JP2023140118A - Control device and vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

To reduce useless utilization of a nonvolatile memory in a configuration for storing information on an operation mode in the nonvolatile memory.SOLUTION: An on-vehicle control device for controlling writing to a non-volatile memory includes: writing means for writing data corresponding to a drive mode of a vehicle to the non-volatile memory when the drive mode satisfies a reference; measuring means for measuring the number of times of writing by the writing means; and limiting means for limiting an amount of data to be written in the nonvolatile memory by the writing means based on measurement results of the measuring means.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention mainly relates to a vehicle-mounted control device.

Patent Document 1 describes the configuration of an event data recorder (EDR) as a device that stores information indicating the content in an on-vehicle nonvolatile memory when the driving mode of the vehicle satisfies a standard, such as sudden deceleration. has been done. According to Patent Document 1, when the remaining memory capacity of a nonvolatile memory becomes less than a standard, information to be written to the nonvolatile memory is transmitted to a server outside the vehicle via a communication device.

JP 2021-120792 Publication

Since it may be difficult to achieve appropriate communication depending on the communication environment, the information may be required to be stored in an on-vehicle nonvolatile memory. On the other hand, a semiconductor memory such as a flash memory is typically used as the nonvolatile memory, and unnecessary use of the nonvolatile memory is preferably suppressed from the viewpoint of the number of writes and the associated reliability.

The present invention was made in recognition of the above-mentioned problem, and an exemplary object of the present invention is to suppress unnecessary use of nonvolatile memory in a configuration in which information on driving conditions is stored in nonvolatile memory.

One aspect of the present invention relates to a control device, the control device including:
An in-vehicle control device for controlling writing to nonvolatile memory,
writing means for writing data corresponding to the driving manner in the nonvolatile memory when the driving manner of the vehicle satisfies the criteria;
Measuring means for measuring the number of writes by the writing means;
It is characterized by comprising a limiting means for limiting the amount of data written by the writing means to the non-volatile memory based on a measurement result of the measuring means.

According to the present invention, unnecessary use of nonvolatile memory can be suppressed.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of a vehicle. 7 is a flowchart showing a method of controlling writing to nonvolatile memory. 7 is a table showing a method of managing contents written to nonvolatile memory. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a method of measuring the number of writes to nonvolatile memory.

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the claimed invention, and not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are essential to the invention. Two or more features among the plurality of features described in the embodiments may be arbitrarily combined. In addition, the same or similar configurations are given the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations will be omitted.

<First embodiment>
(About system configuration)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a system configuration of a vehicle 1 according to the first embodiment. The vehicle 1 includes wheels 11, a driving operation device 12, a detection device 13, a driving support device 14, a volatile memory 15, a nonvolatile memory 16, a control device 17, and a position specifying device 18. In this embodiment, the vehicle 1 is a four-wheeled vehicle having two front wheels and two rear wheels as the wheels 11, but in other embodiments, the vehicle 1 may be a two-wheeled vehicle or a tricycle, and the number of wheels 11 may vary. Not limited to examples.

The driving operation device 12 includes an acceleration operator 121, a deceleration operator 122, and a steering operator 123. Generally, the operator 121 may be an accelerator pedal, and the operator 122 may be a brake pedal. Furthermore, a steering wheel may be used as the operator 123. The operators 121 to 123 may be of other types, such as a lever type or a button type.

The detection device 13 detects the driving mode of the vehicle 1. The driving mode typically indicates elements that are directly or indirectly related to the velocity and acceleration of the vehicle 1 in the longitudinal direction and/or the lateral direction. Examples thereof include operation amounts of the operators 121 to 123 that realize acceleration, deceleration, and steering of the vehicle 1, or physical quantities corresponding thereto. As an example, the detection device 12 detects the amount of operation of each of the operators 121 to 123.

Note that the detection contents by the detection device 13 are not limited to this example, and the detection device 13 is capable of detecting various states of the vehicle 1 regardless of whether or not the vehicle 1 is traveling. Make information obtainable.

The detection result of the detection device 13 can be stored in the volatile memory 15, which will be described later, together with information related to the detection. Examples of this related information include time information indicating the time at the time of the detection, position information indicating the position of the vehicle 1 on the map data at the time of the detection, and the like.

