JP4647425B2 - Vehicle communication device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention belongs to a technical field of a vehicle communication device that performs key locking / unlocking, engine start, and the like by communication between a portable device held by a person using the vehicle and the vehicle.

Conventionally, a signal from an antenna that is not desired to be leaked due to crosstalk is used to destroy data by setting an interference bit of a level corresponding to the crosstalk signal so as to eliminate the harmful effects of crosstalk (see, for example, Patent Document 1). ).
JP 2004-129228 A (page 2-8, full view)

  However, conventionally, LF radio waves are output to the inside and outside of the vehicle. However, the output of radio waves inside and outside the vehicle generates an overlapping state at the boundary between the inside and outside of the vehicle. Therefore, for example, when there is a portable device outside the vicinity of the window and the in-vehicle radio wave is output at that time, there is a problem that the portable device picks up the in-vehicle radio wave and the key system or the like malfunctions.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the above-mentioned problems, and the object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle that can sufficiently take measures against crosstalk and has a reliable boundary by adjusting in-vehicle and out-of-vehicle communications. It is to provide a communication device.

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, an outside transmission means for transmitting a search signal of a portable device to the outside of the vehicle by an antenna outside the vehicle and a search signal of the portable device are transmitted to the inside of the vehicle by an in-vehicle antenna provided in the vehicle. An in-vehicle device comprising in-vehicle transmission means and vehicle-side reception means for receiving response radio waves for search radio waves, portable-side reception means for receiving the search radio waves, and receiving the search radio waves corresponding to the ID code of its own device Then, in a vehicle communication device having a portable side transmission means for transmitting the response radio wave to the vehicle, one of the outside transmission means and the in-vehicle transmission means corresponds to the ID code of the portable device If the search radio wave is output, the other radio wave is different from the search radio wave corresponding to the ID code of the portable device, and the portable device within the effective radio wave range is By outputting an unspecified data radio wave that disables reception of the search radio wave corresponding to the ID code of the machine, and varying the output of at least one of the search radio wave corresponding to the ID code of the portable device and the unspecified data radio wave , the effective range of the search radio wave corresponding to the ID code of the portable device, and wherein the kite is provided with adjusting means for adjusting the boundaries of the invalid communication range by the specified outer data radio.

  Therefore, in the present invention, it is possible to sufficiently take measures against crosstalk, and to adjust the communication for in-vehicle use and external use to have a reliable boundary.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment for realizing a vehicle communication device of the present invention will be described based on Example 1.

First, the configuration will be described.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the vehicle communication device according to the first embodiment.

The vehicular communication apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 mainly includes a portable device 2 and an in-vehicle device 3.
The portable device 2 mainly includes a control unit 21, an RF transmission unit 22, a transmission antenna 23, an LF reception unit 24, and a reception coil 25.
The control unit 21 stores an ID code that is identified for each vehicle, and determines that the signal by the search radio wave processed by the LF reception unit 24 corresponds to the ID code of the own device when the ID code is RF. Output to the transmitter 22.

The RF transmission unit 22 converts the signal indicating the ID code, direction information, and intensity information from the control unit 21 into a radio signal to be transmitted and outputs the radio signal to the antenna 23.
The antenna 23 transmits a radio wave signal from the RF transmission unit 22.
The LF receiving unit 24 converts the search radio wave from the receiving coil 25 into a signal that can be processed by the control unit 21 and outputs the signal to the control unit 21.
The receiving coil 25 receives the search radio wave from the in-vehicle device 3 and sends the received radio wave signal to the LF receiver 24.

  The in-vehicle device 3 includes a control unit 31, an LF transmission unit 32, an RF reception unit 33, door opening / closing input units 34, a lock state input unit 35, a lock output unit 36, an unlock output unit 37, and outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40. The indoor antenna output units 41 to 43, the receiving antenna 44, the outdoor antennas 45 to 47, and the indoor antennas 48 to 50 are mainly configured.

The control unit 31 processes input information from each door opening / closing input unit 34 and lock state input unit 35 and information from the portable device 2 input from the RF receiving unit 33 for transmission to the portable device 2. The output to the LF transmitter 32, the output to the lock output unit 36, and the unlock output unit 37 are controlled.
The non-standard data generation unit 311 generates a non-standard data signal as a countermeasure against crosstalk for the search signal to be output from the control unit 31 to the LF transmission unit 32 and outputs the non-standard data signal to the LF transmission unit 32.

