WO2015189877A1

WO2015189877A1 - Vehicle-mounted control hub device

Info

Publication number: WO2015189877A1
Application number: PCT/JP2014/003153
Authority: WO
Inventors: 修一郎千田; 博仁西山
Original assignee: 三菱電機株式会社
Priority date: 2014-06-13
Filing date: 2014-06-13
Publication date: 2015-12-17

Abstract

This vehicle-mounted control hub device is characterized by being provided with: a plurality of ports to which a plurality of devices are respectively connected; a port management unit (107) that manages the plurality of ports; a plurality of function control units that each have a first storage device loaded with a program that controls at least one of the plurality of devices via the port management unit (107); a function control management unit (104) that has a second storage device loaded with a program that alters programs, adds new programs to the first storage device, or deletes programs from the first storage device; a second central processing unit (CPU) that executes the program loaded in the second storage device; and a plurality of first CPUs that execute the programs loaded in the first storage devices.

Description

In-vehicle control hub device

The present invention relates to an in-vehicle control hub device for controlling an automobile device.

In an in-vehicle control hub device mounted on an automobile, data from devices such as cameras and sensors is input to an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) that uses the data through a dedicated signal line prepared for each device. However, if the data from the devices are connected by the respective dedicated lines, there is a problem that the amount of wiring increases as the number of devices increases, and as a result, the vehicle weight increases.

In order to solve this problem, for example, in Patent Document 1, each I / O device status signal is accommodated in an in-vehicle control hub device arranged in each part of the vehicle, and these nodes are connected by a network. A method for controlling an I / O device is disclosed.

JP 2000-49829 A

However, in the conventional in-vehicle control hub device, control functions such as software for controlling each installed I / O device are not separated. For this reason, in the conventional vehicle-mounted control hub device, when a function is changed, added, or deleted in a part of software, the operation timing of other functions or the operation itself may be affected.

In this way, with the conventional in-vehicle control hub device, if there is a change, addition, or deletion of a function in a part of the software, it is necessary to verify the entire software to ensure functional safety. There is a problem that the range becomes large.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and includes a plurality of ports to which a plurality of devices are respectively connected, a port management unit that manages the plurality of ports, and the port management unit. A plurality of function control units each having a first storage device loaded with a program for controlling at least one of the plurality of devices; and changing the program, adding a new program to the first storage device, or A function control management unit having a second storage device having a program for deleting the program from the first storage device, and a second CPU (Central Processing Unit) for executing the program installed in the second storage device And a plurality of first CPUs for executing programs installed in the first storage device. Providing vehicle control hub device according to symptoms.

According to the present invention, the software function of the in-vehicle control hub device can be easily changed, added or deleted.

It is an example of the hardware block diagram of the vehicle-mounted control hub apparatus in this Embodiment 1. FIG. 3 is an example of a configuration diagram of software that operates on the hub device 100 according to the first embodiment. It is an example of the setting of the port setting table 400 in this Embodiment 1. FIG. It is an example of the hardware block diagram of the vehicle-mounted control hub apparatus in this Embodiment 2. FIG. 10 is an example of a configuration diagram of software that operates on the hub device 100 according to the second embodiment. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation of the hub device 100 in the present embodiment for initializing the communication unit 101 and the port switch unit 107. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation in which the hub device 100 according to the present embodiment drives the device 301 in response to a request from the ECU 500. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation of driving ECU 600 in response to a request from device 302 by hub apparatus 100 in the present embodiment. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the hub device 100 when a function is added using a configuration tool 700 in the present embodiment. In the present embodiment, it is a flowchart showing the operation of the hub device 100 when the function is deleted using the configuration tool 700. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the hub device 100 when the function is changed using the configuration tool 700 in the present embodiment. FIG. 20 is an example of a configuration diagram of software that operates on the hub device 100 according to the third embodiment. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an operation when a device failure occurs in the hub device 100 according to the third embodiment. FIG. 20 is an example of a configuration diagram of software that operates on the hub device 100 according to the fourth embodiment. 14 is a flowchart illustrating an operation when a port is added to the hub device 100 in the fourth embodiment.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
In the present embodiment, an in-vehicle control hub device that realizes a function for controlling a body device (hereinafter referred to as function 1) and a function for controlling a safety support device (hereinafter referred to as function 2) via a network is used as an example. . In the present embodiment, only two functions, ie, function 1 for controlling door locks and function 2 for detecting obstacles around the vehicle will be described, but three or more functions may be provided.

