JP2009220614A - Parking support device, parking support method and computer program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a parking support device, a parking support method and a computer program capable of parking a vehicle, even when the size of a parking space to be a parking object is not enough to park the vehicle. <P>SOLUTION: When performing parking support, the parking space for performing parallel parking is detected by ranging sensors 14A to 14D (S1), a parked vehicle for forming the parking space is specified (S2), and whether the detected parking space is not less than a prescribed size capable of parking the vehicle is decided (S3), When the parking space is decided to be less than the prescribed size, the parking space is enlarged by transmitting a moving instruction to move the parked vehicle (S9). A parking guide is performed to the enlarged parking space (S11). <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a parking support device, a parking support method, and a computer program that support parking of a vehicle.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is a parking assistance device that displays a camera image that captures the environment behind a vehicle during parking and assists a driver's parking operation with respect to the vehicle. In such a parking assistance device, the situation of the backward direction side with respect to the vehicle is displayed as an image to assist the driver's parking operation with respect to the vehicle, or the vehicle travels based on the signal from the steering angle sensor. There is known one that supports a driver's parking operation with respect to a vehicle by calculating a prediction curve and displaying the calculated progress prediction curve superimposed on the captured camera image as described above. Furthermore, the parking assist device not only simply displays an image of the rear environment, but also calculates the travel route of the vehicle until parking is completed in the target parking space, and the vehicle follows the calculated travel route. Techniques for performing steering assistance and automatic steering so that the vehicle travels are known.

In addition, in the related art, in assisting the parking operation when parking the parking space, the parking space to be parked before performing the parking operation is a parking space where parking can be performed. It was also done to inform whether or not. This is because if the vehicle width, vehicle length, minimum turning radius, etc. of the vehicle vary depending on the vehicle type, and the size of the parking space must also be measured, the parking space to be parked can be parked. This is because it is difficult for the driver to determine whether or not it is a parking space. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-168085 discloses a parking space in which parking is not possible when the distance between other vehicles forming a parking space is detected when parallel parking is performed and the detected distance is less than a predetermined distance. It describes about the parking assistance apparatus which alert | reports this.
JP 2004-168085 A (page 3 to page 5, FIGS. 3 and 4)

  However, according to the parking assistance device described in Patent Literature 1 described above, the user can grasp whether or not the parking space is a parking space before parking, but the parking space cannot be parked. When it was understood, it was necessary to find another parking space again. As a result, it took a long time to complete parking.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the problems in the prior art, and even if the size of the parking space to be parked is insufficient for parking, other vehicles that form the parking space The purpose of the present invention is to provide a parking assistance device, a parking assistance method, and a computer program capable of expanding a parking space by moving the vehicle, and enabling quick parking without searching for another parking space. To do.

  In order to achieve the object, the parking assist device (1) according to claim 1 of the present application includes a parking space detecting means (13) for detecting a parking space in which the host vehicle (50) parks, and the parking space detecting means. The other vehicle specifying means (13) for specifying the other vehicles (51, 52) forming the detected parking space (54), and whether the parking space detected by the parking space detecting means is less than a predetermined size are determined. If the parking space is determined to be smaller than a predetermined size by the size determination means (13) and the size determination means, an instruction to move the parking space in the direction of expanding the parking space is transmitted to the specified other vehicle. Movement instruction transmission means (13).

  Moreover, the parking assistance apparatus (1) which concerns on Claim 2 is the parking assistance apparatus of Claim 1, Comprising: The movable amount to the direction which expands the said parking space (54) of the said other vehicles (51, 52). A movable amount acquisition means (13) for acquiring a shortage amount acquisition means (13) for acquiring a shortage amount with respect to the predetermined size of the parking space, and the movement instruction means (13) includes the movement When the possible amount is larger than the shortage amount, a movement instruction for moving the shortage amount to the other vehicle is transmitted.

  Moreover, the parking assistance apparatus (1) according to claim 3 is the parking assistance apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the parking space (54) detected by the parking space detection means (13) includes a plurality of other vehicles (51, 52), a movement amount distribution means (13) for allocating the shortage amount as a movement amount of the plurality of other vehicles, wherein the movement instruction means (13) includes the plurality of other vehicles. A movement instruction for moving the movement amount allocated to each other vehicle is transmitted.

  Moreover, the parking assistance apparatus (1) according to claim 4 is the parking assistance apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the other vehicle (51, 52) has completed movement in accordance with the movement instruction. Parking completion guidance means (13) for detecting this, and parking for guiding parking to the enlarged parking space (54) when the movement completion detection means detects that the movement of the other vehicle has been completed. Guiding means (13).

  Further, the parking support method according to claim 5 forms a parking space detection step (S1) for detecting a parking space (54) in which the host vehicle (50) parks, and a parking space detected by the parking space detection step. An other vehicle specifying step (S2) for specifying the other vehicle (51, 52) to be performed, a size determining step (S3) for determining whether or not the parking space detected by the parking space detecting step is less than a predetermined size, A movement instruction transmission step (S9) of transmitting a movement instruction in a direction of expanding the parking space to the specified other vehicle when the size determination step determines that the parking space is less than a predetermined size; It is characterized by having.

  Further, the computer program according to claim 6 is installed in a computer and detected by a parking space detection function (S1) for detecting a parking space (54) in which the host vehicle (50) parks and the parking space detection function. Other vehicle specifying function (S2) for specifying other vehicles (51, 52) forming the parking space, and a size determination function for determining whether or not the parking space detected by the parking space detection function is less than a predetermined size ( S3) and a movement instruction transmission function for transmitting a movement instruction in a direction of expanding the parking space to the specified other vehicle when the size determination function determines that the parking space is smaller than a predetermined size (S3). S9) is executed.

