Parking assistance method and driving assistance device

Abstract

A parking assistance method according to the present invention determines whether or not to execute a travel assistance control including at least one of a control for assisting a host vehicle to travel in a travel lane, a control for assisting the host vehicle to travel at a constant speed, and a control for assisting the distance between the host vehicle and a preceding vehicle to be kept constant (S2). The present invention determines whether or not a host vehicle is in the vicinity of a pre-registered target parking position (S1), and displays, on a display device, guidance of a parking assistance function for assisting the host vehicle in parking to the target parking position (S3) when travel assistance control is not executed and the host vehicle is in the vicinity of the target parking position. When the travel assistance control is executed or when the host vehicle is not in the vicinity of the target parking position, the guidance of the parking assistance function is not displayed on the display device (S4).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a parking assistance method and a driving assistance device. Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 listed below describes a parking assistance method that stores parking paths and target parking positions from past parking maneuvers and notifies the user of a message urging the start of parking assistance when the vehicle approaches the target parking position.

[0003] Prior art literature

[0004] Patent Literature

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2022-133230

[0006] Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0007] However, in a vehicle having a parking assist function for assisting parking at a target parking position, if guidance for the parking assist function is displayed on a display device only when the vehicle approaches the target parking position, the user may feel inconvenienced if he or she does not want to park the vehicle at the target parking position. Summary of the Invention

[0008] An object of the present invention is to suppress unnecessary display of guidance of the parking assist function in a vehicle having a parking assist function for assisting parking at a target parking position.

[0009] According to one aspect of the present invention, a parking assistance method for assisting a vehicle in parking at a target parking position is provided. In the parking assistance method, a determination is made as to whether a driving assistance control, including at least one of a control for assisting the vehicle in staying within a driving lane, a control for assisting the vehicle in driving at a constant speed, or a control for assisting in maintaining a constant distance between the vehicle and a preceding vehicle, is being executed. Furthermore, a determination is made as to whether the vehicle is located near a pre-registered target parking position. If the driving assistance control is not being executed and the vehicle is located near the target parking position, guidance for a parking assistance function assisting the vehicle in parking at the target parking position is displayed on a display device. If the driving assistance control is being executed or the vehicle is not located near the target parking position, guidance for the parking assistance function is not displayed on the display device.

[0010] Effects of the Invention

[0011] According to the present invention, in a vehicle having a parking assist function for assisting parking at a target parking position, unnecessary display of guidance of the parking assist function can be suppressed.

[0012] The objects and advantages of the present invention are embodied and achieved by the elements and combinations thereof shown in the scope of the claims. The above general description and the following detailed description are only examples and illustrations and should not be understood as limiting the present invention as shown in the scope of the claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] Figure 1 It is a diagram showing a schematic configuration example of a driving assistance device according to an embodiment.

[0014] Figure 2 (a) and (b) are schematic diagrams illustrating parking assist control.

[0015] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of an example of the first guidance screen.

[0016] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of an example of the second guidance screen.

[0017] Figure 5 This is a flowchart of the parking assistance method according to the first embodiment.

[0018] Figure 6 yes Figure 1 A block diagram showing an example of the functional structure of the controller in FIG.

[0019] Figure 7 This is a flowchart of the parking assistance method according to the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] (First embodiment)

[0021] (structure)

[0022] Figure 1 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration example of a driving assistance device according to an embodiment. A vehicle 1 includes a driving assistance device 10 having a parking assistance function and a driving assistance function. The driving assistance device 10 is an example of a "driving assistance device" described in the claims.

[0023] The parking assistance function assists the vehicle 1 in traveling along a target parking path from its current position to its target parking location. For example, the driving assistance device 10 can control the vehicle 1 automatically so that it travels along the target parking path to the target parking location. Automatically controlling the vehicle 1 so that it travels along the target parking path to the target parking location involves controlling all or part of the steering angle, driving force, and braking force of the vehicle 1 to automatically control all or part of the vehicle 1's travel along the target parking path. Alternatively, parking assistance can be provided by displaying the target parking path and the current position of the vehicle 1 on a display device that can be visually recognized by a user of the vehicle 1 (e.g., a driver or other passenger).

[0024] The driving assistance function may include, for example, a lane keeping assistance function that assists the vehicle 1 in driving within the driving lane. The driving assistance function may also include a constant speed driving assistance function that assists the vehicle 1 in driving at a certain speed. The driving assistance function may also include a vehicle keeping assistance function that assists in maintaining a certain vehicle distance between the vehicle 1 and the preceding vehicle. The driving assistance function of the driving assistance device 10 may include only one or two of the lane keeping assistance function, the constant speed driving assistance function, or the vehicle keeping assistance function, or may include all of them. For example, the driving assistance function of the driving assistance device 10 may be an autonomous driving function that enables the vehicle 1 to autonomously drive to a set destination. The autonomous driving function may include all of the lane keeping assistance function, the constant speed driving assistance function, and the vehicle keeping assistance function.

