Robotic Parking Garage
New York City’s first automated parking garage
[...] The driver will pull the car onto a computer- controlled pallet, turn it off, and get out. The pallet is then lowered into the abyss of parking spaces, much like a freight elevator for cars, except it can also move sideways, not just up and down. There's an array of laser sensors that let the system know if the car doesn't fit on the pallet (although it's big enough to fit a mid-sized SUV), and also detects movement to make sure the driver and any passengers have left the car before the pallet begins to move. [...]
related:
Parking as a Destination - New York Times
