Inter-vehicle communication method and device

• US 20050030202A1
• Filed: 06/08/2004
• Published: 02/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alpine Electronics Incorporated (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Alpine Electronics Incorporated (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Tsuboi, Shoichi
• Granted Patent: US 7,046,168 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/901
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096758 where no selection takes place on the transmitted or the received information
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096791 where the origin of the information is another vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/161 Decentralised systems, e.g. inter-vehicle communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/20 based on geographic position or location

Abstract

An inter-vehicle communication method according to the present invention performs communication by sequentially relaying transmission information among vehicles. For broadcasting the transmission information to peripheral vehicles, a vehicle transmitting the transmission information designates relay vehicles and causes the relay vehicles to broadcast reception information to peripheral vehicles of the relay vehicles. In order to designate the relay vehicles, the vehicle transmitting the transmission information receives positional information from its peripheral vehicles, identifies branch roads on which the respective peripheral vehicles exist by referring to map information, and designates as relay vehicles peripheral vehicles farthest away from the vehicle transmitting the transmission information on the respective branch roads.

Claims

1. An inter-vehicle communication method for performing communication by sequentially relaying predetermined information among vehicles, the method comprising:

broadcasting the predetermined information from a first vehicle to peripheral vehicles of the first vehicle;

designating a relay vehicle from among the peripheral vehicles of the first vehicle; and

broadcasting, by the relay vehicle, the predetermined information to peripheral vehicles of the relay vehicle.

2. An inter-vehicle communication method according to claim 1, further comprising:

receiving positional information from the peripheral vehicles of the first vehicle;

identifying a branch road on which each of the peripheral vehicles of the first vehicle exists by referring to map information; and

designating the peripheral vehicle of the first vehicle farthest away from the first vehicle on the branch road as the relay vehicle.

3. An inter-vehicle communication method according to claim 2, further comprising:

adding, by a vehicle transmitting or relaying the predetermined information, a message ID unique to the predetermined information;

determining, by a reception vehicle, whether or not the predetermined information has been received previously on the basis of the message ID;

disposing of, by the reception vehicle, the predetermined information when the information has been received previously; and

presenting, by the reception vehicle, the predetermined information when the predetermined information has not been previously received.

4. An inter-vehicle communication method according to claim 2, further comprising:

adding, by a jth relay vehicle performing jth relaying, an ID of a transmission source vehicle and IDs of one or more (j+1)th relay vehicles to the predetermined information; and

designating, by one of the (j+1)th relay vehicles, a peripheral vehicle that is farthest away from the (j+1)th relay vehicle on each branch road, that is not the jth relay vehicle and that is not any other (j+1)th relay vehicle, as a (j+2)th relay vehicle when the (j+1)th relay vehicle broadcasts the predetermined information.

5. An inter-vehicle communication method according to claim 2, further comprising:

adding, by a vehicle transmitting or relaying the predetermined information, data about the number of relays associated with the predetermined information;

updating the number of relays every time relaying is performed; and

terminating relaying when the number of relays becomes a set value.

6. An inter-vehicle communication method according to claim 1, further comprising the act of adding a vehicle ID of the broadcasting vehicle when the predetermined information is broadcast to peripheral vehicles.

7. An on-vehicle inter-vehicle communication device for performing communication by sequentially relaying predetermined information among vehicles, the device comprising:

a transmitting unit for transmitting the predetermined information from the vehicle to other vehicles through inter-vehicle communication;

a receiving unit for receiving the predetermined information transmitted from other vehicles through inter-vehicle communication;

a signal processing unit for designating a relay vehicle, broadcasting the predetermined information to peripheral vehicles of the vehicle, determining whether or not the vehicle is designated as a relay vehicle when the predetermined information is received from other vehicles, and designating the next relay vehicle and broadcasting received predetermined information to peripheral vehicles of the vehicle when said vehicle is designated as a relay vehicle;

a communication unit for transferring information to and from a navigation device; and

a display unit for receiving the predetermined information and displaying information.

8. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 7, wherein the predetermined information includes at least positional information of a vehicle and relay flag information indicating a relay vehicle.

9. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 7, wherein the signal processing unit receives positional information from peripheral vehicles of the vehicle in advance, identifies a branch road on which each of the peripheral vehicles exists by referring to map information, and designates the peripheral vehicle farthest away from the vehicle on the branch road as a relay vehicle.

10. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 7, wherein the signal processing unit regularly broadcasts positional information of the vehicle and a vehicle ID as the predetermined information.

11. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 7, wherein the signal processing unit requests the navigation device to determine the peripheral vehicle farthest away from said vehicle on each branch road and designates the farthest peripheral vehicle on each branch road as the relay vehicle.

12. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 7, wherein the signal processing unit adds a message ID unique to the predetermined information, determines whether or not the predetermined information has been previously received on the basis of the message ID, disposes of the predetermined information it has been previously received, and is capable of presenting information to a driver when the predetermined information has not been previously received.

13. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 7, wherein, for broadcasting the predetermined information, the signal processing unit of a jth relay vehicle performing jth relaying adds an ID of a transmission source vehicle and IDs of one or more (j+1)th relay vehicles to the predetermined information, and

wherein, for broadcasting the predetermined information, the signal processing unit of one of the (j+1)th relay vehicles designates as a (j+2)th relay vehicle a peripheral vehicle that is farthest away from the (j+1)th relay vehicle on each branch road, that is not the jth relay vehicle and that is not any other (j+1)th relay vehicle.

14. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 7, wherein the signal processing unit adds data about the number of relays permitted for the predetermined information, updates the number of relays every time relaying is performed, and terminates relaying when the number of relays becomes a set value.

15. An on-vehicle inter-vehicle communication device for performing communication by sequentially relaying predetermined information among vehicles, the device comprising:

a transmitting unit for transmitting the predetermined information from the vehicle to other vehicles through inter-vehicle communication;

a receiving unit for receiving the predetermined information transmitted from other vehicles through inter-vehicle communication; and

a signal processing unit for designating a relay vehicle, broadcasting the predetermined information to peripheral vehicles of the vehicle, determining whether or not the vehicle is designated as a relay vehicle when the predetermined information is received from other vehicles, and designating the next relay vehicle and broadcasting received predetermined information to peripheral vehicles of the vehicle when said vehicle is designated as the relay vehicle, wherein

for broadcasting the predetermined information, the signal processing unit of a jth relay vehicle performing jth relaying adds an ID of a transmission source vehicle and IDs of one or more (j+1)th relay vehicles to the predetermined information, and

wherein, for broadcasting the predetermined information, one of the (j+1)th relay vehicles designates as a (j+2)th relay vehicle a peripheral vehicle that is farthest away from the (j+1)th relay vehicle on each branch road, that is not the jth relay vehicle and that is not any other (j+1)th relay vehicle.

16. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 15, further comprising:

a communication unit for transferring information to and from a navigation device; and

a display unit for receiving the predetermined information and displaying information.

17. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 16, wherein the signal processing unit requests the navigation device to determine the peripheral vehicle farthest away from said vehicle on each branch road and designates the farthest peripheral vehicle on each branch road as the relay vehicle.

18. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 17, wherein the signal processing unit adds a message ID unique to the predetermined information, determines whether or not the information has been previously received on the basis of the message ID, disposes of the predetermined information when it has been previously received, and is capable of presenting information to a driver when the predetermined information has not been previously received.

19. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 18, wherein the signal processing unit adds data about the number of relays permitted for the predetermined information, updates the number of relays every time relaying is performed, and terminates relaying when the number of relays becomes a set value.

20. An inter-vehicle communication device according to claim 19, wherein the signal processing unit regularly broadcasts positional information of the vehicle and a vehicle ID as the predetermined information.