Remote parking assist system

Abstract

To provide a technique capable of maintaining the merchantability of remote parking as much as possible even in a situation in which facilities and / or devices generating radio waves and / or noise are present around a vehicle.SOLUTION: In a remote parking support apparatus for executing remote parking support control on the basis of the operation of a remote operation terminal by an operator, a support mode capable of being executed in the remote parking support control is limited according to a detection distance which is a distance allowing a vehicle system to detect the presence or absence of a smart key. Specifically, as the detection distance becomes shorter, there is increased the number of support modes which cannot be selected by the operator using the remote operation terminal and / or the number of support modes in which the operator's attention is called by the remote operation terminal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a remote parking assistance device.

Background Art

[0002] Vehicle control related to vehicle parking is defined in the standard specifications ISO20900 (Partially automated parking systems: PAPS) and ISO16787 (Assisted parking systems: APS).

[0003] Moreover, recently, there has been widespread adoption of "remote parking," a technology in which at least a part of the control of a vehicle's driving, stopping, and turning (steering) related to parking is borne by an in-vehicle system when an operator of the vehicle operates it using an operating device other than the driving operation device mounted on the vehicle (a remote operation terminal such as a wireless controller).

[0004] In remote parking, as a regulatory requirement, it is necessary to ensure that the operator is operating the vehicle at a position where the distance from the operator to the vehicle is 6 m or less. On the other hand, as a marketability requirement, it is required that the vehicle can be smoothly operated at a position where the distance from the operator to the vehicle is 3 m or more and that the vehicle system can detect the presence or absence of a smart key held by the operator.

[0005] As described above, in remote parking, the vehicle system detects the presence or absence of a smart key held by the operator to comply with regulatory and marketability requirements. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for specifying the radio wave intensity based on a plurality of radio waves received from a communication network in a parking assistance device by remote operation, and executing parking assistance when the specified radio wave intensity is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value T1 and equal to or less than T2, and not executing parking assistance when the radio wave intensity is less than T1.

[0006] However, in reality, there are situations where equipment and / or devices that generate radio waves and / or noise, such as radio towers for television broadcasting or radio-controlled clocks and / or fluorescent lights in underground parking lots, are present around the vehicle. A concrete example of such a situation is the area around the Rakihézy Tower in Hungary. The Rakihézy Tower is a radio tower, and it is known that interference between the radio waves emitted from the tower and the radio waves emitted from smart keys causes the detection distance—the distance at which the vehicle system can detect the presence or absence of a smart key—to decrease as the vehicle approaches the tower.

[0007] Specifically, in areas where the distance from the tower is 400 km or more, the detection distance is 3 m or more; in areas where the distance from the tower is 200 to 400 m, the detection distance is 2.5 to 3.0 m; in areas where the distance from the tower is 100 to 200 km, the detection distance is 1.5 to 2.5 m; and in areas where the distance from the tower is less than 100 km, the detection distance is less than 1.5 m. In such situations, if the radio wave strength falls below T1, the parking assistance control itself will be discontinued according to the conventional technology described above, which could significantly reduce the marketability of remote parking. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0008] [Patent Document 1] German Patent Application Publication No. 102014015655 Specification [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0009] As mentioned above, in conventional remote parking systems, if equipment and / or devices that generate radio waves and / or noise are present around the vehicle, the parking assistance control may be suspended, significantly reducing the marketability of the remote parking system. In other words, in this field, there is a need for a technology that can maintain the marketability of remote parking systems as much as possible, even when equipment and / or devices that generate radio waves and / or noise are present around the vehicle. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] Therefore, as a result of diligent research, the inventors have found that the above problem can be solved by changing the support mode and / or vehicle control that can be performed in remote parking according to the detection distance of the smart key, that is, the length of the distance over which the vehicle system can detect whether or not the operator has a smart key.

[0011] Specifically, the remote parking assistance device according to the present invention (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "the present invention device") is a remote parking assistance device comprising an information acquisition device, a detection distance determination device, an assistance request receiving device, and a control unit. The information acquisition device acquires vehicle surrounding information, including information about objects present around the vehicle to be parked. The detection distance determination device determines a detection distance, which is the distance at which the presence or absence of a smart key can be detected. The assistance request receiving device receives an assistance request for remote parking of the vehicle from a remote control terminal based on the operator's operation of the remote control terminal.

[0012] The control unit performs remote parking assistance control when it receives an assistance request while the detection distance is within a predetermined range.

