WO2022190870A1

WO2022190870A1 - On-board apparatus, information processing method, and computer program

Info

Publication number: WO2022190870A1
Application number: PCT/JP2022/007441
Authority: WO
Inventors: 健古戸; 拓也小林
Original assignee: 株式会社オートネットワーク技術研究所; 住友電装株式会社; 住友電気工業株式会社
Priority date: 2021-03-12
Filing date: 2022-02-24
Publication date: 2022-09-15
Also published as: JP2022139769A

Abstract

This an on-board apparatus comprises: a control unit that generates a plurality of virtual devices that form an operating environment of a computer program; and a storage unit that includes a communication data storage area to which is written communication data that is sent and received in communication among the plurality of virtual devices. The communication data storage area includes a write flag that is associated with the communication data and indicates that communication data is being written, and a read flag that is associated with the communication data and indicates whether reading of the communication data is required. A virtual device, when communicating with another virtual device, writes the communication data for the other virtual device to the communication data storage area, and the other virtual device, if the write flag is in the off state and the read flag is in the on state, reads the communication data from the communication data storage area. After the communication data is read, the read flag is set to the off state.

Description

In-vehicle device, information processing method, and computer program

The present disclosure relates to an in-vehicle device, an information processing method, and a computer program.
This application claims priority based on Japanese application No. 2021-040293 filed on March 12, 2021, and incorporates all the descriptions described in the Japanese application.

An electronic control device that is mounted on a vehicle and performs information processing related to control of equipment mounted on the vehicle and control of vehicle-external communication and travel control such as automatic driving is known (for example, Patent Document 1). The electronic control device of Patent Document 1 includes a multi-core CPU (Central Processing Unit) having a plurality of cores. A plurality of program systems operate on the multi-core CPU. A hypervisor is installed in the above electronic control unit as a component of functions realized by executing a program. The above electronic control unit creates a plurality of virtual devices on the multi-core CPU by the hypervisor, operates them in parallel, and operates an OS (Operation System) on the created virtual devices.

JP 2019-179397 A

An in-vehicle device according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a control unit that executes a plurality of programs, and a storage unit that stores a virtualized operating system activated by the control unit, and activates the virtualized operating system. By doing so, a plurality of virtual devices that serve as operating environments for the program are generated, the storage unit includes a communication data storage area in which communication data exchanged in communication between the plurality of virtual devices is written, and A communication data storage area is provided with a write flag associated with the communication data and indicating that the communication data is being written, and a read flag associated with the communication data and indicating whether or not the communication data needs to be read, When communicating with another virtual device, the virtual device writes the communication data to the other virtual device into the communication data storage area, and the other virtual device writes the data when the write flag is off. and when the read flag is on, the communication data from the virtual device is read from the communication data storage area, and after the communication data is read, the read flag is turned off.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of an in-vehicle system according to Embodiment 1; FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the physical configuration of an in-vehicle ECU; FIG. It is a block diagram which illustrates the logical structure of vehicle-mounted ECU. 4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the contents of a transmission/reception table; FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to transmission of communication data to another virtual ECU performed by a virtual ECU; 7 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to reception of communication data from another virtual ECU performed by a virtual ECU; FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating the logical configuration of an in-vehicle ECU of Embodiment 2; 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of a transmission buffer; FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating contents of a reception table; FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to transmission of communication data to another virtual ECU performed by the virtual ECU of the second embodiment; 7 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to synchronization of communication data in a transmission buffer and a reception table performed by a communication data management unit; 9 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to reception of communication data from another virtual ECU performed by the virtual ECU of the second embodiment; FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of a transmission buffer according to Embodiment 3; 10 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to transmission of communication data to another virtual ECU performed by the virtual ECU of the third embodiment; 14 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to synchronization of communication data in a transmission buffer and a reception table performed by a communication data management unit according to the third embodiment;

[Problems to be Solved by the Present Disclosure]
In the electronic control device of Patent Document 1, communication may be performed between a plurality of virtual devices via a storage unit such as a memory included in the electronic control device. In the above communication, the transmission source virtual device writes the communication data to the storage unit, and the transmission destination virtual device reads the communication data written in the storage unit. Data is exchanged. At this time, communication data may be read out while the communication data is being written to the storage unit, or a so-called access conflict may occur, which may hinder efficient communication between multiple virtual devices. be.

The present disclosure has been made in view of such circumstances, and aims to provide an in-vehicle device or the like capable of efficiently exchanging communication data between a plurality of virtual devices.

[Effect of the present disclosure]
According to one aspect of the present disclosure, it is possible to efficiently exchange communication data between a plurality of virtual devices.

[Description of Embodiments of the Present Disclosure]
First, embodiments of the present disclosure are enumerated and described. Moreover, at least part of the embodiments described below may be combined arbitrarily.

(1) An in-vehicle device according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a control unit that executes a plurality of programs, and a storage unit that stores a virtualization operating system activated by the control unit. By activating the system, a plurality of virtual devices are generated as an operating environment for the program, and the storage unit has a communication data storage area in which communication data exchanged in communication between the plurality of virtual devices is written. the communication data storage area includes a write flag associated with the communication data and indicating that the communication data is being written; and a read flag associated with the communication data and indicating whether or not the communication data should be read. When communicating with another virtual device, the virtual device writes the communication data to the other virtual device into the communication data storage area, and the other virtual device is in the off state of the write flag. When the read flag is on, the communication data from the virtual device is read from the communication data storage area, and after the communication data is read, the read flag is turned off.

In this aspect, a plurality of virtual devices are generated by the control unit activating the virtualization operating system. When a plurality of virtual devices communicate, one of the plurality of virtual devices writes communication data to be transmitted to another virtual communication in the communication data storage area. In the communication data storage area, communication data to be written is associated with a write flag and a read flag. If the write flag is on, the communication data associated with the write flag is being written to the communication data storage area. When the write flag is in the OFF state, the communication data associated with the write flag has not been written. If the read flag is in the ON state, it is necessary to read the communication data associated with that read flag. If the read flag is in the off state, it is not necessary to read the communication data associated with that read flag. The communication data destination virtual device reads the communication data from the communication data storage area when the write flag is off and the read flag is on. Since the communication data whose write flag is in the OFF state is read, the communication data is not written when the communication data is read. Since there is no contention between writing and reading communication data to and from the communication data storage area, communication data can be efficiently exchanged between a plurality of virtual devices. In other words, communication between multiple virtual devices can be performed efficiently. After reading the communication data, the virtual device changes the read flag associated with the communication data from the ON state to the OFF state, so that it is possible to prevent the same communication data from being erroneously read again.

(2) In the in-vehicle device according to one aspect of the present disclosure, the read flag is provided for the virtual device that reads the communication data.

In this aspect, the communication data written by the virtual machine to the communication data storage area is read by one or two or more other virtual machines out of a plurality of virtual machines other than the own virtual machine. A read flag associated with the communication data in the communication data storage area is provided for the virtual device reading the communication data. For example, if the communication data is read by two virtual devices, that is, if the destination of the communication data is two virtual devices, a read flag is provided for each of the two virtual devices. The above communication data is associated with two read flags in the communication data storage area. When the write flag is OFF and the read flag provided for the virtual device is ON, the virtual device reads the communication data whose read flag is ON. After reading the communication data, the virtual device turns off the read flag. The virtual device can appropriately transmit the communication data to the destination virtual device of the communication data. Even if a plurality of virtual devices are destinations of communication data, each of the plurality of destination virtual devices can read the communication data from the communication data storage area based on the read flag provided for the virtual device. can be done. Even in the above case, communication data can be efficiently exchanged between a plurality of virtual devices.

(3) In an in-vehicle device according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the virtual device turns on the write flag before writing the communication data to the communication data storage area, and writes the communication data to the communication data storage area. After writing to the communication data storage area, the write flag is turned off, and the read flag associated with the communication data written to the communication data storage area is turned on.

In this aspect, the virtual device turns on the write flag associated with the communication data before writing the communication data to the communication data storage area. After writing the communication data to the communication data storage area, the virtual device changes the write flag associated with the communication data from the ON state to the OFF state, and further sets the read flag associated with the communication data to the ON state. Since the write flag is on while the communication data is being written by the virtual device, it is possible to prevent the communication data being written from being read. Since the write flag and the read flag are updated as described above after the communication data is written, communication data can be exchanged between a plurality of virtual devices without contention between the writing and reading of communication data in the communication data storage area. be able to.

(4) In the in-vehicle device according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the communication data storage area is provided for each of the plurality of virtual devices, and the virtual device writes the communication data to the other virtual device. and a second storage area to which the communication data read by the virtual device is written, wherein the write flag indicates that the communication data is being written to the second storage area. A management unit that includes a flag and manages transmission and reception of the communication data between the plurality of virtual devices writes the communication data written in the first storage area to the second storage area with the second storage area write flag. , and writing in association with the read flag, turning on the second storage area write flag before writing the communication data to the second storage area, and after writing the communication data to the second storage area , the second storage area write flag is turned off, and the read flag associated with the communication data written to the second storage area is turned on, and the virtual device turns on the second storage area write flag The communication data is read from the second storage area when the read flag is in the off state and the read flag is in the on state.

In this aspect, the communication data storage area includes a first storage area and a second storage area. A first storage area is provided for each of the plurality of virtual devices. The control unit also functions as a management unit that manages transmission and reception of communication data between a plurality of virtual devices. One of the plurality of virtual devices writes communication data to be transmitted to another virtual device into a first storage area provided for one virtual device. The management unit writes communication data written in the first storage area to the second storage area. In the second storage area, the communication data is associated with a second storage area write flag and a read flag. The management unit turns on the second storage area write flag of the communication data before writing the communication data to the second storage area. After writing the communication data to the second storage area, the management unit changes the second storage area write flag of the communication data from the ON state to the OFF state, and further turns the communication data read flag to the ON state. When the read flag corresponding to the own virtual device is in the ON state, the other virtual device to which the communication data is sent reads the communication data with the read flag in the ON state from the second storage area. Since the first storage area is provided for each virtual device, multiple virtual devices do not write communication data to the same first storage area. Even if communication data is being written by another virtual machine, the virtual machine can write communication data to the first storage area provided for its own virtual machine without waiting for the end of the writing. can. A virtual machine can write communication data to the first storage area provided for its own virtual machine even when another virtual machine is reading communication data from the second storage area.

(5) In the in-vehicle device according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the virtual device writes a plurality of the communication data to the first storage area, and writes the number of the communication data written to the first storage area. Increase the number.

