A Parking Sharing Network Over Blockchain With Proof-of-Planned-Behavior Consensus Protocol

Parking problem has become a bottle neck of urban traffic management. On one hand, there is no effective way to get timely information of available parking lots. On the other hand, owners of private parking spaces are less willing to share their spare lots. To deal with the parking problem, a new parking sharing network named ParkChain is firstly proposed using blockchain to build a decentralized but trustworthy network. Herein, ParkChain provides a distributed autonomous infrastructure for both vehicle drivers and park granters, which can promote the extensive parking resource sharing and relieve the parking problem. A new blockchain consensus protocol named Proof-of-Planned-Behavior (PoPB) is proposed. It builds the model of the autonomous consensus process based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), derives a computable threshold for qualification of block data authorizers, and then develops a dynamic authorizer group mechanism for creditability and decentrality considerations. Furthermore, various smart contracts are developed to carry out the parking services transparently. Finally, the prototype has been successfully implemented in a university campus setting to demonstrate the effectiveness of ParkChain.