View source for MARS (ticket reservation system)

{{Short description|Electronic ticketing system used by JR Group, Japan}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{Expand Japanese|topic=transp|date=June 2024}}
{{More citations needed|date=April 2019}}
}}

[[File:MARS terminal - JR - Tokyo area - Dec 2015.jpg|thumb|A MR32-type MARS terminal at a JR ticket office in 2015]]
{{nihongo|'''MARS'''|マルス|Marusu}}, short for '''''M'''agnetic-electronic '''A'''utomatic'' '''''R'''eservation '''S'''ystem,'' is a train ticket [[Computer reservation system|reservation system]] used by the [[Japan Railways Group]] (JR Group) companies and travel agencies in Japan. It was developed jointly by [[Hitachi Rail]] and the former [[Japanese National Railways]] (JNR), and inherited by the {{Ill|Railway Information Systems Company|ja|鉄道情報システム}} (JR Systems), which is jointly owned by the seven railway companies of the JR Group: the [[East Japan Railway Company]] (JR East), [[Central Japan Railway Company]] (JR Central), [[West Japan Railway Company]] (JR West), [[Hokkaido Railway Company]] (JR Hokkaido), [[Shikoku Railway Company]] (JR Shikoku), [[Kyushu Railway Company]] (JR Kyushu), and [[Japan Freight Railway Company]] (JR Freight).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Corporate Overview - JR RAILWAY INFORMATION SYSTEMS CO., LTD. |url=https://www.jrs.co.jp/corporateoverview/ |access-date=2023-12-05 |website=JR Systems}}</ref>

The MARS system used in JR ticket offices is Japan’s largest online [[Real-time computing|real-time system]], providing a year-round [[High availability|availability]] of 99.999%.<ref name="AboutJRS">{{Cite web |title=About JRS - JR RAILWAY INFORMATION SYSTEMS CO., LTD. |url=https://www.jrs.co.jp/english/aboutJRS/ |access-date=2024-01-13 |website=JR Systems}}</ref> It offers a range of services, including seat reservations on [[Shinkansen]] and [[Limited express#Japan|Limited Express]] trains and fare calculation for basic fare tickets, commuter passes, and express tickets.<ref name="ProdSol">{{Cite web |title=Products and Solutions - JR RAILWAY INFORMATION SYSTEMS CO., LTD. |url=https://www.jrs.co.jp/english/Products_and_Solutions/ |access-date=2024-01-13 |website=JR Systems}}</ref> It is currently connected to approximately 10,000 terminals at JR ticket offices and travel agencies, as well as to online systems run by the individual JR companies.<ref name="ProdSol" /> The system is accessed about 8 million times every day, with a daily average of over 1.9 million tickets sold.<ref name="ProdSol" />

==Outline==
[[File:Himeji Station 20090128 013.jpg|thumb|A ''Midori no Madoguchi'' ticket office at [[Himeji Station]] in 2009]]
The host computer of the system was previously located in [[Kokubunji, Tokyo]] until 2013, when it was moved to an undisclosed location in the northern part of the [[Kantō region]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.jrs.co.jp/service/product/data_center/ |title=データセンターサービス｜鉄道情報システム株式会社 |access-date=2023-08-17 |archive-date=2023-06-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230628014150/https://www.jrs.co.jp/service/product/data_center/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The system is managed by JR Systems since 1 April 1987 following the division and privatization of JNR.<ref name="AboutJRS" />

Ticket offices at JR stations equipped with MARS terminals are called {{Nihongo||みどりの窓口|'''Midori-no-madoguchi'''|literally "green window"}}, selling tickets of all JR Group trains and partly highway buses and route buses and ferries. It is possible for passengers to reserve tickets of buses and trains from one month prior to the given trip.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.jreast.co.jp/estation/midori/ |title=List of the stations are installed for Midori no Madoguchi in JR East |access-date=2021-06-02 |archive-date=2021-05-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508163333/https://www.jreast.co.jp/estation/midori/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.jrhokkaido.co.jp/network/tel/eki.html |title=List of the stations are installed for Midori no Madoguchi in JR Hokkaido |access-date=2021-06-02 |archive-date=2021-06-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602220200/https://www.jrhokkaido.co.jp/network/tel/eki.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In the JR Central region, these are instead called by the name きっぷうりば ''kippu uriba'', meaning "ticket sales counter".

