Method for assisting a user when parking a vehicle, computer program, control unit or central computer device, and vehicle

Abstract

A method for assisting a user when parking a vehicle, comprising the following steps: detecting (110) the current position of the vehicle or the destination of the vehicle; determining (130) a desired parking behaviour depending on the detected current position or the detected destination, the desired parking behaviour comprising the desired forwardly or rearwardly directed direction of travel for parking and / or the desired parking in the longitudinal or transverse parking gap; and activating (140) a parking assistance function for parking the vehicle, the parking assistance function comprising the following steps: detecting (141) sensor data which represent the surroundings of the vehicle; identifying (142) a free parking space on the basis of the detected sensor data; determining (143) a parking trajectory to the identified parking space depending on the desired parking behaviour; and controlling (144) the steering of the vehicle and / or the drive of the vehicle for guiding the vehicle to the identified parking space along the determined parking trajectory.

Description

[0001] Description

[0002] title

[0003] Method for assisting a user in parking a vehicle, computer program, control unit or central computing device and vehicle

[0004] The present invention relates to a method for assisting a user in parking a vehicle, wherein a desired parking behavior is determined depending on the detected current position or the detected destination.

[0005] The invention also relates to a computer program comprising instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform the steps of the method according to the invention. The invention further relates to a control unit or a central computing device having a computing unit configured to perform the steps of the method according to the invention. The invention further relates to a vehicle comprising the control unit or the central computing device according to the invention.

[0006] State of the art

[0007] Current parking assistance systems are designed to allow a vehicle user to manually activate an automatic parking process by making an input. Free parking spaces and objects in the vehicle's vicinity are detected beforehand or subsequently using ultrasonic and / or camera sensors. The automatic parking process generally includes at least controlling the vehicle's steering and, in particular, additionally guiding the vehicle longitudinally by controlling the vehicle's drive and / or brakes. In addition, the user must select the desired parking behavior of the automatic parking process relative to a detected free parking space, for example, whether to park forwards or backwards into the detected free parking space, or whether the desired automatic parking process should lead to a perpendicular parking space or a parallel parking space, which are oriented transversely or longitudinally to the road.

[0008] In addition, parking assistants are known which automatically detect and display free parking spaces in the vicinity of the vehicle when the vehicle speed falls below a predetermined threshold value, whereby an automatic parking process is activated in further developments when manual steering of the vehicle along a determined parking trajectory to a free parking space or a gear change into reverse gear is detected or an input for activating the automatic parking process is detected.

[0009] Other known embodiments include so-called home zone parking assistants, which are designed to suggest learned and stored parking trajectories from the past at specific locations to the user upon reaching the location again. The user can then activate an automatic parking process along the learned and stored parking trajectory. This home zone parking assistant is therefore only available for the precisely defined individual parking space, for example, a parking space rented by the user.

[0010] The object of the present invention is to improve a method for assisting a user in parking a vehicle.

[0011] Disclosure of the invention

[0012] The above object is achieved according to the invention according to independent claims 1 and 10 to 12.

[0013] The present invention relates to a method for assisting a user when parking a vehicle. The method comprises detecting the current position of the vehicle or the destination of the vehicle, wherein the destination is detected in particular by a navigation system. A desired parking behavior is then determined depending on the detected current position or the detected destination, wherein the desired parking behavior includes the forward or reverse direction of travel for parking desired by the user and / or the parking in a parallel or perpendicular parking space desired by the user. The desired parking behavior is advantageously determined by a trained machine recognition method, preferably by a neural network or by case-based reasoning. A parking assistance function is then activated to park the vehicle.Activation occurs in particular depending on the detected position of the vehicle or the vehicle's destination, and / or by detecting a user input for activation. The activated parking assistance function comprises the detection of sensor data representing the vehicle's surroundings. For example, the sensor data is detected by means of at least one ultrasonic sensor and / or by means of at least one camera and / or by means of at least one radar sensor, wherein the camera preferably has a wide-angle lens. Furthermore, the activated parking assistance function comprises detection of a free parking space based on the detected sensor data, wherein the detection of the parking space optionally occurs depending on the desired parking behavior and in particular by a trained machine detection method, preferably by a neural network or by case-based reasoning.Preferably, the free parking space is detected by a neural network based on sensor data acquired by at least one camera. A parking trajectory to the detected parking space is then determined based on the desired parking behavior. The vehicle's steering and / or drive are then controlled to guide the vehicle to the detected parking space along the determined parking trajectory. This method offers the advantage that the user no longer needs to manually enter the desired parking behavior.

