Automatically Find Your Vehicle with FinduCar

Depending on your point of view, cars are either an amazing innovation that allows us to traverse long distances at speeds that would have been impossible before, or a nuisance of modern life that must be dealt with. Whichever camp you fall into, there’s a good chance you’ve been frustrated trying to find your vehicle in a crowded parking lot.

In order to solve this problem, Songlin Wu has come up with the aptly-named “FinduCar.” The device does indeed help you spot your car, as a sort of enhanced wireless fob that you’d normally use to lock your vehicle. As envisioned, when your car lock is activated, it also records your location using an Adafruit Feather M0, along with a GPS FeatherWing. With the whereabouts recorded, the ingenious gadget can then point you back to your car when the time is needed, using a NeoPixel ring acting as a sort of electronic compass.

This means there’s no messing about with apps — or “pesky” memorization — you just pull out your keys and it points the way for you when activated. It’s an extremely clever solution, and perhaps an idea that automakers might consider adding to remotes in the future. An early prototype of the FinduCar can be seen in the video below.