The LF transmitting unit 32 converts the search signal from the control unit 31 to search for a specific portable device 2 corresponding to the vehicle into a radio signal that can be transmitted, and outputs the outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40 and the indoor antenna output units 41 to 41. Output to 43.
Further, the LF transmission unit 32 receives a nonstandard data signal from the control unit 31 separately from the search signal and converts it into a radio wave signal that can be transmitted. Thereafter, when the search radio wave signal is output to the outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40, the nonstandard radio wave is output to the indoor antenna output units 41 to 43. Further, when the search radio wave signal is output to the indoor antenna output units 41 to 43, the nonstandard data is output to the outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40.
The RF reception unit 33 receives a radio signal indicating the ID code of the portable device 2 from the reception antenna 44, converts it into a signal that can be processed by the control unit 31, and outputs the signal.
Each door opening / closing input unit 34 inputs information on the opening / closing state of each door from the vehicle, and outputs the information to the control unit 31.

The lock state input unit 35 inputs information on the lock / unlock state of the door lock of the vehicle from the vehicle and outputs the information to the control unit 31.
The lock output unit 36 outputs a command signal for locking the door to a vehicle locking device (not shown) according to a command from the control unit 31.
The unlock output unit 37 outputs a command signal for releasing the door lock to a vehicle locking device (not shown) according to a command from the control unit 31.

The outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40 output radio signals to the outdoor antennas 45 to 47.
The indoor antenna output units 41 to 43 output radio signals to the indoor antennas 48 to 50.
The outdoor antennas 45 to 47 transmit radio signals to the outside of the vehicle.
The indoor antennas 48 to 50 transmit radio signals to the vehicle interior.

Next, the operation will be described.
[About crosstalk]
Here, crosstalk will be described.
The vehicle communication apparatus according to the first embodiment is used for an apparatus that performs ID authentication of the portable device 2 through communication between the portable device 2 and the vehicle-mounted device 3 and unlocks / locks the key of the vehicle.
In particular, in the key-related system, the key operation is changed depending on whether the portable device 2 is located inside the vehicle or outside the vehicle.
When leakage occurs when the search radio wave is transmitted from the in-vehicle device 3 to the outdoor antennas 45 to 47 or the indoor antennas 48 to 50, crosstalk occurs in which communication is performed using an unintended antenna (FIG. 2A). reference).

As a result, an unlock operation occurs when the original communication needs to be locked, or a lock operation occurs when the original communication needs to be unlocked.
Therefore, crosstalk becomes a problem.

[Preventing crosstalk]
In the vehicle communication device 1 according to the first embodiment, the radio wave of the unspecified data signal is transmitted to the antenna that does not transmit the search radio wave.
The non-standard data signal is assumed to be meaningless data even if the portable device 2 receives it. As a result, in a space where radio waves of non-standard data are dominant, even if the portable device 2 receives non-standard data, the mobile phone 2 becomes insensitive (FIG. 4).
Therefore, from the portable device 2, the non-regulated data transmission side is in a masked state (see FIG. 2B).

  This prevents crosstalk in which the portable device 2 communicates with the antenna that originally does not transmit the search radio wave.

[Communication range adjustment]
In the vehicle communication device according to the first embodiment, the boundary between the communication range of the indoor antennas 48 to 50 and the communication range of the outdoor antennas 45 to 47 is virtually adjusted and adjusted by adjusting the radio field intensity of the unspecified data signal. (See FIG. 3).
When there is an overlap between the communication range of the indoor antennas 48 to 50 and the communication range of the outdoor antennas 45 to 47, it is impossible to judge when switching from the vehicle interior to the vehicle interior and from the vehicle interior to the vehicle interior. Alternatively, a misjudgment range occurs, leading to a malfunction (see FIG. 3A).
In the first embodiment, by adjusting the radio field intensity of the non-standard data signal, an invalid communication range due to the radio output of the non-standard data signal by the indoor antennas 48 to 50 when communicating with the outdoor antennas 45 to 47, In addition, an invalid communication range is formed by radio wave output of unspecified data signals by the outdoor antennas 45 to 47 when communicating with the indoor antennas 48 to 50. This is virtually the same as providing a boundary between the communication range of the indoor antennas 48 to 50 and the communication range of the outdoor antennas 45 to 47, and malfunction is prevented by ensuring the boundary (FIG. 3). (See (b)).

Next, the effect will be described.
In the vehicle communication device according to the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) Outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40 for transmitting the search radio waves of the portable device 2 to the outside of the vehicle by outdoor antennas 45 to 47 provided outside the vehicle, the LF transmission unit 32, and the indoors in which the search radio waves of the portable device 2 are provided in the vehicle In-vehicle device 3 including indoor antenna output units 41 to 43 and LF transmission unit 32 that transmit to the vehicle with antennas 48 to 50, reception antenna 44 that receives response radio waves for search radio waves, and RF reception unit 33, and search radio waves In the vehicle communication device 1 having the LF receiver 24 for receiving, the receiving coil 25, the RF transmitter 22 for transmitting information to the vehicle when the search radio wave is received, and the portable device 2 having the antenna 23, the indoor antenna 48 ~ 50, among the indoor antenna output units 41 to 43, the outdoor antennas 45 to 47, and the outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40, while receiving one of the output states in which radio waves are output. Even if there is a non-standard data generation unit 311 and an LF transmission unit 32 for outputting invalid non-standard data to the other in the standby state, the valid range of the radio wave output in the output state and the invalid communication range by the non-standard data output are provided. Since the boundary is adjusted, it is possible to sufficiently take measures against crosstalk, and to adjust the communication for in-vehicle use and external use so as to have a reliable boundary.

