INTRODUCTION

When opening a new rental agreement, CARS+ has the capability to capture an electronic copy of the renter's signature and merge it into the rental agreement to be printed. This "sign on glass" feature is similar to that used in many major retail establishments.

The following are the requirements of this feature:

Prior to doing any of the set up steps listed below, Thermeon Customer Support must first do some basic configuration to your system to use these devices. When finished, the Support representative will provide certain information that will be required for the set up below.

I. REQUIRED SET UP STEPS

A. CONFIGURE YOUR EQUINOX L5300 DEVICES

The first step is to configure the Equinox devices to the CARS+ specifications . This must be done first as some of the values that will be set up in this step will be used on the later set up steps listed below. Please refer to the manual chapter Configuring the Equinox L5300 Signature Capture and EMV Device for instructions on configuring these devices.

User tip: This chapter is located in the Support Documents area of this manual.

B. EDIT COUNTER DEVICES

Each individual signature capture device must be set up in the Counter Device file. Please refer to this chapter for detailed instructions on each field. [SCREEN HAS CHANGED]

Example of a record for an EQUINOX L5300 device:

OPTION: __ EDIT COUNTER DEVICES


1 Device Name APT03
2 Swipe Type 02
3 Signature Type 02
4 PinPad Type
5 Address CPEDC.THERMEON.COM:8222
6 Identification 105227594095









1SAVE 2NEXT 3ERASE 4DELETE 5BACKUP 6 7HELP 8


C. EDIT TERMINAL RECORDS

It is necessary to specify which physical device will be used by the current CARS+ session. This is done in the Edit Terminal Records program as follows:

OPTION: __ EDIT TERMINAL RECORDS

1 Terminal name
2 Terminal Type
3 RA printer
4 CARS+ report printer
5 Acctg report printer
6 Acctg forms printer
7 Remote RA type
8 Remote Report type
9 Remote Acct Rpt type
10 Remote Acct frm type
11 Default location
12 Default drawer
13 Shared usage?
14 Auth/Swipe
15 RA Print Library #
16 PIN Pad Device ID
17 Character Set
18 Swipe Device
19 Signature Device APT03
20 Release Gold Code


1SAVE 2NEXT 3ERASE 4DELETE 5BACKUP 6 7HELP 8


Field 19: Enter the Device Code that was defined in Step B above. This will be the default unit assigned to the CARS+ session when the user signs onto CARS+. More than one terminal (workstation) can share a single Equinox device. But it is recommended that no more than two workstations share the same device. If the unit goes out of service, the Change User Environment program may be used to temporarily associate the CARS+ session with a different signature capture device. To make a permanent change, edit the user's Terminal Record.

D. EQUINOX L5300 SCREENS

The screen on the Equinox L5300 device can be customized to display text, logos and other graphics when it is activated or for each prompt for renter interaction. These screen displays are called "Forms". A set of Hertz Rent A Car Forms have been created for this first implementation of sign on glass. Contact Thermeon Customer Support for information on how customized forms can be created for your rental operation/brand.


II. SUMMARY OF SIGNATURE CAPTURE PROCESS FLOW

Once the printing of a new RA is requested, CARS+ will print a copy of the RA and all riders with the phrase "Signature on File" printed in place of the signature line. This copy is then given to the renter so that they can "see" what they are signing.

The counter agent is then asked in a pop-up window if they wish to collect a signature with the question, "Capture signature electronically?" Answering "Y"es, activates the screen on the Equinox device and the message "Sign Now" with the signer's name appears on the workstation screen when the device is ready.

The signature "form" will display on the Equinox screen. The form will be designed to indicate where to sign (a line or a box) and can also display the RA number and/or the name of the renter or additional driver who is to sign. WARNING: When sharing devices between workstations or when dealing with multiple additional drivers, double check that name on the device is the name of the person you are handing the device to for signature.

Using the Equinox stylus, the renter signs on the glass screen in the box indicated and then presses the Green key on the pin-pad to indicate completion. If the renter presses the Red "X" key on the pin pad, the signature request is terminated. The counter agent can also terminate the signature request by pressing the Escape key and exiting out of the pop-up window.

