Method, vehicle and mobile device for autonomous parking

Abstract

Method for autonomously parking a vehicle (10) comprising the following steps: a) Positioning the vehicle (10) at a predetermined exit point (12); b) Activating an autonomous parking function; and c) Autonomous driving of the vehicle (10) from the exit point (12) to a predetermined parking location (24) via at least one predetermined route (22), • wherein the vehicle (10) is stopped when an obstacle (28) is detected on the predetermined path (22) by means of at least one sensor (26); • wherein the at least one sensor (26) comprises at least one sensor outside the vehicle (10) and / or separate from it; and • wherein autonomous driving continues on the predetermined path (22) when the removal of the object is detected by the at least one sensor (26).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a method for autonomously parking a vehicle, a vehicle designed to perform such a method, and a mobile device designed to communicate with such a vehicle.

[0002] Increasingly, autonomous vehicles are being developed to relieve drivers of vehicles, such as cars, from their usual driving tasks. However, a generally autonomous vehicle is subject to very strict safety requirements, which in turn place equally high demands on the vehicle systems, such as sensors, data processing units, and the like.

[0003] It is therefore desirable to provide vehicles that can relieve the driver of certain routine tasks, such as parking, rather than fully autonomous vehicles. Such routine tasks can be handled more easily while still meeting the necessary safety requirements.

[0004] For example, EP 2 897 014 A1 discloses a vehicle designed for autonomous driving that can follow a predetermined route between a drop-off point and a parking position. Such a vehicle can relieve the driver of the tedious routine task of parking their vehicle, for example in a garage, and instead offers an assistance function similar to a valet parking service.

[0005] However, such a vehicle must still be able to detect obstacles on its predetermined path and react accordingly. For this purpose, it is known to integrate object detection into the car using sensor systems and to stop the parking process if such an obstacle is detected.

[0006] Consequently, such a car requires high-quality sensors capable of object recognition under changing conditions. This offers no significant simplification compared to a fully autonomous vehicle.

[0007] From DE 10 2015 217 389 A1, a method for operating a vehicle is known in which, when the vehicle is driving driverless within a parking lot and an emergency stop request is received to stop the driverless vehicle, it is checked whether stopping is necessary, whereby only if the check is positive is an emergency stop signal generated, in response to which the driverless vehicle stops.

[0008] German patent DE 10 2004 029 985 A1 discloses a method and a device that allow the driver of a stationary vehicle to avoid having to concentrate on the road while stationary and inform the driver with a corresponding start-up signal. The known method for issuing a start-up signal in a stationary vehicle comprises the following steps: a) automatically searching for an object that could obstruct the vehicle's movement, b) automatically determining whether the object obstructs the movement, and c) automatically issuing a signal as soon as the object no longer obstructs the movement.

[0009] DE 10 2014 018 189 A1 relates to a method for operating a vehicle in a parking situation (PVS), wherein at least one predefined parking situation (PVS) of the vehicle is assigned a predefined vehicle-specific or parking situation-specific function (F), it is determined whether the vehicle is in the one predefined parking situation (PVS), and the predefined vehicle-specific or parking situation-specific function (F) assigned to this one predefined parking situation (PVS) is offered to a vehicle user (N) for activation or is automatically activated when the vehicle is in the one predefined parking situation (PVS).

[0010] The present invention is thus based on the objective technical problem of providing a cost-effective method for the autonomous parking of a vehicle. A further object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle and a mobile device for carrying out such a method. This is intended to avoid the need for an expensively equipped vehicle.

[0011] This task is solved by an autonomous vehicle parking procedure that includes the following steps: a) Positioning the vehicle at a predetermined exit point; b) Activating an autonomous parking function; and c) Autonomous driving of the vehicle from the exit point to a predetermined parking location along at least one predetermined route, wherein the vehicle is stopped when an obstacle is detected on the predetermined route by means of at least one sensor; and wherein the at least one sensor comprises at least one sensor outside the vehicle and / or separate from it.

[0012] By using one or more external or separate sensors, the vehicle itself does not necessarily require its own high-quality onboard sensor system. Furthermore, external or separate sensors can be specifically designed for the parking location to ensure a safe and complete field of view along the predetermined path.

[0013] The autonomous parking function can be activated either from inside or outside the vehicle. If activated from inside, a control unit, typically located on the dashboard, can be used to put the vehicle into parking mode. If activated from outside the vehicle, a mobile device can be used.

