WO1999016700A1 - A forecourt ordering system for fuel and services at a filling station - Google Patents

A forecourt ordering system for fuel and services at a filling station Download PDF

Info

Publication number
WO1999016700A1
WO1999016700A1 PCT/GB1998/002919 GB9802919W WO9916700A1 WO 1999016700 A1 WO1999016700 A1 WO 1999016700A1 GB 9802919 W GB9802919 W GB 9802919W WO 9916700 A1 WO9916700 A1 WO 9916700A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
order
customer
interface
communications unit
remote communications
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/GB1998/002919
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Timothy Earle Dickson
Kenneth Orvin Marion
Original Assignee
Gilbarco Inc.
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from US09/034,969 external-priority patent/US6810304B1/en
Application filed by Gilbarco Inc. filed Critical Gilbarco Inc.
Priority to EP98944131A priority Critical patent/EP1017614B1/en
Priority to DE69801588T priority patent/DE69801588T2/en
Priority to AU91796/98A priority patent/AU735470B2/en
Publication of WO1999016700A1 publication Critical patent/WO1999016700A1/en

Links

Classifications

    • GPHYSICS
    • G07CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07FCOIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
    • G07F7/00Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus
    • G07F7/08Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means
    • G07F7/10Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means together with a coded signal, e.g. in the form of personal identification information, like personal identification number [PIN] or biometric data
    • G07F7/1008Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B67OPENING, CLOSING OR CLEANING BOTTLES, JARS OR SIMILAR CONTAINERS; LIQUID HANDLING
    • B67DDISPENSING, DELIVERING OR TRANSFERRING LIQUIDS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • B67D7/00Apparatus or devices for transferring liquids from bulk storage containers or reservoirs into vehicles or into portable containers, e.g. for retail sale purposes
    • B67D7/06Details or accessories
    • B67D7/064Drive-off preventing means, e.g. in case of non-payment
    • B67D7/067Drive-off preventing means, e.g. in case of non-payment using communication means
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B67OPENING, CLOSING OR CLEANING BOTTLES, JARS OR SIMILAR CONTAINERS; LIQUID HANDLING
    • B67DDISPENSING, DELIVERING OR TRANSFERRING LIQUIDS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • B67D7/00Apparatus or devices for transferring liquids from bulk storage containers or reservoirs into vehicles or into portable containers, e.g. for retail sale purposes
    • B67D7/06Details or accessories
    • B67D7/08Arrangements of devices for controlling, indicating, metering or registering quantity or price of liquid transferred
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B67OPENING, CLOSING OR CLEANING BOTTLES, JARS OR SIMILAR CONTAINERS; LIQUID HANDLING
    • B67DDISPENSING, DELIVERING OR TRANSFERRING LIQUIDS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • B67D7/00Apparatus or devices for transferring liquids from bulk storage containers or reservoirs into vehicles or into portable containers, e.g. for retail sale purposes
    • B67D7/06Details or accessories
    • B67D7/08Arrangements of devices for controlling, indicating, metering or registering quantity or price of liquid transferred
    • B67D7/14Arrangements of devices for controlling, indicating, metering or registering quantity or price of liquid transferred responsive to input of recorded programmed information, e.g. on punched cards
    • B67D7/145Arrangements of devices for controlling, indicating, metering or registering quantity or price of liquid transferred responsive to input of recorded programmed information, e.g. on punched cards by wireless communication means, e.g. RF, transponders or the like
    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06QINFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • G06Q20/00Payment architectures, schemes or protocols
    • G06Q20/30Payment architectures, schemes or protocols characterised by the use of specific devices or networks
    • G06Q20/34Payment architectures, schemes or protocols characterised by the use of specific devices or networks using cards, e.g. integrated circuit [IC] cards or magnetic cards
    • G06Q20/343Cards including a counter
    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06QINFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • G06Q20/00Payment architectures, schemes or protocols
    • G06Q20/30Payment architectures, schemes or protocols characterised by the use of specific devices or networks
    • G06Q20/34Payment architectures, schemes or protocols characterised by the use of specific devices or networks using cards, e.g. integrated circuit [IC] cards or magnetic cards
    • G06Q20/346Cards serving only as information carrier of service
    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06QINFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • G06Q50/00Systems or methods specially adapted for specific business sectors, e.g. utilities or tourism
    • G06Q50/10Services
    • G06Q50/12Hotels or restaurants
    • GPHYSICS
    • G07CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07CTIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE
    • G07C5/00Registering or indicating the working of vehicles
    • G07C5/008Registering or indicating the working of vehicles communicating information to a remotely located station
    • GPHYSICS
    • G07CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07CTIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE
    • G07C5/00Registering or indicating the working of vehicles
    • G07C5/08Registering or indicating performance data other than driving, working, idle, or waiting time, with or without registering driving, working, idle or waiting time
    • G07C5/0841Registering performance data
    • G07C5/085Registering performance data using electronic data carriers
    • G07C5/0858Registering performance data using electronic data carriers wherein the data carrier is removable
    • GPHYSICS
    • G07CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07FCOIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
    • G07F13/00Coin-freed apparatus for controlling dispensing or fluids, semiliquids or granular material from reservoirs
    • G07F13/02Coin-freed apparatus for controlling dispensing or fluids, semiliquids or granular material from reservoirs by volume
    • G07F13/025Coin-freed apparatus for controlling dispensing or fluids, semiliquids or granular material from reservoirs by volume wherein the volume is determined during delivery
    • GPHYSICS
    • G07CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07FCOIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
    • G07F7/00Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus
    • GPHYSICS
    • G07CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07FCOIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
    • G07F7/00Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus
    • G07F7/02Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus by keys or other credit registering devices

