JP7425658B2 - Toll collection system and toll collection method - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to a toll collection system and a toll collection method.

On toll roads, electronic toll collection systems (ETC (registered trademark), also referred to as "automatic toll collection systems") and magnetic toll collection systems are used to collect tolls based on the distance traveled by vehicles. A toll collection system using tickets has been introduced (for example, see Patent Document 1).

Furthermore, on toll roads, different tolls may be charged depending on the type of vehicle. For example, in an electronic toll collection system, the vehicle type registered in advance on the on-board device installed in the vehicle is acquired through wireless communication, and the toll fee corresponding to the vehicle type is calculated, and the roadside display at the exit toll gate is The vehicle occupants (hereinafter also referred to as "users") are notified by displaying the information on the vehicle.

Depending on the presence or absence of a towed vehicle, a toll fee may be charged for a vehicle type that is different from the vehicle type registered in the on-vehicle device (a vehicle type that has been ranked up or down). For this reason, the entrance toll gate of a toll road is provided with a vehicle type discrimination device that discriminates the vehicle type based on the external characteristics of the vehicle (vehicle length, vehicle height, vehicle width, number of axles, etc.). If the vehicle type determined by the vehicle type discrimination device is different from the vehicle type registered in the on-board device, the central server or the like performs processing to correct the toll.

JP2019-204397A

However, in the conventional electronic toll collection system, there is no way at the exit toll gate to know the type of vehicle determined by the vehicle type discrimination device at the entrance toll plaza. For this reason, the toll toll notified to the user through the roadside display at the exit toll plaza may differ from the toll toll corrected by the central server and actually charged.

The present disclosure has been made in view of such problems, and provides a toll collection system and a toll collection method that can notify users of tolls that will actually be charged.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a toll collection system includes an entrance roadside communication device that performs wireless communication with an onboard device of a vehicle that has arrived at an entrance tollgate of a toll road and acquires identification information of the onboard device; A vehicle type discrimination device that discriminates the vehicle type of the vehicle that has arrived at the toll gate; an entrance lane server that is communicatively connected to the entrance roadside communication device and the vehicle type discrimination device; and a vehicle that has arrived at the exit toll gate of the toll road. an exit roadside communication device that performs wireless communication with an onboard device to obtain identification information of the onboard device; an exit lane server that calculates a toll for the vehicle that has arrived at the exit toll plaza; The vehicle includes a notification device that notifies a user of the vehicle of the toll fee when leaving the vehicle, and a registration information server that is communicably connected to the entrance lane server and the exit lane server, respectively. The entrance lane server transmits registration information in which the vehicle type determined by the vehicle type discrimination device and the identification information acquired by the entrance roadside communication device are associated with each other to the registration information server to request registration. has a department. The exit lane server includes an acquisition unit that acquires registration information associated with the identification information acquired by the exit roadside communication device from among the registration information registered in the registration information server, and an acquisition unit that acquires registration information associated with the identification information acquired by the exit roadside communication device; and a processing unit that calculates the toll based on the toll and notifies the notification device.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a toll collection method includes a step in which an entrance roadside communication device performs wireless communication with an on-vehicle device of a vehicle that has arrived at an entrance toll plaza of a toll road, and acquires identification information of the on-vehicle device. , a step in which a vehicle type discrimination device determines the vehicle type of the vehicle that has arrived at the entrance toll gate , and an entrance lane server associates the determined vehicle type of the vehicle with the identification information acquired at the entrance toll gate. A step of transmitting the registration information to the registration information server and requesting registration, and the exit roadside communication device wirelessly communicating with the onboard device of the vehicle that has arrived at the exit toll plaza of the toll road, and transmitting the identification information of the onboard device. a step of acquiring registration information associated with the identification information acquired at the exit toll plaza from among the registration information registered in the registration information server by the exit lane server; and a step of the exit lane server a step of calculating a toll for the vehicle arriving at the exit toll plaza based on the acquired registration information; and a notification device calculating the toll for the vehicle when the vehicle exits the exit toll plaza . and a step of notifying a user boarding the vehicle.

According to the toll collection system and toll collection method according to the present disclosure, it is possible to notify the user of the toll that will actually be charged.

1 is a diagram showing an overview of a toll collection system according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of a toll collection system according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing of the toll collection system according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of a toll collection system according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. It is a flowchart which shows an example of processing of the toll collection system concerning a 3rd embodiment of this indication. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of a toll collection system according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of an entrance lane server, a vehicle type discrimination device, an exit lane server, and a registration information server according to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure.

<First embodiment>
A toll collection system according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.

(Overall configuration of toll collection system)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overview of a toll collection system according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure.
The toll collection system 1 according to the present embodiment is a system for collecting tolls depending on the type of vehicle A and the distance traveled. For example, the toll collection system 1 may be part of a system that constructs an electronic toll collection system (ETC (registered trademark), also referred to as an "automatic toll collection system"). When using a toll road, vehicle A enters the toll road from a general road via an entrance toll plaza, and exits from the toll road to a general road via an exit toll plaza.

As shown in FIG. 1, the toll collection system 1 includes an entrance roadside communication device 10, an entrance lane server 11, and a vehicle type discrimination device 12 installed at the entrance tollgate, and an exit roadside communication device 20 installed at the exit tollgate. , an exit lane server 21, a roadside display 22 (notification device), and a registration information server 30.