In this aspect, the virtual device writes a plurality of pieces of communication data to the first storage area provided for its own virtual device. The virtual device increases the write count indicating the number of pieces of communication data written to the first storage area according to the number of pieces of communication data written to the first storage area. By referring to the number of writes, the management unit can efficiently write a plurality of pieces of communication data written in the first storage area to the second storage area without omission. When a virtual device can write only one piece of communication data to the first storage area, and a plurality of pieces of communication data are to be sent to other virtual devices, the virtual device writes one piece of communication data to the management It is necessary to notify the department that the communication data has been written. Since the virtual device can write a plurality of pieces of communication data to the first storage area, it is possible to reduce the frequency of communication between the virtual device and the management unit. Communication between multiple virtual devices can be made more efficient.

(6) An information processing method according to an aspect of the present disclosure generates a plurality of virtual devices that serve as operating environments for a plurality of programs in an in-vehicle device, and when the virtual device communicates with another virtual device, to a communication data storage area in which the communication data exchanged in communication between the plurality of virtual machines is written, and is associated with the communication data in the communication data storage area, When a write flag indicating that data is being written is in an off state, and a read flag associated with the communication data in the communication data storage area and indicating whether or not to read the communication data is in an on state, the virtual The communication data from the device is read from the communication data storage area, and after the communication data is read, the read flag is turned off.

In this aspect, as in the case of aspect (1), there is no contention between writing and reading communication data to and from the communication data storage area, so communication between a plurality of virtual devices can be performed efficiently.

(7) A computer program according to an aspect of the present disclosure is a computer program that causes a computer mounted on a vehicle to execute processing, generates a plurality of virtual devices that serve as operating environments for a plurality of programs, and communicates with another virtual device, writes communication data to the other virtual device into a communication data storage area in which the communication data exchanged in communication between the plurality of said virtual devices is written; a write flag associated with the communication data in the data storage area and indicating that the communication data is being written is in an off state; causes the computer to read the communication data from the virtual device from the communication data storage area and turn off the read flag after reading the communication data when the read flag indicated by the virtual device is on.

In this aspect, the computer can function as an in-vehicle device of one aspect of the present disclosure.

[Details of Embodiments of the Present Disclosure]
The present disclosure will be specifically described based on the drawings showing the embodiments thereof. An in-vehicle device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. The present disclosure is not limited to these examples, but is indicated by the scope of the claims, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of equivalents of the scope of the claims.

(Embodiment 1)
Embodiments will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of an in-vehicle system S according to the first embodiment. The in-vehicle system S includes a plurality of in-vehicle ECUs 2 mounted on the vehicle C. As shown in FIG. An in-vehicle device 3 is connected to the in-vehicle ECU 2 .

The plurality of in-vehicle ECUs 2 includes an integrated in-vehicle ECU 2 (integrated ECU) that controls the entire vehicle C, and an individual in-vehicle ECU 2 that is communicably connected to the integrated in-vehicle ECU 2 and directly connected to the in-vehicle device 3. The ECU 2 (individual ECU) may be included. The integrated in-vehicle ECU 2 may be communicably connected to an external server (not shown) connected to an external network such as the Internet via an external communication device (not shown). The in-vehicle ECU 2 corresponds to an in-vehicle device.

In FIG. 1, the integrated vehicle ECU 2 and a plurality of individual vehicle ECUs 2 are communicably connected by the vehicle network 4 forming a star-shaped network topology. The integrated in-vehicle ECU 2 is provided at the center of a star-shaped network topology. The network topology in the in-vehicle system S is not limited to the above examples. The in-vehicle system S may have a configuration in which adjacent individual in-vehicle ECUs 2 are connected to form a loop-shaped network topology, enabling two-way communication and achieving redundancy.

Individual vehicle-mounted ECUs 2 are arranged in each area of vehicle C and connected to a plurality of vehicle-mounted devices 3 . The individual vehicle-mounted ECU 2 transmits and receives signals or data to and from the vehicle-mounted device 3 to which it is connected. Moreover, separate vehicle-mounted ECU2 communicates with comprehensive vehicle-mounted ECU2. The individual in-vehicle ECU 2 is an in-vehicle relay device such as a gateway or ether switch that relays communication between a plurality of in-vehicle devices 3 connected to the individual in-vehicle ECU 2, or communication between the in-vehicle device 3 and another in-vehicle ECU 2. It may be a relay control ECU that functions as a In addition to relaying communication, the individual vehicle-mounted ECU 2 may also function as a power distribution device that distributes and relays power output from a power storage device (not shown) and supplies the power to the vehicle-mounted device 3 connected to its own ECU.

The in-vehicle device 3 includes, for example, actuators 30 such as door opening/closing devices and motor devices, and various sensors 31 such as LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), light sensors, CMOS cameras, and infrared sensors. The in-vehicle device 3 is not limited to the above example, and may be a switch such as a door SW (switch) and a lamp SW, or may be a lamp.

The integrated in-vehicle ECU 2 is, for example, a central control unit such as a vehicle computer. The integrated vehicle-mounted ECU 2 generates and outputs control signals to individual vehicle-mounted devices 3 based on data from the vehicle-mounted devices 3 relayed via other vehicle-mounted ECUs 2 such as individual vehicle-mounted ECUs 2 . The integrated in-vehicle ECU 2 generates a control signal for controlling the actuator 30, which is the target of the request signal, based on information or data such as a request signal output from another in-vehicle ECU 2, and outputs the generated control signal. It outputs to other in-vehicle ECU2. In this embodiment, the in-vehicle system S is configured by the integrated in-vehicle ECU 2 and the individual in-vehicle ECU 2, but the in-vehicle system S is not limited to the configuration of the integrated in-vehicle ECU 2 and the individual in-vehicle ECU 2. The in-vehicle system S may be composed of a plurality of in-vehicle ECUs 2 connected peer-to-peer by a relay device such as a CAN (Controller Area Network) gateway or Ethernet switch.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the physical configuration of the in-vehicle ECU 2. As shown in FIG. The in-vehicle ECU 2 includes a control section 20 , a storage section 21 and an in-vehicle communication section 22 . The control unit 20 is configured by an arithmetic processing device such as a CPU or an MPU (Micro Processing Unit). The control unit 20 reads out and executes a control program P and data stored in advance in the storage unit 21, thereby performing various control processing, arithmetic processing, and the like. The control unit 20 includes, for example, a single-core single CPU, a single-core multi-CPU, a multi-core single CPU, and a multi-core multi-CPU. The control unit 20 is not limited to a software processing unit that performs software processing such as a CPU, but includes a hardware processing unit that performs various control processing and arithmetic processing by hardware processing such as FPGA, ASIC, or SOC. may be

The control unit 20 includes an arithmetic device 200 configured by, for example, one core of a CPU. In this embodiment, an example in which the control unit 20 is a quad-core CPU will be described. Since the control unit 20 is a quad-core, it has four cores. The control unit 20 includes a first arithmetic unit 201 configured with a first core, a second arithmetic unit 202 configured with a second core, a third arithmetic unit 203 configured with a third core, It includes four processing units 200 with a fourth processing unit 204 configured by a fourth core. Note that the number of arithmetic units 200 is not limited to four.

The storage unit 21 is composed of a volatile memory element such as RAM (Random Access Memory) or a non-volatile memory element such as ROM (Read Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM), or flash memory. The storage unit 21 may be configured by a combination of storage devices such as the above volatile memory elements and nonvolatile memory elements. The storage unit 21 stores in advance the control program P and data to be referred to during processing. The control program P includes, for example, a plurality of programs such as a program for controlling various vehicle-mounted devices 3, or a program for performing target recognition for automated driving based on output data from a LiDAR or CMOS camera. These programs are also called applications. Furthermore, the memory|storage part 21 of vehicle-mounted ECU2 is memorize|stored virtualization operating systems, such as Hypervisor, VMware, or Xen, for example.

The control program P stored in the storage unit 21 may be the control program P read from the recording medium A readable by the in-vehicle ECU 2 . Alternatively, the control program P may be downloaded from an external computer (not shown) connected to a communication network (not shown) and stored in the storage unit 21 . The control program P corresponds to a computer program.

The in-vehicle communication unit 22 is, for example, an input/output interface using a CAN (Controller Area Network) or Ethernet (Ethernet/registered trademark) communication protocol. Communicate with other in-vehicle ECUs 2 that are installed.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the logical configuration of the in-vehicle ECU 2. As shown in FIG. As described above, the storage unit 21 of the in-vehicle ECU 2 stores, for example, a virtualization operating system such as Hypervisor, VMware, or Xen. The control part 20 of vehicle-mounted ECU2 can construct|assemble several virtual ECU5 on a virtualization operating system by starting using a virtualization operating system. A program for controlling various vehicle-mounted devices 3 is executed using one of the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 as an operating environment. That is, these programs are executed on one of the virtual ECUs 5 . When the virtual ECU 5 executes the program, single or multiple tasks are generated according to the processing contents of the program. A more subdivided or partitioned unit of processing is executed by the task.

In this embodiment, an example will be described in which the virtualization method is a hypervisor method in which hardware resources such as the control unit 20 are accessed directly by the virtualization operating system. is not limited to For example, the virtualization method may be a host OS method in which an operating system such as Linux (registered trademark) intervenes between the virtualized operating system and hardware resources. Also, the virtualization method may use a container-based virtualization operating system.

The in-vehicle ECU 2 activated using the virtualized operating system can construct a plurality of virtual ECUs 5 using the functions of the virtualized operating system. Hardware resources, such as the control part 20 and the memory|storage part 21 with which vehicle-mounted ECU2 is provided, are allocated to several virtual ECU5. For example, the virtual ECU 5 includes a virtual control unit 5a assigned to the control unit 20, a virtual storage unit 5b assigned to the storage unit 21, and a virtual in-vehicle communication unit (not shown) assigned to the in-vehicle communication unit 22. The virtual ECU 5 corresponds to a virtual device.

A guest OS such as Ubuntu (registered trademark), for example, is stored in the virtual storage unit 5b of each virtual ECU 5, and each virtual ECU 5 starts up the guest OS and executes a program on the guest OS. The guest OS may be a different kind of OS depending on each virtual ECU 5 . Since the entity of the virtual storage unit 5b is the storage area of the storage unit 21 allocated to each virtual ECU 5 as described above, it goes without saying that the guest OS is also stored in the storage unit 21 in the same manner as the virtualized operating system. stomach. When using a container-based virtualized operating system, a guest OS may be eliminated, a container may be generated on the virtualized operating system, and a program may be executed on the container. In this case, the container corresponds to the virtual ECU5.

