Parking spaces are like ATMs, bar stools and booty calls: never there when you need one, always there when you don’t.
In order to remedy that issue — well, the parking one, at least — Mercedes-Benz and Bosch are working on a system that will enable cars to automatically take note of available spots and upload that information to the Cloud to help drivers in need of a space, according to Bloomberg.
The community-based parking system, which is already being trialed by a fleet of Mercedes test vehicles in the greater Stuttgart area, utilizes ultrasonic sensors that can collect data from roadside scans at speeds of up to 35 MPH.
Once enough data has been collected over time, the system will be able to calculate the probability of landing an open spot on a particular street as well as provide real-time data about the dimensions of the available spot.
It’s a ways down the road, but Mercedes and Bosch envision a future where real-time parking data will be accessible in map form on an in-car display system or a Cloud-connected app.
“Nearly all of our Mercedes-Benz cars are connected by a smart network. When they are also equipped with the right sensors, they generate data,” said Mercedes digital vehicle and mobility chief Sajjad Khan, according to EMove360. “We see using that data for the rapid identification of available parking spaces as the next logical step.”
Hard to argue with that.
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