RFID-Based Rental Car Return and Boarding Pass Automation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current systems for car rental return and airline boarding pass generation are inefficient, requiring manual intervention and lengthy processes, especially when travelers need to manage multiple passengers' boarding passes and rental car returns simultaneously.
Innovation Solution
An integrated system using RFID tags on rental cars, connected to a local computer with internet access, allows real-time communication with a central database for travel information, enabling automatic generation of boarding passes and rental receipts at the car return site via a hand-held wireless unit or kiosk, eliminating the need for multiple attendants.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual processes are used for car rental return and boarding pass generation, then flexibility and adaptability are maintained, but processing time increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges the car rental return process with the boarding pass generation process into a single integrated workflow. When a traveler returns a rental car, the system automatically retrieves their flight information from the central database and generates boarding passes simultaneously, eliminating the need for separate manual processes and significantly improving processing speed.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service by allowing travelers to have their boarding passes automatically generated without requiring airline staff intervention. The automated system retrieves traveler information, generates boarding passes, and delivers them to travelers, reducing labor requirements while maintaining service quality.
2Ease of operation
If multiple attendants are deployed to handle car returns and boarding passes, then service quality is maintained, but operational cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces multiple attendants with an automated self-service system that handles car return processing and boarding pass generation. Travelers receive service through automated kiosks or mobile devices, maintaining service quality while eliminating the need for multiple staff members to be present simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides multi-functionality by handling multiple tasks through a single automated platform: identifying the returning vehicle, retrieving traveler information, generating boarding passes for multiple passengers, and processing the car return. This universal system replaces the need for multiple specialized attendants.
3Loss of time
If travelers manually obtain boarding passes separately from car rental returns, then system simplicity is maintained, but time loss and inconvenience increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system combines the car rental return transaction with boarding pass generation into a single automated process. When the traveler returns the car, the system automatically retrieves their flight information and generates boarding passes simultaneously, eliminating the need for separate trips to airline counters and significantly reducing wait time.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by having travelers pre-register their flight information with the rental car company during the rental period. This advance preparation enables the automated system to instantly generate boarding passes upon car return, eliminating delays associated with manual information retrieval and processing.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Streamlines the car return and boarding pass generation process by automating the identification and processing of travel information, reducing wait times and allowing for simultaneous handling of multiple passengers' documents without requiring multiple attendants.
Implementation Method 1
a reader adapted to read each identifying tag as a traveler drives the car onto a rental car lot
Data Source
AI summary
The invention provides a system and method for integrating rental vehicle return with airline boarding pass generation. The system includes a rental identification tag located on a rental vehicle and a tag reader located at a rental vehicle return facility for reading and identifying the rental vehicle identification tag when the rental vehicle enters a range of the tag reader. The system additionally includes a database containing information linking a traveler to the rental identification tag and to airline reservation information of the traveler and a computing system communicating with the database and the tag reader to locate the airline reservation information of the traveler based on the identification provided by the tag reader. The system also includes a boarding pass generator for generating a boarding pass based on the airline reservation information upon receiving an instruction from the computing system.