JP2008296640A - Parking assistance device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a parking support device suitably supporting parking operation of a driver. <P>SOLUTION: The parking support device 1 comprises: a searching means 2a searching a parking position of a vehicle; a detecting means 2b detecting a series of parking operations and parking locus corresponding to the parking position as parking information; a storing means 73 storing the parking information; and an updating means 72 updating the previous parking information at the parking position stored in the storing means to new parking information detected by the detecting means, when the previous parking information is compared with the new parking information and if the number of parking operation constituting the previous parking information is less than that of the new parking information. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a driver's parking assist apparatus suitable for being applied to vehicles such as passenger cars, trucks, and buses.

In general, an operation for parking a vehicle requires skill for the driver, and when the skill level of the driver is low, a smooth parking operation cannot be performed, which may increase an operation burden on the driver. Therefore, in recent years, a parking assistance device as described in Patent Document 1 has been proposed, and the parking environment can be input to the vehicle as an image, the image can be processed, and parking can be performed smoothly. It has been proposed to learn as a processed image of the parking operation in the case of the vehicle, compare the image with the current image, and notify the driver of the danger when it is necessary to switch back.
JP-A-7-114700

  However, in such a parking assistance device, the driver can only be supported when the vehicle is always parked in the same parking lot, and when the driver wants to park the vehicle in many different parking lots, The driver could not be supported sufficiently and was still not suitable as a driving support device.

  In addition, there are vehicles equipped with so-called IPA (Intelligent Parking Assist) in the current market. In such vehicles, the target parking position is set by white line recognition or obstacle detection using an image captured by a camera. Thus, automatic steering is used to assist the parking operation. However, depending on such IPA, there is no white line at the target parking position and the white line cannot be recognized, or there is an obstacle such as a wall. Therefore, when the target parking position is not shown in the image, the parking operation cannot be properly supported.

  An object of this invention is to provide the parking assistance apparatus which can support a driver | operator's parking operation more appropriately in view of the said problem.

In order to solve the above problem, the parking assistance device according to the present invention is:
Search means for searching for a parking position of the vehicle, a series of parking operations corresponding to the parking position and detection means for detecting a parking locus as parking information, storage means for storing the parking information, and storage means. When the previous parking information at the parking position is compared with the current parking information detected by the detecting means, and the parking information constituting the current parking information is small, the previous parking information is Update means for updating the parking information is provided.

  The series of parking operations refers to operations necessary for parking at the parking position, and specifically refers to a shift operation, a steering operation, an accelerator operation, a brake operation, and the like. Also, “the number of parking operations is small” means that the total number of times with the passage of time of these operations is small.

  That is, in a smoother series of parking operations performed by a skilled driver, for example, a shift operation for selecting reverse, an accelerator operation, a steering operation for turning the steering wheel, a steering operation for returning the steering wheel, and a braking operation are each performed. In a series of parking operations by a driver who is not skilled and has to be trained, it is necessary to temporarily stop or turn back halfway. In this case, the number of these operations increases and the shift operation selects the forward movement. Accelerator operation and brake operation are added, resulting in a greater number of operations.

  Here, it is preferable that the search means and the detection means are provided in a plurality of vehicles, the storage means and the update means are provided on the road side, and a communication means for connecting the detection means and the storage means to each other is provided. .

  According to this, in a plurality of vehicles, the parking information is detected by the detecting means, and the parking information is aggregated by the storage means and the updating means on the road side, and the parking operation is the least at the same parking position. The parking information by the skilled driver can be made into a database, and when the driver tries to park at the same parking position this time and next time, the parking information by the skilled driver is used. Can do. Thereby, a driver | operator's parking operation can be assisted more appropriately.

  Further, according to this, even when the target parking position has no white line and the white line cannot be recognized in the vehicle equipped with IPA, or when the target parking position is not reflected in the image, the skilled driver who has created the database has said The parking information can more appropriately assist the driver in the parking operation.

  Furthermore, it is preferable that the parking information includes a vehicle type, the storage unit stores the parking information for each vehicle type, and the update unit updates the parking information for each vehicle type.

