Control apparatus

• US 20030058086A1
• Filed: 02/21/2001
• Published: 03/27/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 02/21/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Omron Corporation
• Original Assignee: Omron Corporation
• Inventors: Hara, Kentaro
• Granted Patent: US 6,801,120 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/425.5
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/245 where the antenna reception area plays a role

Abstract

Antennas 22 to 25 of a main unit machine 20 are implemented as coil antennas and the coil antennas are disposed in parallel with the floor of a vehicle so that the axis of each coil antenna becomes perpendicular to the floor. Particularly, the in-vehicle antennas 24 and 25 are placed at the front and the rear near the center in the floor direction of the vehicle.

Claims

1. A control apparatus comprising:

a portable machine; and

a main unit machine disposed on a vehicle and having at least one coil shaped radio communication antenna which is placed while an axial direction of the antenna intersects at right angle to a floor of the vehicle, said main unit machine conducting radio communications with said portable machine and executing control processing for accomplishing a predetermined operation of an object installed in the vehicle in response to a result of the radio communications conducted with said portable machine.

2. The control apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the radio communication antenna is at least one in-vehicle communication antenna for conducting the radio communications with said portable machine which exists in the vehicle, the in-vehicle communication antenna placed near a center of the floor of the vehicle.

3. The control apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the in-vehicle communication is placed at a height of substantially 10 cm above the floor.

4. The control apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the in-vehicle communication is placed only at a front in the vehicle.

5. The control apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the object installed in the vehicle is a lock device for locking or unlocking a door of the vehicle, and the control processing is control signal output for accomplishing the locking or unlocking operation of the lock device.

6. The control apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main unit machine is provided with a search portable machine function for determining where said portable machine exists on the basis of an establishment of the radio communications with said portable machine.

7. The control apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein said main unit machine is provided with a search portable machine function for determining where said portable machine exists on the basis of an establishment of the radio communications with said portable machine.

8. The control apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the radio communication antenna has at least one in-vehicle communication antenna for conducting the radio communications with said portable machine which exists in the vehicle, and said main unit machine determines, by the portable machine search function, at least that said portable machine exists inside or outside the vehicle on the basis of the establishment of the radio communications with said portable machine through the in-vehicle communication antenna, wherein said main unit machine executes the control signal output for accomplishing the locking operation of the lock only if it is determined by the portable machine search function that said portable machine does not exist in the vehicle.

9. The control apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the radio communication antenna has at least one out-of-vehicle antenna for conducting the radio communications with said portable machine which exists outside the vehicle, and said main unit machine determines, by the portable machine search function, at least whether or not said portable machine is away from the vehicle exceeding a communication-possible range of the out-of-vehicle radio communication antenna on the basis of the establishment of the radio communications with said portable machine through the out-of-vehicle radio communication antenna, wherein said main unit machine executes the control signal output for accomplishing the locking operation of the lock on the basis of the check of the predetermined condition if said main unit machine determines, by the portable machine search function, that said portable machine is away from the vehicle exceeding the communication-possible range.

10. The control apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the control processing is one of signal output or data setting operation for enabling the operation of the object installed in the vehicle and signal output for giving an instruction to operate the object installed in the vehicle.

11. The control apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the radio communication antenna has at least one in-vehicle communication antenna for conducting the radio communications with said portable machine which exists in the vehicle, and said main unit machine is provided with a search portable machine function for determining at least that said portable machine exists inside or outside the vehicle on the basis of the establishment of the radio communications with said portable machine through the in-vehicle communication antenna, wherein said main unit machine executes one of the signal output or data setting operation for enabling the operation of the object installed in the vehicle and the signal output for giving an instruction to operate the object installed in the vehicle only if main unit machine determines, by the portable machine search function, that said portable machine exists in the vehicle.