Intelligent parking systems that are IoT-based and connected have become more popular with the increase in connected devices. These parking systems provide drivers with detailed information about available spots and other valuable data, such as current prices and availability rates. Alphonic is the leading company that provides the best solution for IoT Based Smart Parking Solution Development.
Smart parking allows drivers to access the space via their smartphone remotely. This is useful for drivers who prefer to avoid traffic congestion or walk to the spot.
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Parking problems are common in big cities. According to IoT Analytics, the market for smart parking products will grow at 14% CAGR and exceed $3.8B by 2023. This is a good sign because it will encourage people to seek solutions to traffic issues rather than just ignoring them.
This is a very obvious problem. The bigger question is: What technology can be used to solve the problem? Is there a way to solve this problem?
Integrating IoT to smartly park solves the problem of drivers searching for parking spaces. It is a far better solution than their relentless efforts to find parking spots. It even works in real time!
More start-ups are recognizing the importance of investing in this sector. As a result the demand to develop an IoT-based smart parking system mobile app is also increasing rapidly.
Parking 4.0: The Future Smart Parking
Smart parking systems are used widely to improve people’s daily lives. Therefore, smart parking systems will continue to be in demand. This system also can add advanced functions, making it a multifunctional parking management software and tool.
- Parking optimization and demand management
- Personalized parking guidance
- Parking reservation system
- Dynamic parking policy and optimization
- parking area, charging, illegal parking detection
Augmented reality may create large parking lots using real smartphone photos. These AR indoor and outdoor navigation systems can help drivers find their cars by guiding them via virtual paths.
Another innovation is using visual image processing technology to capture the car’s license plate number and identify it using optical character recognition technology. The system then opens the garage door and directs the driver to the appropriate parking spot.
Smart parking systems are a promising future. This solution is based on the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence. They also drive the digital transformation of businesses in industry 4.0 terms. These innovations will enable Parking 4.0 to improve parking efficiency and address urbanization challenges.
Parking in Cities: A Major Problem
Car parking and traffic control systems are two of the biggest problems in urban areas. Modern cities are becoming more populated by private cars, making it difficult to find parking spaces.
City planners can see this situation as an opportunity to use IoT-based smart Parking in a busy urban environment to increase the efficiency of their parking facilities. It will also reduce search times, traffic congestion, and road accidents.
Smart parking can solve traffic congestion and parking problems by notifying drivers about available parking spaces near their destination.
Many cities now use IoT-based monitoring systems due to the rapid advancement in sensory technology. Some parking programs claim that IoT smart parking systems can provide citizens with real-time information about parking spaces’ availability.
These systems need efficient sensors installed in parking lots to house residential and data processing units. This allows them to access real-time data from different sources quickly. Some of the daily common parking issues are:
- Parking spaces are scarce, especially in urban areas.
- Parking spaces that are not used properly
- You will need more time, fuel/gas to find open parking spots.
- Large parking lots can be difficult to find vehicles
- Traffic congestion is concentrated in underutilized parking spaces
- Passenger parking takes over business parking lots
- Incorrect parking
- Management of private parking lots unused and inaccessible for disabled persons
- Excessive fuel consumption when searching for a parking spot is a natural consequence
- Unclear parking policies.
These issues are part of Indian parking. However, it doesn’t have to be this way. Smart Parking System can solve this problem.
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What Is an IoT Based Parking System?
A connected parking system is an IoT-based smart parking system. It allows drivers to use their smartphones to find and reserve parking spots.
The system’s hardware features sensors that can detect parking spaces and communicate this information with all drivers. The data is constantly updated, so drivers don’t have to worry about finding a space.
The system helps drivers find a spot and alerts them about peak times or prices. These alerts are intended to save money and reduce congestion.
Working of IoT Based Car Parking System
This problem can be solved by innovative smart parking technology that combines IoT connectivity. IoT sensors installed in parking spaces can determine the location of empty parking spaces. These IoT data are transmitted wirelessly to a cloud server. The parking lot data is collected in real-time and used to create a map showing all available spaces.
Drivers can use the smart parking map to find a parking spot and direct them to the closest available space. These spaces can be reserved by advanced systems accepting drivers’ electronic payments.
