System and a method for an automatic parking meter

摘要

The present invention is a new and innovative device for regulating parking permits in parking zones in which parking is permitted for short time spans. Embodiments of the present invention enable users to purchase reusable electronic parking devices which display the amount of time remaining for free parking. For instance, in parking zones which allow fifteen minutes of free parking, the device displays 15 min when turned on and counts back the minutes until the time is over. A delaying mechanism inhibits the reactivation of the device for a predetermined time period. Thus, the device ensures that the parking permit is only used for the predetermined time period once since users cannot activate the device sequentially. According to embodiments of the present invention the proposed system and method may be embedded into other time parking devices.