The Japanese ETC system uses three types of hardware; roadside antennas, on-board equipment (OBE) and an ETC credit card, in order to provide highway patrons with non-stop ETC service at tollgates. The OBE on a vehicle entering the highway will execute wireless communication with the roadside antenna. As the vehicle enters and leaves the highway, the ETC system writes the entrance information onto the IC chip of the ETC credit card inserted in the OBE, and at the exit tollgate, the total fee will be calculated instantly according to the entrance information read. The calculated toll rate will then be sent from the tollgate to a central computer that controls toll rates throughout Japan. The information is then sent via a credit card company to the holder of the ETC credit card who will be charged few days later. The ETC credit card is an IC card for ETC toll transactions. Credit card companies issue these ETC credit cards and OBE manufacturers produce the OBE. Common specifications are developed for each of the roadside antenna, OBE and ETC credit card; however, under the competition principle, manufacturers in each field are able to devote themselves to developing better products using their own technology.
Samenvatting