Method for determining a position and orientation of a vehicle within a pick-up position enclosed by a parking space

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a method for determining a pick-up position for a vehicle within a parking space, at which the vehicle is to be picked up after an automatic parking process. The invention further relates to a corresponding terminal, a corresponding parking space server, a corresponding parking space, and a computer program. State of the art

[0002] The published patent application DE 10 2019 121 199 A1 discloses a vehicle control and a computer-readable recording medium for controlling a vehicle.

[0003] The published patent application US 2020 / 0207335 A1 shows a method for operating a vehicle and a computer program.

[0004] The published patent application DE 10 2012 222 562 A1 shows a system for managed parking areas for transferring a vehicle from a starting position to a destination position.

[0005] The published patent application US 2021 / 0086757 A1 describes an automatic parking system for a large number of autonomous vehicles in a parking lot. Upon request, a vehicle is provided at a pick-up location.

[0006] German Patent Application DE 10 2019 206 210 A1 describes a method for operating a motor vehicle with a self-parking function. When required, the vehicle is placed in a specific orientation in a transfer zone.

[0007] The published patent application CN 108 616 807 A describes an intelligent vehicle pickup method. The method is used to control a vehicle to automatically drive to a pickup location. A communication connection is established with a vehicle, a vehicle pickup position is sent to the vehicle, and the vehicle automatically drives to the pickup position.

[0008] The published patent application DE 10 2016 008 747 A1 discloses a method for controlling the provisioning operation for motor vehicles in a parking environment, in which, controlled by a management device of the parking environment, motor vehicles can be parked automatically after being dropped off by the driver and can be parked out to a pick-up position in a pick-up area after a pick-up request has been determined by the driver.

[0009] In a fully automated (autonomous) so-called valet parking, a vehicle is parked by its driver at a drop-off point, for example in front of a parking garage, and from there the vehicle drives itself to a parking position / parking bay and from there to a pick-up position, where the driver can pick up his vehicle again at the end of the parking period.

[0010] Parking spaces, for example, may have multiple exits. In such a case, each exit may be assigned one or more pick-up points or locations where the vehicle is to be picked up by the driver after completing a fully automated valet parking service. Disclosure of the invention

[0011] The object underlying the invention is to provide an efficient concept for efficiently determining a position and orientation of a vehicle within a pick-up position for a vehicle encompassed by a parking space, at which the vehicle is to be picked up after an automatic parking process.

[0012] This object is achieved by means of the respective subject matter of the independent claims. Advantageous embodiments of the invention are the subject matter of the respective dependent subclaims.

[0013] According to one aspect, a method is proposed for determining a position and orientation of a vehicle within a pickup position encompassed by a parking space, at which the vehicle is to be picked up after an automatic parking process. According to the invention, the position and orientation of the vehicle within the pickup position is determined depending on at least one predetermined comfort condition. The comfort condition includes, in particular, a minimum distance between one or more side surfaces or doors of the vehicle and one or more structural elements of the parking space and / or other vehicles and / or a roadway and / or a pedestrian walkway; and / or a specific orientation of the vehicle with respect to a roadway direction.

[0014] According to the invention, the vehicle is automatically provided in the specific position and orientation within the pick-up position.

[0015] According to the invention, vehicle doors are to be understood as meaning the side doors of a motor vehicle, and / or a trunk door or tailgate and / or a hood and / or a door to a loading area of the vehicle.

[0016] A lane direction should be understood in particular as an intended direction of travel of the vehicle on a lane of the parking lot, for example a lane that leads to an exit of the parking lot.

[0017] The parking space includes several different pick-up locations. At least one of the pick-up locations, at which the user's vehicle is to be picked up after an automatic parking process, is selected based on at least one predefined comfort condition, and the position and orientation of the vehicle within the selected pick-up location is determined based on at least one predefined comfort condition.

[0018] This provides the technical advantage that the vehicle can be picked up particularly efficiently by a driver or user.

[0019] In a particularly preferred embodiment, at least two pick-up positions are selected, and a position and orientation of the vehicle within each of the selected pick-up positions is determined. The vehicle can then be automatically re-parked between the at least two selected pick-up positions during the pick-up process.

[0020] This makes it possible to advantageously meet even seemingly contradictory comfort requirements.

[0021] Alternatively or additionally, at least two different positions and / or orientations of the vehicle can be determined within a selected pick-up position, for example, corresponding to different comfort conditions. The vehicle can be automatically reparked between these different positions and / or orientations within the selected pick-up position during the pick-up process.

