JP2003021536A - Method for detecting alteration of integrated travel distance - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To adequately detect an alteration of an integrated travel distance computed by an electronic odometer. SOLUTION: Distance data indicating the integrated travel distance computed by the electronic odometer 10 are stored in both a memory part 13 of the electronic odometer 10 and a memory part 22 of another on-vehicle electronic unit 20 each time the vehicle travels by a specific travel distance. Then the latest distance data stored in those memory parts 13 and 22 are read out when necessary and compared with each other to detect the illegal alteration of the integrated travel distance.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for detecting an tampering of an accumulated mileage of an electronic odometer which presents the accumulated mileage of a vehicle to a user.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As an odometer for presenting a user with an accumulated mileage of a vehicle, a fluorescent display tube (VFD) and a liquid crystal display (LFD) are provided because the display is easy to see and the appearance is excellent.
Electronic odometers, which use a CD as a display device, are becoming popular.

This electronic odometer is provided with a control section composed of a microcomputer, and this control section obtains the traveling distance of the vehicle based on the pulse signal from the vehicle speed sensor, and the obtained traveling distance up to that time is calculated. The latest accumulated traveling distance is calculated by sequentially adding to the accumulated traveling distance and displayed on the display device.

In this type of electronic odometer, the control unit is operated every time the vehicle travels a predetermined distance so that the integrated travel distance calculated by the control unit does not disappear even when the power is not supplied. The integrated traveling distance calculated by is written as distance data in a non-volatile memory such as an EEPROM, and the distance data is read out from the nonvolatile memory as needed to newly calculate the integrated traveling distance, which is displayed on the display device. ing.

[0005]

By the way, the cumulative traveling distance calculated by the electronic odometer as described above is
Since it is one of the criteria for measuring the degree of wear of the vehicle, there is a risk that it will be subject to unauthorized tampering. For example, an electronic odometer is usually provided with a reset terminal for returning the data in the nonvolatile memory to the initial value after the inspection at the time of shipment, but this reset terminal is illegally used and written in the nonvolatile memory. Deleted distance data,
The accumulated traveling distance less than the actual accumulated traveling distance will be displayed on the display device.

As a method for coping with such a problem, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 6-109478, every time the data in the nonvolatile memory is reset, the number of resets and reset mileage data are accumulated, and the accumulated value is calculated. When a value exceeds a predetermined value, a technique has been proposed in which a warning is displayed or the use of the electronic odometer is stopped to prevent unauthorized tampering of the accumulated travel distance.

However, this Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-10947
The technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 8 is based on the assumption that the data in the nonvolatile memory is reset.
If the data in the non-volatile memory is rewritten by another method, or if the pulse signal from the vehicle speed sensor is illegally processed and the accumulated mileage is altered, it cannot be dealt with. Such problems have not been fundamentally resolved.

The present invention was devised in view of the above conventional circumstances, and when the accumulated travel distance calculated by the electronic odometer is tampered with, the tampering is appropriate. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for detecting falsification of accumulated travel distance that can be detected at any time.

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a tampering detection method for accumulated mileage, wherein the accumulated mileage of the vehicle calculated by an electronic odometer is calculated every time the vehicle travels a predetermined mileage. The distance data shown is stored in a non-volatile memory provided in the electronic odometer, and the distance data is supplied to another on-vehicle electronic unit connected to the electronic odometer via a data transmission means,
The distance data stored in the non-volatile memory included in the other on-vehicle electronic unit, and if necessary, the distance data stored in the non-volatile memory of the electronic odometer and the distance data stored in the non-volatile memory of the other electronic unit. By reading out and and matching these distance data,
It is characterized by detecting tampering of the total traveled distance.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for detecting falsification of an integrated traveling distance, wherein when a falsification of an accumulated traveling distance is detected, the user is notified of the fact. It is characterized by performing a warning process to inform the.

Further, a method for detecting falsification of an integrated traveling distance according to a third aspect is the method for detecting falsification of an integrated traveling distance according to the first or second aspect, wherein a nonvolatile memory provided in the electronic odometer and the other The storage area of the distance data with respect to the non-volatile memory included in the vehicle-mounted electronic unit is different each time the distance data is stored.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for detecting the alteration of the accumulated traveling distance, wherein the alteration data of the accumulated traveling distance is stored in a non-volatile memory of the electronic odometer. When reading the distance data stored in the non-volatile memory of the other electronic unit, the previous distance data is read in addition to the latest distance data, and these previous distance data are also collated. .

