EP0199683A2

EP0199683A2 - Electronic apparatus for the automated management of a polling station

Info

Publication number: EP0199683A2
Application number: EP86830095A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Piero Industrie Elettroniche Capodimonti; Claudio Industrie Elettroniche Montanari; Ubaldo Industrie Elettroniche Poggi
Original assignee: INDUSTRIE ELETTRONICHE REGISTRATORI DI CASSA SWEDA SpA
Current assignee: INDUSTRIE ELETTRONICHE REGISTRATORI DI CASSA SWEDA SpA
Priority date: 1985-04-22
Filing date: 1986-04-21
Publication date: 1986-10-29
Also published as: ES8706988A1; ES554187A0; GR861011B; IT1182031B; PT82444A; IT8547984A1; IT8547984A0; EP0199683A3

Abstract

An electronic apparatus is described for the automated management of a polling station, comprising in combination: a central processor; at least one terminal having means for a visual display for the elector and a means for a command acceptance from the elector; sealable mass memory means for keeping the data relating to the ballot; and a control console at the disposal of the polling station officer for enabling the voting operations of each elector.

Furthermore, it is possible to provide the present apparatus with transmission means for a connection with the data gathering centre and/or with a printer for a local print-out of the data relating to the ballot.

Description

The present invention refers to an electronic apparatus for the automated management of a polling station and more particularly is concerned with an electronic apparatus which allows the vote indications of each voter to be gathered in the maximum of secrecy and with a great ease of use by the elector and the ballot data to be-processed and possibly transmitted to a gathering centre in an extremely short time at the end of the ballot operations.
It is known that the completely manual methods used till today for the management of the polling stations, for the voting by the single electors, for the local counting of the ballot-papers and for data transmission to the various gathering centres are very slow and very far from guaranteeing the absolute lack of corruption.
Therefore, there is a great ¹1emand for an electronic apparatus which, run by means of a limited number of commands by the polling station officer or officers, guides the elector during the various kinds of choices for the series of voting, which he or she participates in, and keeps the data relating to the choices made out by the elector during the voting operations in a secretive way until when, having received the information of the end of the voting, it automatically processes and transmits the data in its own possession to the gathering centres and only after this is it available for locally generating the data relating to the ballot in the polling station of its own jurisdiction.
Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to provide an electronic automated voting apparatus, which gives the elector again a voting methodology which is the most plausible analoguous to the present one.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus which allows the possibility of error made by the elector to be reduced with respect to the system in use today .
A further object is to absolutely prevent the possibility of ballot rigging and at the same time to give the Bench the real possibility of checking the democratic course of the electoral process.
Then, still another object is to reduce the necessary time for obtaining the final data and the archiving cost.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an electronic apparatus for the automated management of a polling station restrained as to cost and simple as to embodiment, and suitable for mass production.
According to the present invention, the electronic apparatus for the automated management of a polling station is characterized in that it comprises in combination: a central processor; at least one terminal having a means for a visual display for the elector and a means for a command acceptance from the elector; sealable mass memory means for keeping the data relating to the ballot; and a control console at the disposal of the polling station officer for enabling the voting operations of each elector .
Furthermore, it is possible to provide the present apparatus with transmission means for a connection with the data gathering centre and/or with a printer for a local print-out of the data relating to the ballot.
Therefore, with the present electronic apparatus for the automated management of a polling station, the advantage is obtained in that the data can be recorded with a cryptographic language and on two mass memories, one of which is a working memory and the other of which is an alternative to the former in case of failure thereof, and can be transmitted in detail, at the end of the voting operations, in a cryptographic language, i.e. with encryptographic security keys during transmission and decryptographic security keys during reception, from the single stations to the territory competent data gathering centre or member, guaranteeing from that time the availability of a second copy in a separated place and, if desired, under the control of the Bench.
A further advantage is that, at the end of this latter operation, the data, this time consolidated, can be immediately transmitted to the intermediate gathering centres, such as Prefectures and the like, and then to the Home Office, which will provide, after the subject checks, for divulging it as a whole.
Still another advantage consists in that the mass memories of the single polling stations can then be archived with suitable procedures in a limited room and therefore with acceptable overall dimensions.
In the following, the present invention will be further clarified from the description of a form of practical embodiment of the electronic apparatus for the automated management of a polling station according to the present invention, description made in a purely illustrative and not limitative way, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