Although not shown, the entrance roadside communication device 10, the entrance lane server 11, and the vehicle type discrimination device 12 are installed at each of the plurality of entrance toll gates. Similarly, the exit roadside communication device 20, the exit lane server 21, and the roadside display device 22 are installed at each of the plurality of exit tollgates. Further, when the entrance tollgate has a plurality of lanes, one entrance roadside communication device 10, one entrance lane server 11, and one vehicle type discrimination device 12 are installed for each lane. When the exit toll plaza has a plurality of lanes, one exit roadside communication device 20, one exit lane server 21, and one roadside indicator 22 is installed for each lane.

The entrance roadside communication device 10 performs wireless communication with the onboard device α mounted on the vehicle A that has arrived at the entrance tollgate. At this time, the entrance roadside communication device 10 acquires the onboard device information registered in advance in the onboard device α and transmits it to the entrance lane server 11. The on-vehicle device information includes identification information (on-vehicle device ID) that can identify the on-vehicle device α, the vehicle type and license plate number of the vehicle A in which the on-vehicle device α is mounted, and the like. Further, the entrance roadside communication device 10 transmits the identification information (toll gate ID) of the entrance toll gate where the vehicle A has arrived, and the entrance information including the time of arrival to the on-vehicle device α.

The vehicle type discrimination device 12 discriminates the vehicle type of vehicle A that has arrived at the entrance toll gate. The vehicle type discrimination device 12 is a group of devices including sensors (not shown) such as a vehicle detector, a vehicle height detector, a vehicle width detector, and a footboard, for example. The vehicle type identification device 12 identifies the vehicle type of vehicle A based on the external characteristics of vehicle A (vehicle length, vehicle height, vehicle width, number of axles, etc., hereinafter also referred to as "vehicle characteristic information") detected through the sensor. Discern. Further, the vehicle type discrimination device 12 transmits the determined vehicle type of the vehicle A to the entrance lane server 11.

The entrance lane server 11 transmits to the registration information server 30 registration information in which the type of vehicle A that has arrived at the entrance tollgate is associated with the onboard device information acquired from the onboard device α.

The exit roadside communication device 20 performs wireless communication with the onboard device α mounted on the vehicle A that has arrived at the exit toll gate. At this time, the exit roadside communication device 20 acquires the onboard device information from the onboard device α and transmits it to the exit lane server 21. Further, the exit roadside communication device 20 transmits exit information including the identification information (toll gate ID) of the exit toll gate where the vehicle A has arrived, the arrival time, and the toll to the onboard device α.

The exit lane server 21 calculates the toll for vehicle A that has arrived at the exit toll gate.

The roadside display 22 displays the toll calculated by the exit lane server 21 when the vehicle A exits the exit toll gate, and notifies the user riding the vehicle A of the toll. The roadside display device 22 is one aspect of the notification device in this embodiment.

Note that the exit lane server 21 may transmit the calculated toll to the on-vehicle device α via the exit roadside communication device 20. In this case, the onboard device α functions as a notification device that notifies the user of the toll through a display or speaker (not shown).

The registration information server 30 is communicably connected to the entrance lane server 11 of the entrance toll plaza and the exit lane server 21 of the exit toll plaza via a communication network such as the Internet. The registration information server 30 stores registration information including the onboard device ID and vehicle type of the vehicle A that has arrived at the entrance tollgate. Furthermore, when the registration information acquired from the vehicle type identification device 12 at the entrance tollgate is stored, the registration information server 30 according to the present embodiment transmits this registration information to the exit lane server 21 of each of the plurality of exit tollgates ( To deliver.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of the toll collection system according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.
Next, the functional configuration of each of the entrance lane server 11, exit lane server 21, and registration information server 30 of the toll collection system 1 will be explained with reference to FIG.

(Functional configuration of entrance lane server)
As shown in FIG. 2, the entrance lane server 11 includes a CPU 11A and a storage medium 11B.

The CPU 11A is a processor that controls the entire operation of the entrance lane server 11, and functions as the transmitter 112 by operating according to a predetermined program.

The transmitter 112 transmits to the registration information server 30 registration information that associates the onboard device ID acquired from the onboard device α of the vehicle A through the entrance roadside communication device 10 with the vehicle type of the vehicle A determined by the vehicle type discriminator 12. request registration.

The storage medium 11B is a so-called auxiliary storage device, such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive). The storage medium 11B stores various information acquired and generated by the entrance lane server 11. For example, the storage medium 11B stores onboard equipment information acquired through the entrance roadside communication device 10, vehicle characteristic information and vehicle type discrimination results (vehicle type) used by the vehicle type discriminator 12 in the process of discriminating the vehicle type, entrance information, etc. Ru.

(Functional configuration of exit lane server)
As shown in FIG. 2, the exit lane server 21 includes a CPU 21A and a storage medium 21B.

The CPU 21A is a processor that controls the entire operation of the exit lane server 21, and functions as an acquisition section 211, a deletion section 212, and a processing section 213 by operating according to a predetermined program.

