SE542384C2

SE542384C2 - Status detection management in a vehicle

Info

Publication number: SE542384C2
Application number: SE1650424A
Authority: SE
Inventors: Johan Hesse
Original assignee: Scania Cv Ab
Priority date: 2016-03-31
Filing date: 2016-03-31
Publication date: 2020-04-21
Also published as: SE1650424A1; DE102017002849A1

Abstract

A system arranged for status detection management for a vehicle including:- a control system of the vehicle, the control system including at least one Electronic Control Unit (ECU) and at least one Status Detection Electronic Control Unit (SDECU), the at least one SDECU including:- at least one interface, by which one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems may be connected to the at least one SDECU, the one or more vehicle systems being arranged for providing one or more signals, respectively, and being at least partly autonomous from the control system regarding status detection in said vehicle; and- at least one status information unit, arranged for providing status information at least to the at least one ECU of the control system based on at least one test signal resulting from at least one test performed on the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems.

Description

STATUS DETECTION MANAGEMENT IN A VEHICLE Field of invention The present invention relates to a system arranged for status detection management in a vehicle as defined in the preamble of claim 1. The present invention also relates to a method for status detection management in a vehicle as defined in the preamble of claim 14. The present invention also relates to a computer program and a computer program product implementing the method according to the invention.

Background of invention The following background information is a description of the background of the present invention, which thus not necessarily has to be a description of prior art.

Vehicles of today include a large number of internal/connected vehicle systems, such as e.g. powertrain systems, chassis systems, driving compartment systems, electrical systems, and a number of other systems needed for providing various vehicle functions. The vehicles also include a control system comprising one or more Electronic Control Units (ECUs). The control system generally controls the internal/connected vehicle systems, e.g. by providing control signals to the internal/connected vehicle systems. These control signals control the function of the internal vehicle systems. Also, the internal/connected vehicle systems may provide feedback signals to the control system, such as status information signals.

The internal/connected vehicle systems may sometimes encounter a problem, such as a malfunction e.g. due to a broken light bulb, and/or a potentially hazardous/problematic situation, such as e.g. a too low engine oil level. Such problems can then be detected/indicated by signaling to an ECU of the control system. The ECU of the control system then determines the status of the system, and possibly also determines one or more error codes based on the indicated problems. The one or more error codes may then be used for alerting the driver of the indicated status and/or problems e.g. via an indication provided to the driver via a driver interface. The one or more error codes may also be used by a diagnosis system for performing an evaluation and/or for indicating the problems to a technician e.g. in a work shop, such that troubleshooting can be made faster and less costly. Thus, for internal/connected vehicle systems, status detection management and also error code management is well provided for in vehicles of today.

However, vehicles do often, in addition to the above mentioned internal/connected vehicle systems, also comprise one or more vehicle systems being at least partly autonomous from the control system regarding status and/or error detection in the vehicles. Such at least partly autonomous vehicle systems may include at least one system being unable to perform status and/or error detection and/or at least one system unable to communicate status and/or error information to an ECU of the control system in the vehicle. Such at least partly autonomous vehicle systems may also include at least one additional system being at least partly unknown for the control system, such as e.g. a bodywork system, a bodybuilder system, a third party system and/or a stand-alone system. Also, the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems may include at least one system being indirectly coupled to the control system via at least one component, such as e.g. a relay/circuit-breaker, which makes direct communication with the control system impossible, as is described more in detail below.

Also, for some vehicles there are different vehicle setups available for use e.g. in different conditions and/or markets. For example, there may be one vehicle setup optimized for comfort, e.g. for vehicles used in good road conditions, and another vehicle setup optimized for robustness, e.g. for vehicles used in poor road conditions such as in the mining industry and/or on low standard roads in developing countries. In vehicles optimized for robustness, simpler electronics/logics are often used in the vehicles in order to lower the complexity and costs for the vehicle. Thus, vehicles optimized for robustness may include fewer Electronic Control Unit (ECU) than the vehicle optimized for comfort. The function of some of these missing ECU might then instead be provided with other components/systems, such as e.g. discrete components, in the vehicle. Thus, some functions may then be performed by components/systems not necessarily being included and/or connected in the control system of the vehicle, i.e. by components/systems being at least partly autonomous from the control system.

Thus, a vehicle may include one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems, possibly including a large variety of systems, such as e.g. lighting/illumination systems, bus sign/line displaying systems, information screen systems, ticket machine systems, route planning systems, audio and/or video systems, separately produced and/or arranged components and/or components being incompatible with the ECUs of the control system.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION For the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems described above, there is no reliable status detection management available in the control system in vehicles of today, since these systems are at least partly autonomous from the control system. Therefore, it is very probable that problems related to these at least partly autonomous vehicle systems will not be handled correctly. There is thus a risk that problems occurring in such at least partly autonomous vehicle systems will not be indicated to a driver by the driver interface and/or will not be indicated/readable for a technician at the work/repair shop. Also, internal/connected vehicle systems and/or ECUs of a control system might need to informed about such problems in order to possibly adjust its function, e.g. to perform a degradation of its function, due to the problems.

To not be able to indicate to a driver and/or a technician the status/problems for the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems could result in safety problems, since most problems in vehicle systems may in some situations cause safety hazards. In other words, a safety hazard may occur for the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems since it is very difficult, often more or less impossible, for the driver and/or technician to take action against a problem and/or problematic system if the problem has not been indicated at all to the driver.

It is therefore an object to solve at least some of the above mentioned disadvantages.

The object is achieved by the above mentioned system arranged for status detection management for a vehicle according to the characterizing portion of claim 1. The system includes: - a control system of the vehicle, the control system including at least one Electronic Control Unit (ECU) and at least one Status Detection Electronic Control Unit (SDECU), the at least one SDECU including: - at least one interface, by which one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems may be connected to the at least one SDECU, the one or more vehicle systems being arranged for providing one or more signals, respectively, and being at least partly autonomous from the control system regarding status detection in said vehicle; and - at least one status information unit, arranged for providing status information at least to the at least one ECU of the control system based on at least one test signal resulting from at least one test performed on the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems.

