JP7780372B2 - Mechanical parking facilities - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to mechanical parking facilities.

Mechanical parking facilities typically have multiple storage areas and a transport device that transports entering vehicles parked in designated parking positions to the designated storage area. In such mechanical parking facilities, safety can be threatened if an entering vehicle is parked in a storage area while the driver leaves a passenger, such as a small child, inside the vehicle.

Patent Document 1 describes an in-vehicle safety confirmation device that is installed in a vehicle. This in-vehicle safety confirmation device is equipped with a person detection means for detecting people inside the vehicle.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2018-172926

As mentioned above, safety is threatened in mechanical parking facilities when an incoming vehicle is parked in a parking area while the driver leaves passengers, such as small children, inside the vehicle.

The present invention was made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a mechanical parking facility that prevents occupants from being left behind inside entering vehicles and increases safety.

To achieve the above object, one aspect of the present invention provides a mechanical parking facility that includes an operating device including a storage unit for storing vehicles and a transport device for transporting the vehicle parked at a predetermined parking position to the storage unit; when the vehicle is capable of detecting a person inside the vehicle and is configured to emit a manned-in-vehicle signal when a person is detected inside the vehicle when the vehicle reaches a predetermined state after parking, a signal acquisition means for acquiring the manned-in-vehicle signal emitted from the vehicle parked at the parking position; a determination unit for determining whether to permit or prohibit operation of the operating device; and a device control unit for controlling the operation of the operating device based on the determination result of the determination unit, wherein the determination unit is configured to prohibit operation of the operating device when the signal acquisition means acquires the manned-in-vehicle signal after the vehicle has parked at the parking position.

With this configuration, the determination unit disallows operation of the operating device if the signal acquisition means acquires an on-board presence signal after the vehicle has stopped at the parking position. In this case, the device control unit does not allow the operating device to operate, thereby preventing passengers such as small children from being left inside the entering vehicle and improving safety.

After determining that operation of the operating device is not permitted, the determination unit may maintain the state in which operation of the operating device is not permitted until information is acquired that the vehicle is unoccupied.

The vehicle may further include a vehicle discrimination means for discriminating whether the vehicle is a vehicle that emits the on-board occupancy signal, and the determination unit may permit operation of the operating device if the vehicle discrimination means discriminates that the vehicle is a vehicle that emits the on-board occupancy signal and the signal acquisition means does not acquire the on-board occupancy signal within a predetermined time after the vehicle stops at the stop position.

The vehicle may further include an unmanned input operation unit through which a user of the vehicle inputs information indicating that the vehicle is unmanned, and the determination unit may permit operation of the operating device after receiving information indicating that the vehicle is unmanned from the unmanned input operation unit. The unmanned input operation unit may also be a safety confirmation input operation unit that inputs information indicating that there are no problems as a result of a safety check, including the fact that the vehicle is unmanned.

The system may further include a storage unit that pre-stores user vehicle information that associates user authentication information with vehicle discrimination information indicating whether the vehicle used by the user is a vehicle that emits an on-board attendant signal, and an authentication means that compares the authentication information obtained from the user before the vehicle enters the parking position with the user authentication information stored in the storage unit, and the vehicle discrimination means may be configured to refer to the user vehicle information and determine whether the vehicle is a vehicle that emits the on-board attendant signal based on the vehicle discrimination information associated with the authentication information obtained from the user before the vehicle enters the parking position.

The vehicle discrimination means may be configured to recognize the vehicle registration number of the vehicle parked at the parking position from an image captured by a camera that photographs the license plate of the vehicle, and to determine whether the vehicle is a vehicle that emits an on-board presence signal by comparing the recognized vehicle registration number with vehicle registration numbers registered in a vehicle database as vehicles that emit an on-board presence signal.

The on-board presence signal may include at least one of a signal generated by flashing lights on the vehicle and a signal generated by sounding a horn or buzzer on the vehicle.

The signal acquisition means may be configured to acquire the unmanned vehicle signal emitted from the vehicle when the vehicle is capable of detecting a person inside the vehicle and is configured to emit an unmanned vehicle signal if no person is detected inside the vehicle when the driver exits the vehicle and the vehicle enters a predetermined state, and the determination unit may permit operation of the operating device when the signal acquisition means acquires the unmanned vehicle signal after the vehicle has stopped at the stopping position or when an input indicating that the vehicle is unmanned is received from the unmanned vehicle input operation unit.

In addition, a mechanical parking facility according to another aspect of the present invention includes an operating device including a storage unit for storing vehicles and a transport device for transporting the vehicle parked at a predetermined parking position to the storage unit; when the vehicle is capable of detecting a person inside the vehicle and is configured to emit an unmanned vehicle signal when no person is detected inside the vehicle after the driver has exited the vehicle and the vehicle is in a predetermined state, a signal acquisition means for acquiring the unmanned vehicle signal emitted from the vehicle; a judgment unit for determining whether to permit or disallow operation of the operating device; a device control unit for controlling the operation of the operating device by reflecting the judgment result of the judgment unit; and an unmanned input operation unit for a user of the vehicle to input that the vehicle is unmanned, wherein the judgment unit may permit operation of the operating device if the signal acquisition means acquires the unmanned vehicle signal or if an input that the vehicle is unmanned is received from the unmanned input operation unit within a predetermined time after the vehicle has stopped at the parking position, and may disallow operation of the operating device if the unmanned vehicle signal is not received and no input that the vehicle is unmanned is received from the unmanned input operation unit.

With this configuration, the determination unit will not permit operation of the operating device if the signal acquisition means does not acquire an unmanned vehicle signal and the unmanned vehicle input operation unit does not input information indicating that the vehicle is unmanned within a predetermined time after the vehicle has stopped at the parking position. In this case, the device control unit will not cause the operating device to operate, preventing passengers such as young children from being left inside the entering vehicle and improving safety. Furthermore, if the unmanned vehicle signal cannot be acquired even when the vehicle is unmanned due to an abnormality in the vehicle or signal acquisition means, operation can be permitted if the user checks the interior of the vehicle and then inputs information indicating that the vehicle is unmanned from the unmanned vehicle input operation unit.