[0022] This makes it possible to advantageously meet several, even seemingly contradictory, comfort requirements.

[0023] The comfort condition or conditions can preferably be specified by a user of the vehicle during a reservation of a parking position included in the parking space. To this end, the user can explicitly specify a comfort condition, such as a defined minimum distance between one or more side surfaces or doors of the vehicle and one or more structural elements of the parking space and / or other vehicles and / or a roadway and / or a pedestrian path, and / or a specific orientation of the vehicle. Alternatively or additionally, the user can specify a specific process to be carried out when picking up the vehicle, in particular loading the trunk of the vehicle and / or boarding passengers and / or driving off in a specific direction.

[0024] In a preferred embodiment, one or more pick-up locations that meet the convenience conditions are suggested to the user for selection. The user can then decide at which of the pick-up locations the vehicle should be made available. Alternatively, an automatic selection can also be made.

[0025] Particularly preferred is a pick-up position and / or a position and orientation of the vehicle within the pick-up position, also depending on current traffic within the parking space (401) and / or experience from previous bookings and / or pick-ups of the user and / or a number of known and / or identified passengers of the vehicle and / or based on analyses of the passenger(s), in particular of objects carried, proposed or selected.

[0026] According to a further aspect, a terminal for specifying comfort conditions for a pick-up process of a vehicle parked automatically in a parking lot is proposed, comprising: a first detection device for detecting at least one comfort condition for the pick-up process, wherein a comfort condition comprises in particular: a minimum distance of one or more side surfaces of the vehicle to one or more structural elements of the parking space and / or other vehicles and / or a roadway and / or a pedestrian path and / or a specific orientation of the vehicle with respect to an exit direction;

[0027] For this purpose, the end device can, for example, provide a list of possible comfort conditions from which a user can select one or more comfort conditions.

[0028] The terminal also comprises a communication interface for transmitting data, which in particular represent the recorded comfort conditions, to a parking space server.

[0029] The terminal device can preferably be configured to determine a position and orientation of the vehicle within a pick-up position based on the detected comfort conditions and to transmit this information via the communication interface via a communication network to a parking space server for operating a parking space, so that the parking space server can control the automatic parking process of the vehicle based on the pick-up position and the determined position and orientation of the vehicle within a pick-up position. For this purpose, the terminal device can, for example, have a corresponding determination device.

[0030] This provides the advantage that the computing power of the terminal device can be used efficiently to determine the position and orientation of the vehicle within a pick-up position depending on the detected comfort conditions and to make this information available to a parking server.

[0031] Preferably, the terminal device is configured to offer for selection at least one pick-up position encompassed by a parking space for a vehicle, at which the vehicle is to be picked up after an automatic parking process. For this purpose, the terminal device can comprise a display device for displaying at least one pick-up position encompassed by the parking space, a second detection device for detecting a selection request from a user of the vehicle for one of the displayed pick-up positions, and a determination device for determining that pick-up position of the plurality of pick-up positions as the pick-up position at which the user's vehicle is to be picked up after an automatic parking process, which corresponds to the detected selection request.In this case, the communication interface of the terminal device is designed to transmit the determined pick-up position and one of the determined position and orientation of the vehicle within the selected pick-up position to the parking server.

[0032] This makes it possible to efficiently determine at which pickup location the driver or user wishes to pick up or take over a vehicle after the parking period has ended or upon request, especially if multiple pickup locations are available. The vehicle can then be automatically guided to this pickup location and positioned and aligned there according to the specified comfort conditions.

[0033] Particularly preferably, the terminal device is configured to provide the user with at least one suggestion for a pick-up position and / or a position and orientation of the vehicle within a pick-up position depending on the current traffic situation within the parking lot and / or experience from previous bookings and / or pick-ups and / or the number of known and / or identified passengers of the vehicle and / or based on analyses of the passenger(s), in particular of objects carried to spend.

[0034] For this purpose, the end device can, for example, receive and process current information from a parking lot management system. The information can, for example, relate to the current traffic situation within the parking lot. Alternatively or additionally, the end device can, for example, process information from previous parking transactions in order to make a prediction about a user-preferred pick-up position and / or comfort conditions. Alternatively or additionally, the end device can process information from sensors, for example camera sensors, in order to determine, for example, how many passengers the vehicle should pick up during the pick-up process and whether and how many pieces of luggage the passengers are carrying and / or how large the pieces of luggage are. The sensors can be attached to the end device and / or within the parking lot.

