Problems with open-air parking that spreads across vast areas such as airports and event venues

In multi-storey parking garages and underground parking lots, installing cameras and sensors makes it possible to manage vehicle entry and exit relatively inexpensively.

However, parking lot management can be difficult in large parking lots, so-called open-air parking lots, such as regional airports, event venues, and theme parks. The large site requires the installation of a huge number of cameras and sensors, making management complicated. The larger the site, the more security guards will be required, which can increase costs, and the more crowded the parking lot, the more time-consuming it becomes to manage the parking lot.

In addition, it becomes very difficult for users of crowded parking lots to find an empty parking space. In addition, "on-street parking," where people park their cars on the street to wait for a parking space to become available, congestes surrounding roads and, in some places, is a serious problem that could pose a safety threat.

This is where LiDAR technology came in to help streamline parking lot management across large areas.

How LiDAR technology works: Capturing objects accurately

LiDAR is an abbreviation for "Light Detection And Ranging" and is a remote sensing technology that uses laser light. This technology measures the time it takes for an emitted laser light to hit an object and bounce back, accurately measuring the distance and direction to the object. Since it uses a laser with a particularly high luminous flux density and short wavelength, it is capable of high-precision 3D scanning and is characterized by its ability to detect the position and shape of an object in detail.

LiDAR use in parking lot management

LiDAR technology has become an innovative management solution in parking lot management. Traditional parking lot management relies on ultrasonic sensors and cameras to monitor the occupancy of parking spaces, but these methods require installing a sensor for each parking space, which tends to be complicated to install and expensive. LiDAR technology performs 3D environment recognition with a single sensor, simplifying the structure of the entire system and reducing installation and maintenance costs. The next chapter will introduce the specific benefits of LiDAR.

① Real-time understanding of parking space usage to streamline entry and exit

3D LiDAR technology makes parking lot navigation systems smarter and more efficient.

LiDAR sensors scan vast parking lots in real time and accurately identify available parking spaces, shortening vehicle parking times and contributing to reducing congestion. Parking congestion is visualized, allowing users to enter and exit smoothly, resulting in smooth parking lot use. In addition, by providing real-time information on available parking spaces to drivers in advance using an app, users' waiting time is reduced and parking lot usage efficiency is improved. Furthermore, even if many users forget where they parked their cars, the introduction of unmanned parking lot navigation systems is expected to provide a function that allows users to quickly locate their cars in the parking lot in the future.

However, since the app needs to be developed to suit the characteristics of the parking lot, it will be necessary to separately request an app development company.
In any case, this simplified system structure will greatly contribute to more efficient parking lot management.

② All-weather monitoring using LiDAR and efficient data utilization

The advantage of LiDAR technology is that it can be operated stably in all weather conditions. High-precision data collection is possible even at night or in bad weather such as rain, so the parking management system can always provide accurate navigation information. This not only ensures safety but also improves the utilization efficiency of parking lots.

In addition, LiDAR systems can collect and analyze parking lot usage data to help optimize future parking lot design and operations. For example, by collecting and analyzing key information such as the occupancy rate of each parking space and the average parking time, managers can get a comprehensive view of parking lot usage and better plan and adjust resource allocation.

3) Reduction in equipment maintenance costs through the introduction of a LiDAR monitoring system

Conventional parking lot management relies on ultrasonic sensors and cameras to monitor the occupancy of parking spaces, but the LiDAR system can manage up to 50 parking spaces at once with one sensor. There is no need to install individual detection devices for each parking space. By attaching LiDAR sensors to infrastructure such as streetlight poles and signboards in outdoor parking lots, it is also possible to avoid digging up the ground or installing additional structures.

LiDAR technology provides 3D environmental perception with a single sensor, enabling reduced installation and maintenance costs.

Improving parking occupancy rates at airports and large facilities with LiDAR technology

A LiDAR-based parking guidance system has already been implemented at an airport in South Korea. It uses point cloud data to grasp the usage status of parking spaces and displays the parking status in real time on the software. Used and vacant parking spaces are color-coded, allowing users to intuitively grasp the usage status of the parking lot and significantly reducing the time it takes to search for a parking space.

Even in Japan, airport parking lots get very crowded on weekends and long holidays. Introducing LiDAR technology into parking lot management could significantly reduce problems such as missing flights.