Car Rental Reservation Management System With Fathi Ali El Shahawi

Evaluation of Car Rental Reservation/Management System with Tracking Capability Performance

A thesis submitted to Graduate Department of Computer Science, college of Art and Science, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science (Information Technology)

University Utara Malaysia

Fathi Ali El_Shahawi

All rights received 2009

PERMISSION TO USE  

In presenting this thesis in partial fulfillment of the requirement for a postgraduate degree from University Utara Malaysia, I agree that the University Library may make it freely available for inspection. I further agree that permission for copying of this thesis in any manner, in whole or in part, for scholarly purpose may be granted by my supervisor(s) or, in their absence by Dean of Research and Postgraduate studies. It is understood that any copying or publication or use of this thesis or parts thereof for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. It is also understood that due recognition shall be given to me and University Utara Malaysia for any scholarly use which may be made of any material from any thesis. Requests for permission to copy or to make other use of materials in this thesis, in whole or in part should be addressed to:

Dean of Research and Postgraduate studies College of Art and Science University Utara Malaysia 06010 UUM Sintok Kedah Darul Aman

Acknowledgement I owe my most sincere gratitude to Allah the almighty and the most powerful for offering me such a strength, endurance, audacity, and capability to accomplish this project. I would also like to express my deep and sincere gratitude to my supervisor, Adi Affandi Hj Ahmad, his wide knowledge and his logical way of thinking have been of great value for me. His understanding, encouraging and personal guidance have provided a good basis for the present thesis. During this work I have collaborated with many colleagues for whom I have great regard, and I wish to extend my warmest thanks to all those who have helped me with my work in the College of Art and Science (Information Technology) University Utara Malaysia. I owe my loving thanks to my mother, and all my family members. They have lost a lot due to my research abroad. Without their encouragement and understanding it would have been impossible for me to finish this work. My special gratitude is due to my brother, my sisters and their families for their loving support.

CAR RENTAL RESERVATION/MANAGEMENT SYSTEM WITH TRACKING CAPABILITY

ABSTRACT

This research presents a framework for development of new car reservation/management with GPS tracking capability for car rental businesses. The research will look into different aspects; such as to provide an early, instantaneous coordinates via SMS text messages directly to the administrators when they request their motor vehicles’ locations. In order to come out with the intended system, this research suggests integration of GPS technology and mobile device into the overall proposed system architecture. This research also points out that the proposed system is not intended to replace, but rather to compliment the current car management and the GPS technologies available in the market. When they all work together, they will offer a more comprehensive and rigorous car web-based reservation/management system with GPS tracking capability to car rental businesses.  

TABLE OF Content ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………….. 1 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION: 1.0 Introduction………………………………………………………………………….. 1.1 Problem Statement………………………………………………………………….. 1.1.1 Financial Risk…………………………………………………………………… 1.1.2 Rental Fraud…………………………………………………………………….. 1.2 Objectives…………………………………………………………………………….. 1.3 Research Question………………………………………………………………….. 1.4 Significance of the Study……………………………………………………………. 1.5 Scope of the Study…………………………………………………………………... 1.6 Limitations of the Study……………………………………………………………... 1.6.1 Data Limitations………………………………………………………………... 1.6.2 Time Limitations……………………………………………………………….. 1.6.3 Financial Limitation…………………………………………………………….

2 4 5 5 6 6 7 8 8 8 9 9

CHAPTER 2: LITERETURE REVIEW 2.0 Introduction…………………………………………………………………………… 2.1 World Wide Web…………………………………………………………………….. 2.2 Testing a Website…………………………………………………………………… 2.3 Web Based Requirement…………………………………………………………… 2.4 Design of UML (Unified Modeling Language)…………………………………….. 2.4.1 The Definition of UML………………………………………………………….. 2.4.2 UML Diagrams………………………………………………………………….. 2.5 GPS Technology…………………………………………………………………….. 2.5.1 How it Works……………………………………………………………………. 2.5.2 How Accurate is GPS? ………………………………………………………... 2.5.3 The GPS Satellite System…………………………………………………….. 2.6 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………

10 12 13 13 15 15 16 18 18 19 20 21

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY: 3.0 Introduction…………………………………………………………………………… 3.0.1 Conceptual Design……………………………………………………………... 3.0.2 Construct Design of the System………………………………………………. 3.0.3 Prototyping……………………………………………………………………… 3.0.4 Evaluate Use of the System…………………………………………………… 3.0.5 Purpose of Study……………………………………………………………….. 3.0.6 Type of Investigation…………………………………………………………… 3.0.7 Unit of Analysis…………………………………………………………………. 3.0.8 Study Setting……………………………………………………………………. 3.0.9 Data Collection………………………………………………………………….. 3.1 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………….

22 23 23 24 24 26 26 26 27 27 27


 
 



 
 
 
 CHAPTER 4: RESULT AND DISCUSSION: 4.0 System Functionality (Conceptual View)………………………………………….. 4.1 Use Case Diagram……………………………………………………………….. 4.2 Use Case Specification…………………………………………………………... 4.3 Class Diagram…………………………………………………………………….. 4.4 Sequence Diagram……………………………………………………………….. 4.5 Review of Car Management/Reservation System with Tracking Capability…………………………………………………………………………. 4.6 Design of Use Requirements (Questionnaire)………………………………… 4.7 Prototype Evaluation Based On Survey Results……………………………… 4.7.1 Usability Testing……………………………………………………………. 4.7.2 Customer Web Reservation Task………………………………………… 4.8 Result of Research Design Method…………………………………………….. 4.9 Result of Awareness Problem…………………………………………………… 4.10 Result of Suggestion……………………………………………………………. 4.11 Result of Development…………………………………………………………. 4.12 Result of Evaluation…………………………………………………………….. 4.13 Result of Conclusion……………………………………………………………. 4.14 Summary…………………………………………………………………………. CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATION 5.0 System Functionality Screenshots………………………………………………… 5.0.1 User Registration and Reservation Page………………………………….. 5.0.2 Administrator Login Page…………………………………………………… 5.0.3 Users’ List…………………………………………………………………….. 5.0.4 Cars Tracking Page………………………….………………………………. 5.1 Conclusions………………………………………………………………………….. 5.2 Recommendations………………………………..………………………………… 5.3 Suggestions for Further Research……………….………………………………. 
 
 
 
 
 
 


28 28 30 43 45 48 48 52 52 54 59 59 60 60 60 61 61 66 66 68 69 70 72 73 74

 

CHAPTER 1

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Today, there are wide varieties of vehicle anti-theft devices in the market. These include from simple security devices, such as steering lock, gear lock and immobilizer, to a more advanced security system that can track down stolen vehicles. Unfortunately, despite the availability of such security systems, vehicle theft is still growing. As reported by the PersatuanInsurans Am Malaysia (PIAM News Release, 2001), the industry had to compensate a total claim amounting to RM168.6 million for the period of January 2001 to June 2001. Whereas Wah, K.C. et al. (2005) in the journal for Kuala Lumpur Royal Malaysia Police College reported that vehicle theft contributed 49% of the total index crime for the year 2004, as compared to 26% for year 1994. This issue has affected the car rental businesses negatively. The car rental contract is designed in a specific form for the car leasing at which consists of the agreement between the lessee (renter) with the leaser (owner) of the automobile. Whereby at the specific time agreed he lessee entitles the right of the usage of the car, and at the same time the leaser will offer the features of the car agreed, together with the tax payment, insurance, maintenance, and the accessories