[0035] According to a further aspect of the invention, a parking server for operating a parking lot is provided, comprising: a computing unit which is designed to carry out a method according to the invention, and a communication interface which is designed to receive, via a communication network, data representing at least one comfort condition and / or data representing a position and orientation of a vehicle within a pick-up position encompassed by the parking space from a terminal, in particular a terminal designed as described above. The parking server is configured to control an automatic parking process for a vehicle based on the determined position and orientation of the vehicle within a pick-up position.

[0036] A communication interface of the parking space server is particularly designed to send position data of a plurality of pick-up positions included in the parking space to a user's terminal device via a communication network, so that the terminal device can display the plurality of pick-up positions based on the position data.

[0037] According to a further aspect, a parking space for vehicles is provided, which is particularly designed for carrying out automatic or automated parking operations (automated valet parking), comprising: several pick-up positions at which a vehicle can be picked up after an automatic parking process has been carried out, and a parking space server designed according to the invention.

[0038] According to a further aspect, a computer program comprising program code for carrying out a method according to the invention is provided when the computer program is executed on a computer.

[0039] According to one embodiment, the communication network comprises a mobile network and / or a WLAN network.

[0040] The communication interface can, for example, be designed for wireless communication and send a selected pick-up position and / or the determined position and orientation of the vehicle within a pick-up position to the parking space server, in particular by means of wireless communication according to one or more of the communication standards WiFi, mobile radio (4G, 5G, 6G), Bluetooth, BLE or by means of another, for example proprietary, communication protocol.

[0041] In a further embodiment, communication via the communication network is or will be encrypted.

[0042] The terminal device can be designed, for example, as a mobile device, in particular as a smartphone or tablet computer, on which corresponding software ("app") is implemented, which has the aforementioned functionalities. The terminal device has, in particular, a display with a graphical user interface. A touch-sensitive surface of the display of the terminal device (touchscreen) or a specific area thereof determined by the app can be used as the recording device. Graphic input means, e.g. in the form of symbols and / or a schematic representation of a map of the parking lot, can be used, by means of which a user can enter convenience conditions for a pickup process of a vehicle parked automatically in a parking lot.

[0043] According to one embodiment, the vehicle is a motor vehicle. The motor vehicle is, for example, a passenger car (PC) or a truck (HGV). According to one embodiment, the motor vehicle is a two-wheeled motor vehicle, for example, a motorcycle.

[0044] Technical functionalities of the method or the terminal device or the parking server result in an analogous manner from corresponding technical functionalities of the parking server or the terminal device or the method and vice versa.

[0045] The terminal device is, for example, designed to execute or carry out the procedure.

[0046] The wording "respectively" includes in particular "and / or". Short description of the characters

[0047] Embodiments of the invention are described in detail with reference to the accompanying figures. Preferred embodiments of the invention

[0048] The invention is explained in more detail below using preferred embodiments.

[0049] In the following description of the exemplary embodiments of the invention, identical elements are designated by identical reference numerals, whereby a repeated description of these elements is omitted where appropriate. The figures only schematically illustrate the subject matter of the invention.

[0050] Here, Fig. 1 a flowchart of a method for determining a position and orientation of a vehicle within a pick-up position encompassed by a parking space Fig. 2 a terminal device, Fig. 3 a parking server, Fig. 4 a parking space and Fig. 5 a) to f) various examples of the position and orientation of a vehicle within pick-up positions at which the user's vehicle is to be picked up after an automatic parking process.

[0051] Fig. 1shows a flowchart of a method for determining a position and orientation of a vehicle within a pick-up position encompassed by a parking space, at which the vehicle is to be picked up after an automatic parking process.

[0052] The procedure includes the following steps: In a first step 101, one or more comfort conditions are specified for the pickup process of an automatic parking process, wherein a comfort condition particularly comprises ∘ a minimum distance of one or more side surfaces or doors of the vehicle from one or more structural elements of the parking space and / or other vehicles and / or a roadway and / or a pedestrian path and / or ∘ a specific orientation of the vehicle with respect to an exit direction. In a second step 103, a position and orientation of the vehicle within a pickup position encompassed by a parking space is determined such that the specified comfort conditions are met. In a third step 105, the vehicle is automatically made available in the specific position and orientation within the pickup position.

