JP2006344241A - On-vehicle information processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an on-vehicle information processing device, which attains high-speed processing and scalability of applications. <P>SOLUTION: The on-vehicle information processing device comprises a device driver 33 dedicated to specific graphics chips, which drives a graphic chip 31a; a device driver 34 compatible with GDI, which drives a plurality of devices with different specifications; a navigation application 35 for operating by using the device driver 33 dedicated to the specific graphics chips; an Internet browser 36 operating by using the device driver 34 compatible with GDI; and a micro-processor 10 which executes an application by selecting the device driver 33 dedicated to the specific chips or the device driver 34 compatible with GDI, based on a type of function or an application when the application is executed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-vehicle information processing apparatus that requires high-speed processing such as map drawing.

  FIG. 16 is a diagram hierarchically showing the configuration of a conventional navigation apparatus, and 101 is navigation hardware (hardware) such as a DVD-ROM drive, a display monitor, a GPS receiver, a vehicle speed pulse counter, and a gyro. 102 is a navigation OS having a basic function for controlling the navigation hardware 101 in addition to memory management, process management, thread management, etc. of each program, 103 is a graphic chip dedicated device driver for directly controlling the graphic chip of the navigation hardware 101, Reference numeral 104 denotes a navigation application, and reference numeral 105 denotes an Internet browser, which performs program communication with the navigation application 104 via an external interface (I / F) 104a.

Next, the operation will be described.
When the navigation application 104 is activated, the graphic chip 101a is displayed using the graphic chip dedicated device driver 103, and drawing is performed at high speed. In this display state, when the navigation application 104 activates the Internet browser 105 via the external I / F 104a, an Internet browser screen is displayed on the graphic chip 101a.

  Since the conventional in-vehicle information processing apparatus is configured as described above, a driver that is standardly prepared in the operating system (OS) is not used, but a dedicated driver for extracting the maximum performance of the device is used. Since the program is operated, a general-purpose application created so as to operate using a driver prepared as a standard in the OS cannot be operated as it is.

  If you try to run this general-purpose application, use a specialized device driver and observe the manner of using this device driver, and if you try to run an application, for example, an Internet browser, It has to be developed and requires a lot of development time, and the functions of these general-purpose applications cannot be easily provided.

  For example, when a navigation application (device-dependent application) is created to operate using a dedicated device driver in Windows (registered trademark) CE, a GDI (graphic device interface) compatible device driver in which different drawing devices are described using a common interface is used. There was a problem that general-purpose applications as Internet browsers, so-called Windows (registered trademark) applications, could not be used.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an in-vehicle information processing apparatus with high application expandability and capable of executing high-speed processing.

  The in-vehicle information processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a device-dependent driver dedicated to the device that operates the device, an OS standard driver that operates a plurality of devices having different specifications, and a device-dependent application that operates using the device-dependent driver. And an OS-dependent application that operates using an OS standard driver, a driver and an application, and a device-dependent driver and an OS standard driver according to the type of the application to be executed or its function when executing the application. A central processing unit that selects and executes one of them.

  According to the present invention, a device-dependent driver dedicated to operating the device, an OS standard driver that operates a plurality of devices having different specifications, a device-dependent application that operates using the device-dependent driver, and the OS standard The OS dependent application that operates using the driver, the driver and the application are executed, and when the application is executed, either the device dependent driver or the OS standard driver is selected according to the type of the application to be executed or its function. Therefore, there is an effect that it is possible to easily provide an in-vehicle information processing apparatus having high functionality and expandability.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of an in-vehicle information processing apparatus according to the present invention. In the figure, 11 is a ROM that stores programs such as a navigation OS, device driver, and navigation application described later in advance, 10 is a microprocessor (central processing unit) that executes programs such as the navigation OS, device driver, and navigation application, and 12 is It is a RAM that temporarily stores programs and data when a navigation OS, device driver, navigation application, and the like are executed.

  Reference numeral 18 denotes a DVD-ROM drive that drives a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) -ROM 19 and reads data. Reference numeral 17 denotes a DVD-ROM interface that exchanges data between the DVD-ROM drive 18 and the microprocessor 10. A graphic control circuit 21 is a device for storing image data in the frame buffer 20 in accordance with image data and image processing instructions from the microprocessor 10 and drawing an image corresponding to the image data on a display monitor 22 such as a liquid crystal display. (Graphic chip). A mobile phone 23 connects the microprocessor 10 to the Internet.