[0013] Furthermore, in the apparatus of the present invention, the control unit is configured to limit the support modes that can be performed in remote parking assistance control according to the detection distance. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] In the present invention, unlike the conventional remote parking described above, the remote parking assistance control itself is not terminated when the radio wave strength falls below a predetermined threshold. Instead, the assistance modes that can be performed in the remote parking assistance control are limited according to the detection distance, which is the distance at which the vehicle system can detect the presence or absence of a smart key. Therefore, according to the present invention, remote parking can be used at least partially even when equipment and / or devices that generate radio waves and / or noise are present around the vehicle. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0015] [Figure 1] This is a schematic block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the remote parking assistance device (device of the present invention) according to the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a schematic diagram illustrating several possible assistance modes in remote parking assistance control. [Figure 3] This flowchart shows an example of the processing flow in the remote parking assistance control performed in the device of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0016] The remote parking assistance device (device of the present invention) according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, "remote parking" refers to a technology in which, as mentioned above, the vehicle operator operates the vehicle using an operating device other than the driving control device mounted on the vehicle (such as a remote control terminal like a wireless controller), and the in-vehicle system takes over at least a part of the control of the vehicle's driving, stopping, and turning (steering) related to parking.

[0017] As described above, the device of the present invention is a remote parking support device including an information acquisition device, a detection distance specifying device, a support request receiving device, and a control unit. The information acquisition device acquires vehicle surrounding information including information about objects existing around the vehicle to be parked. The detection distance specifying device specifies a detection distance which is a distance at which the presence or absence of a smart key can be detected. The support request receiving device receives a support request for remote parking of the vehicle from a remote operation terminal based on an operation of the remote operation terminal by an operator.

[0018] When a support request is received while the detection distance is within a predetermined range, the control unit executes remote parking support control. This remote parking support control includes the processes listed below. (a) Based on the vehicle surrounding information, set a target position of the vehicle when the vehicle is moved to a parking section. (b) Calculate a movement path for moving the vehicle from the current position of the vehicle to the target position. (c) Execute steering angle control for changing the steering angle of the vehicle, driving force control for controlling the driving force of the vehicle, and braking force control for controlling the braking force of the vehicle so that the vehicle moves along the movement path.

[0019] That is, this technology is applicable to technologies conforming to Type 2 of ISO20900 (PAPS) which is a standard specification and ISO16787 (APS).

[0020] FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the device of the present invention. The device 101 of the present invention illustrated in FIG. 1 is mounted on a vehicle 10, and as the information acquisition device 20, includes sensors 21 such as a camera, a sonar, and / or a radar, and a parking support ECU 22. With such a configuration, the information acquisition device 20 can acquire vehicle surrounding information including information about objects existing around the vehicle 10 to be parked.

[0021] Further, the device 101 of the present invention includes, as a detection distance specifying device 30, a smart antenna 31 and a smart ECU 32 for receiving radio waves of a predetermined frequency transmitted from the smart key 50. With such a configuration, the detection distance specifying device 30 can specify a detection distance, which is a distance at which the presence or absence of the smart key 50 can be detected by the vehicle system.

[0022] In addition, the specific method for specifying the detection distance is not particularly limited. The detection distance specifying device 30 may be configured to specify the detection distance based on the difference or ratio between the intensity of the radio wave signal of the frequency used for detecting the smart key 50 and the intensity of the noise other than that frequency. Specifically, for example, the intensity (peak value) of the radio wave in the 135 KHz band used for detecting the smart key 50 and the intensity (floor value) of the radio wave (noise) in the frequency band other than that frequency may be measured by the smart ECU 32, and the detection distance may be estimated based on the difference between the peak value and the floor value.

[0023] Alternatively, the detection distance specifying device 30 may be configured to specify the detection distance by using events, phenomena, and / or data other than the radio waves transmitted from the smart key 50. Specifically, for example, the detection distance specifying device 30 may be configured to specify the detection distance based on map data.

[0024] Furthermore, the device 101 of the present invention includes, as a support request receiving device 40, a connection antenna 41 and a multimedia ECU 42 for communicating with a remote operation terminal 60 such as a smartphone and / or a tablet. With such a configuration, the support request receiving device 40 can receive a support request for remote parking of a vehicle (not shown) from the remote operation terminal 60 based on the operation of the remote operation terminal 60 by the operator, or transmit information regarding the support mode executable in the remote parking support control to the remote operation terminal 60 and present it to the operator. The communication method between the support request receiving device 40 and the remote operation terminal 60 is not particularly limited, but specific examples include, for example, Bluetooth (registered trademark) and / or Wi-Fi (registered trademark).

