The first contactless parking lots in Latin America are launched in Chile

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The last months of the year have always been characterized by long lines in shopping centers and high traffic jams, and people in supermarkets and other facilities, due to dates such as Christmas and New Year’s.

This causes discomfort both for users, who are exposed to endless waits to park in these places and for the businesses themselves, which need to cope with the high flow of visitors in their dependencies and parking lots.

Fortunately, in Chile, an innovation aims to change this reality forever. Along these lines, Scharfstein Labs, the national innovation incubator of the Scharfstein company, announced the development of APPark. This technology will allow the first contactless and frictionless parking spaces to be implemented in Chile and Latin America. With this, both users and operators of malls, offices, and supermarkets will benefit from time, comfort and security.

Read also: Check out our coverage on Chile

According to Cristóbal Cruz, product owner of APPark, it is a “next-generation” digital platform that connects drivers with parking spaces through an experience of freedom and agility in the use of parking spaces, avoiding the use of tickets, barriers, and lines at checkout.

“For users, Parking, taking care not to lose the ticket and queuing to pay is a headache. At the same time, for parking operators, finding cash and operating cash management logistics is highly complicated and expensive.

Furthermore, we find ourselves in a context in which, with the pandemic and hybrid work, the way of using spaces became more flexible, and the world of Parking became more relaxed,” says Cruz when explaining the motivation behind this technological development.

HOW DOES IT WORK

The venture was born from Scharfstein Labs, an innovation incubator led by Adrián Scharfstein, who saw the need to connect vehicle drivers with parking spaces and bring the parking lots of malls, offices, and supermarkets, among other facilities, to the digital world, without the need for changing their current systems.

To do this, the team developed a unique technology in Latin America that uses an artificial intelligence algorithm that achieves a very high rate of license plate recognition and an Internet of Things (IoT) system to make APPark agnostic and compatible with any method of Parking.

To use it, the user must install the app on their cell phone and register a credit or debit card. Once the license plate is registered in APPark, it is not necessary to use the application to enter and exit, and you can even leave the cell phone in your pocket or purse.

NO MORE LINES, TICKETS, OR USE OF CASH

APPark’s software allows end-users to enter and exit the parking lot without barriers, as this system reads the license plate of the car, automatically lifts itself, and charges your credit or debit card once you exit it. At the same time, it enables greater security since it is not necessary to stop or lower the window at the entrances and exits.

On the other hand, an advantage is that the system avoids taking out a ticket and making long lines at the payment boxes with exposure to Covid-19.

The innovation also stands out for its benefits for caring for the environment and sustainability. “Users do not have to carry cash and use a greener and more sustainable system since it does not use paper or disposable supplies,” says Cristóbal Cruz.

While, for parking owners, this innovation allows them to digitize their operation, be at the forefront to create new products, and, at the same time, manage them efficiently and centrally. Likewise, they can have precise data on the flow of cars and peak hours, among others, facilitating their management.

Currently, this type of Parking is already being implemented in important shopping centers and parking lots in Santiago, and the plan is to expand its use to regions soon. “We hope to be able to massify this solution throughout the country, especially in times of pandemic and the end of the year, to alleviate the shopping experience for both Chileans and companies,” concludes the expert.

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