Parking assistance devices and parking assistance methods

Abstract

This invention relates to a parking assistance device and a parking assistance method. The parking information represented by the parking assistance code (7) includes obstacle information and target location information. The obstacle information relates to obstacles existing in the parking lot, and the target location information relates to a target parking location. Furthermore, the path generation unit (52) creates a parking path as follows: avoiding obstacles represented by the obstacle information, and using the target parking location represented by the target location information as the predetermined parking location, moving from the current location to the predetermined parking location.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to a parking assistance device and parking assistance method that generates a path to a predetermined parking location during automatic parking and moves a vehicle to the predetermined parking location by following the path. Background Technology

[0002] Previously, Patent Document 1 proposed a vehicle position detection device capable of detecting the position of a vehicle when it is located in an indoor facility such as an indoor parking lot. In indoor facilities where GPS (Global Positioning System) cannot detect, the device uses an onboard camera to capture an image code, such as a barcode, drawn on the road surface in front of the exit of the indoor parking lot, and detects the vehicle's position based on the position information contained in the captured image code.

[0003] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent No. 5015749

[0004] However, the vehicle position detection device in Patent Document 1 can detect the vehicle position using an on-board camera, which is an existing vehicle-mounted device, but it can only detect the vehicle position. It is insufficient as parking assistance information when parking in complex shapes such as private parking or parking in a parking lot using valet parking. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this disclosure is to provide a parking assistance device and parking assistance method that can perform parking assistance control in indoor facilities and the like by making effective use of existing vehicle-mounted devices.

[0006] In one aspect of this disclosure, a parking assistance device generates a parking path (hereinafter referred to as the parking path) for moving a vehicle from its current position to a predetermined parking position and moves the vehicle along the parking path to the predetermined parking position. The device comprises: an identification processing unit that performs code identification of parking information represented by a parking assistance code containing parking information related to a parking lot; a path generation unit that generates the parking path for moving the vehicle from its current position to the predetermined parking position indicated by the parking information; and a path following control unit that performs path following control, in which the vehicle automatically moves from its current position to the predetermined parking position by following the parking path generated by the path generation unit. The parking information includes obstacle information and target position information. The obstacle information relates to obstacles existing in the parking lot, and the target position information relates to a target parking position. Furthermore, the path generation unit creates the parking path by avoiding obstacles indicated by the obstacle information and by using the target parking position indicated by the target position information as the predetermined parking position and moving from the current position to the predetermined parking position.

[0007] In this way, parking assistance control is performed using parking assistance codes. Furthermore, the parking assistance codes contain at least obstacle information and target location information. Therefore, in indoor facilities such as indoor parking lots, parking assistance control can be performed based on information other than the vehicle's location information; as other information, parking assistance control can be performed using only the sensing information from existing onboard devices. Thus, parking assistance control can also be performed in indoor facilities by effectively utilizing existing onboard devices.

[0008] In another aspect of this disclosure, a parking assistance method is provided for generating a parking path that moves a vehicle from its current position to a predetermined parking location, and for moving the vehicle along the parking path to the predetermined parking location. This method includes: identifying parking information represented by a parking assistance code containing parking information; the parking information being information related to a parking lot; generating a parking path that moves the vehicle from its current position to the predetermined parking location represented by the parking information; and performing path following control, in which the vehicle automatically moves from its current position to the predetermined parking location by following the generated parking path. The parking information includes obstacle information and target location information; the obstacle information is information related to obstacles existing in the parking lot, and the target location information is information related to a target parking location. Furthermore, when generating the parking path, it is created as follows: avoiding obstacles represented by the obstacle information, and using the target parking location represented by the target location information as the predetermined parking location, moving from the current position to the predetermined parking location.

[0009] Thus, parking assistance methods also utilize parking assistance codes for parking assistance control. Furthermore, the parking assistance codes include at least obstacle information and target location information. Therefore, in indoor facilities such as indoor parking lots, parking assistance control can be performed based on information other than the vehicle's location information; as other information, parking assistance control can be performed using only the sensing information from existing onboard devices. Therefore, parking assistance control can also be performed in indoor facilities by effectively utilizing existing onboard devices.

