Enhancing Urban Infrastructure Management with UAV-Based Parking Solutions: A Case Study at UCC

As urban areas continue to expand, efficiently managing resources and infrastructure becomes more challenging due to growing population densities and limited spatial resources. This paper presents a novel approach to urban management using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) integrated with computer vision and AI technologies. Using the University College Cork (UCC) satellite car park as a case study, we demonstrate the potential of UAVs in optimising parking space management. Traditional parking management systems often fail to provide real-time data and adapt to changing usage patterns. Our system addresses these limitations by offering real-time analysis of parking space occupancy through advanced computer vision techniques applied to aerial imagery. This research highlights the effectiveness of UAV technology in solving urban challenges like parking management and its broader applications in urban planning and asset management. Through the UCC case study, we showcase the system’s ability to support informed decision-making in urban contexts. This work lays the foundation for future research into the application of drone technology for urban problem-solving. Keywords-unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), computer vision, artificial intelligence (AI), real-time data analysis.