FR3064798A1 - METHOD AND DEVICE FOR MONITORING PARAMETERS FOR LAND VEHICLES - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for monitoring parameters related to a terrestrial vehicle (C) of the type equipped with at least one transmitter (300 ', 120', 220 ') transmitting data by radiofrequency, which is remarkable in that it comprises the following operation: - installation of a long-range radio station called base station (S) on the transit or parking sites of the vehicle (C) for direct reception of the data transmitted by the transmitter ( 300 ', 120', 220 '), embedded in the vehicle (C). The invention also relates to a device for implementing said method. Application: embedded electronics.

Description

Holder (s): LDL TECHNOLOGY Simplified joint-stock company.

Extension request (s)

Agent (s): COLBERT INNOVATION TOULOUSE.

J) METHOD AND DEVICE FOR MONITORING PARAMETERS FOR LAND VEHICLES.

FR 3 064 798 - A1 _ The invention relates to a method for monitoring parameters linked to a land vehicle (C) of the type equipped with at least one transmitter (300 ', 120', 220j transmitting data by radio frequency, remarkable in that it comprises the following operation:

- installation of a long-range radio station called base station (S) on the transit or vehicle parking sites (C) for the direct reception of data transmitted by the transmitter (300 ', 120', 220d , on board the vehicle (C).

The invention also relates to a device making it possible to implement said method.

Application: on-board electronics.

-1 METHOD AND DEVICE FOR MONITORING PARAMETERS FOR LAND VEHICLES

FIELD OF APPLICATION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of on-board electronics and in particular to adaptations making it possible to implement under the best conditions, the monitoring of parameters by sensors installed on land vehicles.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

Nowadays, the progress made by electronics has made it possible to integrate on land vehicles, a multitude of communicating autonomous sensors. These sensors are compact enough to be housed, for example, in a tire for a land vehicle (automobile, truck and trailer, etc.) in the case of pressure and temperature sensors.

The improvement in passive safety due to these control systems as well as the gains in fuel consumption, as in tire wear have led governments to make these systems compulsory. Many equipment manufacturers, in particular motor vehicles, then proposed their own system, still based on radio frequency technology, allowing the transmission of data specific to the tire (pressure, temperature, etc.) of the emission module associated with the sensor placed in contact. air (or nitrogen) contained by the tire, to a receiver on board the vehicle, giving the final information to the driver via a display on the dashboard. Many systems coexist.

A known problem with these systems is that they are only active during taxiing phases or that they must have on-board power supplies in order to enable the receiver to be powered and, consequently, allow monitoring during the parking phase without being able to '' interact with the user to report a malfunction during this parking phase.

Indeed, the sensors are high consumers of energy during their radiofrequency emission to the on-board receiver because the emission frequency must be high to ensure precise time monitoring of potential damage, in particular with regard to tire pressure .

- 2To solve this energy consumption problem, a solution consists in distinguishing between the driving phases and the parking phases. To this end, a movement sensor (accelerometer, vibration, ...) placed in each wheel detects the movement of the vehicle and wakes up the electronics of the sensor which, consequently, only works in the driving phase. It is therefore also possible in the parking phase to transmit at a longer time interval. However, in this case, since the receiver and the on-board instruments are not necessarily powered, the data or alerts transmitted are not received, which reduces their usefulness for the driver or the fleet manager.

Another known solution consists in not worrying about consumption and in transmitting permanently at regular time intervals, without distinguishing between the driving or parking phases. In this case, the part of the device implementing the reception must be supplied autonomously during the parking phases to make this information effective, which implies the presence of expensive batteries on board the vehicle.

Another problem lies in the cost due to the necessary presence of receivers on board each rolling subassembly (up to four receivers for a truck with two trailers). DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

On the basis of these observations, the applicant has carried out research aimed at proposing a solution for monitoring the parameters measured on a vehicle making it possible to overcome the drawbacks of the prior art.

The Applicant has also conducted research aimed at proposing an optimized solution for transmitting and receiving all data from a land vehicle.

