FR2712106A1 - Recording device of the type intended to be placed on an automobile road vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a recording device of the type intended to be placed on an automobile road vehicle. According to the invention, this recording device comprises means (2) for deriving at least one control and/or command signal (31 to 3n) originating from the driver's cab (4), and means (5) for controlling periodic storage of the first in - first out type of a current value of the said at least one signal in a memory (6) containing a set of at least two successive values of the said at least one signal.

Description

 Type recording device intended to be placed on a road motor vehicle.

 The field of the invention is that of road motor vehicles, such as in particular cars, trucks and motorcycles.

More specifically, the invention relates to a recording device of the type intended to be placed on a road motor vehicle, in order to know in particular the conditions for the progress of a journey or even the circumstances of an accident.
The invention, which therefore relates to a "black box" for a road motor vehicle, has many applications, such as, for example, the exact determination of the responsibility of each of the drivers during an accident or the verification of compliance with the various road regulations by drivers.

 Indeed, with such a recording device placed on each car, it becomes possible for insurance companies to rely on objective facts (since they are recorded), and not on subjective facts (such as testimonials) , to decide on the real responsibility of a motorist when he is involved in a road incident (impact with another vehicle, exiting the road, etc ...).

 Similarly, such a recording device placed on a vehicle can allow a competent authority (police or gendarmerie) to ensure that the motorist has not broken the law in force (speed limit, correct lighting, wearing compulsory seat belt, etc ...) behind the wheel of his vehicle.

 Are known in another field, namely aeronautics, recording devices (generally called black boxes). However, these airplane black boxes are very complex and bulky devices comprising a multitude of sensors (in order to measure the speed, altitude, pressure, geographic positioning, etc., of an aircraft) and means of storage of these parameters as well as other data (pilots' conversation in particular).

In addition, an airplane black box must be able to store a large amount of data relating to the various parameters of a flight over the entire duration of that flight. The storage means, generally magnetic tapes, are therefore bulky.
It is therefore clear that these recording devices cannot, because of their size, their complexity, and their specificity, be adapted to a road motor vehicle.

 Also known are recording devices specific to road motor vehicles, and more particularly to trucks. These are monitoring devices (also called "cookies") intended to record only the speed of a truck for a predetermined period. These devices are used to check on the one hand that the driver respects the speed limits, and on the other hand that he actually stops at regular time intervals and long enough.

The operation of these control devices is therefore such that the speed of the truck is recorded without interruption over a long period of time. In order to obtain a reduced overall size, the storage means consist of a simple cardboard disc on which the speed of the vehicle is recorded mechanically and continuously.
It is clear that these control devices are strictly limited to the measurement of the speed parameter. Consequently, they do not make it possible to know the circumstances of an accident or even to determine whether a driver is in order vis-à-vis the law with regard to obligations other than speed limits.

 The invention particularly aims to overcome these various drawbacks of the state of the art.

 More specifically, an object of the invention is to provide a recording device of the type intended to be placed on a road motor vehicle, which makes it possible to assess compliance with the highway code by a driver or else the circumstances of an accident.

 The invention also aims to provide such a recording device which is compact, simple to install and use.

These objectives, as well as others which will appear subsequently, are achieved according to the invention using a recording device of the type intended to be placed on a road motor vehicle,
said recording device comprising means for deriving at least one control and / or command signal from the cockpit, and means for controlling a periodic storage of the first in - first out type of a value current of said at least one signal in a memory containing a set of at least two successive values of said at least one signal.

 The data stored in the memory of the recording device is for example read either during a police or gendarmerie check, or after an accident.

 The general principle of the invention is therefore to provide, for a road motor vehicle, an "electronic black box" continuously recording a certain number of vehicle parameters, but only memorizing the most recent information.

 This concept of "black box for road vehicles" is very different from the known concept of "black box for aircraft". In fact, it is not a question here of memorizing data for the entire duration of a journey, but of permanently memorizing only the most recent data (corresponding for example to the last five minutes). This sliding of data makes it possible to limit the memory space required and therefore the size of the recording device.

