JP2017077859A - On-board information device and maintenance system for on-board information device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain inside information indicating an operation state of an on-board information device from the device without a need of a complex work.SOLUTION: A signal modulation part 11 reads inside information stored in a storage part 10 to translate it into an electric signal for transmitting it as serial data, and outputs the signal. A driver part 12 controls a state of light emission from a light emission part 13 toward a cabin side in accordance with the electric signal output from the signal modulation part 11. Thus, the inside information is transmitted as variation in the state of light emission from the light emission part 13.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-vehicle information device and a system for maintaining the device.

In order to ensure reliability, the in-vehicle information device is configured to be able to detect an operation state of the device itself, particularly a malfunction, and store the operation log as internal information. Such an in-vehicle information device is provided with a connector so that an operator can extract the stored internal information to an external device. Using the extracted information, the worker can grasp the state of the in-vehicle information device and perform maintenance work appropriately and efficiently.
The in-vehicle information device is attached at a position where it can be easily used by passengers. For this reason, the in-vehicle information device is easily caught by the occupants, and the maintenance connector as described above is arranged at a position where it cannot be seen from the outside when the in-vehicle information device is attached to the vehicle. In addition to its appearance, it is also used for maintenance purposes in order to prevent moisture from entering the inside of the device via a connector when drinks are applied to the in-vehicle information device and to secure a space for the operation buttons. The connector is preferably arranged at a position that cannot be seen from the outside.
Accordingly, in order to use the connector for maintenance, it is necessary to remove the front panel of the in-vehicle information device or to remove the entire in-vehicle information device from the vehicle, which is very complicated.
In addition, although it is not an in-vehicle information device, it is possible to transmit information stored in the device to an external device without performing a connector connection. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses data in an LED (Light Emitting Diode) array. The emergency light that is sent out by the amount of light emission or flashing is described.

JP 2004-185359 A

In the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, due to the nature of emergency lights, the information to be transmitted is mainly detailed evacuation information, and the general store information other than emergency, such as surrounding store information, passes near the emergency lights. Information for people is assumed. In fact, it is described that the operation confirmation etc. of the emergency light itself is transmitted through the power line, and it is not assumed that information useful for maintenance is transmitted to the external device by light emission of the LED.
Moreover, an emergency light is attached independently to the wall surface of a building, and other electronic devices are not often provided adjacent to each other. Furthermore, it may be easy to secure a sufficient work space, and the removal work can be easily performed. On the other hand, since the vehicle has a limited space, various machine elements necessary for traveling, various in-vehicle information devices, and the like are collectively attached adjacently. Therefore, careful work is required to remove a part or the whole of the in-vehicle information device without damaging other machine elements and the information device. Furthermore, the work is also performed in a limited space such as a passenger compartment, which is very complicated. Unlike those that can obtain similar information from other information sources such as the Internet, such as detailed evacuation information and surrounding store information transmitted by the emergency light of Patent Document 1 above, Since the internal information indicating the operation status is unique information stored in the device, it must be acquired from the device.
As described above, although the internal information of the in-vehicle information device needs to be acquired from the device, there is a problem that the work required for the acquisition is very complicated.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems. In an in-vehicle information device, a maintenance connector is not provided on the front surface of the device, and a complicated operation is not required at the time of maintenance. It aims at obtaining the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which can obtain internal information from the said apparatus.

  The in-vehicle information device according to the present invention includes a storage unit that stores internal information indicating an operation state of the device, and a signal modulation unit that modulates the internal information stored in the storage unit into an electrical signal for transfer and outputs the electrical signal And a driver unit that controls the light emission state of the light emitting unit directed toward the passenger compartment according to the electrical signal output by the signal modulating unit.

  According to this invention, the internal information can be transmitted according to the light emission state of the light emitting unit directed toward the passenger compartment. For this reason, even if a connector for maintenance is not provided on the front surface, it is possible to eliminate the troublesome work for obtaining internal information.

