JP2023182412A - On-vehicle device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an on-vehicle device which can suppress electricity consumption of a battery and inform a user of correct information.SOLUTION: An on-vehicle device comprises: a detection part which detects a user operation related to a vehicle during a period after passing a first prescribed time from the stop of a power source until a shutdown processing starts to turn off an electric power source of the on-vehicle device; an extension part which elongates, when the operation is detected, a second prescribed time indicating a period to perform monitoring of vehicle state of the vehicle from the stop of the power source in which the second prescribed time is longer than the first prescribed time; and a finish part which executes the shutdown processing after passing the second prescribed time.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

The present invention relates to an on-vehicle device.

Conventionally, in-vehicle devices have been known that have a function of monitoring the condition of the vehicle for a predetermined period of time even after the engine has stopped, and uploading information representing the detected contents to a server if it detects that the driver has forgotten to turn off the hazards or lock the doors. ing. As a result, even after the vehicle engine has stopped, the user can receive a notification through a mobile terminal such as a smartphone that it has been detected that the user has forgotten to turn off the hazards, forget to lock the doors, etc.

JP2010-205063A

However, if the in-vehicle device is to be operated even after the engine has stopped, the in-vehicle device will be driven by a battery. Therefore, if the operating time of the in-vehicle device becomes longer, the battery may run out more easily. Therefore, the operating time of the on-vehicle device is limited to a predetermined time.

Therefore, if a situation that requires continued vehicle monitoring occurs, such as when the vehicle door opens just before the end of the operating time, there is a possibility that the predetermined time will elapse while the information is being uploaded and the operation of the in-vehicle device will end. There is. In this case, the server may not be able to accurately grasp the vehicle status, and the user may not receive notifications or may receive notifications that do not reflect the latest information regarding the vehicle status. .

In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide an in-vehicle device that can suppress battery power consumption and notify a user of correct information.

The in-vehicle device of the present invention detects a user's operation related to the vehicle during a period from when the power source of the vehicle is stopped until a shutdown process for powering down the in-vehicle device is started after a first predetermined time has elapsed. a detection unit; an extension unit that extends a second predetermined period, which is longer than the first predetermined period and indicates a period during which the vehicle state of the vehicle is monitored from the stoppage of the power source, when the operation is detected; and a termination unit that executes the shutdown process after two predetermined periods have elapsed.

According to the present invention, it is possible to suppress battery power consumption and notify the user of correct information.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of an in-vehicle device according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of processing of the control device of the in-vehicle device when the vehicle condition monitoring period according to the embodiment is not extended. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the processing of the control device of the in-vehicle device when extending the vehicle condition monitoring period according to the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process executed by the control device of the in-vehicle device according to the embodiment.

<Configuration of in-vehicle device>
FIG. 1 shows a vehicle equipped with an on-vehicle device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The vehicle 1 includes an on-vehicle device 10, an engine switch 13, a hazard lamp switch 14, a room lamp switch 15, a door lock switch 16, a seat belt attachment sensor 17, a seating sensor 18, a door opening/closing sensor 19, and the like.

The in-vehicle device 10 monitors the state of the vehicle 1 and transmits information regarding the state of the vehicle 1 to the notification server 20. The configuration of the in-vehicle device 10 will be described later.

Based on the information received from the in-vehicle device 10, the notification server 20 sends a notification regarding the state of the vehicle 1 to a mobile terminal (not shown) such as a user's smartphone (for example, that a user forgot to turn off the hazards, forgot to lock the door, etc.). notifications).

The engine switch 13 is a switch for turning on/off an engine (not shown) that is the power source of the vehicle 1.

The hazard lamp switch 14 is a switch for turning on or off a hazard lamp (not shown).

The room lamp switch 15 is a switch for turning on or off a room lamp (not shown) of the vehicle 1.

The door lock switch 16 is a switch for locking or unlocking a door lock (not shown) of the vehicle 1.