[0014] In one embodiment, the desired parking behavior is additionally determined based on stored parking data, wherein the parking data represents stored parking maneuvers at a respective assigned position. Additional conditions can be assigned to the stored parking maneuvers. The stored parking maneuvers were performed, in particular, by the vehicle and / or a plurality of other vehicles, the latter advantageously being received from the vehicle by a server device and / or via V2V communication.To determine the desired parking behavior, those stored parking maneuvers in the parking data are taken into account whose assigned positions have a local distance from the current position or the destination of less than or equal to a distance threshold value, in particular the distance threshold value is one kilometer, five hundred meters, two hundred meters, one hundred meters or fifty meters. In other words, the desired parking behavior is advantageously determined as a function of the stored parking maneuvers in the current surroundings of the vehicle. For example, at a supermarket, a forward direction of travel into a transverse gap is advantageously determined as the desired parking behavior, resulting in easy access to the tailgate of the vehicle from the street, whereby purchases in the supermarket can advantageously be easily stowed in the trunk of the vehicle.

[0015] In a further embodiment of the invention, it can be provided that the stored parking data include past parking maneuvers by a plurality of users, wherein the parking data is in particular synchronized with a server device or stored on a server device. In this embodiment, the transmission of a radio signal to the server device and the reception of a received signal from the server device can be provided, wherein the radio signal represents a request for the desired parking behavior or the parking data based on the current position of the vehicle or the destination, and the received signal represents either the determined desired parking behavior or the parking data based on the current position of the vehicle or the destination. In other words, the determination of the desired parking behavior in this embodiment can advantageously be carried out by means of a server device.In this embodiment, parking operations or information from a large number of users are advantageously taken into account and continuously updated, or the memory requirements of an electronic memory of the vehicle for storing parking data are advantageously reduced.

[0016] In another embodiment of the invention, map data of the vehicle's surroundings are provided in a further step. The provided map data can, for example, include fee zones with associated parking fee information and / or associated payment methods for parking fees. The provided map data alternatively or additionally include authorization zones with associated parking authorizations, wherein a parking authorization for an authorization zone is advantageously recorded by the user's input. For example, the user is permitted to park in a predetermined part of town as an authorization zone for residents, or they are permitted to park in a rented parking space as an authorization zone or in another large private parking lot as an authorization zone based, for example, on a fitness studio membership, etc.The map data provided alternatively or additionally includes covered areas that enable covered parking, with covered parking being made possible in particular by parking garages. The map data provided alternatively or additionally includes curb areas that require driving over a curb for parking. The map data provided alternatively or additionally includes nearby points of interest, such as preferably supermarkets, bakeries or cafes. Alternatively or additionally, in this embodiment, the speed of the vehicle and / or the currently engaged gear of the vehicle's transmission and / or the occupancy of seats in the vehicle is recorded. Alternatively or additionally, in this embodiment, current weather information is recorded.The parking assistance function is then activated based on the provided map data, the detected speed, the engaged gear, the detected weather information, and / or the detected seat occupancy. Alternatively or additionally, the free parking space is also detected based on the provided map data, the engaged gear, the detected weather information, and / or the detected seat occupancy. This configuration improves the activation of the parking assistance function and / or the detection of the free parking space.

[0017] In an optional embodiment, the currently engaged gear of the vehicle's transmission and / or the seat occupancy of persons in the vehicle and / or the driver's line of sight are detected. The parking trajectory to the detected parking space is then additionally determined based on the engaged gear and / or the detected seat occupancy and / or the detected line of sight of the driver. This embodiment improves the determination of the parking trajectory.

[0018] In an advantageous embodiment, the current date and / or the current time are recorded. The desired parking behavior is then additionally carried out depending on the current date and / or the current time, with date and time data being assigned to the parking operations in the parking data. To determine the desired parking behavior, those parking operations in the parking data are taken into account whose assigned date and time data have a time difference from the current date and time of less than or equal to a predetermined time threshold. In other words, the desired parking behavior is advantageously additionally determined in a time-dependent manner and based on parking data with time-assigned parking operations.This results in the advantage that, for example, time-of-day aspects are taken into account, such as a tight parking space at certain times of the day, which makes reversing into the parking space desirable.