[0053] In one embodiment, the vehicle is guided from a parking position to the selected pick-up position in a driverless or driverless manner. Thus, the user can pick up or take over the vehicle at the pick-up position after the automatic parking process has ended.

[0054] Driverless or driverless means that no human driver or operator is required in the vehicle to operate it.

[0055] The start of the automatic parking process therefore marks the beginning of the driverless driving of the vehicle to the parking position. The end of the automatic parking process therefore marks the point in time at which the vehicle is parked at a pickup position after being guided from the parking position to the pickup position, either driverless or driverless.

[0056] Fig. 2shows a terminal 201 for specifying comfort conditions for a pick-up process of a vehicle parked automatically in a parking lot.

[0057] The terminal 201 comprises a first detection device 203 for detecting at least one comfort condition for the pick-up process, wherein a comfort condition comprises in particular: ∘ a minimum distance between one or more side surfaces of the vehicle 1 and one or more structural elements of the parking space and / or other vehicles and / or a roadway and / or a pedestrian walkway and / or ∘ a specific orientation of the vehicle with respect to an exit direction.

[0058] The terminal also includes a communication interface 207 for transmitting and receiving data to a parking server.

[0059] The terminal 201 is configured to determine a position and orientation of the vehicle within a pick-up position based on the detected comfort conditions and to transmit the information via the communication interface 207 via a communication network to a parking space server for operating a parking space, so that the parking space server can control the automatic parking process of the vehicle based on the pick-up position and the determined position and orientation of the vehicle within a pick-up position. Alternatively or additionally, the terminal 201 can be configured to transmit the comfort conditions via the communication interface 207 via the communication network to a parking space server for operating a parking space, so that the parking space server can determine a position and orientation of the vehicle within a pick-up position based on the comfort conditions and can control the automatic parking process of the vehicle based thereon.

[0060] The terminal device 201 can also be configured to offer a user at least one pick-up position encompassed by a parking space from a plurality of pick-up positions encompassed by the parking space, at which the vehicle is to be picked up after an automatic parking process, for selection. For this purpose, the terminal device can additionally comprise a display device 209 for displaying at least one pick-up position encompassed by the parking space, a second detection device 205 for detecting a selection request from a user of the vehicle for one of the displayed pick-up positions, and a determination device 211 for determining that pick-up position of the plurality of pick-up positions as the pick-up position at which the user's vehicle is to be picked up after an automatic parking process, which pick-up position corresponds to the detected selection request, and for determining a position and orientation of the vehicle within the selected pick-up position depending on the predefined comfort conditions.The communication interface 207 can transmit the determined pick-up position and / or a position and orientation of the vehicle within the determined pick-up position to a parking server.

[0061] Fig. 3 shows a parking server 301 for operating a parking lot.

[0062] The parking space server 301 comprises a communication interface 303 configured to transmit position data from a plurality of pick-up locations included in the parking space to the terminal device 201 via the communication network using its communication interface 303. The terminal device 201 comprises, for example, a communication interface (not shown here) that receives this position data. The terminal device 201 then displays the pick-up locations based on the received position data using its display device 209. The user selects one of the displayed pick-up locations. This selection request is recorded by the recording device 205.The determination device 211 then evaluates the detected selection request and determines the pick-up position from the plurality of displayed pick-up positions as the pick-up position at which the user's vehicle is to be parked after the end of the automatic parking process. This is based on the detected selection request.

[0063] This means that the detection device 205 merely detects the user's selection request. For example, the detection device 205 detects a touch on the display device 209 if the display device is configured as a touch-sensitive display device. For example, the detection device 205 detects an acoustic signal or an acoustic command, i.e., an acoustic selection request from the user. The determination device 211 then analyzes the user's acoustic signal to determine which of the pickup positions the user has selected. In particular, the determination device 211 analyzes the detected touch to determine which area of the display device the user has touched and thus which of the pickup positions they have selected.

[0064] The terminal 201 then sends this specific pick-up position back to the parking server 301, which can thus efficiently control the automatic parking process for the vehicle 1 based on the selected pick-up position.

[0065] Alternatively or additionally, the terminal 201 can receive, for example, data from the parking space server 301 that characterize the parking space 401, so that the terminal 201 can perform the calculations required to control the automatic parking process for the vehicle 1.