A plurality of virtual ECUs 5 are generated in the control unit 20 of the in-vehicle ECU 2 activated using the virtualized operating system. In the control unit 20 of FIG. 3, four virtual ECUs 5 of a first virtual ECU 51, a second virtual ECU 52, a third virtual ECU 53, and a fourth virtual ECU 54 are generated. The control unit 20 is time-divided and periodically performs virtual control of the first virtual ECU 51, the second virtual ECU 52, the third virtual ECU 53, and the fourth virtual ECU 54. assigned to section 5a.

In the example of FIG. 3, the first virtual ECU 51 is periodically generated in the first arithmetic unit 201. The virtual control unit 5 a of the generated first virtual ECU 51 is assigned to the first arithmetic unit 201 . In other words, the first arithmetic device 201 functions as the first virtual ECU 51 . The second virtual ECU 52 is periodically generated in the second arithmetic unit 202 . The virtual control unit 5 a of the generated second virtual ECU 52 is assigned to the second arithmetic unit 202 . In other words, the second arithmetic device 202 functions as the second virtual ECU 52 .

In the third arithmetic unit 203, the third virtual ECU 53 and the fourth virtual ECU 54 are generated by alternately switching periodically. The virtual control unit 5 a of the generated third virtual ECU 53 is assigned to the third arithmetic unit 203 . The virtual control unit 5 a of the generated fourth virtual ECU 54 is assigned to the third arithmetic unit 203 . In other words, the third arithmetic device 203 functions as the generated third virtual ECU 53 . The third arithmetic unit 203 also functions as the generated fourth virtual ECU 54 . Hereinafter, the fact that the virtual ECU 5 is generated in the arithmetic device 200 and the fact that the arithmetic device 200 functions as the virtual ECU 5 generated by the arithmetic device 200 are also referred to as that the arithmetic device 200 generates the virtual ECU 5 .

The fourth arithmetic unit 204 executes a virtual ECU management program that manages all virtual ECUs 5 . The fourth arithmetic unit 204 functions as a control panel of the virtualized operating system by executing the virtual ECU management program. In other words, the fourth arithmetic unit 204 functions as the virtual ECU management unit 10 that manages the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 by executing the virtual ECU management program.

The virtual ECU management unit 10 refers to the allocation time information stored in the storage unit 21, for example, to determine the utilization time of the first arithmetic unit 201, the utilization time of the second arithmetic unit 202, or the virtual ECU 5. 3. Perform processing for allocating the usage time of the arithmetic unit 203, that is, so-called scheduling. For example, the allocation time information includes the cycle of generating the first virtual ECU 51 and the time allocated to the first virtual ECU 51 and the cycle of generating the second virtual ECU 52 and the time allocated to the second virtual ECU 52 . Further, the allocation time information includes the cycle of generating the third virtual ECU 53 and the time allocated to the third virtual ECU 53 and the cycle of generating the fourth virtual ECU 54 and the time allocated to the fourth virtual ECU 54 .

The virtual ECU management unit 10 performs scheduling and starts the operations of the first virtual ECU 51, the second virtual ECU 52, the third virtual ECU 53, and the fourth virtual ECU 54, respectively. In other words, the virtual ECU management unit 10 performs switching of the virtual ECU 5 for the first arithmetic device 201, switching of the virtual ECU 5 for the second arithmetic device 202, and switching of the virtual ECU 5 for the third arithmetic device 203 by scheduling. The virtual ECU 5 is switched between an active state in which the virtual control unit 5a of the virtual ECU 5 is assigned to the arithmetic unit 200 and an active state in which the virtual control unit 5a of the virtual ECU 5 is not assigned to the arithmetic unit 200. Including switching to and from the inactive state. For example, the active state is a state in which the virtual ECU 5 including the virtual control unit 5a assigned to the arithmetic unit 200 executes processing. For example, the inactive state is a state in which the virtual ECU 5 is resting. Hereinafter, transitioning the virtual ECU 5 from the inactive state to the active state is also referred to as activation. Transitioning the virtual ECU 5 from the active state to the inactive state is also referred to as deactivation.

The virtual ECU management unit 10 causes the first arithmetic device 201 to periodically generate (activate) the first virtual ECU 51 by switching the virtual ECU 5 for the first arithmetic device 201 . By switching the virtual ECU 5 for the first arithmetic device 201 , the first virtual ECU 51 is generated again in the first arithmetic device 201 . Also, the first arithmetic unit 201 is assigned to the virtual control unit 5a of the regenerated first virtual ECU 51 described above. In other words, by switching the virtual ECU 5 with respect to the first arithmetic unit 201, the first virtual ECU 51 is deactivated and activated after being deactivated.

The virtual ECU management unit 10 causes the second arithmetic device 202 to periodically generate the second virtual ECU 52 by switching the virtual ECU 5 for the second arithmetic device 202 . By switching the virtual ECU 5 for the second arithmetic device 202, the second virtual ECU 52 is generated again in the second arithmetic device 202. FIG. In addition, the second arithmetic unit 202 is assigned to the virtual control unit 5a of the second virtual ECU 52 generated again. In other words, by switching the virtual ECU 5 with respect to the second arithmetic unit 202, the second virtual ECU 52 is deactivated and activated after being deactivated.

By switching the virtual ECU 5 for the third arithmetic device 203, the virtual ECU management unit 10 causes the third arithmetic device 203 to generate the third virtual ECU 53 and the fourth virtual ECU 54 alternately and periodically. By switching the virtual ECU 5 for the third arithmetic device 203, the virtual ECU 5 generated in the third arithmetic device 203 is switched from one of the third virtual ECU 53 and the fourth virtual ECU 54 to the other of the third virtual ECU 53 and the fourth virtual ECU 54. . The other of the third virtual ECU 53 and the fourth virtual ECU 54 is generated in the third arithmetic unit 203 . The third arithmetic unit 203 is assigned to the other virtual control unit 5 a of the third virtual ECU 53 and the fourth virtual ECU 54 . In other words, one of the third virtual ECU 53 and the fourth virtual ECU 54 is deactivated by switching the virtual ECU 5 with respect to the third arithmetic unit 203 . Also, the other of the third virtual ECU 53 and the fourth virtual ECU 54 is activated.

In the present embodiment, the arithmetic device 200 functioning as the virtual ECU 5 and the arithmetic device 200 functioning as the virtual ECU management unit 10 are different, but the same arithmetic device 200 functions as the virtual ECU 5 and virtual ECU management is performed. functioning as the unit 10; In this case, the same arithmetic unit 200 described above periodically switches between, for example, a period of functioning as the virtual ECU 5 and a period of functioning as the virtual ECU management unit 10 .

The virtual ECU 5 executes the program as described above. For example, the virtual ECU 5 stores the result of processing by the executed program in the virtual storage unit 5b of its own virtual ECU. Information such as processing results stored in the virtual storage unit 5b is retained in the virtual storage unit 5b allocated in the storage unit 21 even when the generation of the virtual ECU 5 including the virtual storage unit 5b is completed. The case where the generation of the virtual ECU 5 has ended includes the case where the virtual ECU 5 is in an inactive state.

The storage unit 21 includes a communication data storage area 6 in which communication data exchanged in communication between a plurality of virtual ECUs 5 is written. Each virtual ECU 5 can access the communication data storage area 6 for writing and reading communication data. Hereinafter, reading communication data from the communication data storage area 6 is also referred to as receiving communication data.

The communication data storage area 6 in FIG. 3 includes a transmission/reception table 60 in which communication data is stored in association with write flags and read flags, which will be described later. FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the contents of the transmission/reception table 60. As shown in FIG. The transmission/reception table 60 includes an identifier string, a data length string, a communication data string, a write flag string, and a read flag string for each virtual ECU 5 .

Communication data is stored in the communication data string. The identifier column stores identifiers of communication data, such as message IDs. Specifically, identifiers of all communication data exchanged between a plurality of virtual ECUs 5 are stored in advance in the identifier string. Communication data exchanged between the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 includes, for example, messages exchanged between the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 . Identifiers are not limited to message IDs, and may be port numbers, for example. For example, the identifier of the communication data transmitted from one virtual ECU5 and the identifier of the communication data transmitted from other virtual ECU5 do not overlap.

The data length column stores the amount of communication data, the so-called data length. The write flag string stores a write flag indicating that communication data is being written. In the transmission/reception table 60, the communication data, the identifier of the communication data, the data length of the communication data, and the write flag are stored in association with each other.

The write flag indicates that communication data is being written to the transmission/reception table 60. A write flag includes an ON state and an OFF state. When the write flag is on, the communication data associated with the write flag is being written to the transmission/reception table 60 . In other words, while the communication data is being written, the write flag associated with the communication data is set to the ON state. When the write flag is in the OFF state, writing of communication data associated with the write flag to the transmission/reception table 60 is not performed.

The read flag string for each virtual ECU 5 includes the reception information string and read flag string of the first virtual ECU 51 and the reception information string and read flag string of the second virtual ECU 52 . Further, the read flag string for each virtual ECU 5 includes the reception information string and read flag string of the third virtual ECU 53 and the reception information string and read flag string of the fourth virtual ECU 54 . That is, the read flag string for each virtual ECU 5 includes a reception information string provided for each virtual ECU 5 and a read flag string.

Each received information string stores received information indicating whether or not communication data is to be received by the virtual ECU 5 in association with an identifier, data length, communication data, and write flag. In the transmission/reception table 60 of FIG. 4, reception information associated with an identifier of communication data to be received by the virtual ECU 5 is indicated as a reception target. Received information associated with the identifier of communication data that is not subject to reception by the virtual ECU 5 is indicated as out of scope.

For example, the communication data of the identifier associated with the reception information of the first virtual ECU 51, which is the reception target, is the reception target of the first virtual ECU 51. In other words, the first virtual ECU 51 is the virtual ECU 5 to which the communication data of the identifier associated with the reception information of the first virtual ECU 51 to be received is transmitted. The first virtual ECU 51 reads from the transmission/reception table 60 the communication data of the identifier associated with the reception information of the first virtual ECU 51 to be received. That is, the first virtual ECU 51 receives the above communication data. Readout of communication data from the transmission/reception table 60 by the virtual ECU 5 will be described later.

For example, the communication data of the identifier associated with the reception information of the first virtual ECU 51 that is out of scope is not subject to reception by the first virtual ECU 51 . In other words, the first virtual ECU 51 is not the virtual ECU 5 that is the destination of the communication data with the identifier associated with the received information of the first virtual ECU 51 that is excluded. The first virtual ECU 51 does not read out from the transmission/reception table 60 the communication data of the identifier associated with the reception information of the first virtual ECU 51 that is excluded.

