How to Uncover a “Staged” Automated Parking System Demonstration

Posted on | April 14, 2015 | No Comments

I think we all know that it is possible to “stage” the demonstration of new parking technology so the system appears to be fully functional, when in fact it is still very far from that reality. To ensure you are making an educated evaluation, follow these suggestions to fully test a new system:

Take the following actions:

1) Visit the control room before the demo to ensure nobody is operating the system.
2) Park & retrieve your own car.
3) Pick random cars to park and retrieve. Try to park and retrieve a few large vehicles.
4) Make several (ideally 5 or more) simultaneous requests to park and retrieve random cars.
5) Ask to inspect the technician user interface while the garage is running.
6) Cut the main power to the system then bring it back online and try to retrieve your car.
7) If possible, show up unannounced. If first demo is scheduled, come 45 minutes early. If that is not possible, try to come back a 2nd time to “see it one more time”.

Additionally, here are a few things to look for:

1) Are they trying to dictate which vehicle they want you to retrieve?
2) Are they trying to dictate the order of the transactions?
3) Are multiple bays, lifts, and robots being used or is it the same ones each time?
4) Are the same paths being travelled and the same parking spaces being used each time?
5) Are there several people involved in the operations? Are they using phones or computers during the demo?
6) Are excuses being made for odd system behavior?

I know it may seem like a lot of effort, and you will certainly have to pay close attention, but when you are spending millions of dollars on technology you have to live with for decades, it is well worth the effort.

Woody Nash

www.linkedin.com/in/woodynash

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