By usage of the present invention, a status detection management is provided also for at least partly autonomous vehicle systems being implemented in the vehicle. Hereby, for example error codes can be provided and evaluated for these at least partly autonomous vehicle systems, which makes it possible to also indicate a status/problem to a driver and/or to a technician at the work/repair shop.

Thus, the SDECU of the present invention facilitates connection of the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems to the control system of the vehicle, at least regarding status detection. The at least one interface of the SDECU includes a number of inputs being arranged for receiving test signal having a large variety of characteristics. Hereby, a number of different at least partly autonomous vehicle systems may be connected to the SDECU, and the SDECU is arranged for handling/receiving the test signals from each one of these different systems. The SDECU is thus arranged for handling test signals resulting from a number of different test methods.

Also, the SDECU is arranged for providing status information to the at least one ECU of the control system based on such signals resulting from these tests. The SDECU is thus arranged for processing, including interpreting, translating and/or transforming, the test signals to status information being useful for the ECUs of the control system. In other words, the SDECU is arranged for receiving various test signals via its interface, for processing these test signals such that status information based on the test signals is provided, wherein the status information is in a format which may be processed by the control system, i.e. by the ECUs of the control system.

Hereby, the safety for the driver is increased, since the risk for undetected safety hazards in such at least partly autonomous vehicle systems is considerably reduced. Also, the risk for unnecessary damages to the vehicle and/or its systems is reduced, since a potential risk for such damages can be indicated to a driver and/or a technician before the damages appear. When the driver and/or technician is alerted that there is a problem and/or a potential problem for an at least partly autonomous vehicle system, appropriate actions can be taken in order to prevent the damages, such as stopping the vehicle and/or driving the vehicle to a repair shop. Thus, the present invention makes error indication to a driver and/or a technician easier and more reliable.

By usage of the present invention, addition of new systems in the vehicle, such as addition of at least partly autonomous vehicle systems can be made faster, less costly and easier, since a reliable status/error detection management can be achieved quickly/easily and with low additional to complexity. To be able to quickly and at low cost add more or less arbitrary vehicle systems to the system, such that a complete status/error detection management including essentially all vehicle systems, both internal/connected and at least partially autonomous systems, makes it possible to quickly meet the expectations of customers adding systems to their vehicles.

The at least partly autonomous vehicle system may lack one or more of an ECU, error detection, communication towards other systems, information regarding other vehicle systems making integration impossible, degradation strategies, safety strategies, error detection strategies, possibilities to add new functions, hardware limitations present in internal/connected vehicle systems and/or higher costs involved with internal/connected vehicle systems. However, by use of the present invention, i.e. by use of the SDECU according to the embodiments of the present invention, the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems may anyway, although one or more of these features are lacking, be integrated with the control system in the vehicle, i.e. with the ECUs of the control system. If an error in a vehicle system, such as in an at least partially autonomous system, has been detected by the system according to an embodiment of the present invention, the erroneous system might be controlled to work in a restricted/reduced mode and/or might be partially or completely shut off as a result of the detection. This control may then be performed by an ECU of the control system.

All in all, the present invention facilitates integration of internal/connected vehicle systems and at least partly autonomous vehicle systems, such as e.g. bodywork systems, bodybuilder systems, third party systems and/or stand-alone systems.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems include at least one system being unable to perform status detection.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems include at least one system being unable to communicate the status information to the at least one ECU of the control system.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems include at least one additional system being at least partly unknown for the control system.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the at least one additional system includes one or more in the group of: - at least one bodywork system; - at least one bodybuilder system; - at least one third party system; - at least one stand-alone system; - at least one system arranged for cooperating with a connected vehicle system, the connected vehicle system being connected to an ECU of the control system regarding status detection in the vehicle; and - at least one component arranged for cooperating with a connected vehicle system, the connected vehicle system being connected to an ECU of the control system regarding status detection in the vehicle.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems include at least one system being indirectly coupled to the at least one ECU of the control system via at least one component, whereby direct communication of the status information to the at least one ECU of the control system is impossible due to the indirect coupling.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the control system includes multiple ECUs, including a main ECU being coupled together as a network.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the at least one interface includes at least one input/output having been assigned with a predefined expected signal value in the group of: - a voltage signal value; - a current signal value; - a resistance signal value; - an inductance signal value; - a capacitance signal value; - a frequency signal value; - a reactance signal value; - an impedance signal value; - a digital signal value; and - a Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) signal value.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the at least one SDECU further includes a diagnostic unit, the diagnostic unit being arranged for performing an evaluation of the status information.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diagnostic unit is arranged for: - determining a type of measurement method having been used for the at least one test; - determining to which input/output of the interface signals resulting from the determined measurement method are provided; - creating a connection to the determined input/output ; and - evaluating the status information based on the used measurement method.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diagnostic unit is arranged for: - evaluating of if the status information has an acceptable value; - providing an evaluation information to the control system, the evaluation information being based on the evaluation of if the status information has an acceptable value.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the evaluation information includes one or more in the group of: - a value indicating that the status information has an acceptable value; - a value indicating that the status information has an inacceptable value; and - an error code; According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diagnostic unit is arranged for assigning one or more identifiers (IDs) to the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems, the one or more identifiers (IDs) being useful when the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems communicate with the control system and/or with other systems in the vehicle regarding the status detection.

The object is also achieved by the above mentioned method for status detection management according to the characterizing portion of claim 14. The method includes: - connecting one or more vehicle systems to at least one interface of at least one Status Detection Electronic Control Unit (SDECU) included in a control system of the vehicle, wherein the control system includes at least one Electronic Control Unit (ECU) and the at least one SDECU, and the one or more vehicle systems are arranged for providing one or more signals, respectively, and are at least partly autonomous from the control system regarding status detection in the vehicle; - performing at least one test on the at one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems; and - providing, by usage of the at least one SDECU, status information at least to said at least one ECU of said control system based on at least one test signal resulting from said at least one test performed on the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems.

