JP6327291B2 - Information communication system for vehicles - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an information communication system for a vehicle that transmits vehicle information to the outside of the vehicle.

  Vehicles such as passenger cars are equipped with various electronic control modules (ECUs) for performing various controls such as powertrain control, body control, and vehicle control. In addition, an operation data recorder (ODR: Operation Data Recorder) that records various operating conditions of the vehicle may be installed. Various information (vehicle information) related to the vehicle collected from such various in-vehicle devices is useful for vehicle failure diagnosis and maintenance management.

  Vehicle information is stored, analyzed, and processed in an external device such as a center device. To obtain vehicle information, the center device writes vehicle information to a memory device such as a USB memory and connects the USB memory to a PC. It is inconvenient because it is necessary to transmit vehicle information from the PC to the center device via the Internet. In order to solve such a problem, a technique for transmitting diagnostic information of a running vehicle to a center device using a dedicated communication module or mobile phone capable of bidirectional communication is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). ).

JP 2006-25048 A

  It is advantageous in terms of cost to use a mobile terminal possessed by a passenger, such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal, as a transmitter for transmitting vehicle information, rather than mounting a communication module dedicated to transmitting vehicle information as in the prior art described above. It is preferable. In addition, when a communication module dedicated to transmitting vehicle information fails, vehicle information cannot be transmitted unless it is repaired or replaced. On the other hand, even if a mobile terminal breaks down or runs out of battery, it is owned by the passenger, for example. Another mobile terminal can be used instead to transmit vehicle information. As described above, it is advantageous to use the portable terminal as a transmitter for transmitting vehicle information in terms of an alternative.

  On the other hand, when a portable terminal is used as a transmitter for transmitting vehicle information, communication cost (packet charging) becomes a problem because communication is performed with the center device using the communication plan of the portable terminal. Therefore, by making it possible for the owner (user) of the mobile terminal to select the vehicle information to be transmitted by the mobile terminal, it is possible to prevent transmission of vehicle information unnecessary for the user and reduce the communication cost. In this case, vehicle information unnecessary for a certain user is not transmitted to the center device but is stored in the memory on the vehicle side, and when another user who needs the vehicle information gets on the vehicle, the user carries the portable information It can be transmitted to the center device using a terminal. However, if such another user does not get on the vehicle for a long time, the memory is full and the vehicle information required by the user may be deleted without being transmitted to the center device.

  In view of the above problems, the present invention prevents unintentional deletion of vehicle information accumulated on the vehicle side in a vehicle information communication system that uses a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone or a smartphone as a vehicle information transmitter. This is the issue.

  An information communication system for a vehicle according to one aspect of the present invention is brought into a vehicle, an information collection unit that collects vehicle information from an in-vehicle device, a memory that temporarily stores vehicle information collected by the information collection unit, and Of the vehicle information collected by the information collection unit and the communication interface to which the portable terminal is connected, the vehicle information of the type set to be required for transfer in the portable terminal is read from the memory and transferred to the portable terminal via the communication interface. The vehicle information device having a control unit that deletes the transferred vehicle information from the memory, the mobile terminal transfers the vehicle information transferred from the vehicle information device to the center device, the control unit, Insufficient memory space detected when first mobile terminal with first vehicle information set to transfer required is connected to communication interface When the center device receives a memory full notification from the first portable terminal, the second type vehicle information needs to be transferred. A memory full notification is transmitted to the second portable terminal set to “1”.

  According to the present invention, in a vehicle information communication system that uses a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone or a smartphone as a vehicle information transmitter, a user who needs the vehicle information before the vehicle information accumulated on the vehicle side is deleted. Will be notified. Thereby, it is possible to prevent unintentional deletion of the vehicle information stored on the vehicle side.

1 is a schematic diagram of a vehicle information communication system according to an embodiment. Configuration diagram of an in-vehicle system according to an example The figure which shows the environment setting screen of the in-car communication and the outside communication of the portable terminal Sequence diagram showing a procedure for transferring vehicle information between the in-vehicle information device, the portable terminal, and the center device Flowchart of memory full notification process in vehicle information communication system

  Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings as appropriate. However, more detailed explanation than necessary may be omitted. For example, detailed descriptions of already well-known matters and repeated descriptions for substantially the same configuration may be omitted. This is to avoid the following description from becoming unnecessarily redundant and to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

  In addition, the inventors provide the accompanying drawings and the following description in order for those skilled in the art to fully understand the present invention, and these are intended to limit the subject matter described in the claims. is not.