This research led to the design and implementation of a process for monitoring parameters linked to a land vehicle of the type fitted with at least one transmitter transmitting data by radio frequency, remarkable in that it includes following operation:

- installation of a long-range radio station called base station on the transit or parking sites of the vehicle for the purpose of direct reception of the data transmitted by the transmitter on board the vehicle.

-3 The advantage of such a method is that it allows continuous monitoring of the parameters of a rolling subassembly without the need to use an on-board autonomous power source dedicated to this monitoring.

Another advantage is that it allows the removal of on-board receivers and possibly associated batteries. The invention allows a significant financial gain for the fleet operator.

A single radio station is necessary to cover a logistics platform, a vehicle fleet parking area, etc. Thus, the parameters of the rolling sub-assemblies can be received in the parking phase but not only.

Indeed, according to another particularly advantageous characteristic of the invention, the method is remarkable in that it comprises the installation of a plurality of long-range radio stations. This characteristic makes it possible to create overlapping covers and thus a network ensuring the monitoring of the parameters both when stationary and when the vehicles are moving.

According to another particularly advantageous characteristic of the invention, the transmitter on board the vehicle is a transmitter associated with a sensor. Thus, it is not necessary to design an additional intermediate device to implement the invention.

According to another particularly advantageous characteristic of the invention, the transmitter on board the vehicle is a transmitter associated with a sensor integrated into a wheel. Thus, all of the wheel sensors of a vehicle communicate directly with the radio station or stations.

According to another particularly advantageous characteristic of the invention, the transmitter is designed according to a wireless transmission technology, low consumption, which transmits regularly (according to a defined cycle) or on event (rapid variation of a chosen parameter (temperature, door opening detection, etc.) when the vehicle is parked and therefore in range of the single base station located on site Each on-board sensor has a unique identifier code enabling it to be identified and therefore

-4know the references of the rolling subassembly on which it is installed.

According to another particularly advantageous characteristic of the invention, the base station is connected to a mobile communication network of the type

- GPRS = General Paoket Radio Service / second generation mobile telephony standards,

- 3G = third generation mobile telephony standards, or Ethernet network (packet communication local area network protocol). This feature allows permanent machine-to-machine (M2M) monitoring without affecting the life of the vehicle battery. The fleet operator can thus, by connecting to its network of base stations, know in real time the state of its fleet of tires in addition to macroscopically geolocating its vehicle in relation to the areas covered by its reception network. As a reminder, in the event of a sudden change in the monitored physical parameters or crossing of a predefined threshold in the sensors, the latter instantly send an alert message to the reception network.

This information can, for example, cover for a truck: tire pressure => safety and operability guaranteed,

- the temperature of a refrigerated area => cold chain control,

- the status of opening the doors of a trailer, monitoring against theft or loss, monitoring of loading / unloading,

- monitoring the presence or absence of a rolling sub-assembly in a coverage area (geo-location), the levels of consumable fluids (diesel, oil, water ...) =>

fuel failure or theft alert.

Another advantage of such a process lies in the pooling of radio stations. Indeed, each center, place of passage or concentration of vehicles, having a reception antenna can be accessible subject to access rights to the network (user password granted in exchange for a paid subscription to the administering service base stations). Thus, each base station owner offers users the possibility of accessing the geographic network that concerns them in

-5 their vehicle fleet management. By extension, as explained above, it is possible to obtain all of the information from the sensors, even during the running phases, provided that the course of the rolling sub-assemblies crosses areas covered by the network of base stations. .

According to another particularly advantageous characteristic of the invention, the radiofrequency transmissions between the transmitter and the base station are carried out on the subGHZ bands according to the choice of the communication protocol: UNB (Ultra Narrow Band) BPSK ( Binary Phase Shift Keying), LoRa (Long Range Wide Area Network).

According to another particularly advantageous characteristic of the invention, the communication between sensor and base station is bidirectional to reconfigure new alert thresholds and adapt them according to the goods transported.

According to another particularly advantageous characteristic of the invention, the radio station transmits messages to the rolling sub-assemblies equipped to receive them. These messages can be broadcast when the vehicle is started via an interface for the driver.

