Goods-Carrying Vehicle with Lighting Units that can be Controlled by Means of Plc (Power Line Communication)

• US 20080316012A1
• Filed: 11/08/2005
• Published: 12/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/20/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Daimler Chrysler Company LLC (Stellantis NV)
• Original Assignee: Daimler Chrysler Company LLC (Stellantis NV)
• Inventors: Spiegelberg, Gernot, Schwarzhaupt, Andreas, Paasche, Sascha, Sulzmann, Armin
• Application Number:
  US11/667,931
• Publication Number:
  US 20080316012A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/458
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 11/00 Arrangement of monitoring devices for devices provided for in groups B60Q1/00 - B60Q9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/547 via DC power distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/54 Systems for transmission via power distribution lines

Abstract

The invention relates to a utility vehicle, in particular a truck with or without a trailer, having an on-board electric power system (1) for supplying power to electrical loads of the vehicle, having a plurality of lighting units (2) which are connected to the on-board electric power system (1) and which emit light when they are activated, and having a plurality of switches (3) for activating the lighting units (2). The switches (3) advantageously activate at least some of the lighting units (2) by means of PLC via the on-board electric power system (1).

Claims

1-8. -8. (canceled)

9. A utility vehicle comprising:

an on-board electric power system for supplying power to electrical loads of the vehicle,

a plurality of lighting units which are connected to the on-board electric power system and which emit light when activated,

a plurality of switches for activating the lighting units by way of PLC via the on-board electric power system,

a central unit connected to the on-board electric power system and adapted to generate switching instruction signals as a function of switch signals transmitted via the on-board electric power system,

wherein said central unit feeds said switching instruction signals into the on-board electric power system,

wherein when a lighting element in one of the lighting units fails, the central unit modifies a switching instruction signal which is necessary to activate the lighting element in such a way that, instead of the lighting element, another lighting element of said one of the lighting units or of another of said lighting units is activated,

wherein the switches are connected to a switch branch of the on-board electric power system,

wherein the lighting units are connected to a lighting branch, decoupled from the switch branch, of the on-board electric power system,

wherein the lighting units are equipped with first PLC transceivers and the switches are individually or severally equipped with second PLC transceivers, and

wherein the central unit is connected to both the switch branch via a third PLC transceiver and to the lighting branch via a fourth PLC transceiver.

10. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 9, wherein each of the switch signals has a source identifier assigned to a respective switch, wherein each of the switching instruction signals has at least one destination identifier assigned to a lighting unit, or wherein each of the switch signals has the source identifier and each of the switching instruction signals has the at least one destination identifier.

11. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 9, wherein the lighting units generate status signals automatically and on request as a function of their states and feed them into the on-board electric power system.

12. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 11, wherein each of the status signals has a source identifier which is assigned to a respective lighting unit.

13. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 11, wherein the central unit takes into account the status signals in generation of the switching instruction signals.

14. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 11, wherein the central unit indicates malfunctions of the lighting units in a cockpit of the vehicle by way of a suitable display device.

15. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 9, wherein the central unit is connected to a vehicle controller in order to transmit state information about a current state of the vehicle, and wherein the central unit takes into account this additional information in generation of the switching instruction signals.

16. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 9, wherein the utility vehicle is a truck, and the lighting units are arranged on the truck.

17. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 9, wherein the utility vehicle is a truck with a trailer, and wherein the lighting units are arranged on at least one of the truck and the trailer.

18. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 10, wherein the lighting units generate status signals automatically and on request as a function of their states and feed them into the on-board electric power system.

19. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 17, wherein each of the status signals has a source identifier which is assigned to a respective lighting unit.

20. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 17, wherein the central unit takes into account the status signals in generation of the switching instruction signals.

21. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 17, wherein the central unit indicates malfunctions of the lighting units in a cockpit of the vehicle by way of a suitable display device.

22. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 10, wherein the utility vehicle is a truck, and the lighting units are arranged on the truck.

23. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 11, wherein the utility vehicle is a truck, and the lighting units are arranged on the truck.

24. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 12, wherein the utility vehicle is a truck, and the lighting units are arranged on the truck.

25. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 13, wherein the utility vehicle is a truck, and the lighting units are arranged on the truck.

26. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 14, wherein the utility vehicle is a truck, and the lighting units are arranged on the truck.

27. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 15, wherein the utility vehicle is a truck, and the lighting units are arranged on the truck.

28. The utility vehicle as claimed in claim 17, wherein the lighting units are arranged on the truck.