CONTROL APPARATUS AND CONTROL METHOD OF PERFORMING OPERATION CONTROL OF ACTUATORS

• US 20100249953A1
• Filed: 03/08/2010
• Published: 09/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Autonetworks Technologies, Ltd. (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Electric Industries Limited (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Wiring Systems Limited (Sumitomo Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Autonetworks Technologies, Ltd. (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Electric Industries Limited (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Wiring Systems Limited (Sumitomo Corporation)
• Inventors: KISHITA, Yuri, FUJITA, Kazuhito
• Granted Patent: US 9,020,616 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/12
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0426 Programming the control sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23236 Table lookup driven system

Abstract

In a microcomputer, by virtue of the function of one input signal judgment module in the application layer, with respect to whether the situation is such that operation is to be requested to a controlled object from each of a plurality of applications, judgment processing onto input signals representing status information of controlled objects or detection information from sensors or the like is made common. The object-oriented architecture is introduced into an embedded computer program so that the memory is saved and the apparatus is simplified.

Claims

1. A control apparatus provided with a microcomputer receiving input signals representing status information of a plurality of controlled objects or detection information from a plurality of sensors, wherein the microcomputer executes a plurality of application programs such as to, in accordance with a situation determined on the basis of the input signals, outputs an operation request to any one of the plurality of controlled objects so as to control operation of the controlled objects, the control apparatus comprising:

a judgment module, when input signals and judgment conditions on the input signals are provided, judging satisfaction or non-satisfaction of the conditions;

an extraction module extracting one or a plurality of input signals from a plurality of input signals, for each function of the application programs; and

a determination module providing to the judgment module one or a plurality input signals extracted for each function and judgment conditions corresponding to the input signals and then, in accordance with each judgment result from the judgment module, determining whether the situation is such that an operation request is to be outputted.

2. The control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a storage storing, for each function, input signals and judgment conditions to be provided to the judgment module, and branch condition information indicating input signals and judgment conditions to be provided next in accordance with judgment results obtained when the input signals and the judgment conditions are provided to the judgment module, wherein

on the basis of the branch condition information, the determination module selects and provides the next input signals and judgment conditions in accordance with each judgment result.

3. The control apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a table describing judgment conditions for each input signal,

wherein the branch condition information contains a reference address to judgment conditions for input signals to be provided next.

4. The control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

in a case that the last judgment result obtained when input signals and judgment conditions are provided sequentially to the judgment module on the basis of the branch condition information is satisfaction, the determination module determines that the situation is such that an operation request is to be outputted.

5. The control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

a table describing, for each function, input signals corresponding to each function and judgment conditions on the input signals, wherein

the extraction module extracts input signals on the basis of the table.

6. A method of, by using a microcomputer receiving input signals representing status information of a plurality of controlled objects or detection information from a plurality of sensors, executing a plurality of application programs and, on the basis of a computer program different from the plurality of application programs, in accordance with a situation determined on the basis of the input signals, and outputting an operation request to any one of the plurality of controlled objects so as to control operation of the controlled objects, wherein

the microcomputer comprises steps of:

on the basis of the processing based on the application programs, extracting, for each function, one or a plurality of input signals related to the function;

sequentially acquiring the extracted one or plurality of input signals and judgment conditions corresponding to the input signals;

when judgment conditions are acquired, judging satisfaction or non-satisfaction of the conditions;

in accordance with each judgment result of satisfaction or non-satisfaction, determining whether the situation is such that an operation request is to be outputted; and

when the situation is determined as being such that an operation request is to be .outputted, outputting an operation request.

7. A storage storing a computer program to cause a computer connected to a plurality of controlled objects or a plurality of sensors and receiving input signals representing status information of the controlled objects or detection information from the sensors to, on the basis of a plurality of application programs, in accordance with a situation determined on the basis of the input signals, output an operation request to any one of the plurality of controlled objects so as to execute processing of operating the controlled objects, said computer program comprising steps of:

causing the computer to sequentially acquire one or a plurality of input signals extracted for each function of the application programs and judgment conditions corresponding to the input signals;

causing the computer to, when judgment conditions are acquired, judge satisfaction or non-satisfaction of the conditions; and

causing the computer to, in accordance with each judgment result of satisfaction or non-satisfaction, determining whether the situation is such that an operation request is to be outputted.