The acquisition unit 211 acquires registration information associated with the onboard device ID acquired by the exit roadside communication device from among the registration information registered in the registration information server 30. Note that in this embodiment, the acquisition unit 211 stores and accumulates the registration information transmitted from the registration information server 30 in the storage medium 21B. Then, when the vehicle A arrives at the exit tollgate, the acquisition unit 211 acquires the onboard device ID of the onboard device α of the vehicle A through the exit roadside communication device 20, and stores the registration information associated with the onboard device ID. The information is selected from among the registered information stored in the medium 21B and acquired.

The deletion unit 212 deletes the registration information acquired by the acquisition unit 211 of any one exit lane server 21 (own device or other device) among the plurality of exit lane servers 21 from the storage medium 21B. Additionally, the deletion unit 212 deletes registered information whose expiration date has passed from the storage medium 21B.

The processing unit 213 calculates the toll based on the registration information acquired by the acquisition unit 211 and notifies the roadside display 22 of the toll. Note that the processing unit 213 may notify the onboard device α of the calculated toll through the exit roadside communication device 20. Further, the processing unit 213 further executes a toll collection process of collecting the calculated toll using a payment means preset in the on-vehicle device α. Since the contents of the toll collection process are the same as those of the prior art, the explanation will be omitted.

The storage medium 21B is a so-called auxiliary storage device, such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive). Various information acquired and generated by the exit lane server 21 is stored in the storage medium 21B. For example, the storage medium 21B stores registration information transmitted from the registration information server 30, onboard equipment information acquired through the exit roadside communication device 20, tolls, exit information, and the like.

(Functional configuration of registration information server)
As shown in FIG. 2, the registration information server 30 includes a CPU 30A and a storage medium 30B.

The CPU 30A is a processor that controls the entire operation of the registration information server 30, and functions as the registration section 301 by operating according to a predetermined program.

The registration unit 301 registers the registration information received from the entrance lane server 11 in the storage medium 30B, and transmits (distributes) this registration information to each of the plurality of exit lane servers 21.

The storage medium 30B is a so-called auxiliary storage device, such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive). The registration information received from the entrance lane server 11 is stored and accumulated in the storage medium 30B.

(Toll collection system processing flow)
FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing of the toll collection system according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.
The processing flow of the toll collection system 1 will be described below with reference to FIG.

First, when vehicle A arrives at the entrance tollgate, the entrance roadside communication device 10 acquires onboard device information from the onboard device α of vehicle A through wireless communication (step S101).

Further, the vehicle type discrimination device 12 determines the vehicle type of the vehicle A based on vehicle characteristic information (vehicle length, vehicle height, vehicle width, number of axles, etc.) of the vehicle A detected through a sensor (not shown) included in the vehicle type discrimination device 12. (Step S102). Note that the specific process for determining the vehicle type is the same as that in the prior art, so a description thereof will be omitted.

Next, the transmitter 112 of the entrance lane server 11 transmits registration information that associates the onboard device ID of the onboard device α of vehicle A with the vehicle type of vehicle A to the registration information server 30 to request registration (step S103).

For example, assume that the vehicle type registered in advance in the onboard device α of vehicle A is "vehicle type 1." However, when vehicle A is towing a towed vehicle as shown in FIG. ”. In this case, the transmitting unit 112 transmits registration information in which the onboard device ID of this vehicle A is associated with “vehicle type 2” to the registration information server 30.

The registration information includes onboard device information other than the onboard device ID (vehicle type and license plate information of vehicle A registered in onboard device α, etc.), vehicle characteristic information used for vehicle type discrimination (vehicle length of vehicle A, etc.). , vehicle height, vehicle width, number of axles, etc.), and entrance information (toll booth ID of entrance toll booth, passing time, etc.) may further be included.

Upon receiving the registration information from the entrance lane server 11, the registration unit 301 of the registration information server 30 stores and registers this registration information in the storage medium 30B (step S111).

Next, when the registration unit 301 receives the registration information from the entrance lane server 11, it transmits this registration information to each of the plurality of exit lane servers 21 (step S112). Note that in other embodiments, the registration unit 301 may transmit a plurality of pieces of registration information registered in the storage medium 30B to the exit lane server 21 at predetermined timings (for example, every 10 minutes). good.

Upon receiving the registration information from the registration information server 30, the acquisition unit 211 of the exit lane server 21 stores and accumulates this registration information in the storage medium 21B (step S121).

When vehicle A arrives at the exit tollgate, the exit roadside communication device 20 acquires onboard device information from the onboard device α of vehicle A through wireless communication (step S122).

In addition, the acquisition unit 211 of the exit lane server 21 selects the registration information associated with the onboard device ID included in the onboard device information acquired by the exit roadside communication device 20 from among the registration information stored in the storage medium 21B. and acquire it (step S123).

Next, the processing unit 213 of the exit lane server 21 calculates the toll for vehicle A based on the registration information acquired by the acquisition unit 211 (step S124). For example, the processing unit 213 calculates a toll according to the vehicle type included in the registration information and the distance traveled by the vehicle A, with reference to a toll table stored in advance in the storage medium 21B.

Next, the processing unit 213 notifies the user boarding the vehicle A of the calculated toll fee (step S125). Specifically, the processing unit 213 notifies the roadside display 22 of the calculated toll and causes it to display it. Furthermore, the processing unit 213 may notify the on-vehicle device α of the toll through the exit roadside communication device 20. Then, the onboard device α notifies the user of the toll through a display and/or a speaker (not shown).