[0010] Furthermore, the parenthesized reference numerals attached to each constituent element indicate an example of the correspondence between that constituent element and the specific constituent element described in the embodiments described later. Attached Figure Description

[0011] Figure 1 This is a diagram showing the block structure of the automatic parking system according to the first embodiment.

[0012] Figure 2 This is a top view showing the parking situation in an indoor parking lot.

[0013] Figure 3 This is a flowchart of parking assistance control using parking assistance codes.

[0014] Figure 4 This is an example diagram representing obstacle information in bitmap format. Detailed Implementation

[0015] The first embodiment will be described. Furthermore, in the following embodiments, the same reference numerals will be used to describe the parts that are identical or equivalent to each other.

[0016] (First Implementation)

[0017] The following describes an automatic parking system that utilizes the parking assistance device and method described in this embodiment. In this automatic parking system, parking assistance is performed by generating a parking path from the current location to the intended parking location based on the positional relationship between the vehicle's current location and the predetermined parking location, and then automatically parking the vehicle along that parking path. Furthermore, while parking assistance is generally used for surface parking lots such as outdoor parking garages, it can also be used in locations such as indoor facilities where the vehicle's location cannot be detected via GPS. In addition to various types of parking assistance, such as those that display parking paths for guidance and those that broadcast information during parking, here, the assistance for automatic parking will be referred to as parking assistance.

[0018] like Figure 1 As shown, the automatic parking system 1 includes: a perimeter monitoring sensor 3, various actuators 4, a parking assistance device 5, and an indicator device 6. The parking assistance device 5 is able to communicate with the perimeter monitoring sensor 3, various actuators 4, and indicator device 6 directly or via an in-vehicle LAN (Local Area Network).

[0019] The surrounding monitoring sensor 3 is an autonomous sensor that monitors the surrounding environment of its own vehicle (hereinafter referred to as the vehicle). For example, the surrounding monitoring sensor 3 detects obstacles consisting of three-dimensional objects around the vehicle, such as moving dynamic objects like pedestrians and other vehicles, and stationary static objects like road structures, as well as parking assistance codes that represent parking information. Here, the surrounding monitoring sensor 3 is equipped with a surrounding monitoring camera 31 that captures images of a predetermined area around the vehicle, and a sonar 32, millimeter-wave radar 33, and LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) sensor that transmits detection waves to a predetermined area around the vehicle.

[0020] The surrounding monitoring camera 31 acts as a capturing device, capturing images of the vehicle's surroundings and outputting the captured data as sensing information to the parking assistance device 5. Examples of surrounding monitoring cameras 31 include a front camera 31a, a rear camera 31b, a left-side camera 31c, and a right-side camera 31d, which capture images of the front, rear, left, and right sides of the vehicle, but are not limited to these. Three-dimensional objects can be detected by analyzing the captured data from the surrounding monitoring camera 31.

[0021] Furthermore, the term "three-dimensional object" refers to three-dimensional structures, people, bicycles, and other objects with spatial extension in three dimensions, detected by the peripheral monitoring sensor 3. The term "obstacle" refers to any "three-dimensional object" that obstructs the movement of the vehicle during parking assistance control. Even within the category of "three-dimensional objects," objects that do not obstruct the vehicle's movement, such as walls located at a higher position than the vehicle or easily traversable steps, may not be included in the category of "obstacles."

[0022] The probe wave sensor outputs the relative velocity, relative distance, and azimuth angle of the target obtained by outputting probe waves and acquiring their reflected waves as sensing information to the parking assistance device 5. The sonar 32 uses ultrasonic waves for measurement, and is deployed at multiple locations on the vehicle, such as multiple sonars arranged along the left-right direction of the vehicle on the front and rear bumpers, to perform measurement by outputting probe waves around the vehicle. The millimeter-wave radar 33 uses millimeter waves for measurement, and the LIDAR 34 uses lasers for measurement; both output probe waves within a specified range in front of the vehicle and perform measurement within that range.

[0023] Furthermore, in this embodiment, an example is given of having a perimeter surveillance camera 31, a sonar 32, a millimeter-wave radar 33, and a LIDAR 34 as perimeter surveillance sensors 3. However, perimeter surveillance can be performed by a combination of one or more of them, or not all of them are required.

