METHOD FOR OPERATING A MOTOR VEHICLE AND MOTOR VEHICLE

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a method for operating a motor vehicle, wherein the motor vehicle is designed to perform at least one driverless driving maneuver. Furthermore, the invention relates to a motor vehicle.

[0002] Various motor vehicle functions are known in which the vehicle can perform one or more driving maneuvers without a driver. These can include, for example, parking maneuvers in which the vehicle independently parks in a free parking space or parking area. The degree of automation of the driving maneuver can be so high that the driver's presence in the vehicle is not required, as the vehicle can perform the driving maneuver independently and, if necessary, without driver supervision (SAE Level 4). Various methods in this regard are known from the state of the art.

[0003] DE 10 2013 104 859 A1 describes a system for parking a motor vehicle in a parking space. A possible parking space is searched for by activating an electronic unit located inside the motor vehicle. The motor vehicle can then be activated by a user via a communication field located on the outside of the vehicle, allowing driverless parking of the vehicle.

[0004] DE 10 2016 202 976 A1 describes a device for the automated parking of a motor vehicle, which device has an environmental sensor system and a control unit for performing an automated parking process. The automated parking process is initiated via an operating unit, which is designed as a sensor system of a keyless access system of the motor vehicle.

[0005] JP 2018065488 A describes a motor vehicle capable of performing an automated parking process. The automated parking process is initiated by locking the motor vehicle, with the time remaining until the parking process is completed being displayed by a time interval indicated by a flashing display device arranged inside or on the exterior of the motor vehicle.

[0006] For such automated driving processes, which can be performed without a driver being present in the vehicle, it is desirable that the operation be as intuitive as possible for a driver or user located outside the vehicle. This requires that the driver or user can acquire the information necessary for operation as easily as possible even outside the vehicle.

[0007] US 2019 / 0202443 A1 describes a method for autonomously parking a motor vehicle, in which the position of a mobile device used to control the parking process is determined. The autonomous parking process is only carried out if the mobile device or a user is within a predetermined distance of the motor vehicle. In order to make it clear to the user that the distance has been maintained, the vehicle lighting or a projected image is changed, e.g., if the person with the mobile device has moved too far away from the motor vehicle. US 2019 / 202443 A1 shows, in particular, a method for operating a motor vehicle, wherein the motor vehicle is designed to carry out at least one driverless driving maneuver, wherein, before carrying out the driving maneuver, a computing device of the motor vehicle the fulfilment of at least one admissibility requirement for carrying out the driving maneuver is checked, the performance or previous absence of at least one operating action required to start the execution of the driving maneuver by a user of the motor vehicle located outside the motor vehicle is recorded, wherein the performance of the operating action can be recorded by a monitoring device connected to the computing device and / or by means of a transmission of information describing the performance of the operating action to a communication device of the motor vehicle connected to the computing device.

[0008] The invention is therefore based on the object of specifying a method for operating a motor vehicle designed to carry out at least one driverless driving maneuver, which method enables improved, in particular more comprehensible and / or more intuitive, operability of the motor vehicle.

[0009] To achieve this object, the invention provides for a motor vehicle of the type mentioned at the outset that, before carrying out the driving maneuver, a computing device of the motor vehicle the fulfilment of at least one admissibility requirement for carrying out the driving maneuver is checked, the performance or previous absence of at least one operating action required to start the execution of the driving maneuver by a user of the motor vehicle located outside the motor vehicle is recorded, wherein the performance of the operating action can be recorded by a monitoring device connected to the computing device and / or by transmitting information describing the performance of the operating action to a communication device of the motor vehicle connected to the computing device, a state is determined from a group of possible states depending on the fulfilment or non-fulfillment of the admissibility requirement and depending on the already performed or previous absence of the operating action,and at least one signaling device of the motor vehicle is controlled to generate a signal associated with the specific state from a group of distinguishable signals perceivable outside the motor vehicle and each associated with one of the possible states.

[0010] The method according to the invention advantageously enables the user of the motor vehicle, who is located outside the motor vehicle, to recognize the current state of the motor vehicle based on the signal assigned to the state before carrying out the driverless driving maneuver. This advantageously makes it possible to use the signal to indicate to the user whether the at least one admissibility requirement for carrying out the driving maneuver is met and / or whether one or more admissibility requirements are not or have not yet been met. Furthermore, the user can be shown whether the at least one operating action required to start the driving maneuver has already been carried out or whether the system is still waiting for the operating action to start the driving maneuver to be carried out.