[0066] Fig. 4 shows a parking space 401 for vehicles, which is designed in particular for automated parking of vehicles.

[0067] Within the parking lot 401, several parking spaces or parking positions 411 are formed, of which only one is shown for clarity. There are several pick-up positions 413, 415, 417, 419. A vehicle is to be parked at one of these pick-up positions 413, 415, 417, 419 after an automatic parking process so that a user can pick up vehicle 1. An automatic parking process will therefore end at one of these pick-up positions 413, 415, 417, 419. The vehicle 1 can be positioned differently within a selected pick-up position 413, 415, 417, 419, for example at a left or right edge of the respective pick-up position 413, 415, 417, 419. The selection of the positioning of the vehicle 1 within a pick-up position 413, 415, 417, 419 depends on at least one predetermined comfort condition.A comfort condition can, for example, include maintaining a minimum distance between one or more side surfaces or doors of the vehicle 1 and one or more structural elements of the parking space 401 and / or other vehicles and / or a roadway and / or a pedestrian path. This enables, for example, comfortable and safe boarding and / or loading of the vehicle 1. Furthermore, the vehicle 1 can be oriented differently with respect to a direction of travel. The selection of the orientation of the vehicle 1 within a pick-up position 413, 415, 417, 419 can also be dependent on at least one predetermined comfort condition. For example, a comfort condition can include maintaining a specific orientation with respect to an exit direction from the pick-up position, so that, for example, reversing out of a parking space is avoided.

[0068] The parking lot 401 further comprises the parking lot server 301 according to Fig. 3 .

[0069] For example, the user specifies one or more comfort conditions by specifying a specific situation for the pickup process. For example, the user can specify the number of passengers and / or the fact that the vehicle's trunk must be accessible during the pickup process so that it can be loaded. This results in, for example, certain requirements regarding minimum distances from the vehicle doors and / or certain vehicle orientations with respect to its direction of travel. These requirements can be defined as comfort conditions for the pickup process.

[0070] In this example, the parking space comprises a plurality of pick-up positions 413, 415, 417, 419. For example, based on the specified comfort conditions, a user is offered a selection of the available pick-up positions 413, 415, 417, 419 on their mobile device, i.e., displayed on a screen (display device) of the device. The user selects one of these pick-up positions 413, 415, 417, 419 as the pick-up position at which they wish to pick up their vehicle after the automatic parking process. The mobile device sends the selected, i.e., specific, pick-up position to the parking space server 301. The parking space server 301 can then efficiently control the automatic parking process based on the selected pick-up position(s).

[0071] Control in this sense can mean that the parking space server 301 directly controls and drives the vehicle 1 (in the sense of remote control), or that control data is transmitted to the vehicle 1 so that the vehicle 1 can move to a target position itself, i.e., autonomously, according to the transmitted control data. Combinations of these two approaches are also conceivable.

[0072] To perform an automatic parking process, the user drives their vehicle 1 through an entrance (not shown) into the parking space 401 and parks their vehicle 1 at a drop-off location (not shown). They then exit their vehicle 1. The vehicle 1 then performs an automatic parking process and thus automatically parks in one of the parking spaces 411. For example, the parking space server 301 remotely controls the vehicle and guides it driverlessly to the parking position. For example, the parking space server 301 sends the parking position to the vehicle 1 so that the vehicle 1 knows which of the parking positions it should drive to autonomously and then drive to the parking position autonomously.

[0073] After the end of a parking period, vehicle 1 is guided from the parking position to the selected pick-up position in a driverless or driverless manner so that the user can pick up his vehicle at the selected pick-up position.

[0074] The invention therefore particularly includes, among other things, the idea that a user, in particular a driver, is given the opportunity in parking spaces to specify comfort conditions for the pick-up process of the vehicle 1, wherein an orientation and positioning of the vehicle within a pick-up position at which the user can pick up or take over the vehicle is determined by the comfort conditions.

[0075] According to one embodiment, various pick-up locations, which can generally also be referred to as a pickup zone, are displayed to the user, for example, the driver. This can be done, for example, on their mobile device. The user, in particular the driver, then selects a desired pick-up location or a desired pickup zone. According to one embodiment, the display and selection can be carried out before parking during a reservation. In particular, according to one embodiment, the display and selection can be carried out after receiving a pick-up request ("pick-up command" from the user).