The seat belt attachment sensor 17 is a sensor that detects whether the seat belt of each seat of the vehicle 1 is attached or detached. The seat belt attachment sensor 17 can be realized by, for example, a contact sensor or the like.

The seating sensor 18 is a sensor that detects that a passenger is seated in each seat of the vehicle 1. The seating sensor 18 can be realized by, for example, a pressure sensor or the like.

The door opening/closing sensor 19 is a sensor that detects opening/closing of each door of the vehicle 1. The door opening/closing sensor 19 can be realized by, for example, a contact sensor or the like.

Next, the configuration of the in-vehicle device 10 will be explained. The in-vehicle device 10 includes a control device 11 and a communication device 12.

The control device 11 controls the on-vehicle device 10 in an integrated manner. The control device 11 is composed of, for example, a microcomputer. The control device 11 includes an information acquisition section 111 , an engine stop detection section 112 , a user operation detection section 113 , a determination section 114 , an extension section 115 , an end section 116 , and a communication control section 117 .

The information acquisition unit 111 acquires from the vehicle 1 information related to the vehicle state (hereinafter also referred to as vehicle state information) representing the state of the vehicle 1 . For example, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires vehicle state information from the start of the engine of the vehicle 1 until the engine stops. The information acquisition unit 111 also acquires vehicle status information during the vehicle status monitoring period from the engine stop until the shutdown process of the on-vehicle device 10 is started.

Specifically, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires the state (ON or OFF) of the engine switch 13 in real time. Furthermore, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires the state (on or off) of the hazard lamp switch 14 in real time. Furthermore, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires the state (on or off) of the room lamp switch 15 in real time. Furthermore, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires the state (locked or unlocked) of the door lock switch 16 in real time.

Further, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires sensing results of the seat belt attachment sensor 17 in real time. Further, for example, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires the sensing results of the seating sensor 18 in real time. Further, for example, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires the sensing results of the door opening/closing sensor 19 in real time.

Note that the above is an example of vehicle state information, and the vehicle state information is not limited to this. For example, the state of the shift lever (parking, reverse, etc.), the state of the headlights (lights off or on), etc. may be acquired as the vehicle state information.

The engine stop detection unit 112 detects the stoppage of the engine of the vehicle 1 based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit 111. For example, the engine stop detection unit 112 detects that the engine of the vehicle 1 has stopped when the information acquisition unit 111 has acquired information indicating that the engine switch 13 has been turned off.

Based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit 111, the user operation detection unit 113 detects the timing from the time when the waiting period, which is a predetermined period of time after the engine of the vehicle 1 stops, until the shutdown process of the in-vehicle device 10 is started. During the extension determination period in which it is determined whether or not to extend the vehicle condition monitoring period, a user's operation related to the vehicle 1 (hereinafter also referred to as user operation) is detected. The waiting period is an example of the first predetermined period. Further, the vehicle condition monitoring period is an example of the second predetermined period.

For example, the user operation detection unit 113 detects that a user operation has been performed when the information acquisition unit 111 acquires information indicating that the hazard lamp switch 14 has changed from the on state to the off state during the extension determination period. .

Similarly, the user operation detection unit 113 detects that a user operation has been performed when the information acquisition unit 111 acquires information indicating that the room lamp switch 15 has changed from the on state to the off state.

Similarly, the user operation detection unit 113 detects that a user operation has been performed when the information acquisition unit 111 acquires information indicating that the door lock switch 16 has changed from the on state to the off state.

Further, for example, the user operation detection unit 113 may cause the information acquisition unit 111 to acquire sensing results from the seat belt attachment sensor 17 indicating that the seat belt is fastened or unfastened during the extension determination period. If so, it is detected that there has been a user operation.

