Design and Proof of Concept of Parking Garage Capacity Network using Distributed Ultrasonic Devices Interfaced with MQTT Protocol

This paper overviews the Smart Structure project. We found a desire from the City of San Luis Obispo for a way to tell the availability of parking spaces in local parking garages. In addition to meeting this need the project aims to provide functionality and adaptability based on future “smart” devices and making the device fit into an Internet of Things (IoT) system. Currently drivers must manually navigate the parking garage to determine which floor has a parking spot. With our proposed solution drivers would be able to tell at a glance which floors had the most spots, as well as the relative fullness of each floor. Initial testing included a magnetic sensor, but it showed a lack of promise. The final solution is accomplished using a network of ultrasonic sensors. These sensors communicate to a database that is able to be accessed via a GUI. It is hoped that this project will provide the information needed for a real-world implementation of the network. This implementation could be done cheaply and with future device expansion built in. Table of