[0024] The parking assistance device 5 is configured as an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) that functions as various control units for implementing the parking assistance method in the automatic parking system 1. It is a microcomputer equipped with a CPU, ROM, RAM, I / O, etc. In this embodiment, when assisting with parking, the parking assistance device 5 inputs sensing information from the surrounding monitoring sensor 3 as detection results, and performs various controls for parking assistance based on this sensing information. Parking assistance is performed when the driver operates the instruction device 6 to issue an instruction for parking assistance. When the instruction for parking assistance is issued, the parking assistance device 5 identifies a parking space based on the sensing information from the surrounding monitoring sensor 3, generates a path from the current position of the vehicle to a predetermined parking position for automatic parking, and performs path following control according to this path. Furthermore, the parking assistance device 5 also identifies the parking position represented by the parking assistance code identified by the surrounding monitoring sensor 3, and performs path following control by setting a predetermined parking position based on the parking position through the instruction device 6. Specifically, the parking assistance device 5 is configured to have a recognition processing unit 51, a path generation unit 52, and a path following control unit 53 as functional units for performing various controls.

[0025] The recognition processing unit 51 receives sensing information from the surrounding monitoring sensor 3 and performs recognition of the surrounding environment of the vehicle to be parked based on the sensing information, specifically recognizing three-dimensional objects existing around the vehicle. Here, the recognition processing unit 51 is composed of an image recognition unit 51a, a spatial recognition unit 51b, and a free space recognition unit 51c.

[0026] The image recognition unit 51a includes a stereoscopic object recognition unit 51aa and a code recognition unit 51ab. The stereoscopic object recognition unit 51aa inputs captured data from the peripheral monitoring camera 31 as sensing information and performs image analysis on the captured data to perform stereoscopic object recognition. The code recognition unit 51ab inputs captured data from the peripheral monitoring camera 31 as sensing information and performs image analysis on the captured data to perform code recognition.

[0027] In 3D object recognition, three-dimensional objects existing around the vehicle, such as dynamic and static objects, are identified as detection targets. Based on obstacles within the three-dimensional objects identified through this object recognition, path generation, as described later, is preferably based on the shape of static objects within them.

[0028] The image data input from the peripheral surveillance camera 31 reflects the surrounding situation. Therefore, by analyzing the image, it is possible to identify whether there are any three-dimensional objects. In addition, it is possible to determine whether the three-dimensional object is a dynamic or static object based on the shape of the identified object or the optical flow of the image, and it is possible to detect the position of the three-dimensional object, that is, the position, distance and height of the three-dimensional object relative to the vehicle.

[0029] In the code recognition process, a parking assistance code is identified, and the parking information represented by the parking assistance code is extracted and transmitted to the path generation unit 52. The parking assistance code includes at least obstacle information of the parking lot within the indoor facility and information related to the target parking location, i.e., target location information, as parking information. Preferably, the parking assistance code may also include its own location information indicating where the parking assistance code is displayed in the parking lot, road slope information indicating the slope of the road surface within the parking lot, and constraint information related to parking constraints, such as the direction of movement during parking.

[0030] The parking assistance code can be any mark that can represent parking information, such as a two-dimensional barcode or graphic symbol. The location of the parking assistance code is also arbitrary, but it can be displayed at the parking lot entrance, such as on the pavement or the wall of the entrance door. Alternatively, it can be displayed on a monitor. In this case, by changing the parking assistance code displayed on the monitor according to the parking situation, it is possible to accurately represent the available space as the parking target location in the parking assistance code.

[0031] The identification of parking assistance codes is performed through image analysis of the data captured by the surrounding surveillance camera 31. The data input from the surrounding surveillance camera 31 reflects the surrounding conditions. Therefore, by analyzing the image, the parking assistance codes contained in the captured data can be identified, and the various parking information represented by the parking assistance codes can be analyzed.