[0011] The driving maneuver can, in particular, be a driving maneuver that can be performed without intervention by the driver or user. In particular, the motor vehicle can also be configured such that it can perform the driving maneuver without the driver or user being ready to intervene. The motor vehicle can, for example, comprise an environmental sensor system connected to the computing device, wherein the computing device is configured to perform the driving maneuver. The driving maneuver can, for example, be a parking maneuver.

[0012] The performance of the operating action by the user can be detected by a monitoring device connected to the computing device and / or by transmitting information describing the performance of the operating action by the user to a communication device of the motor vehicle connected to the computing device. The performance of the operating action can then be transmitted from the monitoring unit or the communication device to the computing device. Accordingly, the absence of the operating action can be detected by the fact that the monitoring device connected to the computing device has not yet detected any performance of the operating action and / or that no information describing the performance of the operating action has yet been sent to the communication device connected to the computing device.that the execution of the operating action has not yet been transmitted from the monitoring device and / or the communication device to the computing device. The operating action required to start the execution of the driving maneuver may be an activation trigger for the execution of the driverless driving maneuver.

[0013] The motor vehicle's computing device makes it possible, depending on the current state resulting from the fulfillment and / or non-fulfillment of one or more admissibility requirements or the performance and / or absence of one or more operating actions by the user, to generate a signal associated with the current state from a group of several possible states by controlling a signaling device of the motor vehicle using the computing device. The signal generated by the signaling device of the motor vehicle is perceptible outside the motor vehicle, so that the user outside the motor vehicle can obtain information about the current state of the motor vehicle through the signal.Different signals are assigned to different possible states, a group of several different signals, so that the user can intuitively recognize the current state of the motor vehicle. This enables the user of the motor vehicle, located outside the vehicle, to intuitively determine whether, for example, at least one operating action is still required to initiate the driving maneuver, or whether, for example, an error state exists in which the driving maneuver cannot be performed, or whether all the steps required to initiate the driving maneuver have been performed.

[0014] Advantageously, several different states can be distinguished. Firstly, a state in which, for example, at least one admissibility requirement is met, but the user has not yet performed the operating action required to start the driving maneuver, can be identified by a signal assigned solely to this state. By identifying this state, the driver can therefore recognize that the operating action is still required to start the driving maneuver, but that at least one admissibility requirement for performing the driving maneuver has been met.

[0015] Another possible state may exist if, for example, at least one admissibility requirement for performing the driving maneuver is not met. The user can recognize, through the identification of this state by the signal associated with the state, that performing the at least one operating action to initiate the execution of the driving maneuver in this state will not result in the execution of the driving maneuver. It is possible to differentiate between the fulfillment of different admissibility requirements, so that different unfulfilled admissibility requirements each result in a different state and / or that the non-fulfillment of at least one of several admissibility requirements is summarized in one state.

[0016] Another possible state that can be distinguished may occur if at least one admissibility requirement has been met and the operating action to start the execution of the driving maneuver has been carried out by the user and has also been transmitted to the computing device as having been carried out. This allows the user to recognize that all operating actions required prior to carrying out the driving maneuver have been successfully carried out and that there are no unfulfilled admissibility requirements. This enables the user to recognize that the motor vehicle will now begin to carry out the driving maneuver, so that the user can assume that the driving maneuver has begun and can calmly move away from the motor vehicle without having to wait for the driving maneuver to start, which may occur with a time delay after the operating action has been carried out.

[0017] The user can thus determine, from outside the vehicle, the current state of the vehicle via the distinguishable signal associated with the respective current state, and whether and, if so, how they can control the vehicle by performing at least one control action. This advantageously enables intuitive and simplified operation of the vehicle when performing the driverless driving maneuver.

[0018] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, at least one vehicle light, in particular a headlight and / or at least one signal light, in particular a turn signal light, a daytime running light, and / or a brake light, can be used as the signaling device. In particular, it is possible to use a combination of multiple headlights and / or multiple signal lights, so that the signal generated by the signaling device can be perceived by the user from any position in the vicinity of the motor vehicle.