  According to the parking assist device according to claim 1 having the above configuration, even if the size of the parking space to be parked is insufficient for parking, the other vehicle that forms the parking space is moved. By doing so, the parking space can be expanded. Accordingly, it is possible to promptly park without searching for another parking space.

  Moreover, according to the parking assistance apparatus of Claim 2, when the other vehicle which forms a parking space is equipped with the amount which can move to the direction which expands a parking space more than necessary amount, a movement instruction | indication is transmitted. When a parking space of a predetermined size or more cannot be secured even by movement of another vehicle, the other vehicle can be prevented from moving in advance.

  In addition, according to the parking assist device of the third aspect, when a parking space is formed by a plurality of vehicles, a necessary amount of movement can be appropriately allocated to each vehicle. Can be performed appropriately.

  Moreover, according to the parking assistance apparatus of Claim 4, since the parking space is expanded to the size which can park the own vehicle, since parking guidance to the expanded parking space is performed, it is safe to access the parking space. Parking can be performed.

  Moreover, according to the parking assistance method of Claim 5, even if it is a case where the size of the parking space made into a parking object is insufficient for parking, the other vehicle which forms a parking space is moved. The parking space can be expanded. Accordingly, it is possible to promptly park without searching for another parking space.

  Furthermore, according to the computer program according to claim 6, even if the size of the parking space to be parked is insufficient for parking, by moving other vehicles forming the parking space Parking space can be expanded. Accordingly, it is possible to promptly park without searching for another parking space.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a parking assistance device according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings based on an embodiment that is embodied.
First, a schematic configuration of a vehicle-to-vehicle communication system 3 configured by a plurality of vehicles 2 including a parking assistance device 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an inter-vehicle communication system 3 according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the inter-vehicle communication system 3 according to this embodiment includes a plurality of vehicles 2 located in a parking lot, and a plurality of communication devices 4 provided in the parking assistance device 1 installed in each vehicle 2. Information communication is possible between the two vehicles 2.

Here, the communication device 4 is a communication device that communicates information in a wireless manner using, for example, millimeter wave radio waves. And other vehicles (parked vehicle, succeeding vehicle, forward vehicle, oncoming vehicle, etc.) located in a predetermined wireless communicable range (for example, a range up to a radius of 2 km centered on the own vehicle position) with respect to the own vehicle position ) Can be communicated wirelessly.
The information transmitted / received between the vehicles by the communication device 4 includes a movement instruction for moving another parked vehicle and distance measurement data obtained by measuring an empty space ahead of the host vehicle, as will be described later.

  In the communication between the vehicles 2 in the inter-vehicle communication system 3, in addition to directly transmitting / receiving information between the vehicles 2, information is transmitted / received via a communication facility such as a communication center (not shown). It is also possible.

  Next, the structure of the parking assistance apparatus 1 installed in the vehicle 2 which comprises the said inter-vehicle communication system 3 is demonstrated using FIG.2 and FIG.3. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of the parking support apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing a control system of the parking support apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment.

As shown in FIG.2 and FIG.3, the parking assistance apparatus 1 which concerns on this embodiment is the parking assistance ECU (parking space detection means, other vehicle identification) installed with respect to the vehicle 2 in addition to the above-mentioned communication apparatus 4. Means, size determination means, movement instruction transmission means, movable amount acquisition means, shortage amount acquisition means, movement amount distribution means, movement completion detection means, parking guidance means) 13, distance measuring sensors 14A to 14D, and liquid crystal display 15, a speaker 16, a vehicle DB 17, a PKB control ECU 19 that controls a PKB (parking brake) 18, an AT control ECU 21 that controls an AT (automatic transmission) 20, and a brake control ECU 23 that controls a brake pressure control device 22. An engine control ECU 25 that controls the engine 24, and a steering control that controls the steering 26. And ECU 27, GPS 30 is connected to the parking assist ECU 13, a vehicle speed sensor 31, a steering sensor 32, a gyro sensor 33, and a variety of sensors such as a shift lever sensor 34.
When the vehicle 2 is a hybrid vehicle, a motor control ECU that controls the drive motor is provided instead of the engine control ECU 25.

  The parking assist ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 13 determines whether the size of the parking space to be parked has a size necessary for parking the own vehicle when the own vehicle is parked. Parking assistance processing (see FIG. 4) for transmitting a movement instruction to a parked vehicle that forms a parking space when the size of the space is insufficient and expanding the parking space, sent when a movement instruction is transmitted from another vehicle It is an electronic control unit that performs a parked vehicle control process (see FIG. 9) for moving the host vehicle in a parked state in accordance with a movement instruction. The parking assist ECU 13 may also be used as an ECU used for controlling the navigation device. The detailed configuration of the parking assist ECU 13 will be described later.

In addition, the distance measuring sensors 14A to 14D are provided in pairs on the front and rear and left and right sides of the vehicle 2, and basically include a sound wave transmitting unit and a sound wave receiving unit. Then, the ultrasonic wave is emitted from the sound wave transmission unit in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction of the vehicle 2 and the reflected wave reflected by the obstacle (specifically, parked vehicle, block fence, etc.) is received by the sound wave reception unit To do. As a result, the parking assist ECU 13 can detect the distance to the obstacle located around the vehicle 2 based on the time from reception of the ultrasonic wave to reception of the reflected wave. And in this embodiment, parking assistance ECU13 specifies the detection of the parking space located around a vehicle, the shape of the detected parking space, etc. based on the detection result of ranging sensor 14A-14D. Further, the parking assist ECU 13 also detects a distance (hereinafter referred to as “movable amount”) in which the parked vehicle forming the parking space can move in the direction of expanding the parking space, based on the detection results of the distance measuring sensors 14A to 14D. .
As the distance measuring sensors 14A to 14D, laser distance sensors may be used instead of the ultrasonic sensors. A camera may be used instead of the distance measuring sensors 14A to 14D. In that case, a parking space is detected and the shape of the detected parking space is specified by performing an image recognition process on the captured image captured by the camera.