[0032] The spatial recognition unit 51b also includes a stereo recognition unit 51ba. The stereo recognition unit 51ba performs stereo recognition of objects in the space surrounding the vehicle based on sensing information from at least one of the sonar 32, millimeter-wave radar 33, and LIDAR 34. This stereo recognition is the same as that performed by the image recognition unit 51a. Therefore, stereo recognition can be performed as long as either the image recognition unit 51a or the spatial recognition unit 51b is present.

[0033] Furthermore, although stereoscopic object recognition can be performed using either the image recognition unit 51a or the spatial recognition unit 51b, using both allows for more accurate stereoscopic object recognition. For example, by supplementing stereoscopic object recognition performed by the image recognition unit 51a with stereoscopic object recognition performed by the spatial recognition unit 51b, more accurate stereoscopic object recognition can be achieved.

[0034] The free space recognition unit 51c identifies locations within a parking lot that are designated as free spaces. Free space is a parking area in the parking lot where other vehicles are not parked; it refers to the area and shape of the parking space where the vehicle can park. It is not limited to situations where multiple parking spaces exist in the parking lot; it also includes situations where only one exists. The location identified as a free space is set as a predetermined parking position. The free space recognition unit 51c identifies free spaces in the parking lot based on the recognition results of three-dimensional object recognition performed by the image recognition unit 51a and the space recognition unit 51b. For example, the free space recognition unit 51c can determine the shape of the parking lot and whether other vehicles are parked based on the results of three-dimensional object recognition, and therefore can identify free spaces within the parking lot based on this information.

[0035] While free space recognition is not always necessary in parking assistance control systems within indoor facilities, where automatic parking is required only to the target parking location indicated by the parking assistance code, reliability can be further improved in such cases. For example, this can be implemented in situations where parking is impossible due to traffic cones at the identified target location, or where the vehicle's dimensions do not meet the requirements for parking. Furthermore, in cases with multiple target parking locations, it can be assumed that upon approaching the target location, the system identifies which location constitutes free space. By performing free space recognition in these situations, the reliability of parking assistance control in indoor facilities can be further improved.

[0036] The path generation unit 52 generates a parking path from the current position of the vehicle to the predetermined parking position. The path generation unit 52 performs path generation in both normal parking assistance control (hereinafter referred to as normal assistance control) without using parking assistance codes and parking assistance control (hereinafter referred to as code utilization control) with parking assistance codes, but uses different methods to generate the path.

[0037] Specifically, during normal auxiliary control, the path generation unit 52 performs three-dimensional object recognition and free space recognition based on the sensing information from the surrounding monitoring sensor 3, and generates a path based on the recognition results. That is, the path generation unit 52 calculates a movement path from the current position of the vehicle to the predetermined parking position identified by the free space recognition, avoiding obstacles identified by the three-dimensional object recognition, and generates a path represented by the calculation result as a parking path.

[0038] Furthermore, during code utilization control, the path generation unit 52 generates a path based on the parking information represented by the parking assistance code. That is, as... Figure 2As shown, the path generation unit 52 sets the parking target position 8 indicated by the parking assistance code 7 as the parking predetermined position Pb. Furthermore, the path generation unit 52 calculates the movement path from the current position Pa of the vehicle V to the parking predetermined position Pb, which is represented as the parking target position 8, and generates the path represented by the calculation result as the parking path. When multiple parking target positions 8 exist, and the driver can select one using the instruction device 6, the path generation unit 52 sets the selected parking target position 8 as the parking predetermined position Pb and calculates the parking path.

[0039] Furthermore, when code utilization control is performed, the path generation unit 52 takes into account the obstacle information of the parking lot in the indoor facility contained in the parking assistance code 7 when generating the path. The obstacle information is information related to objects such as walls 9, poles, and pillars in the parking lot of the indoor facility that may become obstacles that the vehicle may come into contact with when parking. Therefore, the path generation unit 52 avoids the obstacles indicated by the obstacle information when generating the path and generates a parking path.

[0040] Furthermore, in the path generation unit 52, if there are certain constraints during path generation, the parking path is generated in a manner that satisfies those constraints. For example, if there are constraints, such as when the parking assistance code contains constraint information, the path generation unit 52 generates a parking path in a manner that satisfies those constraints. For instance, the path generation unit 52 generates a parking path with the minimum number of turns within a specified range. Additionally, if there are constraints regarding the direction of parking, i.e., the direction of entry towards the predetermined parking position Pb, the path generation unit 52 incorporates that direction as a constraint when calculating the parking path.

