JP2012158272A - Electronic control system for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce electric power consumption in a state of turning on an ignition, in an electronic control system for a vehicle having electronic control units for controlling a predetermined transmission function.SOLUTION: This electronic control system 1 for the vehicle includes the electronic control units 3A and 5A for controlling the predetermined electric equipment function, and includes a driving means 8A connected to the electronic control unit 5A and performing the electric equipment function, and a trigger means 9 connected to the electronic control unit and outputting a switching signal for switching the driving start and stop of the driving means to the electronic control unit. The electronic control unit switches an ordinary mode of supplying a driving current to the electronic control unit and an electric power-saving mode of supplying a sleep current based on the switching signal from the trigger means.

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicular electronic control system including a plurality of electronic control units that respectively control various electrical functions, and more particularly to a vehicular electronic control system that can reduce power consumption when an ignition (IG) is on. .

In recent years, electronic control of automobiles has progressed, and there are a plurality of electronic control units (hereinafter referred to as ECUs) for controlling various electrical functions such as door locks, power windows, car navigation systems, etc. in the vehicle. And connected via an in-vehicle LAN.
Among the plurality of ECUs mounted on the vehicle, there are some ECUs that are activated even when the vehicle is parked, that is, when the ignition (IG) is off (referred to as a battery system ECU). Such a battery system ECU is configured to be supplied with electric power from the battery even when the ignition is off.
On the other hand, there is also an ECU that is activated only when the ignition is on (engine is on) (referred to as an ignition ECU). For this reason, each ECU in the electronic control system of the vehicle is divided into a battery system ECU and an ignition system ECU.

In the conventional electronic control system, the battery ECU remains activated even after the ignition is turned on. After the ignition is turned on, it is considered that the function of the battery system ECU can be provided by the ignition system ECU having more resources (ROM capacity, RAM capacity, operation clock, etc.) than the battery system ECU. Technology has not been realized.
This is because, for example, if the battery ECU is put to sleep after the ignition is turned on in a conventional electronic control system, the ignition system ECU stores information on other sensors and actuators connected to the input / output interface of the battery ECU. This is to cause some troubles such as unavailability.
For this reason, conventionally, it is necessary to start up the battery ECU even after the ignition is turned on, and there is a problem that power consumption is continued without using the function.

In response to such a problem, Patent Document 1 discloses an electronic control system that can put a battery system ECU in a sleep state (standby state) at a timing when an ignition is turned on.
The electronic control system disclosed in this Patent Document 1 will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG.
In the electronic control system 50 shown in FIG. 6A, a battery system (+ B system) ECU 51 and, for example, a power train system ECU 52 and a multimedia system ECU 53 as an ignition system ECU are connected to the in-vehicle LAN 70.

  The battery ECU 51 has, for example, a door lock application 61 and a verification application 62 in storage means such as a memory. The door lock application 61 is an application program for locking / unlocking the vehicle door, and the verification application 62 is an application program that provides a key verification function for keyless entry keys outside the vehicle compartment.

The power train ECU 52 has a power train app 63, a power train app 64, and a power train app 65 for performing engine control, transmission control, and the like, respectively, in storage means such as a memory.
The multimedia system ECU 53 has a multimedia application 66, a multimedia application 67, and a multimedia application 68 for controlling the car navigation system and the like in its memory or the like.

In the electronic control system 50, when the driver turns on the ignition, both the power train ECU 52 and the multimedia ECU 53, which are ignition ECUs, are activated.
6B, the door lock application 61 is transferred from the already activated battery system ECU 51 to the power train system ECU 52, and the verification application 62 is transferred to the multimedia system ECU 53. . Further, the battery ECU 51 to which the application program has been transferred is put into a sleep state.

Then, the door lock application 61 is executed on the power train ECU 52, and an actuator for door lock operation is driven and controlled by the power train ECU 52 via the battery I / O 55.
The collation application 62 is executed on the multimedia ECU 53, and the key collation function is driven and controlled by the multimedia ECU 53 via the battery I / O 55.

  Further, when the ignition is turned off, the data used when the door lock application 61 is executed is transferred from the power train system ECU 52 to the battery system ECU 51, and the power train system ECU 52 is turned off. Further, the data used for the key collating function is transferred from the multimedia system ECU 53 to the battery system ECU 51, and the multimedia system ECU 53 is turned off.

As described above, in the electronic control system 50 disclosed in Patent Document 1, when the ignition is turned on, the battery system application program is executed in the ignition system ECU 52 such as the power train system ECU 52 or the multimedia system ECU 53. It is the composition which becomes.
For this reason, even if the ignition is on, the battery system ECU 51 can be put in the sleep state, and the power consumption can be reduced.

