Vehicle traffic and vehicle related transaction control system
A location enabled mobile wireless device and central system cooperate to provide traffic control such as vehicle inspection site services and toll station services. Traffic control information such as vehicle inspection site information and toll station information provider and sent to the central system. The mobile wireless device monitors its location and sends location and vehicle related information to the central system. The central system compares data from the third party provider and the mobile wireless device. The mobile wireless device or the central system take an action based on the comparison, such as toll payment or vehicle inspection site operations.
1. A method of vehicle traffic control using a central processing system connected to a telecommunications network, the method comprising:
receiving a first dataset at the central processing system from a mobile wireless device upon the mobile wireless device entering a pre-defined geographic area at a vehicle inspection site, the mobile wireless device being carried by a vehicle and the first dataset including vehicle-related information and location data obtained by monitoring a location of the mobile wireless device;
based on information in the first dataset, automatically activating an application that causes the central processing system to compare at least a portion of the first dataset with a second dataset from a third party provider, the second dataset including rule-based data, including safety data, related to movement of vehicles along roads;
based on the comparison, generating a signal for controlling movement of the vehicle with respect to the vehicle inspection site; and
sending the signal to the mobile wireless device, the signal causing, on the mobile wireless device, a display of text within a visual representation of a virtual highway guide sign that is not otherwise physically present, instructing the vehicle whether to bypass the vehicle inspection site or not,
wherein sending the signal to the mobile wireless device depends on an operating state of the central processing system, the central processing system operating freely without subscription in a state of operation in which some functionality of the central processing system in a fully operating state is disabled, the disabled functionality including the signal for controlling movement of the vehicle with respect to the vehicle inspection site that would be sent to the mobile wireless device based on the comparison if the central processing system were in the fully operating state.
2. The method of claim 1 in which receiving the first dataset comprises downloading from the mobile wireless device to the central processing system the first dataset containing the location data and vehicle-related information through a web service.
3. The method of claim 1 in which the second dataset is obtained by the central processing system downloading, from the third party provider to the central processing system using a web service, a file containing the second dataset.
4. A method of vehicle traffic control using a central processing system connected to a telecommunications network, the method comprising:
enabling a vehicle clearance system, in which the vehicle clearance system operates by:
receiving a first dataset at the central processing system from a mobile wireless device upon the mobile wireless device entering a pre-defined geographic area at a vehicle inspection site, the mobile wireless device being carried by a vehicle and the first dataset including vehicle-related information and location data obtained by monitoring location of the mobile wireless device,
based on information in the first dataset, automatically activating an application that causes the central processing system to compare at least a portion of the first dataset with a second dataset from a third party provider, the second dataset including rule based data, including safety data, related to movement of vehicles along roads,
based on the comparison, generating a signal for controlling movement of the vehicle with respect to the vehicle inspection site; and
sending the signal to the mobile wireless device indicative of whether the vehicle is permitted to bypass the vehicle inspection site;
the signal causing, on the mobile wireless device, a display of text within a visual representation of a virtual highway guide sign that is not otherwise physically present, in which the visual representation of the virtual highway guide sign has a format that is dependent on whether the vehicle clearance system is subscribed to or free,
wherein sending the signal to the mobile wireless device depends on an operating state of the central processing system, the central processing system operating freely without subscription in a state of operation in which some functionality of the central processing system in a fully operating state is disabled, the disabled functionality including the signal for controlling movement of the vehicle with respect to the vehicle inspection site that would be sent to the mobile wireless device based on the comparison if the central processing system were in the fully operating state.
5. A method of vehicle movement control, comprising:
while a mobile wireless device is being carried in a moving vehicle, periodically obtaining a location of the mobile wireless device;
comparing the location to a set of stored geographic areas;
when the location of the mobile wireless device is within any one of the set of geographic areas, communicating vehicle-related information and vehicle location information to a central processing system that comprises a vehicle screening system for determining whether the vehicle should stop at a vehicle inspection site and the geographic areas are areas around vehicle inspection sites; and
upon the vehicle entering a geographical area corresponding to a vehicle inspection site, receiving at the mobile wireless device a message from the central processing system that causes, on the mobile wireless device, a display of text within a visual representation of a virtual highway guide sign that is not otherwise physically present, wherein the message is indicative of whether the vehicle should stop or bypass the vehicle inspection site, and a format of the visual representation of the virtual highway guide sign depends on whether the vehicle screening system is a subscription service or a free service,
wherein receiving at the mobile wireless device the message from the central processing system depends on an operating state of the central processing system, the central processing system operating freely without subscription in a state of operation in which some functionality of the central processing system in a fully operating state is disabled, the disabled functionality including the message indicative of whether the vehicle should stop or bypass the vehicle inspection site that would be received by the mobile wireless device if the central processing system were in the fully operating state.
6. The method of claim 2 in which the second dataset is obtained by the central processing system downloading, from the third party provider to the central processing system using a web service, a file containing the second dataset.
7. The method of claim 4 in which the display of text is content indicative of whether the vehicle is permitted to bypass the vehicle inspection site, the text depending on whether the vehicle clearance system is subscribed to or free.
8. The method of claim 5 in which the display of text is indicative of whether the vehicle is permitted to bypass the vehicle inspection site, the text content depending on whether the vehicle screening system is the subscription service or the free service.