  FIG. 1 shows an outline of a vehicular information communication system according to an embodiment. The vehicle information communication system 100 according to the present embodiment includes an in-vehicle information device (CMU: Connectivity Master Unit) 10, a mobile terminal 20 (DTU: Data Transfer Unit), and a center device 30. Among these, the in-vehicle information device 10 and the portable terminal 20 are arranged in the vehicle 101, and the center device 30 is arranged outside the vehicle (remote location).

  The vehicle 101 is an automobile that travels by the power of a prime mover such as an internal combustion engine, a hybrid engine, or an electric motor, and is typically a passenger car.

  The in-vehicle information device 10 is an in-vehicle device arranged on a dashboard or a center console of the vehicle 101. The in-vehicle information device 10 includes a small display device (not shown) having a touch panel function, and can perform various operations such as car navigation, an in-vehicle AV device, in-vehicle air conditioning, and vehicle settings by a touch operation. ing.

  The in-vehicle information device 10 has a function of collecting vehicle information of the vehicle 101. The vehicle information here is information obtained from various in-vehicle devices of the vehicle 101. In addition to raw data detected by the in-vehicle devices (for example, GPS (Global Positioning System) information and time information), in-vehicle information Processing data (for example, heater control analysis data, brake analysis data, etc.) analyzed and processed in the device is also included.

  The mobile terminal 20 is a mobile information terminal or a mobile communication device such as a mobile phone, a smart phone, a tablet terminal, or a notebook PC possessed by a passenger. The portable terminal 20 is brought into the vehicle 101 and connected to the in-vehicle information device 10 by wire and / or wireless. As will be described later, a plurality of portable terminals 20 can be simultaneously connected to the in-vehicle information device 10. In addition, one mobile terminal 20 can be connected to the in-vehicle information device 10 using two communication interfaces, wired and wireless. By connecting the mobile terminal 20 to the in-vehicle information device 10, the rider can operate the mobile terminal 20 on the in-vehicle information device 10 side. For example, music content, video content, and radio possessed by the mobile terminal 20 are operated by the in-vehicle information device 10 to be played back by the in-vehicle AV device, a short message is viewed by the in-vehicle information device 10, and hands are used by using the in-vehicle information device 10. You can make free calls.

  The portable terminal 20 has a carrier communication function such as 3G, LTE (Long Term Evolution), and GSM (Global System for Mobile communication). By starting a dedicated application (application program) on the mobile terminal 20, the mobile terminal 20 receives vehicle information from the in-vehicle information device 10 and transmits the vehicle information to the center device 30 by wireless communication via the electric communication line 102. Functions as a transmitter to forward to.

  The telecommunication line 102 includes a public mobile communication network provided by telecommunication carriers (communication carriers) such as 3G, LTE, and GSM, the Internet, a wide area network (WAN), and a local area network (LAN).

  The center device 30 is a device that receives vehicle information transferred from the mobile terminal 20 via the telecommunication line 102, and accumulates, analyzes, and processes the received vehicle information. For example, the center device 30 includes a plurality of servers. A back-end server 30A is arranged at the end on the telecommunication line 102 side. The back-end server 30A mainly functions as a communication platform, receives vehicle information transferred from the mobile terminal 20, and accumulates it. The back-end server 30A is connected to another server such as the region server 30B through a WAN or a LAN. The region server 30B appropriately reads and analyzes and processes the stored information of the backend server 30A. The information analyzed and processed by the region server 30B is used for maintenance of the vehicle 101 and for providing high value-added services.

  As described above, in the vehicle information communication system 100 according to the present embodiment, the vehicle is not a dedicated communication device mounted on the vehicle 101 but a general-purpose portable terminal such as a smartphone possessed by the passenger of the vehicle 101. The information is transferred to the center device 30.

  Next, a configuration example of the in-vehicle system of the vehicle 101 will be described. FIG. 2 shows a configuration of an in-vehicle system according to an example.

  The vehicle 101 includes a PCM (Powertrain Control Module) 41 that controls the operation of the power train including the engine, a TCM (Transmission Control Module) 42 that controls the transmission, a wiper, a door lock, a room light, a blinker, a tail lamp, and a keyless. Various control systems such as BCM (Body Control Module) 43 that controls electrical components such as security, DSC (Dynamic Stability Control) 44 that controls engine torque to prevent vehicle slipping and maintain vehicle running stability An electronic control module (ECM) is mounted on the vehicle. These in-vehicle devices are connected to an in-vehicle bus 50 such as a CAN (Controller Area Network).