The in-vehicle unmanned signal may include at least one of a signal generated by flashing lights on the vehicle and a signal generated by sounding a horn or buzzer on the vehicle.

In addition, a mechanical parking facility according to another aspect of the present invention includes a storage unit for storing vehicles, an operating device including a transport device for transporting the vehicle parked at a predetermined parking position to the storage unit, a determination unit for determining whether to permit or prohibit the operation of the operating device, a device control unit for controlling the operation of the operating device by reflecting the determination result of the determination unit, an entry/exit area having the parking position, an entry/exit area human detection means for detecting a person in the entry/exit area, a communication device for communicating with the vehicle capable of detecting a person inside the vehicle, and a device for detecting a person inside the vehicle when the user of the vehicle is unoccupied. and an unmanned input operation unit that inputs a signal indicating that there is no one inside the vehicle. The determination unit permits operation of the operating device when the communication device transmits an inquiry signal to the vehicle that has entered the entry/exit area to inquire about the detection result of a person inside the vehicle and receives a vehicle unmanned signal from the vehicle in response, or when the unmanned input operation unit inputs that there is no one inside the vehicle and no person is detected by the entry/exit area person detection means, and prohibits operation of the operating device in other cases.

With this configuration, the determination unit permits operation of the operating device when the communication device sends an inquiry signal to a vehicle entering the entry/exit area to inquire about the detection of a person inside the vehicle and receives an unmanned vehicle signal from the vehicle in response, or when the unmanned vehicle input operation unit receives input indicating that the vehicle is unmanned and no person is detected by the entry/exit area person detection means. Otherwise, the operation of the operating device is not permitted, and the device control unit does not cause the operating device to operate. This prevents occupants such as small children from being left inside the entering vehicle and improves safety.

The communication device may be configured to transmit the inquiry signal to the vehicle parked at the parking location.

The vehicle may further include a door opening/closing detection means for detecting the opening or closing of a door of the vehicle parked at the parking position, and the determination unit may permit operation of the operating device if the vehicle is parked at the parking position and before the door opening/closing detection means detects that the vehicle door is open and information indicating that the vehicle is unoccupied is acquired from the vehicle.

If the vehicle is an autonomously driven vehicle capable of autonomous driving and the determination unit has acquired information from the vehicle indicating that the vehicle is unoccupied before the vehicle stops at the stopping position, the determination unit may allow the operation of the operating device when the vehicle stops at the stopping position.

The vehicle may further include an entry/exit area having the parking position, and the operating device may include a door opening/closing device that opens and closes an entrance/exit door provided at the entrance/exit of the entry/exit area, and the device control unit may be configured to control the door opening/closing device to close the entrance/exit door when the determination unit has permitted operation of the operating device when the vehicle stops at the parking position by autonomous driving with the entrance/exit door open and information indicating that no people are present around the vehicle is obtained from the vehicle.

The vehicle may further include an entry/exit area having the parking position, and an entry/exit area human detection means for detecting people within the entry/exit area, wherein the operating device includes a door opening/closing device for opening and closing an entrance/exit door provided at the entrance/exit of the entry/exit area, and the device control unit may be configured to control the door opening/closing device to close the entrance/exit door when the determination unit permits operation of the operating device when the vehicle stops at the parking position by autonomous driving with the entrance/exit door open and no people are detected by the entry/exit area human detection means.

The vehicle may further include a notification unit that notifies the driver that an occupant has been left behind in the vehicle if the determination unit determines that operation of the operating device is not permitted.

The present invention has the above-described configuration and has the effect of providing a mechanical parking facility that prevents occupants from being left behind inside entering vehicles and increases safety.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing, in plan view, an entry/exit area of an example of a mechanical parking facility according to this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an outline of the mechanical parking facility and vehicles shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an outline of the procedure for parking a manually operated vehicle in the mechanical parking facility shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an outline of the procedure for parking an automatically driven vehicle in the mechanical parking facility shown in FIG.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. Note that, throughout the drawings, identical or corresponding elements will be designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations will be omitted. Furthermore, the drawings are schematic representations of each component for ease of understanding, and the shapes, dimensional ratios, etc. may not be accurately depicted.

(Embodiment)
Fig. 1 is a schematic plan view of an example of a parking area of a mechanical parking facility according to the present embodiment, and Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing an outline of the parking area and a vehicle shown in Fig. 1 .

For the sake of convenience, the following description will refer to the directions as seen from vehicle V when it moves forward and enters the loading/unloading area 3 as front, rear, left, and right. Note that, while an elevator-type parking facility is used as an example of the mechanical parking facility 1, it is not limited to the elevator type and may also be a vertical circulation type, horizontal multi-level type, box-type circulation type, flat reciprocating type, or other parking device.

This mechanical parking facility 1 includes a parking tower 2 with multiple storage areas for storing pallets 6. The first floor of the parking tower 2 is a loading/unloading area 3, with an entrance/exit 4 for the loading/unloading area 3 located on the front side. The entrance/exit 4 is equipped with an entrance/exit door 5 that slides up and down to open and close, and a door opening/closing device 22 (Figure 2) that opens and closes the entrance/exit door 5. The second and higher floors of the parking tower 2 are equipped with multiple storage areas for storing vehicles V mounted on pallets 6. A transport device 21 (Figure 2) transports pallets 6 between each storage area and a predetermined position in the loading/unloading area 3 (the position of the pallet 6 shown in Figure 1). A well-known elevator-type parking facility transport device 21 can be used for this transport device 21, and details will be omitted. A control panel 7 for operating the mechanical parking facility 1 is located near the entrance/exit 4 on the exterior of the parking tower 2. In this example, the control device 8 is built into the control panel 7.