The driving support device 14 executes predetermined driving support. The concept of driving support includes supporting at least one of acceleration operation, deceleration operation, and steering operation. With such a driving support device 14, the vehicle 1 includes a driving support mode and a manual driving mode as operating modes. In the driving support mode, the driving support device 14 supports part or all of the acceleration operation, deceleration operation, and steering operation, thereby reducing the load on the occupant as a driver. On the other hand, in the manual driving mode, the main driver of the vehicle 1 is the passenger, who performs all of the acceleration, deceleration, and steering operations as a driver.

In addition, when the driving support device 14 supports all of the acceleration operation, deceleration operation, and steering operation, the main driver of the driving operation of the vehicle 1 is the driving support device 14, and such an operation mode is expressed as an automatic driving mode. It may be distinguished from support mode.

Further, the concept of driving support may include not only direct support for driving operations but also indirect support. Therefore, the driving support device 14 may be capable of further executing, for example, calculating a driving route to a destination, and notifying the passenger or driver regarding the calculation process.

The volatile memory 15 temporarily stores the detection results of the detection device 13, although the details will be described later. DRAM (dynamic random access memory) can generally be used as the volatile memory 15.

The nonvolatile memory 16 can store a portion of the detection results of the detection device 13 that have been temporarily stored in the volatile memory 15, although details will be described later. Any known semiconductor memory or semiconductor element memory may be used as the nonvolatile memory 16, and main examples include eMMC (embedded Multi Media Card), UFS (Universal Flash Storage), SSD (Solid State Drive), etc. For example, a NAND flash memory may be used, but a NOR flash memory may also be used.

The control device 17 continuously stores the detection results of the detection device 13 in the volatile memory 15, and selects a part of them and stores them in the non-volatile memory 16 according to the establishment of a predetermined condition. That is, the detection device 13 continuously detects the driving mode of the vehicle 1, and the detection results are sequentially written into the volatile memory 15. On the other hand, if the predetermined condition is satisfied, a part of the correspondence is selected from the detection results written in the volatile memory 15 and written in the nonvolatile memory 16.

Examples of the fulfillment of the above conditions include the fact that the absolute value of the acceleration when the vehicle 1 accelerates becomes larger than the reference value, and the absolute value of the acceleration when the vehicle 1 decelerates becomes larger than the reference value. sell. Another example of the fulfillment of the above condition is that the impact value applied to the vehicle 1 from the outside becomes larger than the reference value. Therefore, when an unexpected situation occurs in the vehicle 1, that is, when the driving manner of the vehicle 1 satisfies the criteria, the detection results of the detection device 13 may be selectively written into the nonvolatile memory 16.

Note that the individual functions of the control device 17 may be realized by either software or hardware. For example, the plurality of functions included in the control device 17 may be realized by one or more processor circuits with memory individually reading and executing programs. Alternatively, the plurality of functions may be realized by driving a plurality of circuit units (for example, an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit)) corresponding thereto.

The position specifying device 18 specifies the position of the vehicle 1 on the map data of the vehicle 1, and makes it possible to acquire the position information. An example of the position specifying device 18 is a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) sensor. Furthermore, examples of map data include those typically used in car navigation systems, such as HD (High-definition) maps and SD (Standard) maps. As another example, an environmental map that is generated or updated based on information on which the vehicle 1 traveled in the past may be used. For example, the aforementioned driving support device 14 can perform driving support based on the position information acquired by the position specifying device 18.

These elements 12 to 18 can send and receive signals via a system bus or the like, and with this configuration, the control device 17 controls writing to the nonvolatile memory 16, and in this embodiment When an unexpected situation occurs in the vehicle 1, a part of the detection result of the detection device 13 is stored in the nonvolatile memory 16 as information (or data) indicating the situation.

These elements 12 to 18 are shown here as separate units for ease of explanation, but at least some of their functions may be provided separately or may be provided separately. It may be provided integrally with the section. That is, the elements 12 to 18 are formed by one or more ECUs (electronic control units), and a plurality of ECUs may be installed at corresponding positions on the vehicle 1 depending on the function or application.