[0076] According to one embodiment, the user, in particular the driver, is informed of a route or path to the selected pickup location (pickup zone). This can be done, for example, via their mobile device or via information in the parking lot.

[0077] This increases user acceptance, especially among drivers, for such an automated parking process. This means that users will prefer to allow the automated parking process to be carried out and will no longer drive the vehicle within the parking space themselves. This can generally lead to efficient operation of the parking space.

[0078] In the Figures 5 a) to 5 f) Various examples of selecting a pick-up position and a position and orientation of a vehicle within a pick-up position are shown, depending on at least one comfort condition. These examples are not intended to be exhaustive; a multitude of other possible pick-up positions and positions and orientations of a vehicle within the selected pick-up position, as well as combinations thereof, are conceivable within the invention.

[0079] A vehicle 1 is located within the parking space 401, which, for example, is Fig. 4 and further the parking server 301 according to Fig. 3 The vehicle was parked in an assigned parking space (not shown) using an automated parking process. For example, after a predetermined parking period has elapsed or after a user requests a return, the vehicle is automatically guided to one of the several pick-up positions in parking space 401 and made available to the user for pickup. According to the invention, a position and orientation of the vehicle within the pick-up positions 413, 415, 417, 419 are selected depending on at least one predetermined comfort condition.

[0080] In the example after Figure 5 a)A vehicle 1 is parked at the pick-up position 413. The vehicle 1 is positioned within the pick-up position 413 such that, with respect to a forward direction 70 or a longitudinal axis of the vehicle 1, it is parked laterally offset to the left towards the left edge of the pick-up position 413. Before the pick-up process, a comfort condition was set that a passenger can comfortably enter the vehicle 1 through the right passenger door 13. This comfort condition is met by the position of the vehicle 1 at the left edge of the pick-up position 413. Furthermore, the vehicle 1 in this example is aligned such that the driver, after taking control of the vehicle 1, can simply drive forward in the direction of the lane 80 in which the exit of the parking lot is located, in particular without having to perform a parking space exit or a turning maneuver. This can also be specified as a comfort condition.

[0081] In the example after Figure 5 b)Vehicle 1 is parked at pick-up position 413. Vehicle 1 is positioned within pick-up position 413 such that, with respect to the forward direction 70 or the longitudinal axis of the vehicle, it is parked laterally offset to the right in the direction of the right edge of pick-up position 413. This fulfills the previously specified comfort condition that a driver can comfortably enter vehicle 1 through the left driver's door 14. Furthermore, in this example, vehicle 1 is aligned such that the driver, after taking control of vehicle 1, can drive off forward in direction 80, in which, for example, the exit of the parking lot is located, in particular without having to perform a complicated parking space exit or turning maneuver.

[0082] In the example after Figure 5 c)The vehicle 1 is parked at the pickup position 417 transversely to the roadway direction 80. The vehicle 1 is aligned within the pickup position 417 such that the rear faces the roadway or a footpath. Furthermore, the vehicle 1 is arranged centrally in the pickup position 417 with respect to its longitudinal axis. This fulfills the previously specified comfort requirement that the vehicle 1 can be conveniently loaded through the trunk 11. The tailgates 15 of the vehicle 1 can be opened without protruding onto the access 412 or blocking other pickup positions 415, 419.

[0083] In the example after Figure 5 d)Vehicle 1 is parked again at the pick-up position 417 transversely to the lane direction 80. Vehicle 1 is aligned within the pick-up position 413 such that the front of vehicle 1 points in the direction of the lane. Furthermore, vehicle 1 is arranged in the pick-up position 417 shifted to the right with respect to its longitudinal axis. This fulfills the previously specified comfort condition that a driver can comfortably enter vehicle 1 through the left driver's door 14. Furthermore, in this example, vehicle 1 is aligned such that the driver can park forwards in a direction 90 after taking control of vehicle 1 and can simply continue moving in the lane direction 80, in particular without having to perform a complicated parking exit or turning maneuver.

[0084] In the example after Figure 5 e)Vehicle 1 is parked at the pick-up position 415 transversely to the roadway direction 80. In this example, the pick-up position 415 is bordered on one long side by a wall 450. The vehicle 1 is aligned within the pick-up position 415 such that the rear faces the roadway or a footpath. Furthermore, the vehicle 1 is arranged in the pick-up position 415 offset laterally to the right (relative to the forward direction 70 of the vehicle 1) with respect to its longitudinal axis. This fulfills the previously specified comfort condition that a driver can comfortably enter the vehicle 1 through the driver's door 14 by opening the driver's door 14 as wide as possible without hitting the wall 450.