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, an electronic odometer 10 and another vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 are mutually connected via a data transmission means 30 such as a serial transmission cable, in the method for detecting the alteration of the accumulated traveling distance according to the present invention. This will be effectively implemented in the in-vehicle electrical system that is connected and is configured to be able to transmit and receive data between the electronic odometer 10 and the other on-vehicle electronic unit 20.

In the in-vehicle electrical system shown in FIG. 1, the electronic odometer 10 is provided with a control unit 11 composed of a microcomputer, and the control unit 11 is composed of a fluorescent display tube (VFD) or a liquid crystal display (LCD). The display unit 12, a memory unit 13 including a non-volatile memory such as an EEPROM, and an alarm device 14 for making a buzzer sound are connected to each other.

In the in-vehicle electrical system shown in FIG. 1, another on-vehicle electronic unit 20 connected to the electronic odometer 10 through the data transmission means 30 is provided with a control section 21 including a microcomputer, and this control is performed. A memory unit 22 composed of a non-volatile memory such as an EEPROM is connected to the unit 21. The on-vehicle electronic unit 20 includes a non-volatile memory such as an air conditioner unit and an audio unit, and the electronic odometer 10 and the data transmission means 3 such as a serial transmission cable.
Any electronic unit connected via 0 is applicable. Further, even if the electronic unit is connected to the electronic odometer 10 via the data transmission means 30 and does not have the nonvolatile memory, if the nonvolatile memory is separately mounted, another on-vehicle electronic unit according to the present invention. 20
Is applicable as.

The control unit 11 of the electronic odometer 10 stores the data between the mileage counter 15 that obtains the mileage of the vehicle by counting the pulse signals from the vehicle speed sensor 31 and the other on-vehicle electronic unit 20. The electronic odometer 10 is provided with a transmission / reception control unit 16 that controls transmission / reception and an arithmetic processing unit 17, and the arithmetic processing unit 17 performs various arithmetic processing based on a control program stored in a program ROM (not shown). The operation of each component is controlled.

Specifically, the arithmetic processing unit 17 calculates the latest integrated traveling distance by sequentially adding the traveling distance of the vehicle obtained by the traveling distance counter 15 to the accumulated traveling distance up to that point. Then, the arithmetic processing unit 17 generates display data and a control signal for displaying the calculated integrated traveling distance on the display unit 12, and supplies the display data and the control signal to the display unit 12. Based on the display data and the control signal supplied from the arithmetic processing unit 17, the display unit 1
By driving No. 2, the latest accumulated traveling distance is displayed on the display unit 12 at any time.

Further, every time the vehicle travel distance reaches a predetermined distance, the arithmetic processing unit 17 performs a predetermined arithmetic processing on the latest integrated travel distance calculated at that time or on the latest integrated travel distance. The value obtained as a result is written in the memory unit 13 as distance data indicating the accumulated travel distance, and this distance data is supplied to the transmission / reception control unit 16 together with the write command, and the transmission / reception control unit 16 causes the data transmission means 30 to operate. A process of transferring the data to another on-vehicle electronic unit 20 is performed. When the distance data and the write command are supplied from the electronic odometer 10 to the other on-vehicle electronic unit 20 via the data transmission means 30, the other on-vehicle electronic unit 20 transmits the distance data to the other on-vehicle electronic unit according to the write command. The process of writing to the memory unit 22 included in the electronic unit 20 is performed.

Further, the arithmetic processing unit 17 further operates, for example, when the engine of the vehicle is started (when the ignition switch is turned on), when the traveling distance of the vehicle reaches a preset predetermined distance, and further when the vehicle travels electronically. When a reset switch (not shown) provided in the formula odometer 10 is turned on for a few seconds or the like and a predetermined condition is set in advance, these are used as triggers to cause the memory unit 13 to move to the memory unit 1.
3 performs the process of reading the distance data stored in No. 3, and the process of supplying the read command from the transmission / reception control unit 16 to another on-vehicle electronic unit 20 via the data transmission unit 30. When a read command is supplied from the electronic odometer 10 to the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 via the data transmission means 30, the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 is provided in the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 in response to the read command. A process of reading the distance data stored in the memory unit 22 from the memory unit 22 is performed. Then, the distance data read from the memory unit 22 is transmitted via the data transmission means 30 to the electronic odometer 1
Will be transferred to 0.

