Patent Abstract:
Pay-by-Space and Pay-and-Display are two well-known systems for metered parking for multiple spaces. The present invention allows multi-space meters to separately manage and control electric vehicle charging located in conjunction with parking spaces. Control is implemented by the meters printing indicia on a parking pass or receipt for the parking patron to present to an electric vehicle charging system able to read the indicia. Each such ticket may initiate a predetermined interval of charging, or an interval of charging selected by the patron during a transaction with the meter. The indicia may be either human-readable (e.g., text) or machine-readable (e.g., a barcode), or both, and may be encrypted to resist fraud. Data representative of the indicia may also be made available from an online server and delivered to a parking patron&#39;s smartphone or other portable device, whereby the display of the smartphone may present the indicia for reading by the electric vehicle charging system.

Full Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates generally to a system and method for a parking meter to manage one or more electric vehicle charging stations. More specifically, the present invention relates to a system and method wherein a parking meter provides a printed receipt usable to activate an electric vehicle charging station. 
       CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0002]    The present invention is related to co-pending application Ser. No. 61/252,909, having common inventorship, filed 19 Oct. 2009, entitled “METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PARKING LOT METERING,” the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference. The present invention is also related to co-pending application having common inventorship, filed Mar. 5, 2010, entitled “METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PARKING LOT METERING,” the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference. 
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
       [0003]    Not Applicable 
       REFERENCE TO COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING APPENDICES 
       [0004]    Not Applicable 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    There are a growing number of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) on the roads of the world. For the sake of this discussion, we refer to all of these vehicles simply as electric vehicles, or EVs. This growing population of EVs will require a rich charging environment, allowing them to plug in and charge under various conditions and times and places during the night and day. 
         [0006]    Several companies have begun to supply charging site infrastructure for EVs. These companies are providing their own infrastructure for metering, timing, and billing their customers. These companies often revenue share with city government or private parking lot owners. 
         [0007]    EV charging is intrinsically tied to parking: other than hybrid-electric vehicles, EVs must be parked to be charged, and even PHEVs exhibit better economy and a lower carbon footprint when charged from the plug rather than from their fuel-driven generator. 
         [0008]    A change occurring in the parking meter industry is being driven by the high cost of infrastructure and the need for more efficient ways to designate, control, and enforce metered parking spaces. This change is a move away from single-space (i.e., one meter per parking space) to multi-space metered parking. “Multi-space” is a general industry term designating as few as one, but often several strategically located payment centers or kiosks, each kiosk serving multiple parking spaces in its proximity, perhaps redundantly. 
         [0009]    There are two basic methods currently employed for using a central kiosk-based, multi-space system: one is “pay-by-space” and the other is “pay-and-display”. 
         [0010]    Pay-by-space parking requires each parking space to have a unique, corresponding number. A customer parks a vehicle in a parking space, notes the number of the parking space, and proceeds immediately to a nearby payment kiosk. At the kiosk, the customer is asked to input the number of the parking space, select an amount of time required, and then pay an appropriate fee, typically using any of several payment methods, including credit card. The customer does not need to return to the vehicle to display a receipt. With pay-by-space, parking enforcement officers can visit the kiosk or otherwise (e.g., though a wireless connection) obtain from the kiosk a list of spaces that should be empty. Vehicles inappropriately occupying a space that should be empty may be ticketed. 
         [0011]    Pay-and-display parking does not require parking spaces to be numbered. Instead, a customer parks a vehicle in a parking space and proceeds immediately to a nearby payment kiosk. The customer selects only the amount of time required and pays an appropriate fee, choosing from several payment options as with pay-by-space. The customer is issued a receipt that is date and time stamped and indicates the amount of time purchased. More specifically, the receipt indicates when the amount of time purchased will expire. However, since the kiosk is unaware of which space is being used, the customer must return to the vehicle and leave the receipt on the dashboard so that it is clearly displayed through the windshield. With pay-and-display, parking enforcement officers do not need to visit the kiosk, but instead simply look for and ticket vehicles having either no receipt, or whose receipt has expired. 
       OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0012]    The present invention attempts to adapt and make use of existing infrastructure resources, rather than to add expensive new infrastructure. 