The object is also achieved by the above mentioned computer program and computer program product.

Detailed exemplary embodiments and advantages of the system and method for status detection management according to the invention will now be described with reference to the appended drawings illustrating some preferred embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Embodiments of the invention are described in more detail with reference to attached drawings illustrating examples of embodi-ments of the invention in which: Figure 1 is a schematic illustration of an example vehicle, Figures 2a-b are schematic illustrations of some details of a control system and a vehicle system, Figure 3a is a schematic illustration of an example vehicle including a system according to some embodiments of the present invention, Figure 3b is a schematic illustration of some embodiments of the present invention, Figure 4 is a schematic illustration of a Status Detection Electronic Control Unit according to some embodiments of the present invention, and of some exemplary vehicle systems, Figure 5 is a schematic illustration of a Status Detection Electronic Control Unit according to some embodiments of the present invention, and of an exemplary vehicle system, Figure 6 is a flow chart diagram for a method according to the present invention, and Figure 7 is a schematic illustration of a processor implementing the method according to the embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION Figure 1 schematically illustrates a vehicle 100 and a prior art control system 130 included in the vehicle. The control system 130 in vehicles of today often include one or more least one Electronic Control Units ECUi 101; ECU2102; ECU3 103; ECU4 104; ECU5 105; ECU6 106; ECU7 107; ECU8 108; ECU9 109 and a main Electronic Control (Unit main ECU) 110. The control system 130 is here illustrated as including nine ECUs 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109 and one main ECU 110. However, as is understood by a skilled person, the control system 130 may include any number of ECUs and main ECUs, depending on the vehicle in which the control system 130 is implemented, and on the vehicle systems being included in the vehicle.

The one or more ECUs 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109 are often arranged based on the functions being included in each ECU. Internal/connected vehicle systems, generally illustrated as two systems 151, 152 in figure 1, can be connected to the ECUs. As mentioned above, the vehicle 100 may include a large number of internal/connected vehicle systems needed for providing various vehicle functions, that are controlled by the control system 130 via one or more of the ECUs. Thus, the ECUs 108 in figure 1 provide control signals to the internal/connected vehicle systems 151, 152. The internal/connected vehicle systems 151, 152 may in its turn provide feedback signals to the control system, i.e. to ECUs 108, such as status/error information signals. As is clear for a skilled person, essentially any number of such internal/connected vehicle systems 151, 152 may be included in the vehicle, and may be connected to essentially any of the ECUs 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109.

The main ECU 110 connects the various ECUs 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109 of the control system such that they can communicate with each other. For some control systems 130, the main ECU 110 has a gateway function, making it possible for different ECUs in the control system to communicate with each other. For example, if different ECUs and/or different parts on the control system utilize different signal buses, such as different Controller Area Network (CAN) buses, the main ECU 110 can translate between the different signaling schemes used in the different buses, thereby facilitating communication between the different ECUs and/or different parts of the control system 130. Also, the main ECU 110 can translate between buses of the same and/or corresponding types.

The control system 130 may be arranged to have a wireless connection 140 to a network outside of the vehicle, e.g. to the Internet, other vehicles and/or to a communication network of some kind, e.g. a cellular communication network such as a telecommunication network. The wireless connection 140 may be created in accordance with a suitable transmission protocol.

The internal/connected vehicle systems may provide status information, e.g. including error codes, to an ECU of the control system. One or more ECU of the control system, such as the main ECU 110, then determines the status of the system, and possibly also determines one or more error codes based on the indicated status/problems. The status information may then be used for alerting the driver of the detected/determined status/error codes, may also be used by a diagnosis system for performing a status evaluation and/or may be used for indicating the status to a technician.

However, for at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160, it is, as mentioned above, not possible to provide a reliable status/error detection management by a prior art control system 130, since these systems may be unable to perform status and/or error detection, or may be unable to communicate status and/or error information to an ECU of the control system in the vehicle. Thus, these systems 160, exemplary illustrated as non-limiting systems 161, 162, 163 in figure 1, are at least partly autonomous from the control system 130 regarding status detection in the vehicle 100.

The control system 130, and thus also the main ECU 110, does often not know which at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 will be connected to the control system 130. When the control system 130 is designed, it is often not yet decided which at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 will be included in the vehicle 100. It is therefore often impossible to know how inputs and/or outputs should be designed for the ECUs of the control system 130 in order to make a connection and/or status control possible when the control system is designed. It would also be very costly, and possibly impossible, to design inputs and/or outputs such that all sorts of vehicle systems can be fully supported by the control system 130.

As a non-limiting example, an output in ECUs 108 might not be arranged for providing power supply to a motor of an at least partly autonomous vehicle system 161, as is illustrated in figure 2a. In order to provide a power supply to the motor in the at least partly autonomous vehicle system 161, at least one intermediate component 169, such as a relay/circuitbreaker 169, may be coupled between the ECUs 108 and the at least partly autonomous vehicle system 161, as illustrated in figure 2b. The intermediate component may then provide power to the at least partly autonomous vehicle system 161. For example, a relay/circuit breaker in the intermediate component 169 may be coupled to a suitable, possibly external, voltage, e.g. 24 V, and to ground, and may provide this voltage to the at least partly autonomous vehicle system 161 when the relay/circuit breaker is closed. Hereby, the motor/system 161 is supplied with electrical power although the output of the ECUs 108 is not arranged for providing the power needed for this specific motor/system 161. However, at the same time, direct communication with the control system is impossible for the motor/system 161, whereby status detection management for the motor/system 161 is also made impossible.

Figure 3a schematically illustrates a vehicle 100 and a system 300 for status detection management, including a control system 330, according to various embodiments of the present invention included in the vehicle. The control system 330 is in some parts equal to the one 130 described above in connection with figure 1.