  16 is a GPS receiver that receives radio waves from a GPS artificial satellite, 15 is a vehicle speed pulse counter that is provided on the axle of the vehicle and measures the vehicle speed, 14 is a gyro that detects the direction of the vehicle, and 13 is a GPS receiver 16. These are peripheral device interfaces that perform data transfer between the vehicle speed pulse counter 15 and the gyro 14 and the microprocessor 10.

  Reference numeral 19 denotes a DVD-ROM storing a map database and the like in advance. In addition, a speaker that outputs voice guidance and its driving circuit, an FM multiplex broadcast receiver that performs communication with an external infrastructure, a radio beacon / optical beacon receiver, a mobile phone, and the like are provided.

  Instead of the ROM 11, a navigation OS, a device driver, a navigation application, and the like may be recorded on a recording medium such as a DVD-ROM, and those programs may be read and used by a DVD-ROM drive.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram hierarchically showing the configuration of the navigation apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 31 denotes navigation hardware (hardware) such as a DVD-ROM drive 18, a display monitor 22, a GPS receiver 16, a vehicle speed pulse counter 15, and a gyro 14, and a graphic chip 31a as a device is provided. . 32 is a navigation OS having a basic function for controlling the navigation hardware 31 in addition to memory management, process management, thread management, etc. of each program, and 33 is a graphic chip dedicated device driver for directly controlling the graphic chip 31a of the navigation hardware 31. It is. Reference numeral 34 denotes a GDI-compatible device driver (OS standard driver) that operates in response to an activation command from the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33.

  Reference numeral 35 denotes a navigation application module (device-dependent application) which is an application program group that realizes navigation services such as calculation of the current position, route search, and route guidance. Reference numeral 36 denotes a general-purpose Internet browser (GDI) coded to use GDI. OS-dependent application), which performs program communication with the navigation application 35 via the external interface (I / F) 35a.

Next, the operation will be described.
When the navigation application 35 operates, first, the graphic chip 31a is operated using the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33, and the drawing shown in FIG. 3A is performed at high speed. In this display state, when the Internet button in the display screen is pressed, the navigation application 35 activates the Internet browser 36 via the external I / F 35a, and the GDI-compatible device driver 34 is activated from the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33. Switch to. Since the Internet browser 36 is coded to use GDI, the graphic chip 31a is controlled from the GDI through the GDI-compatible device driver 34, and the Internet browser screen is displayed instead of the display of FIG. ) Is displayed.

  When the activation of the Internet browser 36 is completed, an end message is sent to the navigation application 35. When the navigation application 35 receives the end message, the switching function in the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 is switched from the GDI compatible device driver 34 so that the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 becomes valid, and the graphic chip 31a is switched to FIG. The navigation application 35 and the Internet browser 36 can coexist.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, both the OS-dependent general-purpose program and the device-dependent high-speed processing program can be executed.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the first embodiment, the navigation application 35 and the Internet browser 36 are separate applications, but the second embodiment has a configuration in which an Internet function is incorporated in the navigation application 35 as shown in FIG. The configuration is the same as in the first embodiment.

Next, the operation will be described.
The operation by the navigation application 35 is the same as that of the first embodiment. Only when the Internet function is used, the navigation application 35 activates the internal switching function to switch the operation from the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 to the GDI compatible device driver 34, and displays it as shown in FIG. .

  According to the second embodiment, the configuration can be simplified as compared with the first embodiment by incorporating the Internet function into the navigation application.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
In the above embodiment, the case where the GDI compatible device driver 34 and the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 are switched and connected to the graphic chip 31a has been described. However, for example, another device such as an audio device may be switched. In this way, there is an effect that an OS standard application using voice can coexist.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
FIG. 5 is a diagram hierarchically showing the configuration of the navigation device according to the fourth embodiment. In this example, the Internet browser 36 is operated on a virtual machine, so-called VM (virtual machine). Similarly, the navigation application 35 and the Internet browser 36 are configured to perform inter-program communication with each other, and other configurations and operations are the same as those in the first embodiment. Therefore, since the obtained effect is the same as that of the first embodiment, the redundant description is omitted.

