SURVEILLANCE SYSTEMS |
The efficient surveillance of
parking spaces with intelligent
solutions offers an opportunity
to optimize traffic flow in cities
Words | Tilo Krebs and Christian Kuppel, Hectronic, Germany
with each camera covering
Above: HecSpot
cloud-based
surveillance
processes data
and sends it
to the CityLine
management
software for
efficient parking
management
Txhe scarcity of parking
spaces, especially in urban
regions, tests any driver’s
patience. Towns and cities
are faced with the challenge of
ensuring a smooth traffic flow, and it
is in the interests of all road users
and residents to reduce search
times to tackle excessive
traffic as well as minimise
exhaust pollution.
Smart parking
solutions can provide
relief for cities, parking
space operators and
drivers alike, and one
example is the cloudbased
surveillance
solution HecSpot from
Hectronic, which guarantees
comprehensive parking space
surveillance. The system not only
provides real-time information about
the current parking space occupancy
but also offers valuable forecasts of
projected use.
Easy and intuitive
The functional principle is simple:
following a customized picture,
interval surveillance cameras or
sensors generate the database for
the system by sending snapshots
200 Intertraffic World | Annual Showcase 2020
to a cloud-based server. Via an
algorithm, the data is processed on
this server and transmitted to the
Hectronic management software
CityLine. The cross-platform
CityLine supplements the
performance spectrum of the
surveillance system HecSpot
and allows for efficient
parking management.
The software is easy
and intuitive to use,
whether in classical
mode at the PC or while
travelling with tablet or
smartphone. Free and
occupied parking spaces
are identified and parking
times shown. Areas with
no-parking zones can also be
monitored and notified. By means
of different statistical methods and
based on a given situation, it is
possible to evaluate utilization,
parking time and incoming as
well as outgoing vehicles.
Real time
CityLine can monitor the availability
of the devices in the field in real time
and display their status at the back
office. Each warning or error message
is shown without delay and, if
necessary, transmitted to the service
staff. A further application scenario
offers an interface which allows for
data communication with third-party
systems. This connection makes it
possible to transmit the occupancy
data to parking space information
displays, traffic guidance systems
and apps. Parking congestion can
thus be prevented while cars
searching for an available space
can be redirected.
If local circumstances do not allow
for a comprehensive development of
the parking space, or such a measure
does not make sense for economic
reasons, HecSpot offers a customized
solution. In such a situation, the
innovative counting function ensures
the parking space operator knows
what to expect. As an alternative to
the standard functional principle, the
counting function offers real added
value, in particular for unmarked
parking areas.
Completely independent of
an individual vehicle’s parking
position, this function shows at a
glance how many vehicles occupy
a particular car park, and can be used,
for example, for the surveillance of
unsurfaced parking spaces at ski
and hiking resorts.
Smart
parking
300 HecSpot provides real-time
information about parking
space occupancy as well as
forecasts of projected use,
up to 300 spaces