Each read flag string stores a read flag indicating whether or not it is necessary to read communication data in association with the reception information to be received. More specifically, the read flag of each read flag string is associated with the reception information, which is the reception target, among the reception information of the corresponding reception information string. For example, the received information string corresponding to the readout flag string of the first virtual ECU 51 is the received information string of the first virtual ECU 51 .

The read flag is also associated with the identifier, data length, communication data, and write flag associated with the received information to be received. Specifically, in the transmission/reception table 60, the read flag is associated with the identifier, the data length, the communication data, and the write flag, and stored in the read column of the virtual ECU 5 that receives the communication data. Since the read flags are provided for the virtual ECUs 5 that read the communication data, the same number of read flags as the number of the virtual ECUs 5 that read the one communication data are associated with the identifier of one communication data in the transmission/reception table 60. It is

For example, the read flags associated with the identifiers of the communication data read by the two virtual ECUs 5, ie, the first virtual ECU 51 and the third virtual ECU 53, are the read flag string of the first virtual ECU 51 and the read flag string of the third virtual ECU 53. stored in The communication data identifier is associated with two read flags.

The read flag includes an ON state and an OFF state. When the read flag is on, it is necessary to read the communication data of the identifier associated with the read flag. If the read flag is in the OFF state, it is unnecessary to read the communication data of the identifier associated with the read flag.

Communication among the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 is performed by exchanging communication data between the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 via the communication data storage area 6 . Transfer of communication data between a plurality of virtual ECUs 5 will be described below. First, processing for writing communication data to the transmission/reception table 60 by the virtual ECU 5 that is the transmission source of the communication data will be described. This processing is processing for the virtual ECU 5 to transmit communication data to another virtual ECU 5 to which the communication data is transmitted.

The virtual ECU 5 that is the transmission source of the communication data specifies in the transmission/reception table 60 the same identifier as the identifier of the communication data to the other virtual ECU 5 that is the transmission destination of the communication data. The virtual ECU 5 determines whether the write flag associated with the specified identifier in the transmission/reception table 60 is locked. Locking the write flag is to make it impossible to change the write flag from other programs at the same time by exclusive control. When the write flag is locked, the state of the write flag cannot be changed from one of the ON state and the OFF state to the other of the ON state and the OFF state by exclusive control except for the program that performed the lock control. If the write flag is not locked, any program can change the state of the write flag from one of the on and off states to the other of the on and off states. Note that the program is executed by the virtual ECU 5 as described above. Hereinafter, switching from a state in which the write flag is locked to a state in which the write flag is not locked is also referred to as unlocking.

When the write flag associated with the specified identifier is not locked, that is, when the write flag is unlocked, the virtual ECU 5 locks the write flag and turns on the write flag.

After turning on the write flag, the virtual ECU 5 writes the communication data to the other virtual ECU 5 in the transmission/reception table 60 in association with the identifier of the communication data and the write flag and read flag associated with the identifier. . Specifically, the above communication data is associated with an identifier identical to the identifier of the above communication data among the identifiers stored in advance in the transmission/reception table 60, and the write flag and read flag associated with the same identifier. , is written in the communication data column of the transmission/reception table 60 . For example, when the virtual ECU 5 writes new communication data to the transmission/reception table 60, the communication data having the same identifier as the identifier of the new communication data has already been written to the transmission/reception table 60 in association with the write flag and the read flag. is assumed. In such a case, the virtual ECU 5 overwrites the already written communication data with the new communication data. In other words, communication data with the same identifier in the transmission/reception table 60 is updated.

After writing the communication data to the transmission/reception table 60, the virtual ECU 5 turns on the read flag associated with the written communication data. For example, when the number of virtual ECUs 5 that receive the written communication data is plural, the virtual ECU 5 turns on a plurality of read flags associated with the written communication data. For example, the virtual ECU 5 writes communication data to be received by the first virtual ECU 51 and the second virtual ECU 52 into the transmission/reception table 60 . The virtual ECU 5 turns ON the read flag associated with the written communication data among the read flags stored in the read column of the first virtual ECU 51 and the read column of the second virtual ECU 52 in the transmission/reception table 60 .

Furthermore, after writing the communication data to the transmission/reception table 60, the virtual ECU 5 changes the write flag associated with the written communication data from the ON state to the OFF state, and unlocks the write flag.

For example, when the write flag is locked, the virtual ECU 5 does not write communication data to the transmission/reception table 60 . The virtual ECU 5 writes the communication data to the transmission/reception table 60 in the next period. Specifically, the virtual ECU 5 is deactivated by switching the virtual ECU 5 by the virtual ECU management unit 10 . Furthermore, the virtual ECU 5 is activated after being deactivated, performs the above-described processing, and writes the communication data to the transmission/reception table 60 . In other words, when the arithmetic unit 200 finishes generating the virtual ECU 5 and generates the virtual ECU 5 again, the virtual ECU 5 writes the communication data to the transmission/reception table 60 as described above.

When the write flag is locked, the virtual ECU 5 performs standby processing until the write flag is unlocked, and after the read flag is unlocked, writes the communication data to the transmission/reception table 60 as described above. It's okay.

Next, the process of reading communication data from the transmission/reception table 60 by the virtual ECU 5, which is the transmission destination of the communication data, will be described. This processing is processing for the virtual ECU 5 to receive communication data. In the transmission/reception table 60, the virtual ECU 5 selects communication data associated with the ON state read flag among the read flags stored in the read flag column of the own virtual ECU, which is communication data associated with the OFF state write flag. , from the transmission/reception table 60 .

For example, the virtual ECU 5 refers to the transmission/reception table 60 and determines whether or not the read flag of its own virtual ECU is on. The virtual ECU 5 does not read communication data unless the read flag of its own virtual ECU is turned on. Note that the case where the read flag of the virtual ECU 5 is not in the ON state means that all the read flags stored in the read flag row of the virtual ECU 5 in the transmission/reception table 60 are in the OFF state.

The virtual ECU 5 performs the following processing when the read flag of its own virtual ECU is on. In the transmission/reception table 60, the virtual ECU 5 determines whether or not the write flag associated with the read flag in the ON state among the read flags stored in the read flag string of the own virtual ECU is in the OFF state. The case where the read flag of the virtual ECU 5 is on means that at least one of the read flags stored in the read flag column of the virtual ECU 5 in the transmission/reception table 60 is on.

When the write flag associated with the on-state read flag is in the off state, the virtual ECU 5 locks the write flag. For example, when the virtual ECU 5 locks the write flag, it is assumed that the write flag has already been locked by another virtual ECU 5 . In this case, the virtual ECU 5 fails to lock the write flag. If the virtual ECU 5 fails to lock the write flag, it ends the process. When the virtual ECU 5 fails to lock the write flag, it may attempt to lock the write flag again.

After locking the write flags as described above, the virtual ECU 5 reads from the transmission/reception table 60 the communication data associated with the read flags in the ON state among the read flags stored in the read flag row of its own virtual ECU. In other words, the virtual ECU 5 reads the communication data associated with the locked write flag from the transmission/reception table 60 . By locking the write flag, communication data being read can be prevented from being updated.

When the write flag associated with the read flag in the ON state is ON, the communication data is being written, so the virtual ECU 5 does not read the communication data from the transmission/reception table 60 . The virtual ECU 5 reads the communication data from the transmission/reception table 60 in the next period. Specifically, the virtual ECU 5 is deactivated by switching the virtual ECU 5 by the virtual ECU management unit 10 . Furthermore, the virtual ECU 5 is activated after being deactivated, performs the above-described processing, and reads communication data from the transmission/reception table 60 . When the arithmetic unit 200 finishes generating the virtual ECU 5 and generates the virtual ECU 5 again, the virtual ECU 5 reads the communication data from the transmission/reception table 60 as described above.

When the above write flag is in the ON state, the virtual ECU 5 performs standby processing until the write flag is in the OFF state. May be read.

If there are a plurality of read flags in the ON state among the read flags stored in the read flag string of the virtual ECU 5, the virtual ECU 5 sets the communication data associated with each of the read flags in the ON state as described above. to read from the transmission/reception table 60.

After reading the communication data from the transmission/reception table 60, the virtual ECU 5 changes the read flags associated with the read communication data out of the read flags stored in the read flag row of its own virtual ECU from the ON state to the OFF state. Further, the virtual ECU 5 unlocks the write flag associated with the read communication data. That is, the virtual ECU 5 unlocks the write flag locked by itself.

The communication data written in the transmission/reception table 60 may be read by one virtual ECU 5 or may be read by two or more virtual ECUs 5 . For example, when communication data is read by two virtual ECUs 5, the first virtual ECU 51 and the third virtual ECU 53, the first virtual ECU 51 and the third virtual ECU 53 perform the following processing. After reading the communication data as described above, the first virtual ECU 51 turns off the read flag stored in the read flag string of the first virtual ECU 51 and associated with the read communication data. After reading the communication data as described above, the third virtual ECU 53 turns off the read flag stored in the read flag string of the third virtual ECU 53 and associated with the read communication data.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to transmission of communication data to another virtual ECU 5 performed by the virtual ECU 5 . For example, the virtual ECU 5 performs the following processing when generated or activated. Hereinafter, the step is abbreviated as S.

The virtual ECU 5 identifies in the transmission/reception table 60 the same identifier as the identifier of the communication data to be transmitted to the other virtual ECU 5, and determines whether or not the write flag associated with the identified identifier in the transmission/reception table 60 is unlocked. (S11). If the write flag associated with the specified identifier is unlocked (S11: YES), the virtual ECU 5 attempts to lock the write flag (S12), and determines whether the write flag was successfully locked. is determined (S13). If the virtual ECU 5 fails to lock the write flag (S13: NO), that is, if it fails to lock the write flag, it ends the process. When the virtual ECU 5 fails to lock the write flag, it may attempt to lock the write flag again. For example, the virtual ECU 5 terminates the process when it fails to lock the write flag a predetermined number of times.

When the virtual ECU 5 successfully locks the write flag (S13: YES), that is, when the write flag is locked, the virtual ECU 5 turns on the locked write flag (S14). In other words, the write flag changes to the ON state after being locked.

As described above, the virtual ECU 5 writes communication data to another virtual ECU 5 in the transmission/reception table 60 in association with the identifier of the communication data and the write flag and read flag associated with the identifier (S15). The communication data is updated in the transmission/reception table 60 .