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and including the realization value added of the valuation of the car. Foreign car rental industry through over several decades of development, has built up an enormous car rental service network taking over most of the business in the world. On the market, the car demand of the car rental has already had the whole 10% of car yield in the developed western countries. After entering 20 centuries in 90's, the scale of the global car rental industry extends quickly, with the sales of USD 48 billion of 1997 from USD 15 billion of the end of 80's in 20 centuries, exceeding USD 100 billion in 2000, having the world leasing industry total amount about 1/5 from all. [College of Economics, Xiamen University, 361005,Xiamen, China]. The internet contributed in expanding of the car rental business industry and many other services related to this field. The dramatic expansion of the Internet has been observable throughout the world for more than a decade by now. More and more systems are put on-line, as the mesh of IP-based data communication networks gets tighter every day. The advancement of network technologies has opened a whole new set of possibilities for service providers to offer and for users to take advantage of a variety of information services. In parallel to the development of the Internet, also mobile communication technologies have experienced in recent years a phase of spectaculous growth. New features like the short message service (SMS) or the multimedia messaging 2   

 

service (MMS) provided by modern mobile telecommunications system standards like the global system for mobile communications (GSM), have for their part caused these systems to become popular and a broad user base all over the world. Mobile telecommunication networks provide the possibility to engage in real-time wireless communications regardless of the location and the movements of the communicating parties. Particularly in mobile environments, like automobiles, wireless networks provide thus a exible and robust possibility to implement remote communication channels for a variety of applications and systems, in addition to conventional voice calls. The paper is organized as follows: After this introductory section some of the problems facing the car rental industry will be presented. In the third section, we present some of the new IT applications that the researcher recommends to be used in the automobile environment.

1.1 PROBLEM STATEMENT

Wah, K.C. et al. (2005) suggested anti-theft mechanism to be updated and made fool-proof in order to bring the crime (vehicle theft) index down. This implies that there are still some weaknesses inherent to the current anti-theft devices in their ways to go against the crime. One of the noticeable weaknesses is lack of early, instantaneous warnings to the vehicles’ owners themselves when the crime happens. We will present corresponding proposed solution for car rental companies to manage and control these risks:3   

   

Anti-theft devices, such as steering lock, gear lock and immobilizer attempt to prevent the crime from happening in the first place; but it is left at the “mercy” of these anti-theft devices alone to go against the crime. Vehicles’ owners would have no idea what will happen to their motor vehicles when they leave their motor vehicles, for example at parking lots. They would be shocked to see that only the steering locks were left behind at the parking lots with no sign of their motor vehicles at all. Anti-theft devices, such as Captor is very efficient in tracking down stolen vehicles; but it is controlled by the Captor (i.e. the third party rather than the vehicles’ owners themselves), and it is good only after the crime has already been committed.

1.1.1 FINANCIAL RISK

Financial risk: having a precise management of the business is very important issue because renting is all about time so if rental companies do not consider the time factor wisely it will therefore cost them money which will obviously place a financial risk.[ 2School of Management, Xiamen University, 361005,Xiamen, China]

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1.1.2 RENTAL FRAUD

Some criminals pretend to be a lessee so that he can rent a car and then sell this car to get profit illegally using false personal information. Some vicious lessees may rent a car and then mortgage this car to pay their debt. Some lessees may delay or not pay the rental fee. Some lessees may hide traffic illegality and punishment when they return the car [2School of Management, Xiamen University, 361005,Xiamen, China]

1.2 OBJECTIVES

Below are the main research objectives of this project: To identify the user requirements lessees/renters To develop a web based system to help manage the business and keeps records of all the data of the customers, the cars they rented and the duration. To install a GSM-GPS alarm in a car and then connect it to the management system To evaluate the usability of the system

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1.3 RESEARCH QUESTION

Below are the main research objectives of this project: • How user requirements can be gathered? • How can a management system help the car rental business? • How can the car management system be integrated with a GPS tracking capability?

1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This research is significant due to the fact that in these challenging business environments, many car rental firms have been unable to properly implement corrective methods in order to improve their services and provide superior quality and security to their customer. Working with our system organization can benefit from many things like: Online booking engine Fleet management solution Vehicle scheduling solutions GPS-based navigation / trace and track solutions In essence, some of the firms do not even know where to start when it comes to securing their properties where in our case are the cars. Hence this project is meant to serve as a guide to firms like these in terms emphasizing the importance of effective security, and the strategies that can be employed in order to improve and 6   

 

perfect security so that businesses can be run without any losses.  

1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This research is connected to the domains of car rental businesses, web-based and GPS tracking services hence these related concepts would form the central theme of the project. More specifically, the project concerns making an examination of the service that have been employed by the most successful European firms such as Perot and what can be done to perfect use of proper strategies by organizations like these.

1.6 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

There are a number of limitations that are likely to be encountered during the course of the project, from the commencement to completion of the project:

1.6.1 DATA LIMITATIONS

It is submitted that data limitations might be encountered as there might be instance where primary and secondary research techniques might not be able to provide the necessary information in order to satisfy the research objectives. Hence, the researcher might have to improvise or narrow the scope of the research as appropriate but remaining relevant to the research 7   

 

topic at all times.

1.6.2 TIME LIMITATIONS

This project has to be completed while the researcher is in the process of doing various other course related activities and hence there might be insufficient time when it comes to successfully completing the project. Hence, it is empirically important for the researcher to ensure that sufficient time is allocated for all projects related activities so that the successful completion of the project is not compromised by limitations of time.

8   

 

1.6.3 FINANCIAL LIMITATION

The objectives of this project must be met in a proper way but the researcher could not afford to buy the elements those make up the system such as the GPS-GSM alarm, the static IP and the fees for the SMS server.  

9   

CHAPTER 2 LITERETURE REVIEW

2.0 INTRODUCTION

This chapter provides an overview on the different technologies applied on the car rental industry. The car rental is such a big market which needs a massive effort to be improved. Some of the technologies that are available now in the market are listed below:

Perot Systems has proven experience and expertise helping organizations worldwide develop, enhance, and manage their applications and IT infrastructure to maximize returns on their IT investments. And we can help your business achieve and increase competitive advantage through the creation of flexible, customer-focused, enterprisewide global information systems. (Perot Systems, 2005)

The design and development of an alarm device that can disseminate disaster early warnings to threatened communities over the GSM network. The device is capable of generating audible, high-volume alarms, flashlights and turning on an in-built radio in response to a warning message from an authorized entity via GSM's short message service (SMS) or cell broadcast (CB). The design of the device follows international guidelines on emergency communications, such as the ability to reach a large number of people very fast, awaken sleeping communities, and be able to acknowledge warning messages. The alarm has been designed as a last-mile technology in a larger Disaster 


10


Early Warning network (DEWN). It is intended to be place in selected locations such as police stations, places of religious places and community centers

The Transition to web-based reservation systems and IP-based call centers with multilingual support Migrate mission-critical applications from legacy mainframe systems to open platforms using contemporary technologies seamlessly in titrate business partners and suppliers to successfully deliver services. (Perot Systems, 2005)

Deliver solutions based on technologies including GPS navigation, Chip & PIN, and voice to improve trace and track capabilities and fleet management Build, implement, and support fleet management solutions, vehicle scheduling, purchasing and billing, and other back-office applications to achieve business efficiencies. (Perot Systems, 2005)

Integrate databases at various points of sale and field locations to maintain continuity of service delivery in real time, Perot Systems has helped leading car rental companies achieve higher levels of operational excellence and increase their customer base while consolidating and enhancing legacy IT systems to maximize return on technology investments. (Perot Systems, 2005)

