In-vehicle controller

• US 20080051988A1
• Filed: 08/20/2007
• Published: 02/28/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Jtekt Corporation (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Jtekt Corporation (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Segawa, Masaya
• Application Number:
  US11/892,080
• Publication Number:
  US 20080051988A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/207
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/085 using electronic data carriers

Abstract

An in-vehicle controller of the invention is a so-called drive recorder. The drive recorder is incorporated in a steering ECU (controller) 10. For this purpose, the controller 10 is provided with function implementation units which includes a memory 22 as a data logging section, a memory controlling section 23, a threshold judging section 24 and a data-transfer timing output section 25. Vehicle information and steering information are stored in a first memory 221 in chronological order. A second memory 222 logs data recorded in a tens-second period before and after a moment when vehicle acceleration exceeds a predetermined threshold. The information logged by the second memory 222 is transferred to a hard disk of a navigation unit 30 in a predetermined timing.

Claims

1. An in-vehicle controller for use in a vehicle equipped with a navigation unit, comprising:

a storage unit arranged to store vehicle information and steering information in chronological order; and

a writing control unit arranged to write the vehicle information and steering information stored in the storage unit to the navigation unit in a predetermined timing.

2. An in-vehicle controller according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit includes:

a first storage unit arranged to store the inputted vehicle information and steering information in an input order; and

a second storage unit arranged to store some information stored in the first storage unit, which responds to that a predetermined information item of the inputted vehicle information exceeds a predetermined threshold, in a predetermined period before and after the moment of exceeding the threshold with a time point of the moment of exceeding the threshold.

3. An in-vehicle controller according to claim 2, further comprising:

an acquisition unit arranged to acquire vehicle position information detected by the navigation unit; and

a position information writing control unit arranged to write vehicle position information which acquires from the acquisition unit into the storage unit or the navigation unit, the vehicle position information indicates at the moment of exceeding the threshold accompany with the vehicle information and steering information.

4. An in-vehicle controller according to claim 3, further comprising:

a camera unit arranged to get at least an image of outside circumstances of the vehicle; and

an image data writing control unit arranged to write the image data got by the camera unit into the storage unit or the navigation unit, the image data shows the image at the moment of exceeding the threshold accompany with the vehicle information and the steering information.

5. An in-vehicle controller for use in a vehicle equipped with a navigation unit, comprising:

a storage unit arranged to store vehicle information and steering information in chronological order,

the storage unit including

a first storage unit arranged to store the inputted vehicle information and steering information in an input order, and

a second storage unit which responds to that a predetermined information item of the inputted vehicle information exceeds a predetermined threshold, and stores some information stored in the first storage unit in a predetermined period before and after a moment of exceeding the threshold while associating the information with a time point of the moment of exceeding the threshold;

a writing control unit arranged to write the vehicle information and steering information stored in the storage unit to the navigation unit in a predetermined timing;

camera unit arranged to get at least an image of outside circumstances of the vehicle; and

an image data writing control unit arranged to store image data, which is got by the camera unit at the moment of exceeding the threshold, with associated vehicle information and steering information in the storage unit or the navigation unit.