For example, as in the example shown in Figure 1, the vehicle type registered in advance in the on-board device α of vehicle A is "vehicle type 1", but since vehicle A is towing a towed vehicle, it is actually "vehicle type 1". It is assumed that a toll fee of 2 is charged. At this time, in the conventional toll collection system, the exit lane server notifies the user of the toll based on the vehicle type ("vehicle type 1") registered in the on-board device, while the central server informs the user of the toll based on the vehicle type identification device at the entrance toll plaza. The toll fee was corrected based on the vehicle type (``vehicle type 2'') determined by the method, and charging processing was performed. Therefore, when the user exits the exit toll gate, the user may be notified of a toll fee that is different from the amount that will actually be charged.

However, in the toll collection system 1 according to the present embodiment, the exit lane server 21 refers to the registered information and calculates the toll based on the type of vehicle A ("vehicle type 2") determined at the entrance toll gate. be able to. Therefore, the exit lane server 21 can notify the user of the same toll as the amount that will actually be charged when the vehicle A exits the exit toll gate.

Furthermore, when the toll collection process for vehicle A is completed, the deletion unit 212 deletes the registration information acquired by the acquisition unit 211 from the storage medium 21B (step S126). At this time, the deletion unit 212 notifies the other exit lane servers 21 of the deleted registration information (acquired by the acquisition unit 211 in step S123). Then, the deletion unit 212 of the other exit lane server 21 deletes the notified registration information from the storage medium 21B. Further, the deletion unit 212 may delete registered information whose expiration date (for example, 24 hours from the registration time) has passed from the storage medium 21B. By deleting unnecessary registration information in this way, the deletion unit 212 can suppress an increase in the data capacity of the storage medium 21B.

(effect)
As described above, the toll collection system 1 according to the present embodiment uses registered information that associates the vehicle type of vehicle A determined by the vehicle type discrimination device 12 at the entrance tollgate with the onboard device ID of the onboard device α of vehicle A. is transmitted to the registration information server 30, and the exit lane server 21 acquires the registration information from the registration information server 30. The exit lane server 21 acquires the registration information associated with the onboard device ID of the onboard device α of the vehicle A acquired by the exit roadside communication device 20, and calculates the toll according to the vehicle type of the vehicle A included in the registered information. Notify users.
By doing so, the toll collection system 1 can correctly notify the user of the toll that will actually be charged.

Further, when the registration information is registered, the registration information server 30 transmits the registration information to each of the plurality of exit lane servers 21. The exit lane server 21 stores the received registration information in the storage medium 21B, and when the vehicle A arrives at the exit toll gate, selects the registration information associated with the onboard device ID of the vehicle A from the storage medium 21B. and get it.
By doing so, when the vehicle A arrives at the exit tollgate, the exit lane server 21 can quickly retrieve the registration information from the storage medium 21B without transmitting or receiving the registration information to or from the registration information server 30. can be obtained.

Further, the exit lane server 21 deletes the registration information acquired by any one of the plurality of exit lane servers 21 or the registration information whose expiration date has passed from the storage medium 21B.
By doing so, the exit lane server 21 can delete unnecessary registration information and suppress an increase in the data capacity of the storage medium 21B.

<Second embodiment>
Next, a toll collection system according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIG. 4. Components common to those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of a toll collection system according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure.
As shown in FIG. 4, the exit toll gate according to the present embodiment includes exit roadside communication devices 20_1, 20_2, ..., exit lane servers 21_1, 21_2, ..., and roadside communication devices 20_1, 20_2, ..., exit lane servers 21_1, 21_2, ..., and One display device 22_1, 22_2, . . . is provided. The plurality of exit lane servers 21 (21_1, 21_2, . . . ) are connected to each other via a local area network or the like.

Similar to the first embodiment, the registration information server 30 transmits the registration information registered from the entrance lane server 11 to each of the plurality of exit lane servers 21. At this time, a failure occurs in one exit lane server 21 (for example, the first exit lane server 21_1) among the plurality of exit lane servers 21 (failure of the storage medium 21B, disconnection of the communication cable with the registration information server 30, etc.). Suppose that a problem occurs and the registration information sent from the registration information server 30 cannot be stored. In this case, the exit lane server 21_1 will be unable to obtain the registration information from the storage medium 21B and calculate the correct toll for the vehicle A.

For this reason, the acquisition unit 211 of the exit lane server 21 according to the present embodiment detects such a failure or registers a registration associated with the onboard device ID acquired by the exit roadside communication device 20 in its own storage medium 21B. If the registration information cannot be acquired from the own storage medium 21B due to reasons such as the information not being stored, a request is made to another exit lane server 21 (for example, the second exit lane server 21_2) to send the registration information. do. Upon receiving the request from the first exit lane server 21_1, the acquisition unit 211 of the second exit lane server 21_2 selects the registration information associated with the specified onboard device ID from the storage medium 21B, and is sent to the exit lane server 21_1.

In this way, the toll collection system 1 according to the present embodiment transmits and receives registered information between the exit lane servers 21, so that even if one of the plurality of exit lane servers 21 has a failure, the other By using the registered information stored in the exit lane server 21, it is possible to notify the user of the correct toll.

