Software component assigning system for vehicle

• US 10,509,674 B2
• Filed: 03/21/2017
• Issued: 12/17/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Okamoto, Satoshi, Sekizawa, Shogo, Ochiai, Yuta, Kaji, Kosuke
• Primary Examiner(s): Brophy, Matthew J
• Application Number:
  US15/465,013
• Publication Number:
  US 20170277566A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,001 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/004 Error avoidance G06F11/07 and subgroups take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/006 Identification G06F11/2289 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/008 Reliability or availability analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0739 in a data processing system embedded in automotive or aircraft systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3006 where the computing system is distributed, e.g. networked systems, clusters, multiprocessor systems multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46; allocation of resources G06F9/50
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3013 where the computing system is an embedded system, i.e. a combination of hardware and software dedicated to perform a certain function in mobile devices, printers, automotive or aircraft systems testing or monitoring of control systems or parts thereof G05B23/02
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3055 Monitoring arrangements for monitoring the status of the computing system or of the computing system component, e.g. monitoring if the computing system is on, off, available, not available error or fault processing without redundancy G06F11/0703; error detection or correction by redundancy in data representation G06F11/08; error detection or correction by redundancy in operation G06F11/14; error detection or correction by redundancy in hardware G06F11/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5011 the resources being hardware resources other than CPUs, Servers and Terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416

Abstract

A software component assigning system for a vehicle includes electronic control units connected to a common network in the vehicle, one of the electronic control units being an integrated control electronic control unit which is configured to: acquire a first rank value of each of the electronic control units, the first rank value becoming higher as a probability of occurrence of a malfunction is higher; acquire a second rank value of an additional software component that is additionally arranged in any one of the electronic control units, the second rank value becoming higher as a level of importance; and decide an electronic control unit to arrange the additional software component from among the electronic control units such that the additional software component is arranged in the electronic control unit of which the first rank value is lower as the second rank value of the additional software component is higher.

Claims

1. A software component assigning system for a vehicle, the software component assigning system comprising:

electronic control units connected to a common network in the vehicle, each of the electronic control units being configured to be able to execute control based on a software component arranged via the network, one of the electronic control units being an integrated control electronic control unit, the integrated control electronic control unit being configured to;

acquire a first rank value of each of the electronic control units, the first rank value becoming higher as a probability of occurrence of a malfunction is higher;

acquire a second rank value of an additional software component that is additionally arranged in any one of the electronic control units, the second rank value becoming higher as a level of importance of the additional software is higher;

identify a predetermined range of first rank values of the electronic control units based on the second rank value;

search for electronic control units having respective first rank values that are within the predetermined range of first rank values;

decide an electronic control unit, in which the additional software component is arranged, from among the electronic control units such that the additional software component is arranged in the electronic control unit of which the first rank value is lower as the second rank value of the additional software component is higher; and

arrange the additional software component in the decided electronic control unit based on searching for the electronic control units having the respective first rank values that are within the predetermined range of first rank values.

2. The software component assigning system according to claim 1, wherein:

the first rank value is set based on a location at which each of the electronic control units is installed in the vehicle.

3. The software component assigning system according to claim 1, wherein:

the second rank value is set based on details of control that is executed in accordance with the additional software component.

4. The software component assigning system according to claim 1, wherein:

the integrated control electronic control unit is configured to decide the electronic control unit, in which the additional software component is arranged, such that a response required between the additional software component and a controlled unit that is controlled by each of the electronic control units is satisfied.

5. The software component assigning system according to claim 1, wherein:

the integrated control electronic control unit is configured to decide the electronic control unit, in which the additional software component is arranged, such that the additional software component is arranged in the electronic control unit of which the first rank value is lower as the second rank value of the additional software component becomes higher and a communication speed required between the additional software component and an already-arranged software component already arranged in any one of the electronic control units is satisfied.

6. The software component assigning system according to claim 1, wherein:

the integrated control electronic control unit is configured to decide the electronic control unit, in which the additional software component is arranged, such that the additional software component is arranged in an electronic control unit of which the first rank value is lower as the second rank value of the additional software component becomes higher and timing of supply of electric power required from the additional software component is satisfied.

7. The software component assigning system according to claim 1, wherein:

the integrated control electronic control unit is configured to, when the decided electronic control unit has insufficient space for arranging the additional software component, determine whether a lower-rank software component having lower second rank value than the additional software component is arranged in the decided electronic control unit, and

the integrated control electronic control unit is configured to, when the lower-rank software component is arranged in the decided electronic control unit, delete the lower-rank software component from the decided electronic control unit and arrange the additional software component in the decided electronic control unit from which the lower-rank software component has been deleted.

8. The software component assigning system according to claim 7, wherein:

the integrated control electronic control unit is configured to rearrange the lower-rank software component, deleted from the decided electronic control unit, in a second one of the electronic control units, and the first rank value of the second one of the electronic control units is higher than the first rank value of the decided electronic control unit.

9. The software component assigning system according to claim 1, wherein:

the integrated control electronic control unit is configured to process a software component arranged in a third one of the electronic control units and determined to be copied to another one of the electronic control units due to a failure of the third one of the electronic control units as the additional software component.

10. A software component assigning system for a vehicle, the software component assigning system comprising:

electronic control units connected to a common network in the vehicle, each of the electronic control units being configured to be able to execute control based on a software component arranged via the network, one of the electronic control units being an integrated control electronic control unit, the integrated control electronic control unit being configured to;

acquire a first rank value of each of the electronic control units, the first rank value becoming higher as a probability of occurrence of a malfunction is higher;

acquire a second rank value of an additional software component to be additionally arranged in any one of the electronic control units, the second rank value becoming higher as a level of importance of the additional software is higher;

identify a predetermined range of first rank values of the electronic control units based on the second rank value;

search for electronic control units having respective first rank values that are within the predetermined range of first rank values;

decide an electronic control unit, in which the additional software component is arranged, from among the electronic control units, the electronic control unit in which the additional software component is arranged satisfying a requirement that the first rank value of the electronic control unit in which the additional software component is allowed to be arranged becomes lower as the second rank value of the additional software component is higher; and

arrange the additional software component in the decided electronic control unit based on searching for the electronic control units having the respective first rank values that are within the predetermined range of first rank values.

11. A software component assigning system for a vehicle, the software component assigning system comprising:

electronic control units connected to a common network in the vehicle, each of the electronic control units being configured to be able to execute control based on a software component arranged via the network; and

one or more processors configured to;

acquire a first rank value of each of the electronic control units, the first rank value becoming higher as a probability of occurrence of a malfunction is higher;

acquire a second rank value of an additional software component additionally arranged in any one of the electronic control units, the second rank value becoming higher as a level of importance is higher;

identify a predetermined range of first rank values of the electronic control units based on the second rank value;

search for electronic control units having respective first rank values that are within the predetermined range of first rank values;

decide an electronic control unit, in which the additional software component is arranged, from among the electronic control units, the electronic control unit in which the additional software component is arranged satisfying a requirement that the first rank value of the electronic control unit in which the additional software component is allowed to be arranged becomes lower as the second rank value of the additional software component is higher; and

arrange the additional software component in the decided electronic control unit based on searching for the electronic control units having the respective first rank values that are within the predetermined range of first rank values.