The working of smart parking system development with IoT includes an HC-SR04 ultrasonic sensor that measures distances using ultrasonic waves and an ESP8266 controller. They are both installed in every parking space.
The IoT device transmits periodic updates by wireless signal using MQTT protocol to a cloud server that runs AWS IoT. The cloud server compiles information about all parking spots. The cloud server displays all available parking spots on a mobile or web application, allowing users to choose the one they prefer.
How IoT Sensors Can Detect Free Parking Space?
IoT sensors use ultrasonic waves to determine the distance to an object. Each sensor is embedded on the parking surface if the parking area is occupied. It measures the distance from the vehicle’s undercarriage. Most common possible detection conditions are:
- Space is occupied. Distance to an object detected by the sensor is between 10 and 50 centimeters (or approximately four to twenty inches).
- Space is free: The distance between the object and the sensor is greater than 50 cm (or approximately 20 inches).
- Space is dirty: The distance between an object and the sensor is less than 10 centimeters (or about four inches).
If the condition is “dirty,” the sensor could be covered or blocked by something. The device should be checked.
The application works on AWS IoT or AWS Lambda. It shows the driver’s empty spaces in green, occupied spaces in red, and sensor malfunctions in yellow.
Other Tech Solutions for Smart Parking System
Business needs are key to the improvement of smart parking systems. Smart parking may be a priority when considering healthcare and retail technology trends. The following are some of the key features that could be improved in our smart parking solution:
LoRaWAN Protocol
It will improve the autonomy of a smart-parking system. LoRa Alliance’s specifications have optimized the LoRaWAN protocol for low power consumption. This means you won’t have to replace batteries more frequently than every 2-5 years. It can scale from one gateway to large networks with billions of devices. This protocol, or any other LPWAN protocol, would make a smart park.
Data Science and Computer Vision
These technologies that are based on video streaming, make a great match for IoT-based innovation. Data Science, Machine Learning, and Computer Vision could be used to recognize car numbers.
This feature allows you to:
- If the car is in a specific park, automatic gate opening
- Navigation of cars to suitable and available parking spots
Smart parking systems can also benefit from sensor integration. These are the most relevant:
Ultrasonic Sensors
Ultrasonic sensors measure distance using ultrasonic waves. The emission and reception occur in the time interval between the sound emission and its arrival. The sensor’s accuracy is high. The downside is the possibility of sensor contamination.
Infrared sensor (IR sensor)
An infrared sensor can be described as an electronic device that emits light to detect certain aspects of its environment. An IR sensor can detect motion and heat and measure object heat. The IR sensor functions in a similar manner to ultrasonic sensors.
Custom mobile and web IoT apps might be created based on your business requirements. A parking slot order function could be a great feature for web and mobile apps. An integrated AR navigation system may be useful if a parking space is only a few kilometres long.
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Steps Develop an MVP for an IoT-based Smart Parking System
This section will answer the major question “how to build an IoT-based smart parking system mobile app”. And we will need the following items to implement this:
- Hardware, such as microcontrollers or distance-measuring sensors
- Cloud infrastructure like Amazon Web Services, AWS Lambda, AWS IoT
- The user interface can be either a web or mobile app
Planning & Research
Planning and research are the first steps in developing anything. Without proper research, it can get worse when so many sensors and hardware are involved.
There are many ways to create an IoT-based smart park system. First, you must research the market and determine what other devices are used. IoT is a rapidly evolving industry. There is always something better. If you can find an easy way to implement smart parking systems that are cost-effective and fault-tolerant, then go ahead.
Below is a list that will help you to understand the basics of what you need before you start:
- Sensors (Ultrasonic, EMF, Infrared, etc. ), microcontrollers
- Cloud-based IoT services like AWS, Microsoft Azure IoT Hub, etc.
- Network protocols (MQTT, etc.)
- Interface for users (web apps or mobile apps).
After you have determined the above, you can set a budget and hire an IoT expert for help.
Today, most start-ups choose to have their MVP developed by one of the top companies in the industry. These companies provide great services at affordable rates that can be adapted to any budget. Many start-ups do not have the resources to hire smart car parking app development company to begin with the development process. It is expensive to maintain infrastructure and pay employees regular salaries. It is possible to hire an hourly-based third-party developer.