  The liquid crystal display 15 is provided on the center console or panel surface of the vehicle 2 and superimposes the predicted course trajectory of the host vehicle on a vehicle rear image captured by a rear camera (not shown) or the like during parking. Display (so-called back guide monitor). Moreover, in the parking assistance apparatus 1 which concerns on this embodiment, after issuing the movement instruction | indication to the parked vehicle in order to expand a parking space, when the parking space became the size which can be parked, it became possible to park. It also outputs guidance text that guides The liquid crystal display 15 may also be used for a navigation device.

  The speaker 16 is provided in a center console or the like in the interior of the vehicle 2 and outputs a guidance voice, a warning sound, and the like related to parking assistance. In particular, in the parking assistance device 1 according to the present embodiment, after issuing a movement instruction to the parked vehicle in order to widen the parking space, the parking space has become able to be parked when the parking space becomes a size that can be parked. A guidance voice for guiding the user is also output.

The vehicle DB 17 is a storage unit that stores various parameter information about the vehicle such as the shape design value and sensor design value of the vehicle 2. For example, the vehicle DB 17 stores the wheel radius, vehicle length, vehicle width, vehicle height, wheel base, minimum turning radius, installation positions of the distance measuring sensors 14A to 14D, and the like.
And parking assistance ECU13 uses the various parameter information memorize | stored in vehicle DB17 so that it may mention later, the parking assistance process (refer FIG. 4) mentioned later determines the parking availability of parking space, and the calculation of the insufficient amount of parking space. I do. Similarly, by using various parameter information stored in the vehicle DB 17, parking assistance (guidance and automatic steering) of the vehicle 2 based on the calculated travel route is performed.

The PKB control ECU 19, the AT control ECU 21, the brake control ECU 23, the engine control ECU 25, and the steering control ECU 27 include a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and the like (not shown), and are electronic devices that control the PKB 18, AT 20, the brake pressure control device 22, and the engine 24. Control unit. The PKB control ECU 19 controls the braking force of the PKB 19 based on the instruction signal from the parking assistance ECU 13. The AT control ECU 21 controls the gear ratio of the AT 20 based on the instruction signal from the parking assist ECU 13. The brake control ECU 23 controls the brake pressure of the foot brake based on the instruction signal from the parking assist ECU 13. The engine control ECU 25 controls the opening / closing amount of the throttle valve of the engine 24 and the like based on the instruction signal from the parking assist ECU 13. Further, the steering control ECU 27 controls the angle of the steering 26 based on the instruction signal from the parking assist ECU 13.
The parking assist ECU 13 transmits an instruction signal to the PKB control ECU 19, the AT control ECU 21, the brake control ECU 23, the engine control ECU 25, and the steering control ECU 27, as will be described later, so that the vehicle 2 in the parked state is predetermined in a predetermined direction. Run for a distance and then shift to the parking state again.

  The GPS 30 can detect the current location and the current time of the vehicle by receiving radio waves generated by an artificial satellite.

  The vehicle speed sensor 31 is a sensor for detecting the moving distance and the vehicle speed of the vehicle, generates a pulse according to the rotation of the wheel of the vehicle 2, and outputs a pulse signal to the parking assist ECU 13. And parking assistance ECU13 calculates the rotational speed and moving distance of a wheel by counting the pulse which generate | occur | produces.

The steering sensor 32 is attached to the inside of the steering device, and is a sensor that can detect the turning angle of the steering.
The gyro sensor 33 is a sensor that can detect the turning angle of the vehicle 2. Further, by integrating the turning angle detected by the gyro sensor 33, the vehicle direction can be detected.
The shift lever sensor 34 is built in a shift lever (not shown), and the shift position is “P (parking)”, “N (neutral)”, “R (reverse)”, “D (drive)”, “2”. It is possible to detect which position is (second) or “L (low)”.

  Next, the parking assistance ECU 13 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 3. The parking assistance ECU 13 is configured with a CPU 41 as a core, and a ROM 42 and a RAM 43 which are storage means are connected to the CPU 41. The ROM 42 stores various programs necessary for controlling the distance measuring sensors 14A to 14D, the liquid crystal display 15, and the like. The RAM 43 is a memory for temporarily storing various data calculated by the CPU 41 in addition to a parking assistance processing program (FIGS. 4 and 5) and a parked vehicle control processing program (FIG. 9) which will be described later.

Then, the parking assistance processing program which parking assistance ECU13 of the parking assistance apparatus 1 which concerns on this embodiment which has the said structure performs is demonstrated based on FIG. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a parking assistance processing program in the parking assistance apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. Here, the parking support processing program is executed especially after the parking support is started, and the parking space is expanded when the size of the parking space to be parked is insufficient for parking the own vehicle. It is a program that performs processing.
In the parking assistance apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the parking assistance process is executed when a predetermined operation is performed by the user using an operation button (not shown).
The programs shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 4, 5, and 9 below are stored in the ROM 42 and the RAM 43 provided in the parking assist ECU 13 and executed by the CPU 41. In the embodiment described below, parking assistance particularly when performing parallel parking will be described.

First, in step (hereinafter abbreviated as S) 1 in the parking support processing program, the CPU 41 detects a parking space to be parked based on the detection results of the distance measuring sensors 14A and 14B. Moreover, the shape of the detected parking space is specified from the detection result.
Specifically, as the vehicle moves, the distance sensors 14A and 14B detect the width of the empty space in the parking lot or on the side of the road. Further, the vertical width of the empty space is detected based on the detection result of the horizontal width after passing through the empty space.