== Naming ==
Originally short for "Magnetic-electronic Automatic (seat) Reservation System", the [[backronym]] was later changed to "Multi Access Reservation System".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kawasaki |first=Hiroshi |date=2011 |title=Advancement and Issues of Transport Management and Signal/Train Control Systems |url=https://www.jreast.co.jp/e/development/tech/pdf_20/Tec-20-07-11eng.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231210205302/https://www.jreast.co.jp/e/development/tech/pdf_20/Tec-20-07-11eng.pdf |archive-date=2023-12-10 |access-date=2024-06-03 |website=[[JR East]] |series=JR EAST Technical Review-No. 20 |pages=7–11 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Ogawa |first1=Tetsuya |last2=Osumi |first2=Hideki |last3=Nagai |first3=Satoru |last4=Ito |first4=Masakazu |last5=Kato |first5=Hiromitsu |last6=Fushiki |first6=Takumi |date=2011 |title=Convergence of Information Technology and Control Systems in Railway Transportation Service Systems |url=https://www.hitachi.com/rev/pdf/2011/r2011_02a_107.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240420151024/https://www.hitachi.com/rev/pdf/2011/r2011_02a_107.pdf |archive-date=2024-04-20 |access-date=2024-06-03 |website=[[Hitachi]] |series=Hitachi Review Vol. 60 |language=en}}</ref> It has since been reverted to its original meaning.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Products and Solutions |url=https://www.jrs.co.jp/english/Products_and_Solutions/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231205184248/https://www.jrs.co.jp/english/Products_and_Solutions/ |archive-date=2023-12-05 |access-date=2024-06-03 |website=JR Systems |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=MARS-1-Computer Museum |url=http://museum.ipsj.or.jp/en/computer/dawn/0030.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231128110817/http://museum.ipsj.or.jp/en/computer/dawn/0030.html |archive-date=2023-11-28 |access-date=2024-06-03 |website=[[Information Processing Society of Japan|IPSJ]] Computer Museum}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Hitachi Origin Story |url=https://www.hitachi.com/corporate/origin/story.html?p=railway_1960 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021063146/https://www.hitachi.com/corporate/origin/story.html?p=railway_1960 |archive-date=2021-10-21 |access-date=2024-06-03 |website=[[Hitachi]]}}</ref>

==History==
===MARS-1===
[[File:MARS1(1).jpg|thumb|Preserved MARS-1 mainframe at [[Railway Museum (Saitama)|Railway Museum, Saitama]]]]
The MARS-1 system was created by Mamoru Hosaka, Yutaka Ohno, and others at the Japanese National Railways' R&D Institute (now the [[Railway Technical Research Institute]]), and was built in 1958.<ref name="mars1">{{cite web| url=http://museum.ipsj.or.jp/en/computer/dawn/0030.html| title=Hitachi and Japanese National Railways MARS-1| publisher=[[Information Processing Society of Japan]]| website=IPSJ Computer Museum| access-date=2017-04-19| archive-date=2016-10-27| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161027114741/http://museum.ipsj.or.jp/en/computer/dawn/0030.html| url-status=live}}</ref> It was the world's first seat reservation system for trains, and entered service in February 1960, initially only providing bookings for the [[Kodama (train)|Kodama]] and [[Tsubame (train)|Tsubame]] limited express services.<ref name="dawn">{{cite web| url=http://museum.ipsj.or.jp/en/computer/dawn/history.html| title=Early Computers: Brief History| publisher=Information Processing Society of Japan| website=IPSJ Computer Museum| access-date=2017-04-19| archive-date=2017-05-02| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170502231330/http://museum.ipsj.or.jp/en/computer/dawn/history.html| url-status=live}}</ref> The MARS-1 was capable of reserving seat positions, and was controlled by a Hitachi [[Mainframe computer|mainframe]] [[transistor computer]] with a [[central processing unit]] consisting of a thousand [[transistor]]s and a magnetic [[drum memory]] unit for data storage, which was where the MARS acronym originated from.<ref name="mars1"/>

In 2008, the MARS-1 system received a ''"One Step on Electro Technology -Look Back to the Future-"'' commemorative plaque from the [[Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.iee.jp/foundation/list01/photo06/ |title=展示状況「座席予約システム：マルス1／みどりの窓口の先がけ」 |date=26 March 2019 |access-date=2023-08-17 |archive-date=2023-08-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230817100436/https://www.iee.jp/foundation/list01/photo06/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:MR12W MARS.jpg|thumb|MR12W-type touchscreen terminal computer with thermal paper printer]]

===MARS 100/200===
{{empty section|date=June 2024}}

===MARS 300===
{{empty section|date=August 2023}}

===MARS 500===
====MARS 501====
Introduced in stages between 2002 and 2004, the MARS 501 introduced the concept of an [[Ethernet]]-based [[client–server model]]. Also, the ticket paper type was changed to [[thermal paper]].

====MARS 505====
The latest version of MARS uses the MARS 505 system which was introduced in April 2020, which expanded on contactless, and ticketless boarding and booking capabilities brought along by the rise of [[mobile app]]s on smartphones and tablets.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://news.kotsu.co.jp/Contents/20200617/44d4f2ca-8ac4-4ace-84df-0f23bfcf7956 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210212144638/https://news.kotsu.co.jp/Contents/20200617/44d4f2ca-8ac4-4ace-84df-0f23bfcf7956 | archive-date=2021-02-12 | title=交通新聞 電子版｜Ｊｒシステム 新たなステージに対応 各種基盤整備の「マルス５０５」 }}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.jrs.co.jp/english/aboutJRS/ JR Railway Information Systems]

{{Japan Railways Group}}

[[Category:Passenger rail transport in Japan]]
[[Category:Travel technology]]
[[Category:Computer-related introductions in 1960]]
[[Category:Train-related introductions in 1960]]
[[Category:1960 software]]
[[Category:Computer reservation systems]]
[[Category:Route planning software]]
[[Category:Hitachi products]]