[0019] Furthermore, in a further development, it can be provided that in a step of the method, before the desired parking behavior is determined, sensor data is recorded which represents the surroundings of the vehicle and / or the interior; in particular, at least camera data is recorded which depicts the surroundings of the vehicle and / or the interior of the vehicle. The desired parking behavior is then additionally determined as a function of the recorded sensor data, wherein the desired parking behavior is recognized in particular based on the sensor data by a trained machine recognition method, in particular by a neural network and / or by case-based reasoning. Through this continuation, the desired parking behavior can be determined or recognized, for example, based on a driving situation recognized using camera data.For example, if the camera data detects heavy traffic in the opposite lane, the desired parking behavior may be determined by a lower speed than the specified parking speed, a parking trajectory with a larger steering angle, and / or an increased number of turns to determine the parking trajectory. In this extension, additional information about the current driving situation can advantageously be incorporated into the process.

[0020] Furthermore, it can advantageously be provided that the determination of the desired parking behavior and / or the activation of the parking assistance function is dependent on at least one parking maneuver performed by the user in the past or a recorded selection of the desired parking behavior at the assigned position. In this embodiment, the individual behavior of the user is taken into account in an improved manner.

[0021] Preferably, the determination of the desired parking behavior and / or the activation of the parking assistance function for parking the vehicle is carried out using a trained machine recognition method, in particular a neural network and / or case-based reasoning. This advantageously allows many dependencies to be considered simultaneously and used to determine the desired parking behavior and / or activate the parking assistance function. In this embodiment, the quality or reliability or user satisfaction with the determined desired parking behavior and / or the activation of the parking assistance function increases.

[0022] The invention also relates to a computer program comprising instructions which, when the program is executed by a computer, cause the computer to carry out the steps of the method according to the invention.

[0023] The invention further relates to a control unit or a central computing device. The control unit or the central computing device comprises a signal input for providing an input signal representing a current position of the vehicle or a destination of the vehicle. The control unit or the central computing device also comprises a signal output for outputting a control signal for the steering of the vehicle and / or the drive of the vehicle. Furthermore, the control unit or the central computing device has a computing unit, in particular a processor, which is configured to execute the steps of the method according to the invention.

[0024] The invention also relates to a vehicle comprising a control unit according to the invention or a central computing device according to the invention.

[0025] Further advantages will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the figures. Figure 1: Flowchart of the method as a block diagram