         [0013]    The present invention allows EV charging and billing to be integrated into new or existing parking meter systems with special emphasis on the newer credit card based, central kiosk, multi-space parking technology. 
         [0014]    The present invention operates with either multi-space parking method (pay-and-display or pay-by-space), allows EV charging and billing where available, and offers control over EV charging stations without the addition of hardware to the central kiosk. The following discussion independently examines embodiments of the invention for each parking method. 
       Pay-by-Space 
       [0015]    In this case, the pay-by-space customer would be driving an EV and would be canvassing the parking lot or parking spaces on the street, looking for signage indicating an EV charge enabled parking space. When an open space is found, the customer would park the vehicle and note the unique ID for the space (e.g., the parking space number). 
         [0016]    At this point, the customer can plug in a charge cord for charging the EV. Alternatively, this step may be performed upon return to the vehicle following customer&#39;s transaction at the payment kiosk. 
         [0017]    The customer would then proceed to the payment center kiosk and input the appropriate space number. 
         [0018]    The kiosk, based on its database, would know that that unique number corresponds to an EV charging space. 
         [0019]    In one embodiment, the kiosk may notify the customer and confirm that this is an EV charging space. If customer confirms, then the kiosk can display the times and parking fees for that space. 
         [0020]    In such an embodiment, the kiosk may restrict issuance of the parking space, if as a matter of policy parking in that space is reserving for EVs, either all of the time, or for certain hours. If the customer indicates that no EV charging will be used, the kiosk cancels the transaction. 
         [0021]    In an alternative embodiment, the kiosk does not specifically notify or confirm that this is an EV charging space. 
         [0022]    As a matter of policy, there may be a premium attached to parking in the EV space and/or for use of the EV charging unit. Further, such premium may only be for certain hours, e.g., for those hours when EV charging is in greatest demand, or for those hours when charging is available. This will be flexible and programmable within the context of the software of the billing kiosk and central billing network. 
         [0023]    In general, the customer completes a financial transaction through the kiosk for an interval of parking and EV charging. The duration of the interval may be predetermined and fixed (e.g., “one-hour”, or “all-day”), or the duration may be entered by the customer, subject to policy constraints (e.g., “not to exceed three hours”). At the conclusion of the transaction, the kiosk provides a receipt to the customer comprising an indicia suitable for reading by the EV charging unit. 
         [0024]    The customer returns to the EV charging unit and presents the receipt so that an indicia reader associated with the EV charging unit can read the indicia from the receipt. In response to having been presented with the indicia, the EV charging unit becomes enabled for the duration of the interval and the customer&#39;s electric vehicle receives electricity for charging. 
       Pay-and-Display 
       [0025]    With the pay-and-display system, the appropriate EV parking spaces would be designated in the marked for EV charging. 
         [0026]    The kiosk is programmed to know that some spaces within its area are EV enabled, but does not know if the customer chose one of those spaces. The kiosk must query the customer as an initial step in the transaction: Is your space EV enabled? If the response from the customer is “Yes”, then the kiosk shows the appropriate time and fee schedule for an EV charging space, otherwise the non-EV schedule is shown. 
         [0027]    After the customer has completed the payment transaction, a receipt is printed and provided that the customer must display in the vehicle&#39;s window. If parked in an EV space, the receipt must have a mark or code designating payment for an EV enabled space. Perhaps it might be as simple as a large “EV” printed at the top or bottom. Additionally, this receipt (or a second receipt provided) comprises an indicia, as above, suitable for being read by an EV charging station. 
         [0028]    This method has the slight drawback that, barring additional description for a unique charging station, the indicia provided should be able to enable any of the charging stations to be managed by the kiosk providing the receipt. If the customer were so disposed, the receipt could end up being used to activate each of the charging stations nearby. However, since the parking spaces are being managed under pay-and-display rules, only one vehicle will ultimately be displaying the receipt issued, any other vehicle parked at an inappropriately enabled EV charging station would be in violation, whether or not the charging station had been enabled. 
         [0029]    A drawback that inhibits wide adoption of electric vehicles is the lack of infrastructure for conveniently charging them; and while hybrid electric vehicles are increasingly popular, plug-in versions that operate to maximize use of their battery and minimize use of their gasoline-fueled generator are rare, in part due to the same lack of infrastructure. 