A vehicle management system and method using wireless terminals is provided. In the method, a server on a network stores accumulated travel distance-based vehicle maintenance/consumable item replacement time information in a specific recording medium. The server transmits an accumulated travel distance information request




11


message to a wireless terminal of a subscriber. The wireless terminal of the subscriber transmits accumulated travel distance information to the server. The server checks whether or not any vehicle maintenance/consumable item, which is required to be replaced according to the accumulated travel distance information transmitted from the wireless terminal, is present, based on the accumulated travel distance-based vehicle maintenance/consumable item replacement time information stored in the recording medium. If a vehicle maintenance/consumable item required to be replaced is present, the server

notifies

the

wireless

terminal

of

information

of

the

vehicle

maintenance/consumable item to be replaced. Thus, the appropriate time to replace maintenance/consumable items (for example, engine oil, brake linings/pads, and a generator) and prices of the items at the moment when they are replaced can be easily calculated according to the accumulated travel distance information provided through the wireless terminal. (Jeon, 2006) (Name, 2009)

This study will determine the review of World Wide Web (WWW), testing a website, website requirements, Unified Modeling Language (UML) and provide some information related to the market development of the Go-Kart through online reservation system.

2.1 WORLD WIDE WEB

The World Wide Web (commonly shortened to the Web) is a system of interlinked, hypertext documents accessed via the Internet. With a web
browser, a user views web
 pages that may contain text, images, videos, and other multimedia and navigates




12


between them using hyperlinks. The World Wide Web was created in 1989 by Sir
 Tim
 Berners‐Lee, working at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland. Since then, Berners-Lee has played an active role in guiding the development of web standards (such as the markup
 languages in which web pages are composed), and in recent years has advocated his vision of a Semantic
Web (Polo, 2003). 2.2 TESTING A WEBSITE

There are certain procedural steps that need to be followed in order to avail a good Website that adheres to the standards of any quality system (Bemers-Lee, 1996; Krueger, 1992). The steps for Website testing are (Whittaker, 2000; Bruno & Agarwal, 1997). •

Define the purpose of Website testing effort.

•

Develop test plan/scenarios.

•

Run and evaluate the test plan/scenarios.

•

Continuous testing and measurement.

2.3 WEB BASED REQUIREMENT

A useful web application should be based on traditional graphical user interface designs which rely on menu selection and navigation. But these interfaces require a considerable cognitive overhead. This may be tolerable to frequent users, but will in many cases deter casual users, especially those who are not yet used to computers. (Nielsen, 1993).




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Applications based on the web, and running on top of application servers are a case of multi-tier application. They are mainly composed of a Client and a Server tier. The client tier is responsible of interacting with application users and to generate requests to be attended by the server; it can be considered as a user interface of the application. The server tier implements the logic of the application and is responsible of serving usergenerated requests. Web contents can be basically divided depending on their nature as static or dynamic. Static contents are those served to clients without any kind of process. HTML files are the best example of static contents: when requested, they are read from disk and sent to clients directly and without any modification. Dynamic contents are those requiring some process before being sent to clients. Typical dynamic contents are server scripts, which are processed and generated results (typically formatted as an HTML page) are sent to clients (Carrera, et. al., 2003).

Web applications implement business rules and have certain functionality to either interact with another actor (person or system) or change its own state (Souer, 2003). De Troyer and Leune identified a comparable subdivision of Web information systems: a kiosk for presenting plane information, and a Web application as a kind of interactive information system (Troyer, et. al., 1998). Castro et al (2004) recognize one of the challenges of specifying Web applications: unlike traditional Information Systems, in Web applications the client and the users are not the same people. Another recognized challenge stems from the fact that Internet, and more specifically, the Web, is a completely different computing environment compared to conventional computer-based environments (Arch-int, 2003). 


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2.4 DESIGN OF UML (UNIFIED MODELING LANGUAGE)

2.4.1

THE DEFINITION OF UML




A computer reservations system (CRS) is a computerized system used to store and retrieve information and conduct transactions related to travel. Originally designed and operated by airlines, they were later extended to travel
agents as a sales channel; major CRS operations that book and sell tickets for multiple airlines are known as Global Distribution Systems (GDS). Airlines have divested most of their direct holdings to dedicated Global Distribution System companies, and many systems are now accessible to consumers through Internet gateways for hotel, rental cars, and other services as well as airline tickets (Andrew, 1998).

In the field of software engineering, the Unified Modeling Language (UML) is a standardized specification language for object modeling. UML is a general-purpose modeling language that includes a graphical notation used to create an abstract model of a system, referred to as a UML model (Ambler & Scott William 2004).




15


UML is officially defined at the Object Management Group (OMG) by the UML metamodel, a Meta-Object Facility meta-model (MOF). Like other MOF-based specifications, the UML meta-model and UML models may be serialized in XMI. UML was designed to specify, visualize, construct, and document software-intensive systems (Chonoles, et. al., 2003).

UML is not restricted to modeling software. UML is also used for business process modeling, systems engineering modeling and representing organizational structures. The Systems Modeling Language (SysML) is a Domain-Specific Modeling language for systems engineering that is defined as a UML 2.0 profile (Coad, et. al., 1999). 2.4.2

UML DIAGRAMS

UML 2.0 has 13 types of diagrams, which can be categorized hierarchically as follows (Fowler & Martin, 2004):

Figure 2.3: UML Diagram 


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Structure diagrams emphasize what things must be in the system being modeled: •

Class
diagram

•

Component
diagram

•

Composite
structure
diagram

•

Deployment
diagram

•

Object
diagram

•

Package
diagram

Behavior diagrams emphasize what must happen in the system being modeled: •

Activity
diagram

•

State
Machine
diagram

•

Use
case
diagram

Interaction diagrams, a subset of behavior diagrams, emphasize the flow of control and data among the things in the system being modeled: •

Communication
diagram

•

Interaction
overview
diagram (UML 2.0)

•

Sequence
diagram

•

UML
Timing
Diagram (UML 2.0)




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2.5 GPS TECHNOLOGY

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-based navigation system made up of a network of 24 satellites placed into orbit by the U.S. Department of Defense. GPS was originally intended for military applications, but in the 1980s, the government made the system available for civilian use. GPS works in any weather conditions, anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day. There are no subscription fees or setup charges to use GPS. 2.5.1 HOW IT WORKS

GPS satellites circle the earth twice a day in a very precise orbit and transmit signal information to earth. GPS receivers take this information and use triangulation to calculate the user's exact location. Essentially, the GPS receiver compares the time a signal was transmitted by a satellite with the time it was received. The time difference tells the GPS receiver how far away the satellite is. Now, with distance measurements from a few more satellites, the receiver can determine the user's position and display it on the unit's electronic map.




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A GPS receiver must be locked on to the signal of at least three satellites to calculate a 2D position (latitude and longitude) and track movement. With four or more satellites in view, the receiver can determine the user's 3D position (latitude, longitude and altitude). Once the user's position has been determined, the GPS unit can calculate other information, such as speed, bearing, track, trip distance, distance to destination, sunrise and sunset time and more. 2.5.2 HOW ACCURATE IS GPS?

Today's GPS receivers are extremely accurate, thanks to their parallel multi-channel design. Garmin's 12 parallel channel receivers are quick to lock onto satellites when first turned on and they maintain strong locks, even in dense foliage or urban settings with tall buildings. Certain atmospheric factors and other sources of error can affect the accuracy of GPS receivers. Garmin® GPS receivers are accurate to within 15 meters on average. Newer Garmin GPS receivers with WAAS (Wide Area Augmentation System) capability can improve accuracy to less than three meters on average. No additional equipment or fees are required to take advantage of WAAS. Users can also get better accuracy with Differential GPS (DGPS), which corrects GPS signals to within an average of three to five meters. The U.S. Coast Guard operates the most common DGPS correction service. This system consists of a network of towers that receive GPS signals and transmit a corrected signal by beacon transmitters. In order to get the corrected signal, users must have a differential beacon receiver and beacon antenna in addition to their GPS.




