The largest robotic car-parking in Europe (1100 car capacity) is from today in operation in Thessaloniki, Greece. The parking is undergound and only robots have access.

The parking is robotic, which means robots park the car for you using elevators and machines. All you need is a card to pay and the car is delivered to you

http://www.enet.gr/online/dspphoto?id=92219

Wow! Seems like Sci-Fi is catching up with the present day! Like that scene from "I, Robot" starring Will Smith. :)

how long does it to have your car delivered to you?

1.5 minute. There are many elevators that deliver cars simultaneously.

damn this is hot! I am sure it would be badly in need in HK, Singapore and Tokyo

is it alot more expensive than a normal car park?

It is not expensive considering the location . It cost only 27m euros to build and it is revolutionary because it uses minimum storage space. Are not they any such parkings in Tokyo?

I guess that thessaloniki really needed something like this.

1.5 minute. There are many elevators that deliver cars simultaneously.

I assume each elevator is restricted to a certain section of the carpark though? I've just seen a case study on a system that attempts to use multiple cranes in an automated warehouse, the cranes spent more time getting out of each others way than retrieving or storing. :o

But yeah, given that even small carparks here can take a couple of minutes to decend (not to mention the hassle of looking for a park, and the danger of people being on the wrong side while trying to spiral down quickly). Hope to see more of them around as parking gets scarce.

damn this is hot! I am sure it would be badly in need in HK, Singapore and Tokyo

I'm not sure about Tokyo, but from what I saw in Singapore, it would be rather a waste. There were plenty of parking areas right in the city that were 'open air', and not many people drove anyway (you need a special permit or something to buy a car and only so many are issued each year) The PT is good though, I walked / used the MRT the whole time I was there.

Still should mean less ugly carparks, at least from the outside - who cares what they look like inside if there's only robots to take in the view.

Sounds great, I would be curious to see how this works.

where are the open air carparks in singapore? i can only think of one in the city along orchard road. there's this multi storey carpark that starts a few floors above ground in singapore that does not have a ramp; instead it uses elevators to bring cars up and down. didnt seem to work when i was there... it's a really crap building anyway and probably the only car park in singapore that's got lifts (for cars).

this robotic carpark idea should be implemented more often!

I found an article which explains benefits of robotic car parking.

http://www.narpac.org/METROPRK.HTM

http://www.narpac.org/parkvary.jpg

http://www.narpac.org/hobovert2.jpg

great concept :) This is a site of a company that makes these parkings, has some nice videos of how it works ,it's an impressive technology :runaway: :

http://www.roboticparking.com/

http://www.roboticparking.com/images/rps100lg.jpg


From a user perspective, it is a very safe and convenient system. The system virtually eliminates the risk of any vehicle damage or theft and the risk of personal injury or robbery that can occur in regular parking lots because drivers remain safely outside the building at all times. Imagine, arriving to your destination. Rather than having to spend an exorbitant amount of time driving around looking for a space to park, you drive right up to the garage, drive in at ground level into a well lit easy access entrance area, get out of your car, push a button and then you simply walk away. Hassle free!

Underground applications are particularly well suited for this system. Because only half the space is needed, one can realize as much as 50% cost savings on the excavation alone. Also, due to lower lighting and ventilation requirements (since no cars are driving around and no one is walking inside), lower insurance costs, lower personnel expenses, land savings, etc. the overall development costs can be significantly lower than for a conventional garage.

In addition, this system offers a pollution free alternative. No cars are running inside, so there are no choking car emissions to have to deal with inside the garage. Also, because cars are not having to circle around and around the block looking for spaces, there is less pollution (and less traffic) from cars driving at slow paces for extended periods of time. They get off the street faster!

I think if they can manage to develop the technology some more than they have a real potential : certainly in dense cities with many cars.

a good technology with a lot of benefits. :)

But: What if you are still in the car and another one press the button? Trapped! :runaway: ;)

(Of course they can solve this problem easily. For example a scan before the robot starts the action after pushing the button.)

The biggest problem - how do you get your car out during a blackout when there's no electricity to power the robots?

The biggest problem - how do you get your car out during a blackout when there's no electricity to power the robots?


I am sure they have some sort of a backup power like the various car lifts in KL ;)

where are the open air carparks in singapore? i can only think of one in the city along orchard road. there's this multi storey carpark that starts a few floors above ground in singapore that does not have a ramp; instead it uses elevators to bring cars up and down. didnt seem to work when i was there... it's a really crap building anyway and probably the only car park in singapore that's got lifts (for cars).

this robotic carpark idea should be implemented more often!


We have quite a few of these in KL but usually the car elevators are for buildings with a small footprint with underground carparks. And usually these are not crappy buildings as the owners must have lotsa money to install such system and to built an underground carpark when the building had such a small footprint ;)

Anyway there is this car park which is similar to the robotic one in KL. Unlike this robotic carpark where your car would be retrieved or parked with a press of a button......this one is manually operated by a 'parking attendant' in a booth. That means you just need to get the ticket upon parking your car into the platform from him and to retrieve your car, just present your ticket - the rest would be 'automated' (done by the parking attendant).

This machanical carpark had been around since the early 80s and I think it is imported from Japan or something......so yea....Japan might have these everywhere! :D

an episode of Thungerbirds from the 60's had a very funky car park like.Anyone remember?

yeah i think i saw a very basic version in a residential in sapporo. probably all over if i keep my eyes open

I am sure they have some sort of a backup power like the various car lifts in KL ;)

I hope they do. I remember seing on TV a few years ago seing semi-automatic parking garages in New York City stuck during a blackout.

Wow...this is awesome. Its like a bookshelf for cars:D It saves space, time and effort!

The idea is good. In The Netherlands there are several of this automated carparks, but it isn't very usefull with big companies. When everybody leaves the building at 5pm it can happen that you have to wait more then 15 minutes...

It is not expensive considering the location . It cost only 27m euros to build and it is revolutionary because it uses minimum storage space. Are not they any such parkings in Tokyo?

There are "robotic carparks" everywhere in Japan, not only in Tokyo.

The idea is good. In The Netherlands there are several of this automated carparks, but it isn't very usefull with big companies. When everybody leaves the building at 5pm it can happen that you have to wait more then 15 minutes...

Several robotic parkings in Holland ?? Are you sure?

i remember that Thunderbirds episode. This idea's been hanging round for 40 years then

There are "robotic carparks" everywhere in Japan, not only in Tokyo.

In Barcelona too!
11 floors deep.
;)

Boston has at least one garage with a manual car elevator.

The problem is the same as valet parking - what if you need something from the car? What if you get in early and you need somewhere to sit for 10 minutes? The other thing is car quality - let's face it - not everyone keeps their cars in tip top shape - there are some that are going to have junk sticking out them - trim that is coming off, parts and fluids dripping. And of course someone is going to eventually leave their pet in there, or even worse a pet with an open window that jumps out.

Just pointing out a few things that have to be dealt with somehow.

Probably a sign will do:

- Shut the windows.
- Lock your car.
- Don't leave pets inside.

:)

wow thats crazy and so awsome.