If you aren’t comfortable outsourcing your entire development project, an IT staff augmentation firm is a good option. These companies can help you rent full-time talent to supplement your staff.
Building an Architecture
Once you have a team of developers on board, you can start to plan how to implement it. This example will help you to create your MVP for this blog.
You can see that there are three main parts to our MVP.
The first part is the sensory component, which consists of two sub-parts: distance sensor and microcontroller.
The microcontroller receives distance data from the distance sensor. The microcontroller takes the data and transmits it to a cloud service via a messaging protocol.
The distance sensor measures how far it is from the nearest obstacle. If it falls below a certain value, the distance sensor considers there is a vehicle parked at the spot and places it in the OCCUPIED status. The sensor will consider that spot in the Free State if it’s further than that distance. Let’s take, for example, that our MVP considers a spot free if it is less than 50 cm from the nearest obstacle. Anything below that distance is considered occupied.
The state data is sent to the microcontroller via a messaging protocol. This state data about the parking spot is then read by a cloud computing provider and provided to the user.
The user interface is the final component of this setup. The user can access the web interface, or the mobile app, by sending a request to the computing services. This retrieves the state data from IoT services. The interface will show the spot if it is OCCUPIED. If the state is FREE, they will be shown in green.
Creating User Interface
The user interface is the final piece of this puzzle. While most start-ups prefer to use simple and attractive mobile apps over web interfaces, it may be beneficial to have both. You can rely on IoT experts to help you balance utility and visual appeal for your user interface.
Mobile applications must be well-designed and optimized for all operating systems. It should have good features but not be overloaded with them. This will frustrate users and slow down your app.
You are creating an interface that allows users to access certain information. Your interface does not need to have a lot of features. Once you have an MVP, you can add features such as booking a spot.
Test and Enhance
It is time to test your MVP to ensure it meets all requirements. Potential investors can also use it to impress them. Start-ups want to be more successful and have bigger dreams. A polished MVP can help them do that. You can throw everything at your IoT-based smart park solution to see its effectiveness.
After you’ve tested it, it is time to improve it. An MVP is smaller than a complete project. The sky is the limit if you have the funds to do a full project. You will need to choose the hardware depending on what you want to automate. You should consult your IoT experts for assistance. Because it is low-energy LoRa enabled, they will recommend using the LoRaWAN protocol.
Data science and computer vision can be used to add security to your parking lot. Cameras read license plates and can identify cars, allowing them into the area if they are already in the database. Any suspicious activity in the lot can also be detected using AI/ML techniques.
You can also consider adding AR or guidance technologies to your custom web and mobile apps. These technologies can help users locate the available parking spot if the area is sufficiently large. This will further streamline the process.
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Architecture of Smart Parking System
It is made up of the following parts:
Parking Sensors
The parking sensors are used to monitor parking spaces. To detect vehicles, ultrasonic sensors can be used.
Processing Unit
The processor on a chip acts as a hub between the sensors and cloud platforms and relays data between them.
Mobile Application
It’s a visual interface that allows end-users to interact with smart parking systems.
Cloud
The cloud is a repository that stores all information related to parking spaces and records about end-users who have access.
Smart parking systems are expected to grow in popularity due to rising parking costs and the reduction of implementation costs.
Another innovation is visual image processing, which captures a vehicle’s license number and uses optical character recognition technology to identify it. The system then opens the gate and directs the driver to the correct parking lot.
Smart parking systems are the future. This solution is based on IoT, artificial Intelligence, machine learning, and Augmented Reality. Smart parking will improve the efficiency of parking systems by using these new approaches.
Innovations in Smart Parking Solutions
According to the Smart Parking Institute survey, 42 percent of respondents supported parking systems. The good news is that drivers can now find the closest parking space if it isn’t occupied, thanks to parking lot sensors, connectivity platforms, and other IoT apps. In the future, real-time parking maps will become commonplace.
Here are some of the most innovative smart parking apps currently available.
Sensors for Vehicle Training
The core technology of the vehicle tracking platform is the Internet of Things. GPS and OBD sensors are useful tools that can collect data about cars or trucks and monitor parking spaces’ occupancy. This information is sent to the CSA and processed before being sent to the network server. These data will be displayed to drivers and managers of car companies clearly and understandably.
