Vehicle-to-Infrastructure Parking Meter Notification System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current technologies do not provide real-time notifications to drivers about available parking spots or when a parking spot is about to become available, leading to inefficient searching for open spaces.
Innovation Solution
A system that uses vehicle-to-infrastructure communication to receive signals from parking meters, determining the time remaining on occupied spaces and displaying this information on a vehicle's display, either near the vehicle or at a future destination, using a processing device and GPS for location-based overlays on a map.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If drivers search for parking spots by circling city street blocks and parking lot rows, then they can find available parking spaces, but they waste significant time and fuel searching
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by proactively notifying drivers before parking spots become available. The notification system monitors parking meter status and sends advance alerts to drivers' mobile devices when their designated parking spot or nearby spots will be available, eliminating the need for drivers to physically search for spots by circling blocks.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback by continuously monitoring parking meter status through communication protocols and relaying this information back to drivers. The system receives real-time data about parking spot availability from meters and provides continuous updates to drivers' devices, creating a closed-loop information system that eliminates information asymmetry.
2Loss of information
If parking meters locally indicate time remaining on the meter, then drivers can see status at the spot, but drivers cannot know about available spots at a distance
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses an intermediary approach by introducing a communication network as a mediator between parking meters and drivers. Instead of direct line-of-sight communication only, the system employs network infrastructure (cellular networks, internet) to transmit parking status information over distances, enabling drivers to receive notifications about available spots anywhere within network coverage.
3Productivity
If the system provides real-time notifications about parking spot availability, then drivers can find spots faster, but the system requires complex vehicle-to-infrastructure communication infrastructure
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies universality by designing the notification infrastructure to serve multiple functions beyond just parking spot notifications. The same communication platform can be used for traffic information, navigation, other urban services, making the complex infrastructure investment justify itself through multi-purpose utilization rather than single-function dedicated systems.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for providing meter time notifications to a user are disclosed. The system includes a display, a receiver that receives one or more signals from one or more parking meters via a vehicle-to-infrastructure communication system, the one or more signals including an identification of an occupied parking space and an amount of time remaining before the occupied parking space must be vacated, and a processing device communicatively coupled to the display and to the receiver. The processing device is configured to receive the one or more signals from the receiver, determine the amount of time remaining for one or more occupied parking spaces based on the one or more signals received via the receiver, and cause the display to display an indicator of one or more occupied parking spaces and the associated amount of time remaining.