As described above, the virtual ECU 5 turns on the read flag associated with the communication data written in the transmission/reception table 60 (S16). Further, the virtual ECU 5 turns off the write flag associated with the communication data written in the transmission/reception table 60 (S17), and unlocks the write flag (S18). The virtual ECU 5 ends the processing.

If the write flag associated with the specified identifier is not unlocked (S11: NO), the virtual ECU 5 ends the process. When the virtual ECU 5 is regenerated (activated), it performs processing related to transmission of communication data to another virtual ECU 5, and writes the communication data in the transmission/reception table as described above. If the write flag is not unlocked, the virtual ECU 5 may perform loop processing to perform the determination of S11 again. The virtual ECU 5 may perform standby processing for a predetermined time before performing the above loop processing. In other words, the virtual ECU 5 may perform the standby process until the write flag is unlocked, and perform the process of S12 when the write flag is unlocked.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to reception of communication data from another virtual ECU 5 performed by the virtual ECU 5 . For example, the virtual ECU 5 performs the following processing when generated or activated.

As described above, the virtual ECU 5 refers to the transmission/reception table 60 and determines whether or not the read flag of its own virtual ECU is ON (S21). If the read flag of the own virtual ECU is not on (S21: NO), the virtual ECU 5 ends the process.

When the read flag of its own virtual ECU is ON (S21: YES), the virtual ECU 5 performs the following processing. In the transmission/reception table 60, the virtual ECU 5 tries to lock the write flag associated with the read flag in the ON state among the read flags stored in the read flag row of the own virtual ECU (S22), and succeeds in locking the write flag. (S23). When the virtual ECU 5 fails to lock the write flag (S23: NO), that is, when it fails to lock the write flag, it ends the process. When the virtual ECU 5 fails to lock the write flag, it may attempt to lock the write flag again. For example, the virtual ECU 5 terminates the process when it fails to lock the write flag a predetermined number of times.

When the virtual ECU 5 successfully locks the write flag (S23: YES), that is, when the write flag is locked, the virtual ECU 5 determines whether the locked write flag is off (S24). If the above write flag is in the off state (S24: YES), the virtual ECU 5 sends communication data associated with the read flag in the on state among the read flags stored in the read flag column of the own virtual ECU to the transmission/reception table 60. (S25). That is, the virtual ECU 5 retrieves from the transmission/reception table 60 the communication data associated with the off-state write flags and the communication data associated with the on-state read flags among the read flags stored in the read flag string of the own virtual ECU. read out.

The virtual ECU 5 turns off the read flags associated with the communication data read from the transmission/reception table 60 among the read flags stored in the read flag string of its own virtual ECU (S26). The virtual ECU 5 unlocks the write flag associated with the communication data read from the transmission/reception table 60 (S27), and ends the process.

If the write flag is not off (S24: NO), that is, if the write flag is on, the virtual ECU 5 ends the process. When the virtual ECU 5 is regenerated (activated), it performs processing related to reception of communication data from another virtual ECU 5 and reads the communication data from the transmission/reception table 60 as described above. If the above write flag is not in the off state, the virtual ECU 5 may perform loop processing to perform the determination of S24 again. The virtual ECU 5 may perform standby processing for a predetermined time before performing the above loop processing. In other words, the virtual ECU 5 may perform the standby process until the write flag is turned off, and perform the process of S25 when the write flag is turned off.

In this aspect, a plurality of virtual ECUs 5 are generated by the control unit 20 activating the virtualized operating system. Note that the virtual operating system is an operating system for constructing the virtual ECU 5, such as Hypervisor. Communication among the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 is performed by exchanging communication data between the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 via the communication data storage area 6 . The virtual ECU 5 that is the transmission source of the communication data writes the communication data to be transmitted to the other virtual ECU 5 that is the transmission destination of the communication data in the transmission/reception table 60 included in the communication data storage area 6 . Communication data to be written is associated with a write flag and a read flag in the transmit/receive table 60 . The virtual ECU 5, which is the transmission destination of the communication data, reads the communication data from the transmission/reception table 60 when the write flag is in the off state and the read flag is in the on state. Since the communication data whose write flag is in the OFF state is read, the communication data is not written when the communication data is read. Since communication data writing and reading to/from the transmission/reception table 60 do not compete, communication data can be efficiently exchanged between the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 . In other words, communication between the virtual ECUs 5 can be efficiently performed.

After reading the communication data, the virtual ECU 5 to which the communication data is sent changes the read flag associated with the communication data from the ON state to the OFF state, thereby preventing the same communication data from being erroneously read again. be able to.

The communication data written in the transmission/reception table 60 is read by one virtual ECU 5 or two or more virtual ECUs 5 . A read flag associated with the communication data in the transmission/reception table 60 is provided for the virtual ECU 5 that reads the communication data. When the write flag is off and the read flag corresponding to the own virtual ECU is on, the virtual ECU 5 reads the communication data whose read flag is on from the transmission/reception table 60 . After reading the communication data, the virtual ECU 5 turns off the read flag. Virtual ECU5 can appropriately transmit communication data to virtual ECU5 of the transmission destination of communication data. Even if a plurality of virtual ECUs 5 are transmission destinations of the communication data, each of the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 as transmission destinations can read the communication data from the transmission/reception table 60 based on the corresponding read flag. Even in the above case, communication data can be efficiently exchanged between the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 .

In the transmission/reception table 60, the destination virtual ECU 5, that is, the receiving side virtual ECU 5, can specify the communication data that it should receive, so it is possible to omit the process of reading communication data that is not addressed to itself.

Before writing the communication data to the transmission/reception table 60, the virtual ECU 5 turns on the write flag associated with the communication data. After writing the communication data to the transmission/reception table 60, the virtual ECU 5 changes the write flag associated with the communication data from the ON state to the OFF state, and further sets the read flag associated with the communication data to the ON state. Since the write flag is on while the virtual ECU 5 is writing the communication data, it is possible to prevent the communication data being written from being read. Since the write flag and the read flag are updated as described above after the communication data is written, the communication data can be exchanged between the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 without competing in the writing and reading of the communication data in the transmission/reception table 60. can be done.

In this embodiment, the communication data is written in the transmission/reception table 60 included in the communication data storage area 6 in association with the identifier, data length, write flag, and read flag. The in-vehicle ECU 2 may be configured such that a plurality of pieces of communication data associated with the identifier, data length, write flag, and read flag are distributed and written in the communication data storage area 6 .

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating the logical configuration of the in-vehicle ECU 2 of the second embodiment. In the configuration according to the second embodiment, the same components as in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. Embodiment 2 relates to an in-vehicle ECU 2 in which communication data is exchanged between a plurality of virtual ECUs 5 via a communication data storage area 6 including a transmission buffer 61 and a reception table 62 which will be described later.

The in-vehicle ECU 2 of Embodiment 2 includes a control section 20 and a storage section 21 . The control unit 20 includes four arithmetic devices 200 including a first arithmetic device 201 , a second arithmetic device 202 , a third arithmetic device 203 and a fourth arithmetic device 204 .

As in the first embodiment, the first virtual ECU 51 is periodically generated in the first computing device 201 . The virtual control unit 5 a of the generated first virtual ECU 51 is assigned to the first arithmetic unit 201 . That is, the first arithmetic unit 201 functions as the generated first virtual ECU 51 . The second virtual ECU 52 is periodically generated in the second arithmetic unit 202 . The second arithmetic unit 202 functions as the generated second virtual ECU 52 . The third virtual ECU 53 and the fourth virtual ECU 54 are alternately and periodically generated in the third arithmetic unit 203 . The third arithmetic unit 203 functions as the generated third virtual ECU 53 . Also, the third arithmetic unit 203 functions as the generated fourth virtual ECU 54 .

The fourth arithmetic unit 204 functions as the virtual ECU management unit 10 as in the first embodiment. Furthermore, the fourth arithmetic unit 204 functions as a communication data management unit 11 that manages communication data transfer between a plurality of virtual ECUs 5 including the first virtual ECU 51, the second virtual ECU 52, the third virtual ECU 53, and the fourth virtual ECU 54. do. Processing performed by the communication data management unit 11 will be described later. The communication data management section 11 corresponds to a management section.

The storage unit 21 includes a communication data storage area 6. In the in-vehicle ECU 2 of the second embodiment, the communication data storage area 6 includes a transmission buffer 61 in which communication data transmitted by the virtual ECU 5 to other virtual ECUs 5 is written, and a reception table 62 in which communication data received by the virtual ECU 5 is written. include.

A transmission buffer 61 is provided for each virtual ECU 5 . In this embodiment, the communication data storage area 6 includes four transmission buffers 61 , a first transmission buffer 611 , a second transmission buffer 612 , a third transmission buffer 613 and a fourth transmission buffer 614 . The first transmission buffer 611 corresponds to the first virtual ECU 51 . The first virtual ECU 51 writes communication data to the first transmission buffer 611 . The second transmission buffer 612 corresponds to the second virtual ECU 52 . The second virtual ECU 52 writes communication data to the second transmission buffer 612 . The third transmission buffer 613 corresponds to the third virtual ECU 53 . The third virtual ECU 53 writes communication data to the third transmission buffer 613 . A fourth transmission buffer 614 corresponds to the fourth virtual ECU 54 . The fourth virtual ECU 54 writes communication data to the fourth transmission buffer 614 .

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of the transmission buffer 61. As shown in FIG. The transmission buffer 61 stores one piece of communication data, the identifier of the communication data, and the data length of the communication data in association with each other. The data length may be omitted in the transmission buffer 61 .

FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the contents of the reception table 62. FIG. The reception table 62 includes an identifier string, a data length string, a communication data string, a synchronization flag string, and a read flag string for each virtual ECU 5 .

Communication data is stored in the communication data string. The identifier column stores identifiers of communication data. Specifically, in the identifier string, the identifiers of all communication data exchanged between the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 are stored in advance, similarly to the identifier string of the transmission/reception table 60 of the first embodiment. For example, the identifier of the communication data transmitted from one virtual ECU5 and the identifier of the communication data transmitted from other virtual ECU5 do not overlap.

The data length column stores the data length of the communication data. A synchronization flag indicating that synchronization of communication data in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62 is being performed is stored in the synchronization flag string. Synchronization of communication data in the transmission buffer 61 and reception table 62 will be described later. A sync flag includes an ON state and an OFF state. When the synchronization flag is on, communication data in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62 are synchronized. When the synchronization flag is off, synchronization of communication data in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62 is not performed. In the transmission/reception table 60, the communication data, the identifier of the communication data, the data length of the communication data, and the synchronization flag are stored in association with each other.