When the distance data stored in the memory unit 13 is read and the distance data read from the memory unit 22 of another on-vehicle electronic unit 20 is transferred, the arithmetic processing unit 17 transfers these memory data. The distance data read from the unit 13 is compared with the distance data read from the memory unit 22 of another vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20, and based on the result, the distance data stored in the memory unit 13 is incorrect. Judge whether it has been tampered with.

More specifically, the memory section 13 of the electronic odometer 10 and the non-volatile memory 12 of the other electronic unit 20.
Since the same distance data is written in the memory, the distance data read from the memory units 13 and 22 are usually the same. However, when the distance data stored in the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 is illegally tampered with by some method, the distance data read from the memory unit 13 is stored in the memory of another on-vehicle electronic unit 20. This is different from the distance data read from the unit 22. Therefore, the arithmetic processing unit 17 collates these distance data to obtain a difference between them, compares the difference between these distance data with a predetermined threshold value set in advance, and determines whether the difference between the distance data exceeds the threshold value. It is determined whether or not the distance data stored in the memory unit 13 has been tampered with illegally.

Then, the arithmetic processing section 17 includes a memory section 13
When it is determined that the distance data stored in the alarm data has been tampered with, a control signal for operating the alarm device 14 is generated, and the control signal is supplied to the alarm device 14. As a result, a buzzer sounds by the alarm device 14, and a warning process is performed to inform the user of the vehicle that the distance data stored in the memory unit 13 has been tampered with.

Electronic odometer 10 and data transmission means 3
The control unit 21 of the other on-vehicle electronic unit 20 connected via 0 is a transmission / reception control unit 23 that controls transmission / reception of data to / from the electronic odometer 10, and an arithmetic processing unit 24 that performs various arithmetic processes. It has and.

The arithmetic processing section 24 is used for the electronic odometer 10.
From the vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 via the data transmission means 30
When the distance data and the write command are supplied to the memory unit 22 and the distance data and the write command are input from the transmission / reception control unit 23, the distance data supplied from the electronic odometer 10 is stored in the memory unit 22 according to the write command.
To write to.

Further, the arithmetic processing section 24 is supplied with a read command from the electronic odometer 10 to the vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 via the data transmission means 30, and when the read command is inputted from the transmission / reception control section 23, the read operation is carried out. A process of reading the distance data stored in the memory unit 22 is performed according to the command. Then, the arithmetic processing unit 24
Performs a process of supplying the distance data read from the memory unit 22 to the transmission / reception control unit 23 and transferring from the transmission / reception control unit 23 to the electronic odometer 10 via the data transmission means 30. The distance data read from the memory unit 22 is
When the distance data is supplied from the vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 to the electronic odometer 10 through the data transmission means 30, in the electronic odometer 10, the arithmetic processing unit 17 reads the distance data from the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10. Whether the distance data and the distance data read from the memory unit 22 of the vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 are collated, and based on the result, whether or not the distance data stored in the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 has been tampered with illegally. Will be judged.

Here, in the vehicle interior electrical system configured as described above, a procedure for detecting an illegal tampering of the accumulated traveling distance will be specifically described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 2 to 4.

While the vehicle is traveling, the vehicle speed sensor 31 is driven by the traveling distance counter 15 of the electronic odometer 10.
The traveling distance of the vehicle is calculated based on the pulse signal from. Then, in step S1-1 of FIG. 2, the latest integrated traveling distance is constantly calculated by the arithmetic processing unit 17 based on the traveling distance of the vehicle obtained by the traveling distance counter 15. The latest integrated traveling distance calculated by the arithmetic processing unit 17 is supplied to the display unit 12 as needed. As a result, in step S1-2, the display unit 1
The latest accumulated mileage is displayed in 2.

Then, in step S1-3, it is determined whether or not the traveling distance of the vehicle has reached a predetermined distance set in advance, and it is determined that the traveling distance of the vehicle has reached a predetermined distance set in advance. In this case, in step S1-4, a process of writing the distance data indicating the cumulative traveling distance at that time into the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 and the memory unit 22 of the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 is performed.

This writing process is performed as follows. That is, when it is determined that the traveling distance of the vehicle has reached a preset predetermined distance, first, in step S of FIG.
2-1, the arithmetic processing unit 1 of the electronic odometer 10
7, the latest cumulative mileage calculated at that time,
Alternatively, a value obtained by performing a predetermined calculation process on the latest accumulated traveling distance is generated as distance data indicating the accumulated traveling distance. Then, in step S2-2, this distance data is written in the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10.

