Parkopedia indoor mapping prevents sat-nav ‘blackouts’
Service helps users locate EV charging stations in car parks and underpins autonomous parking research
Car parking platform Parkopedia has launched an indoor mapping service for sat navs, enabling them to navigate drivers around car parks, where GPS is typically restricted.
Currently, many GPS sat-nav systems ‘blackout’ when entering underground parking facilities and users find it difficult to locate EV charging stations in car parks, says Parkopedia. It bills its indoor car park mapping as a solution to this, as well as enabling other services such as vehicle location and autonomous parking.
A spokesperson for Parkopedia said: “Our high definition maps give drivers a clear vision of their entire journey, from driving to and entering a parking facility, to finding a parking space.
“Our indoor mapping technology can maximise efficiency and help guide drivers to the best available spaces with the shortest walking distance based on their final destination.”
Parkopedia has already mapped many “key parking facilities across Europe” with plans to expand to “new regions” in the coming months.
In addition to helping users locate EV charge points, which are often hidden away in remote areas of car parks, Parkopedia’s mapping was recently used in an autonomous car parking trial.
Using a combination of indoor maps, algorithms, cameras and sensors, Parkopedia completed a proof of concept trial with a modified Renault Twingo, which was able to park itself with no driver assistance after being dropped at a designated drop off point.
Parkopedia’s data is used by millions of drivers and organisations such as Apple, BMW and Ford worldwide and its car parking locator tool is available in 15,000 cities across 89 countries.
It is also integrated into the infotainment system of various production cars; Audi, for example, uses Parkopedia data in its current infotainment systems to provide information about nearby parking facilities to the driver.
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