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2.5.3 THE GPS SATELLITE SYSTEM

The 24 satellites that make up the GPS space segment are orbiting the earth about 12,000 miles above us. They are constantly moving, making two complete orbits in less than 24 hours. These satellites are travelling at speeds of roughly 7,000 miles an hour. GPS satellites are powered by solar energy. They have backup batteries onboard to keep them running in the event of a solar eclipse, when there's no solar power. Small rocket boosters on each satellite keep them flying in the correct path. Here are some other interesting facts about the GPS satellites (also called NAVSTAR, the official U.S. Department of Defense name for GPS):

•

The first GPS satellite was launched in 1978.

•

A full constellation of 24 satellites was achieved in 1994.

•

Each satellite is built to last about 10 years. Replacements are constantly being built and launched into orbit.

•

A GPS satellite weighs approximately 2,000 pounds and is about 17 feet across with the solar panels extended.




•

Transmitter power is only 50 watts or less.



Data is sent via a cellular phone network to the client’s cell phone 20


•

Security Concepts manufactures WorldTracker, which uses the voice channel of an already installed GSM cell phone.

Using your PC you contact the tracker from your home or office phone, without going through the Internet, and instantly display the target vehicle on your computer with a moving street map. No monthly fees. New options allow the WorldTracker to shut the vehicle off remotely or call the owner in the event their vehicle is stolen. 2.6

CONCLUSION

At the end of this chapter we can clearly see that there are various technologies applied by different companies each is slightly following a specific technique but eventually they all are trying to achieve the same result which is to improve the car rental industry but they are quite different from the system we implemented whereby the cost is quite cheaper and the technologies here are integrated together to produce more desirable results.







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CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY

3.0 INTRODUCTION

It is theorized here that academic investigations such as this one has to be approached in a manner that is very and it is at this chapter where a determination will be made of the most appropriate methodology (Research Methodology, 2009). The careful selection of the methodology that will be used in order to collect information for the purposes of satisfying the research objectives of the project is very important as it is will determine the quality of information that is obtained. The employment of the wrong methodology to collect information might be quite disastrous to the outcome of the project and might result in the objectives of the project not being satisfied. For this project, the information that would be processed and synthesized for the purposes of satisfying the research objectives would be collected from a variety of primary and secondary research sources and this means that primary and secondary research tools will be used in order to gather data for this project. It is the opinion of the researcher that the use of primary ands secondary research methods would be very beneficial in drawing in the correct data for the purpose satisfying the research objectives. System Development Methodology (SDM) research proposes by Nunamaker (1991) will be used as design research approach. There are four stages in this approach, conceptual design, construct design of the system, prototyping and evaluate use of the system.




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The detail of design research stages are shown below:

1.1.1

CONCEPTUAL DESIGN

Apply existing knowledge in car rental industry and identify the gap, the meaningful research objectives are developed in this stage. Here where the system requirement are gathered from the users through the means of questionnaire where they were asked straight questions regarding their opinion and past experience with the web based management and tracking system. The questionnaires were divided into two parts one was distributed to the public to determine their behavior towards the car rental industry and also to determine their opinion about having an online car reservation system. The second part of the questionnaire focuses on the employees working in the car rental field to determine three main areas which are their opinion about having an online car management system, their experience with their customers and their opinion about having web based tracking system.

1.1.2

CONSTRUCT DESIGN OF THE SYSTEM

In this stage, new knowledge is created. Creative and innovative design architecture develops, define components, model, and data structure were applied in this stage to develop the prototype for car rental management system with tracking system. This stage is based on the previous step




23


whichmeans it was initiated based on the results of the questionnaires to meet the users’ satisfaction.

1.1.3

PROTOTYPING:

The concept of car rental management system with tracking capability was proved and designed based on the architecture that was proposed, involve the iterative analysis, design and implementation of an evolving prototype.

1.1.4

EVALUATE USE OF THE SYSTEM: The system or proposed prototype model is evaluated by case and field study.

Case study: Study artifact in depth in business environment. Field study: Monitor use of artifact in multiple projects.




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The framework based on Nunamaker (1991) is represented in the below diagram:

Conceptual
design


The meaningful research objectives will be developed in this stage. 


Construct
design
of
the
system


Creative and innovative design architecture develops, define components, model, and data structure will be applied in this stage
 


Construct
design
of
the
system


Creative and innovative design architecture develops, define components, model, and data structure will be applied in this stage
 


Prototype
 A
prototype
based
on
the
designed
 architecture
will
be
developed
in
this
 stage





 Evaluating
the
use
of
the
system


The system or proposed prototype model will be evaluated by case and field study
 





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Addition information about the research shown below:

1.1.5

PURPOSE OF STUDY

Exploratory: The main purpose of this study is to introduce and implement a group of IT applications that can be used in modern automobiles comprises a miscellaneous set of applications, services and devices that relate to the successful operation of the automobile rental companies.

1.1.6

TYPE OF INVESTIGATION

Causal Study: Define problems in car rental industry. How the financial risk, rental fraud and traffic accident effect to car rental industry.

1.1.7

UNIT OF ANALYSIS

Individual: Staff, Customer. Compare the benefit of the system before and after has been developed.




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1.1.8

STUDY SETTING

Non-Contrived: This study done in the natural environment. 1.1.9

DATA COLLECTION

Internet and interview: We are collecting our data basically from the internet and also on our experience in renting cars and as some of us have experience working in the car rental industry.

3.1 CONCLUSION

The reason this research methodology is chosen simply because in order to meet the above points a suitable method had to be applied. To satisfy the purpose of this study which is to explore new area of comfort for the car rental industry, a general purpose method ought to be implemented in the research. Most of the other research methods have one specific purpose, which will certainly hold the process of this paper back in order to satisfy all of their requirements.







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CHAPTER 4 RESULT AND DISCUSSION

In this chapter, result obtained from the prototype implementation will illustrate system functionality in UML (Unify Markup Language). 4.0 SYSTEM FUNCTIONALITY (CONCEPTUAL VIEW)

There are five examples UML representations used in this study. UML is developed by Huge(2002). UML has several representations such as class diagram, use case diagram, state diagram, collaboration diagram, sequence diagram, sequence diagram. This study used UML design since UML is a de facto standard for software engineering. It is a much more attractive approach due to the familiarity of software designer with UML hence it can reduce the learning curve and make it not far from their usual practices. 4.1 USE CASE DIAGRAM

The use case diagram is a visualization of a use-case analysis whichis one of behavior diagrams of UML design, i.e., the interaction between the system and the users. Figure 4.1 shows the use case diagram.




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This system allows user to do registration, see information, products, make reservation and do payment as well. This system requires login from the admin before the admin can make new reservations or edit any existing ones besides the admin can have the system send messages to the cars to get the coordinates in order to locate cars.

Figure 4.1: Use Case Diagram




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4.2 USE CASE SPECIFICATION

4.2.1

CUSTOMER USE CASE SPECIFICATION 1

USE CASE: Member Registration . 1

Figure 4.2 : Use Case Customer Registration BRIEF DESCRIPTION This use case will be used by user/client to make a new user name and password. PRE-CONDITION User will automatically enter this page as an index.




