This article explains how the daily allocation system works, why the system behaves this way, and how to configure it and correctly interpret its assignations. If you want to compare how this system works with other allocation systems available in Hybo, see Differences between daily, weekly, and fortnightly car park booking reservation allocation in Hybo.
This article is aimed at administrators, as it combines setup instructions, conceptual explanations of how the system works, and criteria for interpreting and understanding the allocations made. However, it also includes a template to share with users that summarizes how bookings are distributed in your office.
Goal of the daily allocation system
The daily allocation system is designed to distribute parking spaces in a fair, controlled, and repeatable way over time. For this reason, the order in which requests are made is never an allocation criterion. Speed when requesting a space is not rewarded. Instead, the system aims to:
Respect priorities defined by the organization.
Prevent the same people from always obtaining a space.
Ensure that decisions are consistent and explainable day after day.
Car park request statuses
During this process, requests may be in different statuses:
Pre-booking: The person has requested a space, but the allocation has not yet been executed.
Booked: Hybo has assigned a parking space after applying the allocation algorithm.
Rejected: A space could not be assigned because there is none left.
How and when the allocation runs
Every day, when the configured request deadline closes, Hybo:
Collects all pre-bookings received for the following day.
Runs the allocation algorithm for that day.
Changes the status of assigned requests from Pre-booking to Booked.
Whenever a confirmed reservation is released, the algorithm runs again to assign that space among the remaining pre-bookings.
At midnight, it changes the status of requests that could not be assigned from Pre-booking to Rejected.
The allocation algorithm runs every day, from Sunday to Thursday.
Its execution is always automatic. Administrators cannot intervene in its results, although they can configure the allocation rules.
Allocation rules (order of application)
When the daily allocation runs, Hybo always applies the same criteria and in the same order:
Employee type (if enabled): Hybo gives higher priority to one employee type over another according to the defined hierarchy.
Zone type and vehicle type (if enabled): After applying the previous criterion, Hybo refines the allocation in electric zones by giving priority to electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.
Number of previous assignments: Finally, Hybo prioritizes those who have received fewer parking spaces recently within a defined period.
If several people remain tied after applying all previous criteria, Hybo decides at random.
The system does NOT consider:
The order in which requests were made.
The specific days on which spaces were previously assigned.
The actual use of previous reservations.
The actual use of reservations (whether check-in was performed or not) do affect penalty calculations, if they are enabled.
Cancellations and reassignments
If a person with an assigned parking space cancels their reservation before the end of the day:
The space does not remain blocked.
Hybo automatically reallocates it among the remaining requests.
The reassignment follows the exact same rules described in this article.
If parking spaces remain free after the daily allocation, users may be able to reserve them directly for the following day immediately or may need to wait until the same day, depending on the environment configuration.
Daily allocation system setup
The initial setup is performed by the Hybo support team because certain parameters require direct configuration in the database. The rest can be configured directly in the admin panel under: MASTERS → Centers → Offices → (select office) → Configuration tab → PARKING section → Assignment algorithm area
The parameters available for the daily allocation system are:
Day of the week for the draw: Not applicable. The algorithm runs every day from Sunday to Thursday.
Hour for the draw: Request your desired time from the support team.
Weekly and Fortnightly random draw: For daily allocation, both toggles must remain disabled.
Weeks to look back and Initial date to look back: Determine the period used to calculate previous assignments (criterion #3).
Car, Motorcycle, and Bicycle: When enabled, parking spaces of that vehicle type are automatically allocated by the system; otherwise, they can always be reserved directly. For example, in the configuration shown in the previous image, the system only allocates car and motorcycle spaces.
Zone type preference: Enables this allocation criterion (criterion #2).
Space type preference: Not applicable. Only available for the fortnightly allocation system.
Employee type preference: Enables this allocation criterion (criterion #1).
Employee types setup (criterion #1)
For Employee type preference to be effective, you must:
Define a hierarchy of employee types.
Assign an employee type to each user.
Employee types and their priorities are defined in: MASTERS → My Account → Employee Types tab:
You can then assign a type to each user in: DATA → Users → List → (select employee) → Basic tab → Employee Type field.
Keep in mind:
Priorities represent their order: Hybo processes requests by employee type from lowest to highest priority value.
Types with the same priority will be treated as a single group.
Requests from users without a type will be processed last.
Zone and vehicle types setup (criterion #2)
For Zone type preference to be effective, the following must exist:
Parking zones with electric engine.
Users with vehicles whose engine type is electric or plug-in hybrid.
The zone type is configured in: MASTERS → Parking → Zones → (select zone) → Engine field.
Users can indicate engine type when registering vehicles in the app: Profile section → Vehicles → Add icon (+).
When allocating spaces located in a zone with an electric engine type, Hybo prioritizes reservations for vehicles with electric or plug-in hybrid engine type.
History of previous assignments setup (criterion #3)
The period considered depends on the values of Weeks to look back and Initial date to look back:
Both Weeks to look back and Initial date to look back empty: Only assignments made since the beginning of the current week are considered. This means Monday breaks ties randomly, Tuesday considers Monday assignments, Wednesday considers Monday and Tuesday assignments, and so on.
Weeks to look back empty but Initial date to look back being set: All assignments from that date until today are considered.
Weeks to look back being set: Hybo automatically updates the Initial date to look back and counts all assignments between that date and today.
Within the defined period, Hybo sums the total number of assignments each user has received.
Communicating how allocation works to users
The following template is intended to share with car parl users. You can adapt it by replacing the values in brackets and removing rules that do not apply according to your configuration.
How parking spaces are allocated in our office
Cark park bookings for [vehicle type] and [vehicle type] are drawn automatically, not by request order. However, you can book [vehicle type] spaces directly.
Daily draw
Bookings for the following day are assigned every day at [hour]h. If someone frees their assigned space before the end of the day, it is reassigned immediately following the same rules.
If spaces become available during the same day, they are no longer reassigned but remain available for direct booking immediately.
Prioritization criteria
[Employee type]: Some people have priority over others according to their [position / hierarchy / contractual conditions / etc.].
Example: pre-bookings from [higher priority employee type] are allocated before those from [lower priority employee type].
Electric spaces and vehicles: Spaces with charging points give priority to electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, which will take precedence over combustion vehicles. The rest of the spaces are assigned regardless of vehicle type.
Previous assignments: Among people with the same priority, preference is given to those who have obtained fewer spaces [during the last # weeks / since date].
Example: if one person has obtained 1 space and another has obtained 3 during that period, the first one is prioritized.
Final draw: If everything above results in a tie, the system decides randomly.
Booking in advance
Although bookings for the following day are assigned each day, you can pre-book up to [X days / weeks] in advance.