Wheel information processing device

• US 20060176164A1
• Filed: 01/18/2006
• Published: 08/10/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/26/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Osumi, Ryota, Ogawa, Atsushi
• Granted Patent: US 7,557,698 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/444
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0408 transmitting the signals by non-mechanical means from the wheel or tyre to a vehicle body mounted receiver
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0442 the transmitted signal comprises further information, e.g. instruction codes, sensor characteristics or identification data
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0462 Structure of transmission protocol
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0464 to avoid signal interference

Abstract

A wheel information processing device comprises a plurality of wheel-side communication units provided in a wheel of an automotive vehicle, and a body-side communication unit provided in a body of the vehicle to communicate with the plurality of wheel-side communication units. A pattern of transmission of signals transmitted by the plurality of wheel-side communication units respectively is determined based on a characteristic of the wheel-side communication unit concerned.

Claims

1. A wheel information processing device comprising:

a plurality of wheel-side communication units provided in a wheel of an automotive vehicle; and

a body-side communication unit provided in a body of the vehicle to communicate with the plurality of wheel-side communication units,

wherein a pattern of transmission of signals transmitted by the plurality of wheel-side communication units respectively is determined based on a characteristic of the wheel-side communication unit concerned.

2. The wheel information processing device according to claim 1 wherein the pattern of transmission of the signals transmitted by the plurality of wheel-side communication units respectively is determined based on either an element that determines a necessity of transmission of a signal transmitted by the wheel-side communication unit concerned or an element that determines a communication performance of the wheel-side communication unit concerned.

3. The wheel information processing device according to claim 2 further comprising a wheel information detecting part provided to detect wheel information of the wheel,

wherein the element that determines the necessity of transmission is a content of the wheel information detected by the wheel information detecting part.

4. The wheel information processing device according to claim 1 further comprising a vehicle running state acquisition part provided to acquire a current running state of the vehicle serially,

wherein the pattern of transmission of the signals transmitted by the plurality of wheel-side communication units respectively is determined so that the determined pattern of transmission varies according to a change of the running state of the vehicle acquired by the vehicle running state acquisition part.

5. The wheel information processing device according to claim 1 wherein a frequency of transmission per a predetermined unit time is determined and thereby the pattern of transmission of the signals transmitted by the plurality of wheel-side communication units respectively is determined.

6. The wheel information processing device according to claim 1 wherein a probability of transmission is determined and thereby the pattern of transmission of the signals transmitted by the plurality of wheel-side communication units respectively is determined.

7. The wheel information processing device according to claim 1 wherein the plurality of wheel-side communication units have respective identification numbers that are distinctly separate, each of the plurality of wheel-side communication units receiving a request signal from the body-side communication unit, and the request signal containing a necessity value of reply associated with an identification number of the wheel-side communication unit concerned, and

wherein the pattern of transmission of the signals transmitted by the plurality of wheel-side communication units respectively is determined based on the necessity value of reply corresponding to the identification number of the wheel-side communication unit concerned contained in the received request signal.

8. The wheel information processing device according to claim 1 wherein the plurality of wheel-side communication units are provided in a plurality of counterweights respectively, and the pattern of transmission of the signals transmitted by the plurality of wheel-side communication units respectively is determined based on a weight of a counterweight of the wheel-side communication unit concerned.

9. The wheel information processing device according to claim 8 wherein a delay time to a time of reception of a request signal of the body-side communication unit is set up for each of the plurality of wheel-side communication units according to the weight of the counterweight of the wheel-side communication unit concerned, and

wherein the pattern of transmission of the signals transmitted by the plurality of wheel-side communication units respectively is determined by increasing or decreasing the delay time by a random time that is adequately small when compared with the delay time.

10. The wheel information processing device according to claim 1 wherein the plurality of wheel-side communication units are provided with a plurality of counterweights respectively and have weight information indicating a weight of a counterweight concerned, respectively,

the body-side communication unit is provided to transmit a request signal including the weight information to the plurality of wheel-side communication units serially, and

each of the plurality of wheel-side communication units is provided to transmit a signal to the body-side communication unit when the weight information included in the request signal received is the same as the weight information of the wheel-side communication unit concerned.

11. The wheel information processing device according to claim 2 wherein the element that determines the communication performance of the wheel-side communication unit concerned is an arrangement location of the wheel-side communication unit concerned.

12. The wheel information processing device according to claim 11 wherein the pattern of transmission of the signals transmitted by the plurality of wheel-side communication units respectively is determined such that a frequency of transmission per a predetermined unit time is made high according to a distance of the arrangement location of the wheel-side communication unit concerned from a revolving shaft of the wheel.