JP4767008B2 - Load synchronous control system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a load synchronous control system, and more particularly, to a synchronous control system that operates by synchronizing a plurality of loads arranged at different positions such as a headlamp, a stop lamp, and a turn signal lamp of an automobile. is there.

Conventionally, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2005-159568 (Patent Document 1) and the like, an in-vehicle LAN system that connects a plurality of in-vehicle LANs via a gateway is provided.
However, since various processing such as buffering and protocol conversion is performed in the gateway, it takes time to transmit a signal from one in-vehicle LAN connected through the gateway to the other in-vehicle LAN. There is a problem that the operation timing of the load connected to the terminal is shifted.

  For example, in the in-vehicle LAN system 1 shown in FIG. 7, the first in-vehicle LAN 2A and the second in-vehicle LAN 2B are connected via the gateway 3, and the first and second in-vehicle LANs 2A and 2B are connected to each other. Turn signals lamps 6A and 6B (hereinafter referred to as turn lamps) are connected to the nets 4A and 4B via ECUs (electronic control units) 5A and 5B, respectively. Further, a switch (operation input means) 7 for inputting a turn lamp operation signal is connected to the ECU 5A of the first in-vehicle LAN 2A. When the switch 7 is operated, the turn lamps 6A and 6B blink. .

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, when the switch 7 is turned on (t0), an input signal is transmitted to the ECU 5A, and after the ECU 5A performs a required process, the input signal is transmitted to the turn lamp 6A. Flashing is started (t1). Almost simultaneously with the start of the operation of the turn lamp 6A, a signal converted into a signal that can be transmitted by the first in-vehicle LAN network 4A in the ECU 5A is transmitted to the gateway 3 through the first in-vehicle LAN network 4A. After completing the transmission of the signal to the gateway 3 (t2), the gateway 3 performs processing such as protocol conversion, starts transmission of the signal to the second in-vehicle LAN network 4B (t3), and the ECU 5B completes the reception of the signal After (t4), further necessary processing is performed, a signal is transmitted to the turn lamp 6B, and blinking is started (t5). As described above, a large shift (t5-t1) occurs in the operation start timing between the turn lamp 6A of the first in-vehicle LAN 2A and the turn lamp 6B in the second in-vehicle LAN 2B, and synchronization control cannot be performed.

JP 2005-159568 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and in an in-vehicle LAN system in which a plurality of in-vehicle LANs are connected via a gateway, the start of operation deviation between loads connected to different in-vehicle LAN networks is minimized. Therefore, the issue is to perform synchronous control.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention connects a plurality of sets of in-vehicle LAN networks, each of which is connected to a plurality of electronic control units through an in-vehicle LAN network, via a gateway. A load controlled synchronously by the electronic control unit is connected, and at least one of the electronic control units is connected with an operation input means for inputting an operation signal of the load controlled synchronously,
The gateway includes a receiving unit that receives a signal from an operation input unit of the in-vehicle LAN network, and a transmitting unit that transmits the received signal to each of the in-vehicle LAN networks.
When the reception unit of the gateway receives a signal from the operation input unit, the signal is transmitted from the transmission unit to the plurality of sets of in-vehicle LAN networks, and a plurality of units connected to the plurality of sets of in-vehicle LAN networks, respectively. Provided is a load synchronization control system characterized in that the load is synchronously controlled.

According to the configuration, when the operation input means for inputting the operation signal of the load to be synchronously controlled is turned on, the signal from the operation input means is once transmitted to the gateway, and the signal is transmitted from the gateway to each of the plurality of in-vehicle LAN networks. is doing. Therefore, the load connected to the in-vehicle LAN network on the side where the signal is transmitted to the gateway and the load connected to another in-vehicle LAN network can be started almost simultaneously, and synchronous control can be performed.
The synchronous control is not limited to the case where the required loads to be operated are operated at the same time, but includes the case where the operation timing is reduced and the operations are performed at the same time.

Specifically, among the plurality of in-vehicle LAN networks, an in-vehicle LAN network that transmits a signal from the operation input means to the gateway is a first in-vehicle LAN network, and the other in-vehicle LAN network is a second in-vehicle LAN network,
The gateway includes protocol conversion means for converting a signal from the operation input means received via the first in-vehicle LAN network into a signal that can be transmitted through the second in-vehicle LAN network,
The signal input by the operation input means is converted into a signal that can be transmitted by the first in-vehicle LAN network in the electronic control unit connected to the operation input means, and the signal is transmitted through the first in-vehicle LAN network. After transmitting to the receiving means of the gateway and converting the signal received by the receiving means into a signal that can be transmitted by the second in-vehicle LAN network by the protocol converting means,
The first vehicle-mounted LAN network transmits the signal received by the receiving device from the transmission device without conversion, while the signal transmitted from the transmission device by the protocol conversion device is transmitted to the second vehicle-mounted LAN network. It is configured to do.