The control system 330 thus includes one or more Electronic Control Units ECU1 101; ECU2 102; ECU3 103; ECU4 104; ECU5105; ECU6 106; ECU7 107; ECU8 108 including a main ECU 110. The control system 330 further includes at least one Status Detection Electronic Control Unit (SDECU; 120). As stated above, the control system 330 may include any number of ECUs, main ECUs and SDECUs, depending on the vehicle in which the control system 330 is implemented, and/or on the vehicle systems, both internal/connected and at least partly autonomous, being included in the vehicle. The ECUs, the SDECU, the internal vehicle systems 151, 152 and/or the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 161, 162 in figure 3a may be connected by links/buses, such as Controller Area Network (CAN) or the like.

As described above, the internal/connected vehicle systems 151, 152 in figure 3a, can be connected to the ECUs of the control system 330, and may provide feedback signals to the control system 330, such as status/error information signals.

The main ECU 110 connects the various ECUs 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108 of the control system such that they can communicate with each other, and may also have a gateway/translation function, as mentioned above.

The control system 330 according to the present invention also includes at least one Status Detection Electronic Control Unit SDECU 120 being connected to at least one of the ECUs 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110. Thus, the control system 330 according to the present invention may include multiple ECUs 101 ,102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110, including a main ECU 110, and these multiple ECUs 101 ,102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 may be coupled together, and to the SDECU 120, as a network.

The at least one SDECU 120 includes at least one interface 121. The one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 may be connected to the at least one SDECU 120 via the at least one interface 121. As mentioned above, the one or more vehicle systems 160 are arranged for providing/outputting one or more signals, respectively, and are at least partly autonomous from the control system 330 regarding status detection in the vehicle 100. The at least one interface 121 facilitates, however, that the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 may be connected to the at least one SDECU 120, and may by this connection provide status information signals to the at least one SDECU 120.

The at least one SDECU 120 further includes at least one status information unit 122, arranged for providing status information at least to the at least one ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system based on at least one test performed on the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160, i.e. based on a test signal resulting from such tests. These tests may include measurements of, and may thus result in test signals corresponding to measurements of, e.g. currents, voltages and/or resistances, as described more in detail below. The test signals may thus include information related to status detections being performed in the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160.

For example, one of the ECUs, such as ECU6 106 may be designed for providing driver indications via the driver interface. The at least one SDECU 120 then provides/sends the status information to ECU6 106, which is arranged for alerting the driver, e.g. by activating one or more lights, one or more displays or the like in the driver interface. Also, additional information specified for various categories may be collected from the categories and may be included in a visual message, e.g. a text message, and/or an audio message to be indicated to the driver, as is described more in detail below.

Hereby, i.e. by the use of the SDECU according to the present invention, also the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 may provide status information, e.g. including error codes, to an ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system via the SDECU 120. One or more ECUs of the control system, such as the main ECU 110, then determines the status of the at least partly autonomous system 160, and possibly also determines one or more error codes based on the indicated status/problems. The status information may then be used for alerting the driver of the detected status, may be used by a diagnosis system for performing a status evaluation and/or may be used for indicating the status to a technician. Thus, the status information may be used for informing the internal/connected vehicle systems 151, 152 and/or an ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system about the status of the function for the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems.

Thus, the SDECU of the present invention facilitates connection of the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems to the control system of the vehicle, at least regarding status detection. Also, the SDECU 120 is arranged for providing status information to the at least one ECU of the control system. The SDECU is thus arranged to processing the test signals such that status information being useful for the ECUs of the control system is provided by the processing. The SDECU 120 is arranged for receiving various test signals via its interface, and for processing these test signals such that status information based on the test signals is provided, wherein the status information is in a format which may be processed by the control system, i.e. by the ECUs of the control system.

Thus, by usage of the present invention, status detection management for the at least partly autonomous systems 160, exemplary illustrated as non-limiting systems 161, 162, 163 in figure 3a, can be achieved. In other words, the connection of the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 to the SDECU 120 results in an integration of the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 to the vehicle control system 330 regarding status/error detection and/or status/error information communication.

The control system 330 may be arranged to have a wireless connection 140 to a network outside of the vehicle, e.g. to the Internet, other vehicles and/or to a communication network of some kind, e.g. a cellular communication network such as a telecommunication network. The actual transmission over the wireless connection 140 may use a suitable transmission protocol.

As mentioned above, the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 may, according to an embodiment, include at least one system 162 being unable to perform status detection.

The one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 may also include at least one system 161 being able to perform status detection, but being unable to communicate the status information to normal ECUs 101 ,102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system 330. For example, such a system 161 may be a system normally separated from, autonomous from and/or unconnected to the control system 330.

The one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 may also include at least one additional system 163 being at least partly unknown for the control system 330. The at least one additional system may, according to various embodiments of the present invention schematically illustrated in figure 3b include at least one bodywork system 165, at least one bodybuilder system 165, at least one third party system, at least one stand-alone system, at least one BB and/or BW system interface 166 arranged for cooperating with an internal/connected vehicle system 151, 152 connected to an ECU 108 of the control system 330 regarding status detection, at least one intermediate system and/or component 167, 168, and/or at least one component 166 arranged for cooperating with a connected vehicle system 151, 152 connected to an ECU 108 of the control system 330 regarding status detection.

Thus, one example of such an additional system 163 is an addon system, which is a stand-alone system being integrated with another vehicle system, e.g. an internal/connected vehicle system 151, 152, and which during normal operation does not have to communicate with the control system 330 and which does not have an implemented status/error detection cooperating with the control system 330. Another example of such an additional system 163 is a third party system, which is able to communicate some information with the control system 330 through a predefined interface, but does not have an implemented status/error detection cooperating with the control system 330.