[0025] As described above, the control unit performs remote parking assistance control when it receives an assistance request while the detection distance is within a predetermined range. In other words, in the example shown in Figure 1, the control unit is composed of the parking assistance ECU 22 and the multimedia ECU 42.

[0026] In this specification, "ECU" refers to an Electronic Control Unit (ECU) that primarily comprises a microcomputer, and is also referred to as a "controller." The microcomputer includes a CPU (processor), ROM, RAM, non-volatile memory, and interfaces. The CPU is configured to realize the above-mentioned functions by executing instructions (programs, routines) stored in the ROM. These functions may be performed by a specific ECU constituting the apparatus of the present invention, or they may be performed in a distributed manner by multiple ECUs. In the latter case, the multiple ECUs can be connected to each other via, for example, a CAN (Controller Area Network) and configured to communicate with each other.

[0027] Furthermore, in the apparatus of the present invention, the control unit is configured to limit the support modes that can be performed in remote parking assistance control according to the detection distance. Here, "limiting the support modes that can be performed in remote parking assistance control" means providing support modes that cannot be selected by the operator from among multiple support modes that can be performed when the detection distance, which is the distance at which the vehicle system can detect the presence or absence of a smart key, is sufficiently large, or stopping the remote parking assistance control midway through an support mode, or providing some kind of warning to the operator even in support modes that can be selected by the operator.

[0028] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating several possible assistance modes in remote parking assistance control. Figure 2 illustrates seven types of assistance modes: parallel parking in reverse, parallel parking and perpendicular parking in forward, exiting parallel parking in forward, exiting parallel parking in reverse, exiting perpendicular parking, and simple forward and backward movement.

[0029] As stated at the beginning of this specification, the requirements for commercial viability are that the vehicle can be smoothly operated from a distance of 3m or more from the operator, and that the vehicle system can detect whether or not the operator possesses a smart key. That is, as shown in the bottom row of Figure 7, if the detection distance is determined to be 3m or more by the detection distance determination device, all of the seven support modes described above can be executed normally (see the circles in the figure). Therefore, the operator can use a remote control terminal to select a desired support mode from all of these support modes and have the device of the present invention execute that support mode.

[0030] However, as mentioned above, in situations where equipment and / or devices that generate radio waves and / or noise, such as radio towers for television broadcasting or radio-controlled clocks and / or fluorescent lights in underground parking lots, are present around the vehicle, the detection distance may be less than 3m. In the example shown in Figure 7, if the detection distance is 2.5m, the operator, who possesses the smart key and remote control terminal, can select a desired support mode from all the support modes described above and have the device of the present invention execute that support mode if they get closer to the vehicle than usual. However, when entering a parking space by parallel parking while moving forward, entering a parking space by parallel parking, and exiting a parking space by reversing from parallel parking, the vehicle makes a large turn, so a message and / or display to warn the operator about contact with the vehicle moving towards the target position will be provided to the operator via the remote control terminal (see the △ mark in the figure).

[0031] If the detection distance is further shortened to 1.5m, the operator, who possesses the smart key and remote control terminal, can move closer to the vehicle to select some of the above-mentioned support modes. However, because the distance to the vehicle is even closer than usual, the operator will receive messages and / or displays via the remote control terminal to warn them about potential contact with the vehicle as it moves towards the target position (see the triangle in the figure). In addition, in the example shown in Figure 7, for parallel parking, the remote parking support control is stopped midway through the movement to the target position, and for exiting parallel parking by moving forward, the operator cannot select this option on the remote control terminal (see the cross in the figure).

[0032] As described above, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the control unit may be configured to increase the number of support modes that cannot be selected by the operator using a remote control terminal and / or support modes in which the operator is alerted by the remote control terminal, as the detection distance decreases.

[0033] Here, the processing flow in the remote parking assistance control performed in the device of the present invention will be described. Figure 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow in the remote parking assistance control performed in the device of the present invention. First, in step S10, an operation by the operator to start remote parking is detected. Specific examples of such operations include, for example, unlocking the door key when exiting a parking space, and setting the parking position by the in-vehicle system when entering a parking space. Next, in step S20, radio waves from the smart key are received by the vehicle, and in step S30, it is determined whether there is any influence from radio waves and / or noise around the vehicle on the detection distance, which is the distance at which the vehicle system can detect the presence or absence of the smart key.