         [0030]    Provision of a vehicle charging infrastructure is inhibited primarily by cost: Such infrastructure has been expensive, typically requiring allocation of a physical location that vehicles can access and providing new electric service to that location. 
         [0031]    The present invention allows the management of one or more EV charging stations with a minimum of communications infrastructure required. The charging station must be outfitted with an indicia reader having connection with which to enable the EV charging circuit. 
         [0032]    In an alternative embodiment, the financial transaction can be conducted through the Internet, rather than at a kiosk. In this embodiment, data representative of the transaction is provided to the customer&#39;s portable computer, PDA, cell phone, or smartphone. At the EV charging station, the data representative of the transaction is used to render an indicia on the display of the customer&#39;s device, to be read by the EV charging station as above. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0033]    The aspects of the present invention will be apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like referenced characters refer to like parts throughout, and in which: 
           [0034]      FIG. 1  is a plan view of a parking area under management of the present invention; 
           [0035]      FIG. 2  is a ticket for electric vehicle parking having human-readable and machine-readable indicia; 
           [0036]      FIG. 3  is a ticket for parking without electric vehicle charging; 
           [0037]      FIG. 4  is another ticket for electric vehicle parking having human-readable and machine-readable indicia; 
           [0038]      FIG. 5  is a payment kiosk for managing a parking area and providing receipts; 
           [0039]      FIG. 6  is a block diagram for an indicia-reading EV charging station of the present invention; 
           [0040]      FIG. 7  is a flowchart for a process for a transaction to obtain parking and the use of a device (e.g., an EV charger) under the present invention; and, 
           [0041]      FIG. 8  is a flowchart for a process of activation of a device (e.g., an EV charger) associated with a parking space. 
       
    
    
       [0042]    While the invention will be described and disclosed in connection with certain preferred embodiments and procedures, it is not intended to limit the invention to those specific embodiments. Rather it is intended to cover all such alternative embodiments and modifications as fall within the spirit and scope of the invention. 
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0043]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , sidewalk  101  is separated from street  103  by curb  102 . Parking area  100  comprises parking spaces  111 - 116 . The parking spaces are divided from each other by lines  107  painted in the street. Payment terminal  110 , located on sidewalk  101  in proximity to parking spaces  111 - 116 , manages parking area  100  either alone or in conjunction with other terminals or remote systems (not shown). 
         [0044]    Currently, four of parking spaces  111 - 116  are occupied: space  111  is occupied by vehicle  130 , space  113  is occupied by vehicle  140 , space  115  is occupied by  150 , and space  116  is occupied by vehicle  160 . 
         [0045]    Depending on the mode of operation, a vehicle may display a parking pass provided by payment terminal  110  on its dashboard. In  FIG. 1 , three of the four vehicles are displaying a parking pass: vehicle  130  is displaying parking pass  131 , vehicle  140  is displaying parking pass  141 , vehicle  160  is displaying parking pass  161 . Vehicle  150  is not displaying a parking pass. 
         [0046]    Also depending on the mode of operation, each parking space  111 - 116  may be uniquely identified. In  FIG. 1 , each parking space  111 - 116  bears corresponding unique identification indicia  121 - 126 . For example, space  112  bears the number “#02” as shown by identification indicia  122 . 
         [0047]    Some spaces have particular properties. For example, spaces  111  and  115  are adjacent to streetlights  132  and  152  respectively, each having outlets for charging electric vehicles. In this example, these outlets are Level 1 charging outlets, providing about 1,500 W of electrical power, which can charge a typical electric vehicle in about 8 hours. Space  116  is adjacent to a high-capacity charging station  162  for charging electric vehicles. Level 2 chargers, such as station  162 , can provide from about 3,000-20,000 W and can charge a typical electrical vehicle in 30 minutes to 4 hours, depending on the particular voltage and current available. While the outlets near spaces  111 ,  115 , and  116  are all suitable for charging electric vehicles, the high charge rate of charging station  162  makes it suitable for a quick charge, and this is a property of space  116  not conferred (in this example) by the outlets on streetlights  132  and  152  to their corresponding spaces  111  and  115 . 
         [0048]    In  FIG. 1 , the vehicles parked in spaces  111 ,  115 , and  116  are shown plugged into the corresponding charging outlets on streetlights  132  and  152 , and charging station  162  with corresponding cables  133 ,  153 , and  163 . 