In the following description, an unexpected situation occurring in the vehicle 1 may be expressed as an "event", and information written to the nonvolatile memory 16 may be expressed as "event data". Since the event data is written as a record to the non-volatile memory 16, the control device 17 together with the detection device 13 and the non-volatile memory 16 (and optionally the volatile memory 15) may be described as an "event data recorder". The event data is erased from the nonvolatile memory 16 in the order of older or older data after a predetermined period of time has passed, and is overwritten with newer data.

(About how non-volatile memory is used)
By the way, in addition to the above-mentioned event data, information (or data) necessary for realizing driving support in the driving support mode is written into the nonvolatile memory 16 by the control device 17. The information to be written to the nonvolatile memory 16 in the driving support mode is specified based on predetermined laws and regulations, and examples thereof include:
“Attachment 123 Technical Standards for Operating Condition Recording Devices” of “Safety Standards for Road Transport Vehicles (as of April 28, 2021)”, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, https://www.mlit.go.jp/common/001346769 .pdf
can be mentioned.

Therefore, if the above-mentioned event data is written to the nonvolatile memory 16 at an unnecessarily high frequency, the nonvolatile memory 16 will deteriorate prematurely. This may cause difficulty in utilizing the non-volatile memory 16 in the driving support mode, or may even make it difficult to perform the driving support itself. Therefore, unnecessary writing of event data to the nonvolatile memory 16 needs to be suppressed or reduced.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for controlling writing of event data into the nonvolatile memory 16. This flowchart is mainly executed by the control device 17, and its outline is to limit the amount of event data to be written to the nonvolatile memory 16 when the number of writes to the nonvolatile memory 16 is large. be. Moreover, this flowchart is assumed to be started in response to the activation of the vehicle 1 (the vehicle 1 is in a driveable state) regardless of the driving support mode or the manual driving mode.

In step S2000 (hereinafter simply referred to as "S2000"; the same applies to other steps described later), the control device 17 acquires the detection result of the detection device 13 (information indicating the driving mode of the vehicle 1). and write it into the volatile memory 15. From this point of view, it can be said that the control device 17 functions as an acquisition unit and a writing unit.

In S2010, the control device 17 determines whether an event (unforeseen situation) has occurred. From this point of view, it can be said that the control device 17 functions as a determination section. Here, as an example, it is determined that an event has occurred in response to the absolute value of the acceleration generated in the vehicle 1 becoming larger than a reference value. Therefore, the determination in S2010 can be performed substantially simultaneously with writing the detection result of the detection device 13 into the volatile memory 15 (S2000). Further, the determination in S2010 may be performed based on an acceleration sensor that can typically be mounted on the vehicle 1, but alternatively/incidentally, it may be performed based on the detection result of the detection device 13. If an event has occurred, the process advances to S2020; otherwise, the process returns to S2000.

Here, if no event has occurred, the process returns from S2010 to S2000. Therefore, as described above, the detection device 13 continuously detects the driving mode of the vehicle 1, and the detection result is always stored in the volatile memory 15. This means that it is written in . It is assumed that the detection results of the detection device 13 written in the volatile memory 15 in S2000 are erased, for example, after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, that is, the relatively new detection results are written in the volatile memory 15. Retained temporarily.

In S2020, the control device 17 generates a signal Sig0 indicating execution of writing of event data to the nonvolatile memory 16. From this point of view, it can be said that the control device 17 functions as a signal generator. Although details will be described later, a portion of the corresponding study results held in the volatile memory 15 is read out based on the signal Sig0. Here, the control device 17 has a built-in counter, and counts up a value Val0 indicating the number of times of writing to the nonvolatile memory 16 upon generation of the signal Sig0.

In the following description, the signal Sig0 may be indicated as the write execution signal Sig0, and the value Val0 may be indicated as the write count measurement value Val0.

In S2030, the control device 17 determines whether the write count measurement value Val0 has reached the threshold value _ValTH1 . From this point of view, it can be said that the control device 17 functions as a determination section. If Val0≧Val _TH1 , the process advances to S2040; otherwise (if Val0<Val _TH1 ), the process advances to S2110.

In S2040, the control device 17 determines whether the write count measurement value Val0 has reached the threshold value Val _TH2 (>Val _TH1 ). From this point of view, it can be said that the control device 17 functions as a determination section. If Val0≧Val _TH2 , the process advances to S2310; otherwise (if Val0<Val _TH2 ), the process advances to S2210.

