WO2000007149A1 - Universal parking management system - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention concerns a complete system for managing parking everywhere, based on the use of a tamper-resistant apparatus, which is either portable or integrated in a motor vehicle dashboard, ensuring time computation of credit account units transferred and prepaid by electronic purse, programmed for time computing by remote visual recognition of a city number and a rating colour present on time clocks or signal posts. The system is remarkably simple to use and operate and eliminates for the user and municipal authorities the complex procedures related to prior systems (displacement, change, management, lack of legal protection and so on) and enables the user to park in any township with equal facility. The supply of information concerning position in real time by selective display of the parking site or by data concerning position supplied by a GPS-type system incorporated in the apparatus as well as by any system whereto it is connected, enables the use of all types of electronic purses for parking payment in all the towns which have approved it. The invention further enables to ensure centralised parking management for several townships in particular providing user behavioural statistics in order to provide effectively optimised parking services by selective implantation in rate zones.

Description

 UNIVERSAL PARKING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

The present invention consists of a complete universal parking management system, based on the use of an individual device with a count of time units prepaid by an electronic purse card, either portable or integrated into a vehicle, programmable by remote visual recognition of identification codes for cities and parking tariff zones.

The supply of position information in real time by selective display of the parking place or by position information provided by a computer, GPS type, integrated into the housing as by any external navigation system to which it is connected, allows the invention to use all types of electronic purse cards for the payment of parking in any city having approved the invention.

The invention also makes it possible to provide centralized parking management for many cities, in particular the production of behavioral user statistics for effective optimization of parking by selective implementation of tariff zones.

Long regarded as a tax, paid parking is increasingly understood by users in search of parking space. This transition from the concept of tax to that of public service cannot develop without recourse to marketing techniques.

The present invention constitutes a remarkable tool in this field where its design makes it suitable for renovating and enhancing the image of parking.

This invention is primarily intended for local authorities and municipalities who wish to optimize the performance of their parking lot, or even evade the prohibitive investments of a parking lot and all the logistical and administrative complexity that it implies. The falsifiability of the invention, the effective regulation of the turnover rate, the absence of initial investment, the generation of cash by prepayment and its powerful financial leverage are among the assets that will catch their attention.

1 - CURRENT SYSTEMS

In the parking sector, there are several systems approaches intended to simplify the procedure for collecting the parking tax without satisfying the expectations of users and administrations. This is how if the parking meter is the most widespread system, it nonetheless involves a procession of complex and costly procedures: sophisticated terminals, wiring, replenishment, parts collection, vandalism, need ^for monetary support, absence elasticity of parking time, round trip to the terminal, significant staff costs, complex statistical feedback and heavy funding ... Other studies have been carried out, in particular in the field of individual parking meters, with the following patents:

- FR 2680 263 A from TELECOM MOBILE SYSTEMS, - EP 0493 289 A from HELLO SA,

- EP 0495 741 A from HELLO SA,

- WO 88 09022 A from INNOVATION STE INT,

- FR 2 594 985 A from Mr Patrick AUBERT,

- EP 0 176 465 A TOMER NATHAN, - EP 0 034 570 A by Monsieur Pierre EBERLIN,

- DE 28 51 596 A from Mr Hans DETTWILER,

- FR 2 658 637 Al de MATRA COMMUNICATION.

These formulas have several drawbacks resulting from an inadequacy with the imperatives of reliability and management demanded by the parking problem, as much as with the imperatives of user-friendliness and cost demanded by the market.

The present invention provides a solution to these problems and gives the individual parking meter a real capacity for universal parking management.

1-1 The shortcomings of current patents.

The weaknesses or inadequacies of the patents filed to date in the field of portable parking meters are as follows:

- impractical tariff selection,

- lack of multi-card compatibility,

- design of cases encouraging theft, - weak prevention of the risk of counterfeiting,

- limitation of the geographic perimeter (city) of validity,

- lack of statistical reporting capacity,

- lack of realism in the face of market expectations,

- absence of transactional legal proof, - risks of legal drift.

1-1-1 The inadequacies of the tariff selection.

The main interest of a portable parking meter is to minimize the tax payment procedures. However, if only the AUBERT, TOMER NATHAN and DETTWILER patents recommend a marking (letters or colors) limited to the pre-programmed commands of the box, none stipulates an actual arrangement allowing the user to identify, remotely and for sure , its parking rate zone. Indeed, there is no claim among these patents which stipulates the application of a similar marking between the keyboard controls and the markers of the parking zones. At best, provision is made to display the parking parameters (price / duration) on flat panels. This provision is notoriously insufficient because parking too far away or in the axis of the profile of the panel does not allow its reading and therefore requires the user to leave his vehicle to read the parameters to be introduced into the housing. The user is then required to program, parameter by parameter (HELLO SA, INNOVATION STE INT, EBERLIN), his box before being able to launch a timetable.

The present invention, on the other hand, defines a formula making it possible to identify remotely and without fail from a wide angular sector, the tariff code of a parking zone, as well as to be able to quickly change the location of this tariff code for better management of the turnover rate.

1-1-2 Lack of multicard compatibility.

Most patents (TELECOM SYSTEM MOBILE, HELLO SA, INNOVATION INT, EBERLIN) stipulate operation with prepayment cards, the presence of which, engaged in the case, is imperative. This obligation limits the compatibility of the parking meters thus defined with other electronic purse cards likely to extend their field of application.

On the other hand, the present invention notoriously opens up the field of use of individual parking meters with the adoption of multi-card compatibility.

1-1-3 The design of the cases inciting theft.

The operating imperative with cards engaged in the housing as stipulated by the patents (TELECOM SYSTEM MOBILE, HELLO SA, INNOVATION INT., AUBERT, EBERLIN) constitutes a real danger for users. Indeed, these patents stipulate the use of a card not protected by an access code, its use is therefore possible with any other parking meter. This weakness is likely to generate burglary, even if the content of the cards is not known.

The almost general absence of access code to the boxes is also a risk of break-in for the box plus card assembly.

It is therefore essential that the risk of theft of both the card and the parking meter is eliminated.

The present invention meets this imperative with, in particular, the installation of an access code at the level of the housing joined to an operation without the need for a card presence. 1-1-4 The insufficient prevention of the risk of counterfeiting.

Most patents pay little attention to the risk of infringement.

This risk is only mentioned by patents EP 0493 289 A from HELLO SA, TELECOM SYSTEMES MOBILES, AUBERT, TOMER NATHAN and MATRA COMMUNICATION which offer solutions whose reliability can easily be faulted. In addition, the danger posed by this insufficiency could prove to be financially devastating, when one knows the principles governing counterfeiting: only copies what is marketed well.

However, the individual parking meter is likely to have a large market (one copy per vehicle) bringing the distribution of fictitious boxes to the rank of the greatest damage for municipalities. Indeed, the latter would have, in the event of a copy, no other recourse than the outright removal of all the devices in circulation for replacement by other models, provided with a new protection system.

The patents filed to date base their protection against the risk of counterfeiting on the known principle of authentication coding. However, these coding principles still have weaknesses:

1-1-4-1 Patent EP 0493 289 TO HELLO SA:

The authentication code is developed from the components of the date and time of the case, the accuracy of which rests with the user, who is responsible for periodically updating the time of his case by ad hoc pressure on the control keys.

This access to the time zone setting allows any counterfeiter to quickly empty the library of future codes as well as their moments of changeover. For this, it suffices to obtain a certain number (around twenty would be enough) of case copies and to handle them by as many individuals whose mission would be to restore, by blocks, future codes.

The combination of these analyzes (obtained in one to two days) would make it possible to establish a library of codes sufficiently complete to be either directly stored in false fictitious counters, or immediately processed by computer calculation to "break" the code and get the coding laws.

This coding is, moreover, developed on a hexadecimal basis between 00H and FFH, which means that the code is limited to two digits, each of which can only take other values: 0, 1, ... 9, A , B, C ... G and H. This coding formula allows only 256 (16 x 16) combinations and is therefore very fragile in terms of the abilities of motivated counterfeiters. The present invention describes, on the other hand, a particularly reliable coding system since it leaves no opportunity for a person to manipulate the reference time and is based on a principle of correspondence between coding laws and encryption tables allowing more than 120 000 combinations. A remarkable agility in changing coding laws and encryption tables testifies to the hardening of this code.

1-1-4-2 Patent FR 2 680 263 A TELECOM SYSTEM MOBILES:

This patent stipulates an authentication principle by the appearance on the screen of boxes, radio wave receivers, a signal composed of a tariff code TAR and a random code ALE to which the application of a function F determines the authentication code. This provision demonstrates that the code is not linked to the payment system which can therefore easily be replaced by a fictitious counting system, opening the way to counterfeiting by modification of the boxes.

We can also question the relevance of this provision, which requires that a specific code, displayed on the screen of the boxes be dependent on the price.

Indeed, radio waves have the property of ignoring any geographical or physical limit (walls, neighborhoods, streets ...) and this provision of the TELECOM SYSTEMES MOBILES patent, if implemented, would prevent municipalities from geographically segmenting their city to use the principle of tariff zones that they apply from the origin of paid parking.

The TELECOM MOBILE SYSTEM patent therefore presents an approach to authentication coding that is unreliable and difficult to implement by municipalities wishing to use a multi-fare parking principle.

The present invention proposes, on the other hand, a reliable solution to the principle of radioelectric emission of coding elements, based on a multiplexing of said elements with information from the card, ensuring true tamper-proofness.

