VTT’s robot car parks autonomously

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland’s robot car Marilyn is parking autonomously - 100m away from its driver. The trial in Tampere uses the Internet of Things (IoT) and is expected to allow vehicles to park closer together without fear of collisions at airports and shopping centres. Johan Scholliers, project manager at VTT, says the technology will also help reduce congestion in parking areas.
June 25, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
814 VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland’s robot car Marilyn is parking autonomously - 100m away from its driver. The trial in Tampere uses the Internet of Things (IoT) and is expected to allow vehicles to park closer together without fear of collisions at airports and shopping centres.


Johan Scholliers, project manager at VTT, says the technology will also help reduce congestion in parking areas.

Marilyn utilises 7643 Here Technologies’ ultra-wideband (UWB)-based technology which allows it to be positioned indoors without satellite assistance. UWB is a radio technology that transmits data in short and low-power pulses over a wide frequency band.

The driver parks the car through an app that reserves a parking space. A parking guidance system confirms whether the space is free and detects potential problems using traffic cameras connected to an open IoT platform – which in turn transmits route information to the vehicle.

VTT’s trial is part of the Autopilot project’s investigation of the potential for IoT-automated driving. The initiative is funded by the European Commission and is also operational in Italy, the Netherlands, France, Spain and South Korea.

Parking & Access Control

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • VTT and EEE Communications partner on black ice detector
    November 28, 2017
    EEE Innovations (EEE) and VTT Technical Research Centre (VTT) of Finland have launched a software-based solution that detects black ice which it claims can reduce fuel consumption by 20%. It is available for heavy vehicles but can also be used for private vehicles. The solution aims to detect slippery road conditions in real time and has also been piloted in an EU-level project. Data gathered from the vehicles is refined and sent out to other motorists. The driver guidance system can be installed as a
    Read More
  • Finland’s VTT technology miniaturises measuring devices
    May 13, 2014
    According to Finland’s VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, technology developed by the centre makes it possible to miniaturise an entire measuring laboratory to the size of a small sensor. Using the technology, the Fabry project at VTT has developed smart optical measuring devices for uses that include optimisation of vehicle engines, reduction and monitoring of environmental emissions, and quality control of pharmaceuticals. Participants in the Fabry project to develop spectroscopic sensor devi
    Read More
  • Robotic Research: harnessing AV potential
    June 10, 2021
    Robotic Research is leading in AV R&D, from work with the US Army to enabling the first automated BRT line in North America: Gordon Feller assesses what the company is doing
    Read More
  • Mobility as a Service gaining traction in US and Europe
    December 15, 2015
    As Mobility as a Service starts to move into the mainstream of transport planning, David Crawford compares European and North American initiatives. Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is a concept fast gaining traction on both sides of the Atlantic as a way of giving travellers digital multimodal one-stop shops and journey planning tools as an alternative to private car use. Planned delivery methods include subscription-based travel packages in Europe, and 'mobility aggregator' apps, including employee commute ben
    Read More

Highlighted Content