the parking space and responds to the presence of a vehicle in the parking space. Such a sensor can be, for example, a capacitive or inductive sensor (induction loop) embedded in the floor, but it can also consist of an infrared sensor, ultrasonic sensor and the like. consist. The camera itself can also be designed as such a sensor by being equipped with an image change detector which detects changes in the field of vision of the camera and responds, for example, when a vehicle drives into or out of the parking lot. In this case, the camera itself is used as a sensor and an additional sensor can be omitted. When using a sensor, there is the option of a Take pictures as soon as the vehicle enters the parking lot. This is particularly useful when the camera detects the vehicle's license plate area best during parking. There is also the advantage that the vehicle is already identified when it is parked, and that, for example, it is pointless for the perpetrator to subsequently hide or glue the camera lens because his vehicle has already been recorded.

If pictures are taken while parking or during parking, when the parking time or the maximum time has not yet expired, the pictures taken are unnecessary, provided that the parking time or the maximum time is not exceeded afterwards. Therefore, such initially recorded images are temporarily stored in a temporary image memory and are subsequently deleted if no event occurs which makes it necessary to preserve these images. Such an event, which makes the preservation of images necessary, consists, for example, in that the parking time has been exceeded, that tampering with the parking meter has been tampered with and the like. In such cases, which lead to a signal triggering, the images last recorded are transferred to a permanent image memory in order to be able to be used as evidence. All other images are only temporarily stored in the temporary image memory and then deleted or overwritten again, so that the user of a parking space who behaves properly does not have to fear that the images on his license plate will be used in any way. Exceeding the paid parking time or the maximum time does not necessarily have to result in the taking of a picture immediately. Rather, an additional time can elapse before an image is taken. Finally, there is the possibility of triggering further image recordings at certain time intervals, for example to record at 5-minute intervals that the vehicle is still in the parking lot.

A video camera is preferably used as the camera, which records individual images. If the parking meter is to be ready to take pictures in the dark, a camera is preferably used which is sensitive in the infrared range and the recording area is illuminated by light-emitting diodes. These LEDs can be switched on by twilight switches. However, there is also the possibility of only switching on the illumination of the recording area when a recording is to be made.

Exemplary embodiments of the invention are explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings.

Show it:

1 shows an embodiment of the structural design of the parking meter,

2 shows an arrangement of several parking spaces with associated parking meters, 3 is a block diagram of the essential parts of the parking meter in the embodiment of FIG. 2,

4 different parking spaces with different types of parking meters,

5 shows a block diagram of the essential parts of one of the parking meters from FIGS. 4 and

6 shows an exemplary embodiment of a parking system in which the vehicles contain a cancellation device that receives signals from a cancellation sensor of the parking meter.

The parking meter shown in FIG. 1 has a column 10 to be fastened on the floor, on which a head 11 is seated. The head 11 is preferably rotatable about its vertical axis in order to be able to align the operating and display elements in different directions.

On the head 11 there is a display device 12 for displaying the respective remaining parking time and further information, as well as a coin slot 13 and a card slot 14. The card slot 14 is used for inserting a debitable fee card or credit card. It is not absolutely necessary to pay the parking fee in advance. Rather, it is also possible to use a card which is only validated by the amount that corresponds to the actual useful life when the parking space ends. Since this service life is limited by a maximum time, exceeding the maximum time is considered a parking violation. Keys 15 or other operating elements are also attached to the head 11, which serve, for example, to indicate the end of the coin insertion or to cause the card inserted into the card slot 14 to be canceled.

A window 16 is attached to the column 10 at a height between approximately 30 and 60 cm, behind which the camera is arranged. Furthermore, a lamp 17 for illuminating the recording area of the camera is located on the column 10. Finally, a sensor 18 is also provided on the column, which detects the presence of a vehicle in the parking lot.

2 shows three parking spaces P, which are arranged parallel to one another. At the head end of each parking space P there is a parking meter U, which is designed like that of FIG. 1, but has no sensor 18. The camera opening 16, which is arranged approximately at the number plate height, has a recording angle range a of more than 90 ° in the horizontal plane.

The diagram of the parking meter U of FIG. 2 is shown in FIG. 3. The camera 20, which is accommodated in the column of the parking meter, is controlled by a control unit 21 for taking individual images. The control unit 21 receives signals from a payment unit 22, which provides information about the value of the inserted money or about the value or the function of the inserted credit card. A timer 23 is also connected to the control unit 21 and counts the parking time from the beginning of the parking process. If the paid Parking time has expired or the maximum time has been reached, the control unit 21 causes the camera 20 to take a picture of the recording area. If there is a vehicle in the parking lot at this time, the vehicle's license plate will be recorded. Since vehicles have number plates at the front and rear, it is irrelevant whether the vehicle has entered the parking lot forwards or backwards.

In the simple exemplary embodiment of FIGS. 2 and 3, in which a sensor which detects the presence of a vehicle in the parking lot is not present, an image is recorded each time after the paid parking time or after the maximum time has elapsed and is stored. The starting time of parking, the amount of money thrown in and the time at which the picture was taken are shown in each image. If no vehicle is in the parking lot when the parking time has expired, a picture is taken of the empty parking lot. In the simple variant of the invention, a picture is taken each time the paid parking time expires or a predetermined time thereafter, and all pictures are stored and subsequently evaluated manually.

Fig. 4 shows three parking spaces which are arranged one behind the other on a roadside. A parking meter U1, which is equipped with two cameras, is provided for monitoring the two parking spaces P1 and P2. The detection area al of the one camera is directed at the front area of the parking space P1 and the detection area a2 of the other camera is directed at the rear end of the parking space P2. Because the cameras are arranged laterally next to the parking lots P1 and P2, the angles of the detection areas a1 and a2 are less than 45 °.