1-1-4-3 Patent FR 2 594 985 A from Mr Patrick AUBERT:

A box, fixed above the dashboard of a vehicle, has a double display by light-emitting diodes, controls, a housing for a prepaid card and a sensor. infrared emission intended to trigger the appearance of an authentication signal on the screen.

The logistical complexity of this formula, necessitating the provision of an interrogator to each surveillance agent, implies significant financial investments (development costs, parts management, after-sales service, etc.) and a cumbersome authentication procedure for parking meters out of proportion to the supposed advantages.

On the other hand, the coding principle of the present invention does not require any external system for authentication. 1-1-4-4 EP 0176 465 patent TOMER NATHAN:

The TOMER NATHAN patent stipulates the use of a box authentication code based on the appearance on the screen of a single digit whose reconciliation with a particular number (serial or other) affixed to said box, will allow a surveillance officer, holder of a secret official list, to check their concordance.

This coding system turns out to be very fragile since it suffices to note the publication of the digits with the parking meter numbers in operation, in parked vehicles, to reproduce identically fully indistinguishable fictitious parking meters. real ones.

This fragility is further aggravated by the very principle of the keeping of an authentication list by surveillance officers. Indeed, this provision seems light in view of the risk of loss, or even of voluntary dissemination to counterfeiters ready to commit the means necessary to conquer a parallel market likely to be very profitable.

This coding principle is therefore very vulnerable with regard to that of the present invention which, on the other hand, offers a different and particularly reliable solution.

1-1-4-5 Patent FR 2 658 637 Al MATRA COMMUNICATION:

The MATRA COMMUNICATION patent stipulates the publication on the screen of a box, of an authentication signature generated by a pseudo-random generator clocked by a clock. This principle implies a periodicity of the pseudo-random cycle, which in turn implies a periodicity of appearance of the signatures on the screen.

In other words, the signatures are mathematically called to change at fixed periodic times and to reproduce on the screen after fixed periods, opening the way for any counterfeiter to build up a library of signatures and produce boxes completely similar to the originals, but with a fictitious count. These boxes would present on the screen original codes obtained either by reading step by step the library memorized and clocked by reproduction of the switching rhythms, or by deciphering the algorithm of the pseudo-random generator.

This coding principle still has the disadvantage of being able to produce only one type of code, except for changing the algorithm during manufacture, thus limiting employment to a single municipality, since a user obtaining a purchased unit in a city A could easily park in another city B with the same box and this, without having to pay parking for the benefit of this city. The multi-municipal use of this type of coding implies a specific manufacturing for each city (one algorithm per city) and a total withdrawal of the coins from the market in the event of breakage of the coding system.

This system implies, moreover, its use on housings with limited lifespan because of the very principle of periodicity which governs it: the mathematical reproduction of the code at the end of the period. The lifespan must therefore be less than that of the code cycle so that no one can observe the entire production of signatures. Note, however, that it would be sufficient for a counterfeiter to obtain several copies of the invention and to observe the production of the codes over a sufficiently long period to establish the complete library of signs.

On the other hand, the invention which is the subject of this patent has a coding system which cannot be reproduced identically over time, ensures a specific signature for each municipality and provides great protection against the risk of breakage thanks to its great agility. change in coding laws.

1-1-5 Insufficient geographic coverage.

The patents known to date come up against the problem of extending the range of validity of their parking meter which is generally limited to one city per card. Real-time knowledge of the parking place (city) would make it possible to use a universal card, that is to say valid for any municipality, and to carry out deferred financial compensation operations for the benefit of the municipalities concerned.

The EBERLIN and INNOVATION STE INT patents stipulate long and tedious tapping, on the initiative of the user, of the coordinates of the parking place then of its various parameters (duration, price, etc.) on a keyboard necessarily provided with numerous keys. and therefore heavy to use. The multiplication of programming operations that results goes against the simplification sought by these patents, without prejudice to a supposed goodwill of the user or even of his risks of error.

The present invention constitutes, on the other hand, a universal parking acquittal solution particularly adapted, by its simplicity, to the problem of automatic financial compensation for the benefit of the municipalities, and really relieving the user of the complexity of all the acquittal procedures. different municipal parking lots.

1-1-6 Lack of statistical reporting capacity.

Oddly, no patent cares about collecting statistical information (average durations, peak hours, turnover rate, effective payment rate ...), thus limiting their role to that of a simple box with programmed time countdown. However, these statistics are of primary interest to municipalities. The present invention therefore provides a particularly innovative system of behavioral statistical feedback from users, meeting the expectations of municipalities in terms of management.

1-1-7 The lack of realism in the face of market expectations.

Some patents have provisions whose implementation cannot meet the expectations of the designer due to lack of adaptation to the market or loss of the initial objective (simplification of procedures, etc.). Thus, some patents stipulate the blocking of the operation to require the user to bring back his box (INNOVATION STE INT) for the purpose of counting, others require the knowledge of a postal code and its tapping on a consequent keyboard (EBERLIN) , others can only work with a committed, unprotected card whose value reaches 100 hours of parking (TELECOM SYSTEMES MOBILES, HELLO SA, INNOVATION INT, AUBERT, EBERLIN), others finally set up a system of automatic penalty (the Auto Minutes) as soon as the parking time is exceeded (TOMER NATHAN).

The present invention combines the pragmatism of the law of the market with the sociological imperatives of human behavior to offer a solution capable of meeting the expectations of users as well as municipalities.

1-1-8 The absence of transactional legal proof.

None of the patents filed to date mentions the problem of establishing legal transactional evidence allowing the user, as well as the administration, to defend himself in court.

The present invention stipulates, on the other hand, a method allowing the immediate establishment of proof of a parking operation.

1-1-9 The risks of legal drift.

The inaccuracies or weaknesses in the design of certain patents can lead to legal differences that are likely to lead to major abuses. Thus, free access to the internal clock of the boxes (HELLO SA, INNOVATION STE INT, AUBERT) opens the door to counterfeiting by weakening any authentication coding system and, moreover, plays into the hands of legal challenges of the user ready to question a product and its time setting.

This risk is sufficiently significant to threaten, in the long term, the future of the products which would be derived from the patents filed to date.

The present invention has, however, been specifically studied to avoid the risk of legal drift. 2 - PRINCIPLE OF THE INVENTION (PLATE 1/5 AND 2/5)

2-1 Housing design.

The present invention constitutes a complete and reliable solution to the problem of universal parking payment, providing the user with the flexibility of using an individual box (1) with a count of prepaid time units and issued from door cards. -Electronic money, either portable (Fig.l) or integrated into a vehicle dashboard (Fig. 6) where it is then associated with a screen for copying information for reading from the outside (Fig.5). This invention allows the user to pay for his parking universally in all the municipalities which have approved it by eliminating the tedious procedures of the previous systems (currency, movement, ticket ...). This invention also has a statistical reporting system as well as all the necessary security in the fight against counterfeiting and legal risk.

2-2 Universal parking by programming municipal and tariff codes.

The universality of use of the invention is based on the knowledge, during each operation, of the parking municipality and of the tariff conditions. To this end, the invention uses, in a first operating mode, the principle of programming, by municipal and tariff identification codes, of an individual parking meter.

Municipal identification codes are made up of the combinatorial association of symbols (colors, letters, acronyms, numbers or numbers ...) such, advantageously, that of an alphanumeric symbol or a combination of alphanumeric symbols. Each symbol or combination of alphanumeric symbols codifies a city and constitutes its alphanumeric municipal identification code (or municipal code).

The tariff codes are made up of colors.

Each color corresponds to a couple of values defining the hourly rate and the maximum parking time.

These two codes (municipal and tariff) are affixed to the parking meters of parking meters, signaling terminals or other suitable supports including light, delimiting the tariff parking zones, in order to facilitate their location and their identification from a distance.

Thus, in the same city, all the summits of parking meters or signaling terminals display the same alphanumeric municipal identification code, affixed superimposed or adjacent to the color of the tariff zone which they delimit.

The colors are faithfully reproduced on the commands, with which they are associated, of the keyboard of the housing of the invention.

Each command is identified by an alphanumeric symbol. It is therefore sufficient for a user having a parking meter according to the invention, to enter the municipal code using the commands marked alphanumerically and then to enter the tariff color using the command displaying said color to launch a account for the benefit of the selected city.

The settlement is made at the tariff and for the duration defined by the pair of values corresponding to the tariff color.

2-2-1 Municipal codes and alphanumeric references of the orders.

In a preferred but not limiting mode of the invention, the alphanumeric codes for identifying the cities are formed from multiple combinations of the alphanumeric symbols present on the keyboard of the invention. Thus, for example, if the keyboard of the housing of the invention has six keys, five of which are identified by the numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, & 5, the city codes may be organized as follows:

1 = PARIS 35 = LE HAVRE

2 = LYON 41 = MONTPELLIER

3 = MARSEILLE 42 = RENNES

4 = LILLE 43 = ORLEANS

5 = BORDEAUX 40 44 = DIJON

11 = TOULOUSE 45 = MULHOUSE

12 = NICE 51 = ANGER 13 = NANTES 52 = REIMS

14 = TOULON 53 = BREST

15 = GRENOBLE 45 54 = DOUAI

21 = STRASBOURG 55 = CAEN

22 = ROUEN 111 = DUNKERQUE

23 = VALENCIENNES 112 = LE MANS

24 = CANNES 113 = AVIGNON

25 = NANCY 50 114 = LIMOGES

31 = LENS 115 = AMIENS

32 = ST.-ETIENNE 211 = PERPIGNAN

33 = LAPS 212 = BESANCON ....

34 ^: CLERMONT-FERRAND

2-2-2 The meaning of the tariff colors.