On a covered area likely to reach 2 miles (approximately 3.2 kilometers in diameter), it is possible to perform a triangulation using N stations (N being greater than or equal to 3) in order to achieve geolocation. This functionality can help a driver to take possession of his vehicle or his trailer in a minimum of time, or identify vehicles having stayed in or transit through a contaminated area (chemical or nuclear industry).

The invention also relates to the device making it possible to implement all or part of the method described above. This device is remarkable in that it includes sensors equipped with a radio frequency transmission module with which an additional transmission module is associated in order to generate a modulation compatible with the communication technology of the network with which the sensor must communicate. .

To implement the invention on a radio station network using a technology of the UNB type (Ultra Narrow Band)

- 6 narrow) on an ISM (Industrial, Scientific and Medical) frequency band, the sensor is equipped with a transmitter capable of generating the modulation used for the network.

According to another particularly advantageous characteristic of the invention, the method can include a manipulation operation on the transmitters. Thus, in addition to the frequency band (868.2MHz) not conventionally managed by the transmission / reception subsets of the transmitters equipping the sensors on the market, BPSK modulation (Binary Phase-Shift Keying / Binary modulation by phase change) is emulated, by a frequency change at almost zero power at the time of phase changes so as to temporally accelerate the carrier and thus create a phase shift of 180 ° necessary to modulate one bit per symbol. The information from the sensors on board a vehicle does not require a high bit rate and is therefore completely compatible for communicating with a network using BPSK technology.

Envelope modulation is also generated by dynamically controlling the output amplification stage in order to limit spectral spreading, an essential parameter for ensuring the sensitivity of the system and very limited in the case of network modulation of the type A B.

A radiofrequency transmitter of type ATA5702 or ATA5831 qualified automotive, inexpensive and capable of generating BPSK modulation under the desired conditions (Carrier 868.2MHz +/- 24kHz and +/- 96kHz; low phase noise, frequency resolution <100Hz, threshold amplitude <0.5dB, amplitude dynamics> 25dB), and then generate the code to emulate this modulation. The optimizations of envelope shape and quartz matching have made it possible to comply with the radio frequency requirements defined by such a network.

The transmission power is selected in order to be able to cover a radius of approximately one kilometer around said radio station, and to offer a lifespan of the sensor of approximately 4 years with 8 emissions per day, instead of one emission. every 2 minutes with a wireless sensor integrated into a standard wheel, for a similar lifespan of 4 years.

The fundamental concepts of the invention which have just been set out above in their most basic form, other details and

Characteristics will emerge more clearly on reading the description which follows and with reference to the appended drawings, giving by way of nonlimiting example, an embodiment of a method and a monitoring device in accordance with the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Figure 1 is a schematic drawing illustrating the prior art of communications between a rolling subassembly and a network;

FIG. 2 is a schematic drawing illustrating the communications according to an embodiment of the invention between a rolling subassembly and an antenna;

Figure 3 is a schematic drawing of the various communications envisaged for the implementation of the invention. DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

An embodiment of an installation of the prior art is illustrated in the drawing in FIG. 1. As illustrated in this drawing, a truck referenced C as a whole comprises a trailer 100 and a tractor 200.

The tires of the wheels of the trailer 100 and those of the tractor 200 accommodate a pressure and / or temperature sensor 300 which are equipped with a transmission module for transmitting the measured data to a reception and transmission unit, the one 110 being present on the rolling subassembly formed by the trailer 100 and another 210 being present on the rolling subassembly formed by the tractor 200. The trailer 100 and the tractor 200 may be fitted with other sensors or other transmitters 120, 220 for the purpose of implementing other functions such as:

- measurement of the temperature of a refrigerated transport trailer,

- detection of door opening, transmission of an authentication code for the trailer or tractor,

- etc ...