It is a block diagram of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus and external apparatus which concern on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a front view of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a timing chart which shows operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus and external apparatus which concern on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a circuit diagram around the light emission part of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention, and the light-receiving part of an external apparatus. It is a block diagram of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus and external apparatus which concern on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a timing chart which shows operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention, and an external apparatus. It is a circuit diagram around the light emission part and light-receiving part of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention, and the light emission part and light-receiving part of an external apparatus.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an in-vehicle information device 1 and an external device 2 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and shows a maintenance system for the in-vehicle information device 1.
The in-vehicle information device 1 is, for example, a disc player, and includes a storage unit 10, a signal modulation unit 11, a driver unit 12, and a light emitting unit 13, in addition to an optical pickup (not shown) necessary for disc reproduction processing.
The storage unit 10 stores internal information indicating the operation status of the device including a failure or the like as information called a so-called operation log of the in-vehicle information device 1. The internal information is created by a detection unit (not shown) that monitors the operation of each part constituting the in-vehicle information device 1 and stored in the storage unit 10.

The signal modulation unit 11 reads the internal information stored in the storage unit 10, modulates the read internal information into an electric signal for transfer as serial data, and outputs the electric signal.
The driver unit 12 controls the light emission state of the light emitting unit 13 in accordance with the transfer electrical signal output from the signal modulation unit 11.
The storage unit 10 includes various memories such as a flash memory. The signal modulation unit 11 and the driver unit 12 are configured by a circuit that performs the above-described processing. The light emitting unit 13 is configured by an LED, for example.

  FIG. 2 is a front view of the in-vehicle information device 1 as viewed from the front. The light emitting unit 13 is provided on the front panel 3 and is directed toward the passenger compartment. The passenger compartment is a space where an occupant is located, and refers to a space where the front panel 3 of the in-vehicle information device 1 is exposed. And as the light emission part 13, the power supply lamp originally provided in order to show the energization state of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus 1 is utilized, for example.

As shown in FIG. 1, the external device 2 used for the in-vehicle information device 1 includes a light receiving unit 20, a waveform shaping unit 21, a signal demodulation unit 22, and a storage unit 23.
The light receiving unit 20 converts the incident light into an electrical signal and outputs it.
The waveform shaping unit 21 removes glitches and the like generated in the electrical signal output from the light receiving unit 20, shapes the waveform of the electrical signal, and outputs the waveform.
The signal demodulator 22 demodulates the electrical signal output from the waveform shaping unit 21, returns the information before modulation, and outputs the information.
The storage unit 23 stores the information output from the signal demodulation unit 22.

  The light receiving unit 20 includes a light receiving element such as a photodiode. The waveform shaping unit 21 and the signal demodulation unit 22 are configured by a circuit that performs the above-described processing. The storage unit 23 includes various memories such as a flash memory.

Next, the operation when the internal information stored in the storage unit 10 of the in-vehicle information device 1 is acquired by the external device 2 will be described.
The worker arranges the external device 2 so that the light emitting unit 13 of the in-vehicle information device 1 and the light receiving unit 20 of the external device 2 face each other. Thereafter, the worker operates the in-vehicle information device 1 with an operation button (not shown) or the like to instruct to start transmission of internal information. The operation for this instruction may be performed prior to the placement of the external device 2 with respect to the in-vehicle information device 1.
Internal information created by a detection unit (not shown) is stored in the storage unit 10, and the signal modulation unit 11 reads out the internal information stored in the storage unit 10 and transfers it as serial data. Convert to and output.

The driver unit 12 controls the light emission state of the light emitting unit 13 in accordance with the transfer electrical signal output from the signal modulation unit 11. For example, when the light emitting unit 13 is configured by an LED, the amount of current supplied to the light emitting unit 13 is controlled according to the electrical signal for transfer output from the signal modulation unit 11.
The light emission state of the light emitting unit 13 is output as a change in electrical signal at the light receiving unit 20 of the external device 2.
The electrical signal output from the light receiving unit 20 is output with the waveform shaping unit 21 shaping the waveform.
The signal demodulating unit 22 demodulates the electrical signal output from the waveform shaping unit 21 to return to internal information, and outputs to the storage unit 23 for storage.
The above operation is repeated, and the internal information stored in the storage unit 10 of the in-vehicle information device 1 is collected in the storage unit 23 of the external device 2. Thereby, the worker can collect the internal information of the in-vehicle information device 1 without removing the front panel 3 of the in-vehicle information device 1 or removing the entire in-vehicle information device 1 from the vehicle.