In addition, the loading/unloading area 3 is provided with well-known object detection sensors 11-14, such as photoelectric sensors and LIDAR, at the front, rear, left, and right of the pallet 6 to detect people and other objects within the loading/unloading area 3. A well-known object detection sensor 16 is also provided to detect vehicles V on the pallet 6, and a well-known object detection sensor 15 is also provided at the entrance/exit 4. Surveillance cameras may also be provided to capture images within the loading/unloading area 3.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the mechanical parking facility 1 includes an operation panel 7, a control device 8, a signal acquisition means 9, a communication device 10, a transport device 21 that transports pallets 6, a door opening/closing device 22 that opens and closes the entrance/exit door 5, and object detection sensors 11-16. The operation panel 7 is equipped with a touch panel display, an IC card reader, a speaker, and other devices. The touch panel display functions as both a display unit and an operation unit (touch panel).

The control device 8 receives signals acquired by the signal acquisition means 9, output signals from the object detection sensors 11-16, and signals from the operation panel 7, and outputs necessary signals to the operation panel 7. The control device 8 also functions as a device control unit 81 that controls the operation of the transport device 21 and door opening/closing device 22, which are the operating devices 20, and also functions as a determination unit 82 and vehicle discrimination means 83. The control device 8 has an arithmetic processing unit such as a CPU, and a storage unit including ROM, RAM, etc. that stores the control program executed by the CPU and various data, etc. The CPU executes the control program to control the entire mechanical parking facility 1. The control device 8 may be composed of a single control device that performs centralized control, or may be composed of multiple control devices that cooperate with each other to perform decentralized control.

Vehicle V is equipped with a vehicle control device 51, which is composed of an ECU or the like, an in-vehicle occupant detection means 52, a signal output means 53, and a communication device 54. The in-vehicle occupant detection means 52 may be composed of, for example, millimeter-wave radar, an infrared sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, etc., or may use a method of recognizing camera images, etc., as long as it is capable of detecting occupants inside the vehicle.

When the driver exits the vehicle V and the vehicle enters a predetermined state (here, the driver's seat switch is OFF and the doors are locked, but it may also be a state where the driver's seat switch is OFF and all doors remain closed for a predetermined period of time), the vehicle control device 51 activates the vehicle interior occupancy detection means 52. When the vehicle interior occupancy detection means 52 activates and detects a person inside the vehicle, the vehicle control device 51 causes the signal output means 53 to output an interior occupancy signal, which is a signal indicating the presence of a person inside the vehicle.

This signal output means 53 is, for example, the lights (hazard lights, headlights, backup lights, etc.) of the vehicle V, and the flashing signal of the lights is the on-board presence signal. In this case, the signal acquisition means 9 of the mechanical parking facility 1 is composed of a photodetector or the like capable of detecting the flashing signal from the vehicle V parked on the pallet 6 in the entry/exit area 3, and is placed in the entry/exit area 3.

The signal output means 53 may also be a horn or buzzer provided in the vehicle V. In this case, the sound of the horn or buzzer serves as the on-board occupancy signal. The signal output means 53 may output a sound having a predetermined intermittent pattern as the on-board occupancy signal, or may output a sound exceeding a predetermined volume as the on-board occupancy signal.
In this case, the signal acquisition means 9 of the mechanical parking facility 1 is composed of a sound collection device or the like capable of detecting sounds output as the above-mentioned in-vehicle presence signal from a vehicle V parked at a predetermined parking position on a pallet 6 in the entry/exit area 3, and is placed in the entry/exit area 3.

Figure 3 is a flowchart showing an outline of the procedure for parking a manually operated vehicle in a mechanical parking facility 1. In this example, vehicle V is a manually operated vehicle that is driven and operated by a driver.

In addition, each user of the mechanical parking facility 1 is a contractor who has signed a contract in advance to use the mechanical parking facility 1. Contractors are, for example, loaned a dedicated IC card that stores their authentication information. Authentication information for multiple contractors (users) is stored in advance in the memory unit of the control device 8.

The driver, who is the user, stops vehicle V in front of entrance/exit 4 and performs the first authentication operation by touching the IC card to the IC card reader on the operation panel 7 (step S1).

When the first authentication operation is performed, the control device 8 compares the authentication information entered with the contractor's authentication information stored in the memory unit. If the control device 8 authenticates that the user who performed the first authentication operation is the contractor, and if it confirms that no in-stock vehicles linked to the user are stored, it determines that entry is requested and controls the transport device 21 to transport the empty pallet 6 from the storage unit to the loading/unloading area 3 (step S2). When the empty pallet 6 arrives at the loading/unloading area 3, it controls the door opening/closing device 22 to open the entrance/exit door 5 (step S3).

When the entrance/exit door 5 is opened, the user enters the vehicle V. That is, the user drives the vehicle V into a designated parking position on the pallet 6 in the loading/unloading area 3, stops the vehicle, shuts off the engine (engine, motor, etc.), gets out of the vehicle, and locks the door (step S4). The user then exits the loading/unloading area 3 through the entrance/exit 4 (step S5).

Next, the user confirms that there is no one in the loading/unloading area 3 and presses the safety confirmation button on the operation panel 7 (step S6). Next, the user performs the second authentication operation (step S7). Similar to the first authentication operation, the second authentication operation involves the user touching their IC card to the IC card reader on the operation panel 7.

If the object detection sensors 11-15 do not detect anything after the user presses the safety confirmation button, the control device 8 compares the authentication information entered in the second authentication operation with the authentication information entered in the previous first authentication operation, and if the authentication information matches, it controls the door opening/closing device 22 to close the entrance door 5 (step S8). Furthermore, if the object detection sensors 11-15 detect a person or object after the user presses the safety confirmation button but before the entrance door 5 closes, the entrance door 5 cannot be closed unless the user performs another safety check and presses the safety confirmation button.

Next, after the entrance/exit door 5 is completely closed, the control device 8 controls the transport device 21 to transport the pallet 6 carrying the vehicle V to the designated storage area (step S9). The above is the normal procedure for the storage process. Note that the procedure for the unloading process is generally the same as the procedure for the storage process, although there are differences between storage and unloading.

Note that, while the above example illustrates the use of an IC card for the first and second authentication operations, various well-known methods can also be used, such as authentication using a PIN number, biometric authentication using a fingerprint, or authentication using a smartphone.