JP 2010-137656 A

However, the electronic control system 50 disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a function of sharing a software platform (SPF) in the battery ECU 51 and the ignition ECU and exchanging application programs and data by communication between the two. It was necessary to provide it, and it was not easy to realize.
Furthermore, in the ignition system ECU, a storage capacity for storing and executing an application program included in the battery system ECU 51 is separately required, which increases the cost.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the above points, and in a vehicle electronic control system including an electronic control unit that controls a predetermined transmission function, it is possible to reduce power consumption in a state where an ignition is turned on. It is an object to provide an electronic control system for a vehicle.

In order to solve the above-described problem, an electronic control system for a vehicle according to the present invention is an electronic control system for a vehicle including an electronic control unit that controls a predetermined electrical function, and is connected to the electronic control unit, Drive means for executing the electrical function, and trigger means connected to the electronic control unit and outputting a switching signal for switching between driving start and stop of the driving means to the electronic control unit, The electronic control unit is characterized by switching between a normal mode in which a drive current is supplied to the electronic control unit and a power saving mode in which a sleep current is supplied based on a switching signal from the trigger means.
The trigger means is preferably at least one of a switch that outputs the switching signal by an occupant's operation and a sensor that detects a change in a predetermined environmental element and outputs the switching signal.

By configuring in this way, the power saving mode is set as long as there is no switching signal output by the trigger means (for example, switch operation by the occupant) between the ignition on (engine start) and the ignition off (engine off). it can.
That is, even when the ignition is on, wasteful power consumption can be eliminated by activating the ECU only during a period in which a desired electrical function is required and putting the ECU in a sleep state during other periods. .
In addition, in the vehicle electronic control system according to the present invention, in addition to the existing hardware configuration generally installed in the vehicle, a power supply mode to the electronic control unit (normally in accordance with the output of the trigger means) A function for switching between a mode and a power saving mode may be provided, which can be realized easily and at low cost.

In addition, it is desirable that a plurality of electronic control units that respectively control predetermined electrical functions are connected via an in-vehicle LAN, and at least one electronic control unit is a master and a plurality of electronic control units are slave-connected.
With this configuration, the power supply modes of a plurality of ECUs (electronic control units) on the slave side can be collectively controlled from the master side at the ignition ON / OFF timing.
Such a master / slave connection is effective for a battery ECU (electronic control unit) that needs to be in a power saving mode (standby state) when the ignition is off.

In addition, the electronic control unit includes a timer counter that counts an elapsed time in a state in which no switching signal is output from the trigger means, and when the elapsed time counted by the timer counter has passed a predetermined time in the normal mode, It is desirable to switch to the power saving mode.
With this configuration, an unnecessary electronic control unit can be automatically set to the power saving mode in the ignition-on state.

  According to the present invention, in a vehicle electronic control system including an electronic control unit that controls a predetermined transmission function, it is possible to obtain a vehicle electronic control system that can reduce power consumption when an ignition is turned on. .

FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing the configuration of the vehicle electronic control system according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration when the battery system master ECU is a body ECU and the battery system slave ECU connected thereto is a power window ECU in the vehicle electronic control system of FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a flow of a series of operations of the body ECU and the power window ECU shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a timing chart showing changes in the power supply mode corresponding to the flow of FIG. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a series of operations of the ignition ECU during the period from ignition on to ignition off. FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B are block diagrams showing the configuration of a conventional vehicle electronic control system.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing the configuration of the vehicle electronic control system according to the present invention.
In FIG. 1, “+ B” means that power is supplied from a battery (not shown) even when the ignition is off. “IG” means that power is supplied when the ignition is turned on.

A vehicle electronic control system 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a battery system master ECU 3 (electronic control unit) connected to a main bus 2 (for example, CAN (Control Area Network)) of an in-vehicle LAN, and a sub-bus 4 (for example, LIN (Local). A plurality of battery-system slave ECUs 5 (electronic control units) connected in parallel via an interconnect network)).
That is, a plurality of battery system slave ECUs 5 are connected to at least one battery system master ECU 3 via the sub-bus 4, and each battery system slave ECU 5 is controlled by the battery system master ECU 3 to switch its power supply mode. It has been. Here, switching of the power supply mode means switching between a normal mode in which a drive current is supplied to the ECU and a power saving mode in which a sleep current is supplied to the ECU.
Further, the vehicle electronic control system 1 includes a plurality of ignition system ECUs 6 (electronic control units) connected in parallel to the main bus 2, and one or a plurality of ignition system ECUs 7 (electronic control units) not connected to the in-vehicle LAN. It has.

