meet stan: the robot that parks your car at paris CDG airport

there’s nothing more tedious than driving in endless circles around a seemingly full airport carpark, exchanging eye contact with every person in the vicinity of their vehicle only to be answered with a guilty shake of the head to confirm that they just arrived, and won’t be leaving any time soon. in response, french startup stanly robotics are developing france’s first robot valet, who goes by the name of ‘stan.’ aiming to minimize the time wasted in searching for a space, and then performing complicated maneuvers to squeeze your car into it, stan now does all the work for you. the robot valet is already being trialled at charles de gaulle airport in paris, where travelers can leave their vehicles in a designated booth close to the airport, and stan will take care of the rest.

stanley robotics’ system comprises of a set of spacious garage-like booths close to their entrance to the airport terminal. the driver locks his car and takes the key, since stan doesn’t even need it. all the driver need do is confirm the booking on the touchscreen, and stan will come and collect the vehicle and take it to a secure car park. the system is even connected with your flight details, so once you return from a trip, your vehicle will be back in the garage ready and waiting.

the team at stanley robotics have spent two years designing and developing the robot, to allow it to park cars completely automatically. the robot is 100% electic, and can be adapted to all shapes and sizes of vehicles. by parking cars closer together that humans would manage, the robot increases car parking capacities by 50%, without changing exiting infrastructure. 20 000 to 30 000 cars can be taken over by a single robot during a single year.

stanley robotics has now come together with the ADP group, to implement their service at paris charles de gaulle airport. edward arkwright, chied executive officer at ADP group—the group that manage paris CDG—explains that ‘the automated valet service meets our new brand’s commitments while guaranteeing travelers improved time management. paris airport has chosen a bold new service to continue looking towards the future and innovating for the client. this new service is the direct result of working together with start-ups, stanley robotics being one of them.’