Autonomous vehicles are a familiar idea. With the 2003 Prius, Toyota made the first auto-steering system that could be bought on the Japanese market. We’ve already talked about Ford’s similar approach, which is now standard in the industry. In 2019, Tesla came out with Smart Summon, which can automatically get a car from its parking spot. Who could forget Smaht Pahk from Hyundai? Those systems can be helpful, but the best thing would be to pull up to a parking garage, get out of the car, and tell the system to find a spot so you can get to your favourite movie, sporting event, or shop faster and with less work. The dream would be much better if the car buyer didn’t have to pay for all the cameras, radar sensors, and powerful ECUs the car needs. Continental, also called “Mister Sandman,” is working hard to make it happen. Conti is a 150-year-old business that already uses modern driver assistance technology in some cars. Making a Level 4 autonomous valet parking system makes sense for them. The provider is also working on a more traditional vehicle-based solution, but the more innovative choice combines all the needed electronics into the infrastructure. Most current cars already have the essential features needed for self-driving valet parking, like speeding up, slowing down, and turning on their own. All they need to recognize space and avoid obstacles is cutting-edge AI-driven software provided by Conti partner Kopernikus Automotive and several carefully placed cameras and QR codes. The company would have to let such a device get around things like being unable to start or drive a car without nuts in the steering wheel. There are two good things about this. By putting in place the proper infrastructure in factories, cars can move from the end of the production line to a shipping lot. This will save money and time for the factories. Putting in infrastructure-based automated valet parking from Conti can help garages. Because stupid, careless people can’t accidentally open a door into a neighbouring car, more cars can fit in the same amount of garage space, and drivers may be willing to pay more to store their vehicles in a facility where they don’t have to deal with the annoying parking part themselves. Continental also thinks that intelligent garage technology will give drivers more benefits and give garages more ways to make money. With the help of automated robotic-arm chargers and car washes in the garage, users can use an app to ask for their car to be fully charged and clean when they get it back. This kind of technology could change how parking garages work in a country with few places to seize cars and many empty parking lots.