  Furthermore, by using this vehicle communication device in a vehicle keyless system, it is possible to prevent the door from being locked because it is determined that the vehicle is inside the vehicle, even though the portable device is outside the vehicle. In addition, it is possible to prevent the engine from starting when it is determined that the vehicle is inside the vehicle even though the portable device is outside the vehicle. Further, in the case of a system that automatically locks the door when the portable device is far away and communication is not established, it can be prevented that the door lock operation due to communication failure is not performed by determining that the portable device is in the vehicle. .

The second embodiment is an example in which the transmission means adjust the transmission intensity and the boundary of the communication range by receiving each other.
FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the vehicle communication device according to the second embodiment.
In the second embodiment, the LF receiving unit 52 is provided so that the outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40, the outdoor antennas 45 to 47, the indoor antenna output units 41 to 43, and the indoor antennas 48 to 50 can receive LF waves. .
Further, a switching device 51 is provided, so that when one is used for transmitting a search radio wave, the other is used for outputting a radio wave for an unspecified data signal. To receive.

The operation will be described.
[Communication range adjustment processing]
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of communication range adjustment processing in the vehicle communication device of the second embodiment. Each step will be described below.
In step S11, it is determined whether or not it is an in-vehicle mode in which a search radio wave is transmitted into the vehicle. If the in-vehicle mode, the process proceeds to step S12, and if not in the in-vehicle mode, the process proceeds to step S13.

  In step S12, the outside antenna is switched to reception.

  In step S13, the vehicle interior antenna is switched to reception.

  In step S14, LF radio waves are output from the transmission side.

  In step S15, LF radio waves are received on the antenna side switched to reception.

  In step S16, it is determined whether or not the vehicle interior mode is selected. If the vehicle interior mode is selected, the process proceeds to step S17.

  In step S17, the radio wave intensity received by the outside antenna is referred to as a database.

  In step S18, it is determined whether or not the radio wave intensity referred to the database is appropriate. If it is appropriate, the process proceeds to step S19, and if not appropriate, the process proceeds to step S20.

  In step S19, the vehicle outside mode for transmitting the search radio wave to the outside of the vehicle is set, and the process returns.

  In step S20, the LF output level of the search radio wave in the corresponding mode is adjusted according to the reference result with the database.

  In step S21, the radio wave intensity received by the vehicle interior antenna is referred to as a database.

  In step S22, it is determined whether the radio wave intensity referred to the database is appropriate. If it is appropriate, the process proceeds to step S23, and if not, the process proceeds to step S20.

  In step S23, the communication mode is cleared and the process ends.

[About communication range adjustment]
In order to perform the crosstalk countermeasure and the communication boundary setting described in the first embodiment, it is necessary to use the reaction state of the portable device 2 as feedback data. For this purpose, it is necessary to check the reaction state at each boundary setting site for each adjustment. This adjustment does not make a quantitative determination based on the level value, but hinders deployment of the vehicle communication device to other vehicle models. Further, in the vehicle manufacturing process, the number of adjustment steps increases. For fixing and moving the mobile device 2 during adjustment, a certain amount of equipment is required, the presence of which increases the cost, and the radio wave environment is affected, making accurate adjustment difficult.
The vehicle communication device of the second embodiment solves these problems.

[Communication range adjustment]
In the second embodiment, as a communication range adjustment process, when a search radio wave is transmitted by the outdoor antennas 45 to 47, the search radio wave is intentionally received by the indoor antennas 48 to 50, and the radio wave intensity is detected (FIG. 7B). )reference). Conversely, when the search radio waves are transmitted by the indoor antennas 48 to 50, the search antennas are intentionally received by the outdoor antennas 45 to 47, and the radio wave intensity is detected (see FIG. 7C).

Thus, by adjusting the mutual radio field intensity, the boundary between the outdoor and indoor communication ranges can be adjusted accurately and without using the portable device 2 (see FIG. 7A).
This adjustment can be performed automatically with little use of jigs and equipment. Moreover, if the database in steps S17 and S21 in FIG. 6 is prepared, the model development of the vehicle is also prepared.