[0014] According to the invention, autonomous driving will also continue on the predetermined path if the removal of the object is detected by the at least one sensor.

[0015] This ensures that the parking process can be completed in autonomous mode even if an obstacle is temporarily present, so that the driver does not have to, for example, get back into the vehicle and complete the driving process manually.

[0016] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the at least one sensor is positioned on the predetermined path and / or at the predetermined parking location.

[0017] The specific sensor placement depends on the geometry of the predetermined path and the available fields of view and viewing angles. This allows the method to be optimized for each specific parking location without requiring any changes to the vehicle's hardware.

[0018] The at least one sensor can include at least one additional sensor of the vehicle.

[0019] It is preferred that the at least one sensor includes a camera, a lidar sensor, a laser sensor, a radar sensor and / or an ultrasonic sensor.

[0020] Of course, different sensor types can be combined to provide multimodal sensor imaging of the predetermined path and parking location, thereby increasing safety and the probability of detecting even small, stationary obstacles.

[0021] It is preferred that a signal be sent to the driver of the vehicle if an obstacle is detected.

[0022] The signal can be transmitted via a mobile network, a Wi-Fi connection and / or Bluetooth, and / or the signal can be sent to a mobile device of the driver, which includes in particular a smartphone, a smartwatch, a smart body-worn device and / or a tablet computer, and / or to a display of the vehicle, preferably provided by a dashboard of the vehicle.

[0023] This allows the use of standard communication technology that is generally available in modern vehicles, thus eliminating the need for specialized transmitters and receivers.

[0024] Since practically everyone already owns a mobile device, this also eliminates the need to provide specialized devices for controlling the autonomous parking process, and increases comfort for the driver.

[0025] It is also preferred that the signal is received by the mobile device, in particular via an application of the mobile device, and that a warning message is issued, in particular displayed on a screen.

[0026] This enables the driver to remove any potential obstacles so that the autonomous parking process can continue.

[0027] Additionally or alternatively, autonomous driving can continue along the predetermined route if the vehicle receives a further signal from the mobile device and / or the driver. This further signal is preferably generated by input from the driver via the application and / or on the mobile device.

[0028] This is a particularly safe embodiment, since autonomous driving is only continued when the driver is convinced of the continued safety of the autonomous driving process and explicitly permits its continuation.

[0029] An advantageous method according to the invention is characterized in that the vehicle learns the predetermined path by means of at least one training unit in which the vehicle is driven by the driver on the predetermined path in a non-autonomous driving mode.

[0030] This is a particularly simple and versatile training process that can be used to train the vehicle for different parking locations with different local geographies and the like.

[0031] Embodiments of the invention can be characterized in that the predetermined parking location is provided by a garage with a garage door and the at least one sensor is suitable for detecting an open state of the garage door.

[0032] In these embodiments, the vehicle can, for example, begin driving along the predetermined path, stop until a garage door is open far enough for safe passage, and then complete the parking maneuver. In this case, it may not be necessary to signal the presence of the specific obstacle (here, a partially closed garage door) to the driver.

[0033] The invention further relates to a vehicle designed to perform such a method, and to a mobile device designed to communicate with such a vehicle when performing the method as described above. In both cases, the advantages explained above also apply.

[0034] The invention and its embodiments are explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings. They show: Fig. 1: a schematic representation of an autonomous parking process; and Fig. 2: A schematic representation of an autonomous parking process in the presence of an obstacle.

[0035] For autonomous parking of a vehicle 10, the vehicle 10 is parked at a predetermined exit point 12. The vehicle 10 includes a communication unit 14, which is designed to communicate with a mobile device 16 that runs a computer program in the form of an application 18, displayed on a screen 20 of the mobile device 16.

[0036] After the vehicle 10 has stopped at the predetermined exit point 12, the driver can exit the vehicle 10 and initiate the autonomous parking process by issuing a command to the vehicle 10 via the application 18 on the mobile device 16. Alternatively, the driver can initiate the autonomous parking process while still seated in the vehicle, in particular via the vehicle's dashboard (not shown).

[0037] Vehicle 10 now follows a predetermined route 22 to a predetermined parking location 24, such as a garage.