FIG. 1 is an example of a hardware configuration diagram of an in-vehicle control hub device in the present embodiment.
In FIG. 1, a device 301 and a device 302 are devices such as sensors and actuators, and are connected to a port 108 and a port 109, respectively. Here, the device 301 is an actuator such as a door lock controlled by function 1, and the device 302 is a sensor such as a laser scanner controlled by function 2.

Ports

108 and 109 are connectors for inputting and outputting signals from the

devices

301 and 302 to the hub apparatus 100, respectively.

The hub device 100 is a device that performs device control of the function 1 and the function 2, and communicates with the ECU 500 and the ECU 600 via the network 200. Device control is, for example, a function that performs signal control of a corresponding port to High or Low in accordance with a packet received from the ECU 500 via the network in the function 1, and the analog data acquired from the corresponding port in the function 2 is This is a function of converting to a predetermined digital format and sending it to the ECU 600 via a network.

The network 200 is a communication cable such as CAN (Controller Area Network) or Ethernet (registered trademark).

ECU 500 and ECU 600 are devices having a control function and a communication function that use device 301 and device 302. For example, the control function interprets a request for unlocking or locking with a physical key in function 1 or a request for unlocking or locking with a non-contact key using wireless or the like, and includes a packet including a request for unlocking or locking. This is a function that requests generation and transmission, and is a function that determines the presence or absence of an obstacle from the sensor data acquired from the device 302 in function 2.

The config tool 700 is an apparatus that is connected to the network 200 and has data and communication functions for adding, deleting, and changing device control of function 1 or function 2 to the hub apparatus 100. The configuration tool 700 is used at the time of development and maintenance at the factory or when changing the component configuration.

The hub device 100 also includes a plurality of hardware components such as the network controller 120, the main resource 800, the sub resource 801, the sub resource 802, and the port controller 132, which are connected by an internal bus 136.
The main resource 800 includes a CPU 126 for executing main processing of the hub device 100, a RAM 121 (Random Access Memory), and a ROM 122 (Read Only Memory). A RAM, ROM, or a combination of RAM and ROM is referred to as a storage device.
The

sub-resources

801 and 802 are resources for executing a program for controlling the

devices

301 and 302. The sub-resource 801 includes the CPU 126, the RAM 121, and the ROM 127, and the sub-resource 802 includes the CPU 128, the RAM 122, and the ROM 129. I have. Note that there may be three or more sub-resources.
The

ROMs

131, 127, and 129 provide areas for storing fixed data in the program instruction sequence. It corresponds to a flash memory and the like, and the written program content can be rewritten.
The

RAMs

125, 121, and 122 provide a work area for storing and referring to data used by the program.
The CPU 124 of the main resource 800 can read from and write to the sub-resource RAM and ROM, but the sub-resource CPU can read from the sub-resource RAM and ROM. It is assumed that writing is not possible.

The network controller 120 is an electronic circuit that controls communication with the network 200, such as CAN or Ethernet (registered trademark). When the network controller 120 receives data from the network 200, the network controller 120 stores the data in the RAM 125, the RAM 121, or the RAM 122 according to an identifier such as a CAN ID or IP address of the data.
Further, the network controller 120 transmits data to the network 200 when there is a data transmission request from the CPU 122, CPU 126, or CPU 128. The network controller 120 receives communication settings from the CPU 133, and adds, deletes, or changes built-in communication settings.

The port controller 132 is an electronic circuit that controls the port 108 and the port 109. In response to a signal output request to the CPU 126 or CPU 128 port, the port controller 132 outputs a signal to the

port

108 or 109 according to the built-in port setting.
Further, the port controller 132 inputs a signal to the CPU 126 or the CPU 128 according to the built-in port setting in response to a signal input request of the port 108 or the port 109. Further, the port controller 132 adds, deletes, and changes port settings in accordance with a request from the CPU 124.

Next, the software configuration of the hub device in the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of software that operates on the hub device 100 according to the present embodiment.