The presence of easily identifiable and identifiable colors (e.g. BLUE, GREEN, YELLOW, ORANGE, BLACK and WHITE affixed to the top (12) of current parking meters as well as specific terminals (fig. 2 & 3), will allow the user to know instantly the tariff zone in which it is located, without having to travel.

For this purpose, it suffices to establish a correspondence between a color and a pair of hourly cost / maximum duration values, thus for example:

BLUE 5F / hour & maximum duration = 5 hours, GREEN 5 F / hour & maximum duration = 2 hours, YELLOW 10 F / hour & maximum duration = 2 hours, ORANGE 15 F / hour & maximum duration = 2 hours,

BLACK 20 F / hour & maximum duration = 1 hour, WHITE (R) 15 F / day (resident rate). Note: the colors of the zones are chosen according to their attractiveness (brightness), differentiability and compatibility with the colors already in use in the highway code (red means prohibition).

These colors, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, are faithfully repeated on the controls (plates 1/5 and 5/5, No. 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 1 1) of the housing, so that each has the role of launching a countdown at the price and for the duration corresponding to the tree color.

It is therefore sufficient, to launch an hourly countdown at a pre-programmed rate, to act on an order marked with a color identical to that of the parking area, without having to move.

2-2-3 The terminals for identifying parking areas.

The tariff zone identification terminals are designed to be visible from a wide angular sector and at a considerable distance.

For this purpose, the bollards are characterized by a height sufficient to exceed that of vehicles on a street and, advantageously, adopt an isosceles triangular section whose sides are arcs of a circle (plate 2/5, fig. 3 & 4).

This section has the advantage of ensuring the legibility of a number (the municipal identification code), affixed on any of the faces, regardless of the angular sector from which it is viewed. Indeed, a square, rectangular or round "flat" section would have the drawback of not ensuring constant readability from a 360 ° sector around the terminal.

The municipal and tariff codes (number + color) are affixed at the top of the terminals, said summits also having the distinction of being easily removable, facilitating rapid interchangeability so as to vary, on demand, the conditions (tariff / hour & duration) of parking in their city of establishment.

Note: The initial choice of parking meters to affix the identification or tariff codes of the regulated parking zones has the advantage of not imposing a new reflex on users generally accustomed to searching for these terminals to pay for their parking.

2-2-4 The implementation of tariff zone codes.

Based on the simple initial application of stickers at the top of the parking meters, the establishment of the colored zones is particularly easy and economical. Later, the parking meters caps will be able to display enameled backgrounds with a code / color code corresponding to the area where they are located. 2-2-5 The flexibility of rate change.

A simple change of terminal caps or parking meters will allow you to vary the hourly rate and time limit, by district or by street, with the greatest speed.

2-2-6 The effect of adopting a tariff code on the turnover rate.

The visual and immediate perception of the hourly rate, represented by a color, will encourage the user to plan the duration of his parking, something he cannot currently practice since it is only at the foot of the parking meter that he discovers the price imposed and the associated maximum duration, with all the risks of frustration that may arise from it.

This rapid perception of an hourly cost and of a time limitation by a tariff code will influence the behavior of the user and will consequently act on the turnover rate for the greatest benefit of the municipalities and the users.

The municipalities will then have an instrument for permanent and immediate control of their pricing policy, the adaptation of which will require only a simple change of color caps to directly control the turnover rate and increase the parking efficiency.

3 - DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION BOX (PORTABLE VERSION)

A fully autonomous box is placed by the user behind the windshield of his vehicle, like the traditional parking ticket. Provided with a display screen, color controls and identified by a number, a housing intended to receive a smart card comprising a number of prepaid account units, means of calculation, storage, time counting , authentication and reception of radio transmissions, it is a real portable personal parking meter.

The purchase of parking time is done via a smart card type memory card. The card is thrown away, or recharged, after consumption of its credit.

The implementation of the box is very easy based on its compatibility with the smart card and its ability to decrypt the information it contains.

The box reads the data encoded according to the inviolable algorithms of dialogue between the smart card and the box.

The box is credited in units of account by transfer, in successive steps, of units from a new or recharged card. The box is designed to offer great compatibility with electronic wallets in service or called to be. 3-1 Case format.

The dimensions of the housing (fig.l) are adapted to either:

- fully contain a credit card, in particular so that once engaged, it is not visible from outside the housing. The purpose of this provision is to prevent any temptation to steal a card that can be used in other parking meters,

- only allow the engagement and reading of a card for immediate withdrawal once the transaction is completed.

The smallest possible format, with an obvious aim of ease of transport, will be sought.

The case (board 1/5, No. 1), considered as an example, has a slot (4) on one side for engaging the card. The depth of this slot is sufficient to fully receive the card so that it is completely embedded inside the housing and invisible from the outside.

3 - 2 Housing characteristics.

The box (1) includes several controls (push buttons 1/5 and 2/5, N ° 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11) in unlimited number, reproducing on their faces the colors of the tariff zones to which they correspond respectively.

There are therefore at least as many orders as there are price zones. Each order is, moreover, identified by an alphanumeric symbol affixed either overprint on the color which characterizes it, or nearby and unequivocally. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the box has six commands arranged in accordance with FIG. 1. Five commands are numbered from 1 to 5, the sixth bears the letter R on a white background (refer to 2-2-2) .

Note: Some orders perform a double function, in addition to the launch of an account at the hourly rate and for the duration corresponding to the color they display. Thus, for example, the white key, marked R for the resident tariff, also ensures validation of the data entry. This function is identified by the word "VALID" at the bottom of the button.

Likewise, the orange and black keys provide the additional function of changing the option displayed on the screen. They are each marked with an arrow at the bottom of the button.

4 - OPERATION

4-1 Power up & self-test.

A single press on any keypad command is sufficient to activate the unit and initiate a self - test sequence. The time, automatically readjusted by radio wave, is displayed sequentially with the date. Any failure is indicated on the screen by the words "FAULTY ON (date &time)" (FAULTY ON (date & time)) for three seconds before switching off.

Any further pressure in the event of a breakdown causes the previous sequence to appear on the screen.

If no anomaly has been detected, the lighting up of the word “DIAL PIN” on the screen will have the value of a positive test of the internal circuits of the box.

4-2 Data display screen.

A sufficient number of lines of writing will allow the presentation of all the data legibly on the screen (2).

A witness, of the bargraph type (3), consisting of aligned points or segments (of the liquid or light crystal type), located horizontally at the base of the screen (2), will indicate the remaining autonomy to the user and the need to reload the unit in account units next time.

When it is switched on, the full length of this bargraph (3) will indicate a remaining autonomy equal to a programmed duration, for example two hours.

Its extinction will be proportional to the time spent, due to a time interval per segment or point which composes it (for example a quarter of an hour per segment) and its disappearance will coincide with the lighting of an alert signal, for example the word "CREDIT".

4-3 Access code.

The box of the invention has an access code or PIN (Personal Identification Number) "à la carte", the combination of which is at the initiative of the user who dials his code by tapping on the commands identified by a figure.

The display, of the type scrolling from right to left for example, of the phrase "COMPOSEZ CODE PIN" ("DIAL PIN") will prompt him to do so.

The entry of the code is made from a number of presses, between two and six, exerted on the keys of the keyboard. The alphanumeric key marks lend themselves par excellence to the composition of an easily memorizable code. The formula, allowing more than 3,900 combinations in the case of a keyboard with five numbered keys, is particularly resistant to counterfeiting. The appearance on the screen, only once until validation (valid key), of a witness (clear text) for each key pressed will allow the user to memorize his access code. Thus, for example: yellow (1 press) and green (2 presses) constitute an entry code whose mnemonic formula is 21 1.

21, 151, 1541, 12342 ... constitute as many formulas of access codes. Any modification of a digit of the code is carried out using the keys marked with an arrow. To confirm the choice of access code, pressing the white button marked "VALID" will result in the release ^of a second confirmation message selection "XXXX CONFIRM = VALID" (XXXX CONFIRMED = VALID). Any code composition greater than six presses will restart a sequence of invitation to compose a code.

Automatic passage to the next sequence on the screen will testify to the final entry of the code. A certain number of unsuccessful attempts to enter the access code will result in the unit being taken out of service for a predetermined period.

The absence of any selection for a few minutes results in the automatic reinstatement of the access code.

4-4 Start of counting (plate 4/5).

A countdown is only possible if the unit has a credit that can be consumed by a city, refer to paragraph 5-2 "Credit transfer".

Any pressure in the absence of credit in the memory of the box results in the systematic appearance of the flashing mention "CREDIT" on the screen.

If a credit card is already inserted in the housing, the flashing sequence is immediately followed by an invitation to credit transfer sequence. The insertion of an exhausted card causes the indication "EMPTY CARD" flashing on the screen for a few seconds before extinction.

4-4-1 Procedure for initiating the settlement.

The user identifies the identification number of the parking city and the color of the tariff zone displayed at the top of the parking meters or neighboring identification terminals.

After entering the access code, the screen of the box prompts, with the help of a specific mention (for example "flashing CITY" or the alternative NUMBER / CITY display), the user to dial the number identification of the city (or municipal code), using the numbered commands on the keyboard (the screen then displays the number of each command activated), then confirms the selection by pressing the "VALID" command. The screen then displays, in plain text, the name of the selected city and then invites the user, using a new specific mention (for example "COLOR" flashing or the alternative display "ENTER / COLOR"), to enter the color of the tariff zone. Note: After the very first counting start, the box will systematically present on the screen, during a new counting start, the name of the city of the previous parking (CITY NAME flashing or alternative CONFIRM / CITY display). The user can then either directly dial the identification code of the new municipality, or confirm this preselection by pressing the command marked "VALID". A simple press on the appropriate color key on the keyboard is then enough to start a countdown at the rate and for the duration corresponding to said color.

