2012 International Conference on Control Engineering and Communication Technology

Design and Implementation of Smart Parking

Management System based on RFID and Internet
Lanxin Wei, Qisheng Wu, Mei Yang, Wei Ding, Bo Li, Rong Gao
School of Electronic and Control Engineering
Chang’an University
Xi’an, 710064, China
e-mail: weilanxin2012@126.com, qshwu@chd.edu.cn

Abstract—In order to solve the ever-growing lack of parking

space available, this paper designs and implements a smart
parking management system based on the RFID (radio frequency
identification) and internet. The system induces parking cars,
each of which has the only RFID card, to park in right spaces of
parking lots, and manages the information of parking cars there.
Based on this, it can also help users query the information stored
in database easily through the internet, which is designed in B/S Figure 1. The architecture of parking spaces management subsystem
architecture (Browser/Server architecture).

Keywords- parking lots; RFID; internet; B/S architecture III. ENTRY CONTROL SYSTEM
In this paper, the floor plan of parking lots is shown in
I. INTRODUCTION Fig.2:
With the ever-increasing of automobiles and limited space
for parking, particularly in urban areas, it is difficult for drivers
to know ahead of time if there are available parking spaces. In
order to alleviate the parking problem, many cities make the
development of parking industry, and strengthen the static
traffic management as the main countermeasures [1, 2].
Based on the parking lots with single entry, single exit,
and fixed parking spaces, this paper proposes a smart parking
management system with the help of the RFID (Radio
Frequency Identification) and internet, which can effectively
solve the current parking problems.

II. THE OVERALL STRUCTURE OF THE SYSTEM

RFID as a short distance wireless communication
technology is also called electronic tag or radio frequency
identification, which can identify specific goals and read-write Figure 2. The floor plan of parking lots
the relevant data through radio signals without any mechanical
or optical contact. The major hardware of the entry control system includes:
control computer, antenna, card reader, automatic card issuing
The system mainly includes two parts: parking spaces machine, automatic railing machine, the reminder for amount
management subsystem and the internet parking information of free parking spaces.
management system. Parking spaces management subsystem
mainly implements the management of parking guidance and RFID reader system mainly includes: antennas, tags and
costs in each parking lot. Internet parking spaces information readers. It works as followings: when the tag enters the
management system implements integrated management of the coverage of electromagnetic wave emitted by the antenna, the
parking spaces information in every parking lot. reader reads the tag information [5], which contains a unique
electronic serial number. Then the parking space, which is
Parking spaces management subsystem manages parking given the same serial number with the tag in the computer,
lots using RFID tags, which consists of: entry control system, will be distributed for the entering car, implementing the
parking spaces positioning and display system, exit control management of “one car, one card, one parking space”.
system [3]. The structure of parking spaces management
subsystem [4] is shown in Fig.1.

1. Basic Research Project of Ministry of Transport of People’s Republic of

China (Project numbered:2010-319-812-080).
2. Central Universities special Funds for basic Research and Operating
Expenses Projects of Chang’an University (Innovation team
CHD2011TD018).
3. Major Science and Technology Project of The 12th Five-Year Plan for
National Economic and Social Development of the People 's Republic of
China(Project numbered:2011318812260).

978-0-7695-4881-4/12 $26.00 © 2012 IEEE 17

DOI 10.1109/ICCECT.2012.12
 In general, parking users are divided into three parking card when they exit the garage, as the special users do
categories:(1) Fixed users, who use the parking lot almost not.
every day; (2) special users, such as monthly users, VIP users,
etc. They need to buy-out parking spaces; (3) Temporary users, IV. PARKING SPACES POSITIONING AND DISPLAY SYSTEM
who use the parking lot occasionally [6, 7].
It is inefficient for artificial guide for parking inside the
In order to improve the management efficiency of the garage in the traditional parking management. Parking spaces
parking lot, the first two categories of users are taken as positioning and display system helps the user to find the
special users. That is, the parking users are divided into two location of their own parking spaces quickly, whose hardware
types: special and temporary users.
includes: control computer, reader, RFID tags, antennas, etc.
The entry’s workflow of parking lot is shown in Fig.3:
The actual parking lot with the situation of parking
Start
spaces is drawn in the flat electronic map in real time. Users
can easily get how many spaces and how to get there with the
Having unused N help of electronic map.
Leave
parking spaces?
Y One user getting the parking spaces positioning and
display terminal installed at the road side punch their parking
Special user
Users type? card which is taken from the automatic issuing machine in the
entry. The terminal will highlight the parking space which has
Temporary user been distributed. The user can find their parking space quickly
card valid˛
N according to the reminding of the terminal. The schematic
Y Take parking card from diagram of the parking spaces positioning and display system
Read card info and store automatic issuing machine is shown in Fig.4.
into database

6
5

6
7
8
9
0
1
2

7
8
9
2
3
4

ID 1 0 0 2
ID 100 1

ID 100 1
ID 100 1
ID 100 1
ID 100 1
ID 100 2
ID 100 2
ID 100 2

ID 100 2

ID 100 2
ID 100 2
ID 100 2
ID 1 0 0 2
ID 1 0 0 2
ID 1 0 0 2
Read card info and store
into database

Railing machine up
Here is your car!