At this time, the writing of the distance data to the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 is performed by the memory unit 13
In consideration of the durability of the distance data, it is desirable that the distance data is written in a different recording area from the recording area in which the distance data is written last time, and the recording area in which the distance data is written is made different each time. That is, since the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 is composed of the non-volatile memory as described above, if data writing (updating) is repeated in the same recording area, only that recording area deteriorates and the recording area There is a case that the data written in the data will be lost. If the recording area of the memory unit 13 in which the distance data is written is made different each time, such an inconvenience can be avoided and the reliability of the distance data written in the memory unit 13 can be improved.

In step S2-3, the distance data generated by the arithmetic processing unit 17 is transmitted from the electronic odometer 10 to the data transmission means 3 together with the write command.
It is supplied to another vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 via 0. Then, in step S2-4, processing according to the write command is performed by the arithmetic processing unit 24 of the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20, and the distance data supplied from the electronic odometer 10 is stored in the memory of the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20. Part 2
Written to 2.

The memory section 22 of the vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20
Similarly to the above-described writing of the distance data into the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10, the writing of the distance data into the recording area is different from the recording area in which the previous distance data is written in consideration of the durability of the memory unit 22. It is desirable that the recording area in which the distance data is written be made different each time.

When the process of writing the distance data is completed as described above, next, in step S1-5 of FIG. 2, whether or not the condition set in advance as the condition for reading the distance data is satisfied, Specifically, for example, the engine of the vehicle has been started, the mileage of the vehicle has reached a preset predetermined distance, or a reset switch (not shown) provided in the electronic odometer 10 is turned on for several seconds. If it is determined that the conditions for reading these distance data are satisfied, in step S1-6, the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 and the memory unit 22 of the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 are determined. A process of reading each of the stored distance data is performed.

This reading process is performed as follows. That is, when it is determined that the condition for reading the distance data is satisfied, first, in step S3-1 of FIG. 4, the arithmetic processing unit 17 of the electronic odometer 10 causes
The latest distance data stored in the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 is read.

A read command is generated by the arithmetic processing unit 17, and this read command is supplied from the electronic odometer 10 to the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 via the data transmission means 30 in step S3-2. Then, in step S3-3, the arithmetic processing unit 24 of the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 performs processing according to the read command, and the latest distance data stored in the memory unit 22 of the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 is obtained. Read out. The memory section 22 of the other on-vehicle electronic unit 20
The distance data read from the data transmission means 3 is read from the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 in step S3-4.
It is supplied to the electronic odometer 10 via 0.

The memory section 1 of the electronic odometer 10
When reading the distance data from the memory unit 22 of the vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 of FIG. 3 and another vehicle, it is desirable to read the previous distance data in addition to the latest distance data. In addition to the latest distance data collation, the previous distance data collation is also performed, and the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 is
It is desirable to determine whether or not the distance data stored in the table has been tampered with. As described above, if not only the latest distance data but also the previous distance data is read to determine the illegal tampering, the electronic odometer 10 will be temporarily operated.
Even if the latest distance data stored in the memory unit 13 of the vehicle is lost, or even if the latest distance data stored in the memory unit 22 of another vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 is lost, the electronic odometer. It is possible to appropriately judge whether or not the distance data stored in the memory unit 13 of 10 has been tampered with illegally.

When the reading process of the distance data is completed as described above, next, in step S1-7 of FIG. 2, the arithmetic processing unit 17 of the electronic odometer 10 reads it from the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer. The distance data read is compared with the distance data read from the memory section 22 of the other vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20, and it is determined whether the difference between these distance data exceeds a predetermined threshold value set in advance. To be done.

Here, the memory section 13 of the electronic odometer
Distance data read from the other on-vehicle electronic unit 2
If the difference from the distance data read from the memory unit 22 of 0 does not exceed the threshold value, it is determined that the distance data stored in the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 has not been tampered with, and the step S1- It returns to 1 and the above processing is repeated.

On the other hand, the distance data read from the memory section 13 of the electronic odometer and the other on-vehicle electronic unit 20.
If the difference from the distance data read out from the memory unit 22 exceeds the threshold value, it is determined that the distance data stored in the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 is determined to have been tampered with, and step S1 At -8, the arithmetic processing unit 17 of the electronic odometer 10 generates a control signal for operating the alarm device 14, and the alarm device 14 is operated according to the control signal. As a result, the buzzer sounds by the alarm device 14, and a warning that the distance data stored in the memory unit 13 has been tampered with is issued.