 In addition, the principle of the invention consists in reusing advantageously, when they exist, information available at the level of the cockpit.

Advantageously, said control and / or command signal belongs to the group comprising:
- the speed signals of said road motor vehicle;
- the status signals of at least one of the lights intended for lighting and
signaling of said road motor vehicle; and
- the status signals of at least one of the control lights of said vehicle
road automobile.

 Thus, when all of these signals are available at the cockpit, the recording device of the invention does not require the implementation in the appendix of many expensive and complex sensors. However, in order to be compatible with all vehicle models, one or more sensors can nevertheless be implemented in order to measure one or more particular parameters, if the provision of such measurements is not provided by the vehicle manufacturer.

 For example, certain vehicles have, by their design, means making it possible to measure the speed exactly (in particular when an anti-lock braking system (or ABS) exists) and to supply the cockpit, and more precisely to the table on board, a signal representative of this measured speed. It is clear that in this case, the invention consists in directly using this available speed signal.

 On the other hand, other vehicles (notably the older ones) do not include such means making it possible to measure speed exactly. In this case, advantageously, the recording device comprises means for continuously measuring the speed of said road motor vehicle, delivering a speed signal constituting a control and / or command signal.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, said means for continuously measuring the speed of said road motor vehicle comprises an effect sensor
Lobby.

Advantageously, said control means ensure said storage if at least one of the following conditions is satisfied:
- reception of engine start information; and
- speed of said road motor vehicle greater than a minimum value
predetermined.

 Thus, the consumption of the recording device is limited. In addition, only periods that may be of interest are taken into account.

 In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the recording device comprises means for radio reception of at least one road signaling signal, said road signaling signal constituting a control and / or additional command signal. .

 Thus, in the case where the corresponding infrastructure exists (for example in the form of data transmission terminals relating to the state of the lights of a low beam, or even the weather conditions), the recording device according to the invention also takes into account parameters external to the vehicle but having an influence on the driving of the vehicle or on the vehicle itself.

 Preferably, said control means comprise a microcontroller.

 Thus, the microcontroller manages the storage in memory of the current values of the signals, in particular of speed, state of the various lights, and state of the indicator lights.

 Advantageously, the memory is a programmable read-only memory of the first in - first out type.

 In this way, it is the memory which by its structure allows storage of the first in - first out type.

 Preferably, the recording device comprises thermal and mechanical protection means.

 This allows the data stored in memory to be used, even after partial or total destruction of the vehicle during an accident. It is then a question of determining the causes of the accident from the various parameters stored during the time interval preceding this accident.

 Advantageously, the recording device is removable from the road motor vehicle.

 Thus, it is possible to extract the recording device from the vehicle, which facilitates the operation of reading the stored data.

 Advantageously, the road motor vehicle belongs to the group comprising in particular cars, trucks and motorcycles.

 It is clear, however, that the recording device of the invention can be placed on any type of road motor vehicle.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the lights intended for lighting and signaling said road motor vehicle belong to the group comprising in particular:
- position lights;
- high beam;
- traffic lights;
stop lights;
- hazard warning lights;
- reversing lights;
- fog lights;
- left flashing lights; and
- the right flashing lights.

Advantageously, the control lights of said road motor vehicle belong to the group comprising in particular:
brake lights;
the oil sight glasses;
temperature lights; and
- the seat belt closing warning lights.

 These lists of lights intended for lighting and signaling as well as indicator lights are obviously not exhaustive.

 Preferably, the control means comprise communication means allowing the implementation of a dialogue protocol with a data reading device.

 In other words, the recovery of the stored data is done using a reading device capable of interacting with the recording device.

 Advantageously, the means of communication comprise a serial interface.

 This serial interface, for example of the RS 232 type, offers the advantage of being very widespread, and consequently many types of computers can for example be used as reading devices.

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear on reading the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, given by way of non-limiting example, and the appended drawings, in which:
- Figure 1 presents a logic diagram of a device
recording according to the invention, and
- Figure 2 presents a simplified logic diagram of an example of mode of
realization of a recording device according to the invention.