In S2110, the control device 17 reads a part of the detection result of the detection device 13 from the volatile memory 15 based on the execution signal Sig0, and writes the part into the nonvolatile memory 16 as event data. From this point of view, it can be said that the control device 17 functions as a reading section and a writing section. Here, in S2110, Val0<Val _TH1 , and it can be said that the number of times event data is written to the nonvolatile memory 16 is relatively small. Therefore, the event data written to the non-volatile memory 16 in S2110 only needs to have an amount of data based on a predetermined standard (to be distinguished from other event data to be described later, it is referred to as event data D1). Note that the event data D1 is the detection result of the detection device 13 for a predetermined period based on the timing of generation of the signal Sig0.

In S2210, Val _TH1 ≦Val0<Val _TH2 , and it can be said that the number of times event data is written to the nonvolatile memory 16 is relatively large. Therefore, in S2210, the amount of event data to be written to the non-volatile memory 16 is limited compared to the case of S2110, and the event data with the limited amount of data (to be distinguished, it will be referred to as event data D2) is non-volatile. written to memory 16. From this point of view, it can be said that the control device 17 functions as a reading section, a writing section and a limiting section.

Here, in S2210, the driving support device 14 may be additionally notified that the number of writes to the nonvolatile memory 16 is relatively large. The driving support mode may include two or more modes having different driving support levels (degrees of driving support). In that case, the driving support device 14 changes the currently running mode to a mode with a lower driving support level based on the above notification, thereby imposing a predetermined limit on the information to be written to the nonvolatile memory 16 in the driving support mode. It is possible to add.

For example, if the driving support mode includes a first mode and a second mode with a lower driving support level than the first mode, and the driving support device 14 is executing the first mode at the time of the above notification, the driving support mode is The support device 14 can change the driving support mode from the first mode to the second mode in response to the notification. If the driving support mode includes three or more modes, the driving support mode may be changed to a mode with a lower driving support level in stages.

In S2310, Val0≧ _ValTH2 , and it can be said that the number of times event data is written to the nonvolatile memory 16 is even greater. Therefore, in S2310, the amount of event data to be written to the nonvolatile memory 16 is further limited than in S2210, and the event data with the further limited amount of data (to be distinguished, it will be referred to as event data D3) is The data is written to non-volatile memory 16. From this point of view, it can be said that the control device 17 functions as a reading section, a writing section and a limiting section.

Similarly to S2210, in S2310 as well, the driving support device 14 may be notified that the number of writes to the nonvolatile memory 16 is even greater. In this case, the driving support mode may be changed to one with a lower driving support level than in the case of S2210, for example, it may be changed to one that does not require recording of event data, but the driving support mode may be changed to manual driving mode. may be done.

Note that the threshold values Val _TH1 and Val _TH2 may be set to, for example, several hundreds or thousands of values, but are not limited to these, and may be set in advance to values based on the design of the nonvolatile memory 16. good.

Here, regarding the above-mentioned event data D1, D2, and D3 indicating the detection results of the detection device 13, the data amount can be limited as long as the area used in the nonvolatile memory 16 is suppressed, and the data size itself is substantially small. correspond to that. Therefore, for example, when the detection device 13 detects a plurality of items (for example, an acceleration mode, a deceleration mode, a steering mode, etc.) and the event data D1 indicates the detection results of the plurality of items, the event data D2 or D3 may indicate the detection results of some of the plurality of items. Further, for example, when the event data D1 indicates a detection result for a predetermined period based on the timing of generation of the signal Sig0, the event data D2 or D3 may indicate a detection result for a shorter period. If the number of times event data is written to the nonvolatile memory 16 (ie, the measured value Val0) is unnecessarily large, the control device 17 limits the amount of event data to be written to the nonvolatile memory 16. As a result, the usable area of the nonvolatile memory 16 used when writing event data is reduced, unnecessary use of the nonvolatile memory 16 is appropriately prevented, and deterioration of the nonvolatile memory 16 can be suppressed.