[0025] In addition, in the following description, the control of the driving assistance device 10 used to realize the parking assistance function, driving assistance function, lane keeping assistance function, constant speed driving assistance function and vehicle keeping assistance function will be expressed as "parking assistance control", "driving assistance control", "lane keeping assistance control", "constant speed driving assistance control" and "vehicle keeping assistance control" respectively.

[0026] The positioning device 11 measures the current position of the vehicle 1. The positioning device 11 includes, for example, a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receiver. A map database (map DB) 12 stores map data. The map data stored in the map DB 12 may include, for example, navigation map data and high-precision map data suitable for autonomous driving.

[0027] The human-machine interface (HMI) 13 is an interface device that transmits and receives information between the driving assistance device 10 and the user. For example, the HMI 13 may include a display device that the user can visually perceive as an interface for presenting visual information to the user. Alternatively, the HMI 13 may include a speaker and a buzzer as interfaces for presenting auditory information to the user. Furthermore, the HMI 13 may include an interface (such as a touch panel, buttons, switches, joysticks, dials, or keyboard) for receiving user input.

[0028] The shift switch (shift SW) 14 is a switch for the driver or the driving support device 10 to switch the shift position of the host vehicle 1 .

[0029] The external sensor 15 detects objects within a specified distance from the vehicle 1. The external sensor 15 detects the surrounding environment of the vehicle 1, such as the relative position of objects around the vehicle 1 and the vehicle 1, the distance between the vehicle 1 and the object, and the direction in which the object exists. For example, the external sensor 15 may include a camera that captures the surrounding environment of the vehicle 1. The external sensor 15 may include ranging devices such as a laser rangefinder, radar, LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), and sonar. The vehicle sensor 16 detects various types of information (vehicle information) about the vehicle 1. For example, the vehicle sensor 16 may include a vehicle speed sensor that detects the vehicle 1's speed, a three-axis acceleration sensor that detects the acceleration (including deceleration) of the vehicle 1 in three axes, and a sensor that detects the steering angle of the steering wheel and the steering angle of the steering wheel.

[0030] The parking switch (parking SW) 17 is a switch that receives an operation input from a user to instruct the activation of parking assist control by the driving assist device 10 .

[0031] The parking position selection switch (parking position selector SW) 18 is a switch that receives a user's operation to select any of the target parking position candidates when there are multiple candidate parking positions around the vehicle 1. For example, a touch panel may be provided on the display device of the HMI 13, and the touch panel may detect the user's operation of touching the image of the parking position selection switch 18 displayed on the display device.

[0032] The parking brake 20 generates friction braking force on the wheels of the host vehicle 1 in response to a user operation or a control signal from the controller 19 .

[0033] The steering actuator 21a controls the steering direction and amount of the steering mechanism of the vehicle 1 based on a control signal from the controller 19. The accelerator actuator 21b controls the accelerator position of a drive device such as the engine and drive motor based on a control signal from the controller 19. The brake actuator 21c activates the brake device based on a control signal from the controller 19.

[0034] The controller 19 is an electronic control unit that performs parking assistance and driving assistance control for the vehicle 1. The controller 19 includes peripheral components such as a processor 19a and a storage device 19b. The processor 19a may be, for example, a CPU or an MPU. The storage device 19b may include a semiconductor memory device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, or the like. The functions of the controller 19 described below are implemented, for example, by the processor 19a executing a computer program stored in the storage device 19b.

[0035] For example, in the lane keeping assist function, the controller 19 identifies the lane in which the vehicle 1 is traveling, that is, the lane dividing line of the driving lane, based on the detection signal of the external sensor 15, and controls the steering actuator 21a in such a manner that the vehicle 1 travels along the driving lane (for example, in such a manner that the vehicle 1 travels at a prescribed lateral position within the driving lane), or outputs a notification from the HMI 13 to urge the user to perform the steering operation.

[0036] In addition, for example, in the constant speed driving assist control, the controller 19 controls the accelerator actuator 21b and the brake actuator 21c based on the driving speed of the vehicle 1 detected by the vehicle speed sensor of the vehicle sensor 16, so that the vehicle 1 travels at a certain speed, or outputs a notification from the HMI13 to urge the user to perform acceleration and deceleration operations.

[0037] In addition, for example, in the inter-vehicle keeping assist control, the controller 19 identifies the inter-vehicle distance between the vehicle 1 and the preceding vehicle based on the detection signal of the external sensor 15, controls the accelerator actuator 21b and the brake actuator 21c in a manner to maintain the inter-vehicle distance at a certain level, or outputs a notification from the HMI 13 to urge the user to perform acceleration and deceleration operations.