2, the device 301, the device 302, the port 108, the port 109, the network 200, the ECU 500, the ECU 600, and the configuration tool 700, which are the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 1, represent the same or corresponding parts. Same as described.

The hub device 100 includes a communication unit 101, a function control unit 102, a function control unit 103, a function control management unit 104, a port setting unit 105, a communication setting unit 106, and a port switch unit (port management unit) 107.

The communication unit 101 is a program having a buffer for holding communication control for the network 200 and transmission data or reception data. When the received data is from the ECU 500, the communication unit 101 passes the data to the function control unit 102. When the received data is from the ECU 600, the communication unit 101 passes the data to the function control unit 103 and receives the data. If the processed data is the configuration tool 700, the data is transferred to the function management unit 104.

The communication unit 101 transmits data to the ECU 500 when receiving a data transmission instruction from the function control unit 102, and transmits data to the ECU 600 when receiving a data transmission instruction from the function control unit 103. Send. The communication unit 101 has a buffer for each corresponding function. The communication unit 101 reads a communication setting from the communication setting unit 106 when the hub device 100 is activated, links a communication identifier such as a CAN ID (Controller Area Network Identifier) or an IP (Internet Protocol) address, and a buffer to be used, Read the priority.
The function control unit 102 is a program that realizes a logic that controls the function 1, and the function control unit 103 is a program that realizes a logic that controls the function 2. The function 1 is a body function such as door lock control for receiving an unlocking or locking request from a physical key or a non-contact type key and unlocking or locking the door lock. Function 2 is a safety support function such as obstacle detection for detecting obstacles around the vehicle from sensor information acquired from a laser sensor or camera sensor, for example. However, function 1 and function 2 are not limited to these functions.

Note that the function control unit 102 and the function control unit 103 are assigned to different sub-resources and executed. For example, the function control unit 102 is allocated to the sub-resource 801 and the function control unit 103 is allocated to the sub-resource 802, and each of the CPU 126 and CPU 128 executes the program.
As described above, the function control unit 102 and the function control unit 103 operate on different sub-resources, and therefore, it is not necessary to consider the influence on other programs due to the execution of its own program. In addition, since the memory area is also managed separately for each sub-resource, there is no possibility of accidentally accessing and destroying the memory area of another program.

In accordance with an instruction from the configuration tool 700, the function control management unit 104, for example, logic that interprets analog data from a sensor and converts it into digital data, logic that interprets a received packet and sets a port to High or Low, etc. This is a program that adds, deletes, and changes logic, communication settings, and port settings to control devices. For example, the function control unit 102 or the function control unit 103 is deleted or changed, a new function control unit is added, the port 108 or the port 109 is deleted or changed, or a new port is added. . Note that setting for a port is performed by calling the port setting unit 105, and setting for communication is performed by calling the communication setting unit 106.
The function control management unit 104 is assigned to the main resource 800 and executed.

The port setting unit 105 is a program that holds a port setting table 400 that sets the correspondence between the function control unit and each port and the data input / output direction.

An example of settings in the port setting table 400 is shown in FIG. The port setting table 400 is a table that holds port settings indicating the correspondence between the function control unit and the ports and the input / output directions. The function item indicates the target function control unit. The item of access IF indicates an identifier of an interface used by the function 1 controlled by the function control unit 102 or the function 2 controlled by the function control unit 103. The port setting table 400 is built in the port controller 132.
The term “port” indicates a port which is a physical terminal accessed by the access IF. For example, the port term represents the register to which the access IF is mapped.
The term of input / output direction indicates the direction in which data is passed. For example, input may be used when a value is acquired from a port, output may be output when a value is output to a port, and input / output may be used when both are used.

The communication setting unit 106 is a program that holds parameters used in communication such as a communication identifier such as a CAN ID and an IP address, a band to be used, and a priority used when each function control unit transmits and receives data. The communication setting unit 106 is built in the network controller 120.

The port switch unit 107 is a program for controlling the port accessed by the function control unit in accordance with the setting instruction of the port setting unit 105. The function control unit 102 and the function control unit 103 access the port switch unit 107, and through the access IF, the port 108 or port 109 accesses the port 108 or port 109 via the corresponding register. The port switch unit 107 is built in the port controller 132.