1
2

6
7

8
001

5
3
˄down˅ ID10

ID 10 03

ID 10 03
ID 10 03

ID 10 03

ID 10 03
ID 10 03

ID 10 03
ID 1 0 0 3
I D 10 0 3
009
ID10
002 Parking card
ID10 010
Drive into ID10
003
ID10 011
ID10
0 4
Remember parking ID100 dispaly
012
ID10
spaces˛ 00 5
ID10
013
punch parking card and find out ID10 Punch the card
0 6
self-parking spaces ID100
014
ID10
07
ID100
Parking spaces positioning and
End 0 8
ID100 display system

Figure 3. The entry’s workflow of parking lot

Figure 4. The schematic diagram of the parking spaces
positioning and display system
Firstly, the users make sure whether there are available
parking spaces from the reminder outside of the parking lots. In Figure 4, each box marked with a unique ID number
If there still are available parking spaces, enter; else, leave. represents a parking space, as the pink boxes represent these
parking spaces have been occupied; green box indicates that
Each special user will get one RFID tag, which is these parking spaces are available; yellow box means the
bounded with its personal information and parking parking space shown on screen when users punch the parking
information stored into the database. One car, of which card on the electronic map terminal.
electronic tag is installed in the proper position, will be
checked through the RFID, when it enters into the coverage of Graphic electronic map of the system is simple relatively,
electromagnetic waves emitted by antenna. If the tag is valid, which is just used for an illustration here. In actual using,
entry’s railing is lifted, and then the car enters into the garage drawing the corresponding two-dimensional map based on the
without stopping; if the tag is invalid, special user has to enter distribution of parking spaces in different parking lots is
into the garage as a temporary user. needed. The location of the parking positioning and display
terminal is installed at the entry of the parking lot, which is
The entry parking process for temporary users work as convenient for users to park and query.
followings: firstly, the user takes a parking card (RFID tag)
from the automatic issuing machine. When the car enters into
V. EXIT CONTROL SYSTEM
the coverage of the electromagnetic wave, the parking spaces
management subsystem records the time of the car entering The major hardware of exit control system includes:
into the garage automatically, and then railing is lifted up control computer shared with the entry control system, the
automatically for car to pass, and falls down after the car antenna, card reader, card recycling machine, automatic railing
entering into the garage. Temporary users have to give back the

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machine, costs displayer, ticket printers, etc. The specific
layout of the exit control system shown in Fig.2.
The exit’s workflow of parking lot is shown in Fig.5:

Figure 6. Application interface of parking spaces management subsystem

The application software includes: device connection,

device disconnection, the reader parameter setting, tag read and
write, railing control, information management, history, costs
rate setting and other functions.

VI. INTERNET PARKING INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

B/S architecture is used to establish an internet parking
Figure 5. The The exit’s workflow of parking lot information management platform, which help users get the
information of parking spaces in parking lots everywhere
As shown in Fig.5, if special users remember the location
through internet [8].
of their parking spaces, they can go to their parking spaces
directly. Temporary users may not remember their parking The structure diagram of internet parking information
location very well, but they can punch the parking card on the management system is shown in Fig.7:
electronic map terminal and check the parking place
information.
When a special user driving a car enters the coverage of
electromagnetic wave, the system will automatically read the
information on the parking card, and record the information. If
the card is not valid, the operator on duty will deal with the
situation after receiving the warning message. If the card is
valid, the car will be deducted costs from the balance
automatically without any stop. When temporary users leave
the parking lot, they should give the parking card back into the
card recycling machine, and then the system reads the card
information automatically, and records parking time to
calculate costs. Operator lifts the railing machine after
completing the payment, and then the user drives car to leave.
Part of application interface of parking spaces
management subsystem is shown in Fig.6.
Figure 7. The structure diagram of internet parking information
management system

As shown in Figure 7, the local database in each garage

will provide the parking information for internet management
platform to show on the websites in real time, which includes
parking spaces, parking lot location, parking costs, etc. Users
just browse the web pages before traveling to learn the parking
spaces available of all the parking lots, which provides
convenience for users to develop their own travel plans.

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 VII. CONCLUSION Thanks the valuable comments and suggestions of the
This paper designs and implements a smart parking reviewers of this paper; Thanks all authors in the literature
references; Thanks the training and education of my mother
management system, which is based on RFID technology and
school, Chang’an University.
internet. Users can query the information of available parking
spaces, parking costs, and others through the internet
management platform before traveling. When users arrive at REFERENCES
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