figure 1 is a block diagram of the local station part of the presently preferred embodiment of the present,,invention;
figure 2 is a block diagram of a data gathering centre for the apparatus of figure I ;
figure 3 is a schematic view of an elector's terminal for the apparatus of figure 1, in a first phase of use thereof;
figure 4 is a view similar to figure 3 and shows the terminal in a second phase of use; and
figure 5 is a view similar to figure 3 and shows the terminal in a third phase of use.

central processor

terminals

central processor

mass memory

floppy disk drivers

central processor

mass memory

A control console 24 has terminal enabling keys 26 and terminal disabling keys 28, one for each of the terminals 12 and 14, respectively, and a number of voting enabling keys 30. Furthermore, the control console 24 has some keys 32 for special functions, as it will be better described in the following.
The central processor 10 is further connected to a printer 34 for the local print-out of the data.
A dial telephone network connecting device, comprised of a conversion or modem apparatus 36, allows a duplex connection of the apparatus of figure 1 to a data gathering centre, through a line 38 of the dial network itself.
As better shown in figure 2, the data gathering centre comprises a processing station 42 connected to the dial telephone network through one or more conversion or modem apparatuses 44 and therefore it is able to connect itself, via a duplex connection through one or more lines 46 of the dial telephone network, to a number of apparatuses of the kind shown in figure 1 in order to receive and exchange data and commands with them.
The data gathering centre is further provided with high capacity mass memories 50, connected to the processing station 42 and suitable to receive and keep the centralized data relating to all the voting of the interested area. The data gathering centre is further provided with a printer 52, connected to the processing station 42 for the local print-out of the required data.
With reference now to figure 3, it is seen that each terminal 12, 14 comprises a screen 54 for the visual display for the elector and two keys 56 and 58, by means of which the elector transmits his commands. relating the voting to the central processor 10, in the way which will be better described in the following.
Furthermore, each terminal is provided with an array of infra-red emitters 60 and receivers 62 to exactly locate the contact position of an infra-red opaque object or pointer 64 resting on the terminal screen 54.
The operation of the present apparatus is as follows: in the stage of the preparation of the polling station, under the responsability and supervision of the polling station officer, one provides for enabling the terminals; then, by means of one of the keys 32, the automatic loading of the data centrally pepared at each territory competent member is required,and the conformity exactness to a paper copy consigned by the territory competent member is checked and the data memory is sealed by means of the seal 22.
The predisposition of the data of the list of the preferences will have to be centralized at the various territory competent members and the data will be sent from there directly to the terminals at the polling stations through a telephone cable, at the request of the polling station officer in the preliminary phases and previous to the consultation, as it is being described.
When this has been done, the apparatus is ready to receive the first elector.
When an elector comes to the polling station, the recognition formalities are carried out in the usual way, upon showing of a official document and the electoral certificate.
The polling station officer and/or one or more scrutineers, activates one of the two terminals sending it the data for enabling it to receive that kind of voting.
The terminal activation takes place by pressing the voting enabling keys 30 relating to the voting which the elector is enabled to: each key 30 lights up confirming the command acceptance. Then one of the two terminal enabling keys 26 is pressed, relating to one of the terminals 12 and 14: this causes the voting keys 30 to be switched off and the pressed key 26 to light up. Now the console 24 is ready to enable the other of the two terminals 12 or 14 to be used, if it is free.
Then the elector enters the polling booth into which he has been permitted to vote, where he finds one of the terminals 12 or 14 with the kind of voting and the related list of the party symbols indicated on the video screen, as shown in figure 3, as to the political ballots, for example. Furthermore, he has at his disposal the two keys 56 and 58: the key "GO AHEAD" 56 to proceed into the various phases of the voting process and the key "CONFIRM VOTINi" 58 to express his own willingness to confirm his vote. Furthermore the elector has at his disposal the pointer 64 to carry out the symbol and preference choices.
In fact, as already stated, the apparatus is based on a process of reproduction of the symbols and the preferences on a black and white or colour image video terminal of the kind known as "Touch Screen", i.e. capable of receiveng information on the screen through a sensor array which intercepts elements which touch the screen, whether they are a finger or a pencil or what has been generically called a pointer 64.
On the video screen, as already stated, the list of the official symbols of the parties will appear for the first type of voting, such as a graphic reproduction of a ballot-paper, as proposed according to figure 3 for the political ballot. The kind of voting appears on a box 66 on the top of the terminal 54. Having choosen the symbol, the elector touches with the pointer 64 the area in which the symbol itself is enclosed; the terminal 12 or 14, in order to better emphasize the decision of the elector, automatically proposes a cross on the symbol and the entire area of the choosen symbol begins to blink.
At this time, let us suppose that the elector does not change his mind about his choice freely effected and indicated by the apparatus: he presses the key "GO AHEAD" 56 and, on the screen, appears the list of the candidates of that symbol, with their serial number, surnames and name initials, as shown in figure 4.
Now, all the names of the candidates of the choosen list appear on the screen and the elector can choose the preferences until the maximum allowed number or give up; the names pointed to by the pointer 64 begin to blink and, if pointed to a second time, are rubbed out; then the elector presses the key "GO AHEAD" 56 and the choosen symbol and list preferences, if they exist, appear on the screen, as shown in figure 5.
Then, if the elector does not change his mind, he must press the key "CONFIRM VOTING" 58 and this corresponds to what today represents the insertion of the ballot-paper into the ballot-box, without any possibility of change.
It is convenient that the key 58 is at least double in size with respect to the key 56 and different and determining in colour.
At the end of the first voting, the terminal 12 or 14 automatically proposes the subsequent kind of voting, regional for instance, which the elector is enabled to participate in.
Everything proceeds until the completion of the series of voting expected by the electoral consultation, the same operations being repeated and the key "GO AHEAD" 56 having to be always pressed at least twice and the key "CONFIRM VOTING" 58 only once.
Until now we have exhausted the case in which the elector does not change his mind: if this happens, the operations change in the following way:

