The European Union has invested €5.6m to fund researchers from Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and Switzerland who are developing ground-breaking technology that will pave the way for tomorrow’s next generation of driverless car parking systems.
"We need to think ahead and find smarter ways to move, to save time, money and our environment,” said European Commission Vice President Neelie Kroes, who is the Commissioner for the Digital Agenda, investing in Europe's digital future.
"Who wouldn’t want to save time parking their car? We need research on new technologies – and how to combine them – to get practical solutions,” added Kroes. “The V-CHARGE system goes in the right direction and I look forward to using it."
More specifically, the V-CHARGE project is part of the EU investment programme in robotics and is working on a fully automated parking – and charging – system for electric cars at public car parks. Currently they have two electric test vehicles, one in Wolfsburg, and one in Zurich, and a third one is under development.
“'The idea is that we can actually use technology to give people a better mix of public and private transport,” Dr. Paul Furgale, scientific project manager for V-CHARGE and deputy director of the autonomous systems lab at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, said in a press release. “With a fully automated park and ride, drivers can get out of the car and immediately board the train without looking for parking. This will save each driver several minutes a day.”
Another advantage of V-CHARGE that was highlighted in the Commission’s press release is that it will lead to smoother traffic inside the garage, ensuring that empty spaces are filled quickly and keeping congestion to a minimum.
How will it work?
Drivers will be able to leave their car in front of the car park and use a smartphone app to trigger the parking process. The vehicle will connect with the car park’s server and drive itself to the designated space. While in the garage, the car can also be programmed to go to a charging station. Upon returning, the driver uses the same app to summon the car – fully charged and ready to go.
Since GPS satellite signals don’t always work inside garages, the V-CHARGE researchers have developed a camera-based system based on their expertise in robotics and environment sensing. Safety is at the centre of the project: the car is designed to avoid unexpected obstacles.
The V-CHARGE system was unveiled at the Stuttgart airport in April. Researchers are now working to improve the precision of the vehicle’s manoeuvres and ensure reliability in difficult weather conditions.
By 2015, the V-CHARGE project will have concluded and the first results will be available to be gradually commercialised, especially since an increasing number of motorists are switching to electric cars. To ensure easy access to the market, engineers are working with equipment that is already available today such as ultrasonic sensors and stereo cameras that are used in parking assistance and emergency braking systems.
http://www.neurope.eu/article/eu-researchers-developing-cars-park-themselves