 The invention therefore relates to a recording device of the type intended to be placed on road motor vehicles, such as a car, a truck or a motorcycle.

Such a recording device 1, a logic diagram of which is presented in FIG. 1 comprises:
means 2 for deriving n control and / or control signals
31 to 3n from cockpit 4, and
means 5 for controlling periodic storage, of the primary type
input-first output, with a current value of the n signals 31 to 3n in a
memory 6 containing a set of at least two successive values of the n
signals 31 to 3 ,.

 By cockpit, we mean the dashboard, and more generally, all the elements displayed or accessible by the driver of the vehicle.

According to the invention, one or more signals can be derived from the cockpit, and it can in particular be:
- a speed signal from the vehicle on which the device is mounted
recording;
- one or more light status signals intended for lighting and
vehicle signaling;
- one or more status signals from the vehicle's indicator lights.

Thus, by lights intended for the lighting of the vehicle, one understands in particular:
- position lights;
- high beam;
- traffic lights;
- brake lights;
- hazard warning lights;
- reversing lights;
- fog lights;
- left flashing lights; and
- the right flashing lights.

Similarly, by vehicle control lights means in particular:
- the brake lights;
- the oil sight glasses;
- the temperature indicators; and
- the seat belt closing warning lights.
It is clear that only some of these signals can be stored. Likewise, these lists are not exhaustive and other signals can be stored. Thus, by storing a horn signal, it is possible to know whether the driver reacted at the time of an accident or whether he was totally surprised.

 The operation of the recording device 1 of the invention, whatever the number and the type of signals taken into account, is as follows: the means 5 for controlling the storage receive continuously, by means of the means 2 of signal derivation, signals 31 to 3n from the cockpit. Current values of these signals are stored in a memory 6. This storage is periodic and such that only the most recent values are kept (for example the values of the last five minutes).

 The storage control and / or command means 5 receive an engine start stop information (noted AID in FIG. 1) and a speed signal 8 from the vehicle.

According to the invention, the control and / or command means 5 ensure the storage of current values of the control and / or command signals if at least one of the following two conditions is satisfied:
- reception of engine start information; and
- vehicle speed greater than a predetermined minimum value.

 The recording of data is therefore not continuous, even if the means 2 for deriving signals (consisting for example of wires coming from the cockpit 4) supply these signals 31 to 3n continuously.

 The data stored in the memory 6 of the recording device 1 is intended to be read by a reading device 9. There are many cases in which it appears advantageous to consult these stored data.

 It is easy to understand, for example, the advantage that such data can have if it is recovered from a recording device of a vehicle having suffered an accident. Indeed, if the recorded signals correspond to relevant parameters, it is possible to form an objective opinion as to the circumstances of this accident, and thereby as to the responsibility of the driver of the accident vehicle.

 It should be noted that in order not to be damaged during a possible accident, the recording device may include means (not shown) for thermal and mechanical protection.

A second type of application of a recording device according to the invention corresponds to the case of a check carried out, for example at the roadside, by a competent authority, namely the police or the gendarmerie
In this case, the memory 6 of the recording device 1 is read, which makes it possible to instantly detect a possible infraction. It should be noted that in this case, the recording device is advantageously removable from the vehicle, in order to facilitate its connection to the reading device.
There are of course many other cases where it is advantageous to read the memory of the recording device according to the invention.

 FIG. 2 presents a simplified logic diagram of an exemplary embodiment of a recording device according to the invention.

 In this embodiment, the storage control means 5 comprise an inicrocontroller with its clock 21 and its power supply 22.

 The data storage memory 6 is a read-only programmable read-only memory, for example of the EEPROM type.

 In order to provide storage of the first in-first out type, either the memory 6 is itself of the first-in-first out type, or this function is performed in software by a pointer performing a cyclic recovery of the memory 6.

 The microcontroller 5 receives a plurality of control and / or command signals 31 to 311. However, in this particular embodiment, certain signals or information are not directly derived from the cockpit.

 Thus, this example of a recording device comprises means 23 for continuously measuring speed, for example built around a Hall effect sensor. This example of a recording device is intended to be used on a vehicle that does not have a speed signal available in a simple manner on the cockpit.

