Granted Patent B2

US 12,737,761 · App. 18/728,499 · Granted Sep 15, 2026

Inventors: Gianni Rosas-Maxemin (Sacramento, CA); Robert Mazzola (Sacramento, CA); Rishi Kumar (Sacramento, CA); Callam Poynter (Sacramento, CA); George Azzi (Sacramento, CA); Joseph Ricard (Miami, FL)

Assignee: Pied Parker, Inc.

G06Q20/401H04L9/50G06Q2240/00G06V20/52G06V2201/08

Abstract

Claims (64)

1 . A apparatus comprising:

at least one memory; and

at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory, the at least one processor configured to:

collect, at entry and exit points of a parking facility using one or more session border controllers (SBCs) each coupled to a corresponding camera mounted within the parking facility, a set of vehicle data frames of one or more vehicles, wherein the data frames of the comprise information from which one or more unique identification features corresponding to the one or more vehicles are extractable;

extract, by a computer-vision model executing on one or more edge processors located within a threshold proximity to the parking facility, one or more unique vehicle-identification features from image and/or video frames;

identify a user status associated with a user account;

select, from the one or more parking locations, a parking location based on the user status;

assign, by the SBC associated with each camera, a session identifier to the extracted vehicle-identification features for an individual vehicle event, the session identifier uniquely identifying a vehicle entry or exit within the facility;

generate, for the session identifier, a blockchain transaction record including the extracted vehicle-identification features, a timestamp, and location data;

commit, using one or more smart contracts executed on a private blockchain in which the cameras operate as blockchain nodes and serve as gateways for the associated SBCs, the blockchain transaction record to a distributed ledger maintained by the nodes, wherein the smart contracts are triggered by the vehicle event identified by the session identifier and define encryption parameters, validation rules, and consensus conditions for the vehicle event;

transmit, in response to execution of the smart contracts, the committed blockchain transaction record over a facility network comprising at least one of: (i) a private local network connecting the cameras and SBCs within the parking facility, or (ii) a cloud-based or other external network, the transmission being secured and validated according to the parameters defined by the smart contracts;

receiving a confirmation identifier, the confirmation identifier being associated with the vehicle event; and

transmit a signal that causes unlocking of a secured area in response to receipt of the confirmation identifier.

2 . A system comprising:

at least one memory; and

at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory, the at least one processor configured to:

detect motion of an object at a first location associated with a geographic area using a motion sensor, the geographic area including one or more parking locations;

responsive to detecting the motion of the object at the first location, capture, using one or more cameras, image data associated with the first location;

extract, by a computer-vision model executing on one or more edge processors located within a threshold proximity to the one or more parking locations, one or more vehicle-identification features from the image data;

assign a session identifier to the extracted vehicle-identification features for an individual vehicle event, the session identifier uniquely identifying a vehicle entry or exit within the facility;

identify a user status associated with a user account;

select, from the one or more parking locations, a parking location based on the user status;

generate, for the session identifier, a blockchain transaction record including the extracted one or more vehicle-identification features, a timestamp, and location data;

transmit, using the one or more cameras, the blockchain transaction record securely using a smart contract on a blockchain, wherein the smart contract is a self-executing code sent to an address on the blockchain as a transaction, and wherein the self-executing code is verified by that blockchain's consensus mechanism;

determine that the user account identified by one or more of the vehicle identification features matches a vehicle-user account stored in the computerized vehicle management system by comparing vehicle-identification features against a vehicle-user account database included in the computerized vehicle management system;

execute one or more actions with respect to the user account in the computerized vehicle management system; and

responsive to executing the one or more actions with respect to the user account, transmit a confirmation identifier that causes an access control mechanism to activate at the geographic area permit access to the one or more parking locations by the vehicle.

3 . The system of claim 2 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

determine that the vehicle is not associated with the user account stored in the computerized vehicle management system;

in response to determining the vehicle is not associated with the user account stored in the computerized vehicle management system, determine that the first location is within a threshold distance to a mobile user device associated with a user associated with the vehicle; and

transmit a prompt to the mobile user device, wherein the prompt is configured to auto-fill one or more vehicle parameters into a user request to create a new user account in the computerized vehicle management system.

4 . The system of claim 2 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

determine that the vehicle is not associated with the user account stored in the computerized vehicle management system; and

in response to determining the vehicle is not associated with the user account stored in the computerized vehicle management system, enable a user associated with the vehicle to make a parking payment without creating the user account in the computerized vehicle management system.

5 . The system of claim 2 , wherein executing the one or more actions on the user account includes charging a fee to the user account.

6 . The system of claim 2 , wherein the first location is a refueling station or a charging station.

7 . The system of claim 2 , wherein the image data includes two or more images, each taken from different angles.

8 . The system of claim 2 , wherein the image data includes video clips captured by one or more security cameras installed within the geographic area.

9 . The system of claim 2 , wherein the edge processors are located locally to the geographical area to provide a shortened computing response time.

10 . A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising at least one instruction for causing a computer or processor to:

detect motion of an object at a first location associated with a geographic area using a motion sensor, the geographic area including one or more parking locations;

responsive to detecting the motion of the object at the first location, capture, using one or more cameras, image data associated with the first location;

extract, by a computer-vision model executing on one or more edge processors located within a threshold proximity to the one or more parking locations, one or more vehicle-identification features from the image data;

assign a session identifier to the extracted vehicle-identification features for an individual vehicle event, the session identifier uniquely identifying a vehicle entry or exit within the facility;

generate, for the session identifier, a blockchain transaction record including the extracted one or more vehicle-identification features, a timestamp, and location data;

transmit, using the one or more cameras, the blockchain transaction record securely using a smart contract on a blockchain, wherein the smart contract is a self-executing code sent to an address on the blockchain as a transaction, and wherein the self-executing code is verified by that blockchain's consensus mechanism;

determine that a user account identified by one or more of the vehicle-identification features matches a vehicle-user account stored in the computerized vehicle management system by comparing vehicle-identification features against a vehicle-user account database included in the computerized vehicle management system;

identify a user status associated with the user account;

select, from the one or more parking locations, a parking location based on the user status;

execute one or more actions with respect to the user account in the computerized vehicle management system; and

responsive to executing the one or more actions with respect to the user account, transmit a confirmation identifier that causes an access control mechanism to activate at the geographic area permit access to the one or more parking locations by the vehicle.

11 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

determine that the vehicle is not associated with the user account stored in the computerized vehicle management system;

in response to determining the vehicle is not associated with the user account stored in the computerized vehicle management system, determine that the first location is within a threshold distance to a mobile user device associated with a user associated with the vehicle; and

transmit a prompt to the mobile user device, wherein the prompt is configured to auto-fill one or more vehicle parameters into a user request to create a new user account in the computerized vehicle management system.

12 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

determine that the vehicle is not associated with the user account stored in the computerized vehicle management system; and

in response to determining the vehicle is not associated with the user account stored in the computerized vehicle management system, enable a user associated with the vehicle to make a parking payment without creating the user account in the computerized vehicle management system.

13 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10 , wherein executing the one or more actions on the user account includes charging a fee to the user account.

14 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10 , wherein the first location is a refueling station or a charging station.

15 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10 , wherein the image data includes two or more images taken from different angles.

16 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10 , wherein the image data includes video clips captured by one or more security cameras installed within the geographic area.

17 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10 , wherein the edge processors are located locally to the geographical area to provide a shortened computing response time.

18 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10 , wherein the machine learning computer vision model is configured to determine one of the following vehicle specific parameters: color, make, year, model, size, weight, engine type, and fuel type.

Assignments (1)

Continuity (2)

References Cited (22)