The read flag string for each virtual ECU 5 includes a reception information string and a read flag string provided for each virtual ECU 5, similar to the transmission/reception table 60 of the first embodiment. Each received information string stores received information associated with an identifier, data length, communication data, and an update flag. In the reception table 62 of FIG. 9, reception information associated with communication data to be received by the virtual ECU 5 is indicated as a reception target. Received information associated with communication data that is not subject to reception by the virtual ECU 5 is indicated as excluded.

In each read flag string, read flags are recorded and stored in association with reception information indicating reception targets, identifiers, data lengths, communication data, and update flags, as in the transmission/reception table 60 of the first embodiment. ing.

For example, in the communication data storage area 6, a transmission state including a busy state in which communication data is read from and written to the transmission buffer 61 and a ready state in which communication data is not read from and written to the transmission buffer 61 is stored. It is stored for each transmission buffer 61 . That is, the transmission state is stored in the communication data storage area 6 for each virtual ECU 5 . The place where the transmission state is stored is not limited to the communication data storage area 6 as long as it is a place accessible by the virtual ECU 5 and the communication data management unit 11 , for example, the storage unit 21 . For example, the transmission status may be stored in transmission buffer 61 . The virtual ECU 5 sets the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU to the ready state when it acquires a synchronization end signal, which will be described later, output from the communication data management unit 11 .

Transmission and reception of communication data between a plurality of virtual ECUs 5 according to the second embodiment will be described below. The virtual ECU 5 that is the transmission source of the communication data determines whether or not the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU is in the ready state. When the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU is not in the ready state, that is, when the transmission state is in the busy state, the virtual ECU 5 performs standby processing until the transmission state becomes the ready state. In other words, the virtual ECU 5 performs standby processing until it acquires the synchronization end signal output from the communication data management unit 11 .

When the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU is in the ready state, the virtual ECU 5 changes the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 from the ready state to the busy state. The virtual ECU 5 writes the communication data to be transmitted to the other virtual ECU 5 in association with the identifier and data length of the communication data in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU. Hereinafter, the virtual ECU 5 writing the communication data to the transmission buffer 61 also refers to the communication data, the identifier, and the data length being associated with each other and written to the transmission buffer 61 . The reception table 62 corresponds to the first storage area.

It is assumed that when the virtual ECU 5 writes the communication data, the identifier and the data length to the transmission buffer 61, the communication data, the identifier and the data length have already been written to the transmission buffer 61. In such a case, the virtual ECU 5 overwrites the already written communication data, identifier and data length with the newly written communication data, identifier and data length in the transmission buffer 61 . In other words, the virtual ECU 5 updates the communication data in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU.

After writing the communication data to the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU, the virtual ECU 5 outputs write completion information indicating that the communication data has been written to the transmission buffer 61 to the communication data management unit 11 . The communication data management unit 11 is notified that the communication data has been written to the transmission buffer 61 . The write completion information is distinguished for each virtual ECU 5 that outputs the write completion information. Therefore, by acquiring the output write completion information, the communication data management unit 11 can identify to which transmission buffer 61 of the four transmission buffers 61 the communication data has been written.

When the above write completion information output from the virtual ECU 5 is acquired, the communication data management unit 11 writes the communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to the virtual ECU 5 to the reception table 62 . Specifically, before the communication data management unit 11 writes the communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 to the reception table 62, the synchronization flag associated with the identifier of the communication data and the reception table 62 is unlocked. Determine whether or not

When the synchronization flag is unlocked, the communication data management unit 11 locks the synchronization flag and turns on the locked synchronization flag. The communication data management unit 11 associates the communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 with the identifier of the communication data in the reception table 62 and writes them in the reception table 62 . The communication data associated with the above communication data identifier in the reception table 62 is updated. The communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 and part of the communication data written in the reception table 62 are the same communication data. In other words, synchronization of communication data in the transmission buffer 61 and reception table 62 is performed.

After writing the communication data to the reception table 62, the communication data management unit 11 turns on the read flag associated with the identifier of the communication data in the reception table 62. Further, the communication data management unit 11 changes the synchronization flag associated with the communication data identifier from the ON state to the OFF state, and unlocks the changed synchronization flag. In other words, after writing the communication data to the reception table 62 , the communication data management unit 11 updates the synchronization flag and read flag associated with the identifier of the written communication data in the reception table 62 .

After updating the update flag and the read flag, the communication data management unit 11 outputs a synchronization end signal to the virtual ECU 5 corresponding to the transmission buffer 61 in which the synchronized communication data is written. The synchronization end signal indicates that synchronization of communication data in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62 has ended. The virtual ECU 5 corresponding to the transmission buffer 61 in which the synchronized communication data is written is the virtual ECU 5 that outputs the write completion information.

As described above, the synchronization flag indicates that synchronization of communication data in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62 is being performed. In other words, the synchronous flag indicates that communication data is being written to the reception table 62 . When the synchronization flag is ON, communication data has been written to the reception table 62 . When the synchronization flag is off, writing of communication data to the reception table 62 has not been performed. The reception table 62 is written with communication data read by the destination virtual ECU 5 . The reception table 62 corresponds to the second storage area. The synchronization flag corresponds to the second storage area write flag.

If the synchronization flag is not unlocked, the communication data management unit 11 does not synchronize the communication data in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62, and outputs the synchronization end signal and the write completion information to the virtual ECU 5 Output to Note that the end of synchronization includes the fact that synchronization was not performed.

The virtual ECU 5 to which the communication data is sent is the communication data associated with the synchronization flag in the OFF state, and is associated with the read flag in the ON state among the read flags stored in the read flag column of the own virtual ECU. Communication data is read from the reception table 62 . That is, the virtual ECU 5 reads the communication data from the reception table 62 when the synchronization flag is off and the read flag is on.

For example, the virtual ECU 5 refers to the reception table 62 and determines whether or not the read flag of its own virtual ECU is on. The virtual ECU 5 does not read communication data unless the read flag of its own virtual ECU is turned on. The case where the read flag of the virtual ECU 5 is not in the ON state means that all the read flags stored in the read flag column of the virtual ECU 5 in the reception table 62 are in the OFF state.

The virtual ECU 5 performs the following processing when the read flag of its own virtual ECU is on. In the reception table 62, the virtual ECU 5 locks the synchronization flag associated with the ON-state read flag among the read flags stored in the read flag row of the own virtual ECU. The case where the read flag of the virtual ECU 5 is ON means that at least one of the read flags stored in the read flag column of the virtual ECU 5 in the reception table 62 is in the ON state.

The virtual ECU 5 determines whether or not the locked synchronization flag is off. Virtual ECU5 performs the following processes, when the locked synchronous flag is in an OFF state. The virtual ECU 5 reads from the reception table 62 the communication data associated with the ON-state read flags among the read flags stored in the read flag string of its own virtual ECU. In other words, the virtual ECU 5 reads communication data associated with the locked synchronization flag from the reception table 62 .

If there are a plurality of read flags in the ON state among the read flags stored in the read flag string of the virtual ECU 5, the virtual ECU 5 sets the communication data associated with each of the read flags in the ON state as described above. to read from the reception table 62.

After reading the communication data from the reception table 62, the virtual ECU 5 changes the read flag associated with the read communication data from the on state to the off state among the read flags stored in the read flag row of the own virtual ECU. Furthermore, the virtual ECU 5 unlocks the synchronization flag associated with the read communication data.

The virtual ECU 5 does not read communication data from the reception table 62 when the locked synchronization flag is on. The virtual ECU 5 reads communication data from the reception table 62 in the next cycle. When the synchronization flag is ON, the virtual ECU 5 performs standby processing until the synchronization flag is turned OFF, and after the synchronization flag is turned OFF, the communication data is transferred from the reception table 62 as described above. May be read.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to transmission of communication data to another virtual ECU 5 performed by the virtual ECU 5 of the second embodiment. For example, the virtual ECU 5 performs the following processing when generated or activated.

The virtual ECU 5 that is the transmission source of the communication data determines whether or not the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU is ready (S31). If the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU is not ready (S31: NO), that is, if the transmission state is busy, the virtual ECU 5 performs loop processing to perform the processing of S31 again. In other words, the virtual ECU 5 performs standby processing until the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU reaches the ready state.

When the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU is in the ready state (S31: YES), the virtual ECU 5 changes the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 from the ready state to the busy state (S32). As described above, the virtual ECU 5 writes the communication data to be transmitted to the other virtual ECU 5 in association with the identifier and data length of the communication data in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU. In other words, the virtual ECU 5 updates the communication data, the identifier and the data length in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU (S33).

After writing the communication data, the identifier and the data length to the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU 5, the virtual ECU 5 outputs the write completion information to the communication data management unit 11 (S34), and ends the process. The write completion information output to the communication data management unit 11 is a so-called interrupt notification to the communication data management unit 11 . The virtual ECU 5 may perform the process of S31 instead of ending the process.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to communication data synchronization in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62 performed by the communication data management unit 11 . For example, the fourth arithmetic unit 204 functions as the communication data management unit 11 when an IG (ignition) switch of the vehicle changes from a stopped state to an activated state. The communication data management part 11 performs the following processes, when the above-mentioned write completion information output from virtual ECU5 is acquired.

The communication data management unit 11 determines whether or not the identifier of the communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to the virtual ECU 5 that has output the write completion information and the synchronization flag associated in the reception table 62 are unlocked. (S41). If the synchronization flag is not unlocked (S41: NO), that is, if the synchronization flag is locked, the communication data management unit 11 performs the process of S49, which will be described later.

If the synchronization flag is unlocked (S41: YES), the communication data management unit 11 attempts to lock the synchronization flag (S42), and determines whether or not the synchronization flag has been successfully locked. (S43). If the synchronization flag is not successfully locked (S43: NO), that is, if the synchronization flag is not successfully locked, the communication data management unit 11 performs the process of S49, which will be described later. When the communication data management unit 11 fails to lock the synchronization flag, it may attempt to lock the synchronization flag again. For example, the communication data management unit 11 performs the process of S49 when the locking of the synchronization flag fails a predetermined number of times.

When the synchronization flag is successfully locked (S43: YES), that is, when the synchronization flag is locked, the communication data management unit 11 turns on the locked synchronization flag (S44). The communication data management unit 11 associates the communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 with the identifier of the communication data in the reception table 62, and writes them in the reception table 62 (S45). Communication data in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62 are synchronized. In other words, the communication data are updated in the reception table 62 .

