VEHICLE-MOUNTED SOFTWARE UPDATING APPARATUS

• US 20110307882A1
• Filed: 08/25/2011
• Published: 12/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: SHIBA, Hisanori
• Granted Patent: US 8,875,123 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416

Abstract

A vehicle-mounted software updating apparatus for performing a software update by downloading software from outside a vehicle includes a storage unit storing a past on/off status of an accessory (ACC); a software update period determining unit determining a software update period in which software update is to be performed based on information in the storage unit such that the software update is performed in an ACC-off period; and a software update performing unit performing the software update in the software update period determined by the software update period determining unit.

Claims

1. A vehicle-mounted software updating apparatus for performing a software update by downloading software from outside a vehicle, the vehicle-mounted software updating apparatus comprising:

a storage unit configured to store a past on/off status of an accessory (ACC);

a software update period determining unit configured to estimate an optimum period having a high probability of the ACC being off based on information stored in the storage unit, configured to determine whether the estimated optimum period is longer than a required download time necessary for a software update, and configured to determine a software update period within the estimated optimum period when it is determined that the estimated optimum period is longer than the required download time necessary for the software update; and

a software update performing unit configured to perform the software update in the software update period determined by the software update period determining unit.

2. The vehicle-mounted software updating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the software update is performed by downloading the software from a server disposed outside the vehicle via wireless communication.

3. The vehicle-mounted software updating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the software update period determining unit estimates an optimum period within 24 hours having a high probability of the ACC being off, based on information of a predetermined number of days in the past that is stored in the storage unit, and determines the software update period based on the estimated period.

4. The vehicle-mounted software updating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the software update period determining unit estimates a period in which the ACC was off in all of the predetermined number of days in the past, and determines the estimated period as being the optimum period with a high probability of the ACC being off.

5. The vehicle-mounted software updating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the software update period determining unit

allocates a first weight, a second weight, and a third weight to a period in which the ACC was on continuously for a predetermined time or more, a period in which the ACC was on continuously for less than the predetermined time, and a period in which the ACC was not on, respectively,

calculates a total of the weights of the predetermined number of days for each of the periods in the 24 hours, and

estimates the optimum period with the high probability of the ACC being off by comparing the total weights among the periods.

6. The vehicle-mounted software updating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the predetermined number of days in the past include seven consecutive days before a current day.

7. The vehicle-mounted software updating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the predetermined number of days in the past includes a predetermined number of the same days of the week as a current day.