Figure 3b schematically illustrates an embodiment of the present invention, and possible at least partly autonomous systems 160 being connected to the SDECU. The SDECU 120 illustrated in figure 3b may correspond to the SDECU 120 illustrated in figure 3a, where the SDECU 120 is connected to the control system 330 via ECUs 108, and is connected to the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 (including 161, 162, 163) as described above for figure 3a. However, the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 connected to the SDECU 120 may here also include BodyBuilder (BB) systems and/or BodyWork (BW) systems 165 via a BB and/or BW system interface 166. The BB and/or BW system interface 166 may be included in, and/or may be cooperating with, one or more of the internal/connected vehicle systems 151, 152. The BB and/or BW system interface 166 may comprise inputs/outputs (I/O) for connection to the BB/BW system 165 and/or to an intermediate system and/or component 167. The BB and/or BW system interface 166 may thus be connected to the SDECU via one or more intermediate system and/or component 167, also being included in the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160. The BB and/or BW systems 165 may also be connected to the SDECU via one or more intermediate system and/or component 168, also being included in the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160. Otherwise, the SDECU 120 is arranged to function as described above in connection with figure 3a.

Also, the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 may include at least one system 161 being uncoupled or indirectly coupled to the at least one ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system 330, in figure 3a and figure 5 illustrated as to ECUs 108 via at least one component 169, e.g. a relay/circuit breaker needed for providing power supply as described above. For such systems 161, direct communication of the status information to the normal ECUs 108 of the control system 330 is not possible, since the systems 161 do not have a direct coupling to the normal ECUs 108 of the control system 330.

For all of these one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems/components 160, the present invention may be used for providing status and/or error detection management. The one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 may include at least one component, and may be connected to the at least one SDECU 120 via the at least one interface 121, as is illustrated for a non-limiting example in figure 4. By this connection, status information signals are provided to the at least one SDECU 120, either directly, or via one or more systems, such as an add-on system or a 3-party system.

As is schematically illustrated in figure 4, the SDECU 120, and its interface 121, may be arranged for detecting input status for a component connected directly to the SDECU 120. The SDECU 120, and its interface 121, may also be arranged for receiving input status via an input link connected to the interface 121, i.e. may be arranged for receiving input status which has already been detected by a component and/or a system connected to the SDECU 120. The input status may also be detected by a component being connected to the SDECU 120 via one or more additional systems, whereby the input status may be detected in the component and/or in the intermediate one or more additional systems and is provided to the SDECU via one or more links. Thus, the tests may be performed by various components and/or systems being at least partly autonomous. Then, the status detection may also be performed by various components and/or systems being at least partly autonomous, or may be performed by the SDECU 120.

The SDECU 120, i.e. the interface 121 and the status information unit 122, has then as its task to receive and process the different sorts of detected input statuses, including to interpret the received signals being based on the tests, and to translate these input statuses into status information.

The status information unit 122 of the SDECU 120 is arranged for providing status information at least to the at least one ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system 330. Thus, by including the SDECU 120 in the control system 330, according to the present invention, also the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 may provide status information, e.g. including error codes, to an ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system via the SDECU 120. The status of the at least partly autonomous systems 160 and/or possible error codes may be determined and provided by the status information unit 122 in the SDECU 120 and may be included in the status information. Alternatively, the status of the at least partly autonomous systems 160 and/or possible error codes may be determined/evaluated by the one or more ECUs of the control system. A diagnosis server 111 may be included in an ECU, e.g. in the main ECU 110, and may be used for collecting and coordinate status and/or evaluation information/data for the at least partially autonomous vehicle systems 160 and or for the internal/connected vehicle systems 151, 152.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the at least one interface 121 of the SDECU 120 includes at least one input/output. These inputs/outputs are defined/specified/programmed for providing and/or receiving predefined expected signal values. Such signal values include a form of a signal, such as an amplitude of a signal, a change of amplitude for a signal e.g. a time derivative, a frequency of a signal and/or a pulse form for a signal. More in detail, the value can be a voltage signal value, a current signal value, a resistance signal value, an inductance signal value, a capacitance signal value, a frequency signal value, a reactance value, an impedance value, a digital signal value and/or a Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) signal value.

The at least one input/output of the at least one interface 121 is according to an embodiment arranged to be activated if the provided and/or received signal value exceeds an input/output activation threshold defined for that signal value. Also, the SDECU 120 may, according to an embodiment, be arranged to be activated if the provided and/or received signal value exceeds an SDECU activation threshold.

The SDECU 120 and the at least one interface 121 may be arranged for providing/receiving signals on its outputs/inputs having expected signal values. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the SDECU 120, i.e. the interface 121 of the SDECU 120 includes at least one status information output arranged for providing status information to the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160, e.g. via a link such as a CAN bus. Hereby, status information from one such at least partially autonomous system 161 may be provided also to another one of these at least partially autonomous systems 162, 163. Also, status information from the ECUs 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system may be provided to the one or more at least partially autonomous vehicle systems 160, whereby the SDECU includes an output for providing status information from the ECUs 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 to the one or more at least partially autonomous vehicle systems 160.

Tests being performed on the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems result in signals being provided as inputs to the interface 121 of the SDECU 120. If the signal actually being received by the interface 121 has an expected signal value, a first status information value e.g. being a positive status indication, may be provided by the at least one status information unit 122 of the SDECU 120. However, if the signal actually being received by the interface 121 does not have such an expected signal value, i.e. has an unexpected value, a second status information value e.g. being a negative status indication, may be provided by the at least one status information unit 122 of the SDECU 120. The expected signal values may for example be defined by one or more thresholds. The status information is provided to the at least one ECUs 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system 330, including the main ECU 110. Thus, the at least one ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system 330, including the main ECU 110, can hereby be provided with status information for the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the status information may also be sent if the signal being received has an expected/wanted value. For example, status reports may be sent at predetermined time intervals having constant or varying lengths.