  According to this, the parking information by the skilled driver stored by the storage means can be classified into a database for each vehicle type, and the vehicle width, the vehicle length, and the minimum turning radius are different for each vehicle type. As a result, it is possible to more appropriately assist the driver's parking operation in response to changes in the appropriate parking information for each vehicle type.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the parking assistance apparatus which can assist a driver | operator's parking operation more appropriately can be provided.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an embodiment of a parking assistance apparatus according to the present invention. The parking assistance device 1 includes a parking assistance ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 2 provided in a plurality of vehicles, a server 3 provided in a roadside information center, and a base station 4. The parking assist ECU 2 and the server 3 are connected via a network.

  This network is composed of, for example, a mobile phone network, a PHS (Personal Handy-phone System) network, a wireless LAN network, a WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) network, a satellite phone, a beacon, etc. It constitutes.

  In addition, the network which implement | achieves communication between parking assistance ECU2 and the server 3 follows a PPP protocol (Point to Point Protocol), establishes a data link between these by a PPP protocol, and is TCP / IP protocol ( It realizes HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol) and FTP (File Transfer Protocol) which are upwardly compatible with Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol (TCP / IP) and allows data transmission / reception.

  Next, the server 3 of the information center will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a roadside information center server 3 that forms part of the parking assistance apparatus 1 according to the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the server 3 includes a CPU 71, a main storage device 72, a storage device 73 such as an HDD, a display device 74, an input device 75, a drive device 76, and a communication device 77 that are mutually connected by a bus. Thus, a storage unit and an update unit are configured.

  The CPU 71 provides various functions by reading a program such as an OS or an application from the storage device 73 and executing the program, and comprehensively controls processing performed by the server 3. The main storage device 72 is constituted by a RAM, and constitutes a work area for temporarily storing the OS, programs, and data. The storage device 73 is a nonvolatile memory such as an HDD or a flash memory, and stores and stores files such as an OS, a program, and a driver.

  The display device 74 draws screen information based on a program executed by the CPU 71 on a liquid crystal display with a predetermined resolution, the number of colors, and the like. This display forms, for example, a GUI (Graphical User Interface) screen, Various windows and data necessary for the display are displayed.

  The input device 75 includes a keyboard and a mouse, and is provided to input various operation instructions from the user to the server 3. Further, the drive device 76 is configured such that a storage medium 78 can be inserted, and reads the data stored in the storage medium 78 and transmits it to the main storage device 72 and the like. The communication device 77 is an interface for connecting to the above-described network, and is configured by a modem, a NIC, or the like, for example.

  In the server 3 configured as described above, the CPU 71 executes the program, so that the server 3 receives the parking information in each vehicle transmitted from the parking support ECU 2 via the base station 4 and stores it in the storage device 73 last time. Of the parking information stored so far, the information having the same vehicle type and parking position is read. Furthermore, the server 3 is stored by the previous time when the parking operation constituting the received parking information in each vehicle is less than the parking operation constituting the parking information stored in the storage device 73 until the previous time. The parking information is updated and stored in the received parking information for each vehicle.

  Normally, parking information by a skilled driver is skilled because it requires only one shift operation, accelerator operation, steering operation for turning the steering wheel, steering operation for returning the steering wheel, and braking operation. In the parking information of the driver who is not present, it is inevitably necessary to switch back in the middle. In this case, the number of these operations increases, and a shift operation for selecting forward is performed, resulting in a larger number of operations.

  For this reason, when it is determined that the received parking information for each vehicle is based on a more skilled driver than the parking information stored in advance, the parking information for each received vehicle is stored in advance. The parking information is updated.

  Further, when the server 3 receives an instruction for requesting parking information corresponding to the vehicle type and the parking position from the parking assistance ECU 2 of each vehicle via the base station 4, the server 3 corresponds to the vehicle type and the parking position. The parking information is transmitted via the base station 4 to the parking assist ECU 2 that has issued a request command via the base station 4.

  Next, parking assistance ECU2 is demonstrated in detail using figures. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an embodiment of a parking assistance ECU 2 that forms part of the parking assistance device 1 according to the present invention.

  The parking assist ECU 2 includes a GPS (Global Positioning System) antenna 5, an IMU (Inertia Measurement Unit) 6, a receiver 7, a database 8, a display 9, a speaker 10, and a touch panel 11. Connected.

  Furthermore, an ABS (Anti-lock Brake System) 12, a communication device 13, an engine ECU 14, and a steering ECU 15 are connected to the parking assistance ECU 2 according to a communication standard such as CAN (Controller Area Network).

