Parking space detection apparatus

A parking space detection apparatus that detects a parking space of an own vehicle, the parking space detection apparatus comprising:

• a vehicle determination section that is configured to determine whether an other vehicle is present on at least one of two sides of a parking space, based on search information acquired from an in-vehicle search section that searches for the parking space;
• a width calculation section that is configured to, when the vehicle determination section determines that the other vehicle is present on at least one of the two sides of the parking space, calculate a width of the parking space on an entrance side and a width of the parking space on an inner side based on the search information;
• and
• a parking determination section that is configured to determine whether the own vehicle is able to park in the parking space based on both the widths of the parking space on the entrance side and on the inner side calculated by the width calculation section and a size of the own vehicle, wherein
• the vehicle determination section is configured to acquire, as the search information, first search information according to probe waves transmitted from the in-vehicle search section and second search information according to image data obtained by the in-vehicle search section, and to, when determining that an object is present on at least one of the two sides of the parking space based on the first search information, determine whether the object is the other vehicle based on the second search information,
• when other vehicles are present on the two sides of the parking spaces in a case where side-by-side parking is carried out, the width calculation section
• calculates, as a width on the entrance side, a width of the parking space at an entrance side position of the parking space on the inner side at which a tire on the entrance side of at least one of the other vehicles next to the parking space contacts a ground surface, and
• calculates, as a width on the inner side, a width of the parking space when two end positions are viewed from the entrance side of the parking space, the two end positions being on lines extending, by a total length of the own vehicle, from respective entrance side positions of the other vehicles toward inner side positions, at which a tire on the inner side contacts the ground surface, and
• when the other vehicle is present on one of the two sides of the parking space and no other vehicle is present on the other of the two sides of the parking space in a case where side-by-side parking is carried out, the width calculation section
• calculates, as a width on the entrance side, a width of the parking space at the entrance side position of the parking space on the inner side, which is one of the entrance side position of the one other vehicle next to the parking space and an entrance side position of a white line on the other side of the parking space on which no vehicle is present, and
• calculates, as a width on the inner side, a width of the parking space when two end positions are viewed from the entrance side of the parking space, the end positions being on lines respectively extending from the entrance side position of the one other vehicle and the entrance side position of the white line toward an inner side position of the own vehicle and an inner side position of the white line.