[0019] The use of at least one vehicle light arranged on the outside of the motor vehicle as a signaling device has the advantage that these lights must at least partially be part of the motor vehicle anyway, thus advantageously eliminating the need for an additional signaling device. Furthermore, at least one headlight or at least one signal light can each generate a group of different optical signals that can be clearly perceived and easily distinguished by the user of the motor vehicle.

[0020] According to the invention, it can be provided that at least some of the signals of the group of signals each comprise a different color and / or a different flashing frequency and / or a different operating pattern of the at least one vehicle light. Different states of the motor vehicle can be assigned different optical signals, which can differ at least partially by a light color generated by the at least one vehicle light. Additionally or alternatively, a different flashing frequency of the at least one vehicle light and / or a different operating pattern of the at least one vehicle light are also possible.

[0021] An operating pattern can, for example, represent a control of at least one vehicle light, which differs from an on and off state, as well as from a direct change between the on and off state, i.e., flashing. An operating pattern can, for example, comprise a pulsation of the vehicle light, i.e., a continuous change in the brightness of the generated signal. Different operating patterns can, for example, differ in the frequency of the pulsation, so that these signals can be recognized and differentiated by the user due to their faster or slower pulsation.

[0022] According to the invention, it can be provided that a signaling device designed for acoustic signaling is used, wherein at least some of the signals in the group of signals each comprise a different pitch, a different tone and / or a different temporal sequence of tones and / or sounds. This makes it possible for the signals assigned to the different states to be at least partially acoustically differentiated from one another. In particular, it is possible for one or more of the signals to comprise both an optical signal component and an acoustic signal component. The signaling device designed for acoustic signaling generates the acoustic signals or signal components in particular in such a way that they can be perceived by the user in the environment of the motor vehicle.

[0023] According to the invention, it can be provided that the user's operating action is an operating action to be carried out on the motor vehicle and / or in an environment of the motor vehicle and / or on a device connected to the communication device of the motor vehicle via a communication link. The execution of the user's operating action on the motor vehicle can be detected by the monitoring device connected to the computing device. It is also possible for the execution of the operating action on the motor vehicle to be detected by a further control unit of the motor vehicle, wherein information describing the execution of the operating action is transmitted to the communication device connected to the computing device, which communicates the execution of the operating action to the computing device.Additionally or alternatively, it is possible for the operating action to be performed on the device connected to the motor vehicle's communication system via a communication link, thereby eliminating the need for the motor vehicle user to be in direct contact with the vehicle to perform the operating action. The device can be a mobile device, in particular a smartphone with a corresponding app, or a vehicle key.

[0024] According to the invention, it can be provided that the operating action is or comprises the activation of a vehicle lock on a vehicle key or a mobile device and / or that the operating action is or comprises the removal of the user from an environment of the motor vehicle. This advantageously makes it possible to use an already known operating action to start the execution of the driving maneuver. Locking of the vehicle can be carried out via the vehicle key, for example directly on the motor vehicle by inserting the vehicle key into a locking cylinder of the motor vehicle, or can be triggered wirelessly by activating, for example, a button on the vehicle key via a communication connection to the communication device of the motor vehicle.It is also possible to activate a vehicle lock by removing the user from the vicinity of the motor vehicle, whereby the removal of the user from the vicinity of the motor vehicle can be detected, for example, by the monitoring device of the motor vehicle.

[0025] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, it can be provided that if the operating action is not performed beyond at least one time threshold stored in the computing device, the signal assigned to the current state is changed in a distinguishable manner. This makes it possible to distinguish between different situations in which, for example, the at least one admissibility requirement is met, but the operating action has not yet been performed. By changing the signal in a distinguishable manner after the expiration of a time threshold stored in the computing device, it is possible to remind the user of the motor vehicle that the at least one operating action is still required to start the execution of the driving maneuver.In particular, when using the activation of a locking system as an activation trigger for the driverless driving maneuver, this can prevent the user from moving away from an unlocked vehicle.

[0026] A distinguishable change in the signal can occur, for example, by increasing the flashing frequency of at least one vehicle light when the time threshold is exceeded. It is also possible to store multiple time thresholds, whereby the signal assigned to the current state is continuously and distinguishably changed when the respective consecutive time thresholds are exceeded. For example, this can be achieved by continuously increasing the flashing frequency when the respective time-delayed time thresholds are exceeded, so that as the time remaining until the operator action increases, the user can be alerted to the fact that the operator action has not yet been performed through various escalation levels of a flashing frequency.