When the write count measurement value Val0 approaches the allowable upper limit value (>Val _TH2 ), in this case, when Val _TH1 ≦ Val0 < Val _TH2 holds true, the nonvolatile memory 16 is preferably replaced with a new one. Therefore, in such a case, it is preferable to notify the passenger or driver that the nonvolatile memory 16 needs to be replaced. This may be realized by a device (for example, a liquid crystal display, etc.) that may be included in the driving support device 14, or may be realized by a sound source that may be typically mounted on the vehicle 1. At that time, execution of the driving support mode may be restricted incidentally.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, when writing event data to the nonvolatile memory 16 when the driving mode of the vehicle 1 satisfies the criteria, the control device 17 uses the measurement result of the number of times of writing to the nonvolatile memory 16. Based on this, the data amount of the event data is limited. Since the limited data amount increases as the number of writes increases, unnecessary use of the nonvolatile memory 16 can be appropriately prevented and deterioration of the nonvolatile memory 16 can be suppressed.

Further, if the driving support mode includes two or more modes with different driving support levels, even after the amount of event data to be written to the non-volatile memory 16 is limited, the driving support device 14 can perform the driving support. Driving support can be performed in a relatively low level mode. Therefore, until the nonvolatile memory 16 is replaced, for example, until the vehicle 1 arrives at a repair shop, driving assistance can be utilized in a mode with a relatively low driving assistance level.

In the present embodiment, the event data D1 is the detection result of the detection device 13 for a predetermined period based on the timing of the generation of the signal Sig0. It may also include the period after the occurrence of Sig0. That is, not only the driving manner of the vehicle 1 before the occurrence of the event but also the driving manner of the vehicle 1 after the occurrence of the event may be recorded in the nonvolatile memory 16 as event data. This can be done by reading out the detection results, which are continuously detected by the detection device 13 and written into the volatile memory 15 even after the signal Sig0 is generated, from the volatile memory 15 and writing them into the non-volatile memory 16. , is feasible.

Further, in this embodiment, the counter built in the control device 17 is used to measure the write count Val0, but the counter may be provided separately from the control device 17, for example, a non-volatile It may also be provided in the digital memory 16. Note that the measurement value Val0 may be measured by a counter, as long as it is measured by a countdown, that is, it is measured cumulatively.

Further, in the present embodiment, in addition to event data, information necessary for realizing the driving support mode is further written in the nonvolatile memory 16, but unnecessary use of the nonvolatile memory 16 is appropriately prevented. The configuration of the storage device is not limited to this example. Therefore, as another embodiment, for example, another nonvolatile memory into which information necessary for realizing the driving support mode is to be written may be provided separately from the nonvolatile memory 16.

<Second embodiment>
The amount of event data written to the nonvolatile memory 16 may be standardized, for example, as 32 KB (kilobytes) for event data D1, 16 KB for event data D2, and 8 KB for event data D3. Therefore, it may be required to measure the number of writes in a manner compatible with standardization.

Therefore, in the first embodiment, the signal Sig0 is generated in response to the occurrence of an event, and the write count measurement value Val0 is counted up (see S2020 in FIG. 2), but the measurement of the measurement value Val0 is as follows. It is preferable to perform this for each predetermined area of the nonvolatile memory 16.

For example, in the above-mentioned example of event data D1 (32 KB), event data D2 (16 KB), and event data D3 (8 KB), the unit block is 8 KB, and four blocks are used for event data D1, and two blocks are used for event data D2. In addition, one block will be used for event data D3. This block can also be expressed as a memory block.

Furthermore, memory capacity is generally managed for each address. Therefore, by assigning a single address to each memory block, the measurement value Val0 can be measured for each address.

For example, as shown in FIG. 3A, the measurement value Val0 may be measured and managed for each physical address of the nonvolatile memory 16. As another example, as shown in FIG. 3(b), the measured value Val0 may be measured for each event data and managed for two or more physical addresses. In these cases, a counter for measuring the measurement value Val0 may be provided in the nonvolatile memory 16. The control device 17 may acquire information indicating the measured value Val0 from the nonvolatile memory 16.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3C, logical addresses are linked to physical addresses of the nonvolatile memory 16 so that they can be accessed by external devices. The write count measurement value Val0 may be managed using this logical address.

Furthermore, the capacity for a single address in memory may vary depending on the device structure of non-volatile memory 16 itself. Therefore, the measured value Val0 may be managed for each physical address as in the example of FIG. 3(a), but as in the example of FIG. is preferably managed for each event data.