In addition, although the number of ports and devices of the hub apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment and the number of ECUs are two, any number may be used.

According to the above configuration, by assigning a plurality of function control units that execute processing of a plurality of devices to different sub-resources, it becomes possible for each function control unit to execute without interfering with each other. Thereby, it is possible to change an existing function or add or delete a new function while ensuring the functional safety of the in-vehicle control hub device.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the first embodiment, the case of having a plurality of resources has been described, but in this embodiment, the case of having only one set of CPU, RAM, and ROM will be described.
FIG. 4 is an example of a hardware configuration diagram of the in-vehicle control hub device according to the second embodiment.
4, the device 301, the device 302, the port 108, the port 109, the network 200, the ECU 500, the ECU 600, and the configuration tool 700, which are the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 1, represent the same or corresponding parts. Same as described.
The main resource 900 includes a CPU 133, a RAM 134, and a ROM 135 for executing processing of the hub device 100.
The CPU 133 is an arithmetic device that performs a plurality of different function controls, arithmetic processing time management, and functional control management. Further, the CPU 133 acquires received data from the network controller 120. In addition, the CPU 133 delivers transmission data to the network controller 120. In addition, the CPU 133 outputs a signal to the port controller 132. Further, the CPU 133 receives a signal input from the port controller 132.
The RAM 134 is a temporary storage device that stores data referred to by the CPU 133, and different areas are assigned to different function controls.
The ROM 135 is a storage device that stores a plurality of different function controls, calculation processing time management, and function control management programs that the CPU 133 refers to.

The network controller 120 is an electronic circuit that controls communication with the network 200, such as CAN or Ethernet (registered trademark). When the network controller 120 receives data from the network 200, the network controller 120 stores the data in the RAM 134 in accordance with an identifier such as a CAN ID or IP address of the data.
In addition, the network controller 120 transmits data to the network 200 when a data transmission request is received from the CPU 133. The network controller 120 receives communication settings from the CPU 133, and adds, deletes, or changes built-in communication settings.

The port controller 132 is an electronic circuit that controls the port 108 and the port 109. In response to a signal output request to the port of the CPU 133, the port controller 132 outputs a signal to the

port

108 or 109 according to the built-in port setting.
Further, the port controller 132 inputs a signal to the CPU 133 according to the built-in port setting in response to a signal input request of the port 108 or the port 109. The port controller 132 adds, deletes, and changes port settings in accordance with requests from the CPU 133.

Next, the software configuration of the hub device in the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of software that operates on the hub device 100 according to the present embodiment.
5, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 2 represent the same or corresponding parts, and operations other than the scheduler unit (function management unit) 113 are the same as those described in FIG. 2 used in the first embodiment. do.

5, the scheduler unit 113 is a program that performs time management and memory management of arithmetic processing for the function control unit 102 and the function control unit 103. As the time management, the scheduler unit 113 is equally executed by, for example, the function control unit 102 and the function control unit 103 (or all function control units if there are more) as in the task scheduling process in the operating system. To be managed. In addition, when priority is set in the function control unit and an execution request is generated from a plurality of function control units at the same time, it is possible to execute the higher priority first. Further, the scheduler unit 113 separately manages memory areas accessible by the function control unit 102 and the function control unit 103 as memory management, and prohibits access to each other's memory areas. For example, the scheduler unit 113 may have a different memory access function for each of the function control unit 102 and the function control unit 103, and may determine a memory area to be accessed within the memory access function.

According to the above configuration, the scheduler unit manages a plurality of function control units that execute processing of a plurality of devices, so that each function control unit can execute without interfering with each other. Thereby, it is possible to change an existing function or add or delete a new function while ensuring the functional safety of the in-vehicle control hub device.

Next, the operation of the hub device according to the first and second embodiments will be described with reference to FIGS. In function 1 and function 2, for example, function 1 interprets a request for unlocking or locking with a physical key or a request for unlocking or locking with a non-contact key using wireless or the like, and includes a request for unlocking or locking A function for generating and requesting transmission of a packet, Function 2, is a function for determining the presence or absence of an obstacle from the sensor data acquired from the device 302.

