Driving Support Apparatus Virtual Road Section Line Generation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing driving support apparatuses face challenges in ensuring vehicle safety at parking lots due to errors in GPS positioning and the absence of road section lines, making it difficult to navigate accurately and safely.
Innovation Solution
A driving support apparatus that uses a controller to detect specific edge parts of parking section lines through surrounding images, sets a virtual road section line by connecting detected edge parts, and supports vehicle travel based on this line, even in the absence of physical road section lines, thereby enhancing safety.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If GPS positioning is used to obtain current position of the vehicle, then the vehicle can be supported to travel automatically at the parking lot, but there is a position error of several meters between the obtained position and actual position
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an image recognition system as an intermediary to detect parking section lines and generate virtual road section lines. This mediator compensates for GPS position errors by providing visual reference information from the camera that accurately reflects the actual parking lot layout, allowing the vehicle to correct its position relative to detected lines rather than relying solely on imprecise GPS coordinates.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces reliance on the mechanical/GPS positioning system with an optical/image-based recognition system. Instead of trusting the GPS-derived position, the system uses a camera to capture images and recognize parking section lines, substituting the mechanical positioning method with an optical field-based method that provides more accurate local position information.
2Reliability
If road section line detection technology is used to define driving lane, then the vehicle can travel safely along the detected line, but this technology cannot be applied at parking lots where road section lines are not drawn
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a virtual copy of the road section line system by generating virtual road section lines from detected parking section lines. Instead of requiring actual physical road section lines to be present, the system captures images, detects the parking section lines, and creates virtual line representations that serve the same function as physical road section lines would, enabling the vehicle to navigate safely without modifying the actual parking lot infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent inverts the traditional approach by not detecting existing road section lines but instead detecting parking section lines and generating virtual road section lines from them. Rather than requiring the environment to provide navigation cues (physical lines), the system creates navigation cues (virtual lines) from the environmental features that are already present (parking section lines).
3Reliability
If virtual road section line is set by connecting detected edge parts of parking section line, then the vehicle can travel more safely without physical road section lines, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the image recognition system perform multiple functions: it detects parking section lines, identifies edge parts, generates virtual road section lines, and provides position correction information. By making the same camera and image processing system serve all these functions, the patent avoids adding separate dedicated systems for each function, thereby limiting the increase in overall system complexity while achieving enhanced safety.
Data Source
AI summary
A driving support apparatus (12) is configured to support a vehicle (1) to travel at a parking lot, a parking spot (PS) at which the vehicle should be parked is defined by a parking section line (PL) at the parking lot, the driving support apparatus is configured to: detect a specific edge part (PLE) of the parking section line that is an edge part nearest to a traveling space at which the vehicle travels at the parking lot; set a virtual road section line (VDL) if a plurality of specific edge parts are detected at a specific area (LSA, RSA) located on a predetermined side viewed from the vehicle, the virtual road section line is an approximate line connecting the plurality of detected specific edge parts at the specific area; and support the vehicle to travel on the basis of the set road section line.