Furthermore, if the write count measurement value Val0 of the physical address linked to the logical address is greater than the measurement value Val0 of other physical addresses, the logical address is a physical address with a smaller measurement value Val0 (write count The association may be changed to a physical address with a small number of physical addresses). Thereby, it is possible to reduce the difference in the write count measurement value Val0 between the physical addresses, that is, it is possible to equalize the write count among the plurality of memory blocks.

When the counter is provided in the nonvolatile memory 16, the control device 17 uses a page table indicating the correspondence between logical addresses and physical addresses when acquiring information indicating the write count measurement value Val0 from the nonvolatile memory 16. be able to.

Note that, as shown in FIG. 4, a monitoring unit 19 that monitors data transferred from the volatile memory 15 to the nonvolatile memory 16 may be further provided. The monitoring unit 19 may be provided to monitor a system bus connecting the elements 12 to 18, or may be provided to monitor input data to the nonvolatile memory 16. Thereby, the write count measurement value Val0 can be measured based on the monitoring result of the monitoring unit 19. In this case, the control device 17 may obtain information indicating the write count measurement value Val0 from the monitoring unit 19.

According to such a measurement mode, the nonvolatile memory 16 can be used so that the number of writes of a plurality of blocks is averaged. In this case, it is determined whether the amount of event data to be written to the nonvolatile memory 16 is limited based on the calculated value (for example, average value, maximum value, total value, etc.) of the measured value Val0. may be determined.

In the above explanation, each element has been given a name related to its function to facilitate understanding, but each element is not limited to having the content explained in the embodiment as its main function. Instead, it may be supplementary. Therefore, each element is not strictly limited to its expression, and its expression can be replaced with a similar expression. In a similar vein, the expression "apparatus" can be used as a "unit," "component, piece," "member," "structure," or "assembly." assembly)" or may be omitted.

For example, the nonvolatile memory 16 may be expressed as a nonvolatile memory section, a nonvolatile memory device, etc. to distinguish it from a memory cell.

According to the embodiments described above, it is possible to prevent unexpected stoppage of driving assistance, and a highly convenient vehicle can be used for a wide variety of purposes. It can contribute to the promotion of welfare in an increasingly globalized society. Further, it becomes possible to prevent an unnecessary increase in the number of writes to the nonvolatile memory 16 and/or to appropriately utilize the nonvolatile memory 16, which can contribute to reducing or preventing unnecessary disposal of the nonvolatile memory 16.

(Summary of embodiments)
Some features of the above embodiments can be summarized as follows:
A first aspect relates to a control device (for example, 17), the control device including:
An on-vehicle control device for controlling writing to a non-volatile memory (e.g. 16), comprising:
a writing means (for example, S2110, S2210, S2310) for writing data corresponding to the driving manner into the nonvolatile memory when the driving manner of the vehicle satisfies a criterion;
a measuring means (for example, S2020) that measures the number of writes by the writing means;
The present invention is characterized in that it includes a limiting unit (for example, S2110, S2210, S2310) that limits the amount of data written by the writing unit to the nonvolatile memory based on the measurement result of the measuring unit. According to such a feature, event data can be stored without using the nonvolatile memory unnecessarily.

The second aspect is
The limited data amount increases as the number of writes increases. According to such features, unnecessary use of nonvolatile memory can be appropriately prevented.

The third aspect is
The measuring means measures the number of times of writing for each address of the nonvolatile memory. According to such features, it becomes possible to appropriately utilize multiple areas of nonvolatile memory.

The fourth aspect is
The driving mode of the vehicle satisfies the criteria,
the absolute value of acceleration when the vehicle accelerates is greater than a reference value;
The absolute value of acceleration when the vehicle is decelerated is greater than a reference value, and
an impact value applied to the vehicle from the outside is greater than a reference value;
It is characterized by containing at least one of the following. According to such features, event data can be stored.

The fifth aspect is
The nonvolatile memory includes a semiconductor memory (for example, 16). The above-mentioned control device is applicable, for example, to realize control of writing to a semiconductor memory such as a flash memory.

