JP2009033265A - Vehicle information transmission device and information transmission system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To effectively perform communication between a vehicle and the outside (other vehicle). <P>SOLUTION: A charge opening 18 for charging an in-vehicle battery 14 is connected to a charge opening 18 of the other vehicle via a cable 30. A PLC processing unit 20 uses the charge opening 18 as a communication path so as to communicate with the other vehicle. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to information transmission between vehicles.

  Various devices are mounted on the vehicle, and the operation of these devices is often set according to the preference of the driver.

  For example, in a navigation apparatus, a travel pattern, a registered destination, and the like are stored, and default positions such as a seat position and a mirror position may be registered. In addition, an address book such as an e-mail address, downloaded music, and movies may be stored on a hard disk or the like.

  The individual data uniquely stored in these one vehicle is stored in the storage device of the vehicle, and cannot be used when the vehicle is replaced.

  Patent Document 1 shows that various information stored in one vehicle is supplied to an external transfer server by wireless communication, and this transfer server supplies information transferred by wireless communication to another vehicle. Yes. As a result, information stored in one vehicle can be transferred to another vehicle.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-28312

  In Patent Document 1, it is necessary to provide a communication device for the information communication. In addition, there is a problem that a large amount of data communication takes time in wireless communication.

  A vehicle information transmission device according to the present invention includes a charging port to which a power line from an external power source is connected to charge an in-vehicle battery, and a communication unit that uses the charging port as a communication path and communicates with the outside. The charging port is connected to a charging port of another vehicle by a cable to perform inter-vehicle communication.

  The communication by the communication unit is preferably PLC communication using a carrier wave having a predetermined frequency.

  In addition, it is preferable that an information storage unit that stores the individual information accumulated in the vehicle is provided, and the communication unit transmits the individual information stored in the information storage unit via the charging port.

  In addition, an information storage unit that stores the individual information acquired as the vehicle travels is received, and the individual information acquired and accumulated in another vehicle is received through the charging port and written into the information storage unit. It is preferable that the individual information obtained in other vehicles can be used.

  Moreover, it is suitable for the said information storage part to memorize | store the information obtained by the use in a vehicle-mounted navigation apparatus.

  In addition, the present invention includes a vehicle including a charging port to which a power line from an external power source is connected in order to charge an in-vehicle battery, and a communication unit that uses the charging port as a communication path and communicates with the outside. Is a plurality of information transmission systems, wherein a charging port of one vehicle and a charging port of another vehicle are connected by a cable, and information is transmitted from one vehicle to another vehicle.

  According to the present invention, since communication with other vehicles is performed using the charging port, there is no need to provide a special connector for connection. In addition, since a wired connection using a cable is possible, high-speed data transfer can be easily performed.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an information transmission system according to an embodiment. In the figure, a system including a vehicle A, a vehicle B, and an external power source P is shown. In this example, the vehicle A and the vehicle B have the same configuration. In the figure, the suffix “a” is added to the reference symbol for the configuration of the vehicle A, and the suffix “b” is added to the configuration of the vehicle B. , B are omitted.

  Vehicles A and B are hybrid vehicles and have a motor generator 10 and an engine 12. That is, the vehicle can travel by driving the tire with the driving force of the motor generator 10 or the tire with the driving force of the engine 12, and the motor generator 10 can generate electric power with the driving force of the engine. You can also. It is also preferable to provide two motor generators, one for mainly traveling and the other for mainly power generation.

  A battery 14 is connected to the motor generator 10, the motor generator 10 is driven by the electric power of the battery 14, and the battery 14 is charged by the electric power generated by the motor generator 10. Thus, the vehicles A and B can be externally charged, and the capacity of the battery 14 can be made relatively large so that the engine 10 can be driven without driving the engine 10 as a relatively long distance electric vehicle. ing. That is, the vehicles A and B travel by driving the engine 12 as appropriate in the HV mode, but travel by driving the motor generator 10 by the electric power of the battery 14 in the EV mode.

  Further, a charging interface 16 is connected to the battery 14. The charging interface 16 has a rectifying function for converting an alternating current supplied from the outside into a direct current, and a voltage converting function for converting the voltage so as to be higher than the voltage of the battery 14. A charging port 18 is connected to the charging interface 16 via a relay 28. The charging port 18 is an AC power receiving port and is provided in an opening that is opened in the exterior of the vehicle. The charging port 18 includes a power receiving unit that receives power from the outside, a power source identification signal receiving unit for identifying a connected power source, and a charging plug 32 connected to the charging port 18 physically connected to the charging port 18. It is comprised by the plug connection signal receiving part for detecting this. Corresponding to this, the charging plug 32 is provided with a power source identification signal transmission unit and a plug connection signal transmission unit. The power supply identification signal is a signal corresponding to the voltage supplied from the power supply, and the charging interface 16 is controlled based on this signal.