Similarly, when the information acquisition unit 111 acquires a sensing result indicating that the passenger is seated or stands up from the seat, the user operation detection unit 113 detects that a user operation has occurred. Detect. Note that although sitting down or leaving a seat is not an operation, sitting down or leaving a seat often leads to some kind of user operation, so in this embodiment, sitting down or leaving a seat is also considered a user operation. shall be detected as

Similarly, when the information acquisition unit 111 acquires a sensing result indicating that the door has been opened or closed from the door opening/closing sensor 19, the user operation detection unit 113 detects that there is no user operation. Detect what happened.

The determination unit 114 determines whether or not to extend the vehicle condition monitoring period based on the detection result of the user operation detection unit 113. For example, if the user operation detection unit 113 detects a user operation during the extension determination period, the determination unit 114 determines to extend the vehicle state monitoring period. On the other hand, if no user operation is detected by the user operation detection unit 113 during the extension determination period, it is determined that the vehicle condition monitoring period is not extended.

When the determination unit 114 determines to extend the vehicle condition monitoring period, the extension unit 115 extends the vehicle condition monitoring period for a certain period of time. In this embodiment, when the extension unit 115 extends the vehicle condition monitoring period, the extension unit 115 does not extend the vehicle condition monitoring period again even if a user operation is detected by the user operation detection unit 113 thereafter. .

After the vehicle condition monitoring period has elapsed, the termination unit 116 executes a shutdown process to terminate the operation of the in-vehicle device 10 and turn off the power.

The communication control unit 117 controls the communication device 12 to send and receive information to and from the notification server 20 . For example, the communication control unit 117 performs control (hereinafter also referred to as uploading) to transmit the vehicle status information acquired by the information acquisition unit 111 to the notification server 20 immediately after the engine stop detection unit 112 detects that the engine has stopped. .

Also, for example, the communication control unit 117 may receive information indicating that the vehicle status has changed (for example, information that the room lamp switch 15 has changed from off to on), when the information acquisition unit 111 receives information during the vehicle status monitoring period. When acquired as vehicle status information, the vehicle status information at the time of acquiring the information is uploaded to the notification server 20. Thereby, the notification server can grasp the latest vehicle status information of the vehicle 1.

Furthermore, the extension unit 115 extends the vehicle condition monitoring period as necessary, so that the information acquisition unit 111 acquires vehicle condition information indicating that the vehicle condition has changed immediately before the end of the vehicle condition monitoring period. Even in this case, the communication control unit 117 can upload the information to the notification server 20 before shutting down the in-vehicle device 10.

The processing of the control device 11 including the process of extending the vehicle condition monitoring period will be described below with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the processing of the control device 11 when the vehicle condition monitoring period is not extended. As shown in FIG. 2, when the information acquisition unit 111 acquires information indicating that the engine switch 13 has been turned OFF, the engine stop detection unit 112 detects that the engine has stopped (OFF). In FIG. 2, the time when the engine stop detection unit 112 detects the engine stop is set as the base point (0 seconds).

After TN seconds (standby period) have elapsed since the engine stop detection unit 112 detected the engine stop, the user operation detection unit 113 starts the user operation detection process. During the period from after TN seconds to after T seconds (extension determination period), the determination unit 114 determines whether or not to extend the vehicle condition monitoring period based on the detection result of the user's operation.

Here, the reason for determining whether or not to extend the vehicle condition monitoring period after the standby period has passed is that even if there is a user operation during the standby period, the vehicle condition is not sent to the notification server 20 within the vehicle condition monitoring period. This is because it is considered that the information transmission can be completed. This eliminates unnecessary extensions. Therefore, battery consumption due to processing performed by the on-vehicle device 10 after the engine is stopped can be suppressed.

In the example of FIG. 2, since no user operation is detected, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires vehicle status information for T seconds from engine stop detection, which is set as the vehicle status monitoring period, if the vehicle status monitoring period is not extended. do. Further, in this case, T seconds after the engine stop detection unit 112 detects the engine stop, the termination unit 116 executes the shutdown process of the in-vehicle device 10.

