The computer mobile terminal located in taxicabs automatically performs many of the functions that a driver normally does on a voice dispatch system. The vehicle's computer provides the cab number and driver's name every time there is communication between the car and the dispatch office.
A signal will be automatically emitted by the system when the vehicle moves a pre-determined distance from its previous location or when no location has been provided within a set time period.The communication may also be initiated from the vehicle whenever the driver presses the 'send' button on the computer, turns the meter on or off, or pushes the emergency button. Whenever there is communication between the car and the dispatch, the GPS unit's location (latitude and longitude co-ordinates) are logged by the dispatch computer.
The dispatch centre is able to keep track of all brokerage taxicab vehicles. It is also able to establish the car's status at any given time from the on-board computer. The dispatch centre can at a glance determine into which dispatch zone a vehicle is booked, whether the car's meter is on or off, whether the taxicab is on a dispatched call, or if the vehicle is idle and not using the system.
The vehicle's status is important for the base computer to dispatch customer orders to the cars. When the brokerage receives a call from a customer, the GPS location of the pick-up address is known. The dispatch centre's computer is then able to determine if there are any cars booked into the corresponding zone and if so, dispatch the call to the top car. The driver will be able to see on his or her on-board computer screen the dispatched fare. If the driver decides to take the fare, he or she will "roger" the order. The full pick-up information will then be transmitted to his or her cab's computer. If the fare is rejected, the driver must book back in and his or her position drops to the bottom of the queue.
As a car drives from zone to zone, the computer will automatically book the vehicle into the new zone. In the outlying parts of the City, the computer uses a CVD (Closest Vehicle Dispatch) process.  If no vehicles are booked into the outlying corresponding zone, the computer will identify, and offer the fare to, the taxicab closest to the pick-up address according to the last logged location of the vehicles. In this case, the driver will be provided with the distance to the address and he or she will still be able to either accept or reject the fare.
This is a basic overview of how the GPS is used to dispatch orders to cabs. It is important to note that there are a variety of dispatch-related functions that tend to be particular or unique to the different brokerages in the City.
|