  The in-vehicle information device 10 is also connected to the in-vehicle bus 50. Specifically, the in-vehicle information device 10 includes an information collection unit 11, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 12, a memory 13, and communication interfaces (I / F) 14A and 14B. These components are connected to the internal bus 18.

  The information collection unit 11 is a module that collects vehicle information from the various on-vehicle devices. The information collecting unit 11 is connected to the in-vehicle bus 50 via an interface for connecting to the in-vehicle bus 50 such as a CAN bus interface.

  The memory 13 includes volatile memory such as DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) and SRAM (Static Random Access Memory), and non-volatile memory such as ROM (Read Only Memory) and flash memory. The memory 13 stores a program for operating the in-vehicle information device 10 (in the case of ROM or flash memory), temporarily stores vehicle information collected by the information collecting unit 11 (in the case of RAM), It can be accumulated over a period (in the case of a flash memory).

  The communication interfaces 14 </ b> A and 14 </ b> B are interfaces that connect the in-vehicle information device 10 and the portable terminal 20. The communication interface 14 </ b> A is a short-range wireless interface such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), and the in-vehicle information device 10 and the mobile terminal 20 communicate with each other by the wireless 201. The communication interface 14 </ b> B is a wired interface such as USB (Universal Serial Bus), and the in-vehicle information device 10 and the mobile terminal 20 are connected by a cable 202 and communicate through the cable 202.

  A plurality of portable terminals 20 can be simultaneously connected to the in-vehicle information device 10 using all of the communication interfaces 14A and 14B. In particular, the communication interface 14B has a plurality of ports, and a plurality of portable terminals 20 can be simultaneously connected to the plurality of ports. In the example of FIG. 2, the communication interface 14B has two ports, and can be connected to a maximum of three portable terminals 20 together with the communication interface 14A.

  When the user (passenger) functions the mobile terminal 20 as a transmitter that transmits vehicle information from the in-vehicle information device 10 to the center device 30, the user (passenger) may arbitrarily set a communication environment inside and outside the vehicle related to communication of vehicle information. it can. FIG. 3 shows an environment setting screen for in-vehicle communication and external communication of the mobile terminal 20. For example, it is possible to set whether to use each of Bluetooth and USB as in-vehicle communication. In addition, it is possible to set whether or not to use each of carrier communication and Wi-Fi communication as external communication.

  Returning to FIG. 2, the CPU 12 controls the overall operation of the in-vehicle information device 10 in accordance with a program stored in the memory 13. For example, the CPU 12 collects vehicle information from the in-vehicle device by the information collecting unit 11 and analyzes and processes the collected information as necessary to generate an electronic file having a predetermined data structure. The generated electronic file is stored in the memory 13.

  The CPU 12 stores a plurality of electronic files according to the information type, for example, a file holding cumulative data of travel distance and fuel consumption (for convenience, file A); travel time for one drive (period from ignition on to off), File holding mileage, fuel efficiency, ignition off location and time (for convenience, file B); file holding detailed log of driving operations in 100 ms increments (for convenience, file C); holding brake analysis data A file to hold powertrain drive analysis data (for convenience, file E); a file to hold battery static analysis data (for convenience, file F); a warning lamp Lighting information, vehicle system failure code, and warning lamp point A file that holds vehicle status information for several seconds before and after (for convenience, file G); a file that holds indicator lamp lighting information and vehicle status information for several seconds before and after indicator lamp lighting (for convenience, file H), etc. Is generated. The file generation timing is, for example, when files A, B, D, E, and F are ignition off, file C is when recording by the operation data recorder ends, file G is when the warning lamp is lit, and file H Is when a safety device such as ABS (Antilock Brake System) is in operation.

  Further, the CPU 12 reads the file from the memory 13 at a predetermined timing, and transfers the file to the portable terminal 20 through the interface that is set to be usable in the communication environment setting among the communication interfaces 14A and 14B. The portable terminal 20 transfers the transferred file to the center device 30 via the telecommunication line 102. The file reading and transmission timings by the CPU 12 are, for example, when the file A is when the engine is started, when the files D, E, and F are ignition-on, and when the files B, C, G, and H are generated immediately.