[0038] Next, a description will be given of parking assist control by the controller 19. When the parking assist control is utilized, a target parking position 31 at which the host vehicle 1 is to be parked is registered in advance in the driving assist device 10. Figure 2 (a) is an explanatory diagram of an example of processing in a scenario where the target parking position 31 is registered in advance in the driving support device 10 .

[0039] When registering the target parking position 31 with the driving assistance device 10, the marker objects existing around the target parking position 31 are extracted and stored (registered) in advance in the storage device 19b. In the following description, the marker objects around the target parking position 31 stored in the storage device 19b are referred to as "learned marker objects". Figure 2In (a), a circular icon schematically represents a learning completion indicator object. When registering the target parking position 31 in the driving assistance device 10 , the user performs an operation to instruct registration of the target parking position 31 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as “registration operation”).

[0040] For example, when the vehicle 1 is near the target parking position 31 (e.g., when the user manually parks the vehicle 1 at the target parking position 31), the controller 19 detects landmark objects around the vehicle 1 using the external sensor 15 and stores them as learned landmark objects. For example, landmark objects can be detected from a surrounding image captured by a camera. For example, edges or corners of landmark objects such as road markings, road boundaries, and obstacles, as well as edge points or points with characteristic shapes (feature points) where the brightness of adjacent pixels changes by more than a specified amount in the camera image, can be detected as landmark objects.

[0041] Controller 19 stores learning completion marker data associated with the learning completion marker object in storage device 19b. For example, the learning completion marker object data may include: data indicating the characteristics of the learning completion marker object (hereinafter referred to as "characteristic data"), data on the relative positional relationship between target parking position 31 and the learning completion marker object (hereinafter referred to as "relative position data"), and position data of target parking position 31 in a coordinate system based on a fixed point (hereinafter referred to as "map coordinate system").

[0042] As relative position data, for example, the relative position of a learning completion marker object relative to the target parking position 31 can be stored. For example, the controller 19 can obtain the position of the learning completion marker object detected when the vehicle 1 is parked at the target parking position 31 as the relative position of the learning completion marker object relative to the target parking position 31. Alternatively, the coordinates of the learning completion marker object and the target parking position 31 in a map coordinate system can be stored.

[0043] Figure 2 (b) is an explanatory diagram of an example of processing in a scene of assisting the host vehicle 1 in parking at the target parking position 31. When assisting the host vehicle 1 in parking at the target parking position 31, the controller 19 extracts landmark objects around the host vehicle 1 through the external sensor 15. In the following description, the landmark objects around the host vehicle 1 extracted when performing parking assistance are referred to as "surrounding landmark objects." Figure 2In (b), triangular icons represent surrounding landmark objects. Controller 19 detects target parking position 31 around vehicle 1 by matching learned landmark objects with surrounding landmark objects and aligning common feature points. The relative position of vehicle 1 relative to target parking position 31 is calculated based on the relative positional relationship between the surrounding landmark objects detected during parking assistance and vehicle 1, and the relative positional relationship between the learned landmark objects corresponding to the surrounding landmark objects and target parking position 31.

[0044] For example, controller 19 calculates the position of target parking position 31 in a coordinate system based on the current position of host vehicle 1 (hereinafter referred to as the "vehicle coordinate system"). Furthermore, if the coordinates of the learned markers and target parking position 31 in the map coordinate system are stored in storage device 19b, the coordinates of target parking position 31 in the map coordinate system may be converted to coordinates in the vehicle coordinate system based on the positions of surrounding markers detected during parking assistance and the positions of the learned markers in the map coordinate system. Alternatively, the position of host vehicle 1 in the map coordinate system may be determined based on the positions of surrounding markers detected during parking assistance and the positions of the learned markers in the map coordinate system, and the relative position of host vehicle 1 relative to target parking position 31 may be calculated based on the difference between the coordinates of host vehicle 1 in the map coordinate system and the coordinates of target parking position 31.

[0045] The controller 19 calculates a target parking path 34 from the current position 33 of the host vehicle 1 to the target parking position 31 . The controller 19 performs parking assist control of the host vehicle 1 based on the calculated target parking path 34 .

[0046] When assisting the host vehicle 1 in parking the target parking location 31, the controller 19 displays guidance for the parking assistance function on the display device of the HMI 13. For example, as guidance for the parking assistance function, the controller 19 may display a first guidance screen notifying that the controller 19 is searching for the target parking location 31 that exists around the host vehicle 1.

