METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR AN AUTOMATED FUEL AUTHORIZATION PROGRAM FOR FUEL TERMINALS USING A CAMERA AS PART OF THE AUTHORIZATION PROCESS

摘要

A fuel authorization system enables data to be exchanged between vehicles and a fuel vendor, to verify that the vehicle is authorized to receive fuel. Each fuel island is equipped with a camera and a short range radio (RF) component. Participating vehicles are equipped with fuel authorization component including an IR transmitter and a RF component that can establish a data link with the fuel island's RF unit. When the camera senses a vehicle in the fuel lane, an RF query is sent to the vehicle. Participating vehicles respond with an IR transmission. An RF data link is then established between the enrolled vehicle and the fuel vendor to verify that the vehicle is authorized to receive fuel. Once the verification is complete, the fuel dispenser is enabled. In some embodiments, the IR data link is not required, as the camera can distinguish between multiple fuel lanes.

主权项

1. A method for administering a fuel authorization program for a fuel vendor operating a plurality of fueling lanes, the method comprising the steps of:
(a) automatically detecting the presence of a vehicle in a specific fueling lane using a video camera; (b) automatically using a radio frequency (RF) component to transmit an RF query from the fuel vendor to the vehicle in response to detecting the presence of the vehicle; (c) in response to receiving the RF query at the vehicle, performing some action at the vehicle that can be observed by the video camera, thereby unambiguously identifying the vehicle responding to the RF query; (d) automatically analyzing an image from the video camera to determine which vehicle in which fuel lane is responding to the RF query, thereby unambiguously identifying which fuel pump is to be enabled if authorization is approved; (e) in response to receiving the RF query at the vehicle, automatically conveying fuel authorization credentials from the vehicle to the fuel vendor over an RF data link to verify that the vehicle is enrolled in the fuel authorization program; and (f) in response to receiving the fuel authorization credentials from the vehicle at the fuel vendor, automatically determining if the vehicle is authorized to receive fuel, and if so; and (g) automatically enabling fuel delivery at the identified fueling lane, so long as the video camera indicates that the vehicle remains in the specific fueling lane.