Kabushiki Kaisha Toyota Jidoshokki

Kabushiki Kaisha Toyoda Jidoshokki Seisakusho

Tomio Kimura

Kazunori Shimazaki

Satoshi Yamada

Hisashi Kuriya

Satoshi Yamamoto

Kousuke Teramura

Koji Hika

Masami Tomioka

Goro Asahi

Isao Suzuki

Yutaka Nakashima

Masahiko Ando

Masashi Ushino

Hideo Yanagisawa

Kanji Hattori

A parking assistance apparatus makes it easy for a driver to grasp a relative positional relation between a vehicle and a target parking position and makes it possible to park the vehicle at the target parking position in a parking space with accuracy. An image of a mark M in a parking space S is taken by a vehicle-side camera. A relative position calculation portioncalculates a relative positional relation between the vehicle and a target parking position T based on the taken image of the mark M. A backward locus calculation portioncalculates an expected locus when the vehicle moves based on the relative positional relation and based on a steering angle detected by a steering angle sensor. An image of the parking space S is taken by a parking-space-side cameraand transmitted to a vehicle-side apparatus. An image composition portioncomposes the image of the parking space S from the parking-space-side cameraand the expected locus calculated by the backward locus calculation portion. The composed image is displayed on the monitorlocated in the vicinity of a drivers seat of the vehicle.

Parking assistance apparatus, vehicle-side apparatus of parking assistance apparatus, parking assist method, and parking assist program

In a parking assistance apparatus disclosed herein, a position and a yaw angle of a vehicle are acquired continuously from an initial stop position A, and a vehicle mark C' in moving the vehicle backwards with a steering angle maintained during a backward movement operation from a backward movement start position B in parking the vehicle in a target parking space S is displayed on a display. The vehicle mark C&#x2032; is displayed in a shifting manner on the display such that the target parking space S is traced based on a momentary steering angle and a momentary yaw angle of the vehicle, which result from backward movement of the vehicle. When the vehicle mark C&#x2032; deviates from the target parking space S during the backward movement operation, a driver adjusts the steering angle. The vehicle mark C&#x2032; is shifted on the display based on a change in the steering angle to be turned into a vehicle mark Cat a suitable position corresponding to the target parking space S.

Parking assistance apparatus

In a parking assistance apparatus disclosed herein, when a lateral parking mode switch is set at an initial stop position A, a controller calculates a backward movement start position B for parking based on a yaw angle and a steering angle of a vehicle, and issues guiding information to stop the vehicle upon having determined that the vehicle has reached the calculated backward movement start position B. After having sensed that a shift lever was shifted to a reverse position, the controller displays on a display an image captured by a camera as to an area behind the vehicle, and also displays on the display in a superimposed manner an estimated vehicle space in the case where the vehicle moves backwards while maintaining a steering angle at the time of the shift of the shift lever. The driver operates a steering wheel so as to establish a suitable positional relation between the estimated vehicle space and a target parking space on the display, whereby an appropriate steering angle is obtained in moving the vehicle backwards.

A steering assist apparatus that assists a driver when backing a vehicle in an S-shaped path or parallel parking. The apparatus displays guidance marking on a monitor screen and the driver refers to the guidance marking, which permits the driver to easily back the vehicle to a desired position. The apparatus includes a camera, a monitor, an angle sensor, obstacle sensors, an image processing unit, a controller and a monitor controller. The image processing unit computes the predicted path of the vehicle at the current wheel angle. The monitor shows an image captured by the camera. The image processing unit generates data representing a guidance marking based on the predicted path and superimposes the marking on the monitor screen. The location of the marking on the screen is determined based on the current wheel angle. The marking represents part of the predicted path. Specifically, the marking matches the width of the vehicle. In the monitor screen, a marking is separated from the rear bumper of the vehicle by a distance corresponding to the wheelbase of the vehicle.

