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A new piece of technology is set to improve Heathrow Airport parking facilities by helping returning travellers to find their cars.

The gadget, developed by Siemens, will scan the numberplates of cars as they enter parking areas and print out a ticket bearing the vehicle's details.

Travellers will then enter their ticket into a machine on their return and be given directions to their car.

The system will be used in the 3,800-space short-term car park at Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five, which is due to open in March 2008, the Daily Mail reports.

Hugh Fenn, a spokesman for airports operator BAA, said: "Talking to our customers, the things they have found really important are the speed of finding a space and locating their car when they get back.

"Understandably they want to do that quickly. This technology is able to ensure people do that because it knows where their numberplate is parked."

Mr Fenn also claimed that the system is environmentally friendly, as it directs arriving drivers to the nearest available space, reducing the amount of time that vehicles are being driven around car parks.