In step S4 of the above-mentioned entry process, when the driver's seat switch is OFF and the doors of vehicle V are locked, the vehicle interior occupancy detection means 52 is activated, and when a person is detected inside the vehicle, an interior occupancy signal is output from the signal output means 53. In this case, the control device 8 acquires the interior occupancy signal (interior occupancy information) from the signal acquisition means 9 (step S11).

In the control device 8, the device control unit 81 controls the operation of the operating device 20 (the conveying device 21 and the door opening/closing device 22). After the vehicle V stops at the parking position for the pallet 6, the determination unit 82 determines whether to permit or prohibit the operation of the operating device 20 under the control of the device control unit 81. Specifically, after the vehicle V stops at the parking position for the pallet 6 and detects the driver dismounting, the determination unit 82 permits the operation of the operating device 20 if the signal acquisition means 9 does not acquire an on-board presence signal within a predetermined time, and prohibits the operation of the operating device 20 if the signal acquisition means 9 acquires an on-board presence signal within the predetermined time. Here, the driver dismounting may be detected from the output of the object detection sensors 11, 12 capable of detecting the opening and closing of the doors of the vehicle V, or from images captured by a surveillance camera capturing the interior of the loading/unloading area 3. Note that if vehicle V is an autonomous vehicle that has entered the warehouse unmanned, as described below, the timing of the predetermined time may begin immediately after vehicle V stops at the parking position on pallet 6, without detecting that the driver has dismounted.

The device control unit 81 controls the operation of the operating device 20, reflecting the determination result of the determination unit 82. That is, if the determination unit 82 permits the operation of the operating device 20, the device control unit 81 performs steps S5, S6, and S7, followed by closing the entrance door 5 using the door opening/closing device 22 (step S8) and transporting the pallet 6 to the storage unit using the transport device 21 (step S9). However, if the determination unit 82 does not permit the operation of the operating device 20, the device control unit 81 does not allow the entrance door 5 to be closed (step S8) and the pallet 6 to be transported to the storage unit (step S9).

This prevents passengers, such as small children, from being left behind inside the vehicle V, thereby improving safety. If the determination unit 82 determines that permission is not permitted, an alarm unit, such as a speaker, provided on the operation panel 7 may be configured to notify the passenger that an occupant has been left behind inside the vehicle.

If the determination unit 82 determines that operation is not permitted in this way, the driver may check the interior of the vehicle, have any abandoned occupants exit the vehicle, and then press an unoccupied vehicle confirmation button provided on the operation panel 7, which may cause the determination unit 82 to permit operation of the operating device 20. In this case, when the unoccupied vehicle confirmation button is pressed, the determination unit 82 obtains information that the vehicle is unoccupied, cancels the unauthorised state, and sets the state to permitted, but maintains the unauthorised state until the unoccupied vehicle confirmation button is pressed.

Furthermore, not all users' vehicles V are necessarily equipped with overstaying detection output means (in-vehicle occupant detection means 52 and signal output means 53). Therefore, the control device 8 has a vehicle discrimination means 83. The vehicle discrimination means 83 determines whether the entering vehicle V is equipped with overstaying detection output means. In this example, determining whether the vehicle V is equipped with overstaying detection output means determining whether the vehicle V is a vehicle that emits an overstaying signal when it detects a person inside the vehicle.

<First example of vehicle discrimination means>
In this first example, user vehicle information is stored in the memory unit of the control device 8. The user vehicle information is information that associates the contractor's authentication information with vehicle discrimination information that indicates whether the contractor's vehicle is equipped with a remaining vehicle detection output means.

The control device 8 functions as an authentication means. When the first authentication operation is performed in step S1 described above, it compares the authentication information entered thereby with the contractor's authentication information contained in the user vehicle information, and if it authenticates that the user who performed the first authentication operation is a contractor, it determines whether vehicle V is a vehicle equipped with a remaining vehicle detection output means based on the contractor's vehicle discrimination information (function of vehicle discrimination means 83).

<Second Example of Vehicle Identification Means>
In this second example, a camera is provided near the entrance/exit 4 to photograph the license plate of a vehicle V parked outside the entrance/exit 4. The control device 8 also has a vehicle database that stores information relating the vehicle registration numbers of multiple vehicles, including the contractor's vehicle, to vehicle discrimination information indicating whether a vehicle with the same vehicle registration number is equipped with a remaining vehicle detection output means.

The vehicle discrimination means 83 acquires the image captured by the camera and performs character recognition processing to recognize the vehicle registration number of vehicle V from the image captured by the camera. It then refers to a vehicle database and determines whether vehicle V is a vehicle equipped with a remaining vehicle detection output means based on the vehicle discrimination information associated with the recognized vehicle registration number of vehicle V.

The vehicle database may be stored not in the control device 8 but in an external server (for example, a server of an external vehicle registration information provider). If the vehicle database is stored in an external server, the control device 8 transmits the vehicle registration number of vehicle V to the external server from the communication device 10 via an external communication network such as the Internet, and vehicle identification information associated with the vehicle registration number is transmitted from the external server and received by the communication device 10.

<Third Example of Vehicle Identification Means>
In this third example, a designated parking sticker bearing vehicle identification information indicating whether the vehicle is equipped with a remaining vehicle detection output means is affixed to a designated position on the contractor's vehicle. A camera is installed in the entrance/exit area 3 to photograph the parking sticker.

The vehicle discrimination means 83 recognizes the vehicle discrimination information attached to the parking sticker from the image of the parking sticker of the vehicle V captured by the camera, and determines whether the vehicle V is equipped with a remaining vehicle detection output means.

<Fourth Example of Vehicle Identification Means>
In this fourth example, a predetermined parking sticker bearing vehicle identification information, which is information identifying the contractor's vehicle, is affixed to a predetermined position on the contractor's vehicle. A camera is installed in the entrance/exit area 3 to photograph the parking sticker. The vehicle identification information is, for example, a number arbitrarily assigned to each contractor's vehicle. In this case, the storage unit of the control device 8 stores vehicle discrimination information associated with the vehicle identification information.