As described above, in the method for detecting the alteration of the accumulated traveling distance according to the present invention, the memory section 22 of the vehicle-mounted electronic unit 20 other than the electronic odometer 10 is also effectively used to illegally alter the accumulated traveling distance. Therefore, it is possible to detect the falsification of the total traveling distance more appropriately. That is, the electronic odometer 10
If it is attempted to detect falsification of the total traveling distance by using only the memory unit 13 of the above, it is extremely difficult to detect if the data of the memory unit 13 is falsified. In the tampering detection method of the distance, the memory unit 13 of the electronic odometer 10 and the other on-vehicle electronic unit 20 are
The distance data indicating the accumulated traveling distance is stored in both the memory unit 22 and the illegal traveling of the accumulated traveling distance is detected by collating the distance data as necessary. It is possible to extremely effectively detect illegal alteration of the distance.

In addition, in the method for detecting falsification of accumulated travel distance according to the present invention, an electronic unit that is normally installed in a vehicle, such as an air conditioner unit or an audio unit, is used as another on-vehicle electronic unit 20. Since it is possible to realize effective detection of illegal tampering of the accumulated traveling distance by simply adding a new program to the control program for controlling the electronic odometer 10 without adding a new hardware configuration, the cost can be improved. It is also very advantageous.

The above is a description of a specific example of the method for detecting falsification of the total traveled distance according to the present invention.
It is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above examples and can be appropriately modified. For example, in the above example, when the tampering with the accumulated traveling distance is detected, the alarm device 14 sounds the buzzer to warn the user. However, for example, the display unit 12 displays a warning. Alternatively, the user may be warned by another method.

In the above example, one on-vehicle electronic unit 20 is assumed as the on-vehicle electronic unit 20 other than the electronic odometer. It is also possible to store the distance data indicating the distance and collate the distance data with each other as necessary to detect an illegal tampering of the accumulated traveling distance. In this case, it is possible to detect the falsification of the accumulated traveling distance with higher accuracy.

[0045]

According to the tampering detection method of the accumulated traveling distance according to the present invention, the distance data indicating the accumulated traveling distance is stored in both the nonvolatile memory included in the electronic odometer and the nonvolatile memory included in another vehicle-mounted electronic unit. The illegal tampering of the accumulated mileage is detected by storing the data and collating these distance data as necessary, so that the illegal tampering of the accumulated mileage can be detected very effectively. it can.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block configuration diagram showing an in-vehicle electrical system in which a method for detecting falsification of an integrated travel distance according to the present invention is implemented.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure for detecting an unauthorized alteration of the total traveling distance in the in-vehicle electrical system.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining in detail a distance data writing process in a procedure for detecting an illegal tampering with the accumulated traveling distance.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating in detail a distance data reading process in a procedure for detecting an illegal tampering with the accumulated traveling distance.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Electronic odometer 11 Control unit 13 memory 17 Arithmetic processing unit 20 Other in-vehicle electronic units 21 Control unit 22 Memory section 24 Arithmetic processing unit

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. Whenever a vehicle travels a predetermined mileage,
The distance data indicating the cumulative traveling distance of the vehicle calculated by the electronic odometer is stored in the nonvolatile memory provided in the electronic odometer, and the distance data is connected to the electronic odometer via the data transmission means. Other on-vehicle electronic unit to be stored in the non-volatile memory of the other on-vehicle electronic unit, and, if necessary, the distance data and the other electronic data stored in the non-volatile memory of the electronic odometer. A tampering detection method for accumulated traveling distance, characterized in that tampering with the accumulated traveling distance is detected by reading out the distance data stored in the non-volatile memory of the unit and comparing these distance data. 2. When tampering with the accumulated traveling distance is detected,
The falsification detection method according to claim 1, further comprising performing a warning process for notifying the user of that fact. 3. The storage area of the distance data with respect to the non-volatile memory of the electronic odometer and the non-volatile memory of the other on-vehicle electronic unit is changed every time the distance data is stored. The tampering detection method for the total traveled distance according to claim 1 or 2. 4. The distance data stored in the non-volatile memory of the electronic odometer and the distance data stored in the non-volatile memory of the other electronic unit are read in addition to the latest distance data in addition to the latest distance data. 4. The method for detecting falsification of accumulated traveling distance according to claim 3, wherein the distance data is also read and the previous distance data is also collated.