Figure 5 illustrates a non-limiting example of a SDECU 120 and some of its interface inputs 121 for a coupling corresponding to the one for ECUs 108 shown in figure 2b, the at least partly autonomous vehicle system 161 here being a light bulb, the at least one intermediate component 169, such as a relay/circuitbreaker 169, and the SDECU 120 illustrated in figure 3a. The at least partly autonomous vehicle system 161 can here be essentially any kind of system, e.g. a motor as illustrated for the corresponding circuit in figures 2a-b. For this example, it is expected that the first input (Input 1) always has a signal value corresponding to ground potential (GND). It is also expected that the second input (Input 2) sometimes has a signal value corresponding to ground potential (GND) and sometimes, when the control signal activates the relay 169, has a signal value corresponding to 24 V. It is further expected that the third input (Input 3) sometimes has a signal value corresponding to ground potential (GND) and sometimes, when the control signal activates the relay 169, has a control signal value corresponding to 24 V. It is also expected that the fourth input (Input 4) always has a signal value corresponding to 24 V. However, not all of the Inputs 1-4 has to be used all the time. For some implementations, it may according to an embodiment be sufficient if one or more of Input 1-4 is read/received/used. For the example in figure 5, e.g. Input 2 could be used alone to detect if the relay is activated or not.

As mentioned above, the SDECU 120 may according to some embodiments include a diagnostic unit 123 being arranged for providing an evaluation of the status information being provided by the SDECU 120, i.e. provided by the at least one status information unit 122 of the SDECU 120.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diagnostic unit 123 is included in the SDECU 120, as is illustrated in figure 3a. However, the diagnostic unit 123 may according to some embodiments also be implemented in an ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system 330. The main ECU 110 may according to an embodiment include a diagnostic server 111 managing the evaluation information from one or more diagnostic units 123.

According to an embodiment, the diagnostic unit 123 is arranged for determining a type of measurement method having been used for performing the at least one test on the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160. Hereby, the diagnosis unit 123 may be able to determine which kind of signal to expect as a result of the measurement method, e.g. if the important characteristics of the signal is a voltage value, a current value or a frequency.

Also, the diagnosis unit 123 is arranged for determining to which input/output of the interface 121 of the SDECU 120, these test signals, i.e. the signals resulting from the determined measurement method, are provided, and for creating a connection to that determined input/output. Thus, the diagnosis unit 123 is able to create a connection to the specific input/output receiving these signals, possibly via one or more of the ECUs 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system and the SDECU 120. The diagnosis unit 123 is then also aware of which type of measurement method that was used for providing the signal which will be present on that input/output. Hereby, it is possible for the diagnosis unit 123 to evaluate the status information based on the used measurement method, which increases the quality and/or the reliability of the evaluation.

The diagnostic unit 123 of the SDECU 120 may be arranged for evaluating if the status information has an acceptable value or not. The diagnostic unit 123 may further be arranged for providing an evaluation information to the control system 330, where the evaluation information is determined based on the evaluation of if the status information has an acceptable value or not.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diagnosis unit (123) may also at least partly be included in one or more of the one ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system.

According to an embodiment, a diagnosis server 111 is arranged in the control system 330, e.g. in the main ECU 110. The diagnosis server 111 is then arranged for receiving/collecting, storing, cooperating and/or providing evaluation/diagnosis and/or status information from the at least one SDECU and/or the at least one ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system. The diagnosis server 111 may include an interface having inputs/outputs for links, such as CAN buses.

The evaluation information may have a value indicating that the status information has an acceptable value, i.e. may be a positive evaluation indication, or may have a value indicating that the status information has an inacceptable value, i.e. may be a negative evaluation indication. The evaluation information may also include one or more error codes.

The evaluation information may include one or more error codes when one or more of the at least partly autonomous vehicle systems have been detected to be faulty, i.e. has been evaluated to have negative status information. The one or more error codes may be provided by the SDECU 120 to the to at least one of ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system 330, whereby an ECU receiving the one or more error codes and handling driver interface indications can make use of the error codes and indicate necessary information via the driver interface.

According to an embodiment, the status and/or evaluation information may be provided by the SDECU 120 to a diagnostic unit included in at least one of the ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system 330 and/or to a diagnostic server 111 included in the main ECU 110, such that the ECUs can provide/serve other systems and/or components with the evaluation/diagnostic information.

The diagnostic unit 123 is, according to an embodiment, arranged for assigning one or more identifiers IDs to the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160. These one or more identifiers IDs may be useful for communication within the system 300 for status detection management, for example when the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160 communicate with the control system 330. The one or more identifiers IDs may also be useful for communication with other systems, i.e. systems external from the system 300 for status detection management, in the vehicle 100 regarding the status detection.

The one or more identifiers IDs may also be used for information/description purposes. For example, an ID may be used for identifying/denoting a specific vehicle system 160 in an indication provided to a driver and/or a technician via a driver interface or some other kind of interface, e.g. as identifying/denoting a specific vehicle system 160 in a system drawing.

As described above, a system for status detection management is created by usage of the present invention, whereby the control system 330 is able to detect status/error codes in at least partly autonomous systems and/or components, i.e. by detecting erroneous functions of these systems and/or components, or by detecting the status for these systems and/or components to secure that they have a correct function.

Each input/output in the interface 121 of the SDECU 120 may for example be programmed by defining at least two categories, where each category has a set of characteristics and/or limits which determines when a negative status indication and/or an error code should be provided. Also, various types of information may be defined/programmed for each category, such as visual messages, e.g. text messages, and/or audio messages to be indicated to a driver/technician e.g. if one or more of these limits are exceeded.

Thus, the characteristics for at least two categories may be defined when the inputs/outputs of the interface 121 are programmed. When a limit is exceeded which results in a negative status indication and/or an error code activation, information such as descriptive text or the like, is fetched from the defined/programmed categories, and can be assembled together as a complete information, e.g. a complete text.

Hereby, a complete description of the status/error can be provided to the driver and/or technician.

