Germany’s Dusseldorf Airport Now Has A Robot For Valet Parking
Vishal Khan
Jul 10, 2014
Take heed, for technology is making attempts to take over every aspect of life as you know it. A whole new method of valet parking has dawned upon us, and it will not need any humans at all. At the Dusseldorf Airport in Germany, the Ray – a robotic system, parks cars for customers in the most structured and methodical fashion.
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Ray The Robot
Beginning work just last week, Dusseldorf airport’s robot, Ray, is a customer-friendly system that can be booked from your smart-phone to park your car for you. All you need to do is leave you car at the spot that has been designated for you. All that hassle of moving through congested basements and looking for parking spots, gone!
How It Works
Using laser scanners as well as automated arms and automated wheels that turn 360 degrees, Ray and his ‘colleagues’ get the job of parking hundreds of cars done in the most impeccable manner.
The robot first calculates the length and breadth of the car to gauge where its mirrors and bumpers are present. The car is then picked up by Ray and an assistant robot to drop it in a reserved slot from the 249 available.
Automated Forklifts
While it’s quite enterprising to call Ray and his friends ‘robots’, they are in reality just a bunch of automated forklifts. These machines are capable of lifting vehicles that weigh up to 3 tonnes in weight, and are fully insured.
Vehicle Transfer Station
After you’re done booking the robot service from your smart-phone, you can drop your car off at the Vehicle Transfer Station, where it will be confirmed that your car is empty. You are then issued a valet ticket which will include the price you have to pay, which starts at $39 per day. Business fliers are given first preference for the service, which is estimated to be able to park about 60% more vehicles than humans possibly can.