  Vehicle information can be roughly classified into three types: information relating to driving history, information relating to vehicle status, and information relating to vehicle failure. For example, the files A, B, and C are examples of files that store information related to driving histories, the files D, E, and F are examples of files that store information about vehicle status, and the files G and H are vehicles. It is an example of the file which stores the information regarding a failure. Of these, information related to vehicle failure is more important than other vehicle information and must be transferred to the center device 30. However, in order to reduce the communication cost of the portable terminal 20, the other two are It is desirable for the user to arbitrarily set whether or not to transfer to the device 30. Specifically, the user can set whether or not to transfer information related to the driving history and information related to the vehicle state on the communication setting screen of the mobile terminal 20 shown in FIG. For example, in the example of FIG. 3, the information related to the driving history is set not to be transferred, and the information related to the vehicle state is set to transfer required. In this way, the type of vehicle information to be transferred to the center device 30 can be set for each portable terminal 20.

  FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating a procedure for transferring vehicle information among the in-vehicle information device 10, the mobile terminal 20, and the center device 30. A procedure for transferring vehicle information among the in-vehicle information device 10, the mobile terminal 20, and the center device 30 will be described with reference to FIG. It is assumed that the mobile terminal 20 is connected to the communication interface 14A or 14B and can communicate with the in-vehicle information device 10 and can communicate with the center device 30 via the telecommunication line 102.

  When a file for storing vehicle information is generated in the in-vehicle information device 10 and a trigger for transmitting the file to the center device 30 occurs, the in-vehicle information device 10 issues a connection request to the mobile terminal 20 (S11). When the portable terminal 20 receives the connection request, the portable terminal 20 checks whether or not the mobile terminal 20 is in a state where it can be connected to the in-vehicle information device 10. S21).

  When receiving the connection permission, the in-vehicle information device 10 issues a file transfer request to the portable terminal 20 (S12). When receiving the transfer request, the portable terminal 20 issues a file transfer permission to the in-vehicle information device 10 (S22). When receiving the transfer permission, the in-vehicle information device 10 transfers the file storing the vehicle information to the mobile terminal 20 via the communication interface 14A or 14B (S13).

  The portable terminal 20 receives the file from the in-vehicle information device 10 and notifies the in-vehicle information device 10 of the reception result (S23). Subsequently, the mobile terminal 20 transfers the received file to the center device 30 via the telecommunication line 102 (S24).

  The center apparatus 30 receives a file from the portable terminal 20 and notifies the reception result to the portable terminal 20 (S31). Based on the reception result notified from the mobile terminal 20, the mobile terminal 20 determines whether or not the file has been transferred to the center apparatus 30 (S 25).

  If the file has not been correctly transferred to the center device 30, the portable terminal 20 sends a file retransmission request to the in-vehicle information device 10 (S26). When receiving the retransmission request, the in-vehicle information device 10 again transfers the file storing the vehicle information to the portable terminal 20 via the communication interface 14A or 14B (S13).

  On the other hand, if the file can be correctly transferred to the center device 30, the center device 30 accumulates the vehicle information stored in the received file and performs analysis / processing (S32). Further, the portable terminal 20 requests the in-vehicle information device 10 to delete the file that has been successfully transferred (S27).

  When receiving the deletion request, the in-vehicle information device 10 deletes the file that has been successfully transferred to the center device 30 via the portable terminal 20 (S14). Subsequently, the in-vehicle information device 10 requests the portable terminal 20 to delete the file that has been successfully transferred from the file list (S15).

  The portable terminal 20 manages files to be received from the in-vehicle information device 10 and transferred to the center device 30 using a file list. When receiving the deletion request, the portable terminal 20 deletes the file name of the file transferred to the center device 30 from the file list (S28). In this way, by using the file list, it is possible to grasp on the mobile terminal 20 side whether or not the file that has been transferred to the center device 30 has been deleted from the memory 13 of the in-vehicle information device 10.

  According to the above procedure, the mobile terminal 20 such as a mobile phone, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a notebook PC brought into the vehicle by the passenger of the vehicle 101 functions as a transmitter that transmits vehicle information from the in-vehicle information device 10 to the center device 30. Can be made.