<Third embodiment>
Next, a toll collection system according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIG. 5. Components common to those in the first and second embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. The registration information server 30 according to the first embodiment sent the registration information to each of the plurality of exit lane servers 21, but the registration information server 30 according to the present embodiment transmits the registration information only when there is a request from the exit lane server 21. , sends the registration information to the exit lane server 21.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing of the toll collection system according to the third embodiment of the present disclosure.
The flow of processing of the toll collection system according to this embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. 5. Note that in this embodiment, the processing flow of the entrance roadside communication device 10, entrance lane server 11, and vehicle type discrimination device 12 is the same as steps S101 to S103 of the first embodiment (FIG. 3), so these A description of the processing will be omitted.

Upon receiving the registration information from the entrance lane server 11, the registration unit 301 of the registration information server 30 according to this embodiment stores and registers this registration information in the storage medium 30B (step S211).

When vehicle A arrives at the exit tollgate, the exit roadside communication device 20 acquires onboard device information from the onboard device α of vehicle A through wireless communication (step S221).

When the exit roadside communication device 20 acquires the onboard device information, the acquisition unit 211 of the exit lane server 21 requests the registration information server 30 to transmit the registration information associated with the onboard device ID included in the onboard device information. (Step S222).

Upon receiving the request from the exit lane server 21, the registration unit 301 of the registration information server 30 searches the storage medium 30B for registration information associated with the specified onboard device ID, and transmits it to the exit lane server 21 (step S212 ). Furthermore, the registration unit 301 deletes the registration information transmitted to the exit lane server 21 from the storage medium 30B (step S213).

When the acquisition unit 211 of the exit lane server 21 acquires the registration information from the registration information server 30 (step S223), the processing unit 213 calculates the toll for vehicle A based on the acquired registration information (step S224).

Next, the processing unit 213 notifies the user boarding the vehicle A of the calculated toll fee (step S225). The specific processing in steps S224 to S225 is the same as steps S124 to S125 in the first embodiment (FIG. 3).

As described above, the exit lane server 21 according to the present embodiment acquires registration information related to the vehicle A arriving at the exit tollgate from the registration information server 30 each time. By doing so, the exit lane server 21 does not need to store a plurality of pieces of registration information in the storage medium 21B, so that the data capacity of the storage medium 21B can be significantly reduced. In this embodiment, the exit lane server 21 may retain the registration information stored in the storage medium 21B for a certain period of time (for example, one month). This eliminates the need for the exit lane server 21 to obtain the registration information of the vehicle A from the registration information server 30 the next time the same vehicle A passes through the exit lane server 21, thereby reducing the processing time.

Furthermore, the registration information server 30 deletes the registration information already sent to the exit lane server 21 from the storage medium 30B. Thereby, the registration information server 30 can delete unnecessary registration information and suppress an increase in the amount of data stored in the storage medium 30B.

<Fourth embodiment>
Next, a toll collection system according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIG. 6. Components common to those in the first to third embodiments are given the same reference numerals and detailed explanations are omitted.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of a toll collection system according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure.
As shown in FIG. 6, the fee collection system 1 according to this embodiment includes a plurality of hierarchical registration information servers 30. For example, the registration information server 30 includes a lower registration information server 30_1 provided for each toll road route, and an upper registration information server 30_2 communicably connected to each of the plurality of lower registration information servers 30_1. be done.

The lower registration information server 30_1 of the route A stores the registration information registered from the entrance lane servers 11 of each of the plurality of entrance toll gates belonging to the route A. Further, the lower registration information server 30_1 of the route B stores the registration information registered from the entrance lane servers 11 of each of the plurality of entrance tollgates belonging to the route B. Further, similarly to the third embodiment, the lower registration information server 30_1 is configured to transmit registration information to the exit lane server 21 only when requested by the exit lane server 21.

When the registration information is registered from the entrance lane server 11, the registration unit 301 of the lower registration information server 30_1 according to the present embodiment further registers the registration information in the upper registration information server 30_2. Therefore, the registration information of each of the plurality of routes is aggregated and stored in the upper registration information server 30_2.

For example, assume that vehicle A arrives at the exit toll gate of route B. At this time, the exit lane server 21 provided at the exit toll gate of route B requests the lower registration information server 30_1 of route B to transmit the registration information associated with the onboard device ID of the vehicle A. Then, the registration unit 301 of the lower registration information server 30_1 searches for registration information associated with the specified onboard device ID from among the registration information stored in the storage medium 30B. If the corresponding registration information is stored in the storage medium 30B, the registration unit 301 transmits this registration information to the exit lane server 21.

On the other hand, if the registration information corresponding to the storage medium 30B is not stored in the storage medium 30B, the registration unit 301 of the lower registration information server 30_1 causes the upper registration information server 30_2 to associate the registration information with the onboard device ID specified by the exit lane server 21. request the transmission of registration information. Upon receiving the request from the lower registration information server 30_1, the registration unit 301 of the upper registration information server 30_2 searches the storage medium 30B for registration information associated with the specified onboard device ID, and sends it to the lower registration information server 30_1. Send. The registration unit 301 of the lower registration information server 30_1 transmits the registration information received from the upper registration information server 30_2 to the exit lane server 21 that is the request source.

