JP2003273801A - On-vehicle communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a on-vehicle communication system allowing a driver to communicate in response to connection requests from terminal devices in the own vehicle and allowing the driver to communicate in response to connection requests from other vehicles, while communicating with a vehicle-mounted radio communication device in own vehicle. <P>SOLUTION: A vehicle-mounted communication system, allowing a driver to communicate with other vehicles comprises a driver communication device 3 having a radio communication module for operating in a master state, and a vehicle-mounted communication device 2 having a first radio communication module 2b for communicating with the radio communication module of the driver communication device 3 and a second radio communication module 2c for communicating with radio communication modules except for the communication devices in the own vehicle, and connects the first communication modules 2b to the second communication module 2b. The system can allow the second communication module 2c to respond to connection requests from other vehicles, even when the driver communication device 3 is in communication with the vehicle-mounted communication device 2, and allow the second communication module 2c to respond to connection requests from terminal devices 1 and 4, even if the driver communication device 3 is in communication. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an on-vehicle communication system for a motorcycle or the like, and more particularly to a wireless communication device mounted on a helmet or the like by which a driver can connect to a wireless communication device of a motorcycle body. The present invention relates to an in-vehicle communication system that can be connected to a mobile phone, a passenger, and another vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A driver's vehicle can listen to a car stereo provided on the vehicle body by wireless communication without a connecting cord while driving a two-wheeled vehicle, and can also communicate wirelessly with a mobile phone, a passenger, or another vehicle. It is expected to be possible. The requirements for such a communication system are low power consumption and low cost, but in addition, a driver's vehicle can receive a communication request from another terminal while communicating with one terminal in the vehicle. Is also necessary.

Bluetooth is a promising candidate for power-saving and low-cost wireless communication. Bluetooth is a wireless communication technology for mobile information devices, and is a short-range wireless communication that allows you to connect a laptop computer, PDA, mobile phone, etc. without using a cable and exchange voice and data. Bluetooth uses radio waves in the 2.45 GHz band, which can be used freely without a license, and can communicate at a speed of 1 Mbps. In addition, since it uses a small transceiver, it consumes less power and costs less to manufacture. Can be kept low.

[0004]

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the specifications of Bluetooth. In order for the Bluetooth unit 1 and the unit 2 to communicate, one becomes a master and the other becomes a slave. Normally, the master that makes the connection request first. Then, frequency spread spectrum is performed using the master ID as a hopping pattern. Therefore, in Bluetooth communication, only star-shaped connections centered on the master unit are allowed.

For example, in FIG. 1, the Bluetooth unit 1, which is the master, can accept a connection request from another Bluetooth unit 3 during communication with the unit 2. In the procedure from the connection request to the establishment of communication, when the unit 3 requests the connection to the unit 1 as the master, the unit 1 once switches to the slave and accepts the connection. This establishes communication between the two, but immediately after that, both units 3 and 1 switch the master and slave, so that finally unit 3 can function as a slave and unit 1 can function as a master. Become. Therefore, the master module in the communication state can respond to the connection request from another module.

However, the unit 2 in the slave state cannot receive a communication request from another unit,
Therefore, the unit 3 cannot communicate with the unit 2 in the slave state. Also, with Bluetooth, communication between masters is not possible.

[0007] When the Bluetooth having the above-mentioned restrictions is used, the in-vehicle communication system has the following problems.

2, 3, and 4 are diagrams for explaining the problems of the vehicle-mounted communication system. In FIG. 2, the in-vehicle communication system includes, for example, an in-vehicle wireless device 2 having a Bluetooth module, a driver communication device 3 having a Bluetooth module, and a fellow passenger communication device 4 also having a Bluetooth module. . The driver and passenger communication devices 3 and 4 are both mounted on a helmet or the like and have a speaker and a microphone. The driver can also communicate with his / her mobile phone 1 via Bluetooth. Such an in-vehicle communication system is configured by an in-vehicle wireless device 12, a driver communication device 13, a fellow passenger communication device 14, and a mobile phone 11 thereof even in other vehicles.