When the protocol is different between the first in-vehicle LAN and the second in-vehicle LAN, and the signal protocol conversion is required by the gateway, the processing time in the gateway becomes long. In the system shown in the conventional example, the first in-vehicle LAN network is used. The deviation of the operation start timing between the connected load and the load connected to the second in-vehicle LAN network becomes larger.
However, according to the configuration of the present invention, signals are transmitted to the first in-vehicle LAN network and the second in-vehicle LAN network after completion of necessary processing such as protocol conversion in the gateway, so even if protocol conversion processing is necessary The load connected to the first in-vehicle LAN network and the load connected to the second in-vehicle LAN network can be started almost simultaneously and can be controlled synchronously.

  In addition, when the difference in communication speed, the difference in communication distance, and the difference in load factor between the first in-vehicle LAN network and the second in-vehicle LAN network are large, the gateway considers these differences and the first in-vehicle LAN network It is preferable to shift the signal transmission timing so that the load connected to the terminal and the load connected to the second in-vehicle LAN network operate substantially simultaneously. Thereby, the timing of the start of operation of the load on the first in-vehicle LAN network side and the load on the second in-vehicle LAN network side can be made smaller, and more accurate synchronous control can be performed.

The second in-vehicle LAN network includes one in-vehicle LAN network or two or more in-vehicle LAN networks.
As described above, the load synchronization control system according to the present invention is not limited to the case where the load synchronous control system is configured by one first in-vehicle LAN network and one second in-vehicle LAN network, and one first in-vehicle LAN network and a plurality of second in-vehicle LANs. It can also be configured by connecting a network via a gateway.
When a plurality of second in-vehicle LAN networks are connected via a gateway as described above, the second in-vehicle LAN network having the same communication protocol as the first in-vehicle LAN network among the plurality of second in-vehicle LAN networks. Thus, a signal similar to that of the first in-vehicle LAN network is transmitted without converting the signal by the protocol conversion means of the gateway.

  Examples of the load controlled synchronously by the load synchronization control system of the present invention include a headlamp, a stop lamp, a turn signal lamp, a back lamp, a door lock, an answer back function lamp and a buzzer of an automobile.

  As described above, according to the present invention, when the operation input means for inputting the operation signal of the load to be synchronously controlled is turned on, the signal from the operation input means is once transmitted to the gateway, and a plurality of in-vehicle LAN networks are transmitted from the gateway. Since the signals are transmitted to the respective gateways, the load connected to the in-vehicle LAN network on the side where the signal is transmitted to the gateway and the load connected to the other in-vehicle LAN network can be started almost simultaneously, and synchronous control can be performed. it can.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
1 to 5 show a first embodiment of the present invention. A load synchronization control system 10 according to this embodiment connects a first in-vehicle LAN 12A and a second in-vehicle LAN 12B via a gateway 13, and the first in-vehicle LAN 12A. The turn lamp 16A and the turn lamp 16B of the second in-vehicle LAN 12B (hereinafter referred to as a turn lamp) are synchronously controlled.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the first and second in-vehicle LANs 12A and 12B include a plurality of electronic control units 15 (in addition to the first in-vehicle LAN network 14A and the second in-vehicle LAN network 14B, which are buses conforming to the CAN standard. (Hereinafter referred to as ECU). Of these ECUs 15, turn lamps 16 </ b> A and 16 </ b> B that are synchronous control target loads are respectively connected to the required ECU 15 </ b> A connected to the first in-vehicle LAN network 14 </ b> A and the required ECU 15 </ b> B connected to the second in-vehicle LAN network 14 </ b> B. is doing.
The ECU 15A on the first in-vehicle LAN 12A side is connected to a switch (operation input means) 17 for inputting the operation signals of the turn lamps 16A and 16B. The ECU 15A receives the signal received from the switch 17 in the first in-vehicle LAN network 14A. It has a function to convert to a signal that can be transmitted by
In the present embodiment, the first and second in-vehicle LAN networks 14A and 14B are CAN, but may be LIN or FlexRay.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the gateway 13 receives a signal from the in-vehicle LAN network 14A of the first in-vehicle LAN 12A and a first reception processing unit (reception means) 13a for transmitting a signal on the in-vehicle LAN network 14A. 1 transmission processing unit (transmission means) 13b, a second reception processing unit 13c for receiving a signal from the in-vehicle LAN network 14B of the second in-vehicle LAN 12B, and a second transmission processing unit for transmitting a signal on the in-vehicle LAN network 14B ( Transmission means) 13d. Further, the gateway 13 determines whether or not to transmit a signal received from one in-vehicle LAN network to the other in-vehicle LAN network, and a signal received from one in-vehicle LAN network to the other in-vehicle LAN network. A protocol conversion processing unit (protocol conversion means) 13f that converts signals into signals that can be transmitted through the LAN network, a buffer 13g that records required signals, a network management 13h, and a main processing unit 13i are provided.