It is of course possible to provide a separate parking meter at each of the parking spaces P1 and P2, which is arranged either at a front or a rear corner of this parking space.

In the parking lot P3 of FIG. 4, the parking meter U3 is arranged laterally next to the parking lot approximately in the central area and the detection area a3 of the camera is approximately 90 °. The sensor 17a is provided in the form of an induction loop laid in the floor, which is electrically connected to the parking meter U3. The camera housed in the parking meter U3 cannot detect the license plate area of a vehicle parked in the parking lot P3 with its detection area a3. The camera is therefore controlled in such a way that it records at least one image when the vehicle drives into the parking lot P3 and / or when the vehicle leaves the parking lot P3. Driving into and out of the parking lot is detected by sensor 17a.

FIG. 5 shows the block diagram of the essential parts of the parking meter U3 from FIG. 4. The camera 20 delivers the images to a temporary memory 25, which contains, for example, a closed magnetic tape loop 26, on which the images are continuously recorded and which are rewritten can be. Instead of the magnetic tape loop 26, an electronic temporary image memory can also be provided. The temporary Image memory 25 is connected to a permanent image memory 27, which can take over selected images from the temporary image memory 25 and in which these images are stored until they are printed out. A control unit 28, which controls the camera 20 and the image memories 25 and 27, receives signals from the sensor 17a from a number unit 22 and from a timer 23.

The control by the control unit 28 takes place in such a way that, when parking and when leaving the parking lot, a series of images is recorded from several images and stored in the temporary memory 25, the respective time being faded in. If, after the paid parking time has elapsed, the control unit 28 determines via the sensor 17a that the vehicle is still in the parking lot, it causes the images relating to the parking of this vehicle to be taken from the temporary memory 25 are transferred to the permanent memory 27. If it is subsequently determined by the sensor 17a that the vehicle is leaving the parking lot, the images then recorded are likewise transferred to the permanent memory 27. This memory therefore contains at least one image of parking and one image of the departure, each with a time.

The principle of the parking meter U3 can also be used when the camera detects the license plate area of the parked vehicle. In these cases, too, a series of images can be recorded, which includes parking and leaving the parking lot. The amount of the paid-in amount is shown in the relevant pictures. These amounts are also printed out on a receipt issued to the user and are fed to an accumulator which cannot be reset and which contains the total amount of all paid-in parking fees. In this way, it is possible for the monitoring personnel to check who is taking the money from the parking meter.

In the embodiment of FIG. 6, a camera 20 is mounted in a column 20, which is directed towards the number plate area of a parked vehicle. The vehicles authorized to park contain a built-in validation device 30, which can communicate wirelessly with a validation device 31, which is accommodated in the column 10 of the parking meter. As soon as the sensor 18 detects the presence of a vehicle in front of the parking meter, the validation transmitter 31 transmits signals which are received by the validation device 30 of the vehicle. The validation device 30 can be loaded with a card 32 which contains a credit. The card 32 is configured similarly to a telephone card, with a specific amount being subtracted from the credit on the card 32 for each cancellation signal that the cancellation device 30 receives. As soon as this cancellation is carried out, the cancellation device 30 sends out a confirmation signal which is received by the cancellation generator 31. If a validation commanded by the validation provider 31 is not carried out by the validation device 30, for example because no card 32 has been inserted or the credit on the card 32 has been exhausted, the camera 20 is triggered to take an image of the number plate of the par- record the vehicle. At the same time, it is registered in the parking meter that unauthorized parking has taken place.

If the sensor 18 detects the presence of a vehicle in front of the parking meter, a predetermined time of a few minutes expires before the canceling device 31 sends out the first canceling signal so that the driver has the opportunity to insert the card 32 into the canceling device 30 . On the other hand, it is also possible to insert the card 32 continuously into the cancellation device 30. This parking accounting system of FIG. 6 can also be used in connection with the so-called "road pricing", in which, when driving on toll roads, the validation device 30 performs validations when certain sections of the route have been traveled through.

Claims

PATENT CLAIMS

1. Parking meter with payment option for a parking space by entering money or cards, with a camera (20) which is aimed at the number plate area of a vehicle parked in the associated parking space or entering or exiting from it and upon entry ¬ parking, or driving out to take a picture is triggered when the actual parking time exceeds the paid parking time or when a preset maximum time has expired.

2. Parking meter according to claim 1, characterized in that the presence of a vehicle in the parking space detecting sensor (17) triggers the camera (20) only when the vehicle leaves the parking lot.

3. Parking meter according to claim 1 or 2, characterized gekenn¬ characterized in that the presence of a vehicle in the parking space detecting sensor (17) triggers the camera (20) as soon as a vehicle drives into and / or leaves the parking lot.

4. Parking meter according to one of claims 1-3, characterized ge indicates that the presence of a vehicle in the parking space detecting sensor (17) sets a clock for measuring the parking time in motion when a vehicle drives into the parking lot.

5. Parking meter according to one of claims 1-4, characterized in that the camera (20) has a temporary Has image memory (25), the images of which are only entered into a permanent image memory (27) when they relate to a parking process in which the actual parking time monitored by the sensor exceeds the paid parking time or a preset maximum time.

Parking meter according to one of Claims 1-5, characterized in that the paid remaining parking time is deleted when the vehicle leaves the parking space.

Parking meter according to one of claims 1-5, characterized in that the camera (20) is controlled by a cancellation device (31) which, in the presence of a vehicle, sends cancellation signals which are generated by a cancellation device in the vehicle (30) are acknowledged, and that the canceling transmitter (31) triggers the camera (20) when a sent canceling signal has not been acknowledged.