When such a vehicle-mounted communication system is equipped, firstly, the driver can transfer voice data to and from the vehicle-mounted wireless device 2 by wireless communication. You can listen to music. Second
Firstly, the driver can have a wireless communication with the passenger, and thirdly, the driver can call while receiving or transmitting a mobile phone and driving. Further, fourthly, it becomes possible to communicate with the driver of another vehicle at a relatively long distance via the in-vehicle wireless devices 2 and 12.

However, due to the restriction of the Bluetooth specifications shown in FIG.
During communication with the other vehicle 12, the driver cannot receive a connection request from another vehicle, and during communication with the other vehicle 12, the driver cannot receive a connection request from a mobile phone or a passenger.

FIG. 3 shows a case where another vehicle makes a connection request as indicated by a solid line or a broken line while the driver communication device 3 is communicating with the vehicle-mounted wireless device 2. It is assumed that the driver communication device 3 communicates with the in-vehicle wireless device 2 to listen to the car stereo. If the driver communication device 3 is communicating as a master in order to be able to accept connection requests from other terminals 1 and 4, the in-vehicle wireless device 2 is in a slave state,
It cannot accept connection requests from other vehicles.
Since the wireless communication between the vehicles is relatively long, it is necessary to perform it via the vehicle-mounted wireless devices 2 and 12 having a large output power, and a direct connection request is made from the other vehicle to the driver communication device 3 in the master state. You can't.

In FIG. 3, if the driver's communication device 3 is communicating as a slave and the vehicle-mounted wireless device 2 is communicating as a master, the vehicle-mounted wireless device 2 is the driver 1 of another vehicle.
It is possible to accept a connection request from the third party. But,
When the driver's communication device 3 becomes a slave, it becomes impossible to accept a connection request from the mobile terminal 1 in the vehicle or the passenger 4.

FIG. 4 shows a state in which the driver's wireless device 3 is communicating as a slave and the in-vehicle wireless device 2 is communicating as a master. Since the in-vehicle wireless device 2 is in the master state, it is possible to receive a connection request from the driver 13 in another vehicle as indicated by the solid line. Therefore, in this state, a connection request from another vehicle can be accepted while the driver is listening to the car stereo. However, in this state, since the driver communication device 3 is a slave, it is not possible to accept the connection request from the mobile phone 1 of the driver due to the limitation of the Bluetooth specifications, and it is possible to know the incoming call of the mobile phone. become unable.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an in-vehicle communication system which allows a driver to freely communicate with a terminal in a vehicle and also to communicate from another vehicle. .

[0015]

In order to achieve the above object, one aspect of the present invention is a wireless communication module which operates in a master state in an on-vehicle communication system which enables communication with another vehicle. A driver communication device having:
A vehicle-mounted communication device having a first wireless communication module that communicates with a wireless communication module of the driver communication device and a second wireless communication module that communicates with a wireless communication module other than the own vehicle; And the second wireless communication module is connected.

According to the above aspect of the invention, the second wireless communication module in the in-vehicle communication device can respond to the connection request from another vehicle even while the driver's communication device and the in-vehicle communication device are communicating. . Further, even when the driver's communication device is communicating with another vehicle, it is possible to respond to a connection request from the terminal device in the vehicle.

In a more preferred embodiment of the above invention, when the wireless communication module of the driver's communication device and the first wireless communication module of the vehicle-mounted communication device are in a communication state, the second wireless communication module is set to the other state. Communication is established in response to the connection request from the vehicle, and the in-vehicle communication device notifies the driver communication device of the incoming call via the first wireless communication module.

In another preferred embodiment, the wireless communication module of the driver's communication device and the first wireless communication module of the vehicle-mounted communication device are in communication with each other, and the second wireless communication module is used. During communication with another vehicle, the wireless communication module of the driver's communication device responds to the connection request from the terminal device in the vehicle and starts communication with the terminal device.

