Smart Cities and Environment
Central communications and information in real time will be at the core of future mobility. Having a centralized hub will make for instantaneous communications between vehicles and infrastructure. @ANY RF modules used within units along the road side and in vehicles facilitate these essential communications and are beneficial to improving reliability along the road network.
The Internet of Things (IoT) continues to be incorporated into a number of applications. Urban IoTs are intended to support the vision of the “Smart City,” connecting the many services and technologies to facilitate added-value services for citizens and the city. How are communication devices, microcontrollers and transceivers currently being used to make smart cities a reality?
The Transport System and Connected Vehicle
Transport systems will gain a huge advantage from increased intelligence about real-time public transport, traffic lights and user demand. The evolution of autonomous vehicles will occur through the collection of details on outside temperatures, speed and road conditions. Data on all of these moving parts will change the management of transport systems. Such changes can ease traffic congestion and make for fewer road fatalities, as well as being of use to improve travel times of different types of freight and product.
Cities like Los Angeles are incorporating autonomous vehicles (AV) integrated with transportation investments to complement existing transit systems. Seamless synchronization is their end goal. Key insights from pilot programs will provide further motivation to continue to advance along the path to smoother transportation and greater efficiencies. Best practice guidelines have been used in the Padova Smart City project in Padova, Italy.
Parking Space Monitoring in Multi-Level Parking Garages
A variety of wireless sensors for vehicle detection, parking space reservation, driveway navigation and gate entry, are positioned and integrated for an intelligent parking garage automation solution. Depending on the available infrastructure, those sensors can be battery operated or mains powered. Running the pre-installed mesh-networking software applications, the sensor nodes operate independently. The best-fitting wireless technology such as IEEE 802.15.4, Wi-Fi or NB-IoT is selected to maximize coverage and minimize cost.
The data on the number of currently available parking spaces, the anticipated garage space occupancy trend, as well as the average rate of change for individual parking spaces are collected and forwarded to the main server of the underground parking garage. Compact displays show the information on the free parking spaces to drivers and guide arriving vehicles to the available parking space.
Automated parking space monitoring leads to a significant reduction in driving distances and cuts time spent looking for available parking space(s). The operator achieves a higher utilization of their multi-level parking garages, while offering the customers a fast and stress-free way to locate parking spaces.
The smart parking system’s data can be integrated with an Android or iOS app, further enhancing the user experience. A customer launches the app, finds and reserves a convenient parking space that is available, then follows the map navigation guidance on screen. Once there, he or she uses the app to deactivate the smart lock mechanism, and simply rolls into the parking spot. The payment is made automatically, so there is no need to waste time looking for a kiosk.
The Connected City of the Future is Now
It may seem like a dream. We have come to an advanced state of technology to anticipate such feats in our lifetime. Once the wireless sensing modules are in place within moving and static components, smart cities will be on the horizon. Join us as we embrace the future of technology and enhanced communications to meet our needs and create a better, faster and safer tomorrow.
Learn more about @ANY RF module and how they can be incorporated to meet your transportation needs today!