Receiving unit of vehicle communication system

• US 20080008253A1
• Filed: 05/29/2007
• Published: 01/10/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 06/21/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Sugiura, Masahiro
• Granted Patent: US 7,953,185 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 375/243
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/4904 using self-synchronising codes, e.g. split-phase codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 7/0066 detection of error based on transmission code rule
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 7/0331 with a digital phase-locked loop [PLL] processing binary samples, e.g. add/subtract logic for correction of receiver clock H04L7/0337 takes precedence

Abstract

A vehicle communication system has a receiving unit on a vehicle side for inputting a demodulated analog signal to determination units based on a received radio signal from a key unit. Then, one of the two determination units outputs a high-check signal that takes a high value when the analog signal is greater than a high threshold and the other determination unit outputs a low-check signal that takes a low value when the analog signal is smaller than a low threshold. Then, a sync. signal generator successively defines a determination period based on the high and low check signals. Then, a binary level of the analog signal is determined by a level determination unit based on the check signals, along with an estimation and a correction of an indefinite signal when the signal level cannot be determined based on a coding rule and the determination by the determination units.

Claims

1. A receiving unit of a vehicle communication system utilizing a coding scheme, wherein the coding scheme generates a binary level change between a high level and a low level at least one of in a middle of each bit of digital data and at an end of each bit of digital data, wherein the digital data is transmitted by having a carrier wave modulated by the coding scheme that encodes the digital data into digital signal, wherein the transmitted digital signal transmitted from a transmitter is received for de-modulation, and wherein a binary level of one of the high level and the low level of a de-modulated analog demodulation signal is determined for restoring the digital data based on a determination result of the demodulation signal, the receiving unit comprising:

a first signal output unit that outputs a high level decision signal in an active level when the analog demodulation signal is higher in level after comparing the analog demodulation signal and a high level threshold;

a second signal output unit that that outputs a low level decision signal in the active level when the analog demodulation signal is lower in level after comparing the analog demodulation signal and a low level threshold;

a determination period decision unit that successively determines a determination period of the binary level of the analog demodulation signal based on the high level decision signal and the low level decision signal;

a level decision unit that determines the binary level of the analog demodulation signal in each of the determination period based on the high level decision signal and the low level decision signal along with a determination of an indefinite level when the binary level of the analog demodulation signal is determined as neither of the light level or the low level, and

a level correction unit that estimates and corrects the indefinite level to be one of the high level and the low level based on a determination result of the level decision unit and a rule of the coding scheme.

2. The receiving unit of the vehicle communication system as in claim 1 further comprising:

a signaling unit that outputs in synchronization with a change timing of the determination period the binary level signal of one of the high and low level for showing the determination result of the level decision unit after a correction of the indefinite level by the level correction unit; and

a decoding unit that decodes the binary level signal being output from the signaling unit to restore the digital data,

wherein the determination period decision unit is configured to determines a next determination period so that a change rate between the length of a current determination period and the length of the next determination period is smaller than a predetermined value when the determination period is determined.

3. The receiving unit of the vehicle communication system as in claim 1,

wherein the level correction unit performs a bit division determination process based on a determination result of the level decision unit and a rule of the coding scheme when a bit division of the analog demodulation signal is unclear,

wherein, when the bit division is being clarified by performing the bit division determination process, the correction of the indefinite level is performed based on a determination result of the level decision unit for a fewer occasions than a determination result of the level decision unit for a case that the bit division is unclear.

4. The receiving unit of the vehicle communication system as in claim 1,

wherein the level correction unit corrects the indefinite level based on four successive determination results by the level decision unit.

5. The receiving unit of the vehicle communication system as in claim 1,

wherein the level correction unit estimates and corrects the indefinite level to be one of the high level and the low level based on a determination result of at least one determination period that is adjacent to the determination period of the indefinite level and the rule of the coding scheme.