Below, the detection process of the parking space in said S1 is demonstrated more concretely using FIG. Here, FIG. 6 is an overhead view of the vicinity of the parking execution vehicle 50 when performing parallel parking in the parking space 54 surrounded by the parked vehicles 51 and 52 and the guard rail 53 in the roadside zone.
As shown in FIG. 6, in S <b> 1, as the parking execution vehicle (own vehicle) 50 moves, the distance measuring sensor 14 </ b> A forms an obstacle that forms a parking space 54 in the parking lot or on the side of the road. , 52 and the guard rail 53) are detected for each traveling position. Thereby, the shape (width A and length B shown in FIG. 6) of the parking space 54 is specified.
In addition, you may make it pinpoint the shape and position of a parking space by imaging the surrounding environment of the own vehicle with the camera installed in the vehicle, and performing an image recognition process to a captured image. Moreover, you may make it acquire the shape and position of a parking space from DB or a center. In addition, said S1 is corresponded to the process of a parking space detection means.

  Next, in S2, CPU41 specifies the parked vehicle which forms the parking space detected by said S1. Specifically, based on the detection result of the parking space in S1, the CPU 41 parks a vehicle adjacent to the parking space (a vehicle adjacent to the front and rear of the parking space in the case of parallel parking, or a parking in the case of parallel parking. Specify the position coordinates of the vehicles adjacent to the left and right of the space. In addition, the position coordinate specified by said S2 is a coordinate contained on the parked vehicle which forms a parking space at least.

Hereinafter, the parked vehicle specifying process in S2 will be described more specifically with reference to FIG. As described above, the CPU 41 detects the parking space 54 by the distance measuring sensor 14 </ b> A as the vehicle 50 moves in S <b> 1. At that time, the CPU 41 also detects the coordinate point of the contour of the forward parked vehicle 51 adjacent to the front of the parking space 54 by the distance measuring sensor 14A. Further, the coordinate points of the contour of the rear parked vehicle 52 adjacent to the rear of the parking space 54 are also detected.
Next, the CPU 41 coordinates the point M (that is, the right rear corner) closest to the parking execution vehicle (own vehicle) 50 of the front parking vehicle 51 and the point closest to the parking execution vehicle (own vehicle) 50 of the rear parking vehicle 52. N coordinates (ie, the right front corner) are specified.
Subsequently, the azimuth X1 and distance L1 from the position coordinate (x1, y1) of the parking execution vehicle (own vehicle) 50 detected by the GPS 30 to the point M, and the position coordinate (x1, y1) of the parking execution vehicle 50 to the point N. Azimuth X2 and distance L2 are detected.
Then, a point that is a predetermined distance (for example, 1 m) away from the point M along the direction X1 is specified as the position coordinates (x2, y2) of the forward parked vehicle 51. On the other hand, a point distant from the point N by a predetermined distance along the direction X2 is specified as the position coordinates (x3, y3) of the rear parked vehicle 52.
In addition, you may make it specify the parked vehicle which forms a parking space by performing an image recognition process to the picked-up image imaged with the camera similarly to S1. Moreover, said S2 is corresponded to the process of an other vehicle specific means.

  Subsequently, in S3, the CPU 41 determines whether or not the size of the parking space detected in S1 is equal to or larger than a predetermined size. In addition, the predetermined size used as the determination criterion in S3 is a size that allows the own vehicle to be parked in the parking space, and the shape of the own vehicle and the parking type (tandem parking, parallel parking) stored in the vehicle DB 17 Is set based on For example, when the host vehicle performs parallel parking, the vehicle width + 30 cm in width and the vehicle length + 1 m in length are set to a predetermined size. Note that S3 corresponds to the processing of the size determination means.

  If it is determined as a result of the determination in S3 that the size of the parking space detected in S1 is equal to or larger than a predetermined size (S3: YES), the process proceeds to S11. In S11, a parking guidance process is performed on the parking space detected in S1. In the parking guidance process, for example, the operation timing of the steering wheel is instructed by voice, or the predicted course locus or recommended parking locus of the vehicle is displayed on the liquid crystal display 15.

  On the other hand, as a result of the determination in S3, when it is determined that the size of the parking space detected in S1 is less than a predetermined size (S3: NO), the process proceeds to S4. Then, in S4, the CPU 41 calculates an insufficient amount of the parking space with respect to the predetermined size (that is, an amount that needs to move the parked vehicle). Note that S4 corresponds to the process of the shortage acquisition means.

  Next, in S5, the CPU 41 executes a movable amount acquisition process (FIG. 5) described later. Here, the movable amount acquisition process is a process of acquiring a distance (hereinafter referred to as a movable amount) that can be moved in the direction of expanding the parking space for the parked vehicles forming the parking space detected in S1. Thereafter, the process proceeds to S6. Note that S5 corresponds to the process of the movable amount acquisition unit.

  In S6, the CPU 41 compares the insufficient amount calculated in S3 with the movable amount acquired in S4, and determines whether the movable amount is larger than the insufficient amount.

  As a result, when it is determined that the movable amount is larger than the shortage amount (S6: YES), the process proceeds to S7. On the other hand, if it is determined that the movable amount is equal to or smaller than the shortage amount (S6: NO), that is, even if the parked vehicle that forms the parking space is moved, the parking space is expanded to a size that allows parking. If not, the process proceeds to S12. In S <b> 12, the CPU 41 notifies the user that the parking guidance process cannot be executed using the liquid crystal display 15 or the speaker 16. Then, the said parking assistance process program is complete | finished.

  On the other hand, in S7, the CPU 41 determines whether or not to move the parked vehicle forming the parking space detected in S1 based on the user's operation. Specifically, an option for selecting whether or not to move the parked vehicle is displayed on the liquid crystal display 15 of the host vehicle, and when the user selects an option for moving the parked vehicle, it is determined that the parked vehicle is to be moved. .