[0047] Figure 3This is a schematic diagram of an example of a first guidance screen. The first guidance screen 40a includes a captured image 41 of the surroundings of the vehicle 1, an overhead image 42 generated by converting the captured image of the surroundings of the vehicle 1, a GUI (Graphical User Interface) for the parking position selection switch 18, a message display area 43 for displaying visual messages and other notifications, a parking start button 44, and an end button 45. When a user operates the parking position selection switch 18 or the end button 45 displayed on the display device, the touch panel provided on the display device detects these operations. The parking start button 44 is disabled in the first guidance screen 40a.

[0048] An icon 42a indicating the current position of the vehicle 1 is superimposed on the bird's-eye view image 42. In the message display area 43 of the first guidance screen 40a, a visual message notifying the user that a target parking position is being searched for, for example, may be displayed. When the end button 45 is operated, the controller 19 terminates the parking assist control. Figure 4 The same applies to the end button 45 of the second guidance screen 40 b described later.

[0049] Furthermore, when detection of a target parking position 31 existing around the current position of the vehicle 1 is successful, the controller 19 may display a second guidance screen for receiving a user operation instructing to start driving assistance control toward the detected target parking position 31 as guidance for the parking assistance function.

[0050] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of an example of a second guidance screen. Second guidance screen 40b includes a captured image 41, an overhead image 42, a message display area 43, a GUI for parking position selection switch 18, a parking start button 44, and an end button 45. When the user presses parking start button 44, the touch panel provided on the display device detects the operation.

[0051] On the bird's-eye view image 42, an icon 42a indicating the current position of the vehicle 1 and a target parking position mark 42b indicating the target parking position 31 detected around the current position of the vehicle 1 are superimposed and displayed. Figure 4 In the example of the bird's-eye view image 42 of the second guidance screen 40b, Figure 3 The bird's-eye view image 42 of the first guidance screen 40a is reduced in scale, and a range of a predetermined size of the parking space of the target parking position 31 is displayed on the second guidance screen 40b. Figure 4 The example shows the entire parking space.

[0052] When the parking start button 44 is operated, the controller 19 starts assisting the vehicle 1 in parking at the target parking position 31. Figure 3 The parking start button 44 is disabled in the first guidance screen 40 a , and the controller 19 does not start parking assistance even if the parking start button 44 is operated in the first guidance screen 40 a .

[0053] When parking the host vehicle 1 at the target parking position 31, the convenience of the parking assist function is improved if the parking assist function guidance is automatically displayed on the display device of the HMI 13. However, if the parking assist function guidance is displayed on the display device of the HMI 13 even though the user does not want to park the host vehicle 1, it becomes cumbersome for the user.

[0054] The controller 19 then determines whether to execute driving assist control. Furthermore, it determines whether the vehicle 1 is near the target parking position 31 (e.g., within a predetermined distance from the target parking position 31). For example, it determines whether the current position of the vehicle 1, as measured by the positioning device 11, is within a predetermined distance from the target parking position 31, which is stored as learned marker object data.

[0055] When driving assist control is not being executed and the host vehicle 1 is located near the target parking position 31, the controller 19 automatically displays guidance for the parking assist function on the display device of the HMI 13. When driving assist control is being executed or the host vehicle 1 is not located near the target parking position 31, guidance for the parking assist function is not automatically displayed on the display device.

[0056] When the driving assist control is executed, it is estimated that the user does not wish to park the host vehicle 1. Therefore, even if the host vehicle 1 is near the target parking position 31, when the driving assist control is executed, the parking assist function guidance is not displayed, thereby suppressing unnecessary display of the parking assist function guidance.

[0057] (action)

[0058] Figure 5This is a flowchart of the parking assistance method according to the first embodiment. In step S1, the controller 19 determines whether the current position of the vehicle 1 is near the target parking position 31. If the current position is not near the target parking position 31 (step S1: No), the process proceeds to step S4. If the current position is near the target parking position 31 (step S1: Yes), the process proceeds to step S2. In step S2, the controller 19 determines whether to execute driving assist control. If driving assist control is not executed (step S2: No), the process proceeds to step S4. If driving assist control is executed (step S2: Yes), the process proceeds to step S3. In step S3, the controller 19 displays guidance for the parking assist function. The process then ends. In step S4, the controller 19 does not display guidance for the parking assist function. The process then ends.

[0059] (Second embodiment)

[0060] Figure 6 yes Figure 1 When the HMI control unit 50 detects a user registration operation for the target parking position 31, it outputs a map generation command to the map generation unit 55 to store the learned landmark object data in the storage device 19b.

[0061] The image conversion unit 52 converts the camera image into a bird's-eye view image viewed from a virtual viewpoint directly above the host vehicle 1. The image conversion unit 52 converts the camera image into a bird's-eye view image at predetermined intervals and accumulates the converted bird's-eye view images along the travel path of the host vehicle 1, thereby generating a surrounding image representing an image of the area surrounding the host vehicle 1.