Embodiment 5. FIG.
FIG. 6 is a diagram hierarchically showing the configuration of the navigation apparatus according to the fifth embodiment. A device driver switching module 37 is mounted between the navigation application and the Internet browser, and the device driver switching module 37 is used for the graphic chip dedicated device driver. 33 is controlled so as to switch to the GDI-compatible device driver 34, and other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment. Therefore, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

Next, the operation will be described.
When the navigation application 35 requests the device driver switching module 37 to use the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 at the time of activation, the device driver switching module 37 activates the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 and displays the display shown in FIG. I do.

  In this display state, when the Internet button in the display screen is pressed, the navigation application 35 starts the Internet browser 36 via the external I / F 35a, and the device driver switching module 37 receives a graphic in response to a driver switching request from the Internet browser 36. The chip dedicated device driver 33 is switched to enable the GDI compatible device driver 34. Since the Internet browser 36 is coded to use GDI, the graphic chip 31a is controlled from the GDI through the GDI compatible device driver 34, and the Internet browser screen is displayed instead of the display of FIG. It is displayed as shown in b).

  When the activation of the Internet browser 36 is completed, an end message is sent to the navigation application 35. When the navigation application 35 receives the end message, the device driver switching module 37 responds to the switching request from the navigation application 35 so that the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 becomes valid from the GDI compatible device driver 34. The navigation function shown in FIG. 3A is displayed again on the graphic chip 31a.

  According to the fifth embodiment, since there is a module for performing dedicated device switching, there is an effect that the program is easy to understand and program creation becomes easy.

Embodiment 6 FIG.
FIG. 7 is a diagram hierarchically showing the configuration of the navigation apparatus according to the sixth embodiment. A manual changeover switch 38 is provided in the navigation hardware 31, and a switch input driver 39 that operates in response to a changeover signal of the manual changeover switch 38. Since the device driver switching module 37 is configured to perform the switching operation via the, the other components are the same as those in the above-described embodiment. .

Next, the operation will be described.
When operating the manual changeover switch 38 and requesting the switch input driver 39 to use the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33, the device driver switching module 37 receiving the control signal from the switch input driver 39 causes the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 to be used. Start up and display the screen shown in FIG.

  In this display state, when the manual changeover switch 38 is operated to request the switch input driver 39 to use the GDI-compatible device driver 34, the device driver switching module 37 receiving the control signal from the switch input driver 39 is dedicated to the graphic chip. The device driver 33 is stopped and the GDI compatible device driver 34 is started. Since the Internet browser 36 is coded to use GDI, the graphic chip 31a is controlled from the GDI through the GDI-compatible device driver 34, and the Internet browser 36 replaces the display of FIG. ) Is displayed.

  When the activation of the internet browser 36 is finished and the manual changeover switch 38 is operated to request the switch input driver 39 to use the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33, the device driver changeover module which receives the control signal from the switch input driver 39 37 activates the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 to display the display of FIG. 3A again.

  According to the sixth embodiment, as in the first embodiment, both the OS-dependent general-purpose program and the device-dependent high-speed processing program can be freely selected and used by switching the manual switch.

Embodiment 7 FIG.
FIG. 8 is a diagram hierarchically showing the structure of the navigation device according to the seventh embodiment. The navigation hardware 31 is provided with a manual changeover switch 38, and a switch input driver 39 which operates in response to a changeover signal of the manual changeover switch 38. The application switching module 40 is switched via the application switching module 40, and the application switching module 40 executes the navigation application 35, the Internet browser 36, and the device driver switching module 37 performs display switching. Since this is the same as that of the above-described embodiment, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

Next, the operation will be described.
When the switch change driver 38 is operated to request the switch input driver 39 to switch the application, for example, to use the navigation application 35, the application switching module 40 that receives the control signal from the switch input driver 39 activates the navigation application 35. The graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 is activated via the device driver switching module 37, and the display shown in FIG.

  In this display state, when the manual changeover switch 38 is operated to request the switch input driver 39 to switch applications, for example, to use the Internet browser 36, the application switching module 40 that receives the control signal from the switch input driver 39 causes the Internet browser to 36, the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 is stopped by a control signal from the device driver switching module 37, and the GDI compatible device driver 34 is activated in response to the control signal from the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33. Since the Internet browser 36 is coded to use GDI, the graphic chip 31a is controlled from the GDI through the GDI-compatible device driver 34, and the information from the Internet browser 36 is replaced with the display of FIG. Display as shown in (b).