  And when it determines with moving the parked vehicle which forms a parking space (S7: YES), it transfers to S8. On the other hand, if it is determined not to move the parked vehicle that forms the parking space (S7: NO), the parking support processing program is terminated.

  In S8, the CPU 41 performs a deficiency distribution process for distributing the deficiency calculated in S4 as the movement amount of the parked vehicle that forms the parking space. In addition, when there is only one parked vehicle that forms the parking space, the entire shortage amount is distributed to the parked vehicle as the movement amount. Moreover, when there are a plurality of parked vehicles that form a parking space, distribution is made according to the movable amount of each parked vehicle. That is, a large amount of shortage is allocated to a parked vehicle having a large movable amount. Note that the shortage may be evenly distributed to each parked vehicle. Moreover, you may distribute only to any one parked vehicle. Moreover, you may distribute so that the inter-vehicle distance of each parked vehicle after vehicle movement and the adjacent vehicle adjacent to the parked vehicle may become the same distance. And the parking vehicle which forms a parking space as mentioned later moves a vehicle in the direction which expands a parking space only the distance according to the allocated shortage (refer FIG. 9). Note that S8 corresponds to the processing of the movement amount distribution means.

  Next, in S9, the CPU 41 transmits a movement instruction to the parked vehicle that forms the parking space specified in S2. As a result, the parked vehicle that has received the movement instruction moves the vehicle by a distance corresponding to the shortage allocated according to the movement instruction as described later (S103 to S105 in FIG. 9).

Hereinafter, the process of S9 will be described in more detail. In the process of S9, the CPU 41 first creates movement instruction data based on the position coordinates of the own vehicle, the position coordinates of the parked vehicle specified in S2, and the shortage allocated in S8. Here, FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the movement instruction data created and transmitted in S8. As shown in FIG. 7, the movement instruction data includes position coordinates that specify a destination parked vehicle, position coordinates that specify a transmission execution vehicle, instruction contents, a movement direction, and a movement amount (that is, distribution). Shortage). Moreover, when there are a plurality of parked vehicles that form a parking space, the movement instruction data is created for each parked vehicle.
And CPU41 transmits a movement instruction | indication to all the vehicles located within the predetermined distance (for example, radius 2km) centering | focusing on the own vehicle by the inter-vehicle communication system 3 via the communication apparatus 4. FIG. Here, as shown in FIG. 7, the movement instruction includes position coordinates for specifying the parked vehicle as the transmission destination. Therefore, the vehicle that has received the movement instruction shown in FIG. 7 compares the position coordinates that specify the destination parked vehicle included in the movement instruction with the position coordinates of the own vehicle, and the movement instruction is transmitted to the own vehicle. It is determined whether or not it is a movement instruction. And when it determines with it being the movement instruction | indication transmitted with respect to the own vehicle, the transmitted movement instruction | indication is received as effective information.
As a result, it becomes possible to transmit the movement instruction as valid information only to the parked vehicles forming the parking space. FIG. 7 shows an example of a movement instruction transmitted from the parking execution vehicle 50 shown in FIG. And the parked vehicle 51 which received the movement instruction | indication shown in FIG. 7 moves 300 mm ahead. Note that S9 corresponds to the processing of the movement instruction transmission unit.

  Next, in S10, the CPU 41 determines whether or not the movement completion notification transmitted from the parked vehicle specified in S2 has been received within a predetermined time after transmitting the movement instruction in S9. The movement completion notification is transmitted from the parked vehicle that has completed the movement in accordance with the movement instruction transmitted in S9 as described later (S106 in FIG. 9). And when it determines with having received the movement completion notification (S10: YES), it transfers to S11. Note that S10 corresponds to the processing of the movement completion detection means.

  In S11, the CPU 41 performs a parking guidance process on the enlarged parking space. In the parking guidance process, for example, the operation timing of the steering wheel is instructed by voice, or the predicted course locus or recommended parking locus of the vehicle is displayed on the liquid crystal display 15. In addition, said S11 is corresponded to the process of a parking guidance means.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the movement completion notification has not been received (S10: NO), the user is notified using the liquid crystal display 15 and the speaker 16 that the parking guidance process cannot be executed (S12). Then, the said parking assistance process program is complete | finished.

  Next, a sub-process of the movable amount acquisition process executed by the parking assist ECU 13 in S5 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a sub-processing program of the movable amount acquisition process according to the present embodiment.

  In the moveable amount acquisition process, first, in S21, the CPU 41 measures a parked vehicle that forms a parking space in front of the parking space (hereinafter referred to as a forward parked vehicle, which corresponds to the vehicle 51 in FIG. 6). Send distance instructions. As a result, the front parked vehicle that has received the distance measurement instruction, as will be described later, uses an empty space in front of the host vehicle according to the distance measurement instruction (that is, a movable amount by which the front parked vehicle can move in the direction of expanding the parking space). It is detected by the distance measuring sensor 14C (S108 in FIG. 9).

  Next, in S22, the CPU 41 determines whether or not data for the host vehicle is received from another vehicle within a predetermined time after transmitting the distance measurement instruction in S21. Whether or not the received data is data directed to the own vehicle is determined by comparing the position coordinates of the transmission destination (see FIG. 7) included in the received data with the position coordinates of the own vehicle. More specifically, first, the CPU 41 determines the four corners (right front) of the vehicle based on the coordinates of the center point of the rear wheel shaft detected by the GPS 30 and the vehicle length and width stored in the vehicle DB 17. Corner, right rear corner, left front corner, left rear corner). Then, it is determined whether or not the position coordinates of the transmission destination included in the received data are located within the area surrounded by the coordinates of the four corners. As a result, when it is determined that the position coordinates of the transmission destination included in the received data are located within the area surrounded by the coordinates of the four corners, it is determined that the received data is data directed to the own vehicle.