Apparatus for assisting steering of vehicle when backing

A parking assisting device including an image capturing unit for capturing at least an image behind the vehicle, a monitor for displaying the image obtained by the image capturing unit, a yaw angle detecting unit for detecting a yaw angle of the vehicle, a guiding unit for outputting guidance information to the driver and a controller for comparing a prescribed yaw angle corresponding to a predetermined vehicle position with the yaw angle of the vehicle detected by the yaw angle detecting unit, to identify a current position of the vehicle, and providing guidance information via the guiding unit while displaying at least one of a predicted path and a predicted parking position on the monitor so as to overlap with the image obtained by the image capturing unit to enable the driver to confirm whether the vehicle can be parked in target parking space.

Parking assisting device

Disclosed is a parking assisting device, including: a camera for capturing an image behind a vehicle; a display provided to a dashboard of the vehicle; passage width measurement device that measures a width of a passage; and a controller for displaying the image captured with the camera on the display. Also disclosed is a device for calculating an initial stopping position required for parking the vehicle in-parallel into a target parking space perpendicular to the passage on the basis of the passage width measured, with the passage width measurement device, to superimpose on a screen of the display a displayed image for guidance used for guiding the vehicle to the initial stopping position.

When a vehicle advances in parallel with a parking frame to reach an initial stop position, measurement of a distance to a parked vehicle is continuously performed by means of an ultrasonic sensor and a moving distance of the vehicle is simultaneously calculated using a signal from a wheel speed sensor. When actuating an in-line mode switch under a state where the vehicle stops in the initial stop position, a turning angle is calculated so as to enable appropriate in-line parking to the parking frame from an actual initial stop position, based on a deviation of the vehicle from a reference position for the initial stop measured by the ultrasonic sensor. Information on a driving operation that is necessary for back parking is provided to a driver via a speaker based on this turning angle and output from a yaw rate sensor.

A parking assisting device is provided with: a yaw rate sensor for detecting a yaw angle of a vehicle; a controller having a navigation function control unit and a parking assisting function control unit; a function selecting switch for determining switching to a parking assisting mode from a navigation mode; a monitor for providing navigation information, as well as for setting the reference position of the yaw angle and selecting a parking mode; and a speaker for providing parking assisting information to a driver in accordance with a vehicle position specified on the basis of the yaw angle.

A controller is provided with a CPU, an EEPROM for storing data that is unique to a vehicle and which is rewritable, and a control ROM for performing parking assistance upon parking in lateral and parking in parallel, based on a minimum turning radius Rc of the data that is unique to the vehicle, which is stored in the EEPROM, and the CPU operates based on the control program stored in the control ROM. The controller calculates a yaw angle of the vehicle from an angular speed of the vehicle inputted from a yaw rate sensor and information about an operation method and operation timing in each step during the drive for parking in lateral and parking in parallel is outputted to a speaker through calculating a turning angle of the vehicle, thereby appropriately assisting a driver with parking.

A steering assist apparatus includes a camera for picking up the rear side of a vehicle, a monitor disposed in a driver's compartment of the vehicle, a steering angle sensor for detecting a steering angle of a steering wheel, and a display controlling unit for displaying on the monitor an image through said camera when the vehicle reverses and for superimposing and displaying on said monitor a guide display for assisting the drive of the vehicle when the vehicle is to be parked. The guide display includes a steering start guide line fixedly displayed in a predetermined position of an image field of the monitor for guiding a steering start position for parking, and a steering amount guide mark moved and displayed along the steering start guide line on the image field of the monitor in correspondence with a steering angle of the steering wheel detected by the steering angle sensor. The driver performs the steering operation of the vehicle while recognizing the position for the opposite turning of the steering wheel and the steering amount and the steering start position for parking on the basis of the image on the rear side of the vehicle and the steering amount guide mark and the steering start guide line.

Growing community of inventors

Aichi-ken, Japan

Tomio Kimura