Definitions

  • the present invention relates generally to a forecourt ordering system fuel dispensers and,
  • transponders and detecting their movement within and throughout a fueling environment.
  • POS point-of-sale
  • the dispensers include various types of payment
  • a customer is not limited to the purchase of fuel at the dispenser. More recent
  • dispensers allow the customer to purchase services, such as car washes, and goods, such as
  • transponders communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as
  • transponder and a vehicle having a transponder, enhance transaction and marketing
  • the present invention relates to monitoring a customer position throughout a fueling
  • the receiving point may be a quick-serve restaurant
  • QSR quick-serve restaurant
  • the controller determines when to start order preparation. For example, during the fueling operation, the
  • the order is associated with the transponder carried by the customer
  • order can be placed on an order interface located within a vehicle, which order can be
  • The-order interface can then transfer its order to a communication device on the forecourt
  • the customer may choose to pay for the order along with the fuel at the dispenser, at the order
  • a drive-thru position interrogator will receive a signal from the
  • transponder indicating the customer is at a known position in the drive-thru lane.
  • a control system will alert the food preparation area to prepare the order and indicate to an order pick-up interface and controller the position of the customer in the drive-thru lane.
  • one aspect of the present invention is to provide a multistage ordering system
  • the system may include a fuel dispenser having an order entry
  • a second remote communications electronics adapted to communicate with a remote commumcations unit, a receipt position output
  • intermediate location output indicating the customer is proximate said intermediate locating
  • An intermediate locating position located along the path of travel between the fuel
  • the control system is associated with each of the communications
  • the control system is preferably adapted to communicate with the remote communications unit through the first communications electronics when the remote communications unit is
  • system provides an intermediate location output in order to determine the location of the
  • control system will identify the order at the receipt
  • the order receipt location is associated with a quick-serve restaurant wherein the customer may order food or drink at the fuel dispenser and pick up the food order at the order
  • the order receipt location is further associated with an order preparation
  • control system is also associated with the
  • the present invention solves the unique problems associated with keeping track of orders
  • drive-thru window or within the store for that matter, may be placed in a different sequence
  • transponders uses transponders to appropriately associate orders placed at different locations with the
  • FIGURE 1 is a schematic representation of a fueling and retail environment constructed
  • FIGURE 2A depicts a vehicle having a vehicle-mounted transponder constructed according
  • FIGURE 2B depicts a personal transponder integrated into a debit/credit or smartcard
  • FIGURE 2C depicts a personal transponder integrated into key fob constructed according to
  • FIGURE 3 depicts a fuel dispenser shown constructed according to the present invention.
  • FIGURE 4 is a schematic representation of a transponder having separate communication
  • FIGURE 5 is a schematic representation of fuel dispenser electronics constructed according 130 to the present invention.
  • FIGURE 6 is a schematic representation of convenience store transaction electronics
  • FIGURE 7 is a schematic representation of a quick-serve restaurant control system for a
  • FIGURE 8 is a schematic representation of a car wash control system constructed according
  • FIGURE 9 is a schematic representation of a central control system for a fueling environment constructed according to the present invention.
  • FIGURES 10A and 1 OB are a flow chart representing a basic flow of a multistage ordering
  • the fueling and retail environment provides
  • the fueling and retail environment 10 may include
  • QSR quick-serve restaurants
  • the backroom 26 is generally the central control area for integrating or coordinating
  • the 160 -The-convenience store 20 typically includes an inventory of a wide assortment of products
  • the convenience store includes a transaction terminal or register 30, where a customer 12 may purchase convenience store
  • the QSR 22 generally includes an order pick-up area 32 having a QSR transaction terminal
  • the QSR transaction terminal 34 and drive-thru terminal 36 may
  • the QSR 22 may also include a food preparation area 40, a food preparation interface 42 for
  • the car wash 24 includes a car wash interface 48 that interacts with the customer and controls
  • the automatic car wash system (not shown), which may be any suitable automatic car wash.
  • a customer 12 will be able to order a car wash at a fuel dispenser 18, at the
  • wash 24 typically interface at the backroom 26 using a central control system 50.
  • central control system 50 may include any number of individual controllers from the various components
  • central control system 50 may interface with the fuel dispensers 18, transaction terminal 30,
  • automated vending system 28 may also interface with the central control system 50 or directly
  • the present invention relates generally to providing remote communications between the
  • 210 electronics will typically include a transmitter for transmitting signals to the remote
  • the remote communications device may also include a receiver and
  • the transmitter and receiver of the remote communications device may separately
  • 215 may be configured so that the transmitter actually operates on and modifies a signal received
  • communications device may be either passive or active.
  • device may include traditional receivers and transmitters alone or in combination as well as
  • a transponder as defined herein may provide either unidirectional
  • An interrogator will generally include a transmitter and receiver capable of communicating with a transponder as defined above.
  • an interrogator as defined herein, need not contain both a receiver and a
  • the fueling environment 10 may include many interrogators of
  • interrogators may include: dispenser interrogators 52, a store
  • interrogator 58 a drive-thru order interrogator 60, and a drive-thru position interrogator 62.
  • 240 vehicles may be tracked throughout the fueling environment by one or more antenna
  • the dispenser interrogator 52 is generally adapted to
  • vehicle-mounted transponders 64 and personal transponder 66 communicate with vehicle-mounted transponders 64 and personal transponder 66.
  • personal transponder 66 may be mounted on a key fob 68, a wallet card 70, or any other
  • FIG. 14 depicts a vehicle 14 having a vehicle-mounted transponder 64.
  • the levels of sophistication of the vehicle-mounted transponder 64 may vary drastically.
  • transponder 64 may be integrated with the vehicle's main computer and control system, or
  • the vehicle 250 may simply be a sticker placed on a window or on another part of the vehicle.
  • transponder 64 may be active or passive, and may be adapted to either simply send out an
  • a fuel dispenser 18 is shown constructed according to and as part of
  • the dispenser provides a fuel delivery path from an underground
  • the fuel delivery line 72 includes a fuel delivery line 72 having a fuel metering device 74.
  • the fuel delivery line 72 includes a fuel delivery line 72 having a fuel metering device 74.
  • 260 communicates with a fuel delivery hose 76 outside of the dispenser 18 and a delivery nozzle
  • the nozzle 78 provides manual control of fuel delivery to the vehicle 14.
  • the dispenser 18 also includes a dispenser control system 80 having one or more controllers
  • the dispenser control system 80 may receive volume data from
  • dispenser control system 80 may provide audible signals to an audio module and speaker 86
  • the dispenser 18 is preferably equipped with a payment acceptor, such as a card reader 88 or
  • system 80 may read data from the magnetic strip of a card inserted in the card reader 88 or
  • the central control system 50 typically provides a central control system for controlling the central control system 50 .
  • a remote network 94 such as a card verification authority, to ascertain whether a transaction proposed to be charged to or debited from an account associated with
  • the card inserted in the card reader 88 is authorized.
  • the dispenser 18 will include one or more types of displays, preferably one or more
  • alpha-numeric displays 96 together with a high-resolution graphics display 100.
  • display 100 will generally have an associated key pad 102 adjacent to the display or integrated