The vehicle discrimination means 83 recognizes the vehicle identification information attached to the parking sticker of vehicle V from the image of the parking sticker captured by the camera, and determines whether vehicle V is a vehicle equipped with a remaining vehicle detection output means based on the vehicle discrimination information associated with the recognized vehicle identification information.

If the vehicle discrimination means 83 in any of the above examples determines that the entered vehicle V is a vehicle equipped with a remaining vehicle detection output means, that is, in this case, if it determines that the vehicle V is a vehicle that emits an on-board presence signal when it detects a person inside the vehicle, the judgment unit 82 determines whether to permit or prohibit operation of the operating device 20 as described above. In other words, the vehicle discrimination means 83 makes a judgment before the judgment by the judgment unit 82.

Furthermore, if the vehicle discrimination means 83 cannot determine that the vehicle is equipped with a remaining vehicle detection output means, the control panel 7 may be configured to, for example, use a speaker or display to notify the user of a request to press an in-vehicle unmanned input operation button (unmanned input operation unit) provided on the control panel 7. In this case, when the user presses the in-vehicle unmanned input operation button, information indicating that the vehicle is unmanned is input to the control device 8. This causes the determination unit 82 to permit operation of the operating device 20. The in-vehicle unmanned input operation button may be a safety confirmation button that includes confirmation that no one is present in the entry/exit area 3 outside the vehicle.

<First modified example of vehicle occupant information>
In the above example, the signal output means 53 of the vehicle V outputs an in-vehicle occupancy signal as in-vehicle occupancy information, but in this first modified example, when the in-vehicle occupancy detection means 52 functions and does not detect any occupants inside the vehicle, the vehicle control device 51 causes the signal output means 53 to output an in-vehicle unmanned signal, which is a signal indicating that the vehicle is unmanned. In other words, the signal output means 53 outputs the in-vehicle unmanned signal as in-vehicle occupancy information, but does not output the in-vehicle occupancy signal.

In this case, in step S4, when the driver's seat switch is OFF and the doors of the vehicle V are locked, the vehicle interior occupancy detection means 52 is activated, and if no occupant is detected inside the vehicle, an unoccupied vehicle signal is output from the signal output means 53. In this case, the control device 8 acquires the unoccupied vehicle signal (inside vehicle occupancy information) from the signal acquisition means 9 (step S11).

In this first variant, after the vehicle V stops at the parking position of the pallet 6 and detects the driver getting out of the vehicle, the determination unit 82 does not permit operation of the operating device 20 until the signal acquisition means 9 acquires an unmanned vehicle signal, and then permits operation of the operating device 20 once the signal acquisition means 9 acquires the unmanned vehicle signal. Here, if the unauthorised state continues for a predetermined period of time, the notification unit may be configured to notify that an occupant has been left behind in the vehicle.

In this first variant, the in-vehicle unmanned signal may be, for example, a flashing signal of the lights of vehicle V, or the sound of a horn or buzzer of vehicle V, as in the case of the in-vehicle manned signal described above.

<Second modified example of vehicle occupant information>
In the second modification, the signal output means 53 can output the above-mentioned vehicle-occupied signal and vehicle-unoccupied signal as vehicle-occupancy information.

In this case, in step S4, when the driver's seat switch is OFF and the doors are locked, the vehicle interior occupancy detection means 52 is activated, and if a person is detected inside the vehicle, the signal output means 53 outputs an interior occupancy signal, and if no person is detected inside the vehicle, the signal output means 53 outputs an interior occupancy signal.

In the case of this second variant, the determination unit 82 prohibits operation of the operating device 20 when the vehicle V stops at the parking position of the pallet 6, and after detecting the driver's exit, if the signal acquisition means 9 acquires an unmanned vehicle signal, the determination unit 82 permits operation of the operating device 20, and if the signal acquisition means 9 acquires a manned vehicle signal, the determination unit 82 leaves operation of the operating device 20 prohibited. Here, if the signal acquisition means 9 acquires a manned vehicle signal, the notification unit may be configured to notify that an occupant has been left behind in the vehicle.

In this second variant, the unmanned vehicle signal and the manned vehicle signal may be a flashing light signal possessed by vehicle V, or may be a horn or buzzer sound possessed by vehicle V. For example, if a flashing light signal is used, the number of flashes or the interval between flashes may be different for the unmanned vehicle signal and the manned vehicle signal. Furthermore, if a horn or buzzer is used, the duration or interval between the flashes may be different for the unmanned vehicle signal and the manned vehicle signal. Furthermore, either the unmanned vehicle signal or the manned vehicle signal may be a flashing light signal, and the other may be a horn or buzzer sound.

In the above, vehicle V has been described as a manually driven vehicle, but vehicle V may also be an autonomous vehicle. In the case of an autonomous vehicle, in step S4 of FIG. 3, vehicle V can be brought into storage by autonomous driving and parked at a predetermined parking position on pallet 6.

In addition, if vehicle V and mechanical parking facility 1 are configured to be able to communicate wirelessly, a manned-in-vehicle signal or an unmanned-in-vehicle signal may be transmitted from vehicle V's communication device 54 in accordance with the detection result of vehicle V's interior occupancy detection means 52, and received by communication device 10 of mechanical parking facility 1. In this case, communication device 54 serves as the signal output means, and communication device 10 serves as the signal acquisition means. In this case, control device 8 of mechanical parking facility 1 may inquire of vehicle V about the detection result of vehicle occupancy detection means 52 via communication device 10. In this case, it is preferable to receive the detection result of vehicle occupancy detection means 52 (manned-in-vehicle signal or unmanned-in-vehicle signal) from vehicle V immediately after the user performs the second authentication operation (step S7).