[0062] The own position calculation unit 53 calculates the current position of the host vehicle 1 on the map coordinate system as the own position by using an odometry method (eg, dead reckoning method) based on vehicle information output from the vehicle sensor 16 .

[0063] The landmark object detection unit 54 detects landmark objects based on the surrounding image output from the image conversion unit 52. The landmark object detection unit 54 detects the positions of the landmark object's characteristic points and their image features as landmark objects. The landmark object detection unit 54 outputs the detected positions of the characteristic points and image features as landmark object data to the map generation unit 55 and the target parking position detection unit 57. Furthermore, in synchronization with the detection of the landmark object, the vehicle's own position, obtained from the own position calculation unit 53, is output to the map generation unit 55 and the target parking position detection unit 57.

[0064] Upon receiving a map generation command from the HMI control unit 50 (i.e., upon registering the target parking position 31), the map generation unit 55 generates learned landmark object data and stores it in the storage device 19b as map data 56. For example, the map generation unit 55 receives the landmark object data and the vehicle's own position in a map coordinate system synchronized with the landmark object data from the landmark object detection unit 54. The map generation unit 55 obtains the position information of the target parking position 31 in the map coordinate system. For example, the vehicle's own position calculated by the vehicle's own position calculation unit 53 when the vehicle is located at the target parking position 31 can be used as the position information of the target parking position 31. The map generation unit 55 generates relative position data based on the positions of the feature points included in the landmark object data, the synchronized position information of the vehicle 1, and the position information of the target parking position 31. The map generation unit 55 obtains feature value data from the landmark object data output by the landmark object detection unit 54. The learned landmark object data, including this relative position data, feature value data, and the position data of the target parking position 31, is stored in the storage device 19b as map data 56.

[0065] The parking assist control unit 51 executes parking assist control for assisting the host vehicle 1 in parking at the target parking position 31 registered in the storage device 19 b .

[0066] The parking assist control unit 51 is configured to switch between an "automatic start mode" in which detection of a target parking position 31 located around the vehicle 1 is automatically initiated, and a "manual start mode" in which detection of the target parking position 31 is initiated in response to a user operation (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a "start operation") instructing the parking assist control to start the vehicle 1. For example, the start operation may be the user operating the parking switch 17.

[0067] The user can set the parking assist control unit 51 to either the automatic start mode or the manual start mode by operating the HMI 13 .

[0068] In the automatic start mode, detection of the target parking position 31 is automatically started when all of the following start conditions (A) to (C) are satisfied.

[0069] (A) The host vehicle 1 is located near the target parking position 31 (eg, the host vehicle 1 is located within a predetermined distance from the target parking position 31 ).

[0070] (B) The vehicle speed of the host vehicle 1 is equal to or lower than a threshold value (for example, the host vehicle 1 is stopped).

[0071] (C) Driving assistance control is not being executed. Alternatively, a user driving operation occurs during driving assistance control (for example, a user brake operation is detected during driving assistance control, or a user intervention in the steering wheel is detected during lane keeping assist control).

[0072] When determining whether the host vehicle 1 is stopped, for example, it may be determined whether the speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor is 0 km / h. If the speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor is 0 km / h, the host vehicle 1 is determined to be stopped. Alternatively, a margin may be set so that the host vehicle 1 is determined to be stopped if the speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor is below a predetermined speed.

[0073] When all of the above-mentioned start conditions (A) to (C) are met in automatic start mode, or when a user start operation is received in manual start mode, the parking assist control unit 51 outputs a parking position calculation command to the target parking position detection unit 57. The target parking position detection unit 57 receives the marker object data output by the marker object detection unit 54 as the marker object data of the surrounding marker objects and, simultaneously, receives the own position of the host vehicle 1 in the map coordinate system. The target parking position detection unit 57 detects the target parking position 31 by matching the learned marker objects with the surrounding marker objects and associating marker objects with the same feature points. Specifically, the target parking position detection unit 57 determines whether the target parking position 31 can be detected based on whether the matching between the learned marker objects and the surrounding marker objects is successful. If the matching is successful (i.e., the target parking position 31 is detected), the target parking position detection unit 57 calculates the relative position of the host vehicle 1 with respect to the target parking position 31 based on the relative positional relationship between the surrounding marker objects and the host vehicle 1 and the relative positional relationship between the learned marker objects corresponding to the surrounding marker objects and the target parking position 31.