Vehicle trackers based on the Internet of Things can be used primarily for fleet management in large enterprises. Parking technology will become more common among car drivers as 5G becomes more widely available. It will also be used to manage daily commutes and alleviate parking problems.
Smart Meter Systems
The connected metering system tracks when cars enter and leave the parking lot. An IoT platform can provide drivers with real-time information about available parking spaces.
Facility managers can use the metering system to increase the efficiency of parking facilities, identify trends and patterns regarding ridership, and predict future vehicle surges.
Automatic Parking
Automated parking systems reduce parking spaces and maximize space efficiency. The automated system moves the car from one level to another. Parking at the APS facility is safer because it is fully automated with access restrictions.
Increased driving time can lead to engine emissions and increased search time. Because there is very little lighting and ventilation needed to maintain an automatic parking system, resources are minimized.
Control Systems
The Internet of Things is a powerful traffic enforcement tool contributes to urban security and order. The parking control system uses sensors to detect, register, collect, store and issue tickets in seconds.
Role of IoT in Smart Car Parking Technology
Smart parking will majorly impact all parties involved throughout the process. Smart parking allows drivers to book parking spaces in advance, plan their trips, and consider parking lot occupancy. In a matter of seconds, the reinforcement mechanism can detect illegal parking and determine its severity.
Parking managers can optimize their parking lot’s space and resources, formulating future developments. Community leaders will apply IoT parking solutions to improve the comfort of residents.
These are just a few of the many benefits that the Internet of Things brings to the parking space.
Meter Time Extended
The connected platform will notify drivers when the parking meter expires. This tool allows drivers to extend their parking time with a single click after paying for it. This automatic parking meter extension system reduces traffic violations and increases revenue for the facility.
Innovative Parking Solutions
The platform will identify red areas, such as bus stops, pick-up and drop-off areas for passengers, and parking spaces for disabled persons, and notify drivers. This will reduce the number of parking violations. A connected platform will notify the strengthening department immediately if a driver park in an area that is prohibited from parking, increasing the chance of a successful penalty.
Efficient use of Parking Spaces
Automated parking planners can gather occupancy data from all parking lots using a network of sensors. Municipalities can use data from the IoT platform to distribute parking spaces evenly.
The Increased Need for IoT-Driven Smart Parking
The two main reasons for the increasing demand for IoT smart parking solutions are an ever-increasing rise in car ownership and urbanization. The World Bank estimates that more than four billion people are living in cities around the globe. This population is expected to increase to 60% by 2030. The staggering growth in the US is expected to cause problems for future generations, with more than 91% of households having at least one vehicle.
In addition, drivers will continue to search for parking spaces, resulting in increased traffic jams and an increase in their search time. This vicious circle of dissatisfaction leads to road rage and mass dissatisfaction.
As if that weren’t enough, autonomous vehicles (AVs), which are also electric, will be putting new demands on the shelves. This includes the need for charging stations. Because AVs are mostly electric, they must be integrated with high-quality parking systems that can comply with parking regulations at different spots.
Smart parking offers several options, including in-ground Smart Parking and counting sensors. These sensors are often embedded in parking spots or placed next to them to determine if parking spaces are occupied or free. Some companies also offer in-app information that lets you find out about parking locations and prices. Smart parking is now a necessity in society. Many companies are now investing in smart parking solutions to meet these demands. Get My Parking, ParkingRhino, Smart City Parking, Secure Parking, and ValetEZ are the top smart parking companies in India.
The Key Takeaway
Smart cities are now possible thanks to the Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud technology. Smart parking has been an integral part of smart cities. Smart parking systems based on IoT offer real-time slots, parking processes, and information. This improves the user’s ability to save time when parking properly. It solves traffic congestion issues. Users can also book parking at remote locations. Future features include GPS, reservations, and license plate scanners.
The IoT trend is gaining popularity each year. Its long-held promise to connect the whole world and bring all aspects of our life to the internet to make our lives easier and simplify them is nearing fulfilment. It is moving in the right direction with IoT-based smart park systems. Urbanization is creating many problems, making it increasingly difficult for people to find car parking spots.
It is a draining experience to spend precious time scouring streets and parking lots looking for a spot to park your car. This problem can be easily solved with the perfect implementation of sensors, network protocols, and a smart, intuitive web or mobile app.
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