[0019]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the protection scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments,
The invention extends to the inventions described in the claims and their equivalents.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the vehicle-mounted communication system in the present embodiment. The in-vehicle communication system includes at least an in-vehicle wireless communication device 2 having two Bluetooth modules 2b and 2c and a wireless communication device 3 in a driver helmet (hereinafter, referred to as driver communication device) having one Bluetooth module 3b. . Further, as an option, the wireless communication device 4 in the passenger helmet having one Bluetooth module 4b (hereinafter referred to as passenger communication device) is provided. The driver communication device 3 can also wirelessly communicate with the driver's mobile phone 1 by Bluetooth.

In each of the communication devices 2, 3 and 4, information processing devices (computers) 2a and 3 for controlling input / output and communication are provided.
a, 4a and Bluetooth modules 2b, 2c, 3
b, 4b and their batteries 2d, 3c, 4c. Further, the driver / passenger communication devices 3 and 4 are provided with microphones 3d and 4d and speakers 3e and 4e. The Bluetooth module described above enables wireless communication.

Here, the Bluetooth module is
RF (Radio Fr) below the HCI (Host Control Interface) of the Bluetooth protocol layer
a device that constitutes an (equency) layer and a BB (Base Band) layer, and may have an independent configuration including an RF layer chip, a BB layer chip, and their memory chips,
Further, it may be composed of the above three chips mounted on the same circuit board as the host, and the RF layer and the B
The B layer and the memory may be integrated.

Further, the vehicle-mounted communication device 2 can use the vehicle-mounted battery 2d and consume relatively high power, whereas the batteries of the driver-passenger communication devices 3 and 4 are small. It is a battery and can supply only low power. Therefore, the Bluetooth modules 3b and 4b of the driver and passenger communication devices 3 and 4 have relatively low power, and are exclusively used in the own vehicle.
Communicate with. On the other hand, the Bluetooth modules 2b and 2c of the vehicle-mounted communication device 2 have relatively high power and can communicate with a Bluetooth module (not shown) in another vehicle.

The first and second Bluetooth modules 2b and 2c in the vehicle-mounted wireless communication device 2 have audio input / output terminals connected to each other by wire, and the two modules 2b and 2c.
It is possible to transfer voice data between the driver communication device 3 and the communication device of another vehicle via the two communication lines established by.

The Bluetooth module 3b of the driver communication device 3 is exclusively in the master state, and the Bluetooth module 4b of each of the passenger communication device 4, which is the terminal device in the vehicle, the driver's mobile phone 1, and the in-vehicle communication device 2. ,
It is possible to communicate with 1b and 2b. In that case, those modules are slaves. Therefore, even if the module 3b in the driver communication device 3 and the first module 2b in the vehicle-mounted communication device 2 are communicating with each other by music data transfer of the car stereo, etc., the module 3b in the driver communication device 3 is in progress. Responds to a connection request from the module 4b in the passenger communication device 4 or the module 1b in the mobile phone 1,
Communication can be initiated.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a case where another vehicle issues a connection request during communication between the vehicle-mounted communication device and the driver communication device. Since the second Bluetooth module 2c is provided in the vehicle-mounted communication device 2 even during communication between the vehicle-mounted communication device 2 and the driver communication device 3 for using the car stereo, the module 2c is provided. However, in response to the connection request from the other vehicle 12, it is possible to establish communication with the communication module 12c of the other vehicle 12. In response to such a connection request, the in-vehicle communication device 2 receives the first
Module 2b and module 3 in the driver communication device 3
By using the communication line between b, the driver can be notified by voice that there is an incoming call from another vehicle. When the driver receives the incoming call, the communication of the car stereo is interrupted and the communication with another vehicle is started.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a communication sequence when there is a connection request from another vehicle during communication between the vehicle-mounted communication device and the driver communication device. The communication sequence will be described with reference to FIG. First, when a connection request is issued to the first Bluetooth module 2b in the vehicle-mounted communication device as the master by the Bluetooth module 3b on the driver side (S1), a connection response is returned in response thereto (S1).
2) Then, communication is established between both modules (S3), and, for example, transfer of music data is started. The operation by the driver is performed by inputting a voice through the microphone 3d, and the information processing device 3a recognizes the voice and converts it into a control command.