  If either the information related to the driving history or the information related to the vehicle state is set to be unnecessary in the portable terminal 20 connected to the in-vehicle information device 10, the file storing the vehicle information is accumulated without being deleted from the memory 13. Continue to be. When the memory 13 becomes full, the old vehicle information is deleted and new vehicle information is stored in the vacant area. That is, the old vehicle information is deleted without being transferred to the center device 30. However, the vehicle information that is deleted without being transferred to the center device 30 may be necessary for another user even if it is unnecessary for one user. For example, a plurality of portable terminals 20 used for transferring vehicle information of the vehicle 101 to the center device 30 are registered for one vehicle 101, and each mobile terminal 20 is set to transfer required. This is a case where the type of the vehicle information is different. Therefore, in the vehicle information communication system 100 according to the present embodiment, before the vehicle information that is not transferred to the center device 30 is deleted, the memory 13 becomes full and the vehicle information is deleted by the user who needs the vehicle information. Notify you that there is a risk of being violated. Hereinafter, such notification (memory full notification) in the vehicle information communication system 100 will be described.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the memory full notification process in the vehicle information communication system 100. In the flowchart of FIG. 5, the mobile terminal 20A is a mobile terminal that is held by the user A, is brought into the vehicle, and is connected to the communication interface 14A or 14B of the in-vehicle information device 10, and the mobile terminal 20B is It is a portable terminal that can be used as a transmitter to carry and transmit vehicle information, but is currently outside the vehicle. In the portable terminal 20A, the first type of vehicle information (for example, information related to the driving history) is set to be required for transfer, and in the portable terminal 20B, the second type of vehicle information (for example, information about the vehicle state) is set to be required for transfer. It shall be. The mobile terminal 20A is an example of a “first mobile terminal” in the claims, and the mobile terminal 20B is an example of a “second mobile terminal”.

  When the mobile terminal 20A is connected to the communication interface 14A or 14B of the in-vehicle information device 10, the in-vehicle information device 10 inquires of the mobile terminal 20A about the type of vehicle information set in the mobile terminal 20A. (S101). In response to the inquiry, the mobile terminal 20A replies to the vehicle information device 10 with the type of the vehicle information set to be set (S201). As described above, in the mobile terminal 20A, the first type of vehicle information is set to be transferred.

  When a file storing the first type of vehicle information is generated in the vehicle information device 10 and a trigger for transmitting the file to the center device 30 occurs, the CPU 12 of the vehicle information device 10 reads the file from the memory 13. The data is transferred to the portable terminal 20A via the communication interface 14A or 14B, and when the transfer is completed, the file is deleted from the memory 13 (S102). On the other hand, when a file storing the second type of vehicle information is generated in the vehicle information device 10, the file is stored in the memory 13 without being transferred to the mobile terminal 20A. Step S102 corresponds to steps S11 to S15 in FIG.

  20 A of portable terminals will transfer the said file to the center apparatus 30, if a file is received from the vehicle-mounted information apparatus 10 (S202). Step S202 corresponds to steps S21 to S28 in FIG.

  When the center device 30 receives a file from the mobile terminal 20A, the center device 30 performs a predetermined process on the first type of vehicle information stored in the file (S301). Step S301 corresponds to steps S31 to S32 in FIG.

  When the first type of vehicle information is transferred from the in-vehicle information device 10 to the portable terminal 20A, the CPU 12 checks the free capacity of the memory 13 (S103). Since the file storing the second type of vehicle information is not transferred to the portable terminal 20A, the file continues to be stored in the memory 13 and the free space in the memory 13 decreases.

  For example, when the usage amount of the memory 13 reaches a predetermined amount (for example, 80%), the CPU 12 can detect an insufficient free space in the memory 13. According to this, the shortage of free space in the memory 13 can be detected most easily. Alternatively, the CPU 12 calculates a decrease rate of the free space of the memory 13 and detects that the free space of the memory 13 is insufficient when it is determined that the free space of the memory 13 is exhausted within a predetermined period (for example, within one week). Can do. According to this, although the calculation of the decrease rate of the free space of the memory 13 is somewhat complicated, it becomes possible to detect the shortage of the free space of the memory 13 with higher accuracy.

  When the CPU 12 detects an insufficient free space in the memory 13 (YES in S103), the CPU 12 transmits a memory full notification to the mobile terminal 20A (S104). When receiving the memory full notification from the in-vehicle information device 10 (YES in S203), the portable terminal 20A transfers the memory full notification to the center device 30 (S204). That is, a memory full notification can be transmitted from the in-vehicle information device 10 to the center device 30 via the portable terminal 20A.

  The memory full notification can be expressed as 1-bit information. The 1-bit information can be added to the packet header of the file transferred in steps S102 and S202, so that file transfer and memory full notification can be performed simultaneously in steps S102 and S202.