By doing this, for example, when multiple routes are interconnected, the vehicle A that entered the toll road from the entrance toll gate of a certain route A via the lower registration information server 30_1 and the upper registration information server 30_2 The registration information can be acquired by the exit lane server 21 of the exit toll gate of route B, which is different from route A.

Furthermore, since the lower registration information server 30_1 of each of the plurality of routes only needs to store the registration information of the route to which it belongs, it is possible to suppress an increase in the data capacity of the storage medium 30B of the lower registration information server 30_1. can.

In other embodiments, the upper registration information server 30_2 transfers the registration information registered from the lower registration information server 30_1 of one (for example, route A) to the lower registration information server 30_1 of the other (for example, route B). You can also send it. As a result, the lower registration information server 30_1 can send the registration information of other routes to the exit lane server 21 without inquiring the upper registration information server 30_2, thereby reducing the time required to send and receive registration information. be able to.

(Hardware configuration)
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of an entrance lane server, a vehicle type discrimination device, an exit lane server, and a registration information server according to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure.
Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 7, the hardware configurations of the entrance lane server 11, vehicle type discrimination device 12, exit lane server 21, and registration information server 30 according to this embodiment will be described.

The computer 900 includes a processor 901, a main storage device 902, an auxiliary storage device 903, and an interface 904.

The above-described entrance lane server 11, vehicle type discrimination device 12, exit lane server 21, and registration information server 30 are each implemented in one or more computers 900. The operations of each functional unit described above are stored in the auxiliary storage device 903 in the form of a program. The processor 901 reads the program from the auxiliary storage device 903, expands it to the main storage device 902, and executes the above processing according to the program. Further, the processor 901 reserves storage areas corresponding to each of the above-mentioned storage units in the main storage device 902 according to the program. Examples of the processor 901 include a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphic Processing Unit), a microprocessor, and the like.

The program may be for implementing part of the functions that the computer 900 performs. For example, the program may function in combination with another program already stored in the auxiliary storage device 903 or with another program installed in another device. Note that in other embodiments, the computer 900 may include a custom LSI (Large Scale Integrated Circuit) such as a PLD (Programmable Logic Device) in addition to or in place of the above configuration. Examples of PLDs include PAL (Programmable Array Logic), GAL (Generic Array Logic), CPLD (Complex Programmable Logic Device), and FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). In this case, part or all of the functions realized by the processor 901 may be realized by the integrated circuit. Such an integrated circuit is also included as an example of a processor.

Examples of the auxiliary storage device 903 include HDD (Hard Disk Drive), SSD (Solid State Drive), magnetic disk, magneto-optical disk, CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), and DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disc Read Only). Memory), semiconductor memory, etc. Auxiliary storage device 903 may be an internal medium directly connected to the bus of computer 900, or may be an external storage device 910 connected to computer 900 via interface 904 or a communication line. Furthermore, when this program is distributed to the computer 900 via a communication line, the computer 900 that received the distribution may develop the program in the main storage device 902 and execute the above processing. In at least one embodiment, secondary storage 903 is a non-transitory tangible storage medium.

Further, the program may be for realizing part of the functions described above.
Furthermore, the program may be a so-called difference file (difference program) that implements the above-described functions in combination with other programs already stored in the auxiliary storage device 903.

Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described in detail above, the embodiments are not limited to these and some design changes are possible without departing from the technical idea of the present invention.

For example, in another embodiment, the processing unit 213 of the exit lane server 21 determines, for each of the plurality of vehicles A, the vehicle type registered in the onboard device α and the vehicle type included in the registration information (discriminated by the vehicle type discriminator 12). It is also possible to record statistical information on whether or not the actual vehicle type (actual vehicle type) matches.

In this case, the processing unit 213 refers to the statistical information regarding a certain vehicle A, and determines that the number of times that the vehicle type registered in the on-vehicle device α of the vehicle A differs from the vehicle type included in the registration information is a predetermined number or more, and If the vehicle model included in the registration information is the same vehicle model consecutively for a predetermined number of times or more, it may be determined that this on-vehicle device α is installed in a vehicle of a different model from the registered vehicle model. . At this time, the processing unit 213 informs the onboard device α, the roadside display 22, or the monitoring board operated by the toll collector ( (not shown), etc. Thereby, the exit lane server 21 can detect unauthorized replacement of the on-vehicle device α and notify the user or the collection staff.

Further, if the number of times that the vehicle type registered in the onboard device α of a certain vehicle A and the vehicle type included in the registered information differ is equal to or more than a predetermined number of times, but there is variation in the vehicle type included in the registered information, , it may be determined that the vehicle type of the vehicle A has changed due to being towed. In this case, the processing unit 213 may notify the collection staff to carefully check whether or not the vehicle A is being towed.

Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, a mode has been described in which the entrance lane server 11 and the vehicle type discrimination device 12 are provided as different devices, but the present invention is not limited to this. In other embodiments, the entrance lane server 11 and the vehicle type discrimination device 12 may be provided integrally. For example, the entrance lane server 11 may have a built-in vehicle type discrimination device 12 (further includes a functional unit that performs vehicle type discrimination processing), or the vehicle type discrimination device 12 may have a built-in entrance lane server 11 (entrance lane server 11 parts) may be adopted.

<Additional notes>
The toll collection system and toll collection method described in the above-described embodiments can be understood, for example, as follows.