Module 3b on the driver side (master state)
If a connection request is issued from another vehicle during communication between the first module 2b (slave state) in the in-vehicle communication device (S4), the second module 2c in the in-vehicle communication device is generated.
Responds to the connection request and returns a connection response (S
5), communication is established between both modules 12c, 2c (S6). In the example of FIG. 7, the module 12c of another vehicle
Is the master, the second module 2 in the in-vehicle communication device of the own vehicle
c is a slave state. However, the relationship between the master and the slave may be reversed. In response to this, the in-vehicle communication device 2
Data transfer from the first module 2b is stopped (S
8), the first module 2b and the driver side module 3b
Incoming call from another vehicle is notified by using the communication with the vehicle (S9).

This incoming call notification is given by voice, and the driver can know the incoming call through the speaker 3e. Then, when the driver issues an incoming call acceptance command (S10),
The incoming call acceptance is returned to the in-vehicle communication device 2. As a result, the module 3b on the driver side and the module 12 on another vehicle
Audio data is transferred to and from c via the vehicle-mounted communication device 2 (S12). In other words, it is a data transfer via two communication lines.

When the communication between the driver and another vehicle is completed,
The driver issues a communication end command (S13), and the driver module 3b issues a disconnection request (S14), which is sent from the second module 2c to the module 1 in another vehicle.
2c, and the communication between the second module 2c and the other in-vehicle module 12c is disconnected (S15). Then, the data transfer from the vehicle-mounted communication device 2 is restarted (S16), and the transfer of the music data is transferred to the first module 2b.
And the driver side module 3b are restarted via the communication line (S17).

As described above, the problem shown in FIG. 3 is solved by mounting the second Bluetooth module in addition to the first Bluetooth module in the vehicle-mounted communication device.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining a case where a connection request is made from a mobile phone in the own vehicle during communication between the driver communication device and another vehicle. Since the second Bluetooth module 2c is provided in the in-vehicle communication device 2, communication between the driver communication device 3 and another vehicle is performed by the driver module 3b as a master in the in-vehicle communication device 2. The first module 2b can act as a slave. Therefore, if the mobile phone 1 in the own vehicle receives an incoming call and sends a connection request during the communication, the driver-side module 3b can accept the connection request. When the driver receives the incoming call, the communication with the other vehicle is interrupted and the communication with the mobile phone is started.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a communication sequence when there is a connection request from the mobile phone in the own vehicle while the driver communication device and another vehicle are communicating. The communication sequence will be described with reference to this figure. When a connection request is first issued from another vehicle (S21), the second Bluetooth module 2c in the vehicle-mounted communication device 2 responds to the connection (S22),
Communication between both modules 2c and 12c is established (S2
3). In this state, the module 12 of the other vehicle is the master and the second module 2c is the slave. In response to the connection request from the other vehicle, the in-vehicle communication device 2 transmits the connection request from the first module 2b to the driver side module 3b (S24, S25), and the driver side module 3b.
Responds to the connection to establish communication between both modules 2b and 3b (S27). Immediately after the communication is established, the master and slave of both are switched. As a result, the voice data is transferred via the two communication lines, and the driver can communicate with other vehicles (S28).

In this state, the driver-side module 3b serves as a master and the first module 2 in the in-vehicle communication device 2 is used.
b operates as a slave, and one of the second module 2b and the module 12c in another vehicle operates as a master and the other operates as a slave. Audio terminals are connected by wire between the first and second modules 2b and 2c, and audio data transferred via both communication lines can be transferred to each other.

In this state, when the driver's mobile phone 1 receives a call from the telephone line (S29), the communication module 4b in the mobile phone 1 requests the driver module 3b to connect (S30). The module 4b in the mobile phone is a slave, and the driver side module 3b, which is a master, can respond to this connection request (S31), and as a result, communication is established between both modules (S32).