[0026] Examples of implementation

[0027] Figure 1 shows a flowchart of the method for assisting a user in parking a vehicle, schematically represented as a block diagram. The method comprises detecting 110 the current position of the vehicle or the vehicle's destination, wherein the destination is detected in particular by a navigation system of the vehicle. The detection 110 of the current position of the vehicle preferably takes place using a global navigation satellite system, for example GPS, Galileo, Beidou, or GLONASS. Optionally, in a further step 120, map data of the surroundings of the vehicle can be provided. The map data preferably include fee zones with associated parking fee information and / or associated payment methods for parking fees.The map data alternatively or additionally advantageously include authorization areas with assigned parking authorization and / or covered areas that allow covered parking, in particular garages. The map data alternatively or additionally advantageously further include curb areas that require driving onto a curb for parking, and / or nearby points of interest, such as preferably supermarkets, bakeries, or cafes. Optionally, in another step 121, the speed of the vehicle is recorded. In a further optional step 122, the currently engaged gear of the vehicle's transmission is recorded. In another optional step 123, current weather information is recorded.Furthermore, it can optionally be provided in step 124 that a seat occupancy and / or a viewing direction of the driver in the vehicle is detected, for example by means of pressure sensors in the seats or by means of an interior camera of the vehicle. In addition, the current date and / or the current time are detected in step 125. Furthermore, in optional step 126, sensor data representing the surroundings of the vehicle can be detected; in particular, at least camera data is detected by means of at least one vehicle camera, which images the surroundings of the vehicle. Subsequently, in step 130 according to the invention, the parking behavior desired by the user is ascertained, determined, or recognized as a function of the detected current position or the detected destination.The parking behavior desired by the user preferably comprises the desired forward or reverse direction of travel for parking or the parking assistance function and / or the desired parking in a parallel or perpendicular parking space using the parking assistance function. Furthermore, the desired parking behavior can also comprise further parameters, for example, desired operating parameters of the parking assistance function or when guiding the vehicle to a recognized parking space, such as a maximum steering angle, the maximum number of maneuvers when parking with the parking assistance function and / or the maximum speed of the parking process with the parking assistance function, etc. At a supermarket, for example, a forward direction of travel for parking in a perpendicular parking space is determined as the desired parking behavior.On a street that only has parallel parking spaces, the desired parking behavior of the parking assistance function is advantageously determined to be a desired parking in a parallel parking space. Thus, the user no longer has to select this information themselves using a recorded input. This advantageously increases the user's convenience and the likelihood of the user activating the parking assistance function. The desired parking behavior is optionally also determined 130 based on parking data. The parking data represents stored parking maneuvers at a respective assigned position, with those stored parking maneuvers in the parking data whose assigned positions have a local distance from the current position or the destination of less than or equal to a predetermined distance threshold being taken into account to determine the desired parking behavior.The predefined distance threshold is advantageously two kilometers, one kilometer, five hundred meters, two hundred meters, one hundred meters, fifty meters, five meters, or one meter, or preferably lies in a range between two kilometers and one meter. The stored parking data advantageously comprise past parking maneuvers of a large number of users, wherein the parking data is synchronized in particular with a server device. Alternatively, the parking data can be stored on a server device, in which case the determination 130 of the desired parking behavior can be carried out by means of the server device based on position information sent from the vehicle to the server device by means of a transmitting and receiving device, and the determined parking behavior can then be received by the vehicle by means of the transmitting and receiving device.Furthermore, it can optionally be provided in step 130 that the desired parking behavior is additionally determined in step 130 depending on the current date and / or the current time. In this case, date and time data are assigned to the parking operations in the parking data, whereby to determine the desired parking behavior, those parking operations in the parking data are taken into account whose assigned date and time data have a time difference from the current date and time of less than or equal to a predefined time threshold. The predefined time threshold can be, for example, three hours, one hour, or 10 minutes.The determination 130 of the desired parking behavior optionally also takes place depending on the recorded sensor data, wherein the desired parking behavior is recognized in particular based on the sensor data by a learned machine training method, in particular by a neural network. For example, the direction of travel preferably used for parking in the surroundings of the vehicle is determined as the desired parking behavior. In an optional embodiment, the desired parking behavior is determined depending on at least one parking maneuver performed by the user in the past or a recorded selection of the desired parking behavior at the assigned position. The desired parking behavior is preferably determined in each case by a learned machine recognition method, in particular a neural network, for example based on the recorded sensor data.In a subsequent step 140 according to the invention, a parking assistance function for parking the vehicle is activated, in particular depending on the detected position of the vehicle or the vehicle's destination and / or by detecting a user input for activation. Optionally, the activation 140 of the parking assistance function can additionally occur depending on the provided map data and / or the detected speed and / or the engaged gear and / or the detected weather information and / or the detected seat occupancy.Optionally, the activation 140 of the parking assistance function occurs depending on at least one parking maneuver performed by the user in the past or depending on a detected selection of the desired parking behavior with a spatial distance from the current position or destination of less than or equal to a predetermined distance threshold or in the spatial proximity of the current position or current destination. The activation 140 of the parking assistance function for parking the vehicle can advantageously also be performed by a trained machine recognition method, in particular by a neural network. The parking assistance function comprises the acquisition 141 of sensor data representing the vehicle's surroundings.The parking assistance function also includes the detection 142 of a free parking space based on the recorded sensor data, wherein the detection 142 of the parking space optionally occurs depending on the desired parking behavior and in particular by a trained machine detection method, preferably a neural network. The detection 142 of the free parking space optionally advantageously also occurs depending on the provided map data, the engaged gear, the detected weather information and / or the detected seat occupancy and / or the detected viewing direction of the driver. Subsequently, in step 143, a parking trajectory to the detected parking space is determined depending on the desired parking behavior. The determination 143 of the parking trajectory to the detected parking space additionally takes place depending on the engaged gear and / or the detected seat occupancy.Subsequently, a control 144 of the steering of the vehicle and / or the drive of the vehicle is carried out to guide the vehicle to the recognized parking space along the determined parking trajectory.