  • the dispenser may include an additional,
  • auxiliary key pad 104 associated with the card reader 88 for entering secret codes or personal
  • the displays 96, 100 and key pads 102, 104 may be
  • the dispenser control system 80 is
  • TRIND tag or transponder reader in dispenser
  • dispenser control system 80 may include or be associated with dispenser
  • interrogator 52 for providing remote unidirectional
  • transponders are bidirectional communications between a transponder and the dispenser.
  • Micron Microstamp produced by Micron Communications, Inc., 8000
  • the dispenser 18 may include
  • one or more antennas 108 associated with the dispenser interrogator 52 are associated with the dispenser interrogator 52.
  • communication electronics 110 adapted to provide remote communications with the various 300 interrogators, include a transmitter 114 and receiver 116 having associated antennas 118, 120.
  • the transmitter 114 and receiver 116 operate to transmit and receive data to and from an
  • the communication electronics 110 may include a battery power supply 122,
  • a communication controller 124 associated with a memory 126, having software 128
  • I/O input/output
  • the communication electronics 110 provide a signal from a clock 132
  • controller 134 includes a controller 134, memory 136 and software 138 necessary to encrypt and decrypt data
  • the memory 126, 136 may include random
  • RAM random access memory
  • ROM read only memory
  • communication controller 124 and the cryptography controller 134 may be integrated into one
  • modules may be integrated or embodied in hardware.
  • FIG. 5 shows a basic schematic overview of the dispenser electronics wherein a dispenser
  • control system 80 includes a controller associated with the memory 82 to interface with the
  • the dispenser control system 80 provides
  • Audio/video electronics 86 is
  • auxiliary audio/video source 156 adapted to interface with the dispenser control system 80 and/or an auxiliary audio/video source 156 to provide advertising, merchandising and multimedia presentations to a customer
  • 325 dispenser allows customers to purchase goods and services other than fuel at the dispenser.
  • the customer may purchase a car wash and/or order food from the QSR while fueling the
  • the customer is provided a video menu at the display 100 to facilitate
  • cash acceptor 90 allow the customer to pay for any of the services, goods or food ordered
  • dispenser control system 80 is operatively associated with a dispenser interrogator 52, which
  • the receiver and transmitter typically associate with
  • the dispenser control system 80 communicates with the central control system 50 in the backroom
  • the transaction terminal register 30 includes a store transaction controller 152,
  • the transaction controller 152 interacts with the central control
  • the interrogator 54 includes a
  • receiver 162 and a transmitter 164 both of which are associated with one or more antennas
  • the transaction terminal 30 is adapted to provide typical transaction functions of a cash
  • the communications between the transponder and the store transaction terminal are generally related to transactional and
  • the QSR will generally have a controller 168 and associated memory 170 capable
  • a transaction terminal or register 174 is provided having a key pad 176
  • the QSR transaction terminal 174 is used by a QSR operator to take
  • the QSR transaction terminal 174 is associated with interrogator 56 having a receiver
  • a food preparation interface 42 having a display 180 and a key pad
  • the food preparation interface 42 may be a terminal run from the QSR controller 168
  • a remote order entry interface 186 is
  • the order entry interface 186 may include a simple menu board and audio intercom
  • -system 188 may provide for bi-directional video
  • intercom using the audio intercom 188 and a video system 190 allowing the customer and QSR operator to audibly and visually interact with one another during order placement.
  • 370 order entry interface 186 may also include an interrogator 60 having a receiver 192 and a
  • transmitter 194 associated with one or more antennas 195, for communicating with a
  • transponder of a customer when the customer is placing an order at the order entry interface
  • orders placed at the order entry interface 186 are sent to the order pick-up interface
  • the order pick-up interface 196 will have an audio system 198 to provide the
  • the order pick-up interface 196 is desired.
  • the order pick-up interface 196 also has an associated interrogator
  • 380 58 having a receiver 202 and a transmitter 204 associated with one or more antennas 206.
  • the present invention may include a customer position detector 208,
  • the customer position detector 208 is associated with the drive-thru position interrogator
  • 62 includes a receiver 210 and a transmitter 212 associated with one or more antennas
  • Figure 8 depicts the basic outhne of the car wash electronics, which includes a controller 216,
  • the display 222 combine with the controller 216 to provide a customer interface 48.
  • the interrogator 51 includes a receiver 224 and a transmitter 226 associated with one or more
  • the car wash controller 216 preferably communicates with the
  • the key pad may be used to
  • Figure 9 generally depicts the central control system 50 found in the backroom 26 of the
  • the central control system 50 may include one or more controllers
  • the central control system 50 may include multiple
  • the system may have a dedicated network or authorization interface 238 connected to a host transaction
  • the dedicated authorization interface and/or Internet interface may operate on a dedicated
  • central control system 50 may have
  • a central positioning 415 interface 246 associated with multiple antennas 248 may be used to determine transponder
  • the QSR can monitor or detect the
  • the customer may decide to order a few items from
  • the customer may choose to pay for the order along with the fuel at the dispenser, at the order
  • the drive-thru position interrogator 62 will receive a signal from the customer transponder
  • control system 168 will alert the food preparation area 40 to prepare the order and indicate to
  • Flow charts 10A and 10B represent the basic flow of various multistage ordering processes.
  • the process begins (block 500) when the dispenser interrogator 52 receives a signal from a
  • transponder 12, 14 and the dispenser control system 80 forwards transponder identification
  • information to be authorized is generally financial or account information and can either be
  • the transponder is read and authorized as the customer and/or vehicle approaches or initially
  • the dispenser may display various items
  • the dispenser 18 will display options for ordering food items from the QSR or ordering a car wash
  • the dispenser 18 will determine whether an order is placed
  • the dispenser 18 will receive any orders placed by the customer (block 508) and
  • the order is associated with the transponder in some fashion (block 510).
  • the order is
  • control systems (2) transmitting and storing a code associated with the order on the
  • 475 system 50 or the QSR 22 stores the order information and associates the order with the
  • transponder ID When one of the interrogators subsequently reads the transponder ID, the transponder ID
  • the information written to the transponder may range from a code for
  • the customer order is transferred to the QSR controller 108 through the central control system 50
  • the dispenser 18 will effect payment for the transaction (typically adding the
  • the QSR order pick-up interface 198 will monitor for the presence of
  • 495 transaction terminal is informed of the order corresponding to the customer at the window or
  • the dispenser 18 may
  • the customer position detector 46 may be used to alert QSR
  • the customer position detector 46 may be used in any of the embodiments, as those of ordinary
  • indicia of the order is transmitted to the transponder (block 528) and the
  • This information may also be sent
  • the transponder ID or indicia is
  • transponder at the dispenser and subsequently reassociated when the customer approaches the
  • car wash area 24 and is interrogated by the car wash interrogator 51.
  • car wash interrogator 51 In the preferred embodiment
  • the dispenser operates in conjunction with the central control system 50 to
  • the customer's transponder is interrogated for an ID or a code, which the car
  • wash controller and/or the central control system 50 recognizes as preauthorized. If additional
  • the customer may receive a code or other
  • indicia which they are required to enter or submit when the corresponding goods or services
  • the fuel dispenser 18 is not the only point of sale where ordering may take place.
  • a customer having a transponder may, for instance, order a car wash in conjunction with
  • control system 50 to subsequently reassociate the customer and the car wash ordered at the

