DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF ONLINE VEHICLE REGISTRATION SYSTEM

1.1 Introduction

Online Vehicle registration system is an information system use to track the record of the vehicles that are use in our nation. It is use by the management to effectively record, process and monitor effectively the records of vehicles. The purpose of motor vehicle registration is to establish a link between a vehicle and an owner or user of the vehicle. This link might be used for taxation or crime detection purposes. While almost all motor vehicles are uniquely identified by a vehicle identification number, only registered vehicles display a vehicle registration plate and carry a vehicle registration certificate. Motor vehicle registration is different from motor vehicle licensing and roadworthiness certification. Motor vehicles may also be registered with property owners or managers to gain benefits. For example, organizations with parking facilities may require registration of a vehicle with them to allow authorized users to park there (Wikipedia, 2021).

As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.

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1.2 Background of Study

A vehicle registration plate is a metal or plastic plate attached to a motor vehicle or trailer for official identification purposes. The registration identifier is a numeric or alphanumeric code that uniquely identifies the vehicle within the issuing region’s database. In some countries, the identifier is unique within the entire country. In others, it is unique within each state or province. There is also variation on whether the identifier is associated with a vehicle or a person. Depending on the country or region of issue, it may also be referred to as a license plate, number plate, vehicle tag, license tag, or simply tag. It is necessary to mention here that information technology have a lot to play in achieving this. Implementing Online vehicle registration system entails having access to internet, having a website and the place of strong and reliable database cannot be over emphasized.

Most governments require a registration plate to be attached to both the front and rear of a vehicle, although certain jurisdictions or vehicle types, such as motorcycles, only require one plate, which is usually attached to the rear. National databases relate this number to other information describing the vehicle, such as the make, model, color, year of manufacture, engine size, type of fuel used and mileage recorded during the vehicles annual (or bi-annual) road worthiness test, Vehicle identification (Chassis) Number and the name and address of the vehicle’s registered owner or keeper.

In some jurisdictions, these registration plates will be permanently assigned to that particular vehicle for its lifetime. Some countries permit the re-registration of the vehicle with “personal” (“vanity” or “Cherished Mark”) plates. When the vehicle is destroyed or exported to a different country it will require re-registering in the country of import. China requires the re-registration of any vehicle that crosses its borders from another country, such as overland holiday tourist visits, regardless of the amount of time it is due to remain there; this has to be arranged with prior approval.

A vehicle license is a permit issued by a state government allowing vehicle owners access to road network and infrastructure around the country. Vehicle licenses are renewed annually and show: the ownership of a vehicle, vehicle registration number, Owner’s address, Vehicle engine number and License expiration month. Vehicles are levied according to the load capacity of the vehicle and the purpose of use i.e. private or commercial usage. The vehicle registration system is the repository that contains vehicle’s data and information which several stakeholders require and need to access, for the efficient functioning in their respective domains and further, in an envisaged integrated environment.

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1.3 Statement of Problem

Commercial vehicle registration is a job that requires accuracy of data and this exercise is required for every new registration. Therefore, going by this method a lot of problems are encountered which includes:

1. Conflicting multiple registrations; caused by assigning a unique identification number to more than one vehicle.
2. Difficulty in information retrieval; because of the bulk of registration papers consuming a large space.
3. Loss of revenue due to fake registration papers generated and issued to naïve drivers by some fake DOT officials.
4. Waste of time caused by manually verifying the validity of a commercial vehicle.

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1.4 Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of the study is to design and implement an Online Vehicle Registration System for Enugu State Licensing Office. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows to design and develop an application software that will:

1. Provide a bug free system that will allow for the generation and assignment of an infinite unique identification number to vehicles.
2. Provide a better, easier and more efficient method of vehicle registration.
3. Provide an accurate and reliable database of commercial vehicle and ownership, for new and existing vehicle registration.
4. Equip the field DOT officials with an on-the-spot ease in verifying authenticity of any commercial vehicle plying in the campus
5. Provide an information system for managing daily tax of commercial vehicles

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1.5 Significance of Study

A campus commercial vehicle registration integrated with a ticketing system for effective task management will be implemented for the directorate of transport Enugu State Licensing Office will:

1. Provide confidentiality by detecting double registration, and provide useful information to track every completed registration.
2. Provide integrity as data cannot be modified undetectably from unauthorized users.
3. Provide a basis for accurate auditing of tax account, because the system will generate a periodic report on the taxes/tickets paid for.

This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.

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1.6 Scope of the Study

The scope of the research is focused on the Design and Implementation of an Online Vehicle Registration System using Enugu State Licensing Office as a case study.

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1.7 Limitations of the Study

During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:

1. Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
2. Establishment Policies: Establishment policies posed a serious limitation as most staffs are not ready to release information needed for this project work. There were lots of information needed from the staffs of this institution to enhance the study which took them time to release or they did not release at all for security purposes, hence the scope was reduced.
3. Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
4. Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
5. Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet).

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1.8 Definitions of Terms

Commercial vehicle: This is any vehicle used within the campus for commercial purposes.

De-registration: This is the process of cancelling all registration pertaining to a vehicle

Directorate of transport: This is a department in every campus mostly controlled by the student’s union government that oversees the activities of commercial vehicles.

Drivers permit: This is the permission given to vehicle owners and drivers to do business with their vehicle on the campus

Ledger: This is a principal book or computer file used for recording monetary transactions generated each day at various parks in the campus.

Multiple registrations: This is a term used to refer to problems caused by assigning a registered unique identification number to more than one vehicle.

Registration: This is a one-off process of collecting a detailed data about a vehicle and its owner for identification.