FIG. 3 is a timing chart showing the operations of the in-vehicle information device 1 and the external device 2. On the in-vehicle information device 1 side, the internal information DATA0 to DATA5 stored in the storage unit 10 is modulated into an electric signal to be transferred as serial data, and further converted into light / dark or on / off of light emission of the light emitting unit 13.
On the external device 2 side, the light intensity of the light emitting unit 13 or the lighting on / off state is converted into an electric signal and demodulated to finally acquire the internal information DATA0 to DATA5.

  FIG. 4 shows a circuit around the light emitting unit 13 and the light receiving unit 20 when the light emitting unit 13 of the in-vehicle information device 1 is configured by an LED and the light receiving unit 20 of the external device 2 is configured by a PD (Photo Detector) such as a photodiode. It is an example of a figure. The light emission state of the LED is controlled according to the internal information modulated into the electrical signal for transfer output from the signal modulation unit 11 as TX in the drawing. And PD outputs an electric signal to the waveform shaping part 21 as RX in a figure.

Depending on the surrounding environment of the in-vehicle information device 1 and the external device 2, the performance of the light receiving unit 20, and the like, the light receiving unit 20 can output an electrical signal that does not require shaping, so the waveform shaping unit 21 can be omitted. .
In addition, as shown in FIG. 2, it is possible to reduce the cost by sharing the power lamp originally provided as the light emitting unit 13, but the light emitting unit 13 is independently provided exclusively for transmission of internal information. It may be. When the power lamp originally provided is shared as the light emitting unit 13, the circuit on the in-vehicle information device 1 side of FIG. 4 parallels, for example, a wiring (not shown) for controlling the LED as the light emitting unit 13 with PWM (Pulse Width Modulation). The light-emitting unit 13 is first controlled to be turned on or off depending on whether or not the on-vehicle information device 1 is turned on. Further, the light-emitting unit 13 emits light or dark according to the electrical signal for transfer obtained by modulating the internal information. Lighting / extinguishing is controlled.

  As described above, according to the in-vehicle information device 1 according to the first embodiment, the light emission state of the light emitting unit 13 is controlled according to the electrical signal for transfer obtained by modulating the internal information. Accordingly, the internal information is transmitted as a change in the light emission state of the light emitting unit 13. Since the light emitting unit 13 is directed to the vehicle interior side, the internal information stored in the in-vehicle information device 1 can be obtained without removing the front panel 3 of the in-vehicle information device 1 or removing the entire in-vehicle information device 1 from the vehicle. Information can be transmitted to the external device 2.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the first embodiment, the form in which information is transmitted from the in-vehicle information device to the external device has been described. In the second embodiment, a mode in which information is transmitted from the external device to the in-vehicle information device will be described.
FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of the in-vehicle information device 1a and the external device 2a according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention, and shows a maintenance system for the in-vehicle information device 1a.
The in-vehicle information device 1a is obtained by further adding a light receiving unit 14, an AD converter 15, and a signal demodulating unit 16 to the in-vehicle information device 1 shown in the first embodiment.

The light receiving unit 14 converts incident light into an electrical signal and outputs the electrical signal. The light receiving unit 14 may be separate from the light emitting unit 13 as hardware, but is preferably the same from the viewpoint of the number of components. Therefore, for example, a case where both the light emitting unit 13 and the light receiving unit 14 are configured by LEDs will be described below. In this case, in FIG. 5, although the light emission part 13 and the light-receiving part 14 are described as a separate functional block, it is comprised by the same LED as hardware.
When the light receiving unit 14 is configured by an LED, the light receiving efficiency is lower than that of a general light receiving element such as a photodiode. Therefore, even if the same light is incident, the output electric signal is weaker than that of a photodiode or the like.