[0027] In addition to changing or escalating the flashing frequency, other signal properties such as the color, brightness, or similar of an optical signal, or the pitch or tone of an acoustic signal or acoustic signal component, can also be changed. It is also possible to add an acoustic signal component to a previously only visually displayed signal, thus advantageously indicating the urgency of the user's action.

[0028] According to the invention, it can be provided that an admissibility requirement internal to the motor vehicle and / or an admissibility requirement external to the motor vehicle is checked as an admissibility requirement, in particular through communication with an infrastructure. An internal to the motor vehicle admissibility requirement can, for example, be the operational readiness of a sensor device used to carry out the driverless driving maneuver, for example an environmental sensor system of the motor vehicle used to carry out the driving maneuver. It is also possible for an admissibility requirement to stipulate that all motor vehicle doors and vehicle hatches must be closed in order to fulfill it. An admissibility requirement can also stipulate that, for example, a destination selection of the driverless driving maneuver must have been made by the user in order to fulfill it.

[0029] As an admissibility requirement external to the vehicle, for example, communication with an infrastructure can be used to check whether there is a free parking space in the vicinity of the vehicle into which the vehicle can park when performing the driverless maneuver. It is possible for each checked admissibility requirement to be assigned a separate state, which can be recognized by the user via a distinguishable signal. It is also possible for several different admissibility requirements to be assigned a common state. This makes it possible, for example, to inform the user that an admissibility requirement from a group of admissibility requirements that are summarized for the respective state is not met.This may be the case, for example, if admissibility requirements are not met in the event of a technical defect in the motor vehicle, for example a defect in one of several sensor devices used to carry out the driving maneuver.

[0030] According to the invention, if the at least one admissibility requirement is not met, information relating to the admissibility requirement is displayed on a display device of the motor vehicle and / or transmitted to a device connected to the motor vehicle's communication device via a communication link. This device can, in particular, be the same device on which the at least one operating action is to be performed. The information relating to the non-fulfillment of the admissibility requirement can, in particular, contain instructions on how the admissibility requirement can be met.

[0031] For example, if an admissibility requirement requires that all vehicle doors or hatches are closed in order to be fulfilled, the user can be informed that if this admissibility requirement is not met, a vehicle door or hatch, and in particular which vehicle door or hatch, must still be closed by the user to fulfill the admissibility requirement. It is also possible, for example, for the user to be informed that a destination for the driverless driving maneuver has not been selected, so that the driver can select the destination to fulfill this admissibility requirement.

[0032] The information can be transmitted to a device connected to the motor vehicle, in particular a smartphone, so that the user of the motor vehicle can recognize the information from outside the motor vehicle. Additionally or alternatively, it is possible for the information in question to also be displayed on a display device of the motor vehicle, for example, on an operating device in the interior of the motor vehicle.

[0033] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the driving maneuver can be or include an automated parking maneuver. In addition to performing a parking maneuver, i.e., moving the motor vehicle to a free parking space and / or into a free parking space, the automated parking maneuver can also include other driving maneuvers, such as driving the motor vehicle to a free parking space or a free parking space.

[0034] For a motor vehicle according to the invention, it is provided that it comprises a computing device, wherein the computing device is designed to carry out a method according to the invention.

[0035] All advantages and embodiments described above in relation to the method according to the invention apply accordingly to the motor vehicle according to the invention.

[0036] Further details and particulars of the invention will become apparent from the exemplary embodiments described below and from the drawings. These are schematic representations and show: Fig. 1 shows an embodiment of a motor vehicle according to the invention, and Fig. 2 shows a sketch to explain an embodiment of a method according to the invention.

[0037] In Fig. 1A motor vehicle 1 according to the invention is shown. The motor vehicle 1 comprises a computing device 2, which is designed to carry out at least one driverless driving maneuver. The driving maneuver can, in particular, be an automated parking process or include an automated parking process.