As described above, the communication data management unit 11 turns on the read flag associated with the communication data identifier in the reception table 62 (S46). Furthermore, the communication data management unit 11 turns off the synchronization flag associated with the communication data identifier (S47), and unlocks the synchronization flag that has been turned off (S48). The communication data management unit 11 outputs a synchronization end signal to the virtual ECU 5 that has output the write completion information (S49), and terminates the process. The virtual ECU 5 changes the transmission state of the transmission buffer 61 of its own virtual ECU to the ready state by acquiring the output synchronization end signal. The synchronization end signal output to the virtual ECU 5 is a so-called interrupt notification to the virtual ECU 5 .

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to reception of communication data from another virtual ECU 5 performed by the virtual ECU 5 of the second embodiment. For example, the virtual ECU 5 performs the following processing when generated or activated.

The virtual ECU 5 refers to the reception table 62 and determines whether or not the read flag of its own virtual ECU is on (S51). If the read flag of the own virtual ECU is not on (S51: NO), the virtual ECU 5 ends the process. Virtual ECU5 performs the following processes, when the read-out flag of self virtual ECU is an ON state (S51:YES). In the reception table 62, the virtual ECU 5 tries to lock the synchronization flag associated with the read flag in the ON state among the read flags stored in the read flag string of its own virtual ECU (S52), and succeeds in locking the synchronization flag. (S53). When the virtual ECU 5 fails to lock the synchronization flag (S53: NO), that is, when it fails to lock the synchronization flag, it ends the process. When the virtual ECU 5 fails to lock the synchronization flag, it may attempt to lock the synchronization flag again. For example, the virtual ECU 5 terminates the process when it fails to lock the synchronization flag a predetermined number of times.

When the synchronization flag is successfully locked (S53: YES), that is, when the synchronization flag is locked, the virtual ECU 5 determines whether the locked synchronization flag is off (S54). If the synchronization flag is OFF (S54: YES), the virtual ECU 5 receives the communication data associated with the ON read flag among the read flags stored in the read flag column of the virtual ECU. (S55). That is, the virtual ECU 5 retrieves from the transmission/reception table 60 the communication data associated with the ON-state read flag among the read flags stored in the read flag string of the virtual ECU 5, which is communication data associated with the OFF-state synchronization flag. read out.

The virtual ECU 5 turns off the read flag associated with the communication data read from the reception table 62 among the read flags stored in the read flag string of its own virtual ECU (S56). The virtual ECU 5 unlocks the synchronization flag associated with the communication data read from the reception table 62 (S57), and ends the process.

If the synchronization flag is not off (S54: NO), that is, if the synchronization flag is on, the virtual ECU 5 ends the process. When the virtual ECU 5 is regenerated (activated), it performs processing related to receiving communication data from another virtual ECU 5, and reads the communication data from the reception table 62 as described above. If the synchronization flag is not in the OFF state, the virtual ECU 5 may perform loop processing to perform the determination of S54 again. The virtual ECU 5 may perform standby processing for a predetermined time before performing the above loop processing. In other words, the virtual ECU 5 may perform the standby process until the synchronization flag is turned off, and perform the process of S55 when the synchronization flag is turned off.

In this embodiment, the communication data storage area 6 includes a transmission buffer 61 provided for each of the plurality of virtual ECUs 5 and a reception table 62 accessible by each virtual ECU 5 and the communication data management unit 11 . The virtual ECU 5 writes communication data to be transmitted to the other virtual ECUs 5 into the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU. The communication data management unit 11 writes the communication data written in the first storage area to the second storage area. Before writing the communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 to the reception table 62 , the communication data management unit 11 turns on the synchronization flag associated with the communication data in the reception table 62 . After writing the communication data to the reception table 62, the communication data management unit 11 changes the synchronization flag associated with the communication data from the ON state to the OFF state in the reception table 62, and further changes the read flag associated with the communication data. turn on. The virtual ECU 5 to which the communication data is to be sent has the synchronization flag turned off and the read flag corresponding to the own virtual ECU is turned on, the synchronization flag is turned off and the read flag is turned on The communication data indicating the state is read from the reception table 62 . Since the transmission buffer 61 is provided for each of the multiple virtual ECUs 5 , the multiple virtual ECUs 5 do not write the communication data to the same transmission buffer 61 . Even if another virtual ECU 5 is writing communication data, the virtual ECU 5 can write the communication data into its own transmission buffer corresponding to its own virtual ECU without waiting for the end of the writing. The virtual ECU 5 can write communication data to the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU even when another virtual ECU 5 is reading communication data from the reception table 62 .

In this embodiment, the arithmetic device 200 functioning as the virtual ECU management unit 10 and the arithmetic device 200 functioning as the communication data management unit 11 are the same virtual ECU 5 . The arithmetic device 200 functioning as the virtual ECU management unit 10 and the arithmetic device 200 functioning as the communication data management unit 11 may be different virtual ECUs 5 . The same virtual ECU 5 may function both as the virtual ECU 5 and as the communication data management unit 11 .

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of the transmission buffer 61 according to the third embodiment. In the configuration according to Embodiment 3, the same components as those in Embodiment 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. Embodiment 3 relates to an in-vehicle ECU 2 in which communication data is exchanged between a plurality of virtual ECUs 5 via a communication data storage area 6 including a transmission buffer 61 into which a plurality of communication data can be written.

The communication data storage area 6 of Embodiment 3 includes a transmission buffer 61 into which multiple pieces of communication data can be written. The transmission buffer 61 is provided for each of the multiple virtual ECUs 5, as in the second embodiment. The transmission buffer 61 stores communication data, an identifier of the communication data, and a data length of the communication data in association with each other. The transmission buffer 61 is configured so that a plurality of pieces of communication data can be written in association with identifiers, data lengths, and count values. The transmission buffer 61 in FIG. 13 has N stages and has N stages. Note that N is a natural number. One piece of communication data is written in association with the identifier and data length of the communication data in one stage. Therefore, up to N pieces of communication data, identifiers, and data lengths can be written in association with each other in the transmission buffer 61 of FIG.

As described above, the virtual ECU 5 can write a plurality of pieces of communication data to the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU. In the communication data storage area 6, the number of writes indicating the number of pieces of communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 is stored for each transmission buffer 61. FIG. That is, the number of writes is stored in the communication data storage area 6 for each virtual ECU 5 .

An example in which the virtual ECU 5 writes N pieces of communication data to the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU will be described below. Before writing the first communication data out of the N pieces of communication data, the virtual ECU 5 sets the number of writes to 0 in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU. When the virtual ECU 5 writes the first communication data to the transmission buffer, the virtual ECU 5 increases the number of data written in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to the own virtual ECU by one. The virtual ECU 5 associates the first communication data with the identifier and data length of the communication data, and writes them to the first stage of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to the own virtual ECU. The virtual ECU 5 may increase the number of writes by 1 before writing the communication data to the transmission buffer 61 or may increase the number of writes by 1 after writing the communication data to the transmission buffer 61 .

When writing the second communication data to the transmission buffer, the virtual ECU 5 increments the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU by one. The virtual ECU 5 associates the second communication data with the identifier and data length of the communication data, and writes them to the second stage of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to the own virtual ECU. The virtual ECU 5 repeats incrementing the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU by 1, associating communication data with the identifier and data length of the communication data, and writing the communication data in the transmission buffer 61 .

When writing the N-th communication data to the transmission buffer, the virtual ECU 5 increments the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU by one. The virtual ECU 5 associates the N-th communication data with the identifier and data length of the communication data, and writes them to the N-th stage of the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to the own virtual ECU. All communication data scheduled to be transmitted from the virtual ECU 5 to another virtual ECU 5 are written in the transmission buffer 61 . The virtual ECU 5 outputs write completion information to the communication data management unit 11 after writing all the communication data to be transmitted to the other virtual ECU 5 in the transmission buffer 61 .

When writing new communication data to the transmission buffer 61, if the communication data has already been written to the transmission buffer 61, the virtual ECU 5 writes the new communication data to the already written communication data, as in the second embodiment. Overwrite. For example, when the number of pieces of communication data already written in the transmission buffer 61 is greater than the number of pieces of communication data newly written by the virtual ECU 5, the virtual ECU 5 updates the communication data in the transmission buffer 61 as follows. good too. The virtual ECU 5 stores the new communication data, the identifier and the data length of the new communication data, part of the communication data already written in the transmission buffer 61, and the part of the communication data. Overwrite the identifier and data length. The virtual ECU 5 deletes the remaining communication data and the identifier and data length of the remaining communication data from the communication data already written in the transmission buffer 61 . The virtual ECU 5 may delete all communication data, identifiers and data lengths already written in the transmission buffer 61 and write new communication data, identifiers and data lengths in the transmission buffer 61 .

As described above, the virtual ECU 5 increases by 1 the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 into which the communication data is written each time one piece of communication data is written into the transmission buffer 61 . In other words, the virtual ECU 5 updates the number of writes each time one piece of communication data is written in the transmission buffer 61 . For example, when the first virtual ECU 51 writes N pieces of communication data to the first transmission buffer 611, the number of pieces written in the first transmission buffer 611 is set to N.

In this embodiment, the virtual ECU 5 increases the number of written data by 1 each time it writes one piece of communication data to the transmission buffer 61, but the method of increasing the number of written data is not limited to the above method. The virtual ECU 5 may increase the number of pieces of data written in the transmission buffer 61 according to the number of pieces of communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU. For example, after writing a plurality of pieces of communication data in the transmission buffer 61, the virtual ECU 5 may set the number of pieces of communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 to the number of pieces of written communication data.

The communication data storage area 6 stores, for each transmission buffer 61, the number of synchronizations indicating the number of pieces of communication data that have been synchronized in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62. That is, the number of synchronizations is stored in the communication data storage area 6 for each virtual ECU 5 .

When the communication data management unit 11 acquires the write completion information output from the virtual ECU 5, it performs the following processing. The communication data management unit 11 refers to the communication data storage area 6 and acquires the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to the virtual ECU 5 that has output the acquired write completion information. In the above example, the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 is N. The communication data management unit 11 sets the number of synchronous data in the transmission buffer 61 to zero. The communication data management unit 11 reads the first communication data from the transmission buffer 61 and writes the read communication data to the reception table 62 in the same manner as in the second embodiment. In other words, the first communication data is synchronized in the transmission buffer 61 and reception table 62 . For example, the first communication data is communication data in the first stage of the transmission buffer 61 described above.