Abstract

The present invention is to provide a multistage ordering system for a fueling environment (10). The system may include a fuel dispenser (52) having an order entry interface (186) and associated first remote communications electronics (60) adapted to communicate with a remote communications unit associated with the customer. An order receipt position apart from the fuel dispenser is provided and includes a second remote communications electronics (58) adapted to communicate with the remote communications unit, a receipt position output indicating the customer who placed the order is at the order receipt location. An intermediate locating position (208) located along the path of travel between the fuel dispenser and the order receipt position may also be provided.

Description

A FORECOURT ORDERING SYSTEM FOR FUEL AND SERVICES AT A FILLING STATION
Background of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a forecourt ordering system fuel dispensers and,
more particularly, to fuel dispensers and systems capable of communicating with various types
of transponders and detecting their movement within and throughout a fueling environment.
In recent years, traditional gasoline pumps and service stations have evolved into elaborate
point-of-sale (POS) devices having sophisticated control electronics and user interfaces with
large displays and touch -pads or screens. The dispensers include various types of payment
means, such as card readers and cash acceptors, to expedite and further enhance fueling
transactions. A customer is not limited to the purchase of fuel at the dispenser. More recent
dispensers allow the customer to purchase services, such as car washes, and goods, such as
fast food or convenience store products at the dispenser. Once purchased, the customer need
only pick up the goods and services at the station store or the outlet of a vending machine.
Remote transaction systems have evolved wherein the fuel dispenser is adapted to
communicate with various types of remote communication devices, such as transponders, to
provide various types of identification and information to the fuel dispenser automatically.
Given the sophistication of these transaction systems and the numerous choices provided to
the customer at the dispenser, conducting transactions with transponders will be useful to allow the dispenser and fuel station store to monitor the movement of a person carrying a
transponder and a vehicle having a transponder, enhance transaction and marketing
efficiencies, and improve safety in the fueling environment.
Summary of the Invention
The present invention relates to monitoring a customer position throughout a fueling
environment in order to associate orders placed at the fuel dispenser with a particular customer
at an appropriate receiving point. The receiving point may be a quick-serve restaurant
drive-thru terminal, a car wash terminal, or any other point adapted to receive products or
services ordered at the fuel dispenser. In addition to associating the appropriate customer with
the order being picked up, operators of a quick-serve restaurant (QSR) can monitor or detect the position of the customer in the drive-thru lane or elsewhere in the fueling environment to
determine when to start order preparation. For example, during the fueling operation, the
customer may decide to order a few items from a QSR menu at the dispenser. As the
customer enters the order, the order is associated with the transponder carried by the customer
or mounted on the customer's vehicle.
As an alternative to providing an order at an order entry interface on the fuel dispenser the
order can be placed on an order interface located within a vehicle, which order can be
associated with a fueling transaction relating to the vehicle while located at the fuel dispenser.
-The-order interface can then transfer its order to a communication device on the forecourt
either located at the dispenser or elsewhere on the forecourt. The following description relates to embodiments where the order interface is located on the dispenser, but it will be appreciated
that the order could equally be placed at an interface within the vehicle being fueled at the
dispenser.
The customer may choose to pay for the order along with the fuel at the dispenser, at the order
pick-up position, or at one of the in-store registers associated with the QSR or the convenience
store. Assuming that the transaction was paid for at the dispenser along with the fuel, the
customer will enter the vehicle and proceed to drive around the fuel station store along a
drive-thru lane and pass a customer position monitor. As the customer approaches the
customer position monitor, a drive-thru position interrogator will receive a signal from the
transponder indicating the customer is at a known position in the drive-thru lane. At this
point, a control system will alert the food preparation area to prepare the order and indicate to an order pick-up interface and controller the position of the customer in the drive-thru lane.
Once the customer reaches the order pick-up window, the order pick-up interrogator will
determine the presence of the customer transponder and associate the customer's order
accordingly so that the drive-thru window operator can deliver the freshly prepared order to
the correct customer.
Accordingly, one aspect of the present invention is to provide a multistage ordering system
for a fueling environment. The system may include a fuel dispenser having an order entry
interface and associated first remote communications electronics adapted to communicate with
a remote communications unit associated with the customer. An order receipt position apart
from the fuel dispenser is provided and includes a second remote communications electronics adapted to communicate with a remote commumcations unit, a receipt position output
indicating the customer who placed the order is at the order receipt location, and an
intermediate location output indicating the customer is proximate said intermediate locating
position. An intermediate locating position located along the path of travel between the fuel
dispenser and the order receipt position is also provided. The intermediate locating position
has a third remote communication electronics adapted to communicate with the remote
communications unit. The control system is associated with each of the communications
electronics.
The control system is preferably adapted to communicate with the remote communications unit through the first communications electronics when the remote communications unit is
proximate a fuel dispenser, associated customer order placed at the order entry interface, and
communicate with the remote communications unit through the third remote communications
electronics when the remote communications unit is proximate the intermediate locating
position. When the customer is proximate the intermediate locating position, the control
system provides an intermediate location output in order to determine the location of the
customer between the dispenser and order receipt location. The control system will again
communicate with the remote communications unit at the order receipt location when the
customer arrives to pick up the order. The control system will identify the order at the receipt
location for the particular customer who placed the order at the order entry interface of the
fuel dispenser.
Typically, the order receipt location is associated with a quick-serve restaurant wherein the customer may order food or drink at the fuel dispenser and pick up the food order at the order
receipt location. The order receipt location is further associated with an order preparation
95 location having an order preparation output. The control system is also associated with the
order preparation output and adapted to control the order preparation output to indicate the
customer associated with the order is at the intermediate location wherein processing the order
for the customer is effected when the customer is determined to be at the intermediate
location.
100
The present invention solves the unique problems associated with keeping track of orders
from a QSR in a fueling environment. In such an environment, orders for pick up at the
drive-thru window, or within the store for that matter, may be placed in a different sequence
than that in which they are actually picked up. The reason for the possible discrepancy in
105 order placement and order pick-up arises because the orders can be placed at several locations,
including the many fuel dispensers and the traditional order entry interface of QSR. In
particular, those customer placing orders at the dispenser will most likely intermingle in the
drive-thru line with those placing orders at the order entry interface. The present invention
uses transponders to appropriately associate orders placed at different locations with the
110 appropriate customer at a common pick-up location.
These and other aspects of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the
art after reading the following description of the preferred embodiments when considered with
the drawings.
115 Brief Description of the Drawings
FIGURE 1 is a schematic representation of a fueling and retail environment constructed
according to the present invention.
120 FIGURE 2A depicts a vehicle having a vehicle-mounted transponder constructed according
to the present invention.
FIGURE 2B depicts a personal transponder integrated into a debit/credit or smartcard
constructed according to the present invention.
FIGURE 2C depicts a personal transponder integrated into key fob constructed according to
125 the present invention.
FIGURE 3 depicts a fuel dispenser shown constructed according to the present invention.
FIGURE 4 is a schematic representation of a transponder having separate communication and
cryptography electronics constructed according to the present invention.
FIGURE 5 is a schematic representation of fuel dispenser electronics constructed according 130 to the present invention.
FIGURE 6 is a schematic representation of convenience store transaction electronics,
including a transaction terminal, for a fueling environment constructed according to the
present invention.
FIGURE 7 is a schematic representation of a quick-serve restaurant control system for a
135 fueling environment constructed according to the present invention.
FIGURE 8 is a schematic representation of a car wash control system constructed according
-to the present invention.
FIGURE 9 is a schematic representation of a central control system for a fueling environment constructed according to the present invention.