  If it is determined that the data for the host vehicle has been received as a result of the determination in S22 (S22: YES), the process proceeds to S23. On the other hand, if it is determined that data for the host vehicle is not received (S22: NO), the process proceeds to S25.

  In S23, the CPU 41 further determines whether or not the received data for the host vehicle is distance measurement data. The distance measurement data is data transmitted from the forward parked vehicle that has received the distance measurement instruction transmitted in S21, and an empty space ahead of the forward parked vehicle (that is, the forward parked vehicle expands the parking space). This is data relating to the detection result of the movable amount that can move in the direction.

  If it is determined as a result of the determination in S23 that the received data for the host vehicle is distance measurement data (S23: YES), the process proceeds to S24. On the other hand, when it is determined that the received data for the host vehicle is not distance measurement data (S23: NO), the process proceeds to S25.

  In S24, the CPU 41 acquires the movable amount of the forward parked vehicle based on the received distance measurement data. That is, the length of the front empty space detected by the front parked vehicle is acquired as the movable amount of the front parked vehicle.

  On the other hand, in S <b> 25, the CPU 41 acquires “0 mm” as the movable amount of the forward parked vehicle based on the fact that the distance measurement data could not be received.

  In S <b> 26, the CPU 41 reads from the RAM 43 the amount of movement of a parked vehicle located behind the parking space (hereinafter referred to as a rear parked vehicle, which corresponds to the vehicle 52 in FIG. 6). Note that the movable amount of the rear parked vehicle is detected when the CPU 41 detects the parking space detecting means using the distance measuring sensors 14A and 14B in S1, and is stored in the RAM 43 or the like. In addition, it is good also as acquiring from the ranging data of a back parked vehicle similarly to a front parked vehicle by performing the process similar to said S21-S25 also about the movable amount of a back parked vehicle.

Hereinafter, the movable amount acquisition processing in S21 to S26 will be described more specifically with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a process for acquiring the movable amount of the parked vehicles 51 and 52 when performing parallel parking in the parking space 54 surrounded by the parked vehicles 51 and 52 and the guard rail 53.
As described above, in S1, the CPU 41 detects the parking space 54 by the distance measuring sensor 14A as the parking execution vehicle (own vehicle) 50 moves. At that time, the CPU 41 also detects the empty space 61 formed behind the rear parked vehicle 52 by the distance measuring sensor 14A. Therefore, it is possible to detect the movable amount of the rear parked vehicle 52 from the detected shape of the empty space 61. And the parking execution vehicle 50 can acquire about the movable amount of the back parking vehicle 52 by reading the detection result from RAM43 grade | etc., (S26).
On the other hand, when a distance measurement instruction is transmitted from the vehicle 50 to the front parked vehicle 51 (S21), the front parked vehicle 51 detects the length of the empty space 62 formed forward by the distance sensor 14C. Then, the detected length of the empty space 62 (= movable amount of the forward parked vehicle 51) is transmitted to the vehicle 50. Therefore, the vehicle 50 can acquire the movable amount of the forward parked vehicle 51 based on the distance measurement data received from the forward parked vehicle 51 (S24).

Next, a parked vehicle control processing program executed by the parking assistance ECU 13 of the parking assistance device 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a flowchart of the parked vehicle control processing program in the parking support apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. Here, the parked vehicle control processing program is a program that is executed especially after parking is completed, and controls the vehicle based on the transmitted instruction data when the instruction data is transmitted from another vehicle.
In the parking assistance apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, it is determined that parking is completed when the shift position is changed to “P”.

  First, in the parked vehicle control processing program, in S101, the CPU 41 determines whether data for the host vehicle has been received from another vehicle. Whether or not the received data is data directed to the own vehicle is determined by comparing the position coordinates of the transmission destination (see FIG. 7) included in the received data with the position coordinates of the own vehicle. Note that the specific determination method is the same as S22 described above, and thus the description thereof is omitted.

  If it is determined that the data for the host vehicle has been received as a result of the determination in S22 (S101: YES), the process proceeds to S102. On the other hand, when it is determined that the data for the host vehicle is not received (S101: NO), the process waits until the data for the host vehicle is received.

  In S102, the CPU 41 further determines whether or not the received data for the host vehicle is a movement instruction. The movement instruction is data transmitted from the parking execution vehicle that executes parking in S9, and is data that instructs the parking vehicle forming the parking space to move in the direction of expanding the parking space.

  If it is determined as a result of the determination in S102 that the received data for the host vehicle is a movement instruction (S102: YES), the process proceeds to S103. On the other hand, when it is determined that the received data for the host vehicle is not a movement instruction (S102: NO), the process proceeds to S107.

In S103, the CPU 41 starts movement control for moving the vehicle in the direction in which the parking space expands in accordance with the received movement instruction (the forward parked vehicle moves forward and the rear parked vehicle moves backward). Specifically, the CPU 41 executes the following processes (a) to (g).
(A) From the received movement instruction (see FIG. 7), the movement direction and the movement amount (that is, the shortage allocated to the host vehicle in S8) are read.
(B) The brake is turned on by transmitting an instruction signal to the brake control ECU 23.
(C) The engine 24 is turned on by transmitting an instruction signal to the engine control ECU 25.
(D) When it is detected from the detection result of the steering sensor 32 that the steering angle is not 0 °, the steering angle is set to 0 ° by transmitting an instruction signal to the steering control ECU 27.
(E) By transmitting an instruction signal to the AT control ECU 21, the AT 20 is changed from the P range to the D range (or R range when moving backward).
(F) The PKB 18 is released by transmitting an instruction signal to the PKB control ECU 19.
(G) By sending an instruction signal to the brake control ECU 23, the brake is turned off.
By performing the above processes (a) to (g), the vehicle in the parked state starts moving forward or backward.

