IoT Based Car Parking System using LoRaWAN Technology for CIT Campus
Finding parking spots on busy college campuses wastes time and creates congestion, especially during peak hours when students, faculty, and visitors all arrive together. This project proposes a smart parking solution for Coimbatore Institute of Technology (CIT) using IoT sensors and LoRaWAN wireless tech to show real-time availability on a mobile app—this is a student concept design with lab prototype, not a live campus system.
The simple idea places ultrasonic sensors above each parking slot to detect if a car is present, connected to Arduino boards with LoRa shields for long-range, low-power wireless communication. Data flows to a central LoRa gateway, then to a cloud server and user app showing green (available) or red (occupied) spots across campus lots. It also includes automatic number plate recognition at entry gates for security and vehicle logging.
A lab prototype tested one parking slot: the sensor reliably detected cars, sent status updates through LoRa to a phone app within seconds. Campus layout analysis identified key lots near library and main buildings (total ~7,800 m² for 150+ cars), with rubberized paver blocks recommended for durable, eco-friendly surfaces using recycled tire rubber. Civil design followed IRC standards for slot sizes (5m x 2.5m) and Wet Mix Macadam base.
This shows affordable IoT can cut search time, optimize space use (reduce circling by 30-50%), and improve security—but it’s prototype-level only. Real deployment would need weatherproof sensors, campus-wide power/internet, app scaling for 1,000+ users, and integration with payment systems. Next steps: field test multiple slots, add solar power, and expand to full campus coverage with analytics for peak-hour planning.
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