For example, when vehicle V enters the entry/exit area 3 and stops at the parking position, the determination unit 82 is initially in an operation-prohibited state, and the control device 8 causes the communication device 10 to transmit an inquiry signal to vehicle V that has entered the entry/exit area 3 in order to inquire about the detection results of the vehicle interior occupancy detection means 52. For example, immediately after vehicle V stops at the parking position, the communication device 10 transmits the inquiry signal to vehicle V. If the communication device 10 receives an interior no-person signal from vehicle V in response, it considers the vehicle to be an unmanned autonomous vehicle, and the determination unit 82 permits operation of the operating device 20. On the other hand, if the communication device 10 transmits the inquiry signal but does not receive an interior no-person signal, it assumes that there may be someone inside the vehicle and the determination unit 82 maintains the operation-prohibited state. Thereafter, if it detects that a door of vehicle V is open and then detects that all doors of vehicle V are closed, the communication device 10 will make another inquiry. If the communication device 10 receives a vehicle unmanned signal upon this second inquiry, the determination unit 82 permits operation. If not, the determination unit 82 denies operation and prompts the user (driver) to confirm that the vehicle is unmanned by an announcement or other means. The determination unit 82 may permit operation when the user presses the vehicle unmanned input operation button on the operation panel 7. Furthermore, in the above description, the determination unit 82 may also include in the conditions for permitting operation of the operating device 20 that no person is detected in the loading/unloading area 3 by the loading/unloading area person detection means. In this case, if a person is detected in the loading/unloading area 3, the determination unit 82 denies operation of the operating device 20. The loading/unloading area person detection means is, for example, composed of object detection sensors 11-15, a surveillance camera, and the control device 8, and is a means for detecting people in the loading/unloading area 3. The opening and closing of the doors of the vehicle V parked at the parking position is detected by door opening/closing detection means, for example, composed of object detection sensors 11, 12, etc.

Also, if the determination unit 82 determines that operation is not permitted upon receiving an on-board occupant signal from vehicle V, when the driver opens the door of vehicle V to check the interior, lets any abandoned occupants exit the vehicle, and closes the door of vehicle V, the control device 8 may inquire of vehicle V about the detection result of the on-board occupant detection means 52, and upon receiving an on-board unmanned signal from vehicle V, the determination unit 82 may permit operation of the operating device 20. In this case, the determination unit 82 maintains the on-board unmanned signal until it receives the on-board unmanned signal. If the driver performs steps S6 and S7 after receiving this on-board unmanned signal, the processing of steps S8 and S9 is executed.

Figure 4 is a flowchart showing an outline of the procedure for parking an autonomous vehicle in a mechanical parking facility 1. In this example, vehicle V is an autonomous vehicle capable of autonomous driving. This autonomous vehicle V is further equipped with an outside-vehicle person detection means capable of detecting people around vehicle V. The outside-vehicle person detection means is configured to detect people using information from an around-view monitor, image recognition device, peripheral sonar, LIDAR, etc., provided on the autonomous vehicle.

In this example, a boarding and disembarking area exclusively for autonomous vehicles is set up in a specified area just before the entrance/exit 4 of the mechanical parking facility 1. This boarding and disembarking area may be located a specified distance (e.g., several meters or more) away from the entrance/exit 4.

When an autonomously driven vehicle V enters a parking lot, the vehicle V arrives at a designated boarding and disembarking area by autonomous or manual driving and stops, and the driver and all passengers disembark. Here, before or after disembarking, the driver operates an operation terminal, for example, to issue an entry command to the vehicle V to park in the mechanical parking facility 1 by autonomous driving.

Software related to the autonomously driven vehicle V and the mechanical parking facility 1 is pre-installed on the operation terminal. This operation terminal may be a terminal provided on the autonomously driven vehicle V, or may be a mobile terminal such as a smartphone. The operation terminal and vehicle V (vehicle control device 51) are capable of communicating. Furthermore, vehicle V (vehicle control device 51) and mechanical parking facility 1 (control device 8) are capable of wireless communication via their respective communication devices 54 and 10.

As described above, when an automatic driving entry command is sent from the operation terminal to the vehicle control device 51, a signal requesting automatic driving entry and the vehicle registration number of vehicle V are sent from vehicle V to the mechanical parking facility 1.

In addition, the boarding and disembarking area dedicated to autonomous vehicles is equipped with a camera that photographs the license plate of vehicle V parked in this boarding and disembarking area. The control device 8 also stores information relating the vehicle registration number of the contractor's vehicle to information about the pallets used by the contractor.

The control device 8 acquires the image captured by the camera, performs character recognition processing to recognize the vehicle registration number of vehicle V from the image captured by the camera (license plate), and compares it with the vehicle registration number transmitted from vehicle V. If they match, it determines that a warehousing request has been made by vehicle V (step S21).

Then, the control device 8 controls the transport device 21 to transport the empty pallet 6 associated with the vehicle registration number of the vehicle V from the storage unit to the loading/unloading area 3 (step S22). Then, when the empty pallet 6 arrives at the loading/unloading area 3, the control device 8 controls the door opening/closing device 22 to open the entrance/exit door 5 (step S23).

When the entrance/exit door 5 is opened, an entry permission signal is sent from the mechanical parking facility 1 to the vehicle V, and the vehicle V enters the parking lot by autonomous driving. At this time, information regarding the entry route, parking position, etc. may be sent from the mechanical parking facility 1 to the vehicle V. Then, the vehicle V autonomously drives into a predetermined parking position on the pallet 6 in the entry/exit area 3, stops, and stops its engine (step S24).

Next, the control device 8 confirms that the loading/unloading area 3 outside the vehicle V is unoccupied (step S25). This unoccupied state can be confirmed from the output of the object detection sensors 11-15, or from image data from a surveillance camera capturing the loading/unloading area 3. In this case, the object detection sensors 11-15, the surveillance camera, the control device 8, etc. act as loading/unloading area human detection means, and if no human is detected by this loading/unloading area human detection means, it is determined that the loading/unloading area 3 is unoccupied.

When the control device 8 confirms that no one is present in the loading/unloading area 3, it controls the door opening/closing device 22 to close the entrance/exit door 5 (step S26).

Next, after the entrance/exit door 5 is completely closed, the control device 8 controls the transport device 21 to transport the pallet 6 carrying the vehicle V to the designated storage area (step S27). The above is the normal procedure for the storage process. Note that the procedure for the unloading process is generally the same as the procedure for the storage process, although there are differences between storage and unloading.