One such category may be a definition category, including definitions of inputs/outputs, system names, component names, measurement methods, thresholds, limits and/or signal names. One other such category may be a detection configuration category, including configurations of inputs/outputs, system names, component names, measurement methods, thresholds, limits and/or signal names. One other such category may be a detection category, including measuring signals and comparing them to thresholds/limits, and determining status information. One other such category may be an evaluation category, including evaluation of the status information and determining evaluation information. One other such category may be a sending/providing category, including sending the status and/or evaluation information to a diagnostic server 111, to one or more ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110, to one or more internal/connected vehicle systems 151, 152 and/or to one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160.

If an error code is created, the status information to be provided to the ECUs of the control system 330 is created and/or is changed to a negative indication if it was positive before the error code was created.

At least two different priorities/access rights may be defined for the system for status detection management according to the present invention. Different kinds of systems, such as for example the control system, the add-on systems and the third party systems may have different requirements/needs to be able to control the status and/or detection. This is also important from a safety perspective, since this prohibits lower priority systems, such as e.g. third party systems, from controlling the important/fundamental functionality for higher priority systems, such as e.g. for the control system. In other words, an at least partly autonomous vehicle system performing tasks being non-critical for vehicle safety should be assigned a lower priority/access right than a safety-critical internal/connected vehicle system of the control system, such that at least partly autonomous vehicle system cannot control/change/influence the internal/connected vehicle system.

However, an internal/connected vehicle system and/or an ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system 330 may be configured/specified/programmed/prioritized to neglect status and/or evaluation information from an at least partly autonomous vehicle system. As a non-limiting example, ECU4104 may be programmed not to receive any status and/or evaluation information from the third-part system 163.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a method for status detection management for a vehicle is presented. The method is illustrated in figure 6 for the system illustrated in figure 3a.

In a first step 610 of the method, one or more vehicle systems 160 are connected to at least one interface 121 of at least one SDECU 120 included in a control system 330 of the vehicle, as described above. Thus, the control system 330 according to the present invention includes at least one ECU; 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110, including a main ECU 110, and the at least one SDECU 120. The one or more vehicle systems 160 are arranged for providing one or more signals, respectively, and are at least partly autonomous from the control system 330 regarding status detection in the vehicle 100.

In a second step 620 of the method, at least one test is performed on the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160, as described above.

In a third step 630 of the method, status information is provided at least to the at least one ECU 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110 of the control system 330. The status information is here provided by usage of the at least one SDECU 120, and is based on the one or more test signals resulting from at least one test performed on the one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems 160, as described above. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the third step 630 may include a detection, possibly performed by the status information unit 122, including measuring signals and comparing them to thresholds/limits, and determining of status information.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the method includes a further step 615 possibly being executed after the first step 610 and before the second step 620. The further step 615 may then include one or more of: - a definition, possibly performed by a definition unit, of inputs/outputs, system names, component names, measurement methods, thresholds, limits and/or signal names; and - a detection configuration, possibly performed by a configuration unit, of inputs/outputs, system names, component names, measurement methods, thresholds, limits and/or signal names.

As described above, an evaluation, possibly performed by the diagnosis unit 123, may also be performed after the status information has been determined. Here, the status information is evaluated, and the evaluation information is determined.

A person skilled in the art will appreciate that a method for status detection management according to the present invention can also be implemented in a computer program, which, when it is executed in a computer, instructs the computer to execute the method. The computer program is usually constituted by a computer program product 703 stored on a non-transitory/nonvolatile digital storage medium, in which the computer program is incorporated in the computer-readable medium of the computer program product. Said computer-readable medium consists of a suitable memory, such as, for example: ROM (Read-Only Memory), PROM (Programmable Read-Only Memory), EPROM (Erasable PROM), Flash memory, EEPROM (Electrically Erasable PROM), a hard disk unit, etc.

Figure 7 shows in schematic representation a control unit 700. The control unit 700 comprises a computing unit 701, which can be constituted by essentially any suitable type of processor or microcomputer, for example a circuit for digital signal processing (Digital Signal Processor, DSP), or a circuit having a predetermined specific function (Application Specific Integrated Circuit, ASIC). The computing unit 701 is connected to a memory unit 702 arranged in the control unit 700, which memory unit provides the computing unit 701 with, for example, the stored program code and/or the stored data which the computing unit 701 requires to be able to perform computations. The computing unit 701 is also arranged to store partial or final results of computations in the memory unit 702.

In addition, the control unit 700 is provided with units 711, 712, 713, 714 for receiving and transmitting input and output signals. These input and output signals may comprise waveforms, impulses, or other attributes which, by the units 711, 713 for the reception of input signals, can be detected as information and can be converted into signals which can be processed by the computing unit 701. These signals are then made available to the computing unit 701. The units 712, 714 for the transmission of output signals are arranged to convert signals received from the computing unit 701 in order to create output signals by, for example, modulating the signals, which can be transmitted to other parts of and/or systems in the vehicle.

Each of the connections to the units for receiving and transmitting input and output signals can be constituted by one or more of a cable; a data bus, such as a CAN bus (Controller Area Network bus), a MOST bus (Media Orientated Systems Transport bus), or some other bus configuration; or by a wireless connection. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the above-stated computer can be constituted by the computing unit 701 and that the above- stated memory can be constituted by the memory unit 702.

Control systems in modern vehicles commonly comprise communication bus systems including one or more communication buses for linking a number of electronic control units (ECU's), or controllers, and various components located on the vehicle. Such a control system can comprise a large number of control units and the responsibility for a specific function can be divided amongst more than one control unit. Vehicles of the shown type thus often comprise significantly more control units than are shown e.g. in figures 3a-b, 4, 5 and 7, which is well known to the person skilled in the art within this technical field.

In the shown embodiment, the present invention is implemented in the control unit 700. The invention can also, however, be implemented wholly or partially in one or more other control units already present in the vehicle, or in some control unit dedicated to the present invention.

Here and in this document, units are often described as being arranged for performing steps of the method according to the invention. This also includes that the units are designed to and/or configured to perform these method steps.

