BLANK TIRE PRESSURE MONITORING DEVICE AND ITS SETUP METHOD

• US 20120218096A1
• Filed: 02/28/2011
• Published: 08/30/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cub Elecparts Inc.
• Original Assignee: Cub Elecparts Inc.
• Inventors: YU, San-Chuan, CHIANG, Chih-Ming, HUNG, Yuan-Tung, HU, Chao-Ching
• Granted Patent: US 8,680,980 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/447
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/044 Near field triggers, e.g. magnets or triggers with 125 KHz
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0471 System initialisation, e.g. upload or calibration of operating parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0472 to manually allocate ID codes or mounting positions, e.g. by service technicians
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0479 Communicating with external units being not part of the vehicle, e.g. tools for diagnostic, mobile phones, electronic keys or service stations
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0488 Movement sensor, e.g. for sensing angular speed, acceleration or centripetal force
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0494 Valve stem attachments positioned inside the tyre chamber

Abstract

A blank tire pressure monitoring device includes a housing having an air valve at one end and connection terminals at an opposite end, a circuit board mounted in the housing and carrying a pressure sensor, a temperature sensor, an acceleration sensor, an analog-digital converter electrically connected with the pressure sensor, the temperature sensor and the acceleration sensor, a general purpose I/O terminal unit electrically connected with the connection terminals of the housing; an embedded microcontroller module electrically connected with the general purpose I/O terminal unit and the analog-digital converter and having built therein a flash memory, a microcontroller core and a special-function register controller, a LF receiver electrically connected to the embedded microcontroller module, and a transmitter electrically connected to the embedded microcontroller module; and a method is still also disclosed for setting up a blank tire pressure monitoring device.

Claims

1. A blank tire pressure monitoring device, comprising:

a housing having located on one end thereof an air valve and located on an opposite end thereof a plurality of connection terminals;

a circuit board mounted inside said housing;

a pressure sensor installed in said circuit board;

a temperature sensor installed in said circuit board;

an acceleration sensor installed in said circuit board;

an analog-digital converter installed in said circuit board and electrically connected with said pressure sensor, said temperature sensor and said acceleration sensor;

a general purpose I/O terminal unit electrically connected with said connection terminals of said housing;

an embedded microcontroller module electrically connected with said general purpose I/O terminal unit and said analog-digital converter, said embedded microcontroller module comprising therein a flash memory, a microcontroller core and a special-function register controller;

a LF (low-frequency) receiver electrically connected to said embedded microcontroller module; and

a transmitter electrically connected to said embedded microcontroller module.

2. The blank tire pressure monitoring device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said housing has five connection terminals;

said general purpose I/O terminal unit is electrically connected with the five connection terminals of said housing.

3. The blank tire pressure monitoring device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said five connection terminals include a power management terminal, a ground terminal, a data program clock terminal, a program data terminal and a detection terminal for frequency differentiating and error prevention control.

4. The blank tire pressure monitoring device as claimed in claim 3, wherein said detection terminal is electrically conducted with at least one of another four terminals.

5. The blank tire pressure monitoring device as claimed in claim 4, wherein said transmitter is a 433 MHz transmitter.

6. The blank tire pressure monitoring device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said embedded microcontroller module further comprises therein a RAM (random access memory) and a ROM (read only memory).

7. A blank tire pressure monitoring device setup method for setting up a blank tire pressure monitoring device having a general-purpose I/O terminal unit, comprising the steps of:

(a) preparing a setup tool having a general-purpose I/O terminal unit and connecting the general purpose I/O terminal unit of said blank tire pressure monitoring device to the general-purpose I/O terminal unit of said setup tool by means of a wired connection method;

(b) operating said setup tool to select the desired communication program and to transmit the selected communication program to a flash memory of said blank tire pressure monitoring device for enabling the selected communication program to be stored in said blank tire pressure monitoring device; and

(c) separating said setup tool from said blank tire pressure monitoring device for enabling said blank tire pressure monitoring device to be installed in a vehicle tire for application.

8. The blank tire pressure monitoring device setup method as claimed in claim 7, wherein said communication program comprises therein a pressure sensor control program, a temperature sensor control program, an acceleration sensor control program, a power supply information control program, a car body receiver RF and LF communication protocol and a pressure and temperature abnormal pre-warning signal protocol.

9. The blank tire pressure monitoring device setup method as claimed in claim 7, wherein said blank tire pressure monitoring device comprises an embedded microcontroller module electrically connected with the general purpose I/O terminal unit of said blank tire pressure monitoring device, said embedded microcontroller module comprising therein said flash memory adapted for storing the communication program loaded by said setup tool, a microcontroller core and a special-function register controller.

10. The blank tire pressure monitoring device setup method as claimed in claim 7, wherein said setup tool comprises a circuit board, an embedded microcontroller module installed in said circuit board, said embedded microcontroller module comprising memory means, a microcontroller core and a special-function register controller, and a transmitter, a 433 MHz receiver, a 315 MHz receiver, a USB port, a keyboard, a display, a buzzer and a general-purpose I/O terminal unit respectively electrically connected with said embedded microcontroller module.

11. The blank tire pressure monitoring device setup method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the general-purpose I/O terminal unit of said setup tool comprises a power management terminal, a ground terminal, a data program clock terminal, a program data terminal and a detection terminal for frequency differentiating and error prevention control.

12. The blank tire pressure monitoring device setup method as claimed in claim 11, wherein said blank tire pressure monitoring device has five connection terminals;

said general purpose I/O terminal unit of the blank tire pressure monitoring device is electrically connected with the five connection terminals of said blank tire pressure monitoring device;

said five connection terminals of the blank tire pressure monitoring device include a power management terminal, a ground terminal, a data program clock terminal, a program data terminal and a detection terminal for frequency differentiating and error prevention control.

13. The blank tire pressure monitoring device setup method as claimed in claim 12, wherein said detection terminal of the blank tire pressure monitoring device is electrically conducted with at least one of another four terminals of the blank tire pressure monitoring device.

14. The blank tire pressure monitoring device as claimed in claim 13, wherein said transmitter is a 433 MHz transmitter.

15. The blank tire pressure monitoring device setup method as claimed in claim 10, wherein said memory means of the embedded microcontroller module of the setup tool comprises a RAM (random access memory) and a flash memory.