140 FIGURES 10A and 1 OB are a flow chart representing a basic flow of a multistage ordering
process according to the present invention.
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments
145 In the following description, like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts
throughout the several figures. It should be understood that the illustrations are for the
purpose of describing preferred embodiments of the invention and are not intended to limit
the invention thereto.
150
As best seen in Figure 1, a fueling and retail environment, generally designated 10, is shown
constructed according to the present invention. The fueling and retail environment provides
customers 12 the opportunity to purchase fuel for their vehicles 14 as well as other goods and
services, such as fast food and car washes. The fueling and retail environment 10 may include
155 one or more of a forecourt 16, where the fuel dispensers 18 are located, a convenience or fuel
station store 20, one or more quick-serve restaurants (QSR) 22, a car wash 24, and a backroom
26. The backroom 26 is generally the central control area for integrating or coordinating
control of the dispensers 18, convenience store 20, QSR 22, and car wash 24.
160 -The-convenience store 20 typically includes an inventory of a wide assortment of products,
ranging from beverages and foods to household goods. The convenience store includes a transaction terminal or register 30, where a customer 12 may purchase convenience store
products, fuel, car washes or QSR food.
165 The QSR 22 generally includes an order pick-up area 32 having a QSR transaction terminal
or register 34 located within the convenience store and a drive-thru terminal and window 36.
Depending on the application, the QSR transaction terminal 34 and drive-thru terminal 36 may
be separated or integrated in any fashion. Usually, customers are able to place orders at the
QSR transaction terminal 34 in the store as well as pick up orders in conventional drive-thru
170 style at drive-thru terminal 36.
The QSR 22 may also include a food preparation area 40, a food preparation interface 42 for
providing order instruction to QSR food preparers, a drive-thru order placement interface 44
for placing drive-thru orders in a conventional manner, and a customer position monitor 46
175 for determining the location or position of a customer in line to pick up a QSR order at the
drive- thru window 36. Notably, the drive-thru and car wash lanes depicted in Figure 1 are
designed to control the flow of traffic through the respective lanes and aid to ensure vehicles,
and their respective transponders, pass by the various interrogation points in the fueling
environment as desired.
180
The car wash 24 includes a car wash interface 48 that interacts with the customer and controls
the automatic car wash system (not shown), which may be any suitable automatic car wash.
Preferably, a customer 12 will be able to order a car wash at a fuel dispenser 18, at the
transaction terminal or register 30 of the convenience store 20, at the QSR transaction terminal 185 34, or at the car wash interface 48 directly. Similarly, customers are able to order fast-food
items from the QSR 22 from various locations in the fueling environment 10, including at the
fuel dispensers 18, drive-thru order placement interface 44, and the in-store QSR terminal 34.
Although various overall system and control integration schemes are available, the four major
190 parts of the fueling environment 10 ~ forecourt 16, convenience store 20, QSR 22 and car
wash 24 — typically interface at the backroom 26 using a central control system 50. The
central control system 50 may include any number of individual controllers from the various
parts of the fueling environment 10 to provide overall system control and integration. The
central control system 50 may interface with the fuel dispensers 18, transaction terminal 30,
195 QSR transaction terminal 34 and the car wash interface 48. Preferably the drive- thru terminal
36, drive-thru order placement interface 44 and customer position monitor 46 directly
interface with the QSR terminal 34 in order to integrate the QSR functions prior to interfacing
with the central control system 50. However, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize
several control variations capable of implementing an integrated system. Additionally, an
200 automated vending system 28 may also interface with the central control system 50 or directly
with any one of the other areas of the fueling environment 10, such as the fuel dispensers 18,
in order to allow a customer 12 to purchase products from the vending system 28 at a remote
location.
205 The present invention relates generally to providing remote communications between the
custβmer 12 or the vehicle 14 and various parts of the fueling environment briefly described
above. In short, many areas within the fueling environment 10 will be equipped with communication electronics capable of providing uni- or bi-directional communications with
the customer or vehicle carrying a remote communications device. The communication
210 electronics will typically include a transmitter for transmitting signals to the remote
communications device and a receiver for receiving signals emanating from the remote
communications device. The remote communications device may also include a receiver and
transmitter. The transmitter and receiver of the remote communications device may separately
receive and separately transmit signals in cooperation with an associated control system or
215 may be configured so that the transmitter actually operates on and modifies a signal received
from the communication electronics in the fueling environment 10. The latter embodiment
encompasses traditional transponder-type communication systems wherein the remote
communications device may be either passive or active.
220 For the sake of conciseness and readability, the term "transponder" will be used herein to
describe any type of remote communications device capable of communicating with the
communication electronics of the fueling environment 10. The remote communications
device may include traditional receivers and transmitters alone or in combination as well as
traditional transponder electronics adapted to respond and/or modify an original signal to
225 provide a transmit signal. A transponder as defined herein may provide either unidirectional
or bidirectional communications with the communications electronics of the fueling
environment 10.
Likewise, the communication electronics associated with the various aspects of the fueling
230 environment 10 will be called an "interrogator." An interrogator will generally include a transmitter and receiver capable of communicating with a transponder as defined above.
Please note that an interrogator, as defined herein, need not contain both a receiver and a
transmitter for various aspects of the invention.
235 With the above in mind, the fueling environment 10 may include many interrogators of
varying capability. These interrogators may include: dispenser interrogators 52, a store
transaction interrogator 54, a QSR transaction interrogator 56, a drive-thru pick-up
interrogator 58, a drive-thru order interrogator 60, and a drive-thru position interrogator 62.
In addition to detecting the local presence of the transponder associated with a number of
240 vehicles may be tracked throughout the fueling environment by one or more antenna
arrangements as described in detail in the priority documents of the present application. As
shown in Figures 2A, 2B and 2C, the dispenser interrogator 52 is generally adapted to
communicate with vehicle-mounted transponders 64 and personal transponder 66. The
personal transponder 66 may be mounted on a key fob 68, a wallet card 70, or any other
245 device typically carried by the customer 12, as shown in Figures 2B and 2C. Figure 2A
depicts a vehicle 14 having a vehicle-mounted transponder 64.
The levels of sophistication of the vehicle-mounted transponder 64 may vary drastically. The
transponder 64 may be integrated with the vehicle's main computer and control system, or
250 may simply be a sticker placed on a window or on another part of the vehicle. The
transponder 64 may be active or passive, and may be adapted to either simply send out an
identification number or carry out high-level commumcations and have the ability to process,
store and retrieve information. Various features of the invention will be disclosed in greater detail.
255
As best seen in Figure 3, a fuel dispenser 18 is shown constructed according to and as part of
the present invention. The dispenser provides a fuel delivery path from an underground
storage tank (not shown) to a vehicle 14, (shown in Figures 1 and 2A). The delivery path
includes a fuel delivery line 72 having a fuel metering device 74. The fuel delivery line 72
260 communicates with a fuel delivery hose 76 outside of the dispenser 18 and a delivery nozzle
78. The nozzle 78 provides manual control of fuel delivery to the vehicle 14.
The dispenser 18 also includes a dispenser control system 80 having one or more controllers
and associated memory 82. The dispenser control system 80 may receive volume data from
265 the metering device 74 through cabling 84 as well as provide control of fuel delivery. The
dispenser control system 80 may provide audible signals to an audio module and speaker 86
in order to provide various beeps, tones and audible messages to a customer. These messages
may include warnings, instructions and advertising.
270 The dispenser 18 is preferably equipped with a payment acceptor, such as a card reader 88 or
cash acceptor 90, along with a receipt printer 92. With these options, the dispenser control
system 80 may read data from the magnetic strip of a card inserted in the card reader 88 or
receive cash from a customer and communicate such information to the central control system
50 (as shown in Figure 1), such as the G-site controller sold by Gilbarco Inc., 7300 West
275 Friendly Avenue, Greensboro, North Carolina. The central control system 50 typically
communicates with a remote network 94, such as a card verification authority, to ascertain whether a transaction proposed to be charged to or debited from an account associated with
the card inserted in the card reader 88 is authorized.
280 The dispenser 18 will include one or more types of displays, preferably one or more
alpha-numeric displays 96 together with a high-resolution graphics display 100. The graphics
display 100 will generally have an associated key pad 102 adjacent to the display or integrated
with the display to provide a touch interface. The dispenser may include an additional,