Here, FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the processing of the control device 11 when the vehicle condition monitoring period is not extended. As shown in FIG. 3, when the user operation detection unit 113 detects a user operation during the extension determination period, the determination unit 114 determines to extend the vehicle condition monitoring period. Next, the extension unit 115 performs processing to extend the vehicle condition monitoring period by a certain period of time (M seconds in the example of FIG. 3). As a result, in the example of FIG. 3, the vehicle state monitoring period is T+M seconds.

Therefore, in the example of FIG. 3, if the vehicle condition monitoring period is extended, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires the vehicle condition information for T+M seconds from engine stop detection. Further, in this case, T+M seconds after the engine stop detection unit 112 detects the engine stop, the termination unit 116 executes the shutdown process of the in-vehicle device 10.

In this way, by extending the vehicle condition monitoring period only when there is a user operation within the extension determination period, the in-vehicle device 10 can be shut down while the vehicle condition information is being uploaded without unnecessary extension. You can prevent this from happening.

<In-vehicle device processing>
Next, processing executed by the in-vehicle device 10 according to this embodiment will be described. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process executed by the control device 11 of the in-vehicle device 10 according to the embodiment.

First, the engine stop detection unit 112 detects engine stop based on the vehicle state information acquired by the information acquisition unit 111 (step S1). Specifically, the engine stop detection unit 112 detects the engine stop when the information acquisition unit 111 acquires information indicating that the engine switch 13 is in the OFF state as vehicle state information.

Next, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires vehicle state information when the engine is stopped (step S2).

Specifically, the information acquisition unit 111 detects the hazard lamp switch 14, the room lamp switch 15, the door lock switch 16, the seat belt attachment sensor 17, the seating sensor 18, The state of the door opening/closing sensor 19 and the like is acquired as vehicle state information. The information acquisition unit 111 continues the vehicle state information acquisition process until the shutdown process of the in-vehicle device 10 is started.

Next, the communication control unit 117 controls the communication device 12 and uploads the vehicle state information obtained in step S2 when the engine is stopped to the notification server 2 (step S3). After the standby period has elapsed since the engine stop was detected in step S1, the determination unit 114 cooperates with the user operation detection unit 113 to start a process of determining whether or not to extend the vehicle condition monitoring period ( Step S4).

Specifically, the user operation detection unit 113 detects a user operation when the information acquisition unit 111 acquires information indicating that vehicle status information has changed. Then, the determination unit 114 determines whether or not to extend the vehicle condition monitoring period based on whether the user operation detection unit 113 detects a user operation.

When the user operation detection unit 113 starts the user operation detection process, the determination unit 114 checks in real time whether a user operation has been detected by the user operation detection unit 113 (step S5). If no user operation is detected (step S5: No), the process moves to step S9.

On the other hand, if a user operation is detected (step S5: Yes), the extension unit 115 checks whether the vehicle condition monitoring period has been extended (step S6). If the extension has already been performed (step S6: Yes), the process moves to step S8. On the other hand, if the extension has not been performed (step S6: No), the extension unit 115 extends the vehicle condition monitoring period for a certain period of time (step S7).

Next, the communication control unit 117 controls the communication device 12 and uploads the vehicle status information at the time when the user operation is detected in step S5 to the notification server 2 (step S8). Next, the termination unit 116 checks whether the vehicle condition monitoring period has elapsed (step S9). If the vehicle condition monitoring period has not elapsed (step S9: No), the process moves to step S5.

On the other hand, if the vehicle condition monitoring period has elapsed (step S9: Yes), the termination unit 116 executes a shutdown process for the in-vehicle device 10 (step S10), and ends this process.