First, an operation for starting the hub device 100 and initializing the communication unit 101 and the port switch unit 107 will be described.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation in which the hub device 100 according to the present embodiment initializes the communication unit 101 and the port switch unit 107.
In step S900, the port switch unit 107 reads the port setting from the port setting unit 105, and sets the correspondence between the access IF and the port.
In step S 901, the communication unit 101 associates a communication identifier such as a CAN ID (Controller Area Network Identifier) or an IP (Internet Protocol) address with a buffer from the communication setting unit 106, and reads the bandwidth and priority to be used.

Next, an operation in which the device is controlled according to a request from the ECU will be described.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an operation in which the hub device 100 according to the present embodiment drives the device 301 in response to a request from the ECU 500.
In step S 200, ECU 500 transmits data for driving device 301 to hub apparatus 100 to network 200.
In step S201, the communication unit 101 in the hub device 100 receives the data transmitted from the ECU 500 from the network 200 and holds it in a reception buffer. Since the function setting unit corresponding to the reception buffer is set by the communication setting unit 106, the corresponding function control unit is called when data is input to the reception buffer. In the example of the present embodiment, the function control unit 102 is called.
In step S202, the function control unit 102 receives the data received by the communication unit 101.
In step S 203, the function control unit 102 performs an operation according to the logic that controls the function 1 using the received data. Further, the function control unit 102 refers to the port setting table 400 and outputs a signal to IF1. For example, the function control unit 102 determines that the port is set to High or Low from the received data, and requests the IF 1 assigned to the function 1 to output High or Low.
In step S204, the port switch unit 107 refers to the port setting table 400 and outputs a signal to the port 1 (here, the port 108) corresponding to the IF1. The signal output to the port 108 is passed to the device 301. For example, the port switch unit 107 outputs a High or Low output request received via the IF 1 to the port 1 (here, the port 108) according to the access IF and port assignment set in the port setting table 400.
In step S 205, the device 301 operates according to the signal output from the port 108.

Next, a case where ECU processing is performed by an event from a device will be described. The device 302 is a sensor and outputs to the port 109 when receiving a specific signal input.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an operation in which the hub apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment drives the ECU 600 in response to a request from the device 302.
In step S 300, the device 302 receives a specific signal input and outputs sensor information as an input signal to the port 109. A signal input to the port 109 is output to the port switch unit 107.
In step S301, the port switch unit 107 refers to the port setting table 400 and outputs a signal to IF2, which is an access IF corresponding to the port 109. The signal output to IF2 is input to the function control unit 103.
In step S 302, the function control unit 103 performs a control calculation using the sensor information acquired from the IF 2 according to the logic for controlling the function 2, and requests the communication unit 101 to transmit the calculation result. The control calculation is a process of converting analog data input from a sensor such as a laser scanner into predetermined digital data.
In step 203, the communication unit 101 accumulates the received calculation results in the transmission buffer as transmission data, and transmits the data to the network 200. The transmission buffer is prepared in advance by the communication setting unit 106 according to the communication identifier used for reception.
In step 204, the ECU 600 receives data from the network 200 and executes a corresponding process. The process is a process of detecting surrounding obstacles from digital data acquired from a sensor such as a laser scanner.

Next, an operation for newly adding the function 3 using the configuration tool will be described. The function 3 is a function for acquiring the video of the side view camera, for example.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the operation of the hub device 100 when a function is added using the configuration tool 700 in the present embodiment.
In step S400, the configuration tool 700 transmits to the network 200 the logic of the function control unit to be newly added, port setting information necessary for port setting, and communication setting information necessary for communication setting. The logic is a program that interprets analog data acquired from a side view camera and converts it into digital image data, for example.
In step S 401, the communication unit 101 receives newly added function logic, port setting information, and communication setting information via the network 200, and passes these pieces of information to the function control management unit 104.
In step S 402, the function management unit 104 confirms whether there is a resource necessary for adding the function received from the communication unit 101.
In the second embodiment, resource confirmation is performed based on the load status of the CPU 133 and the amount of memory in the RAM 134 and ROM 135. In the first embodiment, the resource is checked based on whether there is a free sub-resource.
When there is a resource necessary for function addition (step S402: YES), the function management unit 104 adds the logic of the function to be newly added as a new function control unit that controls the function 3.
In the case of the hardware configuration described in the first embodiment, the new function control unit is set to operate on a CPU core different from the function control unit 102 and the function control unit 103. If the hardware configuration described in the second embodiment is used,
When there is no resource necessary for function addition (step S402: NO), this process ends.
In step S 404, the function management unit 104 adds the port setting for function 3 to the port setting unit 105. For example, a setting is made so that IF3, which is an access IF of function 3, is assigned to an unused port 3.
In step S 405, the function management unit 104 adds the communication setting for function 3 to the communication setting unit 106. For example, the function management unit 104 sets the IP address, bandwidth, and priority used by the function 3.