[0074] When the target parking position detection unit 57 starts detecting the target parking position 31 existing around the host vehicle 1, the HMI control unit 50 displays the guidance of the parking assist function on the display device of the HMI 13. For example, while the parking assist control unit 51 searches for the target parking position 31 existing around the host vehicle 1, the HMI control unit 50 displays the guidance of the parking assist function on the display device of the HMI 13. Figure 3 The first guidance screen 40a is shown.

[0075] When the target parking position 31 existing around the host vehicle 1 is detected, the target parking position detection unit 57 automatically sets the detected target parking position 31 as the target parking position of the host vehicle 1 assisted by the parking assist function (the target parking position of the host vehicle 1 parked by the parking assist function). In addition, the HMI control unit 50 displays the target parking position 31 on the display device of the HMI 13. Figure 4 The second guidance screen 40b is shown.

[0076] As described above, when the user sets the parking assist control unit 51 to the automatic start mode, the function of automatically displaying guidance for the parking assist function when all of the start conditions (A) to (C) are satisfied becomes effective.

[0077] Furthermore, if the user sets the parking assist control unit 51 to manual start mode, the automatic display of parking assist function guidance becomes disabled. In this case, upon receiving the user's start operation, the target parking position detection unit 57 begins detecting the target parking position 31, and the HMI control unit 50 then displays parking assist function guidance.

[0078] Reference Figure 4 When the target parking position detection unit 57 detects a plurality of target parking positions 31 existing around the host vehicle 1 , the HMI control unit 50 may display the number of detected target parking positions 31 on the second guidance screen 40 b . Figure 4 The example shown is that when the target parking position detection unit 57 detects two target parking positions 31 , the number “2” indicating the number of detected target parking positions 31 is displayed on the position of the parking position selection switch 18 .

[0079] In this manner, when multiple target parking locations 31 are detected around the host vehicle 1, the HMI control unit 50 can prioritize the target parking locations 31 according to a predetermined rule and present higher-priority target parking locations 31 on the second guidance screen 40b over lower-priority target parking locations 31. For example, the HMI control unit 50 can display a target parking location marker 42b indicating the highest-priority target parking location 31. For example, a higher priority can be assigned to a target parking location 31 closer to the host vehicle 1.

[0080] Furthermore, all of the plurality of target parking positions existing around the host vehicle 1 may be presented, or all of the plurality of target parking positions existing around the host vehicle 1 within a predetermined distance may be presented.

[0081] Furthermore, the user can operate the parking position selection switch 18 to select any one of the plurality of target parking positions 31 and set it as the target parking position of the host vehicle 1 assisted by the parking assist function.

[0082] For example, the HMI control unit 50 may display the target parking position mark 42b indicating the target parking position 31 with the highest priority when the second guidance screen 40b is first displayed. Alternatively, upon detecting operation of the parking position selection switch 18, the HMI control unit 50 may sequentially select each of the plurality of target parking positions 31 in descending order of priority and display the target parking position mark 42b indicating the selected target parking position 31.

[0083] When the parking start button 44 is operated, parking assistance for the vehicle 1 to the target parking position 31 is started. Figure 6 . The target trajectory generation unit 59 calculates a target parking path from the current position of the host vehicle 1 on the vehicle coordinate system to the target parking position 31. The target trajectory generation unit 59 calculates a target value of the vehicle speed of the host vehicle 1 on the target parking path, that is, a target vehicle speed curve. The steering control unit 60 controls the steering actuator 21a in such a way that the host vehicle 1 travels along the target parking path. The vehicle speed control unit 61 controls the accelerator actuator 21b and the brake actuator 21c in such a way that the vehicle speed of the host vehicle 1 changes according to the target vehicle speed curve. When the host vehicle 1 reaches the target parking position 31 and the parking assist control is completed, the parking assist control unit 51 activates the parking brake 20 to switch the gear position to the parking gear.

[0084] Figure 7 This is a flowchart of the parking assistance method according to the second embodiment. In step S10, the parking assistance control unit 51 determines whether the current position of the host vehicle 1 is near the target parking position 31. If the current position is not near the target parking position 31 (step S10: N), the process proceeds to step S17. If the current position is near the target parking position 31 (step S10: Yes), the process proceeds to step S11. In step S11, the parking assistance control unit 51 determines whether the vehicle speed is below a threshold. If the vehicle speed is not below the threshold (step S11: No), the process proceeds to step S17. If the vehicle speed is below the threshold (step S11: Yes), the process proceeds to step S12.

[0085] In step S12, the parking assist control unit 51 determines whether driving assist control is being executed. If driving assist control is not being executed (step S12: No), the process proceeds to step S14. If driving assist control is being executed (step S12: Yes), the process proceeds to step S13. In step S13, the parking assist control unit 51 determines whether a user driving operation has occurred. If no driving operation has occurred (step S17: No), the process proceeds to step S17. If a driving operation has occurred (step S14: Yes), the process proceeds to step S14. In step S14, the parking assist control unit 51 determines whether the automatic start mode is set. If the automatic start mode is set (step S14: Yes), the process proceeds to step S16. If the automatic start mode is not set (step S14: No), the process proceeds to step S15.