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CHARACTERISTIC OF ACTIVATION It is used when the new user intends to create his/her user name and his/her password.

FLOW OF EVENT

• Basic Flow This use case will begin when the user click the “OK” button. Then the system displays a page which is used as a form to input the information about the user, the information input is user name and password. User must click the “submit” button to insert the input to the database. • EXCEPTIONAL FLOW The system displays an error message and then the user must enter the valid link of the new user name page. POST-CONDITION User can login to the reservation menu by using the username and password that they have after registering their profile details.




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LIMITATION Not applicable.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION This use case will be used by user/client to view the information such as cars and availability. PRE-CONDITION User will automatically enter this page as an index. CHARACTERISTIC OF ACTIVATION When the user intends to view the product information and the cars availability. FLOW OF EVENT • BASIC FLOW This use case will begin when the user enters the system. Then the system displays a page which contains information about the reservation. • EXCEPTIONAL FLOW The system displays an error message and then the user must enter




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the valid link of the main page. POST-CONDITION User can get information about the system by using correct link. LIMITATION Not applicable.

1

USE CASE : MAKE RESERVATION . 3

Figure 4.4 : Use Case Make Reservation

BRIEF DESCRIPTION This use case will be used by user/client for making a reservation. PRE-CONDITION




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The user has username and password in order to be able to login into the system. Characteristic Of Activation Execution depends on administrator’s demand. FLOW OF EVENT • BASIC FLOW This use case will begin when the user click the “reservation” button. Then the system displays a page which used as a form to input the details of reservation, the input are booking date, time and length to use of the desired car. User must click the submit button then the input are insert to the database. •EXCEPTIONAL FLOW The system displays an error message and then the user must enter the valid username and password. POST-CONDITION Users can add, search, delete and view their reservation LIMITATION Not applicable.




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1

Fi .

g

4

u r e 4.6 : Use Case Make Payment

BRIEF DESCRIPTION This use case will be used by user/client to make the payment for the car PRE-CONDITION The user has username and password in order to login into the system. CHARACTERISTIC OF ACTIVATION Execution depends on administrator’s demand. FLOW OF EVENT • BASIC FLOW This use case will begin when the user/client confirms the booking and provides his credit card details. • EXCEPTIONAL FLOW The system displays an error message and then the user must enter the valid credit card details.




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POST-CONDITION User can make the payment based on the details that have been inserted into the database. LIMITATION Not applicable.

Figure 4.6 : Use Case Confirm payment BRIEF DESCRIPTION This use case will be used by user/client to confirm the payment for the car PRE-CONDITION The user has username and password in order to login into the system. CHARACTERISTIC OF ACTIVATION Execution depends on customer demand.




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FLOW OF EVENT • BASIC FLOW This use case will begin after the user/client confirms the booking and provides his credit card details. • EXCEPTIONAL FLOW The system displays an error message and then the user must enter the valid credit card details. POST-CONDITION User can make the payment based on the details that have been inserted into the database through the registration process. LIMITATION Not applicable.

Figure 4.6 : Use Case Administrator login




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BRIEF DESCRIPTION This use case will be used by admin to login the system PRE-CONDITION The admin must have a username and password in order to login into the system. CHARACTERISTIC OF ACTIVATION Execution depends on administrator’s demand. FLOW OF EVENT • BASIC FLOW This use case will begin when the admin inserts his username and password • EXCEPTIONAL FLOW The system displays an error message and then the user must enter the valid username and password. POST-CONDITION Admin can login after being registered and his/her details inserted to the database LIMITATION Not applicable.




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Figure 4.6 : Use Case Administrator manage the booking BRIEF DESCRIPTION This use case will be used by admin to manage the booking PRE-CONDITION The admin must have a username and password in order to login into the system. CHARACTERISTIC OF ACTIVATION Execution depends on administrator’s demand. FLOW OF EVENT • BASIC FLOW This use case will begin when the admin inserts his username and password and press the edit button • EXCEPTIONAL FLOW The system displays an error message and then the user must enter the valid username and password.




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POST-CONDITION The admin can manage the booking after logging in LIMITATION Not applicable.

Figure 4.6 : Use Case Administrator rented car check BRIEF DESCRIPTION This use case will be used by admin to check the status of the rented cars such as their return time and here the admin can also send a message to the device in the car to get the coordinates




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PRE-CONDITION The admin must choose which car to be checked CHARACTERISTIC OF ACTIVATION Execution depends on administrator’s demand. FLOW OF EVENT • BASIC FLOW This use case will begin when the admin chooses to check the rented car status

• EXCEPTIONAL FLOW The system displays an error message if the car is not rented POST-CONDITION The admin can check the status after the car has been given out LIMITATION Not applicable.




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Figure 4.6 : Use Case Administrator inserts the car coordinates of the car BRIEF DESCRIPTION This use case will be used by admin to check the location of the rented cars after the device in the car sends the coordinates PRE-CONDITION The admin must send a coordinates request to the car device CHARACTERISTIC OF ACTIVATION Execution depends on administrator’s demand. FLOW OF EVENT •

BASIC FLOW This use case will begin when the admin inserts the rented car’s coordinates that were received through a text message to the administrator’s phone • EXCEPTIONAL FLOW The system displays an error message if the coordinates inserted incorrectly




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POST-CONDITION The admin can check the location after the car has been given out LIMITATION Not applicable.

4.3 CLASS DIAGRAM

A UML class is defined by a rectangle having 3 segments. The segments are defined as: •

Identity, class name

•

State, class variables

•

Behavior, class methods

Classes are the building blocks of software architecture. A class diagram is used to show hierarchical relationships as figured above. A class diagram is also used to show other relationships, like whole/part "has-a" relationships using aggregation and composite




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connectors, interaction "uses" relationships with dependency arrows, or associations with connecting lines.

The class diagram is the most important entity in object-oriented design and analysis. It describes the types of classes that exist in the system and shows the relationship between them. It also shows the attributes exist in the system, operations involved, and also constraints that apply to the way the objects are connected. The following diagram shows a hypothetical class interaction diagram. Figure 4.7 shows the class diagram.

Figure 4.7: Class Diagram 


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This class diagram has three identities, all customers can do reservation and many reservations can be done by a customer on the other hand the third entity, which is the administrator who also can add or edit any booking as well as locate the desired cars. Each reservation needs a registration.

4.4 SEQUENCE DIAGRAM

The sequence diagram displays the overall flow of control in an object-oriented program. It captures the behavior of a single use-case. Figure 4.8 shows the sequence diagram of admin




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Sequence Diagrams

Figure 4.8: Sequence Diagram for administrators’ activities




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Figure 4.9: Sequence Diagram for customers’ activities




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4.5 REVIEW OF CAR MANAGEMENT/RESERVATION SYSTEM WITH TRACKING CAPABILITY

Most of famous car rental companies have several thousand locations all over the world, which are used to provide rental service for their customers. Therefore, there is an obvious logistics management problem in the service operation process. For a large-scale car rental company, the rental locations are scattered around the world, while its daily operation is based on a country even a special region. However, the car rental industry contains various risks. Besides facing common risks of the general service business enterprise, the car rental business also faces some specific risks resulting from finance, rental fraud, and traffic accidents. Therefore the system provides a solution for most of those problems by offering a management solution, an online car reservation solution for the customers and finally and the most important service is the car tracking capability which eliminates the hustle of finding cars in case of fraud or major accidents. This capability comparing to other services is far cheaper because it can be done manually where no cost is applied other than the hardware cost.