  Subsequently, in S104, the CPU 41 detects the amount of movement of the own vehicle by the vehicle speed sensor 31, and the amount of movement of the own vehicle is the amount of movement indicated in the received movement instruction (that is, the shortage amount allocated to the own vehicle in S8). ) Is determined.

  As a result, when it is determined that the movement amount instructed in the movement instruction has been reached (S104: YES), the process proceeds to S105. If it is determined that the movement amount specified in the movement instruction has not been reached (S104: NO), the process waits until the movement amount specified in the movement instruction is reached.

In S105, the CPU 41 performs braking control for stopping the moving vehicle. Specifically, the CPU 41 executes the following processes (a) to (e).
(A) The brake is turned on by transmitting an instruction signal to the brake control ECU 23.
(B) The AT 20 is changed to the P range by transmitting an instruction signal to the AT control ECU 21.
(C) By sending an instruction signal to the PKB control ECU 19, the PKB 18 is turned on.
(D) The engine 24 is turned off by transmitting an instruction signal to the engine control ECU 25.
(E) By sending an instruction signal to the brake control ECU 23, the brake is turned off.
By performing the processes (a) to (e) above, the host vehicle again shifts to the parking state.

  Next, in S106, CPU41 transmits the movement completion notification which notifies that the movement was completed according to the received movement instruction to the parking execution vehicle which transmitted the movement instruction | indication. And the parking execution vehicle which received the notification of movement completion performs a parking guidance process with respect to the parking space expanded as mentioned above (S11 of FIG. 4).

Next, the vehicle movement control process in S101 to S106 will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. FIG. 10 shows parking when a movement instruction is transmitted from the parking execution vehicle 50 to the parked vehicles 51 and 52 when the vehicle 50 performs parallel parking in the parking space 54 surrounded by the parked vehicles 51 and 52 and the guard rail 53. It is a figure explaining the movement control processing of vehicles 51 and 52. FIG.
As described above, the parking execution vehicle 50 transmits a movement instruction to the front parking vehicle 51 and the rear parking vehicle 52 in S9. The movement instruction transmitted to the forward parked vehicle 51 is instruction data for moving the forward parked vehicle 51 by a distance (for example, 300 mm) corresponding to the shortage allocated forward. Further, the movement instruction transmitted to the rear parked vehicle 52 is instruction data for moving the rear parked vehicle 52 by a distance (for example, 500 mm) corresponding to the shortage allocated to the rear.
And the front parked vehicle 51 which received the movement instruction moves a vehicle ahead according to a movement instruction in S103-S105. Similarly, the rear parked vehicle 52 that has received the movement instruction moves the vehicle rearward in accordance with the movement instruction in S103 to S105. As a result, as shown in FIG. 11, the parking space 54 is expanded and a new parking space 64 is formed. The parking space 64 is an amount obtained by combining the shortage amount allocated to the front parked vehicle 51 and the shortage amount allocated to the rear parked vehicle 52 (that is, the shortage amount calculated in S4) as compared with the parking space 54. ), The vertical width B is enlarged. And the size (horizontal width A, vertical width B ') of the enlarged parking space 64 becomes a size which the vehicle 50 can park in a parking space.

  On the other hand, in S107, the CPU 41 determines whether or not the data transmitted to the host vehicle is a distance measurement instruction. The distance measurement instruction is data transmitted from the parking execution vehicle that executes parking in S21, and detects the amount of movement in the direction of expanding the parking space with respect to the front parking vehicle that forms the parking space. It is the data to instruct.

  If it is determined as a result of the determination in S107 that the received data is a distance measurement instruction (S107: YES), the process proceeds to S108. On the other hand, when it is determined that the received data is not a distance measurement instruction (S107: NO), the process proceeds to S110. In S110, the CPU 41 performs a predetermined process based on the transmitted data.

  In S108, the CPU 41 detects the length of the empty space ahead of the host vehicle with the distance measuring sensor 14C in accordance with the distance measuring instruction. In S109, the CPU 41 transmits the length of the detected empty space to the parking execution vehicle that has transmitted the distance measurement instruction. And the parking execution vehicle which received distance measurement data can acquire the movable amount of a front parked vehicle based on the received distance measurement data as mentioned above (S24 of FIG. 5).

As described in detail above, in the parking assistance device 1 according to the present embodiment, the parking assistance method by the parking assistance device 1 and the computer program executed by the parking assistance device 1, the distance measurement sensors 14A to 14A are used when parking assistance is performed. A parking space for parallel parking is detected by 14D (S1), a parked vehicle that forms the parking space is specified (S2), and it is determined whether the detected parking space is larger than a predetermined size that can be parked (S3). When it is determined that the parking space is smaller than the predetermined size, the parking space is enlarged by transmitting a movement instruction for moving the parked vehicle (S9), and parking guidance is provided for the enlarged parking space ( S11) So, even if the size of the parking space to be parked is insufficient for parking, you can search for other parking spaces. Without it is possible to perform a safe parking.
For the parked vehicles forming the parking space, the amount of movement in the direction of expanding the parking space is acquired (S5), and if the amount of movement is larger than the shortage amount, a movement instruction is transmitted to the parked vehicle. If a parking space of a predetermined size or larger cannot be secured, the parked vehicle can be prevented from moving in advance.
In addition, when a parking space is formed by a plurality of parked vehicles, a necessary amount of movement can be appropriately allocated to each parked vehicle (S8), so that the parking space can be appropriately expanded. It becomes.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.
For example, in the present embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to parallel parking is described, but the present invention can also be applied to parallel parking.

