workshop 5

Part 1:
1. what type of mobile devices are suitable for:
a. Just the SMS message service;
b. The full user experience via SMS, GPS Taxi tracking and Google Maps


Some of the mobile devices which would be suitable for SMS service would be
Mobile handsets
Pager

Some of the mobile devices which provide a full user experience are
• Blackberry handset
• I phones
• Nokia N-series
• GPRS PDA phone or Mobile data terminals (MDT)
• The Datax 3 Mobile data terminal

2. Describe any new hardware, networking, software, systems, procedures and personnel that would be needed by the taxi company Website to support this stage 2 developments.

Assuming the future it seem that the biggest problem in coming time would the increased calls to the booking office ,which will lead to delayed response .so to overcome these problem the solution would be
Speech recognition:

Through this system taxi patrons can simply talk directly to the taxi dispatch computer using any telephone to carry out their booking requests. Customers don’t have to struggle with confusing push button menus, because the solution ‘understands’ the verbal request from the customer’s normal speech. The automated booking system offers customers many benefits including no waiting in phone queues to book a taxi, accurate entry of booking requests, 24 x 7 availability and an ‘automated operator’ that is always happy and polite.
The hardware to support this would be dual DL380 Compaq servers, which run the application software and the voice recognition engine. (Vecommerce)


Part C: Online Taxi Business Process Modelling
Apart from the business basics of offering a clean car, safe driving, being on time, consider the business processes involved and construct a Simple Online Taxi business process model using any suitable drawing tool.


The process model will be designed keeping in view that The taxi cars should be equipped with a GPS unit which gives the position of the car at each moment. They should also contain a system which communicates with the central. At the central there should be a computer system which does the planning. This means the planner can be sacked and money can be saved. The operator takes a call from a customer, enters the data into the system and then reads o_ the produced information on the screen. Communication with the taxi cars should go via the distributed computer system and should involve the taxi drivers as little as possible. The model includes Automated Taxi Location and Despatch System (ATLDS) for TIBS Taxis Pte. Ltd. In collaboration with Signalling Technology Pty. Ltd., an Australian company, the ATLDS incorporates the best of GPS (Global Positioning System), CDS (Computerised Despatch System), IVR (Interactive Voice Response) and Public Mobile Data Network (PMDN) technologies.

The steps are :
Before the Ride
 Customer make booking of taxis through the telephone, PC dial-up, credit card terminal, palm top and the IVR system
 The Order Taking Subsystem comprises a PABX and an IVR system. The PABX connects calls and the IVR provides the interactive response to the caller
 Customer provided the his details name, address ,phone, pickup time ,any special consideration, cab requirement - luxury or sports ,passenger travelling
 The CLI feature enables the ATLDS system to identify the caller and at such it is able to retrieve prior information of the caller (such as names and pick-up addresses) stored in the system database.
 The IVR greets the caller with pre-recorded messages and prompts the caller at every step to provide his booking details by pressing of keys on a telephone.
 The system locates the most suitable taxis (based on a number of search criteria) that is nearest to the pick-up point with the help of the GPS.
 The system sends out the pick-up address through the PMDN network.
 Vacant taxis within the search radius of the pick-up address will automatically respond to the system their positions.
 The booking details are sent to the driver of the selected taxis via the PMDN.
 With the information received, the system computes the distances of the taxis and the taxi nearest to the pick-up address will then be allocated the job.
 The system will automatically announce to the customer the taxis number plate and ETA (Expected Time of Arrival) through the IVR.
 The Mobile Data Terminal provides the display of message containing booking details to the taxi driver.
During the Ride
 Digital maps are available for cabbies to check out unfamiliar pick up locations.
 The system also provides traffic, geographical and topological information.
 The customer will be receiving notifications from taxis driver in various time intervals for example: every 5 min the customer will get the updated location of the taxi.
 Since taxi driver have all the details, he will greet the customer with his name.
 The taxi driver would initiate a conversation and continue with it if they are interested or show interest if they started talking first.

End of the Ride
 There are two kinds of customers: a contract customer who receives monthly invoices and others which pay directly to the taxi driver.
 Taxi driver would help the customer get out of the car and would have their luggage ready waiting for them and say goodbye.
 The business process concludes when the company uses the taxi vehicle’s GPS location data again to send a final friendly thank you, suggests feedback via SMS and offers a goodbye message.

IVR-Interactive Voice response System
CSR –Customer service agent
PABX-Private Automated Branch Exchange
PMDN-Public Mobile Data Network