[0085] In the example after Figure 5 f)The vehicle 1 is initially parked at the pick-up position 415 transversely to the roadway direction 80. The pick-up position 415 is again delimited on one long side by a wall 450. As in the previous example, the vehicle 1 is aligned within the pick-up position 415 such that the rear points in the direction of the roadway or a footpath. Furthermore, the vehicle 1 is arranged in the pick-up position 415 offset laterally to the right (relative to the forward direction 70 of the vehicle 1) with respect to its longitudinal axis. This fulfills the previously specified comfort condition that a driver can comfortably enter the vehicle 1 through the driver's door 14 by opening the driver's door 14 as wide as possible without hitting the wall 450. Furthermore, the vehicle is aligned so that the rear points in the direction of the access 412. This allows the tailgates 15 of the vehicle 1 to be opened and the trunk 11 of the vehicle 1 to be conveniently loaded.This allows the tailgates 15 of the vehicle 1 to be opened, allowing the trunk 11 of the vehicle 1 to be conveniently loaded. The tailgates 15 can also be opened upwards (not shown here). Furthermore, not shown here, there may also be only one tailgate, which can be opened sideways and / or upwards.

[0086] Once loading of vehicle 1 is complete and a driver or passenger has entered vehicle 1 through door 14, the vehicle is automatically guided, in this example, to a second pick-up position 413, for example, along a trajectory 40 previously determined by parking space server 301. In the second pick-up position 413, the vehicle is now positioned such that a second passenger can comfortably enter the vehicle through door 13 by being laterally offset to the left relative to its forward direction 70 within pick-up position 413. In this example, two pick-up positions 413, 415 are selected, and a position and orientation of vehicle 1 within each of the selected pick-up positions 413, 415 is determined separately for each of the pick-up positions 413 and 415, depending on different comfort conditions for each pick-up position 413, 415.Vehicle 1 is automatically re-parked between the selected pick-up positions 413, 415 during the pick-up process.

[0087] This example thus offers the advantageous comfort aspect that different comfort conditions can be combined, so that initially incompatible comfort conditions can still be met by temporarily changing the pickup position. For example, vehicle 1 can initially be parked in such a way that the trunk is easily accessible. In a subsequent step, the vehicle can then be automatically reparked, for example, at the user's request or when the system detects that the trunk and door 14 are closed, so that the driver and / or front passenger can comfortably enter and drive off comfortably, i.e., in particular, without having to park or turn around.

[0088] In summary, the core of the invention is that an AVP vehicle can be made available for pickup by the AVP infrastructure in such a way that it is comfortable for the driver and / or the passengers.

Claims

1. Method for determining a position and orientation of a vehicle (1) within a pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) which is included in a parking area (401) and at which the vehicle (1) is intended to be picked up after an automatic parking process, wherein the position and orientation of the vehicle (1) within the pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) are determined on the basis of at least one specified comfort condition, wherein a comfort condition comprises - a minimum distance between one or more side surfaces or doors (13, 14, 15) of the vehicle (1) and one or more structural elements (450) of the parking area (401) and / or other vehicles and / or a road and / or a pedestrian walkway (412), and / or - a determined orientation of the vehicle in relation to a road direction (80), and wherein the vehicle (1) is provided automatically in the determined position and orientation within the pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419), characterized in that the parking area (401) comprises a plurality of different pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419), and at least one of the pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419), at which the user's vehicle is intended to be picked up after an automatic parking process, is selected on the basis of the at least one specified comfort condition and a position and orientation of the vehicle (1) within the selected pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) are determined.

2. Method according to Claim 1, wherein at least two pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419) are selected and a position and orientation of the vehicle (1) within the selected pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419) are determined in each case, wherein the vehicle (1) is automatically reparked between the selected pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419) during the pick-up process.

3. Method according to either of Claims 1 and 2, wherein, within a selected pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419), at least two different positions and / or orientations of the vehicle (1) within the selected pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) are determined, wherein the vehicle (1) is automatically reparked between the different positions and / or orientations of the vehicle (1) within the selected pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) during the pick-up process.

4. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the comfort condition or the comfort conditions, in particular while reserving a parking position (411) included in the parking area (401), is / are specified by a user of the vehicle (1), in particular by the user specifying a certain process that is intended to be carried out when picking up the vehicle (1), in particular loading of the boot (11) of the vehicle (1) and / or boarding of passengers and / or setting off in a certain direction.