Below, the example applied when performing this invention parallel parking using FIGS. 12-14 is demonstrated.
As shown in FIG. 12, the parking execution vehicle 100 that performs parking in S1 is performed by detecting the parking space 101 with the distance measuring sensor 14A. And it detects also about the size (horizontal width C and vertical width D) of the detected parking space 101, and determines whether the detected parking space 101 is more than predetermined size (S3).
Subsequently, the left parked vehicle 102 and the right parked vehicle 103 that form the parking space 101 are specified, and the amount of movement in the direction of expanding the parking space of each parked vehicle 102, 103 is acquired. The movable amount may be detected by the distance measuring sensor 14A included in the parking execution vehicle 100, and the values detected by the parked vehicles 102 and 103 by the distance measuring sensors 14A and 14B are acquired by inter-vehicle communication. It's also good.
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 13, the parking execution vehicle 100 transmits movement instructions to the left parked vehicle 102 and the right parked vehicle 103 (S9). On the other hand, the left-side parked vehicle 102 and the right-side parked vehicle 103 that have received the movement instruction perform movement control by turning back, and move the vehicle in the direction of expanding the parking space 101 (S103 to S105).
As a result, as shown in FIG. 14, the parking space 101 is expanded and a new parking space 105 is formed. The parking space 105 is a sum of the shortage amount allocated to the left parked vehicle 102 and the shortage amount allocated to the right parked vehicle 103 as compared with the parking space 101 (that is, calculated in S4). The width C is increased by the shortage amount). And the size (horizontal width C ', vertical width D) of the enlarged parking space 105 becomes a size which the vehicle 100 can park in a parking space.

Moreover, although this embodiment demonstrated the case where this invention was applied when parking to a parking space, it is applicable also when leaving from a parking space.
Note that the processing (S1) executed by the parking assist ECU 13 when the present invention is applied when leaving the parking space is basically the same processing as the above-described embodiment, but the following (1) It differs in the point of (3).
(1) In S <b> 1, the CPU 41 measures the distance before and after the own vehicle (that is, the size of the parking space where the own vehicle is currently parked).
(2) In S5, the CPU 41 transmits a distance measurement instruction to the rear parked vehicle in addition to the front parked vehicle.
(3) In S11, the CPU 41 executes exit guidance instead of parking guidance.
Thereby, even when the parking space where the vehicle is parked is narrow and it is difficult to leave, the user can easily perform the leaving operation by expanding the parking space.

It is a schematic block diagram of the inter-vehicle communication system which concerns on this embodiment. It is a schematic block diagram of the parking assistance apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows typically the control system of the parking assistance apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is a flowchart of the parking assistance guidance processing program which concerns on this embodiment. It is a flowchart of the sub process program of the movable amount acquisition process which concerns on this embodiment. It is a bird's-eye view of the parking execution vehicle periphery in the case of performing parallel parking to the parking space enclosed by the parked vehicle and the guard rail in the roadside belt. It is the figure which showed an example of movement instruction data. It is the figure explaining the movement amount acquisition process in step 21-step 26. FIG. It is a flowchart of the parked vehicle control processing program which concerns on this embodiment. It is explanatory drawing explaining the movement control process of the vehicle in step 101-step. It is the figure which showed the parking space after the movement control process of the vehicle in step 101-step. It is the figure which showed the example which applied this invention to parallel parking. It is the figure which showed the example which applied this invention to parallel parking. It is the figure which showed the example which applied this invention to parallel parking.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Parking assistance apparatus 2 Vehicle 13 Parking assistance ECU
14A-14D Distance sensor 41 CPU
42 RAM
43 ROM
50 Parking execution vehicle 51, 52 Parking vehicle 54 Parking space

Claims (6)

Parking space detecting means for detecting a parking space where the host vehicle parks;
Other vehicle specifying means for specifying other vehicles forming the parking space detected by the parking space detecting means,
Size determination means for determining whether the parking space detected by the parking space detection means is less than a predetermined size;
A movement instruction transmission means for transmitting a movement instruction in a direction of expanding the parking space to the specified other vehicle when the size determination means determines that the parking space is smaller than a predetermined size. A parking assistance device characterized by the above. A movable amount acquiring means for acquiring a movable amount in a direction of expanding the parking space of the other vehicle;
Deficient amount acquisition means for acquiring a deficient amount with respect to the predetermined size of the parking space,
The parking support device according to claim 1, wherein the movement instruction means transmits a movement instruction to move the shortage amount to the other vehicle when the movable amount is larger than the shortage amount. When the parking space detected by the parking space detecting means is formed by a plurality of other vehicles, the moving amount distributing means for distributing the shortage amount as a moving amount of the plurality of other vehicles;
The parking assistance device according to claim 2, wherein the movement instruction means transmits a movement instruction for moving a movement amount allocated to each other vehicle to the plurality of other vehicles. Movement completion detection means for detecting that the other vehicle has completed movement in accordance with the movement instruction;
A parking guide means for guiding parking in an enlarged parking space when the movement completion detecting means detects that the movement of the other vehicle is completed. Item 4. The parking assistance device according to any one of items 3 to 3. A parking space detection step for detecting a parking space in which the host vehicle parks;
An other vehicle specifying step for specifying another vehicle forming the parking space detected by the parking space detecting step;
A size determination step for determining whether or not the parking space detected by the parking space detection step is less than a predetermined size;
A movement instruction transmission step of transmitting a movement instruction in a direction of expanding the parking space to the specified other vehicle when the size determination step determines that the parking space is less than a predetermined size. A parking assistance method characterized by the above. On the computer,
A parking space detection function for detecting a parking space where the host vehicle parks;
An other vehicle specifying function for specifying an other vehicle forming the parking space detected by the parking space detection function;
A size determination function for determining whether the parking space detected by the parking space detection function is less than a predetermined size;
A movement instruction transmission function for transmitting a movement instruction in a direction of expanding the parking space to the specified other vehicle when the size determination function determines that the parking space is smaller than a predetermined size;
A computer program for executing

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