Then, the ring tone is transferred from the mobile phone 1 (S33), the ring tone is output from the speaker 3e in the driver communication device 3, and the driver can know that the mobile phone has received the call. Therefore, when the driver issues an off-hook command (S34), the off-hook command is transmitted to the mobile phone 1 (S35), and the mobile phone goes off-hook (S3).
7) Answer the incoming call from the telephone line. At that time, communication between the driver and the other vehicle is put on hold (S36). After that, voice data is transferred between the mobile phone module 4b and the driver-side module 3b (S3).
8).

When the call ends, the driver issues an on-hook command (S39), an on-hook command and a disconnection command are issued from the driver-side module 3b to the in-mobile-phone module 4b, and the mobile phone 1 operates on-hook to make a call. The line is disconnected (S41). Along with that, communication between the driver and another vehicle is restarted (S42).

In this way, the Bluetooth module 3b on the driver side is set to the master state and the two modules 2 are
Since it is possible to communicate with another vehicle through two communication lines using b and 2c, during the communication, a connection request from a terminal in the own vehicle, for example, the mobile phone 1 or the passenger 4 can be made. A response can be established to establish communication. Therefore, FIG.
By solving the problem shown in, more free communication becomes possible.

In the above embodiment, the two on-vehicle communication devices are provided with the two Bluetooth modules 2b and 2c, so that the audio data from the car stereo connected to the on-vehicle communication device can be transmitted to the two Bluetooth modules 2.
It is possible to simultaneously transmit from the b and 2c to the respective Bluetooth modules 3b and 4b of the driver and the passenger. According to the Bluetooth AV profile, music data can only be transmitted one-to-one between communication modules. Therefore, when only one Bluetooth module is provided in the vehicle-mounted communication device as in the conventional case, only the driver or the passenger can receive the music data. On the other hand, by providing the two Bluetooth modules in the vehicle-mounted communication device, the side effect that the driver and the passenger can simultaneously receive the music data and listen to the music can be obtained.

As another example of use, the Bluetooth module of the driver and the passenger is the first in the on-vehicle wireless device.
It is also possible for the driver and the fellow passenger to perform wireless communication in a state of being respectively connected to the second Bluetooth.

Also, the Bluetooth module is an HC
It is a device having functions of an RF layer and a BB layer lower than I, and can be configured by one chip or multi-chip. When two sets of Bluetooth modules are mounted in an in-vehicle communication device, these two sets of Bluetooth modules Alternatively, at least one of the RF layer chip, the BB layer chip, and the memory chip may be integrated into one chip for two sets of Bluetooth modules. Furthermore, it is possible to combine the three functions into one and further combine two sets of chips into one chip. Various modifications can be made to the number of chips for configuring this device.

Although the embodiment has been described as the on-vehicle communication system for two wheels, the present invention is not limited to two wheels.
It can be mounted on mobile objects such as open-type four-wheeled vehicles, small ships, gliders, and small airplanes. In the present specification, the above-mentioned moving bodies are collectively referred to as a vehicle, and a communication system mounted on the moving body is referred to as an in-vehicle communication system.

The above embodiments are summarized as follows.

(Supplementary Note 1) In a vehicle-mounted communication system capable of communicating with another vehicle, a first communication device for communicating with a driver communication device having a wireless communication module and the wireless communication module of the driver communication device. And a vehicle-mounted communication device having a second wireless communication module that communicates with a wireless communication module other than the own vehicle,
An in-vehicle communication system, wherein the first and second wireless communication modules are connected to each other.

(Supplementary Note 2) In Supplementary Note 1, when the wireless communication module of the driver's communication device and the first wireless communication module of the vehicle-mounted communication device are in the communication state, the second wireless communication module is set to the other state. Communication is established in response to a connection request from a vehicle, and the in-vehicle communication device notifies the driver communication device of an incoming call via a first wireless communication module. .

