Moralizing parking equipment: A usable on-street parking machine that fits the Dutch streetscape

Moralizing parking equipment: A usable on-street parking machine that fits the Dutch streetscape

Kranenburg, A.

Ninaber - van Eyben, B. (mentor)
Van de Geer, S.G. (mentor)
Smulders, J. (mentor)

Industrial Design Engineering

Design Aesthetics

2012-12-14

Products impose a certain moral to the user: A speed bump forces a driver to slow down, a traffic light forces a driver to stop or go and a fence prevents bystanders to trespass. Public space belongs to everybody. There is no unambiguous organization responsible for the public space sight. This results in a cluttered public space that looks disorganized. A parking machine is part of the public space and is a product that moralizes its user. The moral that a parking machine tries to impose is something like ‘you shall pay’. Besides this forcing moral a parking machine is often hard to understand and use. A driver has to read the operation instructions before he can execute the unpopular duty. IP Parking produces off-street parking equipment and has also some on-street products in its product portfolio. IP parking wants to conquer the on-street market even further by developing an innovative parking machine. The design separates form from function: A core unit that gains parking rights to users according to a convenient and simple process. This core unit can be integrated in a streetscape, through customizing, according to the landscape architect requirements. Because areas in municipalities have different budgets for street furniture, there are several levels of parking machine customization. In total there are four: A core unit in a metal column. Colour customization only. A core unit in a metal column with a customizable surface. A core unit integrated in a light pole. This saves a power connection and pavement space. A core unit that can be built in according to the requirements of the landscape architect. Boundaries are the build in measures and a power connection. This variant ensures total design freedom for the landscape architect; the sky is the limit. The core unit consists of a 7” touch screen combined with a pinpad, cardreader, ticket printer and a RFID reader. Two methods of gaining parking rights are available in order to comply with privacy legislation, when the user inputs license plate or other sensitive information into the system. License plate registration is used often and saves costs for enforcement and thus prevents tariff increase. Without user permission privacy information cannot be linked or saved for a long period. Therefore the first parking rights gaining method is anonymous. The license plate number is saved till midnight. The driver inputs the car’s license plate number via the touch screen and prepays his parking rights. receiving a ticket is optional. This method is similar to current, hard to use, machines: staying anonymous has its price. The second method is a membership and resembles the Dutch OV-chipcard. The driver is registered in advance and has a RFID card. In the registration he accepted the link and save of his name, address, license plate number and bank account. He can start paid parking time by checking in with his card and stop parking time by checking out. This system is already developed by IP Parking. The core unit is designed as compact as possible to increase built-in possibilities. It has platonic aesthetic: timeless to fit in any streetscape. The design is an attempt to make the municipal city planning department responsible for the public space design. This is as step towards an uncluttered and organized public space. Besides that, the interaction between the user of the parking machine is improved. Easier to understand (less instructional graphics and text) and improved ergonomics combined with the integrated aesthetical design makes the ‘you shall pay‘ moral less prominent or even disappear. There are some recommendations. This project is hardware focused, but software makes the difference. A start is made in GUI design and needs more development. There must be a focus on the wants and needs of municipalities., after all they purchase the product. Municipalities want remote control of parking machines because this is cost-effective. Parking management software need to offer this functionality. Also streetscape architects must be aware of the potential of this design and get rid of their frustrations of current parking machines, not being able to control the aesthetics. This design puts the streetscape architect back in control.

Design
public space
parking machine
usability

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:6c098a1d-8bd4-4560-a3b7-f5724b84dc69

Campus only

Student theses

master thesis

(c) 2012 Kranenburg, A.