The plurality of battery-system slave ECUs 5 are switched between actuators (loads) 8 serving as drive means for providing respective electrical functions (for example, a power window, a slide roof, an auto wiper, etc.) and start / stop of the drive. For this purpose, a switch (SW) 9 and a sensor 10 are connected as trigger means.
The switch 9 is configured to output, for example, an on signal (switching signal) for driving the actuator 8 in the switch-on state to the battery-system slave ECU 5 and stop outputting the on-signal in the switch-off state. .
The sensor 10 has a different detection target for each ECU, for example, detects a change in a predetermined environmental element (for example, ambient brightness), outputs or stops the on signal (switching signal), or An environmental element (for example, the opening / closing position of the window) is detected, and the information is output to the ECU.
In addition, the ignition ECUs 6 and 7 also switch the actuators (loads) 11 serving as driving means for providing respective electrical functions (for example, engine control, instrument panel control, etc.) and start / stop of the driving. A switch (SW) 12 and a sensor 13 are connected as trigger means.

  In addition, the battery system master ECU 3, the battery system slave ECU 5, and the ignition system ECUs 6 and 7 all serve as a CPU for executing a predetermined application program and a program execution work area in order to provide the respective electrical functions. The microcomputer includes a microcomputer in which a RAM for storing data, an input / output interface serving as a data interface, a communication interface, a memory for storing application programs, and the like are bus-connected.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 2, a series of cases where the battery system master ECU 3 is a body ECU 3A for managing a plurality of electrical functions, and one battery system slave ECU 5 connected thereto is a power window (P / W) ECU 5A. The operation will be specifically described.
As shown in the figure, the power window ECU 5A includes a motor 8A as a window opening / closing actuator, a switch 9 for the passenger to operate the window opening / closing operation, and a sensor 10 for detecting the opening / closing position of the window. It has been.

Taking this configuration as an example, the operation will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a flow of a series of operations of the body ECU 3A and the power window ECU 5A, and FIG. 4 is a timing chart showing changes in the power supply mode corresponding to the flow of FIG.
First, when the driver unlocks the door using the wireless key (step S1 in FIG. 3), the body ECU 3A shifts from the power saving mode to the normal mode (step S2 in FIG. 3), and is activated for the power window ECU 5A. A request is made (step S3 in FIG. 3).
As a result, the power window ECU 5A shifts to the normal mode as shown in the timing chart of FIG. In the normal mode, system abnormality detection (switch detection, sensor abnormality, communication abnormality, etc.) is always performed.

When the driver gets on and the engine is started with the ignition turned on (step S4 in FIG. 3), a timer counter (not shown) included in the body ECU 3A starts counting elapsed time.
When a predetermined time elapses after the start of counting without operation update (step S5 in FIG. 3), the power window ECU 5A notifies the body ECU 3A that the power saving mode can be shifted (step S6 in FIG. 3).
Then, the body ECU 3A that has received the notification of the possibility of shifting to power saving makes a request for shifting to the power saving mode to the power window ECU 5A (step S7 in FIG. 3), and the power window ECU 5A saves power as shown in the timing chart of FIG. The mode (sleep state) is entered (step S8 in FIG. 3).
As described above, in the battery slave ECU 5 in the vehicle electronic control system 1, the power window ECU 5A can be shifted to the power saving mode in the ignition-on (engine-on) state.

When power window ECU 5A is in the power saving mode and power window SW9 is operated by an occupant and an ON signal (switching signal) is output to power window ECU 5A (step S9 in FIG. 3), power window ECU 5A is sent to body ECU 3A. On the other hand, a notification that the normal mode can be shifted is sent (step S10 in FIG. 3).
Then, the body ECU 3A that has received the notification that the normal mode can be shifted makes a request for shifting to the normal mode to the power window ECU 5A (step S11 in FIG. 3).

The power window ECU 5A that has received the request for transition to the normal mode enters the normal mode as shown in the timing chart of FIG. 4, and starts driving the motor 8A (step S12 of FIG. 3). As a result, the power window starts to open and close.
When the power window SW9 is turned off by the operation of the occupant and the output of the on signal is stopped (step S13 in FIG. 3), the power window ECU 5A stops the motor 8A (step S14 in FIG. 3). The sensor 10 detects the opening / closing position of the window, and the position information is stored in the power window ECU 5A (step S15 in FIG. 3).

Further, due to the stop of the motor 8A in step S14, a timer counter (not shown) in the body ECU 3A starts counting the elapsed time, and the operation again proceeds to step S5.
That is, when a predetermined time has passed since the operation has not been updated since the start of counting, the power window ECU 5A again enters the power saving mode (sleep state) as shown in the timing chart of FIG. 4 (step of FIG. 3). S8).

On the other hand, when the operation of the power window SW9 is not performed in step S9 and the ignition is turned off (engine off) (step S16 in FIG. 3), the body ECU 3A requests the power window ECU 5A to start (step in FIG. 3). S17). As a result, the power window ECU 5A shifts to the normal mode as shown in the timing chart of FIG.
When the driver gets off and the door is locked with the wireless key (step S18 in FIG. 3), the body ECU 3A shifts to the power saving mode (step S19 in FIG. 3), and the power window ECU 5A also shifts to the power saving mode. (Step S20 in FIG. 3).