  The charging plug 32 is configured at one end of the charging cable 30, and the other end is a plug-shaped plug 34 that can be connected to a general household outlet. Therefore, when charging the battery 14, after connecting the charging plug 32 formed at one end of the charging cable 30 to the charging port 18, the plug 34 formed at the other end of the charging cable 30 is connected to a household outlet. . The order of connecting the charging plugs 32 and 34 may be reversed.

  When the charging plug 32 is connected to the charging port 18, the charging plug connection signal receiving unit receives the plug connection signal, and the input of the signal to the charging ECU 26 triggers the charging ECU 26. Next, when an AC power identification signal is input, the charging ECU 26 connects a relay 28 provided between the battery 14 and the charging interface 16. The charging interface 16 starts charging the battery 14. As described above, the charging of the battery 14 is started only when both the charging plug connection signal and the AC power identification signal are input, so that the charging plug 32 is not normally connected or an unexpected power source is charged. It is possible to prevent charging control when connected to the port 18.

  Here, the PLC processing unit 20 is connected to the AC power path between the charging interface 16 and the charging port 18. The PLC processing unit 20 takes out a high-frequency signal superimposed on an alternating current, demodulates it and takes out data, or superimposes a high-frequency signal obtained by modulating the data on a path of alternating current power. In addition, the alternating current from an external power supply is 50 or 60 Hz, and the high frequency signal superimposed here is a signal of 2-30 MHz band normally. Further, PLC means power line communication: Power Line Communication. Note that the frequency or the like is not limited as long as the PLC processing unit 20 can select a signal that communicates with the outside via the charging port 18. Further, the high-frequency signal has a carrier wave having a high frequency as described above, and a modulated wave is obtained by demodulating, and this modulated wave is an information signal. As the modulation method, various analog and digital modulation methods can be used.

  A navigation device 22 is connected to the PLC processing unit 20, and the navigation device 22 includes a large-capacity storage device 24 such as a hard disk. The navigation device 22 displays a map on a display using map data stored in a DVD or the like, displays a current position detected by a GPS or the like here, and if a destination is set, The route from the destination to the destination is set, and the route guidance is performed by showing this route on the map. It also provides voice route guidance.

  In addition, as a point registration, a desired specific point can be registered. For example, a home, a company, or the like can be repeatedly registered as a destination point. Therefore, the route can be easily set by setting the registered points for the purpose of reading. Such information is stored in the storage device 24. In addition, there are various map display modes, such as north up with north up, heading up with direction of travel up, and a bird's-eye view mode. There are various settings such as turning off the operation guide or brightness of the screen. Such settings have default values stored therein, but can be changed according to user preferences. Therefore, such setting data is also stored in the storage device 24, and setting based on the stored data is performed when the navigation device 22 is activated.

  Furthermore, the vehicle has various pieces of individual information set by user settings or vehicle-side learning. For example, setting data on seat position, seat cushion height, headrest position, back cushion position, reclining position, door mirror, room mirror position, address book such as e-mail address, URL bookmark, etc. is there. In some cases, the driver's running habit is learned. For example, the switching timing at the time of automatic shifting may be changed by learning the driver's accelerator operation status and the like. Further, in follow-up control in constant speed traveling, the control parameter may be updated by learning from the operation timing of the brake. Such learned data is also stored in the storage device 24 and used for subsequent processing. There are also downloaded and recorded music and recorded movies, which are also stored in the storage device 24 and read out when necessary.

  As described above, the storage device 24 stores various types of individual information. The individual information does not necessarily need to be stored in the storage device 24 connected to the navigation device 22, and other storage devices may be used. However, in general, the navigation device 22 is often connected with a large-capacity storage device 24, and using this makes it easy to communicate with the PLC processing unit 20.

  As described above, the charging plug 32 of the charging cable 30 that is a power line from the external power source is connected to the charging port 18. The charging plug 32 has a shape corresponding to the charging port 18 and is a plug in this example. The other end of the charging cable 30 is connected to a commercial power source 40 that is an external power source via a plug 34. Here, the commercial power source has a normal power outlet type connection, and a plug type plug 34 is inserted here.

  A PLC processing unit 42 is connected to the commercial power supply 40, and a data processing device 44 is connected to the PLC processing unit 42. Therefore, in the PLC processing unit 42, communication is possible between the data processing device 44 and the navigation device 22, and the data of the storage device 24 is stored in the storage device inside the data processing device 44, or vice versa. Data in the data processing device 44 is supplied to the navigation device 22 and stored in the storage device 24. For example, if the data processing device 44 is a computer at the user's home, data downloaded using this computer is transmitted to the navigation device 22, data stored in the storage device 24 is backed up, Further, various data in the storage device 24 can be set up by a computer. If the data processing device 44 is a dealer computer, it is possible to upgrade various programs in the vehicle, set data, back up, and so on.