The screen then displays, in clear, the selected color followed, and for a single publication, by the credit of units available for said city in the box (refer to 5-

2-7) then, cyclically and repeatedly, the time limit and the authentication code, followed again by the name of the city and so on until the maximum authorized parking time has been used up.

The nature of the invention would not be changed if certain commands of the box made it possible to enter successively, digit by digit, according to the principle of the drop-down menu, the identification code of the municipalities. Some of these commands are dedicated to alphabetic symbols and others to numeric symbols.

Note: Any press on the white key, under the "RESIDANT" selection, causes the mention "RESIDE" to appear on the screen instead of any indication of white color.

Note: In the case of using the box with only one type of dedicated card (a particular city exclusively), that is to say that there is not, and has not been before, any other credit belonging to another city (or organization) in memory box than that from this type of card, said box will automatically delete the selection sequences of the country and the parking city, to present directly on the screen, after entering the code access, the sequence of invitation to enter the tariff color (plate 4/5). The publication of the name of the city of origin of the dedicated card is however maintained before the invitation sequence as well as during the normal sequences of publication of the parking data during a countdown. The use of a second card, regardless of the type (dedicated or multi-use) results in the reinstatement of the selection sequence for the parking city.

4-4-2 International use: display of the parking country.

During a countdown launch, an additional sequence inviting the choice of country (France, England, Germany ...) preceding that of entering the city identification code, confirms the international and universal vocation of the invention . This option is at the initiative of the user who, by simply pressing two keyboard commands simultaneously (for example the keys marked with arrows), brings to the screen the country names which need only be scrolled ( forward / backward) using the arrow keys. The validation of the choice is made by action on the command marked "VALID".

4-4-3 Display of parking parameters.

The appearance of the data is cyclical, successive and recurrent on the screen, thus for example in the following order: the name of the selected city, the color of the tariff zone, then the time limit and finally the code of authentication.

CITY / COLOR / TIME LIMIT / CODE (ex: PARIS / YELLOW / 15.40 / BTR)

Note: The full publication of the name of the city will depend on the number of digits available on the screen. The durations of appearance of these data are adapted to their best reading, a second of publication proving, for example, sufficient to not penalize the surveillance officer by requiring him to stay too long in front of each vehicle to be checked.

4-4-4 Start of deferred settlement.

The invention has a deferred counting launch system ensuring the user automatic payment for his parking from the start of the paid time slot the next day. This arrangement allows parking the day before for the next day.

Thus, activated at the end of the daily paid time slot (7 p.m. in general), the invention automatically ensures the start of the hourly countdown the next morning at the start of the paid time slot: after entering the access code and selecting the parking city, an action on the appropriate command results in the appearance of the zone color selection indicator, followed by the scrolling indication "PARKING AUTHORIZED UNTIL 11:00 (or the start time of the paid range plus maximum authorized duration) ) THE (date) "testifying to the proper recording of the instruction.

4-5 Stop counting. A simple press on any command on the box, without any discernment for more speed, stops any previous count or selection.

The outright extinction of the cut-off time indicates that the authorized time has been exceeded.

5 - PROGRAMMING

5-1 Programming the housing microprocessor.

The microprocessor of the box dialogs with the smart card by encrypted reading protocol (type Data Enscription System).

It reads and analyzes the following parking parameters contained in the card memory:

- credit (units of account or currency) present in the card,

- country and municipality of origin codes (dedicated card),

- code of the issuing body, - standardized parking time slots,

- standardized pricing & maximum duration / color code,

- encryption addresses,

- lifetime,

- recycling alert signal, - marketing parameters. The microprocessor also calculates the following elements:

- local date and time (real-time internal clock / timer) with registration, - parking credit unit countdown,

- management of the box / card dialogue protocol (D E S coding),

- calculation of the authentication code,

- cyclical and sequential display of the city, tariff color, time limit and code,

- marking and memory storage of units consumed,

- calculation of marketing elements (credit earned, points ...),

- lifetime of the housing,

- recycling alert signal display.

- decryption and execution of orders:

- change of coding laws, encryption tables and code change laws, - card repatriation of statistical data collected in the unit's memory,

- dimensioning of the transfer steps,

- conversion of currency units / parking account units, - all other calculations necessary for the operation of the invention.

Compatibility with all municipalities. The box memory stores standardized parking conditions: prices & duration by price color, time slots ...

Thus, several "standards" for configuring paid time slots such as: from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and from 1:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m., from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 1:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 a.m. and from 1:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and from 3:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. are stored in memory and identified by an address.

This principle of "factorization" of the parameters conditioning the paid time slots is also applicable to the parameters conditioning the hourly tariffs and maximum durations of parking by tariff color, making it possible to cover all the needs of the municipalities. This provision has the advantage of not occupying an important memory space as would require the use of specific conditions for each city. The municipal code contains the addresses of the appropriate configurations (paid time slots, hourly rate & maximum duration per tariff color) of standard parking stored in the memory of the unit, triggering the automatic application of the municipal conditions desired at each count. This information, inserted in the memory during manufacture, can obviously be modified by the card vector during credit transfer operations from the card to the box. This transparency provides great flexibility for ^use in the invention: the authorities will find all the ease required for change rates, duration, time slots ... to refine the management of the municipal parking.

5-2 Autonomy and credit transfer (page 3/5).

Principle: the box is loaded or credited in electronic money or units of account by transfer into its memory of the content (or part of the content) of an electronic wallet card, and this in steps (modifiable on a card instruction) including the choice of the value is at the initiative of the user who selects, by successive presses on one or more specific commands (for example the commands marked with arrows) the desired value.

The validation of the choice is made by action on the command marked "VALID". Note: If the credit contained in the card before transfer is less than the value of the transfer step, the value of this credit will be displayed instead of that of the transfer step.

When a card is inserted, the screen displays (refer to 5-2-3) the credit contained in units of account if it is a dedicated card. In the case of a multi-use card, the screen alternatively displays the credit contained in currency unit (Euro, Francs, $, £ ...) immediately followed by its equivalent value in units of account.

This alternating presentation lasts two times (one second each) of the values, then is immediately followed by a sequence of invitation to the credit transfer.

For any reloadable card, new units are simultaneously exchanged, on an instruction housed in the card, for units previously "consumed" and marked with a code identifying the country, city, date and tariff color of consumption.

The box can thus store in memory the value of a certain number of cards. The advantage of this formula is to provide the possibility for a user to significantly increase the autonomy of his parking meter.

The electronic purse card is then removed from the housing for multiple use, the housing is then autonomous.

The invention is compatible with dedicated electronic purse cards (or with prepayment) as with multipurpose cards.

5-2-1 Credit transfer of dedicated cards (with prepayment). Dedicated cards are prepaid cards (Pariscarte type), their initial value (or reload) is only obtained against an advance payment and their use is limited to the destination of prepayment, generally in a defined territory (city). Credit units from this type of card are marked, at the time of manufacture, with a deterministic coefficient (card) of the city of origin and / or of the job function of these units. During a transfer to the memory of the box, the units pass along with this specific marker, allowing them to be stored at a particular address which corresponds to their city of origin, failing which, an account is automatically created.

5-2-2 Credit transfer for multi-purpose wallet cards.

These wallets have the distinction of having electronic money to make various payments. The currency units (Euros, $ ...) coming from this type of card are automatically converted, according to the invention, into parking account units via equivalence rules (example: one unit = 1 Franc or 1 / 7 of Euro or 1/6 of $ ...) housed in box memory and modifiable on card instruction. The credit units coming from this type of card are marked, at the time of manufacture, with a deterministic coefficient (marker) of the organization (Bank ...) issuing the card.

When they are transferred to the memory of the box, these credit units are stored in a specific compartment assigned to each body issuing the purse, without any specific geographical (city) allocation.

The box simultaneously records the reference (amount, date and beneficiary) of the transaction in the memory of the electronic purse card, then proceeds to transfer the units of account consumed and marked with the previous parking operations stored in the box's memory, to card memory.

The principle of credit transfer is therefore the same regardless of the card model, only the allocation differs in that:

- in the case of dedicated cards, the credit is directly allocated to the benefit of the corresponding account in memory box if there is one or, failing that, an account is automatically created,

- in the case of multi-use cards, the credit is stored at an address corresponding to the body issuing each card, without any particular geographical affiliation. This credit is available for the benefit of any city designated by the user, as soon as his credits are used up. The transferred credit units all carry the marker of their originating organization.

5-2-3 Reading the credit card. Any introduction of a card into the box systematically involves, without having to dial an access code, the following sequence of operations:

- identification / authentication (encrypted D.E.S. protocol),

- reading then display of the credit contained in the card (alternative currency / units of account if multi-use card).

- invitation to transfer credit to the unit (refer to 5-2). Thus, the box is advantageously presented as a card reader capable of indicating to the user the content of any (accredited) card which is introduced therein. Note: If the card is not withdrawn (forgetting, convenience, etc.) after a transfer operation or simple reading of its content by the user, there will be no procedure, when launching a statement, a new credit transfer request until the bargraph lights up (refer to 5-2-8).

Any countdown start with a remaining autonomy in the box below the bar graph ignition threshold and a credit card engaged, results in a sequence of invitation to credit transfer. (Remember that the card, engaged in the case, is invisible from the outside to prevent any temptation to steal).

5-2-4 Marking of units of account.