Next, an operation for deleting a function using the configuration tool will be described.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of the hub device 100 when functions are deleted using the configuration tool 700 in the present embodiment.
In step S500, the configuration tool 700 transmits information indicating the function to be deleted to the network 200. The information indicating the function to be deleted is information for identifying the function control unit to be deleted, such as the name and ID of the function control unit.
In step S 501, the communication unit 101 receives information indicating a function to be deleted from the network 200 and outputs the information to the function control management unit 104.
In step S 502, the function management unit 104 confirms whether or not the hub device 100 has a function that is received from the communication unit 101 and corresponds to the function to be deleted.
If there is a function to be deleted (step S502: YES), in step S503, the function management unit 104 deletes the function control unit corresponding to the function to be deleted. For example, when the function to be deleted is function 1, the function control unit 102 is deleted.
If there is no function to be deleted (step S502: NO), this process ends.
In step S504, the function management unit 104 deletes the port setting corresponding to the function to be deleted from the port setting unit 105.
In step S505, the function management unit 104 deletes the communication setting corresponding to the function to be deleted from the communication setting unit 106.

Next, an operation for changing an existing function using the configuration tool will be described.
FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the operation of the hub device 100 when the function is changed using the configuration tool 700 in the present embodiment.
In step S 600, the configuration tool 700 transmits information about the function to be changed and data including port settings or communication settings to the network 200. The information on the function to be changed is information for identifying the function control unit to be changed, such as the name and ID of the function control unit.
In step S 601, the communication unit 101 receives information about the function to be changed and data including port settings or communication settings from the network 200, and outputs them to the function control management unit 104.
In step S 602, the function control management unit 104 confirms whether the function to be changed received from the communication unit 101 exists.
If there is no function to be changed (step S602: NO), the process ends.
If there is a function to be changed (step S602: YES), in step S603, the function control management unit 104 checks whether the port setting to be changed exists in the port setting unit 105.
If there is a port setting to be changed (YES in step S603), the function control management unit 104 changes the port setting in the port setting unit 105 according to the port setting data to be changed.
If there is no port setting to be changed (step S603: NO), the port setting is not performed and the process proceeds to the next process.
In step S605, the function control management unit 104 checks whether there is a communication setting to be changed.
When there is a communication setting to be changed, the function management unit 104 changes the communication setting in the communication setting unit 106 according to the data of the communication setting to be changed.
If the communication setting to be changed is not included (step S605: NO), the process ends. Note that the result of the above change process is reflected by the initialization process of FIG. 6 at the next hub activation.
According to the above configuration, it is possible to change an existing function or add or delete a new function while ensuring the functional safety of the in-vehicle control hub device.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
In the present embodiment, a fail-safe operation when a failure occurs in a device will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 12 shows a software configuration example of the hub device in the present embodiment.
12, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 2 represent the same or corresponding parts, and components other than the failure detection unit 111 and the fail safe operation setting unit 112 (device switching unit) are used in the first embodiment. The same operation as described in FIG. 2 is performed.
The failure detection unit 111 is a program that detects that output to a specific device or input from a device is disabled.
The fail-safe operation setting unit 112 is a program having port setting information that is changed according to the failure location.
The failure detection unit 111 may be a device that detects that output to a specific device or input from a device is disabled.
The fail-safe operation setting unit 112 is a program having port setting information that is changed according to the failure location. For example, the fail safe operation setting unit 112 has a setting for changing the port 108 to the port 110 as a fail safe setting for failure detection in the device 301.