4.6 DESIGN OF USER REQUIREMENTS (QUESTIONNAIRE)

Table 4.1 below identified questionnaire for the user requirements. There are three variables such as online reservation task for customers, web-based management system for the companies and finally the tracking capability. Questionnaires were distributed to the respondents to measure their perception related to the system.




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Table 4.1 Item for the Questionnaire to Identify User Requirement Variable

Indicator Customers’ use of the internet

Customers’ perception on having a website to rent cars conveniences to book cars via the internet Car reservation website

Frequency of facing troubles booking cars through phone calls The availability of the renters through the phone The ease of finding a car through the phone in case of emergency

Frequency of renting cars Customer behaviors towards renting cars




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Time of renting cars Types of cars to rent Advance or last minute booking Frequency of troubles regarding the time of taking or returning the car Variation of price without prior notice Availability of all car types Cancellation of booking without prior notice

Precision of the car delivery time

Variable The

perception

Indicator of

car

companies

customer renting behaviors

on Frequency of car loss Frequency of fraud from the customer The range of responsibility of the




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customers Easiness of tracing the abandoned cars Whether customers pay for delay

The consideration of allocating a budget to having an automated car management website

Employees’

perception

on

having

a The positivity of an automated car

management website management website on everyday tasks The effect of a car reservation website market expansion

Variable

Indicator

The perception of car companies on having a Companies’ experience with vehicle web based tracking capability

tracking solutions If companies recently considered, or are currently considering, a vehicle tracking




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solution

in

their

fleet

operation If companies consider an Internet based, GPS tracking solution whereby they pay fees for hardware and communication costs for once If companies prefer to purchase the equipment and the GPS service and then pay a set monthly fee for the online hosting service only

4.7 PROTOTYPE EVALUATION BASED ON SURVEY RESULTS

4.6.1

USABILITY TESTING

Table 4.2 below shows that 80% respondents indicated that the website has a strong interface, 70 % indicated the good menu of the website. Furthermore, 53.3% of the button, 83.3% of easiness of navigation, 60% of picture as guide for them to the web reservation and car rental service, 70% of the navigation and 80% of icon quality, were indicated the confident performance of the design. Overall, 76.7% of respondents indicated the system criteria have strong indicators (figure 4.16).




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Table 4.2 Respondents Perception on website Criteria Yes Indicators

No (%) (%)

Interface

80

20

Menu

70

30

Button

53.3

46.7

Easiness of navigation

83.3

16.7

Picture

60

40

Navigation

70

30

Icon

80

20

Average of Perceptions

76.7

23.7




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Wea kStron g

Figure 4.16 website Criteria

4.6.2

CUSTOMER WEB RESERVATION TASK

Table 4.3 summarized respondents’ perception based on the customer web reservation task. 73.3% of respondents mentioned the register menu in this application is strong. Furthermore, the percentage of the optimistic reply from the respondents is 70% in fields’ information, 73.3% in transaction record, 80% in confirmation and 70% in cancellation process. This result represents the task in this application is confidently strong to provide a high quality service. Table 4.3 Respondents Perception on Web Reservation Indicator Register menu Fields Transaction log Confirmation




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Yes (%)

No (%)

73.3

26.7

70

30

73.3

26.7

80

20

Cancellation Average of Perceptions

70

30

86.7

13.3

Overall figure 4.18 below shows that, 86.7% of respondents agreed that the reservation tasks to the web reservation are strong.

Figure 4.18: User Task

Table 4.2 in the appendix shows that 80% respondents indicated that they had no experience with the GPS tracking services this shows that the idea of the GPS tracking will be accepted. 70 % indicated that they are considering vehicle-tracking solution whereby the willingness of the companies to experience the idea is widely welcomed. Furthermore, 53.3% of them are willing to have internet based GPS tracking solution whereby if the idea is implemented correctly and advertised properly it will be welcomed strongly, 83.3% indicated that they prefer to purchase the hardware and pay very little or




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no fees for other services this is considerably cheap when compared to the service available in the market. Figure 4.16. Table 4.2in the appendix shows that 0% of the companies never loses track of their rented cars 1% rarely, 2% sometimes, 6% often and 1% always. This emphasizes the importance of such a system to manage and track the cars. This survey also indicates that fraud happens from the customer 1% never, 2% rarely, 4% sometimes, 2% often and 1% always here we can clearly see that fraud is something that happens most of the time and this is a prove that such a system can be of a good use. This survey also indicates that in case of car accident customers take full responsibility 1% never, 4% rarely, 3% sometimes, 1% often and 1% always. Another important finding that this survey indicates is that in case of awful car accidents, companies can easily find their abandoned cars, 4% never, 2% rarely, 3% sometimes, 1% often and finally 0% always. This is encouraging because the system can obviously help companies to locate their cars at any given time. Customers return cars late and do not pay for the delay 2% never do that, 2% rarely, 4% sometimes, 1% often and 1% always. This is quite high rate so the system can help reduce the effects of bad habits. Questionnaire Design Table 4.3 in the appendix shows that 1% strongly disagree on considering allocating a budget to have an automated car management website, 1% disagree, 3% neutral, 2% agree, and 3% strongly agree here we can see the majority is willing to allocate the budge for the website which means the idea of the web reservation will be accepted. An automated car management website will positively ease everyday tasks 1% strongly




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disagrees, 2% disagree, 4% neutral, 2% agree and 3% strongly agrees. Here also the majority thinks that the management website can ease their everyday tasks. Only 0% disagrees that A car reservation website will help to expand the market, 1% disagrees, 3% neutral, 4% agree and 2% strongly agrees. These answers indicate that the car reservation web site will help companies to expand their market. Now in the sense of the confusion with the customers 2% strongly disagrees that such a web site would help companies to eliminate the problem, 1% disagrees, 3% neutral, 3% agrees and 1% strongly agrees. This is a good sign to develop the car reservation web site. Finally 2% strongly disagrees that an automated management website will provide more accurate revenue report, 2% disagrees, 2% neutral, 2% agrees and 2% strongly agrees such answers are fair but they encourage to develop the management system because 60% of them think that such system will do help them. Questionnaire for users: The answers we acquired in the appendix indicate that 7% of the users cannot get access to the internet easily means strongly disagrees, 8% disagrees, 9% think it is neutral 3% agrees and 3% strongly agrees so in the sense of availability of access to the internet the majority can get easy access. On the other hand, 6% strongly disagrees that a car reservation website would be more convenient to book cars 8% disagrees, 12% neutral, 2% agrees and 2% strongly agrees. Here if we calculate we can see that 16 out of 30 agree on the convenience a car web based reservation system. Now here the questions ask the users whether booking a car via the internet is easier than booking through the phone or not and the result was like the following, 4% strongly disagrees, 4% disagrees, 13% think it is neutral, 4% agrees and 5% strongly agrees. The users were also asked if 


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booking through the phone gives them troubles and the result was 3% strongly disagrees, 2% disagrees, 7% think it is neutral, 12% agrees and 6% strongly agrees. Another aspect the users were asked about was the possibility of reaching the car rental companies through the phone and the result was 5% disagrees, 5% disagrees, 7% neutral, 6% agrees, and 7% strongly agrees. Users were also asked if they can get a car easily and quickly in a case of emergency and the result was 12% strongly disagrees, 5% disagrees, 5% neutral, 4% agrees and 4% strongly agrees.