  The AD converter 15 performs analog-to-digital conversion on the electrical signal output from the light receiving unit 14 and outputs the digital signal to the signal demodulation unit 16. As described above, when the light receiving unit 14 is configured by an LED, the light receiving efficiency is low, and the output electric signal is weak. Therefore, analog-digital conversion including signal level amplification is performed so that the weak electric signal reaches a level that can be demodulated by the signal demodulator 16. A waveform shaping unit for shaping the waveform may be further provided between the AD converter 15 and the signal demodulation unit 16.

The signal demodulator 16 demodulates the electrical signal output from the AD converter 15, returns it to the information before modulation, and outputs it. More specifically, the information before the modulation is, for example, control information of the in-vehicle information device 1a described later.
Information output from the signal demodulation unit 16 is stored in the storage unit 10. In addition, you may make it memorize | store in the memory | storage part different from the memory | storage part 10. FIG.
The AD converter 15 and the signal demodulator 16 are configured by a circuit that performs the above processing. As the AD converter 15, an AD conversion circuit built in a not-shown one-chip microcomputer responsible for overall control of the in-vehicle information device 1 a can be used.

The external device 2a is obtained by further adding a signal modulation unit 24, a driver unit 25, and a light emitting unit 26 to the external device 2 shown in the first embodiment.
Further, in the storage unit 23 of the external device 2a, for example, control information for controlling the in-vehicle information device 1a, rewrite information of built-in software of the in-vehicle information device 1a, test information for confirming the operation of the in-vehicle information device 1a, etc. Information for transmission to the in-vehicle information device 1a is stored.

The signal modulation unit 24 reads control information and the like stored in the storage unit 23, converts the read information into an electrical signal for transfer as serial data, and outputs the electrical signal. Note that information for transmission to the in-vehicle information device 1a such as control information may be stored in a storage unit different from the storage unit 23. In this case, the signal modulation unit 24 may store the separate storage. Read control information etc. from the unit.
The driver unit 25 controls the light emission state of the light emitting unit 26 according to the transfer electrical signal output from the signal modulation unit 24.
The signal modulation unit 24 and the driver unit 25 are configured by a circuit that performs the above-described processing. The light emitting unit 26 is configured by an LED, for example.

  Next, taking the control information as an example, an operation when transmitting information stored in the storage unit 23 of the external device 2a to the in-vehicle information device 1a will be described. Note that the in-vehicle information device 1a and the external device 2a are configured to be able to transmit the internal information of the in-vehicle information device 1a from the in-vehicle information device 1a to the external device 2a. The operation is the same as that shown in FIG.

The worker arranges the external device 2a so that the light receiving unit 14 of the in-vehicle information device 1a and the light emitting unit 26 of the external device 2a face each other. Thereafter, the operator operates the external device 2a with an operation button (not shown) or the like to instruct to start transmission of control information. The operation for this instruction may be performed prior to the placement of the external device 2a with respect to the in-vehicle information device 1a.
The signal modulation unit 24 reads out the control information stored in the storage unit 23, converts it into an electrical signal for transfer as serial data, and outputs it.

The driver unit 25 controls the light emission state of the light emitting unit 26 according to the transfer electrical signal output from the signal modulation unit 24.
The light emission state of the light emitting unit 26 is output as a change in electrical signal at the light receiving unit 14 of the in-vehicle information device 1a.
The AD converter 15 analog-digital converts the electrical signal output from the light receiving unit 14 into a digital electrical signal at a level that can be demodulated by the signal demodulation unit 16 and outputs the digital signal.
The signal demodulator 16 demodulates the electrical signal output from the AD converter 15 to return to the control information, and outputs it to the storage unit 10 for storage.