  The parking assist ECU 2 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and a data bus that interconnects them, and according to a program stored in the ROM, a search unit 2a, a detection unit 2b, and a display unit that perform respective controls described below. It functions as 2c.

  The communication device 13 is an interface for the parking assist ECU 2 to connect to the network described above and transmit / receive parking information to / from the server 3 via the base station 4, and includes a transmitter and a receiver.

  The engine ECU 14 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and a data bus that interconnects them, and performs each control described below in accordance with a program stored in the ROM. Then, the engine control amount and the like are determined with reference to the accelerator map with reference to the target torque, and the transmission is controlled with reference to the shift map so as to achieve the target acceleration.

  The steering ECU 15 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and a data bus that interconnects them, and performs each control described below according to a program stored in the ROM. Based on the input operation force and the steering angle detected by the steering sensor, the steering angle of a power steering device (not shown) is controlled here.

  The GPS antenna 5 receives radio waves from three military satellites among a plurality of military satellites launched over the earth, and based on these radio waves, the search means 2a of the parking assistance ECU 2 performs, for example, triangulation In principle, the vehicle position, that is, longitude and latitude are measured. When measuring altitude in addition to longitude and latitude, four military satellites are used.

  Here, the IMU 6 detects the yaw rate of the vehicle. The database 8 includes a storage medium such as a CD-ROM or a DVD-ROM, and stores and stores display map information and search map information. The touch panel 11 is an input device for a user to input a search condition such as a destination, and the display 9 is for displaying the vehicle position searched by the search means 2a of the parking support ECU 2 based on a command of the display means 2c of the parking support ECU 2. Displayed together with the map information, the touch panel 11 and the display 9 are constituted by one multi-information display.

  The ABS 12 is a device that prevents the wheel from being locked during braking, and obtains a vehicle speed for use in the control from a wheel speed sensor (not shown). The parking assist ECU 2 determines the vehicle speed from the ABS 12 to a communication standard such as CAN. It is acquired by sending by.

  Further, the receiver 7 is compliant with light or radio beacon, and receives road information from a VICS (Vehicle Information & Communication System).

  The vehicle position measurement by the search means 2a of the parking assist ECU 2 using the GPS antenna 5 described above is based on the characteristics of using radio waves from military satellites, when the vehicle is located in a valley of a high-rise building or in the tunnel. When the vehicle is traveling, or when the vehicle is traveling under a viaduct, the GPS antenna 5 cannot receive radio waves from military satellites, and thus the vehicle position cannot be measured.

  Therefore, when the GPS antenna 5 cannot receive radio waves from the military satellite, the search means 2a of the parking assist ECU 2 uses the vehicle speed detected by the ABS 12, the yaw rate detected by the IMU 6, and the steering angle detected by the steering ECU 15. Then, calculate the moving distance and direction of the vehicle and measure the vehicle position. Thereby, the accuracy of the measurement of the total vehicle position is enhanced together with the measurement of the vehicle position using the GPS antenna 5.

  And the detection means 2b of parking assistance ECU2 detects a parking position, a parking start position, and a parking locus from the own vehicle position measured by the method mentioned above, detects a shift operation and an accelerator operation from the engine ECU14 via CAN, A brake operation is detected from the ABS 12 via CAN, and a steering operation is detected from the steering ECU 15 via CAN. At the same time, the detection means 2b creates parking information from a combination of the vehicle type, the parking position, the parking start position, the parking locus, the shift operation, the accelerator operation, the brake operation, and the steering operation. Is transmitted to the server 3 via the base station 4. The parking start position refers to a position that once advances or moves backward when the vehicle is guided to the parking position.

  Further, in the current and next parking, the display means 2c of the parking assist ECU 2 displays the vehicle position searched by the search means 2a and the display map information on the display 9, and the driver designates the parking position on the touch panel 11. Then, the detection means 2b of the parking assist ECU 2 outputs a command for requesting the parking information corresponding to the vehicle type and the parking position to the server 3 via the base station 4, and acquires the corresponding parking information from the server 3. Therefore, the display means 2c of the parking assist ECU 2 uses the display 9 to display the parking start position, parking locus, shift operation, accelerator operation, brake operation, and steering operation based on the corresponding parking information acquired from the server 3. To display.