5-2-4-1 Marking of units from dedicated cards. The memory of the box can contain several accounts of units belonging to different cities, resulting from the prior transfer of credits from dedicated cards.

When the user enters (refer to paragraph 4-4) at each countdown launch, the municipal code of the city for parking on the keyboard of the invention, it triggers the priority consumption of the credit dedicated to this city or, failing this, available credits from multipurpose cards.

At the end of their actual consumption, the units coming from dedicated credits and already weighted with a marker from the city of origin, are grouped into blocks and assigned new markers corresponding to the tariff color, date, time start time and parking time (refer to 8-1, Statistical data).

5-2-4-2 Marking of units from multipurpose cards.

Credits transferred from one or more multi-purpose electronic purse cards are assigned to a specific compartment in the memory of the box, without any specific geographical designation (city). A deterministic marker of the organization issuing electronic wallet cards affects each unit contained therein. This marker is kept during any transfer of the units of account.

The user selects, if necessary (refer to paragraph 4-4) each time the count is started, the name of the country (nation) and then enters the municipal code of the parking city on the keyboard of the invention.

At the end of their actual consumption, these units are grouped into blocks and assigned the geographic marker corresponding to the country and the city of parking selected by the user, as well as deterministic markers of the tariff color, date, start time and duration of parking (refer to chapter 8, Statistical data). All in addition to the marker, always present, of the body issuing the unit credit consumed. 5-2-5 The consumption of credits.

Thus, the box according to the invention is capable of operating indifferently with dedicated cards, the scope of which is limited to the issuing municipalities, as with universally usable electronic payment cards (for multiple use).

The different associated credits are stored simultaneously in the unit's memory, at different addresses. The consumption, for the benefit of a city, of an allocated credit (from dedicated cards) in the box memory takes place primarily to that of the unmarked credit (from multi-use cards). The transition from consumption from one loan to another is automatic and takes place without the user's knowledge. Note: The end of a city's credit means that all of the credit for units from cards dedicated to said city has been consumed, for the benefit of that city, plus all of the credit for units from multi-purpose cards.

This does not mean that the box, according to the invention, is empty, one or more dedicated credits, belonging to other cities, can be simultaneously in memory of the box.

Reminder: The selection of the city, by its municipal code, conditions the publication of the correct authentication code on the screen (refer to chapter 6).

5-2-6 Multi-wallet electronic compatibility.

Depending on the areas of commissioning, the box of the invention will ensure multiple compatibility with the electronic purses in place.

Thus, adaptation to ISO 7816 - 1/2/3, ETSI TE 9, EMV 96, MPEV5 standards, as with future standards, will be sought in order to satisfy this imperative of international marketing.

5-2-7 Reading the remaining autonomy in the housing.

Each time a count is launched, just after the tariff selection indicator (color) appears on the screen, the box systematically displays the total credit for units dedicated to the selected city plus the credit for units from usage cards multiple.

The duration of display of this parameter is such as to allow rapid reading (of the order of one second).

5-2-8 End of credit alert system.

As soon as the remaining credit, permanently calculated by the microprocessor of the unit for a selected tariff, corresponds to a duration equal to or less than a determined threshold, a witness (bargraph) appears at the bottom of the screen (board 1/5, N ° 3) to indicate this remaining autonomy to the user and invite him to credit his box to recover full autonomy, supplemented by the previous balance of credit. Composed of a number of segments each extinguishing successively for the same amount of elapsed time, the bargraph causes the indication "CREDIT" to light up when it goes out.

Note: the credit transfer is possible at any time of the use of the box, it is enough to introduce a credit card to trigger a sequence of invitation to the credit transfer.

5-2-9 Credit depletion.

If no credit transaction has taken place between the switching on of the bargraph and its gradual extinction, the signal "CREDIT INSERT CARD" is then displayed on the screen each time a countdown is started.

5-3 Programming the card.

The card constitutes a real vector for data transfer to the box: in addition to the credit which it transfers, on the user's order, to the box, it carries the following information:

- in a dedicated version (use limited to one city for example), it conveys the parking parameters specific to each municipality (origin code, paid time slots, tariff codes ...),

- in a multi-purpose wallet version, it carries the data for updating standardized conditions (prices & duration / price color, time slots ...)

The memory therefore contains, as necessary, the following parameters

- country and municipality of origin,

- parameters (hourly cost & maximum duration / tariff color, paying ranges, etc.) of the tariff codes by city (dedicated card),

- standardized parameters: hourly cost & maximum duration / tariff color, paid periods, etc.

- number of credit units available,

- no transfer, - currency / unit of account conversion rate,

- summer / winter hours,

- coding laws,

- encryption tables,

- code change laws, - bonus calculation laws (free parking credit),

- marketing offers,

- order to repatriate statistical data,

- maximum service life of the housing,

- warning time before end of life of the unit, - any other information necessary for the operation of the unit. 6 PROTECTIONS AGAINST COUNTERFEITING

6-1 Anti-counterfeiting coding.

6-1-1 The authentication coding. In order to overcome any risk of counterfeiting of the invention, an authentication code is displayed on the screen of the boxes.

The principle of this coding consists of a signature, composed of one or more symbols constituting a particular code, the publication of which on the screen extends over a period completely unpredictable for a third party, thus, for example, the code "BR "for the 35 th day of the year," XTD "for the 143, etc.).

To this end, one or more coding laws are programmed (and protected by manufacturing seal) in memory of the microprocessor and / or of the card. These coding laws elaborate, from the constituent elements of the date and the time calculated by the internal clock of the box and readjusted by radio signal, a certain number of signals.

Encryption tables are also housed in the microprocessor memory and / or in the card memory. A correspondence is then established for each signal produced by said coding law with a particular symbol from the table, before bringing the code thus obtained to the screen. The number of signals produced is determined by each law.

This type of coding allows an infinite number of combinations (tables for assigning signals to symbols) constituting a coding system particularly resistant to counterfeiting.

The creation of encryption tables could be based on the following method of assigning a number to the consonants of the alphabet as follows:

1 = F 1 = S 1 = M 1 = Q

2 = G 2 = R 2 = K 2 = X

3 = B 3 = X 3 = D 3 = N

4 = L 4 = V 4 = J 4 = Z

5 = D 5 = P 5 = C 5 = W

6 = J 6 = T 6 = M 6 = S

7 = H 7 = Z 7 = F 7 = P

8 = C 8 = N 8 = L 8 = T

9 = K 9 = Q 9 = G 9 = V

0 = M 0 = W 0 = B 0 = R

The application of coding laws could fall under the following example consisting in applying a mathematical equation to the parameters making up the date: the day (from 1 to 31), the month (from 1 to 12) and the year (from 1997 at 2100), as follows:

X (DAY) + Y (MONTH) + YEAR = A E I OV

V being, for example, a parameter resulting from the code change law on the screen. Then, a sum of the type could be carried out: μ (A + E) + § (I + O) + # V = CTUY μ, § and # being algorithms specific to a city, contained in a map.

By retaining, in the case of a coding law involving the appearance of a two-digit code for example, only the last two digits (U & Y) of the result, choose for U (digit between 0 and 9) the corresponding letter in the first column of the coding table and do the same for Y in the second column.

This type of coding makes it possible to carry on the screen a code whose number of digits, varying from two to four (in the case of adoption of letters, the vowels are preferentially discarded for the sake of avoiding the appearance of unsightly words) is directly controlled by the composition of the coding laws put into service on card instructions with the algorithms specific to a municipality.

Note: the number of digits (from two to four) composing the code on the screen is determined by the coding laws and the algorithms implemented on card or terrestrial instructions.

This provision gives the invention a high degree of resistance to the risk of counterfeiting with more than 123,000 possible coded combinations, benefiting from the additional protection of the DES coding which protects any dialogue between the card and the box.

Several encryption tables, according to principles different from that set out here, will be memorized by the box and others will be housed in card memory, their commissioning taking place on a specific addressing resulting from a card instruction or a radio signal. .

Note: The possession of witness boxes by parking officials will assure them of knowledge of the code in force.

6-1-2 The agility of changing the authentication code.

The agility of changing the authentication code constitutes a primordial defense against the risk of counterfeiting.

Indeed, the appearance of perfect copies of a housing whose back would include selection keys for ^the display of a code read previously on a nearby parked vehicle, is not excluded.

To mitigate this risk, the authentication code will be brought to the screen in an unpredictable way for any counterfeiter. The precise registration of all the boxes on the official time will ensure the simultaneous appearance of the new code on all screens.

6-1-3 The command to change the code.

The precision of the wireless time registration and the use of a programming law for the time change of authentication code will make it possible to vary at will the switching times from one code word to the next with the greatest simultaneity of all the boxes. Managing code change orders can s ^operate on command following a radio signal or card statement.

To this end, a programming of the box allows, upon reception of a particular signal emitted by a radio antenna, to intervene directly on the time or the code change law. The same effect can be obtained from an inserted instruction (ie contained in the card's memory).

6-1-4 Code time change law.

As for the authentication coding laws, several codes for time code changes can be stored in memory of the box (therefore protected by sealing or masking during manufacture) and of the card, their selection being made on radio or inset.

Such a law, for parking during a paid time slot (defined by the inset parameters), could, for example, result in a change of signature on the screen at the following times:

Even year: even month, even day, H chgt = even hour + 30 minutes even month, odd day, H chgt = 11 hours, 16 hours odd month, even day H chgt = odd hour + 30 minutes odd month, odd day H chgt = no change.

Odd year: even month, even day, H chgt = even hour even month, odd day, H chgt = no change odd month, even day, H chgt = every hour odd month, odd day, H chgt = 15 hours.