Claims

Claims 1. A method for assisting a user in parking a vehicle, comprising the following steps • Detection (110) of the current position of the vehicle or the destination of the vehicle, • Determination (130) of a desired parking behavior depending on the detected current position or the detected destination, wherein the desired parking behavior includes the desired forward or reverse direction of travel for parking and / or the desired parking in a parallel or perpendicular parking space, and • Activation (140) of a parking assistance function for parking the vehicle, wherein the parking assistance function comprises the following steps: i. Acquisition (141) of sensor data representing the surroundings of the vehicle, ii. Detection (142) of a free parking space based on the acquired sensor data, iii. Determination (143) of a parking trajectory to the detected parking space depending on the desired parking behavior, and iv. Control (144) of the steering of the vehicle and / or the drive of the vehicle to guide the vehicle to the detected parking space along the determined parking trajectory.

2. Method according to claim 1, wherein the determination (130) of the desired parking behavior is additionally carried out based on stored parking data, wherein the parking data represent stored parking operations at a respectively assigned position, wherein for the determination (130) of the desired parking behavior those stored parking operations of the parking data are taken into account whose assigned positions have a local distance from the current position or the destination of less than or equal to a distance threshold value, in particular the distance threshold value is one kilometer, five hundred meters, two hundred meters, one hundred meters or fifty meters.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the stored parking data comprises parking operations of a plurality of users from the past, wherein the parking data are in particular synchronized with a server device or stored on a server device.

4. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the following step is carried out • Providing (120) map data of the surroundings of the vehicle, in particular the map data includes i. fee areas with associated parking fee information and / or associated payment method for parking fees, ii. authorization areas with associated parking authorization, iii. covered areas that allow covered parking, in particular representing garages, iv. curb areas that require driving onto a curb for parking, and / or v. nearby points of interest, such as preferably supermarkets, bakeries or cafes, • Detection (121) of the speed of the vehicle, and / or • Detection (122) of an engaged gear of the gearshift, and / or • Recording (123) of current weather information, and / or • Detection (124) of a seat occupancy and / or a viewing direction of the driver in the vehicle, • wherein the activation (140) of the parking assistance function takes place depending on the map data provided, the detected speed, the engaged gear, the detected weather information and / or the detected seat occupancy and / or the detected viewing direction of the driver, and / or • wherein the detection (142) of the free parking space is additionally carried out depending on the map data provided, the gear engaged, the recorded weather information and / or the recorded seat occupancy and / or the recorded viewing direction of the driver 5. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the following step is carried out • Detection (122) of an engaged gear of the gearshift, and / or • Detection (124) of a seat occupancy in the vehicle, wherein the determination (143) of the parking trajectory to the detected parking space is additionally carried out as a function of the gear engaged and / or the detected seat occupancy.

6. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the following step is carried out • Recording (125) of the current date and / or time, where • the determination (130) of the desired parking behavior is additionally carried out as a function of the current date and / or the current time, wherein date and time data are assigned to the parking processes in the parking data, wherein for the determination (130) of the desired parking behavior, those parking processes in the parking data are taken into account whose assigned date and time data have a time difference from the current date and the current time of less than or equal to a predetermined time threshold value.

7. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the following step is carried out • Acquisition (126) of sensor data representing the surroundings of the vehicle, in particular at least camera data is acquired which depicts the surroundings of the vehicle, wherein • the determination (130) of the desired parking behavior is additionally carried out as a function of the recorded sensor data, wherein the desired parking behavior is recognized in particular based on the sensor data by a learned machine training method, in particular by a neural network.

8. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the determination (130) of the desired parking behavior and / or the activation (140) of the parking assistance function is dependent on at least one parking operation carried out by the user in the past or a detected selection of the desired parking behavior at the assigned position.

9. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the determination (130) of the desired parking behavior and / or the activation (140) of the parking assistance function for parking the vehicle and / or the detection (142) of the free parking space is carried out by a trained machine recognition process, in particular by a neural network and / or by case-based reasoning.

10. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to carry out the steps of the method according to any one of the preceding claims.

11. Control unit or central computing device comprising at least the following components • a signal input for providing an input signal representing a current position of the vehicle or a destination of the vehicle, • a signal output for outputting a control signal for the steering of the vehicle and / or the drive of the vehicle, and • a computing unit, in particular a processor, which is configured to carry out the steps of the method according to one of claims 1 to 9.

12. Vehicle comprising a control device according to claim 11.

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