Next, the operation of the hub device 100 in the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an operation when a failure is detected and port switching is performed in this embodiment.
In step S700, the failure detection unit 111 detects a failure of the device 301, for example, and notifies the fail-safe operation setting unit 112 of the failure detection content.
The failure detection method of the failure detection unit 111 may use, for example, the absence of signal input from the device 301 for a preset time, or may be detected by receiving a signal indicating a failure from the device 301. .
In step S701, the fail safe operation setting unit 112 performs port switching by changing the port setting table 400 in the port setting unit 105 as the fail safe operation according to the fail safe operation setting.
For example, the setting of the port 108 to which the device 301 is connected is switched to the port 110, and the device 303 is used as an alternative.

According to the above configuration, even if a failure occurs in a device, it is possible to automatically switch to a device prepared in advance as an alternative.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
In this embodiment, the operation when a new port is added will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 14 shows a software configuration example of the hub device in the present embodiment.
14, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 12 represent the same or corresponding parts, and portions other than the port detection unit 115 and the additional port 116 are the same as those described in FIG. 12 used in the fourth embodiment. To work.
The port detection unit 115 is a program that detects that a port has been added.
The additional port 116 is a device including a newly added port or a plurality of ports.

Next, the operation of the hub device 100 in the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing the operation when a port is added in the present embodiment.
In step S900, the additional port 116 is connected to the hub device 100.
In step S901, the port detection unit 115 detects that the additional port 116 is connected.
As a detection method, the hub device 100 and the additional port 116 each have a contact point, and each contact point may contact and be energized to notify the port detection unit 115. Alternatively, the hub device 100 and the additional port 116 may have contacts capable of data communication, and the respective contacts may contact each other and perform communication for notifying the port detection unit 115 of the connection from the additional port 116.
Further, a switch (not shown) may be provided in the hub device 100, and the port detection unit 115 may be notified by pressing the switch of the hub device 100 when the additional port 100 is connected.
In step S 902, the port detection unit 115 sets that the additional port 116 can be used to the port setting unit 105.
The method of recognizing that the additional port 116 can be used by the port setting unit 105 is, for example, that an identifier such as port 3 is reserved in an invalid state in advance, and when the port detection unit 115 notifies the port addition, This may be done by validating a previously reserved identifier such as 3. Further, the additional port 116 may have a unique identifier, and the additional port 116 may notify the port detection unit 115 of the unique identifier by communication.

According to the above configuration, the number of ports of the hub device 100 can be increased freely. For this reason, by designing the hub device with a minimum configuration in advance and increasing the number of ports as necessary, excess ports can be reduced and the size of the hub device can be reduced.
In addition, when adding a function, even if the number of ports is insufficient in a hub device installed at an appropriate position for connecting a device to be added, the shortage can be prevented by adding ports. Thereby, cost can be reduced rather than adding a hub apparatus newly. Further, it is possible to reduce the labor of wiring to other hub devices having free ports.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100

Hub apparatus

102, 103 Function control part 104 Function control management part 105 Port setting part 106 Communication setting part 107

Port switch part

108, 109 Port 111 Fault detection part 112 Fail safe operation setting part 113 Scheduler part 115

Port detection part

124, 126 128, 133 CPU
125, 121, 122, 134 RAM
131, 127, 129, 135 ROM
301, 302 devices

Claims

Multiple ports to which multiple devices are connected,
A port management unit for managing the plurality of ports;
A plurality of function control units each having a first storage device loaded with a program for controlling at least one of the plurality of devices via the port management unit;
A function control management unit having a second storage device loaded with a program for changing the program, adding a new program to the first storage device, or deleting the program from the first storage device;
A second CPU (Central Processing Unit) for executing a program installed in the second storage device;
An in-vehicle control hub device comprising a plurality of first CPUs for executing programs installed in the first storage device.
A failure detection unit having a third storage device loaded with a program for detecting a failure to the device;
A fourth storage device having information on a device that is a substitute for the device detected by the failure detection unit, and a program for switching to the substitute device when the failure detection unit detects a failure; The in-vehicle control hub device according to claim 1, further comprising: a device switching unit having the device switching unit.
The in-vehicle control hub device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a port detection unit having a fifth storage device on which a program for detecting that a port has been newly added is mounted.
4. The in-vehicle control hub device according to claim 1, wherein at least two of the first storage device to the fifth storage device are the same storage device.