[0041] For example, in cases of forward parking (moving the vehicle V forward to stop at the predetermined parking position Pb) or backward parking (moving the vehicle V backward to stop), the direction of the vehicle V at the time of parking is set as a constraint condition. Regarding the direction of the vehicle V at the time of parking, if parking information related to the direction of the vehicle V is included in the parking assistance code, or if the data captured by the surrounding monitoring camera 31 includes a sign indicating "Forward Parking" or "Backward Parking," this information is included as a constraint condition. Furthermore, if a setting switch or similar device exists for the user to set the direction of the vehicle V at the time of parking, the direction of the vehicle V at the time of parking can also be included as a constraint condition based on the setting state of that setting switch.

[0042] Furthermore, when generating a parking path, obstacles consisting of three-dimensional objects identified through three-dimensional object recognition can be avoided. However, a parking path can also be generated by avoiding only the static objects within them. Since dynamic objects are moving, the vehicle V can be moved after the risk of collision with the dynamic objects has disappeared. In this case, it is sufficient to generate a parking path that only considers static objects.

[0043] The path following control unit 53 performs path following control by controlling vehicle motion such as acceleration / deceleration and steering of the vehicle V. The path following control unit 53 outputs control signals to various actuators 4, enabling the vehicle V to follow the parking path generated by the path generation unit 52 and stop at the predetermined parking position Pb. Here, it is assumed that the parking assistance device 5 is composed of a single ECU, and the path following control unit 53 is included within that ECU. However, the parking assistance device 5 can also be composed of a combination of multiple ECUs, and the path following control unit 53 can also be composed of these ECUs. Examples of multiple ECUs include, for instance, a steering control ECU that performs steering control, a power unit control ECU that performs acceleration / deceleration control, and a brake ECU.

[0044] Specifically, the path following control unit 53 acquires detection signals from various sensors mounted on the vehicle V, such as the accelerator position sensor, brake pedal force sensor, steering angle sensor, wheel speed sensor, and gear position sensor (not shown). Furthermore, the path following control unit 53 detects the state of each component from the acquired detection signals and outputs control signals to various actuators 4 to cause the vehicle V to move along the parking path.

[0045] The various actuators 4 are various driving control devices involved in the driving and stopping of the vehicle V, including an electronically controlled throttle valve 41, a brake actuator 42, an EPS (Electric Power Steering) motor 43, and a transmission 44. These various actuators 4 are controlled based on control signals from the path following control unit 53, thereby controlling the driving direction, steering angle, and braking torque of the vehicle V. This achieves parking assistance control, which includes path following control to move the vehicle V along a parking path and stop it at a predetermined parking position Pb.

[0046] Furthermore, when moving vehicle V from its current position Pa to the predetermined parking position Pb, it is sufficient for vehicle V to follow the path. However, it is possible that people or other vehicles may approach while vehicle V is moving. In this case, vehicle V's movement is stopped until the dynamic object appears outside the predetermined trajectory of vehicle V's movement, inferred from the parking path and vehicle width, thus preventing vehicle V from colliding with the dynamic object. Additionally, there may be static objects that could not be recognized when the parking path was initially calculated, such as a traffic cone at the predetermined parking position Pb, even if parking position Pb is not free space. Therefore, even midway through vehicle V's movement following the parking path, three-dimensional object recognition by the object recognition units 51aa and 51ba and free space recognition by the free space recognition unit 51c continue. Moreover, if a static object exists in a location where collision is possible while vehicle V is moving along the parking path, the parking path is regenerated. Furthermore, if the predetermined parking position Pb is not free space, the parking path is regenerated after the free space is changed to a new predetermined parking position Pb.

[0047] The indicating device 6 is a component of the HMI (Human Machine Interface), and may be, for example, a touch panel display in a navigation device. Various displays and driver input related to parking assistance control can be performed through this indicating device 6. For example, the indicating device 6 can display a switch indicating the execution of parking assistance control, display the target parking position, or allow selection of a predetermined parking position Pb by touching the displayed target parking position.

