Mercedes and Bosch’s Automated Valet Parking Is Kinda Silly, but I’d Use It – Roadshow [CNET]

Mercedes-Benz and Bosch have a solution called Intelligent Park Pilot, a Level 4 automated valet parking system that lets a driver drop their car off at the entrance of a garage so it can park itself. This tech is already in use at a parking garage in the Stuttgart airport, but last week I got to watch a demo in person at a garage connecting the Intercontinental and Wilshire Grand hotels in downtown Los Angeles, a potential location for a future installation. 

Instead of relying on the car’s own sensors and computers, the automated parking is done through external means. The demo that I witnessed used a bunch of lidar sensors placed along the parking route, but that’s just for non-permanent demonstration setups. In the Stuttgart airport garage and other real applications the system is done through the use of Bosch stereo cameras mounted in the ceiling. These cameras are fairly compact and sleek and can be mounted at up to 7.2 feet above the ground, and they provide a panoramic view of the area below — key to making this tech work. The cameras are pretty expensive and multiple cameras are required per parking spot, but they could easily be integrated into newly constructed buildings or retrofitted into existing garages. While currently only available for the S-Class and EQS, this tech will soon expand to other Mercedes models like the EQE, and Bosch says this tech could eventually work with any modern car.

Enlarge Image

Get the Roadshow newsletter

See the latest cars and automotive trends from supercars to SUVs. Delivered Tuesdays and Thursdays.

---

Spread the word!

• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)