According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a toll collection system (1) performs wireless communication with an on-vehicle device (α) of a vehicle that has arrived at an entrance toll gate of a toll road, and information on the identification information of the on-vehicle device (α). an entrance roadside communication device (10) that acquires the information, a vehicle type discrimination device (12) that determines the vehicle type of the vehicle that has arrived at the entrance tollgate, and a vehicle type discrimination device (12) that is communicably connected to the entrance roadside communication device and the vehicle type discrimination device. an entrance lane server (11), and an exit roadside communication device (20) that performs wireless communication with an onboard device (α) of a vehicle that has arrived at an exit toll gate of the toll road, and acquires identification information of the onboard device (α). ), an exit lane server (21) that calculates the toll of the vehicle that has arrived at the exit toll gate, and a user boarding the vehicle that pays the toll when the vehicle exits the exit toll gate. and a registration information server (30) communicably connected to each of the entrance lane server (11) and the exit lane server (21). The entrance lane server (11) stores registration information in which the vehicle type determined by the vehicle type identification device (12) and the identification information acquired by the entrance roadside communication device (10) is associated with the registration information server. (30) to request registration. The exit lane server (21) acquires registration information associated with the identification information acquired by the exit roadside communication device (20) from among the registration information registered in the registration information server (30). and a processing unit (213) that calculates the toll based on the acquired registration information and notifies the notification device (22, α).

By doing so, the toll collection system can correctly notify the user of the toll that will actually be charged.

According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, in the toll collection system (1) according to the first aspect, the registration information server (30) receives information from the transmitter (112) of the entrance lane server (11). The acquisition unit (211) of the exit lane server (21) has a registration unit (301) that registers the registered information and transmits the registration information to each of the plurality of exit lane servers (21). , acquired by the exit roadside communication device (20) from the storage medium (21B) of the exit lane server (21) that stores the registration information transmitted from the registration unit (301) of the registration information server (30). The registration information associated with the identified identification information is selected and acquired.

By doing so, when vehicle A arrives at the exit tollgate, the exit lane server can quickly acquire the registration information from the storage medium without transmitting or receiving the registration information to or from the registration information server. Can be done.

According to the third aspect of the present disclosure, in the toll collection system (1) according to the second aspect, the exit lane server (21) is configured to connect to any one exit of the plurality of exit lane servers (21). further comprising a deletion unit (212) for deleting the registration information acquired by the acquisition unit (211) of the lane server (21) or the registration information whose expiration date set in advance has passed from the storage medium (21B); have

By doing so, the exit lane server can delete unnecessary registration information and suppress an increase in the data capacity of the storage medium.

According to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, in the toll collection system (1) according to the second or third aspect, the plurality of exit lane servers (21) are communicably connected to each other, and the plurality of exit lane servers (21) are communicably connected to each other. Among the exit lane servers (21), the acquisition unit (211) of the first exit lane server, when the exit roadside communication device (20) acquires the identification information, If the registration information associated with the identification information cannot be obtained from the storage medium (21B) of the storage medium (21B), the registration information associated with the identification information is requested from the second exit lane server, and the registration information associated with the identification information is requested from the second exit lane server. The acquisition unit (211) is configured to acquire information that is associated with the identification information requested from the first exit lane server, from among the registration information stored in the storage medium (21B) of the second exit lane server. Select the registration information and send it to the first exit lane server.

By doing this, even if a failure occurs in one of the multiple exit lane servers, the toll collection system can calculate the correct toll by using the registered information stored in the other exit lane servers. Users can be notified.

According to a fifth aspect of the present disclosure, in the toll collection system (1) according to the first aspect, the acquisition unit (211) of the exit lane server (21) When the identification information is acquired, the registration information server (30) is requested to send the registration information associated with the identification information, and the registration information server (30) transmits the registration information to the transmission unit of the entrance lane server (11). A registration unit (112) that registers the registration information received from the exit lane server (112), and selects registration information associated with the identification information requested from the exit lane server (21) and sends it to the exit lane server (21). 301).

By doing so, the exit lane server does not need to store a plurality of pieces of registration information in the storage medium, so that the data capacity of the storage medium can be significantly reduced.

According to a sixth aspect of the present disclosure, in the toll collection system (1) according to the fifth aspect, the registration information server (30) is a lower registration information server (30_1) that accumulates registration information for each route. , and an upper registration information server (30_2) that aggregates and stores registration information of multiple routes, and the lower registration information server (30_1) has the registration information requested from the exit lane server (21). If not, the registration information is requested from the upper registration information server (30_2).

By doing this, for example, when multiple routes are interconnected, the registration information of a vehicle that entered a toll road from the entrance toll gate of a certain route can be collected via the lower registration information server and the upper registration information server. , can be obtained from the exit lane server of the exit toll plaza of different routes.

According to a seventh aspect of the present disclosure, in the toll collection system (1) according to any one of the second to sixth aspects, the registration unit (301) of the registration information server (30) After transmitting the information to the exit lane server, the registered information is deleted.

By doing so, the registration information server can delete unnecessary registration information and suppress an increase in the amount of data stored in the storage medium.