[0048] The automatic parking system 1 according to this embodiment is configured as described above. Next, the operation of the automatic parking system 1 configured in this way will be explained. As the operation of the automatic parking system 1, there are general auxiliary control and code utilization control, but the latter will be explained in detail, while the former will be explained simply.

[0049] First, the general auxiliary control will be explained. For example, when the operation instruction device 6 instructs the execution of parking auxiliary control, general auxiliary control is executed. Specifically, the recognition process begins. The recognition process here means inputting the sensing information from the surrounding monitoring sensor 3 and performing the aforementioned three-dimensional object recognition and free space recognition based on the input sensing information. Then, when the recognition process is complete, a parking path is generated. The parking path is generated using the method described above. Afterward, the path following process is executed. Specifically, control signals are output to various actuators 4 so that the vehicle V can move from the current position Pa and stop at the predetermined parking position Pb by following the generated parking path. Thus, by driving various actuators 4, the driving direction, steering angle, and braking drive torque of the vehicle V are controlled to make the vehicle V move by following the parking path. Then, the vehicle V stops at the predetermined parking position Pb.

[0050] Next, refer to Figure 3 The flowchart shown illustrates the code utilization control. When a vehicle start switch (not shown), such as an ignition switch, is turned on, the processes shown in the flowchart are executed according to each predetermined control cycle. Furthermore, each process shown in this flowchart is implemented by the functional units of the parking assistance device 5. Additionally, each step in implementing this process is also understood as a step in implementing the parking assistance method.

[0051] First, in step S100, the identification process begins. This identification process is the same as the identification process described above for normal auxiliary control. When this identification process is performed, if the driver stops the vehicle V at a location where a parking assistance code can be identified, such as the entrance to a parking lot in an indoor facility, a code identification instruction is given via the indicating device 6 to identify the parking assistance code. Then, in step S110, if a code identification instruction is given, the process proceeds to step S120, where, as a code identification process, the parking assistance code is identified based on the data captured by the surrounding surveillance camera 31 identified in step S100. This identifies various parking information represented by the parking assistance code. Then, based on the vehicle's own position information in the parking assistance code, the current position Pa of the vehicle V within the parking lot is identified.

[0052] Next, in step S130, based on the various parking information indicated by the parking assistance code, the information is displayed on the instruction device 6. Here, if there are multiple target parking locations, the instruction device 6 displays the driver's selection of one of them. Furthermore, the display can be configured in various ways; for example, if there is only one target parking location, it can also display whether the driver can choose to proceed at that location or whether automatic parking can be initiated.

[0053] Next, proceed to step S140 to determine whether the driver has selected a parking target location. If the determination is positive, proceed to step S150; if the determination is negative, repeat step S140 until a selection is made.

[0054] In the next step S150, path following control processing begins. First, the user-selected parking target location is set as the predetermined parking location Pb, and a parking path is generated from the current location Pa of the vehicle V to the predetermined parking location Pb. This parking path is generated using the method described above, taking into account obstacle information in the parking lot within the indoor facilities contained in the parking assistance code. Furthermore, if the parking assistance code contains constraint information, a parking path is generated that satisfies the constraint conditions represented by that constraint information.

[0055] Next, path following control processing is performed. Specifically, control signals are output to various actuators 4 so that the vehicle V can move from its current position Pa and stop at the predetermined parking position Pb by following the generated parking path. Thus, the various actuators 4 are driven to control the driving direction, steering angle, and braking drive torque of the vehicle V to make the vehicle V move by following the parking path.

[0056] Further, proceeding to step S160, the same identification process as in step S100 is repeated, and corrections are made based on the result of this identification process. Thus, when a parking path utilizing the parking assistance code needs correction, such as when a static object not present in the parking information of the parking assistance marker is detected and a change in the parking path is required, a new parking path is generated. Additionally, if a dynamic object enters the direction of travel on the parking path during the movement of the vehicle V, the following actions are performed: the movement of the vehicle V is interrupted, and the movement of the vehicle V resumes after the possibility of the dynamic object contacting the vehicle V disappears. Furthermore, when the parking assistance code includes road slope information as parking information, the distortion of the detection by the surrounding monitoring sensor 3 can be corrected based on this road slope information, resulting in a more accurate detection result.

