US Patent 10163016 Parking space detection method and device

A parking space detection method detects a parking space in an empty state from a captured image acquired by a camera configured to capture an image of a parking lot. The method includes detecting a parked vehicle existing in a parking space on the far side from the subject vehicle and adjacent to a determination target parking space for which the empty state is determined and measuring a lateral length of the parked vehicle on a surface located at the side of the determination target parking space. When the lateral length is a predetermined value or more, the determination target parking space is detected as a parking space in the empty state.