         [0049]    In some modes of operation, spaces  111  and  115  are marked with property indicia  134  and  154 , respectively, to indicate their property of Level 1 electric vehicle charging. In this example, property indicia  134  &amp;  154  is a single letter “E”. Similarly, space  116  is marked with property indicia  164  to indicate its property of Level 2 electric vehicle charging, which herein is shown as “EE”. 
         [0050]    Parking spaces may have other properties. For example, and not by way of limitation, a parking space may have an electrical outlet to be used for engine block heating during extremely cold weather, or a parking space may be covered, a premium in hot or stormy weather. 
         [0051]    Such properties may be valuable at anytime (e.g., electric vehicle charging), or only in certain conditions (e.g., engine block heater). On a mild spring day there may be no value to an engine block heater or having a covered parking spot. 
         [0052]    Parking spaces lacking exceptional properties such as those mentioned have the property of being ordinary. Such spaces may be marked with a property indicia (not shown) corresponding to being ordinary spaces. 
         [0053]      FIG. 2  shows a pass  131  provided by kiosk  110  and displayed in vehicle  130 , showing human-readable indicia such as the time of expiration  200 , the date of issue  201 , and property indicia  202  corresponding to the kind of space  111 , an “E” for Level 1 electric vehicle charging. In some embodiments, pass  131  may also comprise an identification indicia (not shown) corresponding to identification indicia  121 . 
         [0054]    Additionally, machine-readable indicia  203  may be provided, in this example representing the time of expiration  200 , date of issue  201 , and space number  121 , “#01”. In this example, machine-readable indicia  203  is a 2D barcode of the type called Data Matrix, as described in ISO/IEC 16022, published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), of Geneva, Switzerland. In this example, machine-readable indicia  203  includes error correction codes, to make it more reading by a machine more reliable. Other choices machine-readable indicia may be used instead. In this case, barcode  203  contains the text “010910151735” which is of the form “ccyymmddhhmm” where “cc” is a EV charging station identifier (in this case, for charge station  132 , which corresponds with identification indicia  121 ), “yymmdd” is the year, month, and day, and “hhmm” is the time at which the charging should stop, coincident with the expiration of the pass to park. 
         [0055]    Note that, as use herein, the terms “human-readable indicia” and “machine-readable indicia” are used to distinguish between two kinds of indicia. Herein, “human-readable indicia” refers to indicia intended to be readily readable by humans, such as a text or symbology whose meaning is casually apparent to most of the adult human population, at least those familiar with the language or symbology used and having adequate vision. This is to distinguish from “machine-readable indicia,” intended to be scanned and read by a machine and not designed for convenient reading by humans. Machine-readable indicia, often comprised of dots, stripes, patterns, or encrypted text or other symbols (e.g., a barcode intended to be read by a barcode scanner), are generally difficult for human readers, even though the meaning is decipherable by humans having time, expertise, and perhaps a codex for the symbology. The distinction as used herein is one of the intent with which the indicia is created (convenient reading by humans vs. convenient reading by machines), since machines are increasingly able to usefully read some instances of human-readable indicia, while, as just mentioned, humans having particular training can read machine-readable indicia. 
         [0056]      FIG. 3  shows a pass  141  provided by kiosk  110  and displayed in vehicle  140 , showing human-readable indicia representing the time of expiration  300 , the date of issue  301 , and since space  113  is an ordinary parking space, instead of a property indicia corresponding to kind, a clock face  302  shows a graphical version of the time of expiration  300 . 
         [0057]    In an alternative embodiment, all passes could show a clock face such as  302  to illustrate expiration time. 
         [0058]      FIG. 4  shows a pass  161  provided by kiosk  110  and displayed in vehicle  160 , showing human-readable indicia representing the time of expiration  400 , the date of issue  401 , and property indicia  402  corresponding to the kind of space  116 , an “EE” for Level 2 electric vehicle charging. Additionally, machine-readable indicia  403  may be provided, in this example representing the time of expiration  400 , date of issue  401 , and space number  126 , “#06”. The barcode  403  represents the text “060910150945”, which provides the same information as expiration time  400  and date  401 , and also the device number “06” for charger  162 . 