let us suppose that the elector, in the first voting phase shown in figure 3, desires to change the previously voted symbol: he touches with the pointer the crossed box, which is blinking, and this box returns into its initial state; now it suffices to carry out the voting of the new symbol and one proceeds as before described.

The same process activates when one wishes to modify a preference in the second phase of the voting shown in figure 4: the apparatus will not accept preferences in a number greater than the allowed one for each kind of voting: as a consequence of this, wishing to change an already given preference and having already reached the maximum allowed preference number, one of the previously given preferences will have to be nullified before giving the new one.
When a change of mind takes place in the last phase, shown in figure 5, which just precedes the real voting, carried out by pressing the key "CONFIRM VOTING" 58, by pointing to the box to be modified with the same pointer 64, the candidates' list shown in figure 4 or the symbol list shown in figure 3 will reappear, according to whether one of the candidates or the previously choosen symbol is pointed to by means of the pointer 64.
Then one will proceed from the beginning, as previously described.
In a case in which the elector wishes to vote a blank ballot-paper, it suffices that he presses twice the key "GO AHEAD" 56 without using the pointer 64, the first time in order to skip the symbols of the list, the second time in order to skip the preferences: on the screen, at the place of the symbol of the list, the writing "BLANK PAPER" appears, possibly enclosed in a box.
The operation of the key "CONFIRM VOTING" 58 then confirms the willingness of voting a blank ballot-paper; a possible change of mind can only be made before pressing the key "CONFIRM VOTIID" 58 by means of the previously indicated procedure.
At the completion of each voting, i.e. list symbol and preferences, the central processor 10 carries out the cryptography of the voting data and puts it in a random order into the mass memory, in order to have the maximum of secrecy about both the data and the progressive voting order of each single elector, to guarantee the impossibility of going back in any way, even subsequently, to the identification of the voter.
When the elector exhausted all the series of voting for which he is capable, the central processor 10 causes the screen of the interested terminal to be completely erased and the luminous indicator of the terminal enabling key 26 to switch off and the terminal disabling key 28 to switch on, for the terminal 12 or 14 which is being used. With this, the attention of the polling station officer is required, who must ascertain the freeing of the booth and the restitution of the official document to the elector, as per usual. After this, he will press the terminal disabling key 28 and therefore will render=the terminal free for the next elector.
From this point on, the apparatus will be able, if requested by means of one of the keys 32, of giving information about the voter percentage, and only about that.
At the end of the voting, the polling station officer, along with the scrutineers, sends the ballot closing command to the central processor 10 by means of one of the keys 32 and, from this time on, the data of the electoral kind will be no longer accepted.
It is then arranged so that now the polling station officer asks the central processor 10, through another of the keys 32, for the number of voters for kind of consultation and compares it with the number of electors who really carried out the voting at the polling station, resulting from the paper media at the disposal of the usual procedure.
After this check, if it is positive, by operating another of the keys 32 for special functions, the transmission of the detail data is relied to the territory competent data gathering centre.
The processing station 42 of the data gathering centre, having once received the detail data, processes it, consolidates it and sends it back consolidated, comparing it with the consolidated data directly processed by the polling station apparatus and, only in the case that they are congruent, authorizes the print-out of the consolidated data on the polling station printer.
Only at this time, at the polling station the ballot results will become known. It is arranged so that the polling station officer signs for the confirmation of his examination of such a summary, removes the seal 22 and takes from the drivers the memory floppy disks 18 and 20 and, sealing everything, sends them to a territory competent place.