  In the present embodiment, there are two vehicles, vehicles A and B. For example, the vehicle A is a vehicle that one user has used up to now, and the vehicle B is a vehicle that will be used from now. For example, vehicle B is a new vehicle purchased this time, and vehicle A is a vehicle that trades in.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle A and the vehicle B are connected by a cable 50. Here, unlike the cable used at the time of charging described above, the cable 50 is formed with inter-vehicle connection plugs 52 and 54 having an AC power identification signal transmission unit and a charging plug connection signal transmission unit at both ends of the cable. Yes.

  When the plug 52 formed at one end of the cable 50 is connected to the vehicle A, the charging ECU 26a is activated and the PLC processing unit 20a is also activated. Next, the plug 54 formed at the other end of the cable 50 is connected to the vehicle B, and the PLC processing unit 20b is started together with the charging ECU 26b of the vehicle B. In this state, the PLC processing unit 20a communicates with the PLC processing unit 20b on the condition that the power supply identification signal is not input to the charging ECU 26a on the vehicle A side. By doing so, the charging plug 32 is connected to the charging port, and the waste of the PLC processing unit 20 trying to establish communication even when there is no communication partner can be eliminated. In the case of this example, the PLC processing unit 20a sends the individual information stored in the storage device 24a to the PLC processing unit 20b, and the received individual information is written in the storage device 24b. Such work is usually performed at a dealer. In addition, in the state which connected charging port 18a, 18b with the cable 50, although the alternating voltage is not applied to the cable 50, there is no problem in communication.

  Thus, in the present embodiment, the charging ports 18 a and 18 b of the vehicles A and B are directly connected using the cable 50. Therefore, high-speed data transfer by wire becomes possible. In addition, since the charging port 18 is used, there is an effect that it is not necessary to provide a special connector for connection.

  Prior to communication between the vehicles A and B and between the vehicle and the data processing device 44, processing such as authentication processing of a predetermined protocol and confirmation of data transfer is performed. Furthermore, in the vehicles A and B, the screen of the navigation device 22, the touch panel, etc. are used as the user interface.

  In this embodiment, when the plug connection signal is input and the power supply identification signal is not input, the PLC processing unit 20 performs communication. However, when the inter-vehicle connection plug 52 is connected. The connection signal generated is distinguished from the connection signal when the charging plug 32 is connected. When the inter-vehicle connection plug 52 is connected, only the PLC processing unit 20 is activated and the charging ECU 26 is not activated. May be.

It is a figure which shows the whole structure of a system.

Explanation of symbols

  10 (10a, 10b) Motor generator, 12 (12a, 12b) Engine, 14 (14a, 14b) Battery, 16 (16a, 16b) Charging interface, 18 (18a, 18b) Charging port, 20 (20a, 20b), 42 PLC processing unit, 22 (22a, 22b) Navigation device, 24 (24a, 24b) Storage device, 26 (26a, 26b) Charge ECU, 28 (28a, 28b) Relay, 30, 50 Cable, 32, 34, 52 , 54 plug, 40 commercial power supply, 44 data processing device.

Claims (6)

A charging port to which a power line from an external power source is connected to charge the vehicle battery;
A communication unit that uses the charging port as a communication path and communicates with the outside,
Including
An information transmission device for a vehicle, wherein the charging port is connected to a charging port of another vehicle by a cable to perform inter-vehicle communication. The vehicle information transmission device according to claim 1,
Communication by the said communication part is PLC communication using the carrier wave of the predetermined frequency, The information transmission apparatus of the vehicle characterized by the above-mentioned. The vehicle information transmission device according to claim 1 or 2,
further,
Having an information storage unit for storing individual information accumulated in the vehicle;
The communication unit transmits the individual information stored in the information storage unit via the charging port, and the vehicle information transmission device. The vehicle information transmission device according to claim 1 or 2,
further,
Having an information storage unit for storing individual information acquired as the vehicle travels;
Vehicle information characterized in that individual information obtained in another vehicle can be used by receiving individual information acquired and accumulated in another vehicle via the charging port and writing it in the information storage unit Transmission device. The vehicle information transmission device according to claim 3 or 4,
The information storage device stores information obtained by using the vehicle in an in-vehicle navigation device. A charging port to which a power line from an external power source is connected to charge the vehicle battery;
A communication unit that uses the charging port as a communication path and communicates with the outside,
An information transmission system including a plurality of vehicles including
A charging port of one vehicle and a charging port of another vehicle are connected by a cable, and information is transmitted from one vehicle to another vehicle.

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