The agility of passing from one code change law to another will constitute an additional protection which is particularly effective in the fight against falsification.

6-2 Time registration by radio wave.

6-2-1 The imperative of an external and precise time registration. The box indicates, after the countdown has started, the parking limit time on its screen.

This provision requires it to have an internal clock whose parameters must be regularly checked to avoid any dispute that may result from phenomena of electronic drift as well as imprecision of the time setting.

Manual registration would give a counterfeiter the opportunity to be able to voluntarily shift the reference time and know all the codes for the days to come as well as their display times. This "trick" would allow him to counterfeit boxes by programming their artificially reconstructed future from the library of codes and times of appearance. The registration by radio waves is the only formula allowing to shelter the case from human intervention and to assure him an exemplary precision. This clarification, in the area of surface parking, is necessary because it constitutes a pledge of seriousness and an irrefutable reference in the face of a user tempted by legal challenges in matters of timetables.

6-2-2 Principle of operation.

A radio signal carrying a time reference, preferably the official time, is received by the box. Note: some radio waves (FRANCE INTER type, DCF 77, MSF,

WWVB, GPS (Global Positioning System), ERMES, POGSAG, FLEX ...) are already carriers of the official time from the atomic clock of the state body responsible for its development. In order to receive this radio signal, the ^invention includes an antenna coupled to a microwave receiver whose bandwidth permits the reception of the carrier wave and signals.

The micro-receiver of the box transmits the time information contained in the radio signal to the microprocessor which automatically reads the internal clock by integrating the parameters of time zones and summer and winter time.

The present invention can in particular use the source of the time information (date & time) originating from the emission of satellites of the GPS navigation system (Global Positioning System).

6-2-3 Protection against hourly break-in.

In order to mitigate the risk of fraudulent manipulation of the radio registration by simulating a signal (decoy transmitter) or breaking the box aiming to short-circuit the antenna and directly introduce a commanded signal intended to empty the library of future codes , a limitation on the number of successive readjustments will be coupled with a readjustment ban when any difference detected with the previous one is greater than a set value.

The nature of the invention would not be changed if another effective provision aimed at preventing any form of access to the internal clock were adopted.

6-3 Direct transmission of the authentication code over the air.

In another advantageous operating mode of the invention, a radio source can be used to transmit the basic elements of an authentication code to the receiver of the invention. These elements are then multiplexed with the coding law and the encryption table selected, before being brought to the screen. The advantage of this formula is to be able to control the publication of the authentication coding directly from the radio source transmitter, bypassing the internal code change function. The principle of changing the coding laws by radio signal or insert is of course preserved.

Note: The ease of receiving radio information which would not undergo any coding treatment before being brought to the screen should be avoided, this technique having already proven to be fragile.

6-4 The dialog card / coded box: the DES.

The Data Enscription System is a secret key cryptography algorithm. In particular, it ensures the reliability of bank card transactions.

The use of the DES (or derivative) coding and its key, allows the microprocessor to authenticate the content of the card, eliminating any interest in an attempt to break in and prohibiting any counterfeiter from accessing the information contained in the cards. and the housings.

Using this coding to communicate with the card, the invention therefore offers the same degree of reliability as bank cards in terms of data exchange.

6-5 The very high degree of security of the invention.

The operating principle of the invention requires the possession of three coding keys:

- DES key, - authentication coding key,

- encryption key.

The possession of the keys by different people, without any link between them, will ensure the best hardening of the invention faced with the risk of counterfeiting. Administrations are therefore assured of permanent control of the parking system which is the subject of the invention.

Note: Access to the coding laws and encryption tables and itself protected by the DES code, the assembly ensuring the invention an exceptional degree of protection against the risk of counterfeiting.

7 SPECIFICATIONS

7-1 Technical specifications. 7-1-1 Clock.

The invention incorporates an internal clock (timer / sequencer) responsible for developing the following functions:

- permanent internal hour (and minute) calculation,

- date calculation (day, month and year).

7-7-2 Memory.

The memory of the box has sufficient capacity to store the information necessary to calculate the operating data:

- access code,

- authentication code calculation laws,

- encryption tables,

- code word change law, - total of account units consumed during the life of the case,

- statistic data,

- standardized tariff conditions (tariff / hour and duration by color),

- standardized time slots,

- bonus calculation laws (free parking credit) and marketing offers,

- all other necessary functions (deferred counting ...).

7-2 Lifespan of the recyclable case.

Modular and recyclable, the box is, in its basic portable version, sealed in order to prevent any manipulation of the clock (refer to paragraph 6-2). Its lifespan is therefore limited. This provision, combined with that of the principle of statistical restitution (see chapter 8) implies that the housing is recyclable.

The advantage of this provision is also multiple:

- guarantee the invention a perpetual updating of its design, - fight more effectively against fraud and the risk of counterfeiting,

- collect the expired boxes to ensure their recycling and collect the statistical data collected.

7-3 The winning credit or Bonus.

In order to encourage the return of the boxes for their statistical analysis and recycling, the invention includes a system for allocating free parking credit, in proportion to the number of units consumed.

The box will automatically calculate the total amount of credit earned when it lapses and expires on the screen said value. The following scale is an example:

0 to 1000 units (10%) 1001 to 2000 units (8%) 2001 to 5000 units (5%)

The appearance of the mention will be consequent to the programming of an ignition order on the screen when a maximum duration, modifiable by card instruction, has elapsed, or else that the electrical voltage will fall below a predetermined threshold (insufficient Of voltage).

In order to warn the user of the imminent expiration of his case and invite him to obtain a new model as soon as possible, a statement, for example the following statement: "WARNING XX DAYS BEFORE RECYCLING" (WARNING XX DAYS BEFORE RECYCLING ), will be scrolled on the screen during each countdown launch, as soon as the time before the end of the service life of the box is less than a set value that can be modified by card instruction.

The box automatically totals the winning credit when it lapses and expires on the screen said value.

The appearance, in scrolling reading, of an indication of the type: "RECYCLING - CREDIT XXX UNITS (TO BE RECYCLED - CREDIT XXX UNITS) will indicate to the user the need to change the case.

Any start of the countdown is now prohibited and any press on a selection command causes the previous statement to scroll.

7-4 Transfer of points.

At the usual point of sale, the user will present their expired box with the credit earned on the screen. The tobacconist will then proceed to the direct transfer of said credit, supplemented by the credit remaining in all the compartments of the memory of the box towards that of a new box thanks to the introduction of a "double card" or "transfer card" allowing to connect the two boxes between them for a data exchange.

7-4-1 The transfer card.

This double card, of credit card format with a length of the order of 200 m / m allows, by simultaneous engagement of each of its ends in the respective slots of each box, to make them talk to each other.

Intended for an initial installation at distributors, the purpose of this double card is to ensure the transfer of the content of the memory from one box to another (DES coded), in particular in order to recover the credit earned at the end lifetime of the case, plus credits of units remaining in memory.

As soon as the transfer is made, the new box will carry the total of the credit transferred to its screen. The credit transfer procedure is simple and quick:

- the expiration of the old box must be effective (except failure),

- the two boxes must be connected,

- the transfer is effective whatever the state (rest, start-up ...) of the new box.

Note: This arrangement is particularly useful in the event of a box failure or the total content of the memory can be immediately transferred to another box.

8 - STATISTICAL DATA.

8-1 The marking of statistical data.

The storage of all actual parking time counts will allow, after collecting these data, to establish precise statistics.

To this end, we have seen (refer to 5-2-4 the marking of the units) that a marking of the units by country, city, tariff color, date and time of parking, was carried out during their consumption.

The geographic marking (by city) of the units constitutes a remarkable asset for the invention since it allows any user to park, provided with a non-dedicated electronic purse card, with the same ease in any city having approved the invention.

The geographic marking of the units of account consumed makes it possible to schedule them in box memory so as to facilitate their future use for statistical restitution and financial compensation operations for the benefit of the municipalities concerned.

The use of position coordinates from any navigation system

(satellite type GPS or other ...), integrated into the invention or external, allows real-time marking of the units eliminating any need to select the parking city before launching a countdown.

This technique of marking the units leads to a computer restitution of the parking lot by analysis tables, presenting directly to the municipal authorities the effects of their choice in terms of parking configuration. 8-2 Statistical behavioral restitution.

8-2-1 The value of collecting statistical data.

The present invention has a system for behavioral statistical reporting of user parking.

Indeed, the memory of the box allows to restore its history and therefore to develop, after counting, municipal statistics reflecting the behavior of users vis-à-vis the tariff colors.

From stored data, it is easy to determine precisely by tariff color and city:

- the turnover rate,

- the average effective duration of parking,

- the frequency of these parking lots,

- the yield.

These elements have the particularity of directly depending on the color code (and therefore on the hourly tariff / maximum duration couple) applied to each tariff zone, allowing more precise regulation of parking by a judicious choice of location of tariff colors.

The impact on the user of the binomial hourly cost / maximum duration, materialized by a color, is then directly measured by the statistical power of the invention.

8-2-2 The collection of statistical data by scanning the memory of the box.

A simple distribution in box memory of these coded elements will allow, when they are transferred to the analysis computers, to restore the totals of units consumed by country, city, tariff code, year, day and hour of parking.

The counting of the memories of the boxes will be easily carried out using existing systems. GEM PLUS, for example, developed the portable

GMX that a simple programming game will make compatible with portable parking meters. GMX collects statistical data which is then transmitted to parking management and analysis software.

8-2-3 Collection of statistical data by card memory.