Conventionally, the wheel sensors 300, the other sensors or transmitters 12 0 and 22 0 communicate by radio frequency unidirectionally to the reception and transmission unit 110 or 210 on board the rolling subassembly to which they belong. These reception units 110 and 210 communicate with each other bidirectionally. The reception and

- 8transmission 210 equipping the tractor 200 is also wired or not with a central unit 400 installed on the tractor 200 and capable of communicating with the outside with a network R or a computer P by any means of communication.

As illustrated in the drawing in FIG. 2, the method and the device of the invention propose to install a base station S equipped with an antenna A or a network of stations constituted by a plurality of antennas A (not illustrated ) and to adapt the transmission module of the sensors 300 ', 120' and other transmitters 220 'so as to create a direct link between said sensors and transmitters 300', 120 ', 220' and the antenna A.

The reception and transmission units 110 and 210 could be kept but no longer have the function of transmitting data from the sensors and other transmitters 220 ′. Thus, the invention has the advantage of no longer requiring the presence of these units which have therefore been removed from this FIG. 2.

The drawing of FIG. 3 illustrates a preferred but non-limiting embodiment of the communication possibilities offered from a sensor 300 'in accordance with the invention. This sensor 300 ′ positioned in the tire of the wheel of a vehicle transmits the data measured by a unidirectional radio wave F1 directly to an outdoor radio station or base station S comprising an antenna A for reception. This base station S communicates F2 with a network or is part of a network. It also communicates with a computer P via an F2 ethernet network. The base station S also transmits F4 data to the sensor 300 'which is then equipped with a suitable reception module.

This sensor 300 'also communicates with a portable diagnostic tool 500 by radio frequency waves for transmission F5 and by low frequency waves for reception F6. This tool communicates with said computer P by any means F7.

It is understood that the method and the device, which have just been described and shown above, have been for the purpose of disclosure rather than limitation. Of course, various arrangements, modifications and improvements could be made to the example above, without however departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims (11)

RE VE ND IC AT IONS 1. Method for monitoring parameters linked to a land vehicle (C) of the type equipped with at least one transmitter (300 ', 120', 220 ') transmitting data by radio frequency, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT it includes the following operation: - installation of a long-range radio station called base station (S) on the transit or parking sites of the vehicle (C) for the purposes of direct reception of the data transmitted by the transmitter (300 ', 120', 220 '), on board the vehicle (C). 2. Method according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT it comprises the installation of a plurality of long-range radio stations. 3. Method according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT the transmitter (300 ') on board the vehicle (C) is a transmitter associated with a sensor. 4. Method according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT the transmitter (300 ') on board the vehicle (C) is a transmitter associated with a sensor integrated into a wheel. 5. Method according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT the transmitter (300 ') adopts a wireless transmission technology, low consumption, which transmits regularly (according to a defined cycle) or on event as a rapid variation of a selected parameter (temperature, door opening detection, etc.) when the vehicle (C) is parked and therefore within range of the single base station (S) located on site. 6. Method according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT the base station (S) is connected to a mobile communication network of the type - GPRS = General Paoket Radio Service / second generation mobile telephony standards, - 3G = third generation mobile telephony standards, or Ethernet network (packet communication local area network protocol). 7. Method according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT the radiofrequency transmissions between the transmitter (300 ', 120', 220 ') and the base station (S) are carried out on the subGHZ radiofrequency bands according to the choice of the communication protocol: UNB (Ultra Narrow Band) BPSK -10 (Binary Phase Shift Keying), LoRa (Long Range Wide Area Network) 8. Method according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT the communication between transmitter (300 ', 120', 220 ') and base station (S) is bidirectional to reconfigure new alert thresholds, adapted according to the goods transported. 9. Method according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT the radio station (S) transmits messages to the rolling sub-assemblies (100 ', 200') equipped to receive them. 10. The method of claim 1, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT it comprises a manipulation operation on the transmitters (300 ', 120', 220 '). 11. Device making it possible to implement the method according to any one of the preceding claims, CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT THAT it comprises sensors (300 ′) equipped with a radio frequency transmission module to which an additional transmission module is associated in order to generate a modulation compatible with the communication technology of the network with which the sensor (300 ') must communicate. 1/3 Prior Art 2/3 3/3