Key return portal
OwnerRobert Sobie, Graham Rossinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Methods and apparatus for detecting the retention of a car key by a customer after return of a rental car are disclosed. A plurality of RFID tags having a common identifier are attached to the rental car keys. The shuttle bus or other facility exit is equipped with a detection portal configured to detect a RFID tag having the common identifier and provide a signal upon detection of the RFID tag to a monitor that provides an alert upon receipt of the signal.
Claims12
An apparatus for recovering a vehicle key that has been retained by a customer after returning a rental vehicle, comprising:
- a Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) tag that is attached to the vehicle key associated with the returned rental vehicle;
- and a detection portal disposed at a location remote from the returned rental vehicle and having a zone of coverage that does not include any rental vehicle, the portal configured to detect the RFID tag when the RFID tag is within the zone of coverage and provide a signal when the RFID tag is detected, wherein the detection portal is disposed at a location outside of a drop off area of a rental vehicle return facility such that the customer must pass through the zone of coverage in order to exit the drop off area.
A method of recovering a vehicle key retained by a customer after returning a rental vehicle, the method comprising the steps of:
- attaching a Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) tag to the vehicle key;
- and operating a detection portal disposed at a location remote from the returned rental vehicle and having a zone of coverage that does not include any rental vehicle, wherein the detection portal is configured to detect the RFID tag when the RFID tag is within the zone of coverage and, upon such detection, provide a signal, wherein the detection portal is disposed at a location outside of a drop off area of a rental vehicle return facility such that the customer must pass through the zone of coverage in order to exit the drop off area.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.