3 ms·

There's a solution for #2, and it's even better than having the car park itself in a traditional parking structure, which has a lot of unused wasted space dedic

by cronix 8y ago

There's a solution for #2, and it's even better than having the car park itself in a traditional parking structure, which has a lot of unused wasted space dedicated to things other than the individual parking space the car occupies (the paths to the parking spaces, stairs, elevators, wider parking spaces so people can get in/out of the car, etc. I saw in Japan, China, Germany (and other places) they have circular parking structures that you just drive your car onto a platform, get out and pay. The automated, robotic system, lifts the car up to whatever level there is an open parking space, and just puts the car in the space. When you need it, it retrieves it and away you go. No stairs to climb, no elevators, no paths for cars to drive on. Very compact and efficient. I imagine it cuts down on quite a bit of theft, breakins, sexual assaults and security equipment (cameras, staff) as you really just need to make sure the entrance is secure. Even better, you can put them all underground. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXWrpE1Khkk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXWrpE1Khkk

jsharf 8y ago
This doesn't look that more space efficient than a normal parking garage. I'm sure better implementations could exist that would make it way better. Also... I'm imagining having to wait in a huge line during rush hour because everyone wants to get their car out, and they have to wait for the car retriever arm to travel to each car and back for all 20-30 people in line ahead of them.
- cronix 8y ago
  There is a lot of space saving there. There are no "roads" for cars to have to drive on in the garage to get to the space individual spaces, no stairwells. > I'm imagining having to wait in a huge line during rush hour because everyone wants to get their car out That problem exists currently, except you wait an hour in line trying to exit the garage and nobody allowing you to back out because they want out first. I don't really see a solution to that particular problem if everybody is going to continue to have their own individual transports taking up space all day while not in use, and then everybody getting off work at the same time and rushing to get their cars at the same time, clogging the freeways at the same time. Well, except for things like Teslas, it would be nice to just summon your vehicle and have it unpark itself and drive to you to pick you up and give you an uber-like map and ETA on where it is. You could be doing more productive things while waiting for your car instead of standing (or sitting) in a line. 20 minutes before work ends, just summon your car so it's out front waiting, or circling the block or whatever.
zizee 8y ago
Very cool engineering! (reading back over this comment, I might appear overly negative, but I would think all the issues I raise are solvable) What's the throughput like on those systems? I could imagine at peak times it might take a while to get your car back. You'd also want to make sure you didn't leave anything in the car accidentally. Finally, imagine the trouble one of these breaking down would cause.

by cronix 8y ago

jsharf 8y ago

This doesn't look that more space efficient than a normal parking garage. I'm sure better implementations could exist that would make it way better. Also... I'm imagining having to wait in a huge line during rush hour because everyone wants to get their car out, and they have to wait for the car retriever arm to travel to each car and back for all 20-30 people in line ahead of them.

cronix 8y ago
There is a lot of space saving there. There are no "roads" for cars to have to drive on in the garage to get to the space individual spaces, no stairwells. > I'm imagining having to wait in a huge line during rush hour because everyone wants to get their car out That problem exists currently, except you wait an hour in line trying to exit the garage and nobody allowing you to back out because they want out first. I don't really see a solution to that particular problem if everybody is going to continue to have their own individual transports taking up space all day while not in use, and then everybody getting off work at the same time and rushing to get their cars at the same time, clogging the freeways at the same time. Well, except for things like Teslas, it would be nice to just summon your vehicle and have it unpark itself and drive to you to pick you up and give you an uber-like map and ETA on where it is. You could be doing more productive things while waiting for your car instead of standing (or sitting) in a line. 20 minutes before work ends, just summon your car so it's out front waiting, or circling the block or whatever.

zizee 8y ago

Very cool engineering! (reading back over this comment, I might appear overly negative, but I would think all the issues I raise are solvable) What's the throughput like on those systems? I could imagine at peak times it might take a while to get your car back. You'd also want to make sure you didn't leave anything in the car accidentally. Finally, imagine the trouble one of these breaking down would cause.