  When the center device 30 receives the memory full notification from the mobile terminal 20A (YES in S302), the center device 30 specifies the mobile terminal to which the memory full notification is to be transmitted (S303). The region server 30B in the center device 30 is equipped with a database, and in the database, for each vehicle, the individual information of the portable terminal used for the transfer of the vehicle information and the vehicle that is set to be transferred in the portable terminal. Information of the information type is registered. When the center device 30 searches the database and finds that the first type of vehicle information is set to be required for transfer in the mobile terminal 20A, the center device 30 further searches the database and uses it for transferring the vehicle information of the vehicle 101. The portable terminal in which the second type of vehicle information is set to be transferred among the portable terminals to be found is found. As a result, for example, the mobile terminal 20B is found.

  When the center device 30 specifies that the mobile terminal to which the memory full notification is to be transmitted is the mobile terminal 20B, the center device 30 transmits a memory full notification to the mobile terminal 20B (S304). Note that the center device 30 can transmit a memory full notification to the portable terminal 20B currently outside the vehicle by push distribution.

  When the mobile terminal 20B receives a memory full notification from the center device 30 (YES in S205), the mobile terminal 20B displays on the screen that the memory capacity of the vehicle 101 is approaching full (S206). As a result, the owner of the portable terminal 20B, that is, the user who needs the second type of vehicle information, will soon delete the second type of vehicle information accumulated on the vehicle 101 side so that it can be taken out before that. Can be urged.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, before the vehicle information accumulated on the vehicle 101 side is deleted in the vehicle information communication system 100 that uses the mobile terminal 20 such as a mobile phone or a smartphone as a vehicle information transmitter. The user who needs the vehicle information is notified. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the vehicle information accumulated on the vehicle 101 side from being deleted unintentionally.

  As described above, the embodiments have been described as examples of the technology in the present invention. For this purpose, the accompanying drawings and detailed description are provided.

  Accordingly, among the components described in the accompanying drawings and the detailed description, not only the components essential for solving the problem, but also the components not essential for solving the problem in order to illustrate the above technique. May also be included. Therefore, it should not be immediately recognized that these non-essential components are essential as those non-essential components are described in the accompanying drawings and detailed description.

  Moreover, since the above-mentioned embodiment is for demonstrating the technique in this invention, a various change, replacement, addition, abbreviation, etc. can be performed in a claim or its equivalent range.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Information communication system for vehicles 10 In-vehicle information device 11 Information collection unit 12 CPU (control unit)
13 memory 14A communication interface 14B communication interface 20 portable terminal 20A portable terminal (first portable terminal)
20B mobile terminal (second mobile terminal)
30 Center equipment 41 PCM (vehicle equipment)
42 TCM (In-vehicle equipment)
43 BCM (vehicle equipment)
44 DSC (vehicle equipment)

Claims (5)

An information collection unit for collecting vehicle information from in-vehicle devices;
A memory for temporarily storing vehicle information collected by the information collection unit;
A communication interface to which a mobile terminal brought into the car is connected;
Of the vehicle information collected by the information collecting unit, the vehicle information of the type set to be required for transfer in the portable terminal is read from the memory, transferred to the portable terminal via the communication interface, An in-vehicle information device having a controller that deletes vehicle information from the memory;
The portable terminal transfers vehicle information transferred from the in-vehicle information device to a center device,
The control unit detects the shortage of free space in the memory when the first portable terminal in which the first type of vehicle information is set to be transferred is connected to the communication interface. A memory full notification is sent to the center device via a mobile terminal,
When the center device receives a memory full notification from the first mobile terminal, the center device transmits a memory full notification to the second mobile terminal in which the second type of vehicle information is set to be transferred. Information communication system for vehicles.   The center device has, for each vehicle, a database in which individual information of a mobile terminal used for transfer of vehicle information and information on a type of vehicle information set to transfer required in the mobile terminal are registered. The vehicle information communication system according to claim 1, wherein when the memory full notification is received from one mobile terminal, the database is searched to identify the second mobile terminal.   The vehicle information communication system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit detects an insufficient free space in the memory when the usage amount of the memory reaches a predetermined value.   The control unit calculates a decrease rate of the free space of the memory, and detects that the free space of the memory is insufficient when it determines that the free space of the memory is exhausted within a predetermined period. The vehicle information communication system described in 1.   The vehicle information communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the vehicle information includes two types of information: information relating to a driving history and information relating to a vehicle state.

Images