(Supplementary Note 3) In Supplementary Note 1, the wireless communication module of the driver's communication device and the first wireless communication module of the vehicle-mounted communication device are in a communication state, and the wireless communication module passes through the second wireless communication module. During communication with another vehicle, the wireless communication module of the driver communication device starts communication with the terminal device in response to a connection request from the terminal device in the own vehicle. In-vehicle communication system.

(Supplementary Note 4) In any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 3, there is further provided a passenger communication device having a wireless communication module, and the wireless communication module in the passenger communication device is the driver communication device. An in-vehicle communication system, which is capable of communicating with a wireless communication module of a device.

(Supplementary Note 5) In Supplementary Note 4, music data is respectively transferred from the first and second wireless communication modules to the wireless communication module of the driver communication device and the wireless communication module of the passenger communication device. Is transmitted at the same time, an in-vehicle communication system.

(Supplementary Note 6) In Supplementary Note 1, the wireless communication module is a Bluetooth module.

(Supplementary Note 7) In Supplementary Note 6, the wireless communication module of the driver's communication device establishes communication with the first wireless communication module of the vehicle-mounted communication device as a master, and the driver operates during the communication. The wireless communication module of the personal communication device starts communication with the terminal device in response to a connection request from the wireless communication module of the terminal device in the own vehicle.

(Supplementary Note 8) In Supplementary Note 3 or 7, the terminal device includes at least one of a mobile phone and a passenger communication device.

(Supplementary Note 9) In Supplementary Note 6, the vehicle communication system characterized in that the first and second Bluetooth modules are constituted by a plurality of chips or at least a part of a common chip.

[0053]

As described above, according to the present invention, the driver can communicate in response to the connection request from the terminal device in the vehicle while communicating with the in-vehicle wireless communication device in the vehicle. It is also possible to communicate in response to a connection request from another vehicle.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating specifications of Bluetooth.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a problem of an in-vehicle communication system.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a problem of an in-vehicle communication system.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a problem of an on-vehicle communication system.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of an in-vehicle communication system according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a case where a connection request is made from another vehicle during communication between the vehicle-mounted communication device and the driver communication device.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a communication sequence when a connection request is made from another vehicle during communication between the vehicle-mounted communication device and the driver communication device.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a case where a connection request is made from a mobile phone in the vehicle while the driver communication device is communicating with another vehicle.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a communication sequence when a connection request is made from a mobile phone in the own vehicle while the driver communication device and another vehicle are communicating.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Mobile phone for drivers 2 On-board wireless communication device 2b, 2c First and second wireless communication modules Communication device for 3 drivers 3b wireless communication module 4 Passenger communication device 4b wireless communication module 12 Other vehicles

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Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An in-vehicle communication system capable of communicating with another vehicle, comprising: a driver communication device having a wireless communication module; and a first wireless device communicating with the wireless communication module of the driver communication device. A vehicle-mounted communication device having a communication module and a second wireless communication module that communicates with a wireless communication module other than the own vehicle, wherein the first and second wireless communication modules are connected to each other. Characteristic vehicle-mounted communication system. 2. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the wireless communication module of the driver's communication device and the first wireless communication module of the vehicle-mounted communication device are in a communication state, and the second wireless communication module is in another vehicle. Communication is established in response to a connection request from the vehicle-mounted communication device, and the vehicle-mounted communication device notifies the driver communication device of an incoming call via a first wireless communication module. 3. The wireless communication module according to claim 1, wherein the wireless communication module of the driver's communication device and the first wireless communication module of the vehicle-mounted communication device are in a communication state, and the wireless communication module passes through the second wireless communication module. While communicating with another vehicle, the wireless communication module of the driver communication device responds to a connection request from the terminal device in the own vehicle,
An in-vehicle communication system, which starts communication with the terminal device. 4. The in-vehicle communication system according to claim 1, wherein the wireless communication module is a Bluetooth module. 5. The wireless communication module of the driver's communication device according to claim 4, as a master, establishes communication with the first wireless communication module of the in-vehicle communication device, and during the communication, the driver The wireless communication module of the communication device for communication responds to a connection request from the wireless communication module of the terminal device in the vehicle, and starts communication with the terminal device.