 Likewise, this example of a recording device also comprises means 24 for receiving over the air (for example at high frequencies) one or more road signaling signals constituting one or more additional control and / or control signals.

 By road signaling signal is meant, for example, signals indicating the configuration of the lights of the last crossing crossed, or signals relating to weather conditions.

 This option of using additional signals can obviously only be implemented if there are fixed means, belonging to the road infrastructure, which transmit this information over the air. As shown in FIG. 2, the recording device comprises communication means allowing the implementation of a dialogue protocol with a data reading device (also comprising such communication means).

 In this example, these communication means 25 constitute a serial interface, of the RS 232 type.

 The microcontroller 5 is connected to the other elements of the recording device (means 23 for measuring speed, means 24 for HF reception, input of signals 31 to 3, and RS 232 interface) by a data bus 26.

As regards the means (not shown) for thermal and mechanical protection, it is for example a multilayer structure comprising in particular, around the different means shown in FIG. 2:
- a layer of resin resistant up to 250 "C (the device
recording itself, consisting for example of a circuit
printed, is molded in this resin);
- a layer of fire-resistant plaster resistant to 800 "C for two hours;
- a layer of asbestos; and
- a metal case.

Finally, in order to fight against possible fraud, the connectors of the various signal inputs are distributed randomly, only the manufacturer knowing the correspondence between the location of a connector and the type of signal which must be applied to it.
There is also software protection intended to verify that neither the program of the microcontroller nor the stored data has been modified fraudulently.

Claims (15)

 characterized in that it comprises means (2) for deriving at least one control and / or command signal (31 to 3,) from the cockpit (4), and control means (5) of an aperiodic storage of the first in - first out type of a current value of said at least one signal in a memory (6) containing a set of at least two successive values of said at least one signal.  Claims 1. A recording device of the type intended to be placed on a road motor vehicle, 2. Recording device according to claim 1, characterized in that said control and / or command signal (31 to 3n) belongs to the group comprising:  - the speed signals of said road motor vehicle;  - the status signals of at least one of the lights intended for lighting and  signaling of said road motor vehicle; and  - the status signals of at least one of the control lights of said vehicle  road automobile. 3. Recording device according to claim 2, characterized in that said control means (5) ensure said storage if at least one of the following conditions is satisfied:  - reception of information (7) starting the engine; and  - speed (8) of said road motor vehicle greater than a value  predetermined minimum. 4. Recording device according to any one of claims 2 and 3, characterized in that it comprises means (23) for continuously measuring the speed of said road motor vehicle, delivering a speed signal constituting a signal of control and / or command. 5. Recording device according to claim 4, characterized in that said means (23) for continuously measuring the speed of said road motor vehicle comprise a Hall effect sensor. 6. Recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it comprises means (24) for receiving over the air at least one road signal signal, said road signal signal constituting an additional control and control signal. 7. Recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that said control means (5) comprise a microcontroller. 8. Recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that said memory (6) is a programmable read-only memory of the first in - first out type. 9. Recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that it comprises thermal and mechanical protection means. 10. Recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that it is removable from said road motor vehicle. 11. Recording device according to any one of claims I to 10, characterized in that said road motor vehicle belongs to the group comprising in particular cars, trucks and motorcycles. 12. Recording device according to any one of claims 2 to 11, characterized in that said lights intended for the lighting and signaling of said road motor vehicle belong to the group comprising in particular:  - position lights;  - main beam:  - traffic lights;  - brake lights;  - hazard warning lights;  - reversing lights;  - fog lights;  - left flashing lights; and  - the right flashing lights. 13. Recording device according to any one of claims 2 to 12, characterized in that said control lights of said road motor vehicle belong to the group comprising in particular:  - the brake lights;  - the oil sight glasses;  - the temperature indicators; and  - the seat belt closing warning lights. 14. Recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that said control means (5) comprise means (25) of communication allowing the implementation of a dialogue protocol with a device for reading data (9). 15. Recording device according to claim 14, characterized in that said means (25) of communication comprise a serial interface.