Automatic indoor parking system using collaborative smartphone sensing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9778341-B2
Application number	US-201514834652-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 25, 2015
Priority date	Aug 25, 2015
Publication date	Oct 3, 2017
Grant date	Oct 3, 2017

Abstract

Methods and arrangements for tracking within a parking facility. A module of a mobile device is used to communicate, to a parking server which stores global data relative to parking places in a parking facility, the presence of a vehicle in the parking facility. There is received, via the module, an indication from the parking server of one or more occupied and/or unoccupied parking places in the parking facility. The module is used to detect a parking event of the vehicle relative to one of the one or more occupied and/or unoccupied parking places, and to report the parking event to the parking server. Other variants and embodiments are broadly contemplated herein.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of tracking parking events within an indoor parking facility, said method comprising:
utilizing at least one processor to execute computer code that performs the steps of:
using a module of a mobile device to communicate, to a parking server which stores global data relative to parking places in the indoor parking facility, a presence of a vehicle in the indoor parking facility;
receiving, via the module, an indication from the parking server of one or more occupied and/or unoccupied parking places in the indoor parking facility;
using the module to detect a parking event of the vehicle relative to one of the one or more occupied and/or unoccupied parking places, wherein said detecting of the parking event comprises detecting a transition between ambulatory motion of a user of the mobile device and driving of the vehicle via:
receiving and synchronizing:
accelerometer data of the mobile device, wherein the accelerometer data is associated with ambulatory motion;
input relative to WiFi states of the mobile device, wherein the WiFI states are associated with general user motion; and
thereupon using a rules table to determine a transition between ambulatory motion of the user of the mobile device and driving of the vehicle; and

using the module to report the parking event to the parking server.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said detecting of a parking event comprises detecting an act of parking the vehicle.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein said detecting of an act of parking comprises detecting a transition from driving of the vehicle to ambulatory motion of a user of the mobile device.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said detecting of a parking event comprises detecting an act of un-parking the vehicle.

5. The method according to claim 4 , wherein said detecting of an act of un-parking comprises detecting a transition from ambulatory motion of a user of the mobile device to driving of the vehicle.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said reporting comprises sending data to a localization server to compute a location of the vehicle within the parking facility.

7. The method according to claim 6 , wherein said reporting comprises using the module to send data to the parking server to indicate the computed vehicle location as occupied.

8. The method according to claim 6 , wherein said reporting comprises using the module to send data to the parking server to indicate the computed vehicle location as occupied.

9. The method according to claim 1 , wherein:
the module comprises an application installed at the mobile device.

10. An apparatus for parking events within an indoor parking facility, said apparatus comprising:
at least one processor; and
a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith and executable by the at least one processor, the computer readable program code comprising:
computer readable program code configured to use a module of a mobile device to communicate, to a parking server which stores global data relative to parking places in the indoor parking facility, a presence of a vehicle in the indoor parking facility;
computer readable program code configured to receive, via the module, an indication from the parking server of one or more occupied and/or unoccupied parking places in the indoor parking facility;
computer readable program code configured to use the module to detect a parking event of the vehicle relative to one of the one or more occupied and/or unoccupied parking places, wherein said code configured to detect the parking event comprises code configured to detect a transition between ambulatory motion of a user of the mobile device and driving of the vehicle via:
receiving and synchronizing:
accelerometer data of the mobile device, wherein the accelerometer data is associated with ambulatory motion;
input relative to WiFi states of the mobile device, wherein the WiFI states are associated with general user motion; and
thereupon using a rules table to determine a transition between ambulatory motion of the user of the mobile device and driving of the vehicle; and

computer readable program code configured to use the module to report the parking event to the parking server.

11. A computer program product for parking events within an indoor parking facility, said computer program product comprising:
a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code comprising:
computer readable program code configured to use a module of a mobile device to communicate, to a parking server which stores global data relative to parking places in the indoor parking facility, a presence of a vehicle in the indoor parking facility;
computer readable program code configured to receive, via the module, an indication from the parking server of one or more occupied and/or unoccupied parking places in the indoor parking facility;
computer readable program code configured to use the module to detect a parking event of the vehicle relative to one of the one or more occupied and/or unoccupied parking places, wherein said code configured to detect the parking event comprises code configured to detect a transition between ambulatory motion of a user of the mobile device and driving of the vehicle via:
receiving and synchronizing:
accelerometer data of the mobile device, wherein the accelerometer data is associated with ambulatory motion;
input relative to WiFi states of the mobile device, wherein the WiFI states are associated with general user motion; and
thereupon using a rules table to determine a transition between ambulatory motion of the user of the mobile device and driving of the vehicle; and

computer readable program code configured to use the module to report the parking event to the parking server.

12. The computer program product according to claim 11 , wherein the detecting of a parking event comprises detecting an act of parking the vehicle.

13. The computer program product according to claim 12 , wherein the detecting of an act of parking comprises detecting a transition from driving of the vehicle to ambulatory motion of a user of the mobile device.

14. The computer program product according to claim 11 , wherein the detecting of a parking event comprises detecting an act of un-parking the vehicle.

15. The computer program product according to claim 14 , wherein the detecting of an act of un-parking comprises detecting a transition from ambulatory motion of a user of the mobile device to driving of the vehicle.

16. The computer program product according to claim 11 , wherein the reporting comprises sending data to a localization server to compute a location of the vehicle within the parking facility.

17. The computer program product according to claim 16 , wherein the reporting comprises using the module to send data to the parking server to indicate the computed vehicle location as occupied.

18. The computer program product according to claim 16 , wherein the reporting comprises using the module to send data to the parking server to indicate the computed vehicle location as occupied.

19. The computer program product according to claim 11 , wherein:
the module comprises an application installed at the mobile device.

20. A method comprising:
receiving, at a parking server which stores global data relative to parking places in an indoor parking facility, a communication from a mob

Assignees

• IBM

Inventors

• Banerjee Dipyaman
• Soubam Sonia

Classifications

• G01S5/017 Primary

  Detecting state or type of motion · CPC title

• G01S5/02 Primary

  using radio waves (using satellite radio beacon systems for determining position G01S19/00) · CPC title

• G08G1/146

  where the parking area is a limited parking space, e.g. parking garage, restricted space · CPC title

• G08G1/144

  on portable or mobile units, e.g. personal digital assistant [PDA] · CPC title