[0038] The computing device 2 is connected to a monitoring device 3, wherein the monitoring device 3 is designed to detect the performance of an operating action by a user of the motor vehicle to start the execution of the driving maneuver. Furthermore, the computing device 2 is connected to a communication device 4 of the motor vehicle. The communication device 4 can communicate with a mobile device 6 external to the vehicle via a communication connection 5. The computing device 2 is also connected to a signaling device 8, which in the present exemplary embodiment comprises a plurality of vehicle lights. The headlights 9 and a plurality of signal lights 10, 11 are used as vehicle lights. The signal lights 10 can be designed, for example, as brake lights and the signal lights 11 as indicators.Additionally or alternatively, additional headlights or other signal lights, for example, daytime running lights of the motor vehicle 1, can also be used. Furthermore, the computing device 2 is connected to a signaling device 12 designed for acoustic signaling.

[0039] The computing device 2 is designed to check, before carrying out the driving maneuver, whether at least one admissibility requirement for carrying out the driverless driving maneuver has been met. Furthermore, before carrying out the driving maneuver, the performance or previous absence of at least one operating action required to start the execution of the driving maneuver by a user of the motor vehicle 1 located outside the motor vehicle 1 can be detected. The performance of the operating action is detected by the monitoring device 3 connected to the computing device 2 and / or by transmitting information describing the performance of the operating action to the communication device 4 of the motor vehicle connected to the computing device 2, wherein the monitoring device 3 or the communication device 4 transmits the performance of the operating action to the computing device 2.A failure to perform the operating action can be determined accordingly by the failure to transmit information to the communication device 4 or by the failure to detect the performance of the operating action by the monitoring device 3 or by the failure to transmit a corresponding information to the computing unit 2.

[0040] The operating action can be carried out, for example, on the motor vehicle itself or on the mobile device 6 connected to the communication device 4 via the communication link 5. The mobile device 6 can be, for example, a smartphone that includes an app on which an operating action can be carried out to start the execution of the driving maneuver. It is also possible for the mobile device 6 to be a vehicle key, from which, for example, an activation command for a vehicle lock of the motor vehicle 1 can be given, which is transmitted to the motor vehicle 1, received there by the communication device 4 and transmitted to the computing device 2, so that the computing device 2 can record the execution of the operating action, i.e. the activation of the vehicle lock.It is also possible that the operating action is a removal of the user from the surroundings of the motor vehicle, wherein such a removal is detected by the monitoring device 3, which is or comprises, for example, an environment monitoring device of the motor vehicle 1.

[0041] Furthermore, the computing device 2 of the motor vehicle 1 is designed to check the fulfillment of at least one admissibility requirement for performing the driving maneuver. For this purpose, the computing device 2 can, for example, be connected to further control units and / or sensor devices of the motor vehicle 1 in order to check one or more vehicle-internal admissibility requirements. The admissibility requirements can, for example, include the operational readiness of a sensor device (not shown) of the motor vehicle 1 used to perform the driving maneuver and / or provide that all vehicle doors and / or vehicle flaps of the motor vehicle 1 are closed.

[0042] Through the communication device 4, the motor vehicle 1 can also communicate with a vehicle-external communication device, for example the communication device of an infrastructure, so that the computing device 2 can also check vehicle-external admissibility requirements, for example the presence of a free parking space for carrying out a parking maneuver.

[0043] Depending on the fulfillment of at least one admissibility requirement and the performance or absence of at least one operating action, the computing device 2 determines a state from a group of possible states. The state is determined in particular by whether the or all admissibility requirements are met, or which admissibility requirements are met or not met, and / or by whether the operating action was performed to initiate the execution of the driving maneuver or whether the execution of the operating action is still pending.

[0044] Depending on the state determined by the computing device 2, the signaling device 8 designed to generate an optical signal and / or the signaling device 12 designed to generate an acoustic signal is controlled by the computing device to generate a signal associated with the determined state from a group of distinguishable signals that can be perceived outside the motor vehicle and are each associated with one of the possible states.

[0045] For this purpose, for example, the headlights 9 and / or the signal lights 10, 11 can be controlled to generate different and distinguishable signals, wherein the signals can each be differentiated by a different color and / or a different flashing frequency and / or a different operating pattern of the headlights or the signal light. Additionally or alternatively, at least for some of the signals, it is also possible for the signaling device 12 to be controlled to generate a signal associated with the state. The acoustic signals can each be differentiated by a different pitch, a different sound and / or a different temporal sequence of tones and / or sounds. One or more signals assigned to one of the possible states can also comprise an optical signal component and an acoustic signal component.