In step S25 above, unattended confirmation of the presence of anyone in the entry/exit area 3 is performed using an entry/exit area occupant detection means such as a sensor provided in the mechanical parking facility 1. However, instead of or in addition to this, a vehicle exterior occupant detection means provided in the vehicle V may be used. Information on the detection results of this vehicle exterior occupant detection means is transmitted from the vehicle V to the mechanical parking facility 1. Here, by using information on the detection results of both the entry/exit area occupant detection means and the vehicle exterior occupant detection means to perform unattended confirmation of the presence of anyone in the entry/exit area 3, greater safety can be ensured.

In the above-described parking process, the vehicle V's in-vehicle occupancy detection means 52 is activated when the driver exits the vehicle in the boarding/exiting area reserved for autonomous vehicles and locks the doors. If a person is detected inside the vehicle, the signal output means 53 outputs an in-vehicle occupancy signal. Then, when all remaining occupants in the vehicle V exit the vehicle and lock the doors, the in-vehicle occupancy detection means 52 is activated but does not detect any people, and unoccupied vehicle information indicating that the vehicle is unoccupied is transmitted to the vehicle control device 51. The vehicle control device 51 then transmits the unoccupied vehicle information to the mechanical parking facility 1 via the communication device 54. The control device 8 acquires the unoccupied vehicle information (in-vehicle occupancy information) received by the communication device 10 (step S31).

In this case, the determination unit 82 acquires vehicle unoccupied information indicating that the vehicle is unoccupied before the vehicle V stops at the specified stopping position on the pallet 6 (before entering the pallet), and makes a determination to allow the operation of the operating device 20 when the vehicle V stops at the stopping position.

On the other hand, even with an autonomous vehicle V, there may be cases where the driver operates the vehicle to enter the parking lot. The procedure for this case will be explained with reference to Figure 4.

The driver first parks vehicle V in a boarding and disembarking area reserved for autonomous vehicles, and then operates the operation terminal to issue a parking command to vehicle V to manually park in mechanical parking facility 1.

In this way, when a manual entry command is sent from the operation terminal to the vehicle control device 51, a manual entry request signal and the vehicle registration number of vehicle V are sent from vehicle V to the mechanical parking facility 1.

As described above, the control device 8 recognizes the vehicle registration number of vehicle V from the camera image (license plate) and compares it with the vehicle registration number transmitted from vehicle V. If they match, it determines that a warehousing request has been made by vehicle V (step S21), and transports the empty pallet 6 from the storage section to the loading/unloading area 3 (step S22), and opens the entrance/exit door 5 (step S23).

When the entrance/exit door 5 is opened, the driver manually drives the vehicle V into a designated parking position on the pallet 6, stops the vehicle, stops the engine, gets out of the vehicle, and locks the door (step S24). The driver then exits the loading/unloading area 3.

Then, the control device 8 confirms that no one is present outside the vehicle in the loading/unloading area 3 using the aforementioned loading/unloading area person detection means and/or the vehicle exterior person detection means of the vehicle V (step S25). When the control device 8 confirms that no one is present in the loading/unloading area 3, it closes the entrance/exit door 5 (step S26) and transports the pallet 6 on which the vehicle V is mounted to a designated storage area (step S27).

In the above-described entry process, the vehicle V's in-vehicle occupant detection means 52 is activated in step S24 when the vehicle V is entered into the entry/exit area 3, parked at a predetermined parking position on the pallet 6, and the driver stops the engine, gets out of the vehicle, and locks the doors. This also applies when an autonomously driven vehicle V is entered into the shed with the driver remaining inside the vehicle.

If the activated vehicle interior occupancy detection means 52 detects a person as described above, the signal output means 53 outputs an in-vehicle occupancy signal. If no person is detected, no signal is output from the signal output means 53. Similar to the case of a manually operated vehicle, when the signal output means 53 outputs an in-vehicle occupancy signal, the signal acquisition means 9 inputs the in-vehicle occupancy signal and acquires it in the control device 8. The determination unit 82 then determines that operation of the operating device 20 is not permitted. In this case, the device control unit 81 does not allow the door opening/closing device 22 to close the entrance door 5 (step S26) or the transport device 21 to transport the pallet 6 to the storage unit (step S9). This prevents occupants such as infants from being left behind inside the vehicle V, thereby improving safety. Furthermore, if the determination unit 82 determines that operation is not permitted, an alarm unit, such as a speaker provided on the operation panel 7 or an operation terminal, may be configured to notify the user that an occupant has been left behind inside the vehicle.

The autonomously driven vehicle V may be configured to transmit an in-vehicle occupancy signal from the communication device 54 to the mechanical parking facility 1 when a person is detected by the in-vehicle occupancy detection means 52. The autonomously driven vehicle V may be configured to transmit an in-vehicle unoccupied signal from the communication device 54 to the mechanical parking facility 1 when a person is not detected by the in-vehicle occupancy detection means 52.

In the case of an autonomously driven vehicle V, the entry request signal sent from the vehicle V to the mechanical parking facility 1 may include information regarding whether the vehicle is occupied or unoccupied, or an occupied/unoccupied signal may be received from the vehicle V parked on the pallet 6, as in the case of a manually driven vehicle. However, since an unmanned autonomous vehicle does not open/close or lock its doors after stopping, the timing of signal transmission and reception may be set, for example, within a predetermined time after stopping. In any case, the occupied/unoccupied signal should be transmitted from the vehicle V to the control device 8 between the time the autonomous entry command is sent from the operating terminal to the vehicle control device 51 and before the control device 8 controls the door opening/closing device 22 to close the entrance/exit door 5.

In the above description, when an automatic or manual entry command is sent from the operation terminal to the vehicle control device 51, a signal requesting automatic or manual entry and the vehicle registration number of vehicle V are sent from vehicle V to the mechanical parking facility 1. However, it may also be configured so that a signal requesting automatic or manual entry and the vehicle registration number of vehicle V are sent from the operation terminal to the mechanical parking facility 1.

