At Curiosity Lab, we are extremely lucky and proud to have a front seat to the latest cutting-edge technologies ranging from drones to autonomous vehicles, CV2X technologies, the most advanced traffic infrastructure, 5G network and more.
The Curiosity Lab ecosystem acts as a living test bed for companies from startups to globally recognized enterprises to come in and test their latest technologies in a real-world environment. Technology that has passed their closed test environments then use the lab as the middle ground before committing to real-word full-scale deployment. We call this the ‘walk’ in the ‘crawl, walk, run’ phases of developing technology. This allows companies to evaluate how their technologies interact with real people, vehicles, the elements and more to see if their technology is ready for full-scale deployment in dense urban environments. While testing, companies will be able to make adjustments to their solutions to ensure their products are performing seamlessly when they are deployed in the real world.
The ecosystem has been open for testing since 2019, and throughout this time, we have had a multitude of local, national and international companies deploy and test their solutions along our city street of the future and within our innovation center. With city officials closely monitoring the deployed solutions, at times these technologies perform so well, the City of Peachtree Corners itself wants to become a customer of these technologies. The City does not make these decisions lightly, and is sure to fully evaluate the technology and how this will improve the everyday lives of our residents, and of course our city.
The city has become a customer of a handful of these smart city technologies, continuing to further the development of Peachtree Corners. Some of these technologies include public wi-fi, urban greenery structures, smart parking solutions and curb management, and more.
Urban Canopee
French startup Urban Canopee came to the Curiosity Lab through our partnership with the French-American Chamber of Commerce, Atlanta-Southeast and La French Tech Atlanta, the major startup arm of France. The City of Peachtree Corners was the first location in the United States to receive an Urban Canopee product in summer of 2022. Known as a Mini Corolle or Mini Canopee, deployed in our town center is a high tech structure that works to add greenery to urban spaces, cool down urban areas by providing shade and helps to combat the effects of climate change.
Next time you are in the Town Center, make sure you stop by to check out the innovated Mini Canopee!
Public Wi-Fi
One of the many strengths of living in a smart city is free access to public wi-fi. As a cornerstone of everyday resident technology use, this was a priority for the City of Peachtree Corners to deploy. Free public wi-fi access allows our residents to fully enjoy the Town Center and to easily connect with other residents, friends or family members while enjoying the space.
Smart Parking Solutions and Curb Management
In the fall of 2022, the City of Peachtree Corners collaborated with Cradlepoint, Bosch Security and Safety Systems and T-Mobile to deploy advanced IoT connectivity solutions that provide real-time open parking and available charging stations and safety monitoring for shoppers and visitors in our Town Center.
Using T-Mobile’s Ultra Capacity 5G network, Cradlepoint’s 5G Wireless WAN solutions were deployed quickly, unlike fiber that can take months and is very costly. The solution, developed by both Bosch and Cradlepoint, also enables city managers to make real-time informed decisions on parking capacity, infrastructure planning, traffic management and security safeguards based on data around events happening throughout the city. This not only makes parking and managing parking lots during major concerts and Town Center events, but also keeps our roads and residents safe during times of high activity in the center.
Live Stream Concert Over 5G
The City was thrilled to have had the first ever concert in the Town Center live streamed over our partner T-Mobile’s 5G in 2022. Showing the power and use for 5G, this ensured residents both at the concert and those watching from the comfort of their own home enjoyed the performance. The City is looking forward to using this feature during the 2023 concert series!
One of Four of the Most Innovative Playgrounds in the World
City of Peachtree Corners’ innovation expands outside of technology. In our Town Center, we have one of the most innovative playgrounds in the world. One of only 4 across the globe, these intricate playground systems bring joy to our residents, visitors and their families. The playground includes accessible play apparatus, sensory stations and other play equipment including a Quantis 8.1 climber, a We-Go-Swing, RollerSlide, Lounge Spinner, and a custom designed Peachtree Corners Bridge play station. Next time you have family in town, this is a great location for the kids to enjoy.
As we step into 2023, we are excited to see what additional smart city solutions this year will bring to further improve the lives of our residents and to further advance the smart city of Peachtree Corners.