Explain the effect.
The vehicle communication device according to the second embodiment has the following effects in addition to the above (1).
(2) The LF receiving unit 52 is provided so that the outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40, the outdoor antennas 45 to 47, the indoor antenna output units 41 to 43, and the indoor antennas 48 to 50 can receive LF waves. 31 and the switch 51 receive the search radio waves of the LF transmission unit 32, the outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40, and the outdoor antennas 45 to 47 by the LF reception unit 52, the indoor antenna output units 41 to 43, and the indoor antennas 48 to 50. The outdoor transmission output is adjusted according to the reception intensity, and the LF transmission unit 32, the indoor antenna output units 41 to 43, the search radio waves of the indoor antennas 48 to 50 are transmitted to the LF reception unit 52, the outdoor antenna output units 38 to 40, the outdoor Since it is received by the antennas 45 to 47 and the transmission output on the indoor side is adjusted by the received intensity, automatic adjustment can be performed, man-hours and costs can be suppressed, and other vehicle models of the vehicle communication device It can facilitate deployment. In addition, this automatic adjustment can be performed in real time so as to correspond to the radio wave environment when the vehicle is actually used.

  (3) Prepare a database of appropriate reception strength in advance, and perform feedback to adjust the output on the transmission side so that appropriate reception strength can be obtained, so the setting of the boundary of the communication range on the indoor side and the outdoor side is more accurate It can be carried out.

As mentioned above, although the vehicle communication apparatus of the present invention has been described based on the first and second embodiments, the specific configuration is not limited to these embodiments, and each claim of the claims Design changes and additions are permitted without departing from the spirit of the invention.
In the second embodiment, the transmitting antenna is used as a receiving antenna for adjustment, but another receiving antenna may be provided.
The appropriate level database may be by other data means.

  The present application can be used not only for a mobile body that communicates with a portable device but also for a building or the like.

1 is a block diagram of a vehicle communication device according to a first embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of crosstalk and crosstalk prevention. It is explanatory drawing of the overlap of a communication range, and the boundary adjustment of a communication range. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of the search signal and non-regulation data signal which are transmitted. It is a block diagram of the communication apparatus for vehicles of Example 2. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the communication range adjustment process in the vehicle communication apparatus of Example 2. FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the boundary adjustment of the communication range of Example 2. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 Vehicle keyless device
2 Mobile device 21 Control unit 22 RF transmission unit 23 Transmission antenna 24 LF reception unit 25 Reception coil
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 Vehicle equipment 31 Control part 311 Nonstandard data generation part 32 LF transmission part 33 RF reception part 34 Each door opening / closing input part 35 Lock state input part 36 Lock output part 37 Unlock output part 38-40 Outdoor antenna output part 41-43 Indoor antenna output unit 44 Receiving antenna 45 to 47 Outdoor antenna 48 to 50 Indoor antenna 51 Switch 52 LF receiving unit

Claims (3)

An outside transmission means for transmitting the search radio wave of the portable device to the outside with an outside antenna provided outside the vehicle;
In-vehicle transmission means for transmitting the search radio wave of the portable device to the inside of the vehicle by an in-vehicle antenna provided in the vehicle,
Vehicle-side receiving means for receiving a response radio wave to the search radio wave;
An in-vehicle device comprising:
Mobile-side receiving means for receiving the search radio wave;
Mobile side transmission means for transmitting the response radio wave to the vehicle when receiving the search radio wave corresponding to the ID code of the own device ;
A portable device comprising:
In a vehicle communication device having
When one of the outside transmission means and the inside transmission means outputs a search radio wave corresponding to the ID code of the portable device, the other is a radio wave different from the search radio wave corresponding to the ID code of the portable device. , To output an unspecified data radio wave that disables reception of the search radio wave corresponding to the ID code of the portable device to the portable device within the effective radio wave range,
By varying at least one output of the portable device searching Telecommunications and the provisions outer data radio wave corresponding to the ID code, the scope of the search radio wave corresponding to the ID code of the portable device, according to the provisions outer data Telecommunications vehicle communication device comprising a kite an adjusting means for adjusting the boundaries of invalid communication range. The vehicle communication device according to claim 1,
An outside reception means for receiving the search radio wave by an outside antenna;
In-vehicle receiving means for receiving the search radio wave with an in-vehicle antenna;
With
The adjusting means includes
The search signal from the outside transmission means is received by the in-vehicle reception means, and the transmission output of the outside transmission means is adjusted by the received intensity,
Receiving the search radio wave of the in-vehicle transmission means by the outside reception means, and adjusting the transmission output of the in-vehicle transmission means by the received intensity;
A vehicular communication device. The vehicle communication device according to claim 2,
The adjusting means includes
Prepare a database of appropriate reception strength in advance,
Provide feedback to adjust the output on the transmitter side to obtain the proper reception strength,
A vehicular communication device.

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