  The above operation is repeated to transmit control information from the external device 2a to the in-vehicle information device 1a. Thereafter, the in-vehicle information device 1a performs an operation defined by the received control information. The operation of transmitting the control information from the external device 2a to the in-vehicle information device 1a can be performed when the light emitting unit 13 and the light receiving unit 14 share the same hardware, or when the light emitting unit 13 is in an extinguished state. is there. In this way, the in-vehicle information device 1a can be easily controlled from the external device 2a without the wired connection between the in-vehicle information device 1a and the external device 2a using a connector or the like.

FIG. 6 is a timing chart showing operations of the in-vehicle information device 1a and the external device 2a. The case where the internal information DATA0 to DATA5 of the in-vehicle information device 1a is collected by the external device 2a is the same as that described with reference to FIG. 3 in the first embodiment, and the description is omitted here.
On the external device 2a side, information stored in the storage unit 23, in the illustrated example, for example, control information CONT0 to CONT5 is converted into an electrical signal for transfer as serial data, and the light emission of the light emitting unit 26 is turned on or off or turned on / off. Convert to
On the in-vehicle information device 1a side, the light intensity of the light emitting section 26 or the lighting / lighting off is converted into an electric signal. Since the light receiving unit 14 is constituted by an LED, even if the light receiving efficiency of the light receiving unit 14 is low as shown in FIG. The converter 15 converts the electrical signal below the threshold value into a high-level digital electrical signal and converts the electrical signal above the threshold value into a low-level digital electrical signal, thereby transferring the signal output by the signal modulator 24. The signal demodulator 16 can demodulate the electric signal having the same level as the electric signal. By the demodulation process, the control information CONT0 to CONT5 is finally acquired on the in-vehicle information device 1a side.

In FIG. 7, the light emitting unit 13 and the light receiving unit 14 of the in-vehicle information device 1a are configured by the same LED, the light receiving unit 20 of the external device 2a is configured by a PD such as a photodiode, and the light emitting unit 26 is configured by an LED. 13 is an example of a circuit diagram around 13 and 26 and light receiving units 14 and 20. FIG.
When the LED of the in-vehicle information device 1a functions as the light emitting unit 13, the light emission state is controlled according to the internal information modulated into the electric signal for transfer output from the signal modulating unit 11 as TX1 in the figure. Then, the PD of the external device 2a outputs an electrical signal to the waveform shaping unit 21 as RX in the drawing.
In addition, the LED of the external device 2a is controlled in light emission state in accordance with control information modulated into a transfer electrical signal output by the signal modulation unit 24 as TX2 in the figure. And when LED of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus 1a functions as the light-receiving part 14, it outputs an electrical signal to AD converter 15 as AD in the figure.

In the above description, the case where the light emitting unit 13 and the light receiving unit 14 are the same as hardware is described as an example, which is preferable from the viewpoint of the number of parts. However, the light emitting unit 13 and the light receiving unit 14 may be separate units as hardware. Even if it is a separate body, for example, when the in-vehicle information device 1a originally includes a light receiving unit for receiving a remote control operation, the number of parts can be increased by using the light receiving unit as the light receiving unit 14. The light receiving unit 14 can be provided while being suppressed.
In addition, when the light receiving unit 14 is configured by something other than the LED, the AD converter 15 can be omitted depending on the efficiency of light reception.

  As described above, according to the in-vehicle information device 1a according to the second embodiment, the internal information can be transmitted as the change in the light emission state of the light emitting unit 13 as in the first embodiment, and the light receiving unit 14 outputs the information. Control information or the like can be received from the outside as a change in the electrical signal. Thereby, in addition to the effects shown in the first embodiment, the in-vehicle information device 1a is removed from the external device 2a, for example, without removing the front panel 3 of the in-vehicle information device 1a or removing the entire in-vehicle information device 1a from the vehicle. It can be controlled easily.

  The light receiving unit 14 is also the light emitting unit 13. Therefore, an increase in the number of parts is suppressed, which is advantageous in terms of cost.