Next, operation | movement of the load synchronous control system 10 of this embodiment is demonstrated based on the flowchart of FIG. 4, and the time chart of FIG.
First, when the switch 17 is turned on (step S1), the operation signals of the turn lamps 16A and 16B are input, and the ECU 15A receives the signals (step S2).
Next, the signal received by the ECU 15A is converted into a signal that can be transmitted by the first in-vehicle LAN network 14A (step S3), and the converted signal is transmitted to the gateway 13 through the in-vehicle LAN network 14A. The unit 13a receives (step S4). At this time, no signal is transmitted from the ECU 15A to the turn lamp 16A, and the turn lamp 16A does not start operation.
The signal received by the first reception processing unit 13a of the gateway 13 is transmitted to the buffer 13g through the filtering processing unit 13e (step S5).

A signal is transmitted from the buffer 13g to the first transmission processing unit 13b (step S6), and a signal is transmitted from the buffer 13g to the protocol conversion processing unit 13f. The protocol conversion processing unit 13f transmits the received signal to the second in-vehicle LAN network. It converts into a signal which can be transmitted by 14B, and transmits this converted signal to the 2nd transmission process part 13d (step S7).
Therefore, a signal that has not been converted by the protocol conversion processing unit 13f is transmitted to the first transmission processing unit 13b, but a signal that has been converted by the protocol conversion processing unit 13f is transmitted to the second transmission processing unit 13d.

After completing the processing in the gateway 13 in steps S6 and S7, the required signals are transmitted from the first and second transmission processing units 13b and 13d onto the first and second in-vehicle LAN networks 14A and 14B, respectively ( Step S8). The ECUs 15A and 15B of the first and second vehicle-mounted LANs 12A and 12B respectively receive the signals (step S9), and after the ECUs 15A and 15B perform necessary processing such as signal recognition (step S10), the ECUs 15A and 15B The turn lamps 16A and 16B start to operate and blink (Step S11).
Steps S8 to S11 are performed at substantially the same timing on the first in-vehicle LAN 12A side and the second in-vehicle LAN 12B side, and synchronous control of the turn lamp 16A in the first in-vehicle LAN 12A and the turn lamp 16B in the second in-vehicle LAN 12B is possible. It is said. In the present embodiment, the timing of starting the operation of the turn lamps 16A and 16B is shifted by a minute difference between the time required for processing the signal in step S10 in the ECU 15A and the time required for processing the signal in step S10 in the ECU 15B.

According to the configuration, when the switch 17 is turned on, the signal from the switch 17 is transmitted to the gateway 13 without operating one turn lamp 16A, and from the gateway 13 to the first in-vehicle LAN 12A side. Signals are transmitted to the ECU 15A provided and the ECU 15B provided on the second in-vehicle LAN 12B side. Therefore, the turn lamp 16A of the first in-vehicle LAN 12A on the side where the switch 17 is provided and the turn lamp 16B of the second in-vehicle LAN 12B on the side where the switch 17 is not provided can be started substantially simultaneously and controlled synchronously.
In this embodiment, the load to be synchronously controlled is a turn lamp. However, a head lamp, a stop lamp, a back lamp, a door lock, an answer back function lamp, and a buzzer may be used.
In the present embodiment, the switch 17 (operation input unit) is provided only in the first in-vehicle LAN 12A, but may be provided in both in-vehicle LANs 12A and 12B. In this case, when the switch on the in-vehicle LAN 12A side is operated, the in-vehicle LAN 12A becomes the first in-vehicle LAN and the in-vehicle LAN 12B becomes the second in-vehicle LAN. Conversely, when the switch on the in-vehicle LAN 12B side is operated, the in-vehicle LAN 12B is the first in-vehicle LAN. The in-vehicle LAN and the in-vehicle LAN 12A are the second in-vehicle LAN.

FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment of the present invention.
In the present embodiment, two second in-vehicle LANs are provided, and one first in-vehicle LAN 12A and two second in-vehicle LANs 12B and 12C are connected through one gateway 13. An ECU 15C that controls the turn lamp 16C, which is a target load for synchronous control, is also connected to the in-vehicle LAN network 14C of the second in-vehicle LAN 12C.

Also in this embodiment, since signals for operating the turn lamps 16A to 16C are transmitted from the gateway 13 to the first in-vehicle LAN 12A and the second in-vehicle LANs 12B and 12C at substantially the same timing, the turn lamps 16A to 16C are synchronized. Can be controlled.
Thus, the number of second in-vehicle LANs is not limited to one as in the first embodiment, and may be two, or may be three or more.
In addition, since another structure and an effect are the same as that of 1st Embodiment, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and description is abbreviate | omitted.

It is the schematic which shows the arrangement position in the vehicle of the load synchronous control system of 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram of the load synchronous control system of a 1st embodiment. It is a block diagram of a gateway. It is a flowchart of a load synchronous control system. It is a time chart of a load synchronous control system. It is a block diagram of the load synchronous control system of 2nd Embodiment. It is a block diagram of the vehicle-mounted LAN of a prior art example. It is a time chart which starts the action | operation of load in the vehicle-mounted LAN of a prior art example.

Explanation of symbols

10 Load synchronous control system 12A 1st in-vehicle LAN
12B Second in-vehicle LAN
13 Gateway 13a First reception processing unit (receiving means)
13b 1st transmission process part (transmission means)
13d Second transmission processing unit (transmission means)
13f Protocol conversion processing unit (protocol conversion means)
14A, 14B In-vehicle LAN network 15A, 15B Electronic control unit (ECU)
16A, 16B Turn signal lamp (load)
17 switch (operation input means)

Claims (4)

A plurality of sets of in-vehicle LAN networks each connecting a plurality of electronic control units via an in-vehicle LAN network are connected via a gateway, and loads that are controlled synchronously by the electronic control unit are connected to the plurality of sets of in-vehicle LAN networks. And at least one electronic control unit is connected to an operation input means for inputting an operation signal of a load to be synchronously controlled,
The gateway includes a receiving unit that receives a signal from an operation input unit of the in-vehicle LAN network, and a transmitting unit that transmits the received signal to each of the in-vehicle LAN networks.
When the reception unit of the gateway receives a signal from the operation input unit, the signal is transmitted from the transmission unit to the plurality of sets of in-vehicle LAN networks, and a plurality of units connected to the plurality of sets of in-vehicle LAN networks, respectively. A load synchronous control system characterized in that the load is synchronously controlled. Of the plurality of in-vehicle LAN networks, an in-vehicle LAN network that transmits a signal from the operation input means to the gateway is a first in-vehicle LAN network, and the other in-vehicle LAN network is a second in-vehicle LAN network,
The gateway includes protocol conversion means for converting a signal from the operation input means received via the first in-vehicle LAN network into a signal that can be transmitted through the second in-vehicle LAN network,
The signal input by the operation input means is converted into a signal that can be transmitted by the first in-vehicle LAN network in the electronic control unit connected to the operation input means, and the signal is transmitted through the first in-vehicle LAN network. After transmitting to the receiving means of the gateway and converting the signal received by the receiving means into a signal that can be transmitted by the second in-vehicle LAN network by the protocol converting means,
The first vehicle-mounted LAN network transmits the signal received by the receiving device from the transmission device without conversion, while the signal transmitted from the transmission device by the protocol conversion device is transmitted to the second vehicle-mounted LAN network. The load synchronous control system according to claim 1, wherein the load synchronous control system is configured.   The load synchronization control system according to claim 2, wherein the second in-vehicle LAN network is composed of one in-vehicle LAN network or two or more in-vehicle LAN networks.   The load synchronization according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the load is any one of a head lamp, a stop lamp, a turn signal lamp, a back lamp, a door lock, an answer back function lamp and a buzzer of an automobile. Control system.

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