auxiliary key pad 104 associated with the card reader 88 for entering secret codes or personal
285 identification numbers (PENf's). Notably, the displays 96, 100 and key pads 102, 104 may be
integrated into a single device and/or touch interface. The dispenser control system 80 is
preferably comparable to the microprocessor-based control systems used in CRIND (card
reader in dispenser) and TRIND (tag or transponder reader in dispenser) type units sold by
Gilbarco Inc. under the trademark THE ADVANTAGE.
290
As noted, the dispenser control system 80 may include or be associated with dispenser
communication electronics referred to as interrogator 52 for providing remote unidirectional
or bidirectional communications between a transponder and the dispenser. These transponders
may incorporate the Micron Microstamp"! produced by Micron Communications, Inc., 8000
295 South Federal Way, Boise, Idaho 83707-0006. Additionally, the dispenser 18 may include
one or more antennas 108 associated with the dispenser interrogator 52.
-Turning now to Figure 4, the preferred embodiment of a transponder is shown. Transponder
communication electronics 110, adapted to provide remote communications with the various 300 interrogators, include a transmitter 114 and receiver 116 having associated antennas 118, 120.
The transmitter 114 and receiver 116 operate to transmit and receive data to and from an
interrogator. The communication electronics 110 may include a battery power supply 122,
a communication controller 124 associated with a memory 126, having software 128
necessary to operate the communication electronics 110 and optional cryptography electronics
305 112.
Serial commumcations between the communication electronics 110 and cryptography
electronics 112 is provided via the input/output (I/O) ports 130, 140 associated with the
respective electronics. The communication electronics 110 provide a signal from a clock 132
310 to the I/O port 140 of the cryptography electronics 112. The cryptography electronics 112
include a controller 134, memory 136 and software 138 necessary to encrypt and decrypt data,
as well as provide any additional operations. The memory 126, 136 may include random
access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), or a combination thereof. Notably, the
communication controller 124 and the cryptography controller 134 may be integrated into one
315 controller. Similarly, the software and memory of the communication and cryptography
modules may be integrated or embodied in hardware.
Figure 5 shows a basic schematic overview of the dispenser electronics wherein a dispenser
control system 80 includes a controller associated with the memory 82 to interface with the
320 central control system 50 through an interface 146. The dispenser control system 80 provides
a graphical user interface with key pad 102 and display 100. Audio/video electronics 86 is
adapted to interface with the dispenser control system 80 and/or an auxiliary audio/video source 156 to provide advertising, merchandising and multimedia presentations to a customer
in addition to basic transaction functions. The graphical user interface provided by the
325 dispenser allows customers to purchase goods and services other than fuel at the dispenser.
The customer may purchase a car wash and/or order food from the QSR while fueling the
vehicle. Preferably, the customer is provided a video menu at the display 100 to facilitate
selection of the various services, goods and food available for purchase. The card reader 88
and cash acceptor 90 allow the customer to pay for any of the services, goods or food ordered
330 at the dispenser while the printer 92 will provide a written record of the transaction. The
dispenser control system 80 is operatively associated with a dispenser interrogator 52, which
has a receiver 142 and a transmitter 144. The receiver and transmitter typically associate with
one or more antennas 108 to provide remote communications with a transponder. The dispenser control system 80 communicates with the central control system 50 in the backroom
335 26.
In like fashion, the convenience store transaction electronics shown in Figure 6, and more
specifically the transaction terminal register 30, include a store transaction controller 152,
associated memory 154, the interrogator 54, and a display and key pad 150, 160 forming a
340 transaction terminal interface. The transaction controller 152 interacts with the central control
system 50 through the central site control interface 160. The interrogator 54 includes a
receiver 162 and a transmitter 164, both of which are associated with one or more antennas
166. The transaction terminal 30 is adapted to provide typical transaction functions of a cash
register and a card authorization terminal in addition to communicating with transponders
345 within the store and/or proximate to the terminal. The communications between the transponder and the store transaction terminal are generally related to transactional and
customer identification and monitoring, although other features will become apparent to those
skilled in the art upon reading this disclosure.
350 Attention is now drawn to Figure 7 and the schematic outline of the QSR electronics shown
therein. The QSR will generally have a controller 168 and associated memory 170 capable
of interfacing with the central control system 50 through a central site control interface 172.
As with many QSR's, a transaction terminal or register 174 is provided having a key pad 176
and display 178. The QSR transaction terminal 174 is used by a QSR operator to take
355 customer orders from within the store in conventional fashion. The orders are either verbally
or electronically communicated to the food preparation area 40 through the QSR controller
168. The QSR transaction terminal 174 is associated with interrogator 56 having a receiver
177 and a transmitter 179 associated with one or more antennas 175. The food preparation
area will typically have a food preparation interface 42 having a display 180 and a key pad
360 182. The food preparation interface 42 may be a terminal run from the QSR controller 168
or may contain a food preparation controller 184 within the food preparation interface 42.
However the system is arranged, order information is passed from one of the order interfaces
to the food preparation display 180 to alert food preparers of an order.
365 In a QSR embodiment providing drive-thru capability, a remote order entry interface 186 is
provided. The order entry interface 186 may include a simple menu board and audio intercom
-system 188, or in a more sophisticated embodiment, may provide for bi-directional video
intercom using the audio intercom 188 and a video system 190 allowing the customer and QSR operator to audibly and visually interact with one another during order placement. The
370 order entry interface 186 may also include an interrogator 60 having a receiver 192 and a
transmitter 194, associated with one or more antennas 195, for communicating with a
transponder of a customer when the customer is placing an order at the order entry interface
186.
375 Typically, orders placed at the order entry interface 186 are sent to the order pick-up interface
196, which is normally situated proximate to the pick-up window 36 at the end of the
drive-thru lane. The order pick-up interface 196 will have an audio system 198 to provide the
audio intercom and an optional video system 200 if video intercom with the order entry
interface 186 is desired. The order pick-up interface 196 also has an associated interrogator
380 58 having a receiver 202 and a transmitter 204 associated with one or more antennas 206.
Unlike existing QSR's, the present invention may include a customer position detector 208,
preferably placed somewhere along the drive-thru lane to detect when a customer is at or is
past that position en route to pick up an order, which may have been placed at a fuel dispenser
385 18. The customer position detector 208 is associated with the drive-thru position interrogator
62 and includes a receiver 210 and a transmitter 212 associated with one or more antennas
214.
Figure 8 depicts the basic outhne of the car wash electronics, which includes a controller 216,
390 -memory 218, a key pad 220, a display 222 and the interrogator 51. The key pad 220 and
display 222 combine with the controller 216 to provide a customer interface 48. The interrogator 51 includes a receiver 224 and a transmitter 226 associated with one or more
antennas 228. Additionally, the car wash controller 216 preferably communicates with the
central control system 50 in the store via a central site control interface 230. The interrogator
395 51 will typically communicate with a customer transponder to automatically authorize a car
wash previously paid for at the dispenser or inside the store. The key pad may be used to
insert a secret code or other information to select a type of wash or otherwise authorize the
car wash.
400 Figure 9 generally depicts the central control system 50 found in the backroom 26 of the
fueling environment 10. The central control system 50 may include one or more controllers
232 associated with memory 234. The central control system 50 may include multiple
interfaces with the various areas in the fueling environment 10. These interfaces include the
car wash interface 230, dispenser interface 146, QSR interface 172 and the vending interface
405 236 connected to an automated vending machine 28. Additionally, the central controller 232
may have a dedicated network or authorization interface 238 connected to a host transaction
network 94 for authorizing credit and debit transactions and the like. An Internet interface
may also be provided for transactions and other information relating to operation, advertising,
merchandising and general inventory and management functions.
410
The dedicated authorization interface and/or Internet interface may operate on a dedicated
service line or a telephone system 242. Furthermore, the central control system 50 may have
a direct operator interface 244 associated with the controller 232 to allow an operator to
interact with the control system. In more advanced embodiments, a central positioning 415 interface 246 associated with multiple antennas 248 may be used to determine transponder
position and location throughout the fueling environment.
Multistage Ordering
420 One of the many unique aspects of the present invention is providing for monitoring customer
position throughout the fueling environment in order to associate orders placed at the fuel
dispenser with the particular customer that placed the order at the appropriate receiving point,