[0057] Then, proceed to step S170 to determine whether vehicle V has reached the predetermined parking position Pb. If the determination is positive, the parking assistance control ends; if the determination is negative, the process of step S160 is repeated. In this way, vehicle V stops at the predetermined parking position Pb.

[0058] As explained above, in the automatic parking system 1 of this embodiment, parking assistance control is performed using a parking assistance code. Furthermore, the parking assistance code includes at least obstacle information and target location information. Therefore, in indoor facilities such as indoor parking lots, parking assistance control can be performed based on information other than the vehicle V's location information; as other information, parking assistance control can be performed using only the sensing information from the existing surrounding monitoring sensor 3. Therefore, parking assistance control can be performed even in indoor facilities by effectively utilizing existing onboard devices.

[0059] Furthermore, if the parking assistance code includes the vehicle's own location information, the location of the parking assistance code within the parking lot can be accurately identified when the surrounding monitoring sensor 3 detects it. Therefore, by accurately identifying the current position Pa of the vehicle V based on the location of the parking assistance code, more precise parking assistance control can be achieved.

[0060] Furthermore, if road slope information is included in the parking assistance code, the distortion of the surrounding monitoring sensor 3 can be corrected during the movement of the vehicle V through parking assistance control, resulting in a more accurate detection result. Therefore, more accurate parking assistance control is possible.

[0061] (Other implementation methods)

[0062] The present disclosure has been described with reference to the above embodiments, but is not limited to these embodiments, and includes various modifications and variations within the same range. In addition, various combinations and methods, and further, other combinations and methods that include only one element, more or fewer other combinations and methods, also fall within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

[0063] (1) For example, in the above embodiment, the inclusion of obstacle information in the parking assistance code has been described, but various methods can be applied to the method of providing obstacle information. For example, such as Figure 4 As shown, it can be set in the following way: Figure 2 The parking lot shown is divided into multiple zones in a grid pattern. For each zone, data related to the presence or absence of obstacles is stored in bitmap form, with "1" indicating the presence of an obstacle and "0" indicating its absence. Alternatively, information about the corner portions of walls that could become obstacles can be pre-stored. In this case, by combining the information from the corner portions, the presence or absence of obstacles can be determined.

[0064] (2) In addition, in the above embodiment, an example of using parking assistance code was given as an example of indoor facilities, but even if it is not an indoor facility, parking assistance code can be used for parking assistance control.

[0065] (3) Furthermore, in the above embodiments, the display in the navigation device is cited as an example of the indicating device 6, but other devices may also be used. Additionally, in cases where a parking provider provides parking services to a predetermined parking location Pb, such as valet parking, it is assumed that the parking guidance device owned by the parking provider is used as the indicating device 6, and the signal transmission between the indicating device 6 and the parking assistance device 5 is conducted wirelessly. Furthermore, even if it is not a parking provider, it is assumed that the driver uses a smartphone or similar device as the indicating device 6, performing automatic parking based on parking assistance control while already alighting from the vehicle. In these cases, the indicating device 6 may be configured as an external device rather than an in-vehicle device.

[0066] (4) Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the location information of the parking assistance code itself is shown. However, when multiple parking assistance codes are set up in a parking lot or other locations, in addition to its own location information, the location information of other parking assistance codes, i.e., location information of other locations, can also be included. When the location information of other locations is included, if a path through other parking assistance codes is set in the parking path based on the location information of other locations, when other parking assistance codes are identified, it can be determined whether they can be followed according to the parking path, and the following control processing can be modified as needed.

[0067] (5) Furthermore, the control unit and its methods described in this disclosure can also be implemented by a dedicated computer, which is provided by a processor and memory programmed to perform one or more functions embodied in a computer program. Alternatively, the control unit and its methods described in this disclosure can also be implemented by a dedicated computer provided by a processor composed of one or more dedicated hardware logic circuits. Alternatively, the control unit and its methods described in this disclosure can also be implemented by one or more dedicated computers composed of a processor and memory programmed to perform one or more functions and a processor composed of one or more hardware logic circuits. In addition, the computer program can also be stored as instructions executed by the computer on a computer-readable non-transferable tangible storage medium.