<Effect>
As described above, the in-vehicle device 10 according to the present embodiment extends the vehicle monitoring period only when a user operation is detected within the extension determination period that starts after a predetermined period of time has passed after the engine of the vehicle 1 has stopped. Here, if a user operation is performed before the extension determination period starts, there is a high possibility that the upload process of the vehicle status information can be completed within the predetermined vehicle monitoring period. Therefore, if the vehicle monitoring period is extended based on a user operation before the extension determination period starts, it will be extended unnecessarily and battery power will be consumed unnecessarily. . In contrast, by extending the vehicle monitoring period only when a user operation is detected within the extension determination period, only if there is a possibility that the upload process of vehicle status information cannot be completed within the predetermined vehicle monitoring period. The vehicle monitoring period can be extended. Therefore, according to the in-vehicle device 10 according to the present embodiment, battery power consumption can be suppressed by preventing unnecessary extension of the vehicle monitoring period. In addition, if there is a possibility that the upload process of vehicle status information cannot be completed within the predetermined vehicle monitoring period, the vehicle monitoring period is extended, which reduces the possibility that the upload process of vehicle status information will fail. . As a result, accurate vehicle status information of the vehicle 1 is stored in the notification server 20. That is, according to the in-vehicle device 10 according to the present embodiment, it is possible to suppress battery power consumption and notify the user of correct information.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention can also be implemented in other forms.

<Modification 1>
For example, in the embodiment described above, the extension unit 115 once extends the vehicle condition monitoring period and does not extend it again even if a user operation is detected thereafter. However, the extension unit 115 may extend the vehicle condition monitoring period every time a user operation is detected. Thereby, it is possible to further reduce the possibility that the upload process of vehicle status information cannot be completed. In other words, according to this modification, more reliable vehicle status information can be notified to the user.

<Modification 2>
Furthermore, for example, a configuration has been described in which the termination unit 116 does not execute the shutdown process of the in-vehicle device 10 until the vehicle state monitoring period has elapsed. However, when the information acquisition unit 111 acquires vehicle status information indicating that the door lock switch 16 is in the locked state, the termination unit 116 performs a shutdown process of the in-vehicle device 10 before the vehicle status monitoring period elapses. May be executed. Note that the operation by the user to lock the door lock switch 16 is an example of an operation that triggers the end of monitoring the vehicle state.

This is because, when the doors are locked, it is considered that the user will not perform any operations related to the vehicle 1 after that. According to this modification, when it is detected that the door lock switch 16 is in the locked state, the in-vehicle device 10 is shut down even before the vehicle condition monitoring period has elapsed. Consumption can be controlled.

In addition, various design changes can be made to the above-described configuration within the scope of the claims.

1 Vehicle 10 On-vehicle device 11 Control device 12 Communication device 13 Engine switch 14 Hazard lamp switch 15 Room lamp switch 16 Door lock switch 17 Seat belt attachment sensor 18 Seating sensor 19 Door opening/closing sensor 20 Notification server 111 Information acquisition unit 112 Engine stop detection unit 113 User operation detection section 114 Judgment section 115 Extension section 116 Termination section 117 Communication control section

Claims (5)

a detection unit that detects an operation related to the vehicle by a user during a period after a first predetermined period has elapsed from the stop of the power source of the vehicle until a shutdown process is started to power down the in-vehicle device;
an extension part that extends a second predetermined period, which is longer than the first predetermined period and indicates a period during which the vehicle state of the vehicle is monitored from the stoppage of the power source, when the operation is detected;
an ending unit that executes the shutdown process after the second predetermined period has elapsed;
An in-vehicle device equipped with. further comprising a communication control unit that transmits information regarding the vehicle state to a notification server that notifies the user of the vehicle state when the detection unit detects the operation;
The in-vehicle device according to claim 1. the communication control unit transmits information regarding the vehicle state when the power source is stopped to the notification server;
The in-vehicle device according to claim 2. The extension section extends the second predetermined period for a certain period of time each time the detection section detects the operation.
The vehicle-mounted device according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The termination unit executes the shutdown process when the detection unit detects an operation that triggers termination of monitoring of the vehicle state before the second predetermined period has elapsed.
The vehicle-mounted device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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