In another operating mode of the invention, the collection of basic data necessary for the preparation of parking statistics is prepared in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 5-2-2: after marking and scheduling in memory unit of account units consumed as stipulated above, said statistical data thus constituted are directly transferred, on a specific instruction from a card, into the memory of said card.

This transfer takes place automatically, for example immediately after the transfer of credit from a card to the memory of the box. These operating modes of the invention are adapted to specific cards which makes them suitable for statistical collection as well as reloads and multiple transactions.

The collection of statistical data then takes place when reloading said cards via the electronic payment systems provided for this purpose.

The statistical data then pass through the (bank) servers specific to the cards approved by the operator of the invention, to the central server of the operator for analysis and statistical restitution.

9 - THE ESTABLISHMENT OF LEGAL PROOF.

Reading the memory of a box by an external system is of capital importance since it enables the public authorities to instantly analyze the history of the parking operations of said box. The immediate application of this provision lies in the development of transactional legal proof, both for the benefit of users and of public authorities, which can be produced instantly before a Court during any legal dispute.

Note: The data recovered is not personal and cannot give rise to the creation of a file.

In order to facilitate the immediate production of transactional legal proof, the invention has an autonomous restitution system for recent parking operations carried out, stored and scheduled in the memory of the box.

To this end, after entering the access code, a combined action on two keyboard commands (for example the keys marked "2" & "5") will bring to the screen the parameters of the last parking operation carried out, including scrolling will be cyclical and sequential, in the following order:

- date (1 second),

- parking city 1 second),

- color of the selected tariff zone (l second), - parking end time 1 second).

An action on a third command, for example the white key

"VALID", will bring to the screen the parameters of the previous parking operation and so on until a predefined number of operations (for example ten) is reached. Any press on the "VALID" key beyond this number represents the parameters of the most recent operation.

A prolonged action (a few seconds) on the "VALID" command will end any sequence and reset the box for normal use. 10 - FINANCIAL COMPENSATION

Financial compensation operations are necessary as soon as the transactions carried out with the box of the invention are carried out using multi-purpose electronic purses (transactions originating from dedicated cards subject to a prepayment directly collected by the municipality transmitter).

Clearing is carried out using the credit transfer and statistical return functions provided via the card vector: during a credit transfer from a card to a box, the latter enters the references (amount, date and beneficiary) of the transaction in the memory of the wallet card (refer to 5-2-2).

On the next use (purchase, recharging, etc.) of their wallet card by the user, the network of bank servers of the partner organization issuing the card credits the operator of the invention with the amount corresponding to the memorized transaction (transfer of credit to the invention).

Simultaneously the marked units (country, city, issuing body, tariff color, date & time of consumption) corresponding to the parking operations prior to said credit transfer (refer to 5-2-4) and which are also in card memory, are sent back to the operator's computer server (via the same bank servers). A statistical analysis followed by a compilation makes it possible to distribute the units, identified by the marker (refer to 5-2-4-2) of their original map, consumed for the benefit of the various beneficiary member municipalities.

The operator then proceeds to a bank reconciliation between the credit transfer transactions from the electronic purse cards to the boxes and the result of the compilation of the statistical analysis of the units consumed, then proceeds to the financial clearing operations by directly crediting the account bank of the municipalities concerned.

11 - THE PORTABLE PARCMETER PARKING MARKETING TOOL

Instant programming by inserting command parameters into card memory gives the parking meter object of the invention to be a real marketing tool. The management of promotional offers, inserted in the card's memory and read by the microprocessor, allows the establishment of real promotional campaigns. Inspired by mass marketing techniques, these campaigns will provide effective support for the invention when it is marketed.

Administrations will benefit from this specific capacity of the invention by adopting a marketing policy encouraging the consumption of cards, as well as, for example, the following offers: free parking for any consumption of cards above a given threshold. - free of charge for the first fifteen minutes at each countdown launch for the first five cards inserted in the box ...

These examples illustrate the many potential themes of campaigns aimed at raising awareness of prepayment and promoting its dissemination.

A simple programming game will allow these provisions to be integrated.

12 - OTHER MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION (Plate 5/5)

12-1 The interchangeable battery case.

The nature of the invention would not be changed if the housing, instead of being sealed and recyclable, was provided, in a first variant, with a renewable battery power supply.

Recall that changing the battery causes a power cut requiring resetting the time of the case. This resetting of the time will however be automatic thanks to the time registration system by radio wave (receiver in the housing) equipping the invention and eliminating any need for intervention on the internal clock. The principle of this box would be identical in all respects to that of the recyclable model, the winning credit (bonus) would simply be displayed on the screen at fixed periods, defined by card instruction, and would be directly consumed by the box.

12-2 The use of real-time position information.

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a terrestrial navigation system based on a principle of determining position on the surface of the globe by satellite triangulation. A quadrangulation, obtained by receiving information from a fourth satellite, increases the accuracy and makes it possible to obtain the altitude with respect to a reference geoid.

The very precise reference time is obtained from the reception of the satellite broadcast; the accuracy obtained from three satellites is around 80 meters.

Glonass is a Russian navigation system operating on the same principle as GPS.

Real-time knowledge of its geographic position, by any system capable of providing position information, ensures that the unit (portable or integrated in the vehicle) according to the invention, has the ability to systematically mark, when consumed, the units of account (or group of units of account) according to the principle of marking explained above (refer to 5-2-4), of a deterministic geographical coefficient of the place (municipality) of effective consumption of said units (or group of units ). This arrangement then makes it possible to carry out financial compensation and statistical restitution of parking operations, regardless of the municipality where the vehicles are parked, from a single computer server center of the invention using the returns of statistical data. via accredited bank servers (see chapter 10). In a second variant, the box of the invention accommodates a GPS receiver / calculator, or is coupled by wire connection with an external navigation system capable of providing time and geographic position information, mounted in a vehicle for example. The GPS information containing the time advantageously replaces any internal receiver dedicated to radio time registration.

This latest version constitutes an individual portable parking meter, compatible with multiple cards (electronic purses), the use of which would be universal in terms of geocitadine use (valid in all cities) and particularly easy.

Indeed, position information in real time, joined to those of the conditions (tariff / duration, time slots ...) of municipal parking, stored in the unit's memory, exempts the user from any city selection prior to a countdown launch, regardless of the parking municipality.

12-3 Integration into the dashboard of a vehicle.

According to another embodiment, the invention can be directly incorporated into the interior structure of a vehicle (Fig. 5 and 6) by adapting the organization of the constituent elements (housing (1), antenna, screen (2), controls to position them so that they can be used by parking officials and the driver of the vehicle.

For this purpose, a suitable box (Fig. 6) presenting a screen (2), controls (6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11), a reception housing (4) of a card-format support credit or other and means of calculation, storage, time counting, authentication, of a radio-satellite navigation receiver (GPS, Glonass type ...) and / or of a connection with an external navigation system capable to provide geographic position and time registration information, is mounted like a car radio on the center console (Fig. 3) of the vehicle dashboard.

A second information copying screen (14), mounted in series with that of the housing, is placed in a housing fitted for this purpose above the dashboard (Fig. 5) or at any place, inside the vehicle, suitable for easy reading from the outside.

The antenna of the receiver of the invention is coupled to (or replaced by) that of the vehicle which then receives the carrier waves of the radio signals (time registration and geographic positioning); the power supply for the assembly is charged to the vehicle battery.

The use of this version (Fig. 6) of the invention follows the same principle as that of the portable version (Fig. 1), the programming of the tariff statement is always carried out by visual recognition at a distance of identification colors. of tariff zones and the collection of statistical data by means of credit transfer / reload / counting of the prepaid card as described in paragraph 8-2-3. 12-4 Integration within existing navigation systems.

Many navigation systems have been developed for the automobile. They generally adopt a mode of presentation of the data by screen, the displays of which are controlled by a control unit, the assembly either being integrated into the dashboard of an automobile, or mounted on said board.

The compatibility of the invention with these systems makes it possible logically to envisage complete integration thereof with the aim of reducing the bulk and simplifying the task of the user. The latter, subject to great precision in geographic location, will therefore be able to consult directly on the on-board navigation screen the tariff zone in which he parks his vehicle.

Parking formalities will then be reduced to a simple payment authorization, triggered by pressing an ad hoc button on the navigation system control box. A second press will be enough to stop any countdown.

An audible, vocal or visual alarm, will automatically signal or remind the user that he is in a paid parking area, should he forget to leave his vehicle. The automatic stop of the countdown can easily be synchronized when the engine is started or the simple observation by the navigation system itself of a movement of the vehicle.

The present invention provides real support and optimization of the parking problem, bringing the greatest profitability to the benefit of the municipalities on behalf of which it transforms the concept of parking tax into a real service for the citizen.