The answers we acquired here indicate that 3% strongly disagrees that they rent cars very often, 5% disagrees, 4% neutral, 4% agrees and 14% strongly agrees, the other question was about users’ time of renting and the result was 5% strongly disagrees that they rent cars at random times, 6% disagrees, 7% neutral, 6% agrees and 6% strongly agrees. Now 4% strongly disagree that they have a specific type of cars, 4% disagrees, 9% neutral, 6% agrees and finally 7%agrees. Booking cars in advance 7% strongly disagrees, 9% disagrees, 4% neutral, 5% agrees and 5% strongly agrees. By not using the web reservation system users always face troubles regarding the time of taking and returning the cars 5% strongly disagrees, 5% disagrees, 7% neutral, 7% agrees and 6% strongly agrees. About the variation of the renting price some people have had good experience and some have had bad ones. 8% strongly disagrees that the price varies, 7% disagrees, 5% neutral, 5% agrees and 5% strongly agrees. One very important aspect is the availability of the desirable type of cars 8% strongly disagrees that they can always get their car type, 8% disagrees, 6% neutral 4% agrees and 4% strongly disagrees. Some users’ cancelation sometime gets canceled with no prior notice 5% strongly disagrees, 


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5% disagrees 4% neutral, 7% agrees and 9% strongly agrees. The car delivery of cars some people get it on time and some not 5% strongly disagrees that they get cars on time, 8% disagrees, 6% neutral, 6% agrees and 5% disagrees.

4.8 RESULT OF RESEARCH DESIGN METHOD

In this page researcher present a broad perspective that explicates the types and levels of knowledge that can be derived from design research while reserving judgment on whether a narrower goal of design research should be held within any specific research community. 4.9 RESULT OF AWARENESS OF PROBLEM

The output of this phase is a Proposal, formal or informal, for further research. They are proposals for how things should be done. In this project researcher found models differ from natural science theories primarily in intent: natural science has a traditional focus on truth whereas design research focuses more on (situated) utility. Proposal of car web reservation/ management system with tracking capability model is presented in terms of what it does and a theory described in terms of constructing relationships.




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4.10

RESULT OF SUGGESTION

After the researcher read the literature about the car web reservation/management system with GPS tracking capability based requirement, the researcher obtained the overview of the whole guidelines provided by the car rental industry. Researcher found that the car rental industry is in need to have web management/reservation system to promote and also to support the task of such a field.

4.11

RESULT OF DEVELOPMENT

Output in this phase is that the researcher developed a prototype of the car web reservation/reservation system with GPS tracking capability according to the requirements and the design. The system has been developed using PHP, MySQL and Apache Web server. UML diagram such as Use Case diagram, Class diagram and Sequence diagram has been used, too. 4.12

RESULT OF EVALUATION

The researcher evaluated the entire component in previous phase according to car rental industry requirement. The output of this phase is that researcher found that most of the respondents mentioned the strength and goodness of the overall system.




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4.13

RESULT OF CONCLUSION

The researcher found that the car web based reservation/management with GPS tracking capability has a multiplier effect to the customer services development and to the car rental companies managements. In contrast, the GPS tracking capability is enough to fill the industry’s pleasure, and also to attain profits by decrease the car loss rate. They view the mobile and the seemingly endless dynamism, more-compact computers and higherspeed service as tools that allow them to function with increased effectiveness. All the requirement of system has been completely fulfilled by this system.

4.14

SUMMARY

Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 14.00 was employed to determine the frequency of respondents answer and categorized their answers to the strong and weak level. Based on the answers of respondents respond to the user requirements researcher found that most of them mentioned the strength and goodness of the car web reservation/management with GPS tracking capability. The car web reservation has provided complete information about the existence of the car rental industry to the customers. The user requirements of the car web reservation system provided facilities to eliminate the troubles of the phone booking and also to provide 


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easier solution and availabilities to the market. On the other hand, the management system will ease every day tasks as well as provide more accurate management results. Last but not least, is the tracking capability which is the main strength of the system will sophisticatedly provide companies with better information about their cars, it will also decrease the loss rate.







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CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

This chapter will review back all the findings of this study by giving a full view based on the research objectives. There is much more work to do in developing an efficient and effective system to provide customers and car rental industry a mechanism for making online reservation and managing as well as tracking capability. This study will provide the recommendation to the current community as well as the information and suggestion for future studies. 5.0 SYSTEM FUNCTIONALITY SCREENSHOTS

5.0.1 USER REGISTRATION AND RESERVATION PAGE Here is the users’ reservation page where they can insert their personal information like name, address, and phone number as well as to create their usernames and passwords. After the users are done inserting their information they can then choose the car model they desire. Upon completion of this step users will get a message of success or failure. In the case of reserving a car, that particular car will not be available anymore in the reservation list so that no conflict will take place.




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5.0.2 ADMINISTRATOR LOGIN PAGE Here is the administrators’ login page. The administrator must enter his username and password in order to login into the system, check reservation list and track any car that he/she desires.




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5.0.3 USERS’ LIST In this user car list the administrator can check each and every reservation details he/she wants for example the customer details like name, address or phone number besides that he/she can just click the track button to locate the car. The mechanism of this function is connected to a messaging sending server and Google maps of the desired country, which is in this case Malaysia. When the system is hosted on a server an IP will automatically be assigned to it so that receiving of messaging becomes possible without having to reserve or subscribe to this service. When the track button is clicked the system will automatically send a message to the car’s SIM card, which is in fact a request for the coordinates in return the car will send back the coordinates to the website. Google provides a service that if acquired sufficient locating times per second is offered which in this system it is available already. Eventually when the website receives the coordinates it will automatically, in the presence of the internet connection of course, connect to Google maps and give a precise location of the car. It also offers a zoom in and out option. Last but not least, the system will automatically moves the map as the car moves.




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5.0.4 CARS TRACKING PAGE This page is where the system connects to Google maps to locate the car. Here we can see that the red color point is the car and it is in fact moving but the picture cannot represent the movement. However, this is called real time tracking.




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5.1 CONCLUSIONS

From the findings derived from the survey process, researcher concluded that 80% respondents indicated that they had no experience with the GPS tracking services. 70 % indicated that they are considering vehicle-tracking solution. Furthermore, 53.3% of them are willing to have internet based GPS tracking solution, 83.3% indicated that they prefer to purchase the hardware and pay very little or no fees for other services This project is developed by using Design Research methodology and applying UML technique for analyzing and designing the prototype. Design Research emphasizes on the knowledge generation inherited in the method. The Unified Modeling Language is a standard design specification that is overseen by the Object Management Group (OMG). The use case diagram is a visualization of a use-case analysis been applied. This project also implement sequence diagram to display the overall flow of control in an objectoriented program. Thus, the second objective to design the car web-based reservation/management system with GPS tracking capability is achieved. From the findings that derived from the survey process, researcher concluded that the car web-based reservation/management system with GPS tracking capability design is confidently reliable, easy to use and user-friendly. Concurrently, the study found that the system has a multiplier effect to the customer/management services development. To make this system more interactive and keep the pace of the technology of it, all stakeholder in the car rental industry should understand the utility and implement the




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system as the strategic point in order to improve the profit of their car business, develop the number of loyal customers and expand the design to get a higher quality in services. Car web-based reservation/management system with GPS tracking capability is a valuable means to guide customers to reserve all services or facilities offered by the car rental companies. The third objective to develop the prototype of car web-based reservation/management system with GPS tracking capability is achieved. The present study was determining the car web-based reservation/management system with GPS tracking capability, for getting information about the cars and making reservation of the facility provided. Besides the overview of the service that the car companies are willing to provide for such a system that can store the database about profiles and reservation that have been made by the customers or the management. PHP programming language and MySQL server are needed to construct this dynamically web based system. Concurrently, the study found that the system has a multiplier effect to the customer/management services development. In contrast, the GPS tracking is enough to fill their pleasure, and to reduce loss rate. Most of the car rental managements view the GPS tracking and the seemingly endless dynamism, more-compact computers and higher-speed service as tools that allow them to function with increased effectiveness. 5.2 RECOMMENDATIONS

To make this car web-based reservation/management system with GPS tracking capability more interactive and keep rapidity with the technology of the it all stakeholder




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in the car rental industry should understand the utility and implement the such a system as the strategic point in order to improve their profit, develop the number of loyal customers and expand the design to get a higher quality in services.

