Wireless key and door remote control system

• US 20080048846A1
• Filed: 07/25/2007
• Published: 02/28/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Ootsuka, Mitsugi, Nagai, Nobuyoshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,629,876 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/426.17
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/24 using electronic identifiers containing a code not memorised by the user
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/406 Power supply in the remote key
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/00587 by battery
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00182 operated with unidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00309 operated with bidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks

Abstract

A wireless key includes a receiver circuit that operates with a built-in battery, and receives a polling radio wave for wireless key search and authentication from a vehicle, and a transmitter circuit that transmits a lock operation radio wave to a door based on the manipulation on a manipulation device. The wireless key is capable of changing over operation mode between a power saving mode that permits the operation of transmitting the lock operation radio wave by the transmitter circuit and stops the operation of receiving the polling radio wave by the receiving circuit, and a full power mode that permits the operation of transmitting the lock operation radio wave by the transmitter circuit and continues the reception by the receiver circuit.

Claims

1. A wireless key comprising:

a built-in battery as a power supply;

a polling radio wave receiver circuit that operates with the built-in battery to receive a polling radio wave for wireless key search and authentication from a subject body to be controlled;

a lock/unlock instruction radio wave transmitter circuit that transmits a lock/unlock instruction radio wave to instruct locking/unlocking of a door of the subject body;

a manipulation device that gives a trigger of transmission of the lock/unlock instruction radio wave to the lock/unlock instruction radio wave transmitter circuit; and

a control circuit having mode changeover means for changing over an operation mode of the polling radio wave receiver circuit and the lock/unlock instruction radio wave transmitter circuit between a power saving mode and a full power mode, the power saving mode permitting transmission of the lock/unlock instruction radio wave by the lock/unlock instruction radio wave transmitter circuit and stopping reception of the polling radio wave by the polling radio wave receiver circuit, and the full power mode permitting the transmission of the lock/unlock instruction radio wave by the lock/unlock instruction radio wave transmitter circuit and continuing the reception of the polling radio wave by the polling radio wave receiver circuit.

2. The wireless key according to claim 1, wherein:

the mode changeover means stops the reception of the polling radio wave receiver circuit, and shifts the operation mode to the power saving mode, when a predetermined reception stopping manipulation different from normal manipulation for locking or unlocking the door is made on the manipulation device in the full power mode.

3. The wireless key according to claim 2, wherein:

the reception stopping manipulation is determined to be larger in a manipulation load on a user than the normal manipulation.

4. The wireless key according to claim 3, wherein:

the reception stopping manipulation is determined as a patterned manipulation that combines a period of time during which the manipulating state of the manipulation device is continued with a period of time during which the manipulating state is released according to a predetermined pattern, and the mode changeover means stops the reception of the polling radio wave receiver circuit and shifts the operation mode to the power saving mode based on a result of checking the manipulation pattern that is input from the manipulation device with a master pattern that is pre-stored.

5. The wireless key according to claim 3, wherein:

the manipulation device includes a plurality of manipulation units; and

the reception stopping operation is determined as a combination of manipulation made on the plurality of manipulation units.

6. The wireless key according to claim 1, wherein:

the polling radio wave receiver circuit receives, in the full power mode, a reception stop signal for stopping the reception of the polling radio wave as a radio wave;

the polling radio wave receiver circuit transfers the reception stopping signal that is received to the control circuit so that the mode changeover means conducts mode changeover control that stops the operation of the polling radio wave receiver circuit upon transfer of the reception stopping signal.

7. The wireless key according to claim 5, wherein the mode changeover means includes:

an operation mode setting information storage unit that is a nonvolatile memory which rewritably stores operation mode setting information indicative of operation mode setting contents of the polling radio wave receiver circuit;

operation stop instruction signal outputting means for outputting the operation stop instruction signal to the polling radio wave receiver circuit based on storage contents of the operation mode setting information storage unit; and

operation mode setting information rewriting means for rewriting the operation mode setting information of the operation mode setting information storage unit upon transfer of the reception stopping signal.

8. The wireless key according to claim 6, further comprising:

a transponder circuit, provided in addition to the polling radio wave receiver circuit, for receiving the reception stop signal as the radio wave in the full power mode.

9. The wireless key according to claim 1, wherein:

the mode changeover means restarts the reception of the polling radio wave receiver circuit and shifts the operation mode to the full power mode, when a predetermined reception stopping operation different from normal operation for locking or unlocking the door with respect to the manipulation device is conducted in the power saving mode.

10. The wireless key according to claim 9, wherein:

the reception restarting operation is determined to be larger in an operation load on a user than a normal operation.

11. The wireless key according to claim 10, wherein:

the reception restarting operation is determined as a patterned manipulation that combines a period of time during which the manipulation state of the manipulation device is continued with a period of time during which the manipulation state is released according to a predetermined pattern; and

the mode changeover means restarts the reception of the polling radio wave receiving circuit and shifts the operation mode to the full power mode based on a result of checking the manipulation pattern that is input from the manipulation device with a pre-stored master pattern.

12. The wireless key according to claim 10, wherein:

the reception restarting operation is determined as a combination of manipulation made on a plurality of manipulation units of the manipulation device.

13. The wireless key according to claim 1, further comprising:

a transponder circuit provided in addition to the polling radio wave receiver circuit for receiving, in the power saving mode, a reception restart signal for restarting the operation of the polling radio wave receiving circuit;

wherein the transponder circuit transfers the reception restart signal that is received to the control circuit with an induced electromotive force of the transponder as a power supply; and

wherein the mode changeover means conducts control for restarting the operation of the polling radio wave receiver circuit upon transfer of the reception restart signal.

14. The wireless key according to claim 7, wherein:

the mode changeover means includes operation restart instruction signal outputting means for outputting the operation restart instruction signal to the polling radio wave receiver circuit based on the storage contents of the operation mode setting information storage unit; and

the operation mode setting information rewriting means rewrites the operation mode setting information of the operation mode setting information storage unit upon transfer of the reception restart signal.

15. The wireless key according to claim 14, further comprising:

operation mode setting information wireless transmitting means for transmitting the operation mode setting information of the operation mode setting information storage unit to the subject body.

16. The wireless key according to claim 1, wherein:

the subject body is a vehicle.

17. A door remote locking and unlocking control system comprising:

the wireless key according to claim 15;

operation mode setting information receiving means that is disposed in the subject body for receiving the operation mode setting information from the wireless key; and

operation mode notifying means for notifying the setting state of the operation mode of the wireless key based on the operation mode setting information that is received.

18. The door remote locking and unlocking control system according to claim 17, wherein:

the operation mode notifying means visually indicates the setting state of the operation mode on a vehicle meter display.