such as the QSR drive-thru terminal and window 36, QSR transaction terminal 34 in the store,
or, in the case of a car wash, at the car wash interface 48. In addition to associating the
425 customer picking up the order with the appropriate order, the QSR can monitor or detect the
position of the customer in the drive-thru line or elsewhere in the fueling environment to determine when to start order preparation.
For example, during the fueling operation, the customer may decide to order a few items from
430 the QSR menu displayed at the dispenser 18. As the customer enters the order, the order is
associated with the transponder carried by the customer or mounted on the customer's vehicle.
The customer may choose to pay for the order along with the fuel at the dispenser, at the order
pick-up place at the drive-thru window, or at one of the in-store registers associated with the
QSR or the convenience store. Continuing with our example and assuming the transaction
435 was paid for at the dispenser along with the fuel, the customer will enter his vehicle and
proceed to drive around the fuel station store along the drive-thru lane and pass the customer
position monitor 46. As the customer approaches the customer position monitor 46, the drive-thru position interrogator 62 will receive a signal from the customer transponder
indicating the customer is at a known position in the drive-thru lane. At this point, the QSR
440 control system 168 will alert the food preparation area 40 to prepare the order and indicate to
the order pick-up interface and controller 196 the position of the customer in the drive- thru
lane. Once the customer reaches the order pick-up window, the order pick-up interrogator
will determine the presence of the customer transponder and associate the customer's order
accordingly so that the drive-thru window operator can deliver the freshly prepared order to
445 the correct customer.
Flow charts 10A and 10B represent the basic flow of various multistage ordering processes.
The process begins (block 500) when the dispenser interrogator 52 receives a signal from a
transponder 12, 14 and the dispenser control system 80 forwards transponder identification
450 indicia (ID) to the central control system 50 for authorization (block 502). Authorization may
occur locally at the central site controller 232 or at a remote host authorization network. The
information to be authorized is generally financial or account information and can either be
transmitted with the transponder ID or stored at the central control system 50 or the host
network 94 in association with the transponder ID. In the latter case, either the host network
455 94 or the central control system 50 will associate the ID with the stored account information
and then authorize the transponder based on the correlated account information. Preferably,
the transponder is read and authorized as the customer and/or vehicle approaches or initially
stops at the fueling position and preferably, at least, before a transaction is initiated to increase
transaction efficiency. As the customer fuels the vehicle, the dispenser may display various
460 types of information including advertising and instructional information. Preferably, the dispenser 18 will display options for ordering food items from the QSR or ordering a car wash
at the car wash 24 (block 504). The dispenser 18 will determine whether an order is placed
(block 506). The dispenser 18 will receive any orders placed by the customer (block 508) and
associate the order with the transponder in some fashion (block 510). Typically, the order is
465 associated with a transponder by (1) associating the order with the transponder ID at one of
the control systems, (2) transmitting and storing a code associated with the order on the
transponder, or (3) actually storing the order on the transponder. Those of ordinary skill in
the art will recognize that there are many variations available for associating an order with a
transponder. These variations are considered within the scope of this disclosure and the
470 claims that follow.
Although there are various options, two general methods for associating an order with a transponder will be discussed below. With the first, no information is transmitted to the
transponder relating to the order. Instead, the electronics at the dispenser 18, central control
475 system 50 or the QSR 22 stores the order information and associates the order with the
transponder ID. When one of the interrogators subsequently reads the transponder ID, the
pertinent system will correlate the order with the transponder ID. The second method
involves writing information to the transponder at the dispenser 18 and subsequently
transmitting that information to one of the system interrogators for authorization or order
480 identification. The information written to the transponder may range from a code for
identification authorization purposes to the complete order placed at the dispenser.
Returning to Figure 10A, the basic flow of both of the above-discussed methods are shown.
In cases where one of the control systems associates an order based on the transponder ID, the customer order is transferred to the QSR controller 108 through the central control system 50
485 (block 12). The dispenser 18 will effect payment for the transaction (typically adding the
QSR purchase total to the fueling charge) and the QSR controller 168 will alert the food
preparation area to prepare the order (block 514).
In a basic environment, the QSR order pick-up interface 198 will monitor for the presence of
490 a transponder through the drive-thru pick-up interrogator 58 or the in-store QSR transaction
terminal interrogator 56 (block 516). If a transponder is not detected, the systems continue
to monitor for a transponder (block 518). Once a transponder is detected, the transponder ID
is received (block 520) and the transponder ID is associated with the appropriate order (block
522). At this point, the QSR operator located at the pick-up window or the in-store
495 transaction terminal is informed of the order corresponding to the customer at the window or
terminal (block 524) and the fueling and retail transaction for that particular customer ends (block 526).
Alternatively, once a customer places an order and the dispenser 18 receives the order (block
500 508), and the order is associated with the transponder (block 510), the dispenser 18 may
transmit order indicia, such as a code for the order itself, to the transponder for storage (block
528). Next, the dispenser 18 will effect payment for the transaction as discussed above (block
530). In the more basic embodiment discussed above, the QSR interrogators associated with
the QSR window or in-store terminal will monitor for the presence of a transponder (block
505 -516-and 518), receive the transponder order indicia (block 518), and associate the order with
the indicia received from the transponder (block 522). The operator is then informed of the order for that particular customer (block 524).
In any of the above embodiments, the customer position detector 46 may be used to alert QSR
operators of the approach and location in the drive- thru line of a particular customer. For the
sake of clarity, the process of Figure 10A only depicts using the customer position detector
46 in a process where order indicia is transmitted to the transponder. Please note that using
the customer position detector 46 may be used in any of the embodiments, as those of ordinary
skill in the art will appreciate.
Once the order is placed, received and associated with the transponder in normal fashion
(blocks 500-510), indicia of the order is transmitted to the transponder (block 528) and the
transaction is effected (block 530) in normal fashion. At this point, the customer position detector 46 will monitor for the presence of a transponder via the interrogator 62 (blocks 532
and 534). Once a transponder is detected, the customer position detector 46 will forward the
transponder indicia to the food preparation area 40 through the QSR controller 108. This
allows for the food preparation operators to timely prepare a customer order based on the
customer's approach to the pick-up window (block 536). This information may also be sent
to the pick-up operator to indicate customer position. The customer will proceed along the
drive-thru lane until the pick-up window is approached where the transponder is detected by
the order pick-up interrogator 58 (blocks 516 and 518). The transponder ID or indicia is
received by the QSR electronics, and the operator is informed of the order corresponding to
the customer at the window (blocks 522-526). 530 The multistage ordering works equally well with QSR's and car wash systems. When a car
wash is ordered at the dispenser, the particular car wash ordered is associated with the
transponder at the dispenser and subsequently reassociated when the customer approaches the
car wash area 24 and is interrogated by the car wash interrogator 51. In the preferred
embodiment, the dispenser operates in conjunction with the central control system 50 to
535 provide authorization of the car wash purchased at the dispenser. When the customer is at the
car wash 24, the customer's transponder is interrogated for an ID or a code, which the car
wash controller and/or the central control system 50 recognizes as preauthorized. If additional
security is necessary on any of these embodiments, the customer may receive a code or other
indicia, which they are required to enter or submit when the corresponding goods or services
540 are received.
Furthermore, the fuel dispenser 18 is not the only point of sale where ordering may take place.
A customer having a transponder may, for instance, order a car wash in conjunction with
placing an order at the in-store QSR terminal or the convenience store terminal while
545 purchasing food or other merchandise. The interrogators at either of these terminals can just
as easily associate the car wash with the customer transponder and operate through the central
control system 50 to subsequently reassociate the customer and the car wash ordered at the
car wash interface 48. The multistage ordering disclosed herein provides a solution for
keeping track of various transactions in a fueling environment where customer orders are
550 picked up in locations separate from where they are placed and very likely may not be picked
-up in the order they were placed. Certain modifications and improvements will within the scope of the following claims occur
to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the foregoing description.