         [0059]      FIG. 5  is a block diagram suitable for implementing the payment station kiosk  110 . A controller  501  has access to storage  502 , a display  503  or other user interface output device, keypad  504  or other user interface input device (e.g., a touchscreen, not shown), a credit card reader  505  or other payment acceptance device (e.g., an RFID reader, coin or bill acceptor, etc.), a printer  506  for printing parking passes and/or receipts. 
         [0060]    In some embodiments, controller  501  may have communication through a channel  507 , for example to allow remote management (e.g., allowing an administrator to monitor the operations of terminal  110  or to modify data in storage  502 ), access to remote data tables (e.g., to update tables kept locally in storage  502 , or to upload a snapshot of current status), or to allow remote reporting (e.g., to a terminal belonging to a parking enforcement officer), or allow remote payment (e.g., to a service accessed from a motorist&#39;s cell phone), or to communicate with a remote payment service (e.g., a credit card bureau). 
         [0061]    In the present invention, controller  501  prints indicia (e.g., either human-readable expiration time  200 , or machine-readable indicia  203 , or both) onto a parking pass (e.g.,  131 ) or receipt such that at least a portion of the indicia is readable by indicia reader  610  of charging station  600 , as shown in  FIG. 6 . When properly presented within range and within field-of-view  611  of indicia reader  610 , at least some of the indicia are read by reader  610 , appropriately decoded, and provided to controller  612 . 
         [0062]    In one embodiment, indicia reader  610  comprises a barcode scanner or reader, in which case machine-readable indicia  203  would be a barcode (not shown), which is passed, decoded, to controller  612 . 
         [0063]    In the embodiment shown, indicia  203  is a 2D barcode, in this example a Data Matrix barcode as described in ISO/IEC 16022 and indicia reader  610  comprises a digital camera able to resolve a 2D barcode and a decoder, such as the IS4920 manufactured by Honeywell Scanning &amp; Mobility, of Blackwood, N.J. The indicia reader  610  communicates the decoded contents of successfully read machine-readable indicia  203  to controller  612 . 
         [0064]    In another embodiment, indicia reader  610  may comprise just a digital camera in communication with controller  612 , and controller  612  may execute software able to decode machine-readable indicia  203  from the images captured by and transferred from the camera. 
         [0065]    In still another embodiment, indicia reader  610  comprises a camera, but controller  612  comprises optical character recognition (OCR) software to analyze the image and decode images of human-readable indicia  200  and perhaps human-readable indicia  201 . 
         [0066]    Upon receiving or producing the decoding of the indicia read, controller  612  determines for how long contactor  620  should be enabled. For example, if clock  613  indicates that it is currently 4:35 PM and human-readable expiration time indicia  200  or machine-readable indicia  203  is read with reader  610  and decoded to indicated that EV parking has be paid though 5:35 PM, then controller  612  determines that contactor  620  should be enabled for one hour, or until 5:35 PM. 
         [0067]    In some embodiments, the all or part of the indicia on pass  131  may be encrypted, signed (i.e., provided with a hash or checksum that is encrypted by an accepted authority), or checksummed (i.e., provided with a checksum), to make creation of a counterfeit pass difficult. For instance, the contents of machine-readable indicia  203  may be encrypted, for example with the public key of a signing authority for which controller  612  possesses the private key. In another embodiment, machine-readable indicia  203  or the human-readable indicia presented on the pass may further comprise a checksum obtained using a shared-secret algorithm known to controllers  501  and  612 , to demonstrate that the pass indicia were generated by a legitimate source. Such verification details may be time varying (i.e., changing from day to day, or by time of day), or vary by installation (e.g., the checksum algorithm for parking area  100  might be different than that for a different parking area) to help confound attempts to counterfeit passes. 
         [0068]    In some embodiments, pass  131  may comprise no indicia indicative of expiration time or duration, and controller  612  may operate instead to initiate a charging interval of a predetermined duration, or until a predetermined time. This embodiment would be appropriate if there were a single price for a predetermined parking interval (e.g., parking for one hour, or all-day parking with the lot closing at 8:00 PM) In such a case, pass  131  may comprise a unique pass identifier indicia (not shown), which allows controller  612  to ignore subsequent presentations of a pass, or to display the ID of the pass that enabled the current parking interval (display not shown). 