  In addition, an AD converter 15 that converts the electrical signal output from the light receiving unit 14 into a digital electrical signal and outputs the digital signal is provided. The signal demodulating unit 16 converts the electrical signal output from the light receiving unit 14 converted by the AD converter 15. Demodulating, the light receiving unit 14 and the light emitting unit 13 are configured by LEDs. In many cases, the LED is originally provided in the in-vehicle information device 1a as a power lamp for indicating an energized state. For example, even if there is no light receiving unit for receiving a remote control operation, a power lamp composed of LEDs is often provided. Therefore, if the light receiving unit 14 and the light emitting unit 13 are configured by LEDs, existing components can be used effectively.

  In the present invention, within the scope of the invention, any combination of the embodiments, or any modification of any component in each embodiment, or omission of any component in each embodiment is possible. .

  1, 1a In-vehicle information device, 2, 2a External device, 3 Front panel, 10 Storage unit, 11 Signal modulation unit, 12 Driver unit, 13 Light emitting unit, 14 Light receiving unit, 15 AD converter, 16 Signal demodulating unit, 20 Light receiving unit , 21 Waveform shaping unit, 22 Signal demodulation unit, 23 Storage unit, 24 Signal modulation unit, 25 Driver unit, 26 Light emitting unit.

Claims (8)

A storage unit for storing internal information indicating the operation status of the device;
A signal modulating unit that modulates the internal information stored in the storage unit into an electrical signal for transfer and outputs the electrical signal;
An in-vehicle information device comprising: a driver unit that controls a light emission state of a light emitting unit directed toward a passenger compartment according to an electrical signal output from the signal modulation unit. A light receiving unit that converts incident light into an electrical signal and outputs the electrical signal;
The in-vehicle information device according to claim 1, further comprising: a signal demodulating unit that demodulates an electrical signal output from the light receiving unit.   The in-vehicle information device according to claim 2, wherein the light receiving unit is also the light emitting unit. An AD converter that converts the electrical signal output by the light receiving unit into a digital electrical signal and outputs the digital signal;
The signal demodulating unit demodulates the electrical signal output by the light receiving unit converted by the AD converter,
The in-vehicle information device according to claim 2, wherein the light receiving unit and the light emitting unit are configured by light emitting diodes. A storage unit for storing internal information indicating the operation status of the device;
A signal modulating unit that modulates the internal information stored in the storage unit into an electrical signal for transfer and outputs the electrical signal;
In-vehicle information device comprising a driver unit that controls the light emission state of the light emitting unit directed toward the passenger compartment according to the electrical signal output by the signal modulation unit,
A light receiving unit that converts the light from the light emitting unit into an electrical signal and outputs the electrical signal;
An in-vehicle information device maintenance system comprising: an external device including a signal demodulating unit that demodulates an electrical signal output from the light receiving unit to obtain the internal information. The external device is
Information for transmitting to the in-vehicle information device, a signal modulation unit that modulates and outputs an electrical signal for transfer, and
A driver unit that controls a light emission state of a light emitting unit directed to the in-vehicle information device according to an electrical signal output by the signal modulation unit;
The in-vehicle information device is
A light receiving unit that converts light from the light emitting unit of the external device into an electrical signal and outputs the electrical signal;
6. The in-vehicle information equipment maintenance system according to claim 5, further comprising a signal demodulating unit that demodulates an electric signal output from the light receiving unit.   The in-vehicle information device maintenance system according to claim 6, wherein the light receiving unit of the in-vehicle information device is also a light emitting unit of the in-vehicle information device. The in-vehicle information device is
An AD converter that converts the electrical signal output from the light receiving unit of the in-vehicle information device into a digital electrical signal and outputs the digital signal,
The signal demodulator of the in-vehicle information device demodulates the electrical signal output by the light receiving unit of the in-vehicle information device converted by the AD converter,
8. The maintenance system for an in-vehicle information device according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the light receiving unit of the in-vehicle information device and the light emitting unit of the in-vehicle information device are configured by light emitting diodes.

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