Furthermore, if there are separate entrances and exits to the entry/exit area 3 for autonomous vehicles and manually driven vehicles, or if the mechanical parking facility is exclusively for autonomous vehicles and the boarding/exit area exclusively for autonomous vehicles is separated from the entrance/exit of the entry/exit area 3, the entrance/exit door 5 for the entrance/exit of autonomous vehicles at the mechanical parking facility may be omitted.

Many modifications and other embodiments of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the above description. Therefore, the above description should be construed as illustrative only and is provided for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the best mode of carrying out the present invention. Details of the structure and/or function thereof may be substantially changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

The present invention is useful as a mechanical parking facility that can prevent occupants from being left behind inside entering vehicles and increase safety.

V Vehicle 1 Mechanical parking facility 3 Entry/exit area 4 Entrance/exit 5 Entrance/exit door 9 Signal acquisition means 20 Operation device 21 Transport device 22 Door opening/closing device 52 Vehicle occupant detection means 53 Signal output means 81 Device control unit 82 Determination unit 83 Vehicle discrimination unit

Claims (11)

a storage unit for storing vehicles;
an operating device including a transport device that transports the vehicle parked at a predetermined parking position to the storage unit;
a signal acquisition means for acquiring the on-board occupancy signal emitted from the vehicle stopped at the stop position, when the vehicle is configured to be capable of detecting a person inside the vehicle and to emit an on-board occupancy signal when a person is detected inside the vehicle when the vehicle has reached a predetermined state after stopping;
a determination unit that determines whether to permit or prohibit operation of the operating device;
a device control unit that controls the operation of the operating device by reflecting the determination result of the determination unit;
Equipped with
The determination unit
A mechanical parking facility in which, after the vehicle has stopped at the parking position, the signal acquisition means acquires the in-vehicle presence signal, and the operation of the operating device is not permitted,
The vehicle further includes a vehicle discrimination means for discriminating whether or not the vehicle is a vehicle that issues the on-board occupancy signal,
The determination unit
A mechanical parking facility that allows the operation of the operating device if the vehicle discrimination means determines that the vehicle is a vehicle that emits the in-vehicle occupancy signal, and if the signal acquisition means does not acquire the in-vehicle occupancy signal within a predetermined time after the vehicle stops at the parking position . The determination unit
After determining that the operation of the operating device is not permitted, the state of not permitting the operation of the operating device is maintained until information indicating that the vehicle is unoccupied is acquired.
2. A mechanical parking facility according to claim 1. The vehicle further includes an unmanned input operation unit for a user of the vehicle to input information indicating that the vehicle is unmanned,
The determination unit
and permitting the operation of the operating device after receiving an input from the unmanned input operation unit indicating that the vehicle is unmanned.
2. A mechanical parking facility according to claim 1 . a storage unit that stores in advance user vehicle information in which user authentication information is associated with vehicle identification information indicating whether the vehicle used by the user is a vehicle that emits an in-vehicle occupancy signal;
an authentication means for comparing authentication information acquired from the user before the vehicle enters the parking position with the authentication information of the user stored in the storage unit;
Furthermore,
The vehicle discrimination means
and determining whether the vehicle is a vehicle that issues the on-board presence signal based on the vehicle discrimination information associated with authentication information acquired from the user before the vehicle enters the stopping position by referring to the user vehicle information.
A mechanical parking facility according to claim 1 or 3 . The vehicle discrimination means
The system is configured to recognize the vehicle registration number of the vehicle parked at the parking position from an image captured by a camera that captures the license plate of the vehicle, and to determine whether the vehicle is a vehicle that emits a manned-in-vehicle signal by comparing the recognized vehicle registration number with vehicle registration numbers registered in a vehicle database as vehicles that emit a manned-in-vehicle signal.
A mechanical parking facility according to claim 1 or 3 . The in-vehicle manned signal includes at least one of a signal by flashing lights of the vehicle and a signal by sounding a horn or a buzzer of the vehicle.
A mechanical parking facility according to any one of claims 1 to 5 . The signal acquisition means
The vehicle is configured to detect a person inside the vehicle, and to emit an in-vehicle unmanned signal when no person is detected inside the vehicle when the driver gets off the vehicle and the vehicle enters a predetermined state, and the vehicle is configured to acquire the in-vehicle unmanned signal emitted from the vehicle;
The determination unit
and permitting the operation of the operating device when the signal acquisition means acquires the vehicle unmanned signal after the vehicle has stopped at the stop position.
2. A mechanical parking facility according to claim 1. The determination unit
When the vehicle is an autonomously driven vehicle capable of autonomous driving, and information indicating that the vehicle is unoccupied has been acquired from the vehicle before the vehicle stops at the stopping position, the operation of the operating device is permitted when the vehicle stops at the stopping position.
The mechanical parking facility according to any one of claims 1 to 7 . Further, a loading/unloading area having the stopping position is provided,
The operating device includes a door opening/closing device that opens and closes an entrance door provided at an entrance to the loading/unloading area,
The device control unit
When the vehicle stops at the stopping position by autonomous driving with the entrance door open, the operation of the operation device is permitted by the determination unit, and information indicating that no person is present around the vehicle is acquired from the vehicle, the door opening/closing device is controlled to close the entrance door.
9. A mechanical parking facility according to claim 8 . an entry/exit area having the stopping position;
an entry/exit area human detection means for detecting a person in the entry/exit area;
Furthermore,
The operating device includes a door opening/closing device that opens and closes an entrance door provided at an entrance to the loading/unloading area,
The device control unit
When the vehicle stops at the stopping position by autonomous driving with the entrance door open, the operation of the operating device is permitted by the determination unit, and no person is detected by the entrance/exit area person detection means, the door opening/closing device is controlled to close the entrance door.
9. A mechanical parking facility according to claim 8 . The vehicle control system further includes a notification unit that notifies the driver that an occupant has been left behind in the vehicle when the determination unit determines that the operation of the operation device is not permitted.
A mechanical parking facility according to any one of claims 1 to 10 .