IH02-JustinHsu
From IEOR 170 Spring 2007
Justin Hsu IEOR 170 – Jingtao Wang Individual Assignment #2
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[edit] Problem Description and Background
Trying to find parking in Berkeley, particularly near campus, is often a time consuming ordeal. The city and the university have tried to alleviate this by building large parking lots and multi-story parking structures near both the north and south ends of campus. While these structures have helped parking problems considerably, finding parking is still extremely problematic during peak hours.
When large parking lots and parking structures are full (Figures 1 & 2), drivers are often forced to circle the given parking location several times until finding an available parking spot or spotting a driver that is leaving theirs. This mindless circling is a waste of time and extremely frustrating.
This problem is absolutely not limited to just the context of universities; this problem is also extremely pervasive in malls, sporting event facilities, etc. Parking lot staff members also have very little idea about the up-to-the-second occupancy status.
Figure 1. Full Parking Lot
Figure 2. Full Parking Lot
[edit] Target User Group
The target user group will be drivers trying to find parking in crowded parking facilities, whether it is a large multi-story parking complex or simply an extremely large parking lot. (Figure 3)
Another target user group will be the parking facility/valet parking staff who would like better ways to dynamically monitor the occupancy status of their facility so that they will be able to better serve driver needs. (Figure 4)
Figure 3. Typical Berkeley Student/Drivers
Figure 4. Valet Parking Staff
[edit] Proposed Solution
I propose a dynamically integrated parking lot system. Each parking spot will have a simple sensor that can tell whether or not there is an automobile in the space. This sensor will then feed this information to both a central computer and a large LED display that drivers will be able to see as they drive into the parking lot. This information allows the parking lot staff to monitor the current state of occupancy in their facility. It will also help valet parking drivers find available parking spots.
The LED display will be an extremely large yet simple diagram that will communicate where there are empty parking spots available within the parking site. Drivers will then be able to drive directly to a specific point within the parking facility where they know for certain that a parking spot will be open. This eliminates the problem of drivers wasting several minutes of their time circling aimlessly until they find an available parking spot. Pre-selection of a parking spot can occur when the driver first enters the parking spot to prevent more than one driver going to the same spot.
Once the parking lot is full, the system will close the parking lot, preventing any additional drivers from entering and wasting their valuable drive by searching hopelessly for a parking spot. Once a certain amount of spots have been vacated, the parking lot system will again reopen the parking lot for use.
[edit] Problem Context and Forces
Drivers are trying to park as fast as possible so they will be able to get to school/work on time, so they can enjoy their day at the mall/game, etc. Having clear and explicit indicators of where to park and if the parking is even available will be able to spare drivers wasted time that they could have spent at their destination. This technology would be most beneficial in populous urban areas, universities, malls, and arenas/stadiums. The demographic of drivers vary all over the board, however to possess a driver’s license one must be literate. Surprisingly, there are very few existing solutions that effectively address this common everyday problem. The only common thing that would resemble a solution would be the availability of valet parking – an unpleasant ordeal of its own.
[edit] Solution Sketches