[0034] If it is determined that radio waves and / or noise around the vehicle are affecting the detection distance (step S30: Yes), the detection distance is estimated in the next step S40. Then, in the next step S50, as explained with reference to Figure 2, the selectable support modes are limited or the operator is alerted according to the estimated detection distance. On the other hand, if it is determined that radio waves and / or noise around the vehicle are not affecting the detection distance (step S30: No), all support modes are presented to the operator via the remote control terminal as selectable in the next step S60.

[0035] Then, via step S50 or step S60, remote parking assistance control is performed according to the assistance mode selected by the operator using a remote control terminal.

[0036] As described above, in the present invention, unlike the remote parking of the prior art described above, the remote parking assistance control itself is not terminated when the radio wave strength falls below a predetermined threshold. Instead, the assistance modes that can be performed in the remote parking assistance control are limited according to the detection distance, which is the distance at which the vehicle system can detect the presence or absence of a smart key. Therefore, according to the present invention, remote parking can be used at least partially even when equipment and / or devices that generate radio waves and / or noise are present around the vehicle.

[0037] Although several embodiments having specific configurations have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings for the purpose of explaining the present invention, it should not be construed that the scope of the present invention is limited to these exemplary embodiments, and it goes without saying that modifications can be made as appropriate within the scope of the claims and the specification. Furthermore, the present invention can be applied to autonomous vehicles. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0038] 101... Remote parking assist system 10... Vehicles 20...Information acquisition device 21...Sensor 22…Parking Assist ECU 30...Detection distance determination device 31… Smart Antenna 32... Smart ECU 40... Support request receiving device 41…Connecting antenna 42…Multimedia ECU 50... Smart Key 60… Remote control terminal

Claims

1. An information acquisition device that acquires vehicle surrounding information, including information about objects present around a vehicle that is about to be parked, A detection distance determination device that determines the detection distance, which is the distance at which it is possible to detect the presence or absence of a smart key, A support request receiving device that receives support requests for remote parking, a technology in which an in-vehicle system takes over at least part of the control of the vehicle's movement, stopping, and turning related to parking, based on the operation of the remote control terminal by the vehicle operator, from the remote control terminal, and A control unit configured to perform remote parking assistance control when it receives the assistance request while the detection distance is within a predetermined range, A remote parking assist device comprising, The control unit is configured to limit the available support modes in the remote parking assistance control according to the detection distance, by increasing the number of support modes that the operator cannot select using the remote control terminal and / or support modes in which the operator is alerted by the remote control terminal, as the detection distance decreases. Remote parking assistance device.

2. An information acquisition device that acquires vehicle surrounding information including information about objects present around a vehicle to be parked, A detection distance determination device that determines the detection distance, which is the distance at which it is possible to detect the presence or absence of a smart key, A support request receiving device that receives support requests for remote parking, a technology in which an in-vehicle system takes over at least part of the control of the vehicle's movement, stopping, and turning related to parking, based on the operation of the remote control terminal by the vehicle operator, from the remote control terminal, and A control unit configured to perform remote parking assistance control when it receives the assistance request while the detection distance is within a predetermined range, A remote parking assist device comprising, The control unit is configured to limit the support modes that can be performed in the remote parking support control according to the detection distance. The detection distance determination device is configured to determine the detection distance based on the difference or ratio between the intensity of the radio signal at the frequency used to detect the smart key and the intensity of noise at a frequency other than the aforementioned frequency. Remote parking assistance device.

3. An information acquisition device that acquires vehicle surrounding information including information about objects present around a vehicle to be parked, A detection distance determination device that determines the detection distance, which is the distance at which it is possible to detect the presence or absence of a smart key, A support request receiving device that receives support requests for remote parking, a technology in which an in-vehicle system takes over at least part of the control of the vehicle's movement, stopping, and turning related to parking, based on the operation of the remote control terminal by the vehicle operator, from the remote control terminal, and A control unit configured to perform remote parking assistance control when it receives the assistance request while the detection distance is within a predetermined range, A remote parking assist device comprising, The control unit is configured to limit the support modes that can be performed in the remote parking support control according to the detection distance. The detection distance determination device is configured to determine the detection distance based on map data. Remote parking assistance device.

4. A remote parking assist device according to claim 2 or claim 3, The control unit is configured such that as the detection distance decreases, the number of support modes that cannot be selected by the operator using the remote control terminal and / or support modes in which the operator is alerted by the remote control terminal increases. Remote parking assistance device.

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