[0038] At least one external sensor 26 is positioned along the predetermined path 22 and / or at the predetermined parking location 24. The sensor 26 can be a video camera, an infrared camera, a lidar sensor, a radar sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, or any combination thereof, capable of detecting objects 28 along the predetermined path 22 or at the predetermined parking location 24. Either the raw data from the sensor 26 or pre-processed sensor data, which may simply be the basic information of the presence / absence of an object, is transmitted by the sensor 26 to the communication unit 14 of the vehicle 10. If the presence of an object 28 is detected in this way, the vehicle 10 is stopped, and a signal is sent from the communication unit 14 to the mobile device 16 to display a warning message on the screen 20 via the application 18.

[0039] The driver of vehicle 10 can now manually remove object 28 and send a signal to vehicle 10 via application 18 indicating that the autonomous parking process can safely continue. In this case, vehicle 10 continues along the predetermined path 22 until it reaches the predetermined parking location 24.

[0040] In the event that the obstacle 28 is of a temporary nature, for example an animal crossing an access road or the like, the autonomous parking process can continue without intervention from the driver as soon as the sensor 26 detects the absence of the obstacle 28.

[0041] The sensor 26 can also include a sensor that measures the opening state of a garage door (not shown) at parking location 24, so that the vehicle can be safely stopped in front of a garage until the door is open enough to allow the safe passage of the vehicle 10.

[0042] The vehicle 10 can further be designed to learn one or more predetermined routes 22 between one or more predetermined locations 12 and predetermined parking locations 24. This can be done, for example, using a simple machine learning process. In this case, the vehicle 10 is driven from the predetermined exit location 12 along the predetermined route 22 in a non-autonomous driving mode by the driver of the vehicle 10 to the predetermined parking location 24. If necessary, such training runs can be repeated several times, for example, to determine an optimal or average route along the predetermined route 22.

[0043] In summary, the invention provides a safe and simple method for autonomously parking a vehicle 10 in the manner of a parking service.

[0044] The features disclosed in the claims, the description and the drawings can be essential for different embodiments of the claimed invention, both individually and in any combination. Reference symbol list 10 vehicles 12 predetermined exit point 14 Communication unit 16 Mobile device 18 App 20 Display 22 predetermined path 24 predetermined parking location 26 Sensor 28th obstacle

Claims

[1] Method for autonomously parking a vehicle (10) comprising the following steps: a) Positioning the vehicle (10) at a predetermined exit point (12); b) Activating an autonomous parking function; and c) Autonomous driving of the vehicle (10) from the exit point (12) to a predetermined parking location (24) via at least one predetermined route (22), • wherein the vehicle (10) is stopped when an obstacle (28) is detected on the predetermined path (22) by means of at least one sensor (26); • wherein the at least one sensor (26) comprises at least one sensor outside the vehicle (10) and / or separate from it; and • wherein autonomous driving continues on the predetermined path (22) when the removal of the object is detected by the at least one sensor (26). [2] Method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor (26) is positioned on the predetermined path (22) and / or at the predetermined parking location (24). [3] Method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least one sensor (26) comprises at least one additional sensor of the vehicle (10). [4] Method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one sensor (26) comprises a camera, a lidar sensor, a laser sensor, a radar sensor and / or an ultrasonic sensor. [5] Method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein a signal is sent to a driver of the vehicle (10) if an obstacle (26) is detected. [6] Method according to claim 5, wherein the signal is transmitted via a mobile network, a WLAN connection and / or Bluetooth and / or the signal is sent to a mobile device (16) of the driver, which in particular comprises a smartphone, a smartwatch, a smart body-worn device and / or a tablet computer, and / or to a display of the vehicle, which is preferably provided by a dashboard of the vehicle. [7] Method according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the signal is received by the mobile device (16), in particular via an application (18) of the mobile device (16), and a warning message is issued, in particular displayed on a screen (20). [8] Method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein autonomous driving continues on the predetermined path (22) when the vehicle (10) receives another signal from the mobile device (16) and / or the driver of the vehicle (10). [9] Method according to claim 8, wherein the further signal is generated by an input from the driver via the application (18) and / or in the mobile device (16). [10] Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the vehicle (10) learns the predetermined path (22) by means of at least one training unit in which the vehicle (10) is driven by the driver in a non-autonomous driving mode on the predetermined path (22). [11] Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the predetermined parking location (24) is provided by a garage with a garage door and the at least one sensor (26) is suitable for detecting an open state of the garage door. [12] Vehicle (10) with a communication unit designed to perform a method according to any of the preceding claims. [13] Mobile device (16) designed to receive and transmit signals for performing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 11 to a vehicle according to claim 12.

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