If, during the transmission, anything should not coincide, the transmission itself must be repeated a second time; should also the second try fail, the processor of the data gathering centre will enable the print-out of a message at the polling station, which will certify the failure of the transmission.
Upon reception of such a message, the polling station officer will remove the seal 22 and put the memory floppy discs 18 and 20, the printed message and the other station paper at the disposal of the Bench.
Once the data has been stored and verified by the processor of the territory competent data gathering centre, the transmission of the consolidated data to the Home Office is started.
Also in this case a congruence check must take place between the data sent by the gathering centres and the data received by the processor of the Home Office and sent back by it.
As to the secrecy and rigging check, the above described procedure has the enormous advantage that nobody knows the ballot results, until the moment in which at least two identical copies of the same information are located in different places, i.e. at the polling station and at the data gathering centre, almost totally reducing the possibility of electoral rigging.
Also as to the interference possibility during the transmission of the data, capable of corrupting the results themselves, the above described procedure of checking the exact correspondence of the data consolidated at the polling station with those processed and sent back to the polling station by the processor of the data gathering centre renders practically such a risk null and void.
The same identical considerations are also valid during the data transmission to the Home Office.
The archiving places both of the detail data and the consolidated ones present at each polling station will have to be established by the competent authorities, with the caution that the intelligibility of such encrypted data will be referred to authorized persons only.
The criteria and algorithms to be taken, will have to be promulgated by the competent members of the Home Office and/or the Bench.
Obviously, it is possible to carry out the devices for dialoguing with the elector in other ways: for instance, the emitter and receiver array can use different frequencies from the infra-red ones, the acoustic frequencies, for example: otherwise it can be replaced by an optical pen responsive device. Furthermore, the keys at the disposal of the elector can be different in number and have different significance from the ones used in the previously described preferred embodiment of this invention.
Also the control console can obviously take on different configurations, for instance it can be divided, with the keys relating to a terminal phisically separated from those relating to the other terminal; furthermore, key lock controls can be provided for an increased security.
The terminal number itself can be varied at will, since a single terminal will suffice for polling stations with a little number of electors, whereas sometimes the two terminals alone will not suffice and there will be the need for increasing the number of them.
Other memory media can comprise hard disks, tapes, bubble memories, static and dinamic memories and any other memory medium used in the electronic field.
It is further possible to provide for an additional magnetic card device containing the data of each elector and/or the polling station data, as a recognition and voting enabling device.
Furthermore, the use procedures and the utilization modes of this apparatus can be easily modified in order to adapt it to specific needs.
For example, in case of the so called "panachage" system, all the candidates' lists can be made to appear and, according to such a system, the elector can choose candidates of all the lists until reaching the maximum number allowed.
Then the elector presses the key "G0 AHEAD" 56 and the choosen symbol and preferences appear on the screen.
It is obvious that other numerous and different changes and modifications can be performed by the skilled in the art on the embodiment form of the present invention hereinbefore described, without departing from its scope. It is intended therefore that all these changes and modifications are encompassed in the field of this invention.

