It is said that people remember smells 10 times better than images.

Parking ramps are notoriously mundane and symmetrical buildings that make finding your particular level quite difficult. Many are color coded and some have cutesy names for each parking area (Itchy Lot, Scratchy Lot.)

But why not harness the power--and novelty--of our scent memory? One floor could smell like chocalate, the other like oranges, and so on...

The biggest problem is how to make and maintain the smell. The Decomposing Flesh floor and Burning Tire floor are easy enough; but consistenly making a pleasant smell may be more challenging.

((Dedicated to UnaBubba:)) the smell doesn't need to "pervade" through the whole parking level; only at the entrances, elevator lobbys, etc.
-- Dignan, Feb 02 2003

The smell doesn't need to be overpowering....
-- Dignan, Feb 02 2003


I like this. may I opt for the eau de givenchy?
-- po, Feb 02 2003


The car parking areas at the Eden Project in Cornwall are, for some unaccountable reason, named after fruits, the sign boards having poorly-drawn representations of said fruits on them. I find it hard to distinguish the plum from the grape, but if they could be made to smell of the correct fruit, I could probably manage. I'm still not sure that I would remember where I put the car any better though.
-- angel, Feb 02 2003


The bottom story will always be the urine floor...
-- yamahito, Feb 02 2003


Ms. Pluter loves this idea, as she is always losing her car at the mall. However, she suspects that her smell memory may be a bit too good. For instance, without warning, a smell can transport her back to childhood, making her totally lost. She suspects that she may be able to find her parking level from ten years before by smell, but not today’s. Perhaps these should be all brand new smells (eau de premier niveau, etc.), chemically synthesized specifically for the parking industry, to eliminate confusion caused by childhood associations?
-- pluterday, Feb 02 2003


I'm getting this mental image of a bunch of folks in an elevator of a large parking deck. The doors open, and they all lean out and <sniff, sniff> to see if its their floor. Then the doors close. (WTAGIPBAN)
-- krelnik, Feb 02 2003


the buttons on the lift should send out a spray sample of the scent.
q. which floor?
a. fish & chips with vinegar, please
-- po, Feb 02 2003


Maybe they should mark the ramp themselves as many mammals do.
-- FarmerJohn, Feb 02 2003


what, widdle on it?
-- po, Feb 02 2003


"Right, I'm parked on the floor that smells like a multi-storey car park"
-- hippo, Feb 02 2003


too bad!
-- po, Feb 02 2003


I've learned from my dog how to widdle.
When marking a place with some piddle.
When I'm out with a miss,
And can't take a piss,
I let it run down my leg, just a liddle.
-- FarmerJohn, Feb 02 2003


:(
-- po, Feb 02 2003


Ü||¯|\
-- thumbwax, Feb 02 2003


Cubist ascii?
-- RayfordSteele, Feb 02 2003


(canis bas relief)
-- thumbwax, Feb 02 2003


I am in agreement with Ms. Pluter. Also: The elevator buttons are a good idea. Perhaps a small nozzel by all exits on the floor. This also eliminates the need for mass quantity of the scent in question, because it won't need to be continuously pumped into the area. Top notch!
-- Yarr, Dec 26 2005


Let me guess: Instead of writing down what floor/letter you parked at, you'd take an empty vial out of your glove compartment, capture some of the ambient air, and cork it for smelling later.
-- phundug, Jun 23 2006


it always seems to me that the different floors of parking garages each have their own smell anyway. some smell fresher because they have a breeze, but others can be damp an dank. in an underground garage the levels each have a progressively damper smell as you go down the ramp.
-- tcarson, Jun 23 2006


You could use this for any building with elevators.
-- BJS, Jun 24 2006



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