Next Generation Automated Car Parking Technology

Residents of prestigious London building complex will benefit.

submitted by Lödige Industries

Today’s cars are bigger, heavier and — more and more often — electric. Lödige Industries, a leading global provider of automated parking systems, is responding to this development with a major update of its 5BY2 technology. Among other things, Lödige Industries has increased the load capacity of its parking solution to 3 mT, adapting the equipment and drives, as well as expanding charging technology for electric vehicles (EVs). The new system is being deployed for the first time in a luxury residential complex in northwest London. The Lödige Industries team completed work on-site recently and is maintaining the system on the basis of a service contract.

Robert Bawn, director Car Parking Solutions at Lödige Industries, commented on the upgrades:

”We didn’t touch the essentials of our proven technology: concurrently moving pallets on individual conveyors for maximum space saving and layout flexibility. What we did, however, was aimed at providing solutions to three key trends we have seen over the last few years: larger and heavier cars, electric vehicles and changes in user behaviour and access patterns.”

Both SUVs and EVs are on the rise and largely responsible for the heavier weight automated parking systems need to transport these days. For its capacity upgrade, Lödige Industries has, therefore, worked on strengthening equipment, as well as improving drive technology to increase the load capacity. This enables architects and developers to cater to a wider variety of cars when they plan and design automated parking solutions for their projects, increasing the attractiveness of the resulting property to investors and users alike.

Improved and Expanded Solution for E-Charging Needs

Globally, the number of EVs is on the rise. In 2019 alone, global EV stock climbed by 43%. Architects and developers are forced by regulations, as well as buyer intent, to offer e-charging in their parking facilities. This has long been an issue for many automated parking technologies, especially since car manufacturers have yet to agree on a standard for wireless charging. The new 5BY2 offers 100% e-charging for all spaces.

Following an engineering breakthrough, the new technology is resilient against dust and dirt and responds automatically to periods of high system activity to ensure vehicles can be retrieved quickly and efficiently at any time. The new e-charging technology supports individual billing per vehicle and can be retrofitted to existing systems. Furthermore, an intelligent load management system automatically exchanges a fully loaded car with an empty car, if not all parking spaces are equipped with a charging facility.

Improved User Experience and a New App 

An improved cabin setting means that drivers accessing the system are now going to benefit from much-improved user guidance. Users of the system will enjoy the new on-screen visualisation with specific step-by-step, task-focused instructions, on larger, eye-friendly screens. In-cabin panels have been given a modern design overhaul in line with Lödige Industries’ successful CUBILE technology and are equipped with security and motion sensors, cameras and number plate recognition technology, if requested.

In addition, a new app called ParkGO!, now available in iOS and Android app stores, enables users to park and recall their vehicles with the touch of a smartphone. A handy system status view allows retrieval of cars during less busy periods. With its overhaul of the cabin and introduction of the app, Lödige Industries has brought the luxury parking experience that defines their public automated parking systems in outstanding architectural objects in Denmark and elsewhere to private parking.

Efficient and Space Saving

5BY2 uses a sliding pallet system and provides optimal use of space in residential developments, as it eliminates the need for drives or walkways within the parking system and the requirement for internal or external access ramps, the combination of which can save more than 60% of the space taken up by traditional car parks.

Faster installation and commissioning times are another major benefit of the optimised 5BY2 technology. This increases the number of parallel movements possible, whilst avoiding any single point of failure. New engineering software integration also means that system configurations can be tested early in the development process using simulation programmes to optimise planning and give a greater range of viability options to developers.

Latest Technology in Use

The first to enjoy the latest generation of Lödige Industries’ proven technology are the homeowners of a luxury residential complex containing 29 apartments for those over age 60 on Fitzjohn’s Avenue in London. The building’s footprint could not accommodate enough conventional parking spaces, and street parking was not a viable option. To meet this challenge, Lödige Industries, on behalf of the London-based residential development company Lifestory Group, installed a fully automated parking system with capacity for 29 vehicles, all equipped with electric vehicle charging docks, at a depth of 10 m over two levels.

David Newey, director of Development at Lifestory Group, commented:

“This solution ticked all our boxes. With Lödige’s 5BY2, every apartment has its own parking space, and the owners will benefit from a seamless parking experience. They will simply drive their car onto a pallet in a cabin, the only interface between the driver and the car park. From then on, the process is entirely automated.”

Philippe de Backer, CEO of Lödige Industries, said:

“5BY2 was already one of the most compact automated parking systems on the market. These new features see the technology now leading the field, offering the ultimate in safe, convenient, barrier-free parking.”