The Yellow key on the pin pad is used to clear the screen and allows the renter to start their signature over again. Pressing this key DOES NOT release the unit for use by another user.

The resulting graphic is then displayed in a pop-up box on the rental agent's computer screen for acceptance.

If the signature is not clear, the renter can be asked to sign again.

The accepted graphic is then merged into the pdf file of the rental agreement. The same signature is inserted into all riders. Therefore, the renter only needs to sign once. For an additional driver rider, if any, each registered driver will be prompted to sign the Equinox device.

The pdf file with the digitized signatures is stored in the CARS+ database and may be printed at a later time.

If the customer refuses to sign or if after two attempts a clear signature cannot be obtained, the system will print a second copy of the RA with a blank signature line that the customer can sign. This copy is then kept by the counter.

The customer leaves the counter with the printed documents that have the phrase "Signature on File" that printed originally.

The device can only perform one task at a time. While it is being used to collect a signature, it cannot be used by this or any other rental agent to swipe a credit card or collect a signature. Once a signature is captured or the attempt is terminated, the device is released for other uses.

III. RA OPEN MESSAGES INVOLVED IN SIGN-ON-GLASS

The following messages may appear in RA Open when signature capture is being used:

DEVICE IS IN USE BY ANOTHER COUNTER AGENT; PLEASE TRY AGAIN

This message appears when more than one counter station shares a single Equinox device. The message means that the terminal's assigned device is presently being used by another counter agent. The second user must wait until the first user releases control of the unit.

COMMUNICATIONS FAILURE WITH SIGNATURE DEVICE

This message means that the user cannot access the device listed. Check the cabling and power cords for proper connection.

PLEASE HAVE (person's name) SIGN NOW. Press ESC to abort

This message means that the device is now ready to accept a signature. Once this message appears, the device is "reserved" for this renter and is unavailable to any other user. This reservation remains until:

  • The renter has signed and pressed the Green key on the pin-pad to indicate that they are through.
  • The renter has pressed the Red "X" key on the pin-pad to terminate the signature request.
  • The counter agent presses the Escape key to terminate the signature request.

CAPTURE FAILED. RETRY?

This message is produced if the Equinox device reports an error in the signature capture process. Answering "Y" will reactive the device for a second attempt.

IS SIGNATURE OKAY?

This question is in response to the displayed signature graphic pop-up window on the computer screen. If the signature is clear, answer "Y" and the process will continue and, in the case of shared units, the device will be freed up for use by someone else. If the graphic is not clear, answer "N" and the next question will appear.

CAPTURE FAILED. RETRY?

If the rental agent answers "N", any attempt to collect a signature will be abandoned and the rental agreement will print with a blank signature line for the renter to sign in ink (to be retained at the counter) and a second copy will print with the phrase "Signature On File" for the renter's copy.

SIGNATURE CAPTURE WAS DECLINED

If the driver presses the red cancel button or if the agent answers "N" to the retry question, this message appears.

IV. SUMMARY OF CREDIT CARD MAGNETIC SWIPE PROCESS FLOW

Once the rental agent presses the F2 function key on line 7 of the RA Open Main window (the presigned FOP field), the Equinox device is activated and the message "PLEASE HAVE RENTER SWIPE THEIR CARD. Press ESC to abort" will appear on the rental agent's workstation if the device is not already in use.

The card swipe "form" will display on the Equinox screen and the arrows near the swipe slot will light up. WARNING: When sharing devices between workstations, double check your workstation screen just in case another workstation has requested the device at the same time. If your request was not first, you will have the "DEVICE IN USE" message on your screen.

The renter places their card in the swipe slot on the right side of the device with the magnetic stripe facing the device and pulls the card through the slot. If the renter presses the Red "X" key on the pin pad, the swipe request is terminated. The counter agent can also terminate the swipe request by pressing the Escape key and exiting out of the pop-up window.

The device can only perform one task at a time. While it is being used to swipe a credit card, it cannot be used by this or any other rental agent to swipe a credit card or collect a signature. Once a swipe is completed or the attempt is terminated, the device is released for other uses.

V. USING THE EQUINOX DEVICE FOR CHIP-AND-PIN CREDIT CARDS (EMV)
The use of the EMV slot at the front of the device is not supported at this time.