Parking Lot Monitoring System

Application Introduction

In the contemporary landscape, the integration of high-tech services has become ubiquitous in the fabric of daily life, profoundly impacting various sectors, notably transportation. A quintessential example of this technological integration is the widespread utilization of ticket vending machines, offering an automated solution for ticket issuance. These machines have become a staple in subway stations, train terminals, and high-speed rail hubs, enabling passengers to efficiently procure tickets without the need for manual intervention. Beyond mere convenience, such automation serves to alleviate the burden on staff during peak periods while streamlining the ticket purchasing process for commuters. However, the efficacy of these machines hinges significantly on the robustness of their computing platforms, necessitating a careful balance between hardware configurations and software functionalities to ensure seamless operation and long-term stability.

Central to the functionality of ticket vending machines is the intricate interplay between hardware components and computing platforms. These machines are equipped with an array of hardware devices, encompassing card readers, thermal printers, password keyboards, and network modems, tailored to cater to diverse payment methods and passenger preferences. Furthermore, to uphold continuous service provision throughout the year, these systems must exhibit resilience and reliability in the face of varying operational demands. Thus, the selection and optimization of computing platforms emerge as pivotal considerations, as they dictate the machine's capacity to deliver consistent performance and mitigate potential disruptions. Balancing the pros and cons of different computing platforms is paramount to fostering a seamlessly operational ecosystem that caters to the evolving needs of both passengers and transportation management alike.

Artila’s Product & Advantage

Artila Electronics M-501 is an industrial System on Module (SoM) based on ARM + Linux architecture. Using an ARM processor gives this product the advantages of high performance and low power consumption. The M-501 also has excellent stability, thanks to the lean Linux Operating System which is extremely difficult to crash. In addition, the business card-sized M-501 not only facilitates developers to embed it into the space-limited machine but also enables system integrators or equipment manufacturers to develop automatic ticket vending machines in a modular way. The M-501 only uses semiconductor integrated circuits and passive components and does not have easy-to-damage heat dissipation devices and mechanical components (e.g. fan and hard drive). Such a design significantly reduces the repair rate of this product. Meanwhile, its long product longevity (at least five years) reduces the customer's material preparation costs. In addition to offering the full-featured M-501 to take the great responsibility of computing platform, Artila Electronics gives users the product-related hardware layout, software libraries, technical support, and other services. It makes designers much easier and faster to get started on their projects as well as shortens the development time. If the project requires a customized industrial-grade SoM, Artila Electronics can also provide the relevant exclusive services.

Product Features:

The Solution Description

The customer of this project is a System Integrator supplying electronic payment terminals and equipment. The company was developing a round-the-clock multi-functional ticket vending machine, so it required a computing platform that met its needs. This equipment is an embedded application applied to the public field. Since an industrial-grade computing platform is a basic requirement to ensure system stability, traditional commercial computers are excluded from the company’s options. The electronic payment terminal requires using the special financial communication interfaces and its internal space is quite limited, in consequence, the general single-board computer which needs to insert additional interface cards could not possibly be installed into the limited space. Besides, the System Integrator would like to directly embed the board behind the screen and flexibly modularize system functions.

Therefore, the industrial-grade SoM M-501 of Artila Electronics is the most suitable embedded computing platform to meet its requirements. With an ATMEL industrial processor, Linux Operating System, four COM ports, and free drivers, the M-501 can successfully perform various financial payment operations of ticket vending machines. At just 80x50mm in size, the SoM is quite easy to integrate with the screen, System integrator board, thermal printer, and other hardware devices. Using an ARM processor makes this embedded computing platform consume very little power (less than 2.5W), and does not need to use a separate power supply to power it. Unlike Windows Operating System which contains a lot of programs that are not needed but occupy system resources, Linux only offers a kernel allowing application systems to be executed stably under a simplified environment. Additionally, there are many free drivers for Linux due to its open-source features. When the customer requires a special driver for the application system, Artila Electronics would test the driver first without any charge before providing it to the customer, to ensure that the system does not have compatibility problems.

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