Vehicle Departure Notification via Wireless Coordinates
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Solution Overview
Problem
Finding an available parking spot in busy parking lots or multi-level structures is difficult and time-consuming due to the lack of real-time information about vacating vehicles.
Innovation Solution
A vacant parking spot notification system that uses a wireless communication network to broadcast the geographic coordinates of a departing vehicle once it confirms the intent to vacate, utilizing a controller, GPS, and various communication methods like V2V, RF, or WLAN to inform arriving vehicles of available spots.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If a driver manually searches for parking spots in a busy parking lot, then the driver can find a parking spot, but the search process is time-consuming and inefficient
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by continuously monitoring vehicle departure status and pre-broadcasting vacancy information before arriving drivers arrive. The departing vehicle's notification is prepared and sent in advance through the wireless network, allowing arriving drivers to receive real-time updates about becoming parking spots without manual searching.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a wireless communication network and controller as intermediaries between departing and arriving vehicles. The controller receives signals from departing vehicles, processes the vacancy information, and broadcasts it through the wireless network (V2V, RF, or WLAN), eliminating the need for drivers to manually search and significantly reducing parking search time.
2Loss of information
If real-time vacancy information is broadcast to all vehicles, then arriving vehicles can quickly find parking spots, but the communication network and controller add system complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The controller is designed with multi-functionality, serving both as a signal receiver from departing vehicles and as a broadcast transmitter to arriving vehicles. The wireless communication system handles multiple functions including V2V communication, RF broadcasting, and WLAN transmission, reducing the need for separate dedicated components and managing system complexity through universal functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service by allowing vehicles to automatically broadcast their own vacancy status without requiring external manual intervention. The departing vehicle's signal is automatically processed and redistributed by the network to other vehicles, creating a self-sustaining information dissemination system that reduces operational complexity.
3Reliability
If the system monitors multiple vehicle parameters to confirm departure, then the accuracy of vacancy notification is improved, but the processing requirements and system complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies local quality by selectively monitoring specific critical parameters (odometer changes, gear position, ignition state) rather than all possible vehicle parameters. This targeted approach focuses computational resources on the most indicative departure signals, maintaining high notification accuracy while avoiding the complexity of comprehensive parameter monitoring.
Solution Approach 2:
The system detects vehicle departure through parameter changes such as odometer value increases, gear position changes from drive to park, and ignition state transitions. By monitoring changes in these key parameters rather than absolute values, the system achieves reliable departure detection with minimal processing complexity, as change detection is computationally simpler than continuous analysis.
Data Source
AI summary
A vacant parking spot notification system for a vehicle includes a controller that, in response to receiving a user initiated signal indicative of the user's intent to cause a parked vehicle to vacate a parking spot and confirmation that operating parameters reflective of vehicle departure are present, broadcasts geographic coordinates of the vehicle.