Claims

1. A parking assistance device that generates a parking path for moving a vehicle from its current position to a predetermined parking position and moves the vehicle along the parking path to the predetermined parking position, comprising: The identification processing unit performs code recognition of the parking information represented by the parking assistance code containing parking information, wherein the parking information is related to the parking lot. The path generation unit generates the parking path when the vehicle is moved from the current position to the predetermined parking position indicated by the parking information. as well as The path following control unit performs path following control, in which the vehicle automatically moves from its current position to the predetermined parking position and parks by following the parking path generated by the path generation unit. The parking information mentioned above includes obstacle information and target location information. The obstacle information is related to obstacles existing in the parking lot, and the target location information indicates a parking target location that is different from the location of the parking assistance code itself in the parking lot. The path generation unit creates the parking path as follows: avoiding the obstacles indicated by the obstacle information, and taking the parking target position indicated by the target position information as the parking predetermined position, and proceeding from the current position to the parking predetermined position.

2. The parking assistance device according to claim 1, wherein, The parking information above includes its own location information, which indicates the location of the parking assistance code within the parking lot. The path generation unit identifies the current location of the vehicle in the parking lot based on its own location information.

3. The parking assistance device according to claim 1, wherein, The aforementioned identification processing unit performs: three-dimensional object recognition based on sensing information from surrounding monitoring sensors to identify three-dimensional objects in the space surrounding the vehicle; and free space recognition based on the result of the three-dimensional object recognition to identify the free space in which the vehicle is parked from the parking lot. In the path following control, the path generation unit also regenerates the parking path based on the three-dimensional object recognition and free space recognition performed by the recognition processing unit.

4. The parking assistance device according to claim 2, wherein, The aforementioned identification processing unit performs: three-dimensional object recognition based on sensing information from surrounding monitoring sensors to identify three-dimensional objects in the space surrounding the vehicle; and free space recognition based on the result of the three-dimensional object recognition to identify the free space in which the vehicle is parked from the parking lot. In the path following control, the path generation unit also regenerates the parking path based on the three-dimensional object recognition and free space recognition performed by the recognition processing unit.

5. The parking assistance device according to claim 3, wherein, The parking information above includes road slope information indicating the inclination of the road surface within the parking lot. The aforementioned identification processing unit corrects the distortion detected by the aforementioned surrounding monitoring sensors based on the aforementioned road slope information.

6. The parking assistance device according to claim 4, wherein, The parking information above includes road slope information indicating the inclination of the road surface within the parking lot. The aforementioned identification processing unit corrects the distortion detected by the aforementioned surrounding monitoring sensors based on the aforementioned road slope information.

7. The parking assistance device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein, When the indicating device receives an instruction to recognize the parking assistance code, the recognition processing unit performs the code recognition. When performing the above code recognition, the path generation unit generates the parking path based on the obstacle information and target location information contained in the parking assistance code.

8. The parking assistance device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein, When there are multiple parking target locations indicated by the aforementioned target location information, the route generation unit selects the predetermined parking location from the multiple parking target locations using an instruction device.

9. A parking assistance method, comprising generating a parking path for moving a vehicle from its current position to a predetermined parking position, and moving the vehicle along the parking path to the predetermined parking position, the method comprising: The code recognition is performed on the parking information represented by the parking assistance code, which contains parking information related to the parking lot. Generate the parking path when the vehicle is moved from its current location to the predetermined parking location indicated by the parking information; and Path following control is performed, in which the vehicle automatically moves from its current position to the predetermined parking position by following the generated parking path. The parking information mentioned above includes obstacle information and target location information. The obstacle information is related to obstacles existing in the parking lot, and the target location information indicates a parking target location that is different from the location of the parking assistance code itself in the parking lot. When generating the parking path, the parking path is created as follows: avoiding the obstacles indicated by the obstacle information, and taking the parking target location indicated by the target location information as the parking predetermined location and proceeding from the current location to the parking predetermined location.

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