Claims

1 - Universal parking management system characterized in that it consists of a set of terminals identifiable remotely by the presence, at their apex, of a tariff color code and a municipal alphanumeric code, and d '' a set of tamper-proof individual devices (Fig. 1 & 6) ensuring the hourly counting of a credit of prepaid account units resulting from a transfer from any type of dedicated electronic wallet (with prepayment) as for multiple uses (currency: Euro, $, £, Francs ...) or from any other device of the same type with which it will have been connected. Said apparatus comprising a display screen (2), controls (6, 7, 8, 9, 10 & 11) each of which is identified by a tariff color and an alphanumeric symbol, a reception housing (4) for credit card or other format support and means of calculation, storage, management, time counting, reception of radio transmissions, authentication and dialogue / writing, by encrypted protocol, with any type of card electronic wallet so that, once engaged in the device the card is not visible and that, after an operation with the device, the card can be removed for other electronic payment applications. Said apparatus being further characterized by the presence, if necessary, of an internal radio-satellite navigation receiver / calculator (GPS, Glonass type, etc.) or of a connection with an external navigation system capable of providing time and geographic position information. 2 - System according to claim 1 characterized in that the signaling terminals materializing the parking tariff zones adopt a specific shape (fig.3) having an isosceles triangular section with rounded sides (in the shape of an arc of a circle) (fig. 4) and a height sufficient to exceed that of motor vehicles parked on a street. Said section advantageously ensuring the same readability of the information which is affixed there regardless of the angular sector from which it is viewed. The alphanumeric identification codes of the municipalities and the tariff colors are simultaneously affixed to the top of the said terminals, the latter also having the distinction of being easily removable for installation on other supports (parking meters) and rapid color change. tariff. 3 - System according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the identification codes of the municipalities consist of combinatorial associations of the only alphanumeric symbols present on the controls of the device and that the tariff colors, each corresponding to a couple of variables defining an hourly tariff and a maximum authorized parking duration, are identically reproduced on the signaling terminals, including parking meters, materializing a parking tariff zone as well as on the commands, to which they correspond respectively, of said device. 4 - Apparatus according to claims 1, 2 and 3 characterized in that its calculation means perform an hourly count of the credit units contained in its memory at pre-programmed tariff conditions and that said count is automatically allocated for the benefit of the municipality of parking by selection, on the initiative of the user, of the country (nation) of parking and composition, using the commands located alphanumerically on the keyboard of the device, the alphanumeric code characteristic of the parking municipality, followed of an action on the order whose color, deterministic of the local tariff conditions (maximum authorized duration and price / hour), is identical to that present, with the municipal code, on the caps of signaling terminals, parking meters or other adapted supports (including light), materializing the parking tariff zone. Apparatus further characterized in that the use of real-time position information, provided either by a GPS or other type receiver, mounted internally or externally to which it is then connected, limits the operations for initiating counting to a single action on the appropriate color control, and is reduced to a simple parking operation authorization, if the position information is sufficiently precise for the device to know its parking tariff zone. 5 - Apparatus according to claims 1 and 4 characterized in that its calculation and management means trigger, on a simple simultaneous pressing of two keyboard commands (for example the keys identified by arrows), a sequence inviting the user to select the parking country by displaying on the screen the names of the different countries (France, England, Germany, etc.) which you just have to scroll (forward / backward) using the arrow keys. This sequence then precedes the entry of the identification code of the municipality and the validation of the choice of the parking country is carried out by action on the command marked "VALID". 6 - Device according to claims 1, 3 and 4 characterized in that its memory contains the table of correspondence of the municipal codes with the names of the municipalities and that the management means carry on the screen the municipality and color selection indicators tariff in the form of the name, in plain text, of the parking location and the name of the color of the pressed order. 7 - Device according to claims 1, 3 and 4 characterized in that its memory contains several standard sets of parameters defining the parking time slots as well as the hourly rates and maximum parking times associated with the tariff colors. The selective implementation of each standardized set of parameters is triggered by one or more specific instructions contained in the alphanumeric identification code of each municipality. Apparatus further characterized in that its calculation means ensure the change, directly in memory, of the value (update) of a single or a group of these standardized parameters on a specific instruction read from a card or any other device with which said device dialogs. 8 - Apparatus according to claim 1 characterized in that its memory collects, in steps whose value is selected by the user acting on the appropriate commands of the keyboard (for example the keys identified by arrows), a credit expressed in units of parking account from a dedicated parking card, or a credit from a monetary card (Francs, Euro, $, £ ...) and converted by calculation and management means into parking account units by laws conversion, housed in the memory of said device and whose modification (update), as well as that of the values of the transfer (or collection) step, is carried out on an instruction from a card. Device further characterized in that its management means ensure the scheduling by type of marker of the units collected in its memory. Said collected units characterized in that they keep a deterministic marker of their issuing body (Bank, municipality ...) during the transfer in memory of the device as during any subsequent operation. 9 - Device according to claims 1, 3, 4 and 8 characterized in that the means of calculating the hourly account ensure the grouping into blocks of the credit units at the end of their effective consumption in the memory of said device and assign them markers deterministic of the nation, the municipality and the tariff color selected by the user at each launch of the countdown as well as deterministic markers of the date and time of consumption. Said geographic markers (country and city) being, unless there are geographic markers (municipal) on the units of account before their consumption, advantageously developed by said means of calculation from the selected country and the municipal alphanumeric code entered by the user before the countdown starts, or by automatic integration of the geographic position of the device obtained via any radio-satellite navigation system such as GPS (Global Positioning System) or other, integrated or external to the device to which it is then connected. Said marking of the units or groups of units consumed in addition to the original markers, possibly present, of the body or bodies issuing (banks, bodies, etc.) of the credits consumed. 10 - Apparatus according to claims 1 and 9 characterized in that during an hourly count of units for the benefit of a municipality the calculation and management means ensure the priority consumption of the credits stored and marked for the benefit of said municipality then , when these latter have been used up, the consumption of electronic money credits which have no geographic allocation. These latter credits, coming from monetary cards, are then consumed for the benefit of any city previously designated by the user when a statement is launched, and this as soon as the credits dedicated to said city are exhausted. 11 - Device according to claims 1, 4, 8 and 9 characterized in that, on a specific instruction from a rechargeable card previously introduced in said device, the calculation and management means ensure the transfer directly into the memory of said map of the units or groups of units debited and contained in the memory of the said device, marked and scheduled by geographic markers (country and city), of issuing body, tariff color, date and time of consumption, and this for the purpose of collection statistical data by an external electronic payment system when recharging units of said card. 12 - Apparatus according to claim 1 characterized in that it comprises an automatic registration device of its internal clock by reception and decoding of a radio broadcast conveying reference time information advantageously removing any access to the clock setting. Said registration device being composed of a receiver and an antenna tuned to the frequency of any source of radioelectric emission capable of transmitting time coordinates and information (France INTER, MSF (England), WWVB (USA), DCF 77 (Germany), GPS (Global Positionning System), GLONASS ...). 13 - Device according to claims 1 and 12 characterized in that its memory contains coding laws or algorithms and encryption tables implemented by the device's calculation means to perform an authentication signature, composed of one or more symbols (letters, numbers, acronyms ...) carried on the screen (2 & 14) of said device (fig.l & 6) for a period defined by laws or algorithms for code change also present in memory of the device. The realization of said signature being obtained from the constituent elements of the date and the time elaborated by the clock of the device, processed by means of said algorithms (or laws) of coding and encryption tables according to a technique of correspondence between the signals calculated by the coding law in service and the symbols contained in the selected encryption table. Said laws and encryption tables being selected and implemented on a specific instruction read from a card or any other device capable of interacting with the device. Each coding law is also deterministic of the number of symbols making up the signature. 14 - Apparatus according to claims 1, 7, 8, 10, 11 and 13 characterized in that its means of calculation and management of functions can be controlled and modified from the outside by the transmission of information and orders control via the card vector or any other device capable of communicating with it and in particular of conveying the following information: - values for updating the standard parking parameters: paid time slots, hourly rates and maximum parking time by tariff color, - date and time of summer / winter time change, - parameters for automatic calculation of parking time bonus proportional to the number of account units consumed by the device, - instructions for selecting and implementing the different coding laws, encryption tables and laws for changing the authentication code, - repatriation instruction in the card of account units consumed and marked in the device's memory, - instruction defining the lifetime of the device in recyclable version, - instruction to display the recycling warning signal on the screen, - marketing instructions to implement the rules for promotional parking offers, - instructions defining the value of the transfer step of the loading / credit operations of the device, - instructions defining currency conversion rates / parking account units. 15 - Device according to claims 1 and 9 characterized in that a simultaneous action on two specific commands triggers the appearance on the screen of the last parking operations performed for the purposes of immediate establishment of transactional legal evidence. Said operations being presented in a cyclic and sequential manner, ordered by action on a third command, with, in order, the following parameters: the date, the city of parking, the color of the selected tariff zone and the end time of parking. 16 - Apparatus according to claims 1 and 4 characterized in that when the credit remaining in its memory, calculated by the microprocessor for a selected rate, corresponds to a credit of units or a parking time equal to or less than a determined threshold , a bargraph type indicator appears on the screen to indicate this remaining autonomy to the user and invite him to credit his device. Said bargraph being composed of a number of elements which go out or disappear successively each for the same amount of time elapsed and causing, when it is completely extinguished, the appearance of an alert signal on the screen. 17 - Apparatus according to claims 1 and 14 characterized in that its calculation means trigger, at a pre-programmed date, its deactivation with concomitant allocation of a free credit points whose amount is shown on the screen. The amount of said credit, or winning bonus, being proportional to the total number of credit units consumed by the device during its commissioning period. The calculation of said credit and the service life being developed from algorithms housed in the device's memory and whose implementation is ensured by one or more specific instructions previously read from a card or any other device capable of communicating with the device. 18 - System according to claims 1, 9, 11 and 14 characterized in that the direct transfer of information and credit contained in the memory of a device to the memory of a second device is possible by a device similar to a double card, of width and thickness identical to that of a card like any other means capable of interacting with the device, of sufficient length to accommodate at each of its ends a fully engaged device and to ensure a connection between them in order to allow them to exchange data by encrypted protocol. 19 - Device according to claims 1, 9, 11 and 14 characterized in that its writing means write, during a credit collection operation from a rechargeable card to the memory of said device, the reference (amount, date and beneficiary) of this operation in the memory of said card, and this for the purpose of repatriation via the banking networks of organizations holding wallet cards.