VEHICLE-TO-X COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, VEHICLE, AND METHOD FOR TRANSMITTING VEHICLE-TO-X MESSAGES

• US 20170012657A1
• Filed: 02/13/2015
• Published: 01/12/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG), Continental Teves AG & Co. OHG (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG), Continental Teves AG & Co. OHG (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Sthlin, Ulrich, Menzel, Marc, Owen, Richard
• Granted Patent: US 10,205,476 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/161 Decentralised systems, e.g. inter-vehicle communication
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/162 event-triggered
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/163 involving continuous checking
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/3822 specially adapted for use in vehicles H04B1/3827 takes precedence

Abstract

A vehicle-to-x communication system, a vehicle including a vehicle-to-x communication system and a method for transmitting vehicle-to-x messages. Instead of having to diversify transmission as is customary when at least two antennae are used, signals are emitted in a suitably split manner via a first antenna or a second antenna.

Claims

1. A vehicle-to-X communication system for a vehicle, having:

a first antenna,

second antenna, and

a communication unit, which is connected to the first antenna and the second antenna in order to transmit signals via the antennas,

wherein the communication unit is designed to transmit a signal, which is part of a vehicle-to-X communication, selectively via the first antenna or via the second antenna.

2. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the communication unit is designed to transmit the signal either exclusively via the first antenna or exclusively via the second antenna.

3. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 1,

the communication unit is designed, when transmitting a signal via the first antenna, not to transmit the signal simultaneously via the second antenna, and when transmitting a signal via the second antenna not to transmit the signal simultaneously via the first antenna.

4. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 1,

the communication unit is designed to decide, as a function of at least one of the type of signals to be transmitted, a traffic situation, and

driving parameters, whether the signal is transmitted via the first antenna or via the second antenna.

5. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the communication unit is designed to transmit a signal which is not relevant, or is only of little relevance, for road users behind the vehicle and/or which is relevant only or predominantly for road users in front of the vehicle, exclusively via the first antenna.

6. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the communication unit is designed to transmit a signal which is not relevant, or is only of little relevance, for road users in front of the vehicle and/or which is relevant only or predominantly for road users behind the vehicle, exclusively via the second antenna.

7. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the communication unit is designed to transmit a multiplicity of signals which are spaced apart from one another at respective time intervals, according to a transmission pattern, and

wherein the transmission pattern predefines a sequence in which signals are transmitted via the first antenna or the second antenna.

8. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 7, wherein

the communication unit is designed to define a transmission pattern as a function of at least one of the type of signals to be transmitted, a traffic situation, and driving parameters.

9. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 8, wherein

the communication unit is designed to define the transmission pattern in such a way that a proportion of transmissions via the first antenna is higher the less relevant the signals are for road users behind the vehicle and/or the more relevant the signals are for road users in front of the vehicle.

10. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 8, wherein

the communication unit is designed to define the transmission pattern in such a way that a proportion of transmissions via the second antenna is higher the less relevant the signals are for road users in front of the vehicle and/or the more relevant the signals are for road users behind the vehicle.

11. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the communication unit comprises:

a first transmitter unit which is connected to the first antenna,

a second transmitter unit which is connected to the second antenna, and

a control unit which is connected to the first transmitter unit and to the second transmitter unit,

wherein the control unit is designed to actuate the first transmitter unit to transmit a signal via the first antenna, and to actuate the second transmitter unit to transmit a signal via the second antenna.

12. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the communication unit has an antenna combiner, a transmitter unit and a control unit,

wherein the antenna combiner is connected to the first antenna, the second antenna and the transmitter unit, and

wherein the control unit is designed to select, by the antenna combiner, whether a signal is to be transmitted via the first antenna or via the second antenna.

13. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the communication unit is designed to transmit signals exclusively via one of the antennas if the communication unit has determined that the transmission via these antennas is sufficient for most of the road users in a current traffic situation and/or given current driving parameters, and

the communication unit is designed to transmit signals also via the other antenna if the communication unit has determined that the transmission via just one antenna is no longer sufficient for most of the road users in the current traffic situation and/or given the current driving parameters.

14. A vehicle having a vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 1,

wherein the first antenna and the second antenna are arranged on the