5.3 SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH

Future research about the combination of other facilities and services with car web-based reservation/management system with GPS tracking capability is needed, further researcher should look up to such systems to develop this technology to reach more profit, customers and better performance.






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4   

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5   

APPENDIX A: QUESTIONAIRE Please circle the statement, which is the most appropriate answer to you. Section 1: users behavior: Attitude of users towards having an automated reservation website to rent cars Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements from 1 (total disagreement) to 5 (total agreement)

No

Questions

(Strongly

(Disagree)

(Neutral)

(Agree)

Disagree)

(Strongly Agree)

1

I can easily get access to the internet

1  2 3  4  5

2

I think having a website to rent cars would be more convenient

1  2 3  4  5

3

It is more convenient to book cars via the internet

1  2 3  4  5

4

I always face troubles booking cars through phone calls

1  2 3  4  5

5

I can always reach the renters through the phone

1  2 3  4  5

6

In case of emergency I can easily and quickly find a car

1  2 3  4  5

Please circle the statement, which is the most appropriate answer to you.

1   

Section 2: users behavior: Attitude of users towards the current manual process for renting cars Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements from 1 (total disagreement) to 5 (total agreement)

No

Questions

(Strongly Disagree)

(Disagree)

(Neutral) 3

(Agree)

(Strongly

4

Agree)

2

5

1 1 I rent cars very often

 

 

 

 

 

2 I might rent a car at anytime of the day

 

 

 

 

 

3 I have a specific type of cars that I would always want to rent

 

 

 

 

 

4 I always book cars in advance

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6 The renting price always varies without prior notice

 

 

 

 

 

7 I can always find my favorite car type available

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5

I always face troubles regarding the time of taking or returning the car

8

My booking sometimes gets cancelled by the renter without prior notice

9 I always get the car on time as I book it

2   

Please circle the statement, which is the most appropriate answer to you.

Section 1: customer behavior: Attitude of employees towards the customer behaviors Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements from 1 (never) to 5 (always)

No

Questions

 

 

(never)

(rarely)

(sometimes)

(often)

1 

2 

3 

4 

(Always)

5 

1  We lose track of our rented cars

1  2  3 4  5

2  Fraud happens from the customer

1  2  3 4  5

3  In case of car accident customers take full responsibility

1  2  3 4  5

4  In case of awful car accidents, we can easily find our 1  2  3 4  5

abandoned cars 5  Customer return cars late and do not pay for the delay

Please circle the statement, which is the most appropriate answer to you.

3   

1  2  3 4  5

Section 2: Employees behavior: Attitude of employees towards having an automated management website Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements from 1 (total disagreement) to 5 (total agreement)

No

Questions

(Strongly

 

 

Disagree) 1 

(Disagree)

(Neutral)

(Agree)

(Strongly Agree)

3 

2 

4 

5

  1  We are considering allocating a budget to have an automated car 1 2 3 4 5 management website 2  An automated car management website will positively ease everyday 1 2 3 4 5 tasks 3  A car reservation website will help us expand our market

1 2 3 4 5

4  a car reservation website would help us eliminate the confusion with 1 2 3 4 5 the customers 5 

An automated management website will help provide accurate revenue 1 2 3 4 5 report

      4   

Section 3: employees’ behavior: Attitude of employees towards having web based GPS tracking capability.

 

No  Questions  1 

yes 

Your company, in the past, used or had experience with vehicle  

 No   

tracking solutions  2 

Have you recently considered, or are currently considering, a  

 

vehicle tracking solution in your fleet operation  3 

Would you consider an Internet based, GPS tracking solution  

 

whereby you pay fees for hardware and communication costs only once  4 

Would you prefer to purchase the equipment and the GPS service   and then pay a set monthly fee for the online hosting service? 

5   

 

Vehicle Track and Trace Questions

What do you consider the main advantages to be for your company in respect to deploying a vehicle tracking solution? 1. Reduce the car loss 2. Determine the cars location at anytime 3. Trace frauds Is there any additional functionality you would like from a vehicle tracking solution? a) ……………………………………………………………………………….. b) ……………………………………………………………………………….. c) ……………………………………………………………………………….. d) ………………………………………………………………………………..

6   

Yes

No

(%)

(%)

20

80

If companies recently considered, or are currently considering, a 70

30

Indicators

Companies’ experience with vehicle tracking solutions

vehicle tracking solution in their fleet operation

If companies consider an Internet based, GPS tracking solution 53.3

46.7

whereby they pay fees for hardware and communication costs for once If companies prefer to purchase the equipment and the GPS service 83.3

16.7

and then pay a set monthly fee for the online hosting service only

Average of Perceptions

71.6

Table 4.2 Respondents Perception on web based tracking capability

7   

23.7

Questionnaire for car rental employees

Indicators

(never)

(rarely)

(sometimes)

(often)

(Always)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

We lose track of our rented cars

0 1

2 6 1

Fraud happens from the customer

1 2

4 2 1

In case of car accident customers take full responsibility

1 4

3 1 1

In case of awful car accidents, we can easily find our abandoned 4 2 3 1 0 cars Customer return cars late and do not pay for the delay

2 2

4 1 1

Table 4.3 Respondents Perception of the car rental employees towards the customers’ behavior.

8   

(Strongly Questions

Disagree)

(Disagree)

(Neutral)

(%)

(%)

(Agree)

(Strongly Agree)

(%)

(%)

(%) 1

1

3

2

3

An automated car management website will positively ease everyday 1 tasks

2

4

2

1

0

1

3

4

2

2

1

3

3

1

An automated management website will help provide accurate 2 revenue report

2

2

2

2

We are considering allocating a budget to have an automated car management website

A car reservation website will help us expand our market a car reservation website would help us eliminate the confusion with the customers

Table 4.5 Respondents Perception on having a car web-based management system

9   

Questionnaire for car rental employees

Questions

(Strongly

(%)

Disagree)

(Disagree)

(Neutral)

(%)

(Agree)

(%)

(%)

(Strongly Agree)

(%)

(%)

I can easily get access to the internet

7

8

9

3

3

I think having a website to rent cars would be more 6 convenient

8

12

2

2

It is more convenient to book cars via the internet

4

4

13

4

5

I always face troubles booking cars through phone calls

3

2

7

12

6

I can always reach the renters through the phone

5

5

7

6

7

5

5

4

4

In case of emergency I can easily and quickly find a car 12 through the phone

Table 4.5 Respondents Perception on having a car web-based reservation system

10   

I rent cars very often

14

5

4

4

3

I might rent a car at anytime of the day

5

6

7

6

6

I have a specific type of cars that I would always want to rent

4

4

9

6

7

I always book cars in advance

7

9

4

5

5

I always face troubles regarding the time of taking or returning the car

5

5

7

7

6

The renting price always varies without prior notice

8

7

5

5

5

I can always find my favorite car type available

8

8

6

4

4

My booking sometimes gets cancelled by the renter without prior notice

5

5

4

7

9

I always get the car on time as I book it

5

8

6

6

5

Table 4.5 Respondents Perception on their regularity of renting cars

11