[0046] In Fig. 2 A block diagram of a first embodiment of a method according to the invention is shown. The block diagram comprises the steps: S1 Verification of the fulfilment of at least one admissibility requirement for carrying out the driving maneuver S2 Recording the performance or the absence so far of at least one operating action required to start the execution of the driving maneuver by a user of the motor vehicle 1 who is outside the motor vehicle 1 S3 Determination of a state from a group of possible states and S4 Control of at least one signal device 8, 12 for generating a signal associated with the specific state from a group of distinguishable signals

[0047] In the method, for example, the states described below are determined and each of them is made known to a user located outside the motor vehicle 1 via a different signal.

[0048] A first state exists when all admissibility requirements are met and an operator action to initiate the driverless driving maneuver is still pending. For this purpose, for example, the signaling device 8 can be controlled in such a way that the motor vehicle 1 is essentially ready to drive. This can be indicated, for example, by pulsing the vehicle lights, for example the headlights 10 and / or the signal lights 11, or by a color of the light emitted by the vehicle lights assigned to the specific state. It is also possible for one or more of the vehicle lights, for example the signal lights 11 designed as turn signals, to remain permanently on.A user located outside the motor vehicle 1 can recognize, based on the signal associated with the state, that the motor vehicle 1 is capable of carrying out the driverless vehicle maneuver due to the fulfillment of the vehicle-internal and / or vehicle-external admissibility requirements if the user triggers the start of the execution of the driving maneuver by performing at least one operating action.

[0049] If the operating action to start the driverless driving maneuver is still pending and a time threshold stored in the computing device 2 has already been exceeded, attention can be drawn to the urgency of performing the operating action. For this purpose, for example, a property of the signal can be changed in a distinguishable manner after the time threshold has been exceeded. This can be achieved, for example, by pulsing or flashing one or more vehicle lights at a faster frequency. It is also possible for the signal to be supplemented by an acoustic signal from the signaling device 12 in addition to an optical signal via the signaling device 8. This makes it possible to draw the user's attention to the fact that the operating action required to carry out the driving maneuver is still pending.

[0050] It is possible to use multiple, staggered time thresholds, at each of which the signal is changed in a distinguishable manner to indicate the increasing urgency of performing the control action to start the driverless driving maneuver. For example, a flashing frequency or the frequency of a pulsation of at least one of the vehicle lights can be further increased when a further time threshold is exceeded.

[0051] In this exemplary embodiment, the operating action is the activation of a vehicle lock of the motor vehicle 1 using a vehicle key or a mobile device 6 embodied as a smartphone. Activation of the vehicle lock by the user moving away from the vicinity of the motor vehicle is also possible. The motor vehicle 1 can be locked using the vehicle key, for example, directly on the motor vehicle 1 by inserting the vehicle key into a locking cylinder of the motor vehicle 1.

[0052] Additionally or alternatively, the motor vehicle key can be connected to the motor vehicle as a mobile device 6 via the communication link 5, so that the vehicle locking can be activated via a button on the vehicle key. Activation of a vehicle locking system by the user moving away from the vicinity of the motor vehicle 1 is also possible, wherein the user's removal from the vicinity of the motor vehicle 1 can be detected, for example, by the monitoring device 3 of the motor vehicle 1.

[0053] A second state exists when at least one admissibility requirement is determined by the computing device 2 to be not met. This can be signaled, for example, by activating the signal lights 11 of the motor vehicle 1, which are designed as turn signals, to generate hazard warning flashes. This has the advantage that the user knows that the motor vehicle 1 is not ready to perform the driving maneuver and will not perform the driving maneuver regardless of the user's control action.

[0054] In particular, it is possible for information associated with the unfulfilled admissibility requirement to be sent to the mobile device 6, which is designed, for example, as a smartphone, so that the user outside the motor vehicle 1 can be informed about a possibility of fulfilling the admissibility requirement. For example, this can be the case if the admissibility requirement can be fulfilled by closing a motor vehicle door or a motor vehicle hatch and / or if a destination for the driving maneuver still needs to be entered to fulfill the admissibility requirement. In addition to or as an alternative to transmission to a mobile device 6 of the user, the information can also be displayed on a display device of the motor vehicle, for example an operating device inside the motor vehicle 1.