According to the eighth aspect of the present disclosure, the toll collection method performs wireless communication with an on-vehicle device (α) of a vehicle that has arrived at an entrance toll gate of a toll road, and acquires identification information of the on-vehicle device (α). a step of determining the vehicle type of the vehicle that has arrived at the entrance toll gate; and a registration information server (30 ) to request registration; and performing wireless communication with the onboard device (α) of the vehicle that has arrived at the exit toll gate of the toll road to obtain identification information of the onboard device (α). a step of acquiring registration information associated with the identification information acquired at the exit toll gate from among the registration information registered in the registration information server (30); and determining the exit toll based on the acquired registration information. The present invention includes the steps of calculating a toll for the vehicle that has arrived at the location, and notifying a user boarding the vehicle of the toll when the vehicle exits the exit toll plaza.

1 Toll collection system 10 Entrance roadside communication device 11 Entrance lane server 12 Vehicle type discrimination device 11A CPU
112 Transmitter 11B Storage medium 20 Exit roadside communication device 21 Exit lane server 21A CPU
211 Acquisition unit 212 Deletion unit 213 Processing unit 21B Storage medium 22 Roadside display device (notification device)
30 Registration information server 30_1 Lower registration information server 30_2 Upper registration information server 30A CPU
301 Registration unit 30B Storage medium 900 Computer α Onboard device (notification device)

Claims (8)

an entrance roadside communication device that performs wireless communication with an onboard device of a vehicle that has arrived at an entrance tollgate of a toll road and acquires identification information of the onboard device;
a vehicle type discrimination device for determining the vehicle type of the vehicle that has arrived at the entrance tollgate;
an entrance lane server communicatively connected to the entrance roadside communication device and the vehicle type identification device;
an exit roadside communication device that performs wireless communication with an onboard device of a vehicle that has arrived at an exit toll gate of the toll road and acquires identification information of the onboard device;
an exit lane server that calculates a toll for the vehicle that has arrived at the exit toll gate;
a notification device that notifies a user of the vehicle of the toll fee when the vehicle exits the exit toll gate;
a registration information server communicably connected to each of the entrance lane server and the exit lane server;
Equipped with
The entrance lane server is
a transmission unit configured to transmit registration information in which the vehicle type determined by the vehicle type discrimination device and the identification information acquired by the entrance roadside communication device to the registration information server to request registration;
The exit lane server is
an acquisition unit that acquires registration information associated with the identification information acquired by the exit roadside communication device from among the registration information registered in the registration information server;
a processing unit that calculates the toll based on the acquired registration information and notifies the notification device;
Toll collection system. The registration information server has a registration unit that registers the registration information received from the transmission unit of the entrance lane server and transmits the registration information to each of the plurality of exit lane servers,
The acquisition unit of the exit lane server associates the identification information acquired by the exit roadside communication device from a storage medium of the exit lane server that stores the registration information transmitted from the registration unit of the registration information server. Select and obtain registered information,
The toll collection system according to claim 1. The exit lane server stores the registration information acquired by the acquisition unit of any one of the exit lane servers among the plurality of exit lane servers, or the registration information whose expiration date has passed, on the storage medium. further comprising a deletion section for deleting from the
The toll collection system according to claim 2. The plurality of exit lane servers are communicably connected to each other,
Among the plurality of exit lane servers, when the exit roadside communication device acquires the identification information, the acquisition unit of the first exit lane server retrieves the identification information from the storage medium of the first exit lane server. If registration information associated with the information cannot be obtained, requesting the second exit lane server for registration information associated with the identification information;
The acquisition unit of the second exit lane server associates the registration information stored in the storage medium of the second exit lane server with the identification information requested from the first exit lane server. selecting and transmitting the registered information to the first exit lane server;
The toll collection system according to claim 2 or 3. The acquisition unit of the exit lane server requests registration information associated with the identification information from the registration information server when the exit roadside communication device acquires the identification information,
The registration information server registers the registration information received from the transmitter of the entrance lane server, and selects registration information associated with the identification information requested from the exit lane server and sends it to the exit lane server. further comprising a register for transmitting;
The toll collection system according to claim 1. The registration information server is composed of a lower registration information server that stores registration information for each route, and an upper registration information server that aggregates and stores registration information for multiple routes,
If the lower registration information server does not have the registration information requested by the exit lane server, the lower registration information server requests the registration information from the upper registration information server.
The toll collection system according to claim 5. The registration unit of the registration information server transmits the registration information to the exit lane server, and then deletes the registration information registered in the registration information server.
The toll collection system according to any one of claims 2 to 6. a step in which the entrance roadside communication device performs wireless communication with an onboard device of a vehicle that has arrived at an entrance tollgate of a toll road, and acquires identification information of the onboard device;
a step in which a vehicle type identification device determines the vehicle type of the vehicle that has arrived at the entrance tollgate;
the entrance lane server transmits registration information in which the determined vehicle type of the vehicle is associated with the identification information acquired at the entrance tollgate to the registration information server to request registration;
a step in which the exit roadside communication device performs wireless communication with an onboard device of a vehicle that has arrived at an exit toll gate of the toll road, and acquires identification information of the onboard device;
an exit lane server acquiring registration information associated with the identification information acquired at the exit toll gate from among the registration information registered in the registration information server;
the exit lane server calculating a toll for the vehicle arriving at the exit toll plaza based on the acquired registration information;
a notification device notifying a user boarding the vehicle of the toll fee when the vehicle exits the exit toll gate;
A toll collection method with

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