The sixth aspect is
The apparatus is characterized in that it further includes notification means (for example, 14) for notifying that the nonvolatile memory needs to be replaced based on the measurement result of the measurement means. Such features allow the vehicle user to appropriately replace the non-volatile memory. In the embodiment, the nonvolatile memory is replaced as a single unit, but the entire unit in which the nonvolatile memory is mounted, such as a memory ECU, may be replaced.

A seventh aspect relates to a vehicle (e.g. 1), the vehicle comprising:
A control device (for example, 17) according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
wheels (e.g. 11);
It is characterized by comprising a driving support device (for example, 14) that executes predetermined driving support. That is, the aforementioned control device is applicable to typical vehicles.

The eighth aspect is
a detection device (for example, 13) that detects the driving mode;
a volatile memory (for example 15) for temporarily storing detection results of the detection device;
further comprising a non-volatile memory (e.g. 16);
The writing means is characterized in that when the detection result satisfies the criteria, the writing means writes a corresponding portion of the data temporarily stored in the volatile memory into the nonvolatile memory. According to such a feature, event data can be stored without using the nonvolatile memory unnecessarily.

The ninth aspect is
The writing means further writes information necessary for executing the driving assistance into the nonvolatile memory. That is, the above-described control device is applicable to a typical vehicle equipped with a driving support device.

The tenth aspect is
The driving support includes at least one of an acceleration operation, a deceleration operation, and a steering operation. According to such features, it becomes possible to appropriately realize driving support for any of acceleration operation, deceleration operation, and steering operation.

The eleventh aspect is
The driving assistance includes two or more modes with different driving assistance levels,
When the limiting means limits the amount of data that the writing means writes into the nonvolatile memory, the driving support device changes the driving support to a mode with a lower driving support level. According to such a feature, it becomes possible to use driving assistance at a relatively low driving assistance level without using the nonvolatile memory unnecessarily.

The twelfth aspect is
The writing means is characterized in that when receiving an instruction to write data corresponding to the driving mode into the nonvolatile memory from the driving support device, the writing means writes the data into the nonvolatile memory. According to such features, it becomes possible to record data necessary for realizing driving assistance in the nonvolatile memory.

The invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the invention.

1: Vehicle, 16: Non-volatile memory, 17: Control device.

Claims (12)

An in-vehicle control device for controlling writing to nonvolatile memory,
writing means for writing data corresponding to the driving manner in the nonvolatile memory when the driving manner of the vehicle satisfies the criteria;
Measuring means for measuring the number of writes by the writing means;
A control device comprising: a limiting device that limits the amount of data that the writing device writes into the nonvolatile memory based on a measurement result of the measuring device. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the limited data amount increases as the number of writes increases. 3. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the measuring means measures the number of times of writing for each address of the nonvolatile memory. The driving mode of the vehicle satisfies the criteria,
the absolute value of acceleration when the vehicle accelerates is greater than a reference value;
The absolute value of acceleration when the vehicle is decelerated is greater than a reference value, and
an impact value applied to the vehicle from the outside is greater than a reference value;
The control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it includes at least one of the following. The control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the nonvolatile memory includes a semiconductor memory. The control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising a notification unit that notifies that the nonvolatile memory needs to be replaced based on a measurement result of the measurement unit. A control device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
wheels and
A vehicle comprising: a driving support device that performs predetermined driving support. a detection device that detects the driving mode;
a volatile memory for temporarily storing detection results of the detection device;
further comprising a non-volatile memory;
8. The writing means writes a corresponding portion of the data temporarily stored in the volatile memory to the non-volatile memory when the detection result satisfies the criteria. vehicle. The vehicle according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the writing means further writes information necessary for executing the driving assistance into the nonvolatile memory. The vehicle according to any one of claims 7 to 9, wherein the driving assistance includes at least one of an acceleration operation, a deceleration operation, and a steering operation. The driving assistance includes two or more modes with different driving assistance levels,
From claim 7, wherein when the limiting means limits the amount of data that the writing means writes into the nonvolatile memory, the driving support device changes the driving support to a mode with a lower driving support level. The vehicle according to claim 10. From claim 7, wherein the writing means writes data corresponding to the driving mode to the nonvolatile memory when receiving an instruction to write the data to the nonvolatile memory from the driving support device. The vehicle according to claim 11.

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