Volkswagen created Volksparking; a mobile basketball hoop with built-in sensors, searches empty parking spaces and turns them into playgrounds. Installed at a parking lot in Belgium, the installation allowed local residents to use the free spaces as a play area. The hoop makes use of customized software and took 8 months to produce.

The software that is used for the installation of the moving basketball hoop was tailor-made for Volksparking; it is based on a script that constantly registers where cars are parked or not parked and releases various scenarios there. To make the idea real, we have used various new structural calculations. For example, the motor of the basket is adjusted so that whenever someone hangs (or climbs) on it, it stops.

Also the controls are customised. We only used the beginning of the software that was also developed for ‘defence’.

The issues of this project were around registering a car, group of people, bicycle, etc. Here we work with resistance measurement so that a person who blocks the sensor is not seen as a car.

The initiative got Volkswagen in the news again with positive exposure; “A combination of creativity, technology and social engagement”, Little Black Book, “This initiative shows cleverly how the city can be shared by everybody”, Trendhunter

The installation attracted the attention of other cities. At the moment we are preparing the installation of 4 more Volksparkings in Belgium.

Volksparking was developed in partnership with MIT, the mobile hoop is just one of the many ideas to humanise parking lots.