Of course, the system is one of the many pieces that will eventually make up the autonomous driving puzzle. But, just like all other technologies being developed towards this greater goal, it too will probably be used in an everyday manner well before self-driving cars of level 5 automation become a reality.WHAT IS IT
Parking has for ages been for drivers at times perhaps as complicated as take-off and landing are for airline pilots. Numerous research has shown that most minor crashes that result in millions being spent on repairs occur while parking.
An autonomous system for parking cars will use sensors and cameras to guide the vehicle to its assigned location, after being dropped off by the driver at a set point.
There are a number of features both the car and the parking lot being used must be fitted with in order to be compliant with the technologies being developed by Mercedes and Bosch.
First, not all cars will be suitable for using Automated Valet Parking (AVP). For the system to be able to do its thing the vehicle must be equipped with a minimum of features that essentially allows it to drive itself: automatic transmission, ESP, electric parking brake and steering assistance, a start/stop function and a communication unit.
On the other hand, the parking garage must have an infrastructure installed to be up to the task. Mostly, this infrastructure is comprised of a series of sensors that are used to calculate the travel distances. Also, a communication unit will be needed to ensure the car is heading in the right direction.
All in all, AVP is a fetch-and-carry service, as Bosch calls it, based on a mobile app.HOW IT WORKS
As its name implies, AVP is not fully autonomous. Just as when dropping off the car in front of a hotel for human valets to handle the parking, this tech too requires the car to be left at a pre-established drop-off area. That means that getting out of the car wherever it suits the driver and expecting the car to park itself simply won’t do. What’s more, the system will only work in parking lots which have the required hardware installed.
Assuming these conditions are met, once the drop-off location is reached, the driver can get out of the car. Via an app, the system is being told that the car is ready to be parked.
From there, sensors and cameras take over. Once it is being told the car is ready, the system registers the vehicle and looks for an empty spot on the lot. The car starts its engine and, using onboard sensors, tracks the driving corridor and its surroundings at all times, steering when needed.
The system on the car communicates all this time with the parking lot’s infrastructure, meaning it always knows when and if danger appears, thus being able to steer or stop to avoid it. Eventually, the car will find the parking spot and wait until being summoned again.
When ready to depart, the driver opens the app and through it informs the system he is ready to go. That makes all the technology kick into gear once again and do the exact same thing as before, only this time going the other way.
The car eventually arrives at a pick-up area, where the driver is waiting for it. ADVANTAGES
First, taking the human element out of the equation might help bring down the number of parking related-accidents.
Secondly, having no humans about to step out of the car means the vehicles can be parked close together. That, says Mercedes, might equate to about 20 percent more vehicles being able to occupy a given parking lot.
During the Beijing tests, Mercedes used two AVP-equipped vehicles at the same time, showing that they can both navigate to their allotted spot without incident.
As for the price of installing such a technology in the parking lot and on the car, there’s no information available at this point.
Below is a video showing how the technology is being tested.
