Park-A-Solution

Team: Andre Muniz Mercado

Project

  • Parking in large garages is inefficient and time-consuming, often taking 20–30 minutes to find a spot.
  • This leads to increased traffic congestion, fuel waste, and driver frustration.
  • The goal of this project is to design a system that detects parking availability in real time.
  • The sensors are used to determine whether a parking space is occupied or empty.
  • The system provides immediate visual feedback using LCD indicators.
  • This solution improves efficiency by guiding drivers directly to open spots.
  • The project demonstrates a scalable approach to smart parking systems in real-world environments

System

System Diagram

Methods

  • Selected IR break beam sensors for reliable object detection.
  • Connected sensors to the microcontroller using proper wiring and breadboard setup.
  • Verified each sensor individually to ensure correct functionality.
  • Soldered and repaired LCD board connections to ensure stable output.
  • Developed Arduino code to read sensor inputs and control LCD outputs.
  • Integrated all sensors into a unified system for simultaneous detection.

Conclusion

  • The system successfully detects parking occupancy in real time.
  • LCD indicators accurately reflect parking availability.
  • The solution reduces time spent searching for parking spots.
  • The system improves traffic flow and overall user experience.
  • The project strengthened skills in hardware integration and embedded programming.
  • Overcame wiring and debugging challenges, improving problem-solving abilities.
  • Future improvements: wireless communication (loT), mobiles app connectivity, and centralized availability display.