Claims

Claims
1. A forecourt ordering system comprising:
565 a. a remote communications unit associated with a customer.
b. an order entry user interface for accepting an order from a customer and
identifying it with the remote communications unit associated with the
customer.
570
c. an order receipt position, remote from the order interface, having a
communications device for receiving the customer order from the order interface, and a communications device for receiving a communication relating
to the position of the remote communications unit, further comprising
575 processing means to match the order received from the order interface with the
communication relating to the position of the remote communications unit so
that an order can be associated with the customer at the order receipt position.
2. A system as claimed in Claim 1 comprising a fuel dispenser wherein the order entry
580 interface is at the fuel dispenser.
3. A system as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the order entry interface is located within a
vehicle with which the remote communications unit is associated.
585 4. A system as claimed in Claim 3 further comprising a fuel dispenser wherein the
remote communications unit is associated with a fuelling transaction at the fuel
dispenser.
5. A system as claimed in Claim 4 wherein the remote commumcations unit
590 communicates with a receiver and or transmitter associated with a fuel dispenser.
6. A system as claimed in Claim 3,4, or 5 wherein the order interface has a display and
input device located within a vehicle cabin, said order interface adapted to provide a
selection of items to order and receive an order via said input device; the system
595 further comprising:
a. vehicle communication electronics associated with said order interface and
adapted to wirelessly transmit the order for ultimate receipt at the order receipt
position.
600 b. a control system configured to display said selection of items to order on said
display, determine the order based on occupant input received via said input
device, and effect wireless transmission of the order.
605 7. A system as claimed in Claim 2,4,5 or 6 wherein payment for goods or services to be
received from the order receipt position is combined with payment for a fuelling
transaction.
8. A system as claimed in Claim 2 wherein
610 a) the fuel dispenser has associated first communications electronics adapted to
communicate with the remote communications unit.
b) the order receipt position has:
i) second communications electronics adapted to communicate with the
615 remote communications unit associated with the customer, and
ii) an output indicating the customer who placed the order is at the order
receipt position;
620 c) the system further comprising a control system associated with said order
interface, said first and second communications electronics and said output of
said order receipt position, said control system adapted to:
i) communicate with the remote communications unit through said first
625 communications electronics when said remote communications unit is
proximate said fuel dispenser;
ii) associate a customer order placed at the order interface with the remote
communications unit; iii) communicate with the remote communications unit through said
second communications electronics when said remote communications
unit is proximate said order receipt position; and
635 iv) identify the order at the order receipt position associated with the
remote communications unit of the customer who placed the order at
the order entry interface of the fuel dispenser and provide said output
indicating the customer who placed the order is at the order receipt
position. 640
9. A system as claimed in Claim 8 wherein data transmitted to said first and second
communications electronics includes a remote communications unit identifier and said
control system associates the customer order with the identifier.
645 10. A system as claimed in Claim 8 or 9 wherein said control system is adapted to:
a) provide order identification data and have said first communications
electronics transmit said order identification data to the remote
communications unit when the order is placed at the fuel dispenser; and
650 b) receive the order identification data from the remote communications unit via
said second communications electronics to identify the customer at said order
receipt position.
11. A system as claimed in any one of Claim 8, 9 or 10 wherein said control system is
655 associated with a remote payment/authorisation network and said fuel dispenser
further includes a card reader adapted to read payment cards and transmit card data
from the cards to the payment/authorisation network to facilitate payment of fuel and
the order.
660 12. A system as claimed in any one of Claims 8 to 11 wherein said control system includes
a dispenser controller located with said fuel dispenser and adapted to operate said
order entry user interface and said communications electronics.
13. A system as claimed in any preceding claim wherein said order receipt position
665 includes an automatic car wash wherein the customer may order a car wash at the order interface and said processing means will activate said car wash when the
customer is an appropriate location proximate to said order receipt position.
14. A system as claimed in any preceding claim wherein said order receipt position
670 includes a restaurant or store wherein the customer may order food or drink at the
order interface and pick up the food order at said order receipt position.
15. A system as claimed in any preceding claim wherein said order receipt location
includes a vending machine wherein the customer may order food or drink at the order
675 interface and pick up the food order at said order receipt position.
16. A system as claimed in any one of claims 8 to 12 further comprising:
a) an intermediate locating position located on a path of travel between said fuel
680 dispenser and said order receipt position, said intermediate locating position
having third communications electronics adapted to communicate with the
remote communications unit; and
b) a control system associated with: said order interface; said first
685 communications electronics of said fuel dispenser; said third communications
electronics of said intermediate locating position; and said second
communications electronics; and said output of said order receipt position, said
control system adapted to:
690 i) communicate with the remote communications unit through said first
communications electronics when said remote communications unit is
proximate said fuel dispenser;
ii) associate a customer order placed at the order entry user interface with
695 the remote communications unit associated with the customer;
iii) communicate with the remote communications unit through said third
communications electronics when said remote communications unit is
proximate said intermediate locating position indicating said customer 700 is near said intermediate locating position;
iv) provide said intermediate location output indicating the customer is
proximate said intermediate locating position;
v) communicate with the remote communications unit through said
705 second communications electronics when said remote communications
unit is proximate said order receipt location; and
vi) identify the order at the order receipt position associated with the
remote communications unit of the customer who placed the order at
710 the order entry interface of the fuel dispenser and provide said output
indicating the customer who placed the order is at the order receipt
position.
715
PCT/GB1998/002919 1997-09-26 1998-09-28 A forecourt ordering system for fuel and services at a filling station WO1999016700A1 (en)

Priority Applications (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
EP98944131A EP1017614B1 (en) 1997-09-26 1998-09-28 A forecourt ordering system for fuel and services at a filling station
DE69801588T DE69801588T2 (en) 1997-09-26 1998-09-28 ORDERING SYSTEM FOR FUEL AND CUSTOMER SERVICE AT A FILLING STATION
AU91796/98A AU735470B2 (en) 1997-09-26 1998-09-28 A forecourt ordering system for fuel and services at a filling station

Applications Claiming Priority (6)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US6006697P 1997-09-26 1997-09-26
US60/060,066 1997-09-26
US09/034,969 US6810304B1 (en) 1997-09-26 1998-03-04 Multistage ordering system for a fueling and retail environment
US09/034,969 1998-03-04
US09/119,905 US6574603B1 (en) 1997-09-26 1998-07-21 In-vehicle ordering
US09/119,905 1998-07-21

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO1999016700A1 true WO1999016700A1 (en) 1999-04-08

Family

ID=27364779

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/GB1998/002919 WO1999016700A1 (en) 1997-09-26 1998-09-28 A forecourt ordering system for fuel and services at a filling station

Country Status (5)

Country Link
US (1) US6574603B1 (en)
EP (1) EP1017614B1 (en)
AU (1) AU735470B2 (en)
DE (1) DE69801588T2 (en)
WO (1) WO1999016700A1 (en)

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