As described above, in the embodiment according to the present invention, in the battery system slave ECU 5 connected to the battery system master ECU 3, as long as there is no operation of the power window SW by the occupant between the engine start and the engine off. The power saving mode is set.
In other words, even in the ignition-on state, the battery system ECU can activate the ECU only during a period in which the function is required and put the ECU in a sleep state during other periods, thereby eliminating unnecessary power consumption. it can.
In addition, in the vehicle electronic control system 1 according to the present invention, in addition to the existing hardware configuration generally installed in the vehicle, the ECU according to the output of the trigger means such as the power window SW9 as described above. A function for switching the power supply mode to the power source may be provided, which can be realized easily and at low cost.

  In the above embodiment, the power supply mode of the battery slave ECU 5 is shifted to the power saving mode after the ignition is turned on. However, in the vehicle electronic control system according to the present invention, power consumption can be reduced not only for the battery system ECU 5 but also for the ignition system ECUs 6 and 7.

  A series of operation examples will be described using the flow of FIG. 5. When the driver turns on the ignition and the engine starts (step St1 in FIG. 5), the ignition ECU 6 (7) stands by in the power saving mode (FIG. 5). Step St2). That is, the ignition system ECU 6 (7) starts from the power saving mode in the ignition-on (engine-on) state.

When an on signal (switching signal) for driving a predetermined electrical function is output by the switch 12 or sensor 13 in the engine-on state (step St3 in FIG. 5), the ignition ECU 6 (7) is in the normal mode. (Step St4 in FIG. 5). In the normal mode, system abnormality detection (switch detection, sensor abnormality, communication abnormality, etc.) is always performed.
Then, the started ignition system ECU 6 (7) drives the motor (load) 11 to execute a predetermined electrical function (step St5 in FIG. 5).

When the output of the ON signal (switching signal) from the switch 12 or the sensor 13 is stopped (step St6 in FIG. 5), the ignition ECU 6 (7) stops the motor (load) 11 (step St7 in FIG. 5). .
Then, when a predetermined time has passed after the motor (load) 11 is stopped (step St8 in FIG. 5) and the switch operation or the like is not performed, the mode again shifts to the power saving mode (step St2 in FIG. 5).
Further, when the ignition system ECU 6 (7) is in the power saving mode and the ignition system is turned off (engine off) (step St9 in FIG. 5), the current supply to the ignition system ECU 6 (7) is stopped. .

In this way, in the ignition system ECU 6 (7), as with the battery system slave ECU 5, during the period from ignition on (engine start) to ignition off (engine off), the SW operation by the occupant or the switching signal from the sensor As long as there is no output, the power saving mode can be set.
In other words, regardless of the type of the battery system slave ECU 5 and the ignition system ECU 6 (7), the ECU is activated only during a period when the electrical function is necessary, and is put into a sleep state during the other period, so that wasteful power consumption is reduced. It can be greatly reduced.

1 Electronic control system for vehicles 2 Main bus (vehicle-mounted LAN)
3 Battery system master ECU (electronic control unit)
4 Subbus (in-vehicle LAN)
5 Battery-based slave ECU (electronic control unit)
6 Ignition ECU (Electronic Control Unit)
7 Ignition ECU (Electronic Control Unit)
8 Load 9 Switch 10 Sensor 11 Load 12 Switch 13 Sensor

Claims (4)

An electronic control system for a vehicle comprising an electronic control unit for controlling a predetermined electrical function,
Drive means connected to the electronic control unit for performing the electrical function;
Trigger means connected to the electronic control unit and outputting a switching signal for switching between driving start and stop of the driving means to the electronic control unit;
The electronic control unit switches between a normal mode in which a drive current is supplied to the electronic control unit and a power saving mode in which a sleep current is supplied based on a switching signal output from the trigger means. An electronic control system for vehicles.   2. The trigger device according to claim 1, wherein the trigger unit is at least one of a switch that outputs the switching signal by an occupant's operation and a sensor that detects a change in a predetermined environmental element and outputs the switching signal. Electronic control system for vehicles. A plurality of electronic control units that respectively control predetermined electrical functions are connected via an in-vehicle LAN,
The vehicle electronic control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein at least one electronic control unit is used as a master, and a plurality of electronic control units are slave-connected. A timer counter that counts the elapsed time in the absence of an output of the switching signal from the trigger means;
4. The electronic control unit is switched to the power saving mode when the elapsed time counted by the timer counter exceeds a predetermined time in the normal mode. 5. Vehicle electronic control system.

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