The at least one SDECU control unit 120 is e.g. in figures 3ab, 4 and 5 illustrated as including separately illustrated units 121, 122, 123. These units 121, 122, 123 can, however be logically separated by physically implemented in the same unit, or can be both logically and physically arranged together. These units 121, 122, 123 can for example correspond to groups of instructions, which can be in the form of programming code, that are input into, and are utilized by a processor when the units are active and/or are utilized for performing its method step, respectively.

The system according to the present invention can be arranged for performing all of the above, in the claims, and in the herein described embodiments method steps. The system is hereby provided with the above described advantages for each respective embodiment.

A skilled person also realizes that the above described system can be modified according to the different embodiments of the method of the present invention. The present invention is also related to a vehicle 100, such as a truck, a bus or a car, including the herein described system for status detection management.

The present invention is not limited to the above described embodiments. Instead, the present invention relates to, and encompasses all different embodiments being included within the scope of the independent claims.

Claims

1. A system (300) arranged for status detection management for a vehicle, characterized in: - a control system (330) of said vehicle, said control system (330) including at least one Electronic Control Unit (ECU; 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110) and at least one Status Detection Electronic Control Unit (SDECU; 120), said at least one SDECU (120) including: - at least one interface (121), by which one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160) are connectable (610) to said at least one SDECU (120), the at least one interface (121) including a number of inputs being arranged for receiving test signals from said one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160), the test signals having a large variety of characteristics, said one or more vehicle systems (160) being arranged for providing one or more signals, respectively, and being at least partly autonomous from said control system (330) regarding status detection in said vehicle (100); and - at least one status information unit (122), arranged for providing (630) status information at least to said at least one ECU (101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110) of said control system (330) based on at least one test signal resulting from at least one test performed on said one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160).

2. The system (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160) include at least one system (162) being unable to perform status detection.

3. The system (300) as claimed in any one of claims 1-2, wherein said one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160) include at least one system (161) being unable to communicate said status information to said at least one ECU (101 ,102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110) of said control system (330).

4. The system (300) as claimed in any one of claims 1-3, wherein said one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160) include at least one additional system (163, 165, 166, 167, 168) being at least partly unknown for the control system (330).

5. The system (300) as claimed in claim 4, wherein said at least one additional system includes one or more in the group of: - at least one bodywork system (165); - at least one bodybuilder system (165); - at least one third party system; - at least one stand-alone system; - at least one system and/or interface (166, 167, 168) arranged for cooperating with a connected vehicle system (151, 152), said connected vehicle system (151, 152) being connected to an ECU (108) of said control system (330) regarding status detection in said vehicle; and - at least one component (166, 167, 168) arranged for cooperating with a connected vehicle system (151, 152), said connected vehicle system (151, 152) being connected to an ECU (108) of said control system (330) regarding status detection in said vehicle.

6. The system (300) as claimed in any one of claims 1-2, wherein said one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160) include at least one system (161) being indirectly coupled to said at least one ECU (101 ,102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110) of said control system (330) via at least one component (169), whereby direct communication of said status information to said at least one ECU (101 ,102 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110) of said control system (330) is impossible due to the indirect coupling.

7. The system (300) as claimed in any one of claims 1-6, wherein said control system (330) includes multiple ECUs (101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110), including a main ECU (110), being coupled together as a network.

8. The system (300) as claimed in any one of claim 1-7, wherein said at least one interface (121) includes at least one input/output having been assigned with a predefined expected signal value in the group of: - a voltage signal value; - a current signal value; - a resistance signal value; - an inductance signal value; - a capacitance signal value; - a frequency signal value; - a reactance signal value; - an impedance signal value; - a digital signal value; and - a Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) signal value.

9. The system (300) as claimed in any one of claims 1-8, said at least one SDECU (120) further including a diagnostic unit (123), said diagnostic unit (123) being arranged for performing an evaluation of said status information.

10. The system (300) as claimed in claim 9, wherein said diagnostic unit (123) is arranged for: - determining a type of measurement method having been used for said at least one test; - determining to which input/output of said interface (121) signals resulting from said determined measurement method are provided; - creating a connection to said determined input/output; and - evaluating said status information based on said used measurement method.

11. The system (300) as claimed in any one of claims 9-10, wherein said diagnostic unit (123) is arranged for: - evaluating of if said status information has an acceptable value; - providing an evaluation information to said control system (330), said evaluation information being based on the evaluation of if said status information has an acceptable value.

12. The system (300) as claimed in claim 11, wherein said evaluation information includes one or more in the group of: - a value indicating that the status information has an acceptable value; - a value indicating that the status information has an inacceptable value; and - an error code;

13. The system (300) as claimed in any one of claims 9-12, wherein said diagnostic unit (123) is arranged for assigning one or more identifiers (IDs) to said one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160), said one or more identifiers (IDs) being useful when said one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160) communicate with said control system (330) and/or with other systems in said vehicle (100) regarding said status detection.

14. Method for status detection management for a vehicle, characterized in: - connecting (610) one or more vehicle systems (160) to at least one interface (121) of at least one Status Detection Electronic Control Unit (SDECU; 120) included in a control system (330) of said vehicle, said at least one interface (121) including a number of inputs being arranged for receiving test signals from said one or more vehicle systems (160), the test signals having a large variety of characteristics, wherein said control system (330) includes at least one Electronic Control Unit (ECU; 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110) and said at least one SDECU (120), and said one or more vehicle systems (160) are arranged for providing one or more signals, respectively, and are at least partly autonomous from said control system (330) regarding status detection in said vehicle (100); - performing (620) at least one test on said one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160); and - providing (630), by usage of said at least one SDECU (120), status information at least to said at least one ECU (101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 110) of said control system (330) based on a test signal resulting from said at least one test performed on said one or more at least partly autonomous vehicle systems (160).

15. Computer program, characterized in code means, which when run in a computer causes the computer to execute the method according to claim 14.