Claims

1. Electronic apparatus for the automated management of a polling station, characterized in that it comprises in combination: a central processor (10); at least one terminal (12 or 14) having a means for a visual display for the elector and a means for a command acceptance from the elector; sealable mass memory means (16) for keeping the data relating to the ballot; and a control console (24) at the disposal of the polling station officer. for enabling the voting operations of each elector.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that each of said terminals (12 or 14) comprises a visual display screen (54) for the elector, on which a ballot-paper is graphically reproduced.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that each of said terminals (12 or 14) comprises a visual display screen (54) for the elector, on which the candidates' serial numbers, surnames and name-initials are graphically reproduced.

4. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises means for proposing to the elector at the same time, all the effected choices for a single voting before accepting the final command for confirming the vote.

5. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that each of said terminals (12 or 14) is provided with an array of emitters (60) and receivers (62) for accepting commands from the elector through an exact localization of the position of a pointer put close to the screen (54) of said terminal.

6. Apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that said emitters and receivers operate in the infra-red field.

7. Apparatus according to any one of the claims 1 to 3, characterized in that said means for a command acceptance from the elector comprises an optical pen responsive device.

8. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said means for a command acceptance from the elector comprises two keys (56, 58) by means of which the elector transmits his commands relating the voting to the central processor (10).

9. Apparatus according to claim 8, characterized in that one (58) of the two keys, which serves for confirming the vote, is greater in size and different and determining in colour with respect to the other key (56).

10. Apparatus according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that it comprises a means for accepting as a vote the blank ballot-paper when only the keys (56, 58) are operated, omitting the choices.

11. Apparatus according to any one of preceding claims, characterized in that it further comprises a printer (34) for the local print-out of the data relating to the ballot.

12. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, charac-. terized in that it further comprises transmission means for a connection with a data gathering centre.

13. Apparatus according to claim 12, characterized in that said transmission means comprises a conversion or modem device (36).

14. Apparatus according to claim 11 and 12 or 13, characterized in that it comprises a means for forcing the dispatch, at the end of the ballot, to a gathering centre, of the detail data relating to the ballot, the arrangement being such that the processing station of said gathering centre processes the received data, consolidates it and sends it back consolidated, comparing it with the consolidated data directly processed by said apparatus and, only in case they are congruent, authorizes the print-out of the consolidated data on the polling station printer.

15. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said sealable mass memory means (16) comprises a working memory medium (18) and an auxiliary memory medium (20).

16. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said control console (24) is provided with terminal enabling keys (26), terminal disabling keys (28) and voting enabling keys (30).

17. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said control console (24) is provided with special function keys (32) for the voting initialization and finalization.