After writing the first communication data read from the transmission buffer 61 to the reception table 62, the communication data management unit 11 increases the synchronization number of the transmission buffer 61 by one. The communication data management unit 11 compares the obtained number of written data in the transmission buffer 61 with the synchronous number of data in the transmission buffer 61 .

When the synchronous number is smaller than the written number, that is, when the written number and the synchronous number do not match, the communication data management unit 11 reads the second communication data from the transmission buffer 61 and executes the read communication data. Write to the reception table 62 in the same manner as in form 2. For example, the second communication data is communication data in the second stage of the transmission buffer 61 described above. After writing the second communication data to the reception table 62, the communication data management unit 11 increases the number of synchronization data in the transmission buffer 61 by one. Furthermore, the communication data management unit 11 compares the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 and the number of synchronizations.

The communication data management unit 11 writes communication data to the reception table 62 and increments the number of synchronizations in the transmission buffer 61 by 1 until the number of writings in the transmission buffer 61 and the number of synchronizations in the transmission buffer 61 match. repeat. In the above example, the communication data management unit 11 repeats writing communication data to the reception table 62 and increasing the number of synchronizations in the transmission buffer 61 by 1 until the number of synchronizations in the transmission buffer 61 reaches N. .

The location where the number of writes and the number of synchronizations are stored is not limited to the communication data storage area 6 as long as it is accessible by the virtual ECU 5 and the communication data management unit 11, such as the storage unit 21. For example, the number of writes and the number of synchronizations may be stored in the transmission buffer 61 .

For example, when communication data with an identifier associated with a locked synchronization flag in the reception table 62 is written in the transmission buffer 61, the communication data management unit 11 performs the following processing. The communication data management unit 11 increases the number of synchronizations in the transmission buffer 61 by 1 without synchronizing the communication data in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62 . The communication data management unit 11 compares the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 and the number of synchronizations. When the number of synchronizations is smaller than the number of writings, the communication data management unit 11 synchronizes the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62 as described above for the next communication data of the above communication data.

The virtual ECU 5 to which the communication data is sent reads the communication data from the reception table 62 in the same manner as in the second embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to transmission of communication data to another virtual ECU 5 performed by the virtual ECU 5 of the third embodiment. For example, the virtual ECU 5 performs the following processing when generated or activated.

The virtual ECU 5 sets the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU to 0 (S61). The virtual ECU 5 determines whether or not there is unsent communication data (S62). Communication data that has not been transmitted is communication data that is not written in the transmission buffer 61 among communication data scheduled to be transmitted to another virtual ECU 5 .

If there is unsent communication data (S62: YES), the virtual ECU 5 writes the unsent communication data and the identifier and data length of the communication data to the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to the own virtual ECU as described above. (S63). For example, the virtual ECU 5 writes one piece of communication data among the unsent communication data, and the identifier and data length of the communication data in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to the own virtual ECU as described above. As described above, the virtual ECU 5 increases the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU (S64). For example, the virtual ECU 5 increases the number of data written in the transmission buffer 61 by one when writing one communication data in the transmission buffer 61 . The virtual ECU 5 performs the process of S62.

If there is no unsent communication data (S62: NO), the virtual ECU 5 outputs write completion information to the communication data management unit 11 (S65), and ends the process.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating processing related to communication data synchronization in the transmission buffer 61 and the reception table 62 performed by the communication data management unit 11 of the third embodiment. The communication data management part 11 performs the following processes, when the above-mentioned write completion information output from virtual ECU5 is acquired.

The communication data management unit 11 acquires the number of writes in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to the virtual ECU 5 that has output the acquired write completion information (S71). The communication data management unit 11 sets the number of synchronization data in the transmission buffer 61 to 0 (S72). The communication data management unit 11 determines whether or not the number of synchronizations is smaller than the acquired number of writes (S73).

If the number of synchronizations is less than the number of writes acquired (S73: YES), the communication data management unit 11 performs the process of S74. Since the processing of S74 is the same as the processing of S41 of the second embodiment, detailed description thereof will be omitted. If the synchronization flag is not unlocked (S74: NO), that is, if the synchronization flag is locked, the communication data management unit 11 performs the process of S82, which will be described later.

If the synchronization flag is unlocked (S74: YES), the communication data management unit 11 performs the processes of S75 and S76. Since the processes of S75 and S76 are the same as the processes of S42 and S43 of the second embodiment, detailed description thereof will be omitted. If the synchronization flag is not successfully locked (S76: NO), that is, if the synchronization flag is not successfully locked, the communication data management unit 11 performs the process of S82, which will be described later. When the communication data management unit 11 fails to lock the synchronization flag, it may attempt to lock the synchronization flag again. For example, the communication data management unit 11 performs the process of S82 when the locking of the synchronization flag fails a predetermined number of times.

When the synchronization flag is successfully locked (S76: YES), that is, when the synchronization flag is locked, the communication data management unit 11 performs the processes of S77, S78, S79, S80 and S81. Since the processes of S77, S78, S79, S80 and S81 are the same as the processes of S44, S45, S46, S47 and S48 of the second embodiment, detailed description thereof will be omitted. As described above, the communication data management unit 11 increases the number of synchronized data in the transmission buffer 61 (S82), and performs the process of S73. For example, the communication data management unit 11 increases the number of synchronizations in the transmission buffer 61 by 1 as described above.

If the synchronous number is not less than the acquired written number (S73: NO), for example, if the synchronous number and the written number are the same value, the communication data management unit 11 terminates the process.

A flow chart illustrating processing related to reception of communication data from another virtual ECU 5 performed by the virtual ECU 5 of the third embodiment is omitted because it is the same as that of the second embodiment.

In this embodiment, the virtual ECU 5 can write a plurality of pieces of communication data to the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU. The virtual ECU 5 increases the number of pieces of data written in the transmission buffer 61 according to the number of pieces of communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 corresponding to its own virtual ECU. A plurality of pieces of communication data written in the transmission buffer 61 can be efficiently written in the reception table 62 without omission based on the number of pieces written in the communication data management unit 11 . Since the virtual ECU 5 can write a plurality of pieces of communication data to the transmission buffer 61 , it is not necessary to output write completion information to the communication data management unit 11 every time one piece of communication data is written to the transmission buffer 61 . The frequency of communication between the virtual ECU 5 and the communication data management unit 11 can be reduced. Communication between multiple virtual ECUs can be performed more efficiently.

The embodiments disclosed this time are illustrative in all respects and should be considered not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the scope of the claims rather than the meaning described above, and is intended to include all changes within the meaning and scope equivalent to the scope of the claims.

A recording medium C vehicle P control program 10 virtual ECU management section 11 communication data management section (management section)
2 In-vehicle ECU (in-vehicle device)
20 Control Unit 200 Arithmetic Device 201 First Arithmetic Device 202 Second Arithmetic Device 203 Third Arithmetic Device 204 Fourth Arithmetic Device 21 Storage Part 22 In-Vehicle Communication Unit 3 Vehicle Equipment 30 Actuator 31 Sensor 4 Vehicle Network 5 Virtual ECU (virtual device)
5a virtual control unit 5b virtual storage unit 51 first virtual ECU
52 second virtual ECU
53 third virtual ECU
54 fourth virtual ECU
6 communication data storage area 60 transmission/reception table 61 transmission buffer (first storage area)
611 first transmission buffer 612 second transmission buffer 613 third transmission buffer 614 fourth transmission buffer 62 reception table (second storage area)

Claims

a control unit that executes a plurality of programs;
a storage unit storing a virtualized operating system booted by the control unit;
By activating the virtualization operating system, a plurality of virtual devices that serve as operating environments for the program are generated,
the storage unit includes a communication data storage area in which communication data exchanged in communication between the plurality of virtual devices is written;
In the communication data storage area,
a write flag associated with the communication data and indicating that the communication data is being written;
a read flag associated with the communication data and indicating whether or not to read the communication data;
the virtual device writes the communication data to the other virtual device into the communication data storage area when communicating with the other virtual device;
The other virtual device is
reading the communication data from the virtual device from the communication data storage area when the write flag is in an off state and the read flag is in an on state;
An in-vehicle device that turns off the read flag after reading the communication data.
The in-vehicle device according to claim 1, wherein the read flag is provided for the virtual device that reads the communication data.
The virtual device is
turning on the write flag before writing the communication data to the communication data storage area;
turning off the write flag after writing the communication data to the communication data storage area;
3. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1, further turning on the read flag associated with the communication data written in the communication data storage area.
The communication data storage area is
a first storage area provided for each of the plurality of virtual devices, wherein the virtual device writes the communication data to the other virtual device;
a second storage area in which the communication data read by the virtual device is written;
the write flag includes a second storage area write flag indicating that the communication data is being written to the second storage area;
A management unit that manages transmission and reception of the communication data between the plurality of virtual devices,
writing the communication data to be written in the first storage area to the second storage area in association with the second storage area write flag and the read flag;
turning on the second storage area write flag before writing the communication data to the second storage area;
turning off the second storage area write flag after writing the communication data to the second storage area;
Further, turning on the read flag associated with the communication data written in the second storage area,
3. The virtual device according to claim 1, wherein said virtual device reads said communication data from said second storage area when said second storage area write flag is in an off state and said read flag is in an on state. In-vehicle device.
The virtual device is
writing a plurality of said communication data to said first storage area;
The in-vehicle device according to claim 4, further comprising increasing a written number indicating the number of said communication data written in said first storage area.
generating a plurality of virtual devices that serve as operating environments for a plurality of programs in an in-vehicle device;
When the virtual machine communicates with another virtual machine, the communication data for the other virtual machine is written to a communication data storage area in which the communication data exchanged in communication between the plurality of virtual machines is written. ,
A write flag that is associated with the communication data in the communication data storage area and indicates that the communication data is being written is in an off state, and is associated with the communication data in the communication data storage area and has a request to read the communication data. reading the communication data from the virtual device from the communication data storage area when a read flag indicating no is on;
An information processing method, wherein the read flag is turned off after reading the communication data.
A computer program that causes a computer mounted on a vehicle to execute processing,
Generate multiple virtual devices that serve as operating environments for multiple programs,
When the virtual machine communicates with another virtual machine, the communication data for the other virtual machine is written to a communication data storage area in which the communication data exchanged in communication between the plurality of virtual machines is written. ,
A write flag that is associated with the communication data in the communication data storage area and indicates that the communication data is being written is in an off state, and is associated with the communication data in the communication data storage area and has a request to read the communication data. reading the communication data from the virtual device from the communication data storage area when a read flag indicating no is on;
A computer program that causes a computer to execute a process of turning off the read flag after reading the communication data.