The driver begins his/her shift by signing into the driver MDT/DIM with a hack number and password.

The hack numbers and passwords are maintained in the SmartCab™ database and logon information is checked to ensure that the user is authorized to operate the vehicle.

 

Passenger hails a vehicle, or calls dispatch for a pickup

The trip begins when the passenger is onboard and the driver turns the taximeter on. The DIM automatically captures the current time ad location and then signals the PIM to begin the passenger experience.

 

The passenger views the information and advertising on the PIM
The PIM begins by displaying a welcome message from the taxi company with both fare and safety information. When this is complete, the PIM enters into the normal trip state, providing the passenger with a selection of options including entertainment, news or a map. The PIM may also be turned off.

The information is displayed on a full motion, color, video touch-screen. It includes a map pinpointing the taxi’s location from the position information provided by the GPS. DDS GPS’ use a high quality 12 or 20 channel GPS receiver which is rated to provide an accuracy of better than 5.2m in normal conditions. The device includes a dead reckoning feature, providing inertial guidance in the event that GPS signals are lost.

News, entertainment and city information are provided by a content partner via the Content Manager, an application that collects the content and stores it in a relational database.

Digital Dispatch’s communications gateway product, WiNG™ provides information routing between the in-vehicle equipment and the SmartCab’s services. It also routes content and usage statistics between the Content Manager and the PIM.

 

The driver turns the meter off. The DIM captures the current location and time, and it then signals to the PIM that the trip is complete and the PIM begins the payment application providing the passenger with the options of paying by cash or by debit/credit card.

For a cash transaction, the passenger can simply give the driver the cash for the trip and the driver can complete the transaction from the DIM.

 

The DIM has an integrated card swipe for debit/credit card payments. The passenger is able to enter a tip amount before swiping the card and finalizing the transaction by entering in either round numbers or using the provided tip calculator. The card information is encrypted by the PIM and then sent to the SmartCab™ services. The card data is sent from there to DDS’s payment solutions provider using secure protocol with security certificates issued by a trusted signing authority.

The receipt is then printed from the taximeter printer or from Digital Dispatch’s optional SmartPrint™ mobile printer. The driver hands the customer their receipt, and a copy of the receipt is also printed for the driver.

Finally, the PIM displays a message from the taxi company thanking the passenger.

 

Text messages on the DIM

The SmartCab™ user interface operated by dispatchers and managers provides access to the SmartCab™ Services, which is used to send the drivers messages. When a message is sent, it is first delivered to the SmartCab™ database, then the SmartCab™ messaging service forwards the information to WiNG™. WiNG™ is responsible for delivering the message to the DIM.

In the cab, the driver will receive notification by the DIM that a message has been received, but only when the vehicle is stationary. The driver has a simple interface to access the messages and respond to them if required.

When the driver’s shift is over, he or she can log off quickly and easily using the DIM, and this will signal back to the dispatch office that they are no longer available for trips.

Electronic trip sheets are automatically collected for every trip using information from the different components of the system as described above. The DIM retains all individual trip data so that a trip sheet can be printed by the driver at the end of the shift.
To review the trip sheet at a later time, including access to information about trips paid by debit/credit cards, drivers can login to a special website, where a secure login ensures that the trip information is accessible only to the driver or to the fleet administrator.