         [0069]    In some embodiments, indicia reader  610  may comprise a proximity detector (not shown), to detect the presence of parking pass  131  in or near field-of-view  611 . Detection by the proximity detector would trigger one or more attempts to read indicia on parking pass or receipt  131 . Such a proximity detector may be used as a low power detector for the presence of a possible indicia bearing object, rather than continuously using reader  610  and controller  612  to detect the presence of valid indicia, which may use a more power. 
         [0070]    Contactor  620  enables charging of a connected EV, and operates at the command of controller  612 . When contactor  620  is enabled, an EV (e.g.,  130 ) properly connected with a cable (e.g.,  133 ) to an instance (e.g.,  132 ) of charging station  600 , is able to charge. In some embodiments, a telltale (not shown) may indicate the status of contactor  620  or of other charging equipment activated by contactor  620 . 
         [0071]      FIG. 7  shows a parking transaction process  700 , which may be used for either pay-and-display or pay-by-space. The process starts at  701 , usually (though not necessarily) with the parking patron having already parked a vehicle in a particular parking space and approaching a parking kiosk to engage in this transaction. 
         [0072]    In step  702 , the parking management system (typically the kiosk) accepts a request for parking from the patron, which may include a parking space identification (e.g., the number from identification indicia  121 ) for a pay-by-space transaction, or a property of the parking space (e.g., Level 1 EV charging) for a pay-and-display transaction. If the kiosk is only supporting parking spaces having common properties, then for pay-and-display, the property is not needed as part of the request. The request may be entered using keypad  504 , or touchscreen (not shown) on display  503 . The system&#39;s readiness to accept a parking request would be shown on display  503 . 
         [0073]    In step  703 , the system accepts a duration for parking, unless the duration is predetermined (e.g., one hour, or all-day). The duration may be provided as an end time (e.g., until 5:00 PM) or as a length of time (e.g., ninety minutes). The duration can be provided by the patron using keypad  504 , or touchscreen. If a duration is needed, the system can request it using display  503 . 
         [0074]    If parking is not free, then in step  704 , the system accepts payment or account information that the patron presents. The system may accept payment with credit card reader  505 , or other means (not shown) such as a coin or bill acceptor, a value card or smartcard reader (the value of which may be decremented), or a reader for a form of identification (e.g., an employee card or an RFID tag) that indicates the patron is entitled to parking or that otherwise identifies an account to be billed. If needed the system can request payment and indicate the amount paid so far and the amount remaining using display  503 . If needed, communication channel  507  may be used while accepting payment, for example to contact a credit card service. The parking request, duration, and payment information may be recorded in storage  502  for later reporting. 
         [0075]    Once the parking request with property (if needed), duration (if needed), and payment (if needed) have been accepted, the system provides at step  705  a receipt or parking pass (e.g.,  131 ,  161 ) having machine-readable and/or human-readable indicia which indicia reader  610  can read. The receipt or parking pass is provided with printer  506 . In embodiments having predetermined durations and properties, the parking pass provided may be pre-printed and is dispensed to the patron without use of print  506 . 
         [0076]    The parking transaction process  700  is completed at  706 . 
         [0077]      FIG. 8  shows activation process  800 , in which a device, for instance the EV charging station, is enabled for an interval determined by the receipt provided from parking system transaction  700 . 
         [0078]    Activation process  800  starts at  801  with the patron having received a receipt bearing the appropriate indicia. In step  802 , the receipt is scanned by indicia reader  610  when presented by the patron. The indicia is decoded in step  803 . In the example shown of machine readable indicia  203 , this includes decoding the 2D barcode representation back into the original text. 