[0055] It is possible that, in the case of several admissibility requirements, one or more unfulfilled admissibility requirements are combined in one state or that various unfulfilled admissibility requirements are each assigned to a separate state, so that they can also be distinguished by the user of the motor vehicle 1 on the basis of the signals generated in a distinguishable manner by the signaling device 8 and / or 12.

[0056] A third state, which can be made known to the user located outside the motor vehicle 1, concerns the case in which at least one admissibility requirement or all admissibility requirements, which are checked by the computing device 2, are met and the operating action required to start the execution of the driving maneuver has been carried out by the user, in other words the activation trigger for carrying out the driverless driving maneuver has been successfully given.

[0057] For this purpose, for example, the vehicle lights can be controlled in an actuation pattern assigned to this state, for example by flashing the indicator lights 11 in a specific color and / or frequency, so that the user can recognize from this exemplary confirmation flashing that all the requirements for carrying out the driving maneuver have been met and that the operating action required to start the execution of the driving maneuver has also been successfully carried out, i.e. that the corresponding operating action has been detected by the monitoring device 3 or that information describing the execution of the operating action has been transmitted to the communication device 4 of the motor vehicle 1.

[0058] It is possible that the motor vehicle 1 does not start the driving process immediately after the operating action has been carried out, but that the start of the execution of the driving maneuver may be delayed due to a traffic situation or similar detected by the motor vehicle 1.

Claims

1. Method for operating a motor vehicle (1), wherein the motor vehicle (1) is configured to perform at least one driverless performable driving maneuver, wherein before performing the driving maneuver a computer apparatus (2) of the motor vehicle (1) - checks whether at least one permissibility requirement for performing the driving maneuver has been met, - detects a performance or a previous failure to perform at least one operating action of a user of the motor vehicle (1) located outside of the motor vehicle (1), which is required to start the execution of the driving maneuver, wherein performing the operating action can be detected by a monitoring apparatus (3) connected to the computer apparatus (2) and / or by means of transmitting information describing the performance of the operating action to a communication apparatus (4) of the motor vehicle (1) connected to the computer apparatus (2), - determines as a function of meeting or not meeting the permissibility requirement and as function of the already performed or previous failure to perform the operating action a state from a group of possible states, and - activates at least one signaling apparatus (8, 12) of the motor vehicle (1) to generate a signal associated with the determined state from a group of distinguishable signals which can be perceived outside the motor vehicle (1) and each associated with one of the possible states.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that as the signaling apparatus (8) at least one vehicle light, in particular a headlight (9) and / or at least one signaling light (10, 11), in particular an indicator light, a daytime light and / or a brake light, is used.

3. Method according to claim 2, characterized in that at least a portion of the signals of the group of signals each comprise a different color and / or a different flashing frequency and / or a different operating pattern of the at least one vehicle light.

4. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a signaling apparatus (12) configured for acoustic signaling is used, wherein at least a portion of the signals of the group of signals each comprise a different pitch, a different sound and / or a different time sequence of tones and / or sounds.

5. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the user's operating action is an operating action to be performed on the motor vehicle (1) and / or in the environment of the motor vehicle (1) and / or on an appliance (6) connected to the communication apparatus (4) of the motor vehicle (1) via a communication link (5).

6. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the operating action is or comprises activating the vehicle lock on a vehicle key or a mobile appliance and / or in that the operating action is or comprises removing the user from the environment of the motor vehicle (1).

7. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that in the absence of the operating action, the signal associated with the current state is changed in a distinguishable manner beyond at least one time threshold stored in the computer apparatus (2).

8. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a vehicle-internal permissibility requirement and / or a vehicle-external permissibility requirement is checked as a permissibility requirement, in particular by communication with an infrastructure.

9. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that if the at least one permissibility requirement is not met, information relating to the permissibility requirement is displayed on a display apparatus of the motor vehicle (1) and / or is transmitted to an appliance (6) connected to the communication apparatus (4) of the motor vehicle (1) via a communication link (5).

10. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the driving maneuver is an automated parting process or comprises an automated parking process.

11. Motor vehicle comprising a computer apparatus (2), wherein the computer apparatus (2) is configured to perform a method according to any one of the preceding claims.