Parking support device

• US 8,035,531 B2
• Filed: 10/24/2006
• Issued: 10/11/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Ohira, Takashi, Ikari, Keisuke, Ito, Takuya, Kubota, Yuuichi, Yoshihashi, Akio, Nonoyama, Takashi, Endo, Tomohiko, Kawabata, Yukiko, Makino, Yasushi
• Primary Examiner(s): Mehmood; Jennifer
• Assistant Examiner(s): SMALL, NAOMI J
• Application Number:
  US12/092,095
• Publication Number:
  US 20090251334A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,813 Days
• Field of Search: 340/932.2
• US Class Current: 340/932.2
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/146 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/14 Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/0285 Parking performed automatically

Abstract

To provide a parking support device for easily and quickly moving or rotating a target parking frame to an appropriate position. The parking support device includes a target parking position setting unit configured to set a target parking position at which a vehicle is to be parked with a target parking frame superimposed on an actual image displaying an area surrounding the vehicle. The parking support device guides the vehicle to the target parking position set by the target parking position setting unit. The target parking position setting unit moves the target parking frame initially displayed on a touch display to a position indicated by a coordinate point determined by a touch operation.

Claims

1. A parking support device comprising:

a target parking position setting unit configured to set a target parking position at which a vehicle is to be parked by superimposing a predetermined target parking frame on an actual image displaying an area surrounding the vehicle, wherein

the parking support device guides the vehicle to the target parking position set by the target parking position setting unit,

the target parking position setting unit moves a parking base point position indicated as recognizable by an operator on the target parking frame displayed on a touch display together with the target parking frame, to a coordinate point, the coordinate point being determined by a single touch operation on a part of the touch display other than a button switch.

2. The parking support device according to claim 1, wherein:

the target parking frame has a rectangular shape representing the vehicle; and

one of four corners of the target parking frame is moved to coincide with said coordinate point.

3. The parking support device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a feature point recognition unit configured to recognize a feature point from the actual image displaying the area surrounding the vehicle, wherein;

the target parking position setting unit moves said coordinate point to a feature point, the feature point being located at a different position than the coordinate point and that is recognized by the feature point recognition unit and that is nearest to said coordinate point, and moves the target parking frame to a position indicated by said feature point.

4. The parking support device according to claim 3, wherein:

said feature point comprises a point along a parking section line marked on the ground; and

the target parking position setting unit moves the target parking frame to a position indicated by said point along the parking section line to arrange the target parking frame in such a manner as to substantially correspond to the parking section line.

9. The parking support device according to claim 2, further comprising:

a feature point recognition unit configured to recognize a feature point from the actual image displaying the area surrounding the vehicle, wherein;

the target parking position setting unit moves said coordinate point to one feature point that is recognized by the feature point recognition unit and that is nearest to said coordinate point, and moves the target parking frame to a position indicated by said one feature point.

5. A parking support device comprising:

a target parking position setting unit configured to set, based on a position of a predetermined target parking frame, a target parking position at which a vehicle is to be parked by superimposing the target parking frame on an actual image displaying an area surrounding the vehicle, wherein;

the parking support device guides the vehicle to the target parking position set by the target parking position setting unit; and

the target parking position setting unit moves one of four corners of the target parking frame to a coordinate point determined by a touch operation of a part other than a button switch on a touch display, and uses said coordinate point as a rotation center of the target parking frame so that the target parking frame is adjusted by rotation.

6. The parking support device according to claim 5, wherein:

the target parking frame has a rectangular shape representing the vehicle.

7. The parking support device according to claim 5, further comprising:

a rotation center highlighting unit configured to highlight the rotation center in such a manner that the rotation center can be identified.

8. The parking support device according to claim 5, further comprising:

a translucent display unit configured to display, in a translucent manner, the target parking frame to be superimposed on the actual image displaying the area surrounding the vehicle.

10. The parking support device according to claim 6, further comprising:

a rotation center highlighting unit configured to highlight the rotation center in such a manner that the rotation center can be identified.

11. The parking support device according to claim 5, wherein the target parking position setting unit moves the target parking frame initially displayed on a touch display, to the position indicated by the coordinate point based on a single touch operation that indicates the position of the coordinate point.

12. A parking support device comprising:

a target parking position setting unit configured to set a target parking position at which a vehicle is to be parked by superimposing a predetermined target parking frame on an actual image displaying an area surrounding the vehicle,

wherein the parking support device guides the vehicle to the target parking position set by the target parking position setting unit,

wherein the target parking frame includes a parking base point overlapping on the display at least a portion of the target parking frame,

wherein a user'"'"'s single touch operation on the display other than a button switch indicates a position of one coordinate point,

wherein the target parking position setting unit moves the target parking frame to a position indicated by the one coordinate point based on the touch operation of the user, and

wherein the setting unit moves the target parking frame such that the parking base point substantially overlaps the one coordinate point.

13. The parking support device according to claim 12, further comprising:

a feature point recognition unit configured to recognize a feature point from the actual image displaying the area surrounding the vehicle,

wherein the target parking position setting unit moves said one coordinate point to one feature point that is recognized by the feature point recognition unit and that is nearest to said one coordinate point, and moves the target parking frame to a position indicated by said one feature point such that the parking base point substantially overlaps the one coordinate point.