         [0079]    At step  804 , a check is made to determine whether the decoded values are valid. As previously described, in this example barcode  203  contains the text “010910151735” of the form “ccyymmddhhmm” where “cc” is a EV charging station identifier (in this case, for charge station  132 , which corresponds with identification indicia  121 ), “yymmdd” is the year, month, and day, and “hhmm” is the time at which the charging should stop, coincident with the expiration of the pass to park. In this case, the validity check may check to see that the station identifier (the “cc” field of the text) corresponds to this station (e.g., station  132  would find the “01” acceptable, because that is the identifier  121  of station  131 . However, station  162  would deem that receipt to be invalid, since its identifier  126  is “06”). The validity check may also determine that the “yymmdd” field corresponds to today&#39;s date by checking clock  613 . If the dates match, then the date field is acceptable, otherwise the receipt is invalid because the ticket isn&#39;t for today. If the expiration time “hhmm” has passed, according to clock  613 , then the receipt is invalid for having expired. If the indicia on the presented receipt contain checksums, codes, digital signatures, or encrypted elements, these are tested as appropriate. If any validation measure detects an invalid receipt, the activation process  800  rejects the receipt at step  807 . If the device (e.g., charging station  600 ) has a display or indicator lights (neither shown), the reason for the rejection may be shown to the patron. Otherwise, the receipt presented by the patron and read by the indicia reader  610  is considered valid. 
         [0080]    At step  805 , the appropriate interval is determined from the values decoded from the reading of the indicia, unless the system uses a predetermined interval. If the value is an end time, as in the “hhmm” field above, and a duration is needed, the duration can be obtained by taking the current time from the clock  613  and subtracting it from the end time provided by the indicia, to produce a duration for activation. Similarly, if the value decoded from the indicia is a duration (not shown) and an end-time is needed, the end time would be the sum of the duration added to the current time from clock  613 . 
         [0081]    In step  806 , controller  612  enables the output circuit (e.g., EV charging circuit contactor  620 ) by setting a timer (whether implemented in hardware or software) for the interval determined. Upon expiration, the timer will disable the output (e.g., contactor  620 ). The timer may disable the output when the end time is reached on clock  613 , or the timer may be set to hold the output enabled for the duration determined, depending upon implementation. In this way, contactor  602  for electric vehicle charging, or another controlled property, is activated for the appropriate interval, whether expressed by an end-time or a duration, in accordance with the implementation. 
         [0082]    In an alternative embodiment, parking transaction process  700  may be conducted without the patron directly approaching parking system kiosk  110 . For example, using a personal computer, PDA, cell phone, or smartphone, the patron may communicate with the parking system controller  501  (which may be implemented in a remote server rather than kiosk  110  located in parking area  100 ) through communication channel  507 , which may comprise the Internet, or (if the implementation is inside of kiosk  110 ) merely a local wireless network, such as a WiFi or Bluetooth connection. Through communication channel  507 , controller  501  prompts for and accepts the parking request with property (if needed), duration (if needed), and payment (if needed). If the transaction is being conducted from a location not near parking area  100 , then a start time may also be prompted for and accepted from the patron. In step  705 , data representative of the receipt or parking pass is provided to the patron&#39;s computer, cell phone or smartphone. Such data may be a digital image, or may be a data object to be rendered as an image by an application running on the patron&#39;s computer, PDA, or phone. In one embodiment, the image may be printed by the patron, for presentation to indicia reader  610  and for dashboard placement in a pay-and-display situation. In another embodiment, the image may be displayed on a screen of the patron&#39;s cell phone or smartphone and the screen displaying this image presented by the patron to indicia reader  610 . In embodiments where indicia reader  610  is configured to accept human-readable indicia, the data representative of the receipt may be provided as text, for example an SMS message or email, which can then be printed or displayed on a screen for presentation to indicia reader  610 . This method allows a patron to complete the parking system transaction  700  either in advance of arriving at parking area  100 , or while still in his vehicle upon first parking in parking area  100 . In this embodiment, immediately upon exiting his car, a patron can present his printout, or the screen of his PDA, cell phone, or smartphone within the field-of-view  611  of indicia reader  610  at activation process step  802 , instead of visiting kiosk  110  and returning with a receipt from printer  506  of kiosk  110 . Otherwise, activation process  800  proceeds as described. 
         [0083]    Various additional modifications of the described embodiments of the invention specifically illustrated and described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art, particularly in light of the teachings of this invention. It is intended that the invention cover all modifications and embodiments, which fall within the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, while many of the foregoing embodiments used a 2D barcode as an exemplary machine-readable indicia, those skilled in the art will recognize that other forms of indicia can be used to achieve the results of the present invention. Thus, while preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed, it will be appreciated that it is not limited thereto but may be otherwise embodied within the scope of the following claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 8