[0086] In step S15, the parking assist control unit 51 determines whether the parking switch 17 has been operated. If the parking switch 17 has not been operated (step S15: No), the process proceeds to step S17. If the parking switch 17 has been operated (step S15: Yes), the process proceeds to step S16.

[0087] In step S16, the controller 19 displays the guidance of the parking assist function. The process then ends. In step S17, the controller 19 does not display the guidance of the parking assist function. The process then ends.

[0088] (Effects of Implementation Methods)

[0089] (1) The controller 19 determines whether a driving assist control including at least one of a control for assisting the host vehicle 1 to travel within the driving lane, a control for assisting the host vehicle 1 to travel at a constant speed, or a control for assisting in maintaining a constant inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle 1 and the preceding vehicle is being executed, and determines whether the host vehicle 1 is located near a pre-registered target parking position. If the driving assist control is not being executed and the host vehicle 1 is located near the target parking position, the controller 19 displays on the display device guidance for a parking assist function that assists the host vehicle 1 in parking at the target parking position. If the driving assist control is being executed or the host vehicle 1 is not located near the target parking position, the controller 19 does not display guidance for the parking assist function on the display device. In this way, by assuming that the user does not wish to park the host vehicle 1 and not displaying guidance for the parking assist function when the driving assist control is being executed, unnecessary display of guidance for the parking assist function can be suppressed.

[0090] (2) The controller 19 may display parking assistance guidance on the display device when the vehicle speed is below a threshold, the driving assistance control is not being executed, and the host vehicle 1 is near the target parking position. The controller 19 may not display parking assistance guidance on the display device when the vehicle speed is above the threshold, the driving assistance control is being executed, or the host vehicle 1 is not near the target parking position. In this way, by assuming that the user does not wish to park the host vehicle 1 and not displaying the parking assistance guidance when the vehicle speed is above the threshold, it is possible to suppress unnecessary display of parking assistance guidance.

[0091] (3) The controller 19 may display the parking assist function guidance on the display device when the host vehicle 1 is stopped, the driving assist control is not being executed, and the host vehicle 1 is located near the target parking position. Alternatively, the controller 19 may not display the parking assist function guidance on the display device when the host vehicle 1 is not stopped, the driving assist control is being executed, or the host vehicle 1 is not located near the target parking position. In this way, by assuming that the user does not wish to park the host vehicle 1 and not displaying the parking assist function guidance when the host vehicle 1 is not stopped, it is possible to suppress unnecessary display of the parking assist function guidance.

[0092] (4) The controller 19 can display guidance for the parking assist function and select a pre-registered target parking position detected near the host vehicle 1 as the target parking position of the host vehicle 1 assisted by the parking assist function. This simplifies the user's manual operation for setting the target parking position.

[0093] (5) The controller 19 may store data indicating the relative positional relationship between marker objects existing around the target parking position and the target parking position in advance as learned marker object data in a storage device, detect marker objects existing around the host vehicle 1, i.e., surrounding marker objects, and detect the target parking position existing around the host vehicle 1 based on the learned marker object data and the surrounding marker objects. Thus, the user can utilize parking assistance control that assists the host vehicle 1 in parking at the pre-registered target parking position.

[0094] (6) The controller 19 may display target parking positions on the display device in the order closest to the current position of the host vehicle 1 as parking assistance guidance. This allows the user to propose target parking positions in order, starting with those most likely to be selected by the user. This simplifies the user's manual operation for selecting a target parking position.

[0095] (7) The function of displaying the guidance of the parking assist function on the display device may be disabled by setting the function through user input on the user interface of the vehicle 1. Alternatively, when the function of displaying the guidance of the parking assist function on the display device is disabled by setting the function through user input on the user interface, the guidance of the parking assist function may be displayed on the display device when an operation input instructing to activate the parking assist function is received from the user. In this way, the guidance of the parking assist function can be displayed on the display device according to the user's preference.

[0096] (8) When a brake operation is detected during the execution of driving assist control and the host vehicle 1 is located near the target parking position, guidance for the parking assist function may be displayed on the display device. Furthermore, when an intervention operation on the steering wheel is detected during the execution of driving assist control for assisting the host vehicle 1 in traveling within the driving lane and the host vehicle 1 is located near the target parking position, guidance for the parking assist function may be displayed on the display device. Thus, even when a user's driving operation occurs during the execution of driving assist control, it is possible to simplify the user's manual operation for activating the parking assist function by displaying guidance for the parking assist function based on the assumption that the user wishes to park the host vehicle 1.

