Mark IV Industries Corporation

Kapsch Trafficcom Ag

Daniel L Terrier

Thua Van Ho

Roger Tong

Wai-Cheung Tang

Japjeev Kohli

Robert Walter Tiernay

Weimin He

James Kenneth Cook

Wal-Cheung Tang

Martin Capper

Peter Oomen

Henry Sun Yee Woo

Paul Anthony Laing Manuel

A system and method for conducting dynamic RF-link margin tests in an electronic toll collection for non-stationary vehicles travelling up to highway speed. The system maintains a list of candidate transponders and, during the course of a normal toll collection, if a transponder is on the list then the system schedules a margin test for a later handshake in the capture zone. At a location at or near the peak margin test the system conducts a margin test during one or more of the reader-transponder handshakes. The attenuation may be dynamically controlled by the system using a variable attenuator in the RF path from the reader RF module to the antenna. Distributing the margin measurement over multiple passes of a vehicle through the capture zone provides for a highway speed method of measuring link margin.

RF-link margin measurement method and system

An electronic toll collection system wherein the reader includes a switching network and a plurality of transceivers operating under the control of a controller. The reader further includes failure detection circuitry for determining whether any of the transceivers have failed based upon the RF outputs of the transceivers. If the controller determines that a transceiver has failed, then it alters the switching pattern such that the switching network excludes the failed transceiver from being connected to the antennas. The reader thereby provides for adaptive RF channel assignment, as the particular transceiver used to excite a particular antenna may be dynamically altered, and the provision of at least two transceivers in the reader ensures transceiver redundancy.

Transceiver redundancy in an electronic toll collection system

A method and system for adaptively allocating bandwidth in an electronic toll collection system. The system includes a reader that adapts the scanning time allocated to specific antennas based upon the traffic conditions. Those antennas that process a higher volume of traffic receive a greater allocation of the scanning time. In some embodiments, the determination as to when to allocate additional time to an antenna may be based upon whether or not a transponder is currently in the coverage zone for the antenna.

Adaptive channel bandwidth in an electronic toll collection system

A dual mode transponder for engaging in RF communications with a roadside reader from a vehicle. The transponder includes an antenna, an electronic toll collection (ETC) component, and an external interface. The ETC component implements a pre-defined ETC communications protocol to detect and interpret received signals and generate response signals when operating in an ETC mode. The ETC component also includes a bypass port. The external interface is coupled to the bypass port and has an external port for receiving input signals. The ETC component includes a bypass module for receiving a bypass instruction and entering a bypass mode. In the bypass mode the ETC component refrains from implementing the ETC communications protocol. Instead, the ETC component transmits the input signals relayed from the external interface to the ETC component to the reader.

Dual mode electronic toll collection transponder

An electronic toll collection system with dynamically adjusted timing for operation of one or more subsystems. The timing is dynamically adjusted based upon the prevailing traffic speed for the roadway. The roadway traffic speed is determined based upon direct measurements of traffic speed by external equipment or based upon a variable correlated with traffic speed. The variable may include the average number of handshakes per transponder over an estimation period. The subsystem may include a vehicle position determination system, an enforcement system, a loop detection system, or other such subsystems.

Dynamic timing adjustment in an electronic toll collection system

A vehicle position determination system for determining the position of a moving vehicle having a transponder includes a first and second antennas operable to receive periodic radio frequency data signals from the transponder when the transponder is moving through a first or second predetermined coverage zone, respectively. The first and second coverage zones partially overlap and each have a width that is orthogonal to the travel path of the moving vehicle and a length that is parallel to the travel path of the moving vehicle. A processor counts the number of periodic data signals received by each of the antennas from the transponder during a time period and determines based on the count a probable location of the vehicle. The vehicle location information can be provided to an imaging system to discriminate between transponder and non-transponder equipped vehicles.

Vehicle position determination system and method

Traffic management or enforcement is performed through the use of a monitor transponder in the environs of an RF highway toll collection system. When normally operating transponders communicate with a roadside reader system, the roadside system communicates with the monitor transponder, which in turn signals if a valid normal transponder is detected. If no signal is generated by the monitor transponder, it is evident that the vehicle has no transponder or that the transponder is faulty or invalid.

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Toronto, Canada

Daniel L Terrier