Vehicle update systems and methods

• US 10,678,530 B2
• Filed: 01/09/2018
• Issued: 06/09/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Sangameswaran, Sangeetha, Miller, Jason Michael, Dierker, William C., Thornburg, Doug B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Butler, Rodney A
• Application Number:
  US15/865,800
• Publication Number:
  US 20190212997A1
• Time in Patent Office: 882 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/62 Vehicle position
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/70 Interactions with external data bases, e.g. traffic centres
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/58 Departure time prediction
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2270/40 related to technical updates when adding new parts or software
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/13 Maintaining the SoC within a determined range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• 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 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005
• 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 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/72 Electric energy management in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles

Abstract

Systems, devices, and methods are disclosed for determining whether to provide an over-the-air (OTA) update to a vehicle. An example method includes determining an update characteristic of a pending software update for a vehicle. The method also includes determining a vehicle battery state of charge (SOC) threshold based on the update characteristic. The method further includes modifying the threshold based on a location of the vehicle. The method still further includes determining a SOC of a battery of the vehicle. And the method yet further includes responsively providing the pending software update to the vehicle based on the SOC and the threshold.

Claims

1. A vehicle over-the-air update system comprising:

a vehicle configured to determine a vehicle battery state of charge (SOC); and

a server configured to;

determine an update characteristic of a pending software update for the vehicle;

determine a vehicle battery SOC threshold based on the update characteristic;

modify the threshold based on a location of the vehicle a most recent key-off event of the vehicle; and

responsively provide the pending software update to the vehicle based on the vehicle battery SOC and the threshold.

2. The vehicle over-the-air update system of claim 1, wherein (i) the pending software update comprises a plurality of update files, (ii) the update characteristic comprises a plurality of file sizes corresponding to the plurality of update files, and (iii) the vehicle battery SOC threshold comprises a plurality of thresholds corresponding to the plurality of update files, and wherein the server is further configure to:

provide a subset of the plurality of update files based on the plurality of thresholds corresponding to the plurality of update files.

3. The vehicle over-the-air update system of claim 1, wherein the server is further configured to:

determine that the vehicle has experienced a key-off event; and

responsively determine the update characteristic of the pending software update for the vehicle.

4. A method comprising:

determining an update characteristic of a pending software update for a vehicle;

determining a vehicle battery state of charge (SOC) threshold based on the update characteristic;

modifying the threshold based on a location of the vehicle;

determining a SOC of a battery of the vehicle; and

responsively providing the pending software update to the vehicle based on the SOC and the threshold,

wherein the pending software update comprises a software update for an electronic control unit (ECU) of the vehicle.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the update characteristic comprises a file size of the pending software update.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the pending software update comprises a plurality of update files, and wherein the update characteristic comprises a plurality of file sizes corresponding to the plurality of update files.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the vehicle battery SOC threshold comprises a plurality of thresholds corresponding to the plurality of update files.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein providing the pending software update to the vehicle based on the SOC and the threshold comprises:

providing a subset of the plurality of update files based on the plurality of thresholds corresponding to the plurality of update files.

9. The method of claim 4, wherein modifying the threshold based on the location of the vehicle comprises modifying the threshold based on the location of the vehicle at a most recent key-off event of the vehicle.

10. The method of claim 4, wherein modifying the threshold based on the location of the vehicle comprises modifying the threshold based on a predicted parking location of the vehicle.

11. The method of claim 4, wherein the SOC of the vehicle is determined at a most recent key-off event of the vehicle.

12. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

providing a notification to a remote computing device corresponding to the vehicle, wherein the notification indicates that a software update is being performed.

13. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

determining that the vehicle has experienced a key-off event; and

responsively determining the update characteristic of the pending software update for the vehicle.

14. The method of claim 4, wherein providing the pending software update to the vehicle based on the SOC and the threshold comprises providing the pending software update over-the-air.

15. A tangible, computer readable medium including instructions that, when executed, cause performance of a set of acts comprising:

determining an update characteristic of a pending software update for a vehicle;

determining a vehicle battery state of charge (SOC) threshold based on the update characteristic;

modifying the threshold based on a location of the vehicle at a most recent key-off event of the vehicle;

determining a vehicle battery SOC; and

responsively providing the pending software update based on the vehicle battery SOC and the threshold.

16. The tangible, computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein (i) the pending software update comprises a plurality of update files, (ii) the update characteristic comprises a plurality of file sizes corresponding to the plurality of update files, and (iii) the vehicle battery SOC threshold comprises a plurality of thresholds corresponding to the plurality of update files, the set of acts further comprising:

providing a subset of the plurality of update files based on the plurality of thresholds corresponding to the plurality of update files.

17. The tangible, computer readable medium of claim 15, the set of acts further comprising:

determining that the vehicle has experienced a key-off event; and

responsively determining the update characteristic of the pending software update for the vehicle.