[0097] All examples and conditional terms described herein are intended for teaching purposes to help readers understand the present invention and the concepts provided by the inventors for technological advancement, and should be interpreted as not being limited to the above examples and conditions specifically described in this specification, nor to the structures that illustrate the superiority and inferiority of the present invention. Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions, and modifications may be added thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0098] Explanation of symbols

[0099] 1: Vehicle, 10: Driving assistance device, 11: Positioning device, 12: Map database, 13: Human-machine interface, 14: Shift switch, 15: External sensor, 16: Vehicle sensor, 17: Parking switch, 18: Parking position selection switch, 19: Controller, 19a: Processor, 19b: Storage device, 20: Parking brake, 21a: Steering actuator, 21b: Accelerator actuator, 21c: Brake actuator, 50: HMI control unit, 51: Parking assistance control unit, 52: Image conversion unit, 53: Self-position calculation unit, 54: Marker object detection unit, 55: Map generation unit, 56: Map data, 57: Target parking position detection unit, 59: Target trajectory generation unit, 60: Steering control unit, 61: Vehicle speed control unit.

Claims

1. A parking assistance method for assisting a vehicle to park at a target parking position, characterized in that: determining whether to execute driving assistance control including at least one of control for assisting the host vehicle to travel within a driving lane, control for assisting the host vehicle to travel at a constant speed, or control for assisting in maintaining a constant inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle and a preceding vehicle, determining whether the host vehicle is located near the pre-registered target parking position, When the driving assist control is not being executed and the host vehicle is located near the target parking position, a parking assist function guide for assisting the host vehicle in parking at the target parking position is displayed on a display device. When the driving assist control is being executed or when the host vehicle is not located near the target parking position, guidance for the parking assist function is not displayed on the display device.

2. The parking assistance method according to claim 1, wherein: When the vehicle speed of the host vehicle is below a threshold value, the driving assist control is not being executed, and the host vehicle is located near the target parking position, a guidance for the parking assist function is displayed on the display device; When the vehicle speed is higher than the threshold, when the driving assist control is being executed, or when the host vehicle is not near the target parking position, guidance for the parking assist function is not displayed on the display device.

3. The parking assistance method according to claim 1, wherein: When the host vehicle is stopped and the driving assist control is not being executed, and the host vehicle is located near the target parking position, a guide for the parking assist function is displayed on the display device; When the host vehicle is not stopped, when the driving assist control is being executed, or when the host vehicle is not near the target parking position, guidance for the parking assist function is not displayed on the display device.

4. The parking assistance method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: A guidance for the parking assist function is displayed, and the pre-registered target parking position detected near the host vehicle is selected as the target parking position of the host vehicle to be assisted by the parking assist function.

5. The parking assistance method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: Data indicating the relative positional relationship between the target parking position and the marker objects existing around the target parking position is stored in advance in a storage device as learned marker object data. detecting surrounding landmark objects existing around the vehicle, The target parking position existing around the host vehicle is detected based on the learned marker object data and the surrounding marker objects.

6. The parking assistance method according to claim 4, wherein: As guidance for the parking assistance, the target parking positions are displayed on the display device in order of proximity to the current position of the host vehicle.

7. The parking assistance method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein: The function of displaying the guidance of the parking assist function on the display device can be set to be invalid through input of the user interface by the user of the host vehicle. When the function of displaying the guidance of the parking assist function on the display device is set to be invalid through the user input on the user interface, when an operation input instructing to start the parking assist function is received from the user, the guidance of the parking assist function is displayed on the display device.

8. The parking assistance method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: When a brake operation is detected during execution of the driving assist control and the host vehicle is located near the target parking position, guidance for the parking assist function is displayed on the display device.

9. The parking assistance method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein: When an intervention operation of the steering wheel is detected during execution of the driving assist control for assisting the host vehicle in traveling within a driving lane and the host vehicle is located near the target parking position, guidance for the parking assist function is displayed on the display device.

10. A driving assistance device is a parking assistance device for assisting a vehicle in parking at a target parking position, characterized in that: have: display device; a controller that determines whether to execute driving assistance control including at least one of control for assisting the host vehicle to travel within a driving lane, control for assisting the host vehicle to travel at a constant speed, or control for assisting in maintaining a constant inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle and a preceding vehicle, and determines whether the host vehicle is located near a pre-registered target parking position. If the driving assistance control is not executed and the host vehicle is located near the target parking position, the controller displays guidance for a parking assistance function for assisting the host vehicle to park at the target parking position on the display device. If the driving assistance control is executed or the host vehicle is not located near the target parking position, the controller does not display guidance for the parking assistance function on the display device.

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