When the manual changeover switch 38 is operated and the switch input driver 39 is requested to use the navigation application 35, the application changeover module 40 that receives the control signal from the switch input driver 39 activates the navigation application 35 and switches the device driver. The graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 is activated via the module 37, and the display shown in FIG.
According to the seventh embodiment, inter-application communication becomes unnecessary, and there is an effect that the operation of the application becomes easy.

Embodiment 8 FIG.
FIG. 9 is a diagram hierarchically showing the configuration of the navigation device according to the eighth embodiment. The graphic chip 31a is a multi-layer display layer, the screen output of the navigation application 35 is displayed on the upper layer of the graphic chip 31a, and the Internet browser The screen output of 36 is configured to be displayed on the lower layer of the graphic chip 31a, and other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment. Is omitted.

Next, the operation will be described.
When the navigation application 35 operates, first, a display operation is performed on the upper layer of the graphic chip 31a using the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33, and the drawing shown in FIG. 10A is performed at high speed. In this display state, when the Internet button in the display screen is pressed, the navigation application 35 activates the Internet browser 36 via the external I / F 35a, and the GDI-compatible device driver 34 is activated from the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33. 3A disappears and the screen of the Internet browser 36 is displayed on the lower layer of the graphic chip 31a as shown in FIG. 10D.

  On the other hand, when the navigation application 35 issues a display area restriction command, the display of the display upper layer shown in FIG. 10A becomes the display of FIG. Therefore, when the upper layer and lower layer layers are displayed in an overlapping manner, FIG. 10C is obtained. In this display state, when an Internet browser end message is received, the display area of the upper layer is restored to the display shown in FIG.

  As described above, according to the eighth embodiment, display images of both applications can be displayed simultaneously. A display that is linked to the navigation function, for example, when tourist information with location information is received over the Internet, the location of the sightseeing spot can be displayed together with the navigation application screen, so that a user-friendly system can be realized. Further, since there is no need to switch the device driver, there is an effect that the display does not flicker when the device driver is switched.

Embodiment 9 FIG.
FIG. 11 is a diagram hierarchically showing the configuration of the navigation device according to the ninth embodiment. The graphic chip 31a is a multi-layered display layer, and the Internet browser 36, spreadsheet application 41, and schedule application 42 are used as OS dependent applications. The other parts are the same as in the configuration of the eighth embodiment, so the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals and the duplicate description is omitted.

Next, the operation will be described.
When the navigation application 35 operates, first, a display operation is performed on the upper layer of the graphic chip 31a using the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33, and the drawing shown in FIG. 12A is performed at high speed. When the utility on in the display screen is pressed in this display state, the display of FIG. 12A disappears, and the icons of the Internet browser 36, the spreadsheet application 41, and the schedule application 42 are displayed in the lower layer of the graphic chip 31a. It is displayed as shown in (d).

  On the other hand, when the navigation application 35 issues a display area restriction command, the display of the display upper layer shown in FIG. 12A becomes the display of FIG. Therefore, when the upper layer layer and the lower layer layer are superimposed and displayed, FIG. 12C is obtained. When the selected icon is pressed in this display state, the display state shown in FIG.

  In this display state, when the off button in the display screen is pressed, the display area of the upper layer is returned to the display of FIG. At this time, the navigation application 35 terminates the operations of the Internet browser 36, the spreadsheet application 41, and the schedule application 42.

  As described above, according to the ninth embodiment, since the device-dependent application and the OS-dependent application can be displayed at the same time, there is an effect that a user-friendly system can be provided.

Embodiment 10 FIG.
Although not shown, unlike the above-described eighth and ninth embodiments, the image display of the OS-dependent application is displayed on the upper layer of the graphic chip 31a, and the image display of the navigation application is displayed on the lower layer of the graphic chip 31a. The effect can be obtained. Although depending on the performance of the display device, the devices that perform better when high-speed display is output to the upper layer are preferred in the eighth and ninth embodiments, but in the opposite case, the tenth embodiment is preferred.

