Electronic control unit

• US 10,096,177 B2
• Filed: 01/07/2016
• Issued: 10/09/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/14/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Nishino, Eisuke
• Primary Examiner(s): Mustafa, Imran K
• Application Number:
  US14/990,006
• Publication Number:
  US 20160203654A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,006 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/00 Conjoint control of vehicle sub-units of different type or different function for propulsion of purely electrically-propelled vehicles with power supplied within the vehicle B60L50/00 - B60L58/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/02 Registering or indicating driving, working, idle, or waiting time only apparatus forming part of taximeters G07B13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/08 Registering or indicating performance data other than driving, working, idle, or waiting time, with or without registering driving, working, idle or waiting time
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0825 using optical means
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/085 using electronic data carriers

Abstract

An electronic control unit improves a serviceability for a user of a vehicle by performing an abnormality diagnosis of the vehicle based on (i) storing a readiness information indicating that readiness is complete in a readiness storage, (ii) storing a history of normal diagnosis results from an abnormality diagnosis in a history storage, and (iii) relaxing a readiness complete condition for storing the readiness information in the readiness storage under control of a microcomputer, when the history stored in the history storage includes information of existence of the normal history. By using the relaxed condition for the abnormality diagnosis, readiness information is more quickly stored when performing the abnormality diagnosis. Also, diagnostic process is completed more quickly, facilitating the repair process and enabling the user to more quickly receive a desired service.

Claims

1. An electronic control unit comprising:

an abnormality determiner configured to determine an abnormality of a vehicle by performing an abnormality diagnosis;

a first storage configured to store a readiness information, the readiness information (i) indicating that the abnormality determiner has performed the abnormality diagnosis for all of a plurality of abnormality diagnosis items and (ii) indicating that the readiness information is complete; and

a second storage configured to store a history of the abnormality diagnosis, the history of the abnormality diagnosis including information of whether a normal history exists indicating that a normal condition of one of the abnormality diagnosis items is satisfied, wherein

the abnormality determiner is further configured to

determine whether the history of the abnormality diagnosis including the information of existence of the normal history is stored in the second storage when the abnormality determiner performs the abnormality diagnosis,

use a relaxed condition in place of the normal condition for the abnormality diagnosis item during the abnormality diagnosis when the history of the abnormality diagnosis including the information of existence of the normal history is stored in the second storage, wherein

when the abnormality determiner uses the relaxed condition during one or more controls being performed in the vehicle while performing the abnormality diagnosis, the abnormality determiner completes and stores the readiness information more quickly using the relaxed condition than when the abnormality determiner uses the normal condition while performing the abnormality diagnosis, wherein the relaxed condition has fewer items and/or more easily completed items than the normal condition.

2. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein

the abnormality determiner uses the normal condition when performing the abnormality diagnosis, when the abnormality determiner determines that the history of the abnormality diagnosis including the information of existence of the normal history is not stored in the second storage.

3. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein

the abnormality determiner determines that the readiness information is complete,

in a case that the history of the abnormality diagnosis stored in the second storage includes the information of existence of the normal history, and when the relaxed condition for the abnormality diagnosis is satisfied, and

upon having satisfied one of an abnormal condition and the normal condition for the abnormality diagnosis, even when the relaxed condition for the abnormality diagnosis is unsatisfied.

4. The electronic control unit of claim 2, wherein

after determining whether an abnormal condition for the abnormality diagnosis is satisfied

the abnormality determiner sets the history to include the information that the history is without the normal history by clearing the history, in case that the abnormal condition is determined as satisfied, and

after determining whether the normal condition for the abnormality diagnosis is satisfied, the abnormality determiner sets the history to include the information of existence of the normal history, in case that the abnormal condition is determined as unsatisfied.

5. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein

the abnormality determiner is configured to include:

a reception unit receiving a code clear request from an external device; and

a clearing unit clearing the history stored in the second storage when (i) the reception unit has received the code clear request and (ii) the history stored in the second storage includes the information of existence of the normal history, and

the clearing unit clears the history including the information of existence of the normal history in the history, upon determining that the relaxed condition for the abnormality diagnosis is satisfied, when the reception unit has received the code clear request.

6. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein

the abnormality determiner is configured to include:

a reception unit receiving a code clear request from an external device; and

a clearing unit clearing the history from the second storage, when a number of the code clear requests received by the reception unit is equal to or greater than a preset value, after the storing of the history of the abnormality diagnosis in the second storage, the stored history of the abnormality diagnosis including the information of existence of the normal history.

7. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein

the abnormality determiner is configured to include:

a driving cycle determiner determining whether a driving cycle has transitioned to a next cycle; and

a clearing unit clearing the normal history when the driving cycle determiner determines that the driving cycle has transitioned to the next cycle, and

the clearing of the normal history is further based on satisfaction of the relaxed condition for the abnormality diagnosis.

8. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein the abnormality determiner is configured to include:

a driving cycle determiner determining whether a driving cycle has transitioned to a next cycle; and

a clearing unit clearing the normal history when the driving cycle determiner determines that the driving cycle has transitioned to the next cycle for a preset number of times.

9. The electronic control unit of claim 8, wherein

the clearing unit clears the normal history based on a condition that the relaxed condition for the abnormality diagnosis is unsatisfied.

10. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein

the abnormality determiner is configured to include:

a reception unit receiving a code clear request from an external device;

a timer measuring a time interval between one reception of the code clear request and a next reception by the reception unit; and

a counter counting a number of the code clear requests within a preset time interval that is measured by the timer, and

the information of existence of the normal history in the history is cleared based on a condition that the number of the code clear requests counted by the counter is equal to or greater than a preset threshold, when the history of the abnormality diagnosis stored in the second storage includes the information of existence of the normal history.

11. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein the readiness shows whether an abnormality diagnosis has been completed.

12. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein the readiness comprises information that shows the completion of the plurality of abnormality determination items.

13. The electronic control unit of claim 1, wherein the abnormality determiner is further configured to control operation of at least one actuator of the vehicle during the normal condition and during the relaxed condition.