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So, this is nothing new. People in the parking industry have been grappling with this problem for years (I'm in that industry). Parking technology has just ro

by pionar 12y ago

So, this is nothing new. People in the parking industry have been grappling with this problem for years (I'm in that industry). Parking technology has just rocketed ahead from where it was even 5 years ago. From license plate recognition (LPR - allows parking without having a physical permit) to being able to forecast and adjust prices based on historical demand, parking people have a vast wealth of knowledge on their hands. The only problem is, most vendors of parking management software have enterprise products spanning millions of lines of code that have to be maintained, and it's hard to keep adding new features like "performance parking" while keeping basic features like selling permits and interfacing with accounting and bursar systems up-to-date. It's definitely a challenging (yet exciting!) time to be in the parking technology industry. Edit: Ooh, I'm forgetting about smart meters, mobile apps (both for the parker and the parking operation), and more. Mobile apps are the rage now for parking operations, as they replace expensive ($5000+) industrial handhelds for parking enforcement agents.

mind_heist 12y ago
Hmm interesting ... if I may ask a couple of more questions .. What devices did you previously use ? and I suppose these were manufactured by a company specialized in the parking industry ? And What are the new Apps that have replaced the heavy handheld of the previous generation ?
- pionar 12y ago
  No, the devices were general purpose handheld devices running Windows Mobile 6. The apps are private and only distributed to customers. They are not available in app stores. [0]http://www.casio-intl.com/asia-mea/en/pa/IT-9000/ http://www.casio-intl.com/asia-mea/en/pa/IT-9000/
  - mind_heist 12y ago
    Hmm .. interesting ; thanks for you reply :) So, if the city bought these in mass , who programmed them for you ? I suppose these were then given to third party companies to program 1.Like Enter the header for the printed out tickets 2.Relay back information about total number of tickets issued etc., etc., ? Did all of the information on these devices automatically roll over to centralized servers ? Or did you have to manually plug it into a computer and sync data ? Did the third party companies ever write such software for you ? or were they predominantly standalone terminals involved paperwork later on ? for example : you have to input the parking ticket number again in a computer later on ?
    - pionar 12y ago
      We do the programming :) Most devices like this have an online and an offline mode, using cellular or WiFi connections. The process is usually, the officer writes the ticket, if it's in online mode, it transmits that to a web service, which then enters it in a database. If it's offline, it just stores it until it goes online.
  - mind_heist 12y ago
    BTW - I always thought of CASIO as a watch company. I had one of those vintage electronic watches with a ton of little buttons on them as a child. Never knew of their remaining product line ! Thanks again :)

by pionar 12y ago

mind_heist 12y ago

Hmm interesting ... if I may ask a couple of more questions .. What devices did you previously use ? and I suppose these were manufactured by a company specialized in the parking industry ? And What are the new Apps that have replaced the heavy handheld of the previous generation ?

pionar 12y ago
No, the devices were general purpose handheld devices running Windows Mobile 6. The apps are private and only distributed to customers. They are not available in app stores. [0]http://www.casio-intl.com/asia-mea/en/pa/IT-9000/ http://www.casio-intl.com/asia-mea/en/pa/IT-9000/
- mind_heist 12y ago
  Hmm .. interesting ; thanks for you reply :) So, if the city bought these in mass , who programmed them for you ? I suppose these were then given to third party companies to program 1.Like Enter the header for the printed out tickets 2.Relay back information about total number of tickets issued etc., etc., ? Did all of the information on these devices automatically roll over to centralized servers ? Or did you have to manually plug it into a computer and sync data ? Did the third party companies ever write such software for you ? or were they predominantly standalone terminals involved paperwork later on ? for example : you have to input the parking ticket number again in a computer later on ?
  - pionar 12y ago
    We do the programming :) Most devices like this have an online and an offline mode, using cellular or WiFi connections. The process is usually, the officer writes the ticket, if it's in online mode, it transmits that to a web service, which then enters it in a database. If it's offline, it just stores it until it goes online.
- mind_heist 12y ago
  BTW - I always thought of CASIO as a watch company. I had one of those vintage electronic watches with a ton of little buttons on them as a child. Never knew of their remaining product line ! Thanks again :)