Embodiment 11 FIG.
FIG. 13 is a diagram hierarchically showing the configuration of the navigation device according to the eleventh embodiment. A display area control application 43 is provided in place of the schedule application 42 in the ninth embodiment shown in FIG. The application 43 controls the display area of the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33, and the rest is the same as the configuration of the tenth embodiment, so the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals and the duplicate description is omitted.

Next, the operation will be described.
When the navigation application 35 is activated, first, a display operation is performed on the upper layer of the graphic chip 31a using the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33, and the initial display screen is as shown in FIG. Further, the display screen of the lower layer is as shown in FIG. 14D, and as a result, it looks like FIG.

  Therefore, in this display state, when a utility button in the display screen is pressed, the display area control application 43 narrows the upper layer display (the lower layer display area increases), and an icon is displayed as shown in FIG. Therefore, when the selected icon is pressed, the display area control application 43 detects the activation of the Internet browser 36 and further narrows the upper layer display area to the state shown in FIG. When the off button is pressed in this display state, the display area control application 43 returns the display area to the display shown in FIG. By controlling the size of the display area for each application, screen resources can be used effectively.

Embodiment 12 FIG.
FIG. 15 is a diagram hierarchically showing the configuration of the navigation apparatus according to the twelfth embodiment, and a class library layer 44 is provided so that the graphic chip dedicated device driver 33 can be seen by the GDI-compatible device driver 34 when viewed from the navigation application 35. In the configuration, other configurations and operations are the same as those in the above-described embodiments.

  As described above, according to the twelfth embodiment, a navigation application can be easily created.

It is a block diagram which shows the hardware constitutions of the vehicle-mounted information processing apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 1 of this invention hierarchically. It is a display state figure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 2 of this invention hierarchically. It is a figure which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 4 of this invention hierarchically. It is a figure which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 5 of this invention hierarchically. It is a figure which shows hierarchically the structure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 6 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 7 of this invention hierarchically. It is a figure which shows hierarchically the structure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 8 of this invention. It is a display state figure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 8 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 9 of this invention hierarchically. It is a display state figure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 9 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 11 of this invention hierarchically. It is a display state figure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 11 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus by Embodiment 12 of this invention hierarchically. It is a figure which shows the structure of the conventional navigation apparatus hierarchically.

Explanation of symbols

31 navigation hardware, 31a graphic chip, 32 navigation OS, 33 dedicated device driver for graphic chip (device dependent driver), 34 GDI compatible device driver (OS standard driver), 35 navigation application (device dependent application), 36 Internet browser (OS Dependent application), 37 Device driver switching module, 38 Manual changeover switch, 39 Switch input driver, 40 Application switching module (program management module), 41 Spreadsheet application, 42 Schedule application, 43 Display area control application, 44 Class library layer .

Claims (9)

A device-dependent driver dedicated to operating the device;
An OS standard driver for operating a plurality of devices having different specifications;
A device dependent application that operates using the device dependent driver;
An OS-dependent application that operates using the OS standard driver;
A central processing unit that executes the driver and the application, and selects and executes either the device-dependent driver or the OS standard driver according to the type of the application to be executed or its function when executing the application An in-vehicle information processing apparatus.   2. The in-vehicle information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an application that normally uses a device-dependent driver and uses an OS standard driver only when the Internet function is used.   3. The in-vehicle information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising driver switching means for switching between a device dependent driver and an OS standard driver.   4. The in-vehicle information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the device-dependent application and the OS-dependent application perform inter-program communication with each other, and either one controls the driver switching unit.   The in-vehicle information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a device driver switching module that switches a device in response to a request from a device-dependent application or an OS-dependent application.   6. The in-vehicle information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the device driver switching module detects that a device-dependent application or an OS-dependent application has been executed and sets an appropriate device driver. It has a program management module that controls application execution / display switching,
6. The in-vehicle information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the device driver switching module switches the device driver in response to a request from the program management module.   The display information of the OS-dependent application is displayed on one display layer of a display device having a multi-layer display layer, and the display area of the upper display layer or the lower display layer is controlled. In-vehicle information processing device. The display information of the device-dependent application is displayed on the display layer in the upper layer, and the OS-dependent application and the device-dependent application are simultaneously displayed by limiting the display area of the device-dependent application. Item 9. The on-vehicle information processing apparatus according to Item 8.

Images