  The control contents of the parking assist ECU 2 described above will be described with reference to flowcharts and diagrams. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the control contents of the parking assistance apparatus 1 according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of parking information used in the parking assistance apparatus 1 according to the present invention.

  In S1, the search means 2a of the parking assistance ECU 2 of each vehicle measures the vehicle position by the method described above. In S2, the detection means 2b of the parking assistance ECU 2 detects the parking start position, the accelerator operation, the brake operation, and the steering operation. Detect the parking position.

  Subsequently, in S3, the detection means 2b of the parking assist ECU 2 creates the parking information A by adding the vehicle type information to the parking start position, the accelerator operation, the brake operation, the steering operation, and the parking position detected in S2.

  Furthermore, in S4, the detection means 2b of the parking assistance ECU 2 transmits the parking information A created in S3 to the server 3 via the base station 4. In S5, the server 3 receives the parking information A, and in S6, the server 3 reads out the vehicle information included in the parking information A and the parking information B recorded in advance corresponding to the parking position from the storage device 73. .

  Next, in S <b> 7, the server 3 determines that the total number of parking operations for the parking information A, that is, the total number of times of the shift operation, the accelerator operation, the brake operation, and the steering operation with the passage of time is a series of parking information B. It is determined whether or not the number is less than the operation. If the number is less, the process proceeds to S8, and if it is not determined that the number is less, the control is terminated.

  That is, in S7, when it is determined that the series of parking operations of the parking information A is less than the series of parking operations of the parking information B, the parking information A is compared with the parking information B by a more skilled driver. Since the parking information is made, the parking information B in the storage device 73 of the server 3 is updated with the parking information A in S8, and the parking information A is newly stored in the storage device 73.

  For example, it is assumed that the parking information B stored in the server 3 and the newly created parking information A are as shown in FIG. 5, and the vehicle type is a and the parking position is b. In the parking information B, since the turning operation is once entered, the total number of parking operations is 13 times. In the parking information A, the number of parking operations is 5 times. In S7 described above, the server 3 determines that the parking information A is less due to a series of parking operations than the parking information B and is due to a more skilled driver. Update B.

  After the server 3 updates the parking information B with the parking information A in S8, the server 3 transmits the parking information A to the parking assistance ECU 2 based on the request command from the parking assistance ECU 2 in S9, and S10 Then, the detection means 2b of the parking assistance ECU 2 receives the parking information A via the base station 4, and the display means 2c of the parking assistance ECU 2 displays the parking information A to the driver on the display 9 in S11.

  In S7, when it is not determined that the series of parking operations of the parking information A is less than the series of parking operations of the parking information B, the process proceeds to S12, and the server 3 performs parking based on a request command from the parking assistance ECU 2. The parking information B is transmitted to the assistance ECU 2, and in S13, the detection means 2b of the parking assistance ECU 2 receives the parking information B via the base station 4, and in S14, the display means 2c of the parking assistance ECU 2 displays the parking information B. Is displayed to the driver by the display 9.

  According to the parking assist device 1 of the present embodiment realized by these control contents, a parking operation such as a shift operation, an accelerator operation, a brake operation, a steering operation, etc. is detected by the detection means 2a of the parking assist ECU 2 in a plurality of vehicles. Then, parking information is created, and the parking information is collected by the roadside server 3, and parking information by a skilled driver having the least parking operation at the same parking position can be made into a database.

  Furthermore, when the parking information by the skilled driver with the least parking operation is updated as needed, and the parking information by the skilled driver with the least parking operation is newly acquired, the latest parking information is updated this time and It can be used in the next parking.

  Thus, when the driver tries to park the vehicle at the same parking position this time and next time, the parking information is read so that the parking information by the skilled driver is read from the server 3 and transmitted to the parking assist ECU 2. A request command is transmitted from the support ECU 2 to the server 3, the parking information is received and acquired via the base station 4, and displayed to the driver by the display means 2c. Appropriate parking start position, parking locus, accelerator operation, brake operation, and steering operation can be recognized using the parking information by a skilled driver. Thereby, a driver | operator's parking operation can be assisted more appropriately.

