Wireless Sensor Network Aids Travelers in Parking Their Cars and Trucks

Wireless Sensor Network Finds Parking Spots Users of a UCLA parking garage just check their cell phones for updates on vacancies. • Microprocessors within the sensors determine the type of sensed event, and whether to update the mainframe database. • Wireless sensors transmit data only on a valid event detection, such as a car passing, to maximizing battery life. UCLA Center for Embedded Networked Sensing, Most systems that monitor parking- lot occupancy are installed when the parking structure is built. But there are many existing structures that could benefit from an occupancy- monitoring system. However, retrofitting these existing structures is complex and expensive. Such was the task facing a team from the UCLA Center for Embedded Networked Sensing trying to bring occupancy monitoring to a UCLA medical-building parking garage. They wanted to link an online