5. Method according to one of Claims 1 to 4, wherein one or more pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419), for which the comfort conditions can be met, are proposed to a user for selection.

6. Method according to one of Claims 1 to 5, wherein a pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) and / or a position and orientation of the vehicle (1) within the pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) is / are also proposed or selected on the basis of - the current traffic situation within the parking area (401) and / or - experience from the previous bookings and / or pick-ups by the user and / or - the number of known and / or ascertained passengers of the vehicle (1) and / or - on the basis of analyses of the passenger(s), in particular of objects carried.

7. Method according to Claim 6, wherein at least one proposal for a pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) and / or a position and orientation of the vehicle (1) within a pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) is determined and made available to a user.

8. Terminal (201) for specifying comfort conditions for a pick-up process for a vehicle (1) parked automatically in a parking area (401), comprising: - a first detection device (203) for detecting at least one comfort condition for the pick-up process, and a communication interface (207) for transmitting data representing the detected comfort conditions to a parking area server, characterized in that a comfort condition comprises: ∘ a minimum distance between one or more side surfaces or doors (13, 14, 15) of the vehicle (1) and one or more structural elements (450) of the parking area (401) and / or other vehicles and / or a road and / or a pedestrian walkway (412) and / or ∘ a determined orientation of the vehicle in relation to a road direction (80).

9. Terminal (201) according to Claim 8, wherein the terminal (201) is designed to determine a position and orientation of the vehicle (1) within a pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) on the basis of the detected comfort conditions and to transmit them by means of the communication interface (207) via a communication network to a parking area server (301) for operating a parking area (401), such that the parking area server (301) can control the automatic parking process for the vehicle (1) on the basis of the pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) and the determined position and orientation of the vehicle (1) within a pick-up position.

10. Terminal (201) according to either of Claims 8 and 9, wherein the terminal is configured to offer a user at least one pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) for a vehicle (1), which is included in a parking area (401) and at which the vehicle is intended to be picked up after an automatic parking process, for selection, - wherein the terminal comprises a display device (209) for displaying at least one pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) included in the parking area (401), and - a second detection device (205) for detecting a selection request of a user of the vehicle (1) for one of the displayed pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419), and - a determination device (211) for determining that pick-up position of the plurality of pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419) at which the user's vehicle (1) is intended to be picked up after an automatic parking process and which corresponds to the detected selection request, as the pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419), and for determining a position and orientation of the vehicle (1) within the selected pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) on the basis of the specified comfort conditions, wherein the communication interface (207) is designed to transmit the determined pick-up position to the parking area server (301) and one of the determined position and orientation of the vehicle (1) within the selected pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419).

11. Terminal (201) according to Claim 10, wherein the terminal is configured to output to a user at least one proposal for a pick-up position and / or a position and orientation of the vehicle (1) within a pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) on the basis of - the current traffic situation within the parking area (401) and / or - experience from the previous bookings and / or pick-ups and / or - the number of known and / or ascertained passengers of the vehicle (1) and / or - on the basis of analyses of the passenger(s), in particular of objects carried.

12. Parking area server (301) for operating a parking area (401), comprising: - a computing unit (302) designed to carry out a method according to one of Claims 1 to 7; - a communication interface (303) designed to receive data representing at least one comfort condition and / or data representing a position and orientation of a vehicle (1) within a pick-up position (413, 415, 417, 419) included in the parking area (401) from a terminal, in particular, a terminal (201) according to one of Claims 8 to 11, via a communication network, - wherein the parking area server (301) is designed to control an automatic parking process for a vehicle (1) based on the determined position and orientation of the vehicle within a pick-up position.

13. Parking area server (301) according to Claim 12, wherein the communication interface (303) is designed to transmit position data from a plurality of pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419) included in the parking area (401) to the user's terminal (301) via the communication network, such that the terminal (301) can display the plurality of pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419) on the basis of the position data.

14. Parking area (401) for vehicles, comprising: - one or more pick-up positions (413, 415, 417, 419) at which a vehicle (1) can be picked up after an automatic parking process has been carried out, and - the parking area server (301) according to Claim 12 or 13.

15. Computer program, comprising program code for carrying out the method according to one of Claims 1 to 7 when the computer program is executed on a computer.