  Further, according to this embodiment, in a vehicle equipped with IPA, the target parking position is set when the target parking position has no white line and the white line cannot be recognized, or when the target parking position is not reflected in the image. Even in situations where automatic steering by IPA is not possible, the parking information by skilled drivers displayed in the database is displayed to the driver, and the appropriate parking start position, parking locus, accelerator operation, brake operation, and steering operation are driven. By making the driver recognize the vehicle, it is possible to support the driver's parking operation more appropriately.

  Moreover, since the parking information by the skilled driver memorize | stored by the server 3 can be classified and classified for every vehicle type, it originates in a vehicle width, a vehicle length, and the minimum turning radius differing for every vehicle type. In response to changes in appropriate parking information for each vehicle type, parking information for each vehicle type can be displayed to the driver, and the driver's parking operation can be supported more appropriately.

  Furthermore, since the parking information memorize | stored by the server 3 can be divided and databased for every parking position, even when the driver intends to park at a different parking position, it corresponds to the parking position. Parking information can be displayed to the driver so that the driver can recognize the appropriate parking start position, parking locus, accelerator operation, brake operation, and steering operation more appropriately. It can be performed.

  In addition, the driver recognizes the parking start position, the parking locus, the accelerator operation, the brake operation, and the steering operation compared to the case of notifying the driver of the danger during parking operation due to the difference in the image as in the prior art. Therefore, it is possible to provide information more useful to the driver and assist the driver in parking.

  Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions are made to the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. be able to.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the steering operation is only displayed to the driver during the parking operation. However, the steering ECU 15 automatically controls the steering angle based on a command from the driving support ECU 2. The driver may be configured to perform only the shift operation, the accelerator operation, and the brake operation.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the server 3 and the base station 4 are used to form a network by the parking assist ECUs 2 for a plurality of vehicles, and the server 3 realizes the functions of storage means and update means. It is good also as a structure which equips the parking assistance ECU2 of one vehicle with the function of a memory | storage means and an update means.

  This also makes it possible to classify the parking information for each parking position and create a database. Therefore, when the driver intends to park at a different parking position, the parking information corresponding to the parking position is driven. It can be displayed to the driver so that the driver can recognize the appropriate parking start position, parking locus, accelerator operation, brake operation, and steering operation, so that the driver can more appropriately assist the parking operation. it can.

  In addition, by using the storage medium 78 of the server 3, the parking information created by the network configured by the other parking support ECU 2 and the server 3 is shared, and the parking information having the same vehicle type and parking position is included in the parking information. It can be extracted to further enhance the database of parking information by skilled workers.

  Further, the parking information created by the servers 3 belonging to a plurality of types of networks is aggregated by using the storage medium 78 of each server, and a database of skilled parking information is reconstructed. It is also possible to supply the information to the servers 3 belonging to the respective networks again to further share the parking information.

  The present invention relates to a parking assistance device that can more appropriately assist a driver's parking operation, and a desired effect can be obtained by a relatively slight change in control. It is useful when applied to various vehicles such as buses.

It is a block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the parking assistance apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the parking assistance apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a block diagram which shows one Embodiment of the parking assistance apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the control content of one Embodiment of the parking assistance apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the parking information produced by one Embodiment of the parking assistance apparatus which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

1 Parking assistance device 2 Parking assistance ECU
3 Server 4 Base station 5 GPS antenna 6 IMU
7 Receiver 8 Database 9 Display 10 Speaker 11 Touch Panel 12 ABS
13 Communication device 14 Engine ECU
15 Steering ECU
71 CPU
72 Main storage device 73 Storage device 74 Display device 75 Input device 76 Drive device 77 Communication device 78 Storage medium

Claims (3)

  Search means for searching for a parking position of the vehicle, a series of parking operations corresponding to the parking position and detection means for detecting a parking locus as parking information, storage means for storing the parking information, and storage means. When the previous parking information at the parking position is compared with the current parking information detected by the detecting means, and the parking information constituting the current parking information is small, the previous parking information is The parking assistance device further comprises an updating means for updating the parking information.   The search means and the detection means are provided in a plurality of vehicles, the storage means and the update means are provided on the roadside, and communication means for connecting the detection means and the storage means to each other is provided. Item 10. The parking assistance device according to item 1.   The parking support according to claim 2, wherein the parking information includes a vehicle type, the storage unit stores the parking information for each vehicle type, and the update unit updates the parking information for each vehicle type. apparatus.

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