Integrated vehicle control system

• US 20040083043A1
• Filed: 10/17/2003
• Published: 04/29/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Tashiro, Tsutomu, Akiyama, Susumu
• Granted Patent: US 7,047,117 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/48
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 17/0195 characterised by the regulation being combined with other vehicle control systems conjoint control of vehicle sub-units including control of suspension systems B60W10/22
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/91 Suspension Control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/92 ABS - Brake Control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/95 Automatic Traction or Slip Control [ATC]
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/96 ASC - Assisted or power Steering control
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/97 Engine Management System [EMS]
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 2800/98 Intelligent Transportation System or Bus [IDB]
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/04 including control of propulsion units
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/184 with wheel brakes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/20 including control of steering systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/24 including control of energy storage means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/02 Ensuring safety in case of control system failures, e.g. by diagnosing, circumventing or fixing failures
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/04 Monitoring the functioning of the control system

Abstract

An integrated vehicle control system includes various functionalized networks, such as power train group, vehicle motion group, and power source group, each including a plurality of ECUs connected via an individual communication line. A managing ECU in each network determines operation directives to be supplied to individual ECUs belonging to its own network based on information obtained from these individual ECUs as well as information obtained from other ECUs of different networks via a host communication line L4. The determined operation directives are transmitted to corresponding ECUs to cause respective individual ECUs to operate subordinately according to the given operation directives, thereby realizing a collective control of specific functions. The managing ECU also executes abnormality detection processing for detecting abnormality occurring in the integrated vehicle control system.

Claims

1. An integrated vehicle control system comprising a plurality of electronic control apparatuses connected via at least one communication line to communicate with each other for controlling specific functions of a vehicle,

wherein one of said plurality of electronic control apparatuses functions as an overall control apparatus for transmitting operation directives to other electronic control apparatuses, each functioning as an individual control apparatus, to cause respective individual control apparatuses to operate according to said operation directives, thereby realizing a collective control of said specific functions, and

said overall control apparatus determines said operation directives supplied to said individual control apparatuses based on information obtained via said communication line from said individual control apparatuses, and executes abnormality detection processing for detecting abnormality occurring in the integrated vehicle control system.

2. The integrated vehicle control system in accordance with claim 1, wherein

said overall control apparatus obtains condition data from said individual control apparatuses, said condition data representing operating conditions of control objective devices controlled based on said operation directives by said individual control apparatuses, and

said overall control apparatus executes said abnormality detection processing by detecting abnormality based on said obtained condition data and identifying an abnormal portion.

3. The integrated vehicle control system in accordance with claim 1, wherein

said overall control apparatus executes gateway processing by selecting information necessary for other network from information received via said communication line and transmitting the selected information via a host network to another overall control apparatus, thereby allowing mutual exchange of information between individual control apparatuses of differently functionalized networks.

4. An integrated vehicle control system comprising a plurality of networks connecting a plurality of electronic control apparatuses via a plurality of communication lines to communicate with each other, each network being provided for one or a plurality of functions of a vehicle,

wherein one electronic control apparatus connected to each of said plurality of communication lines of said plurality of networks is a vehicle overall control apparatus for transmitting operation directives to other electronic control apparatuses, each functioning as an individual control apparatus of said each network, to cause respective individual control apparatuses to operate according to said operation directives, thereby realizing a collective control of said functions of said each network,

said vehicle overall control apparatus determines said operation directives supplied to said individual control apparatuses based on information obtained via said communication lines from said individual control apparatuses, and executes abnormality detection processing for detecting abnormality occurring in the integrated vehicle control system, and

said vehicle overall control apparatus executes gateway processing by selecting information necessary for other network from information received via said communication lines and transmitting the selected information via a communication line of a corresponding network, thereby allowing mutual exchange of information between individual control apparatuses of different networks.

5. The integrated vehicle control system in accordance with claim 4, wherein

said vehicle overall control apparatus obtains condition data from said individual control apparatuses, said condition data representing operating conditions of control objective devices controlled based on said operation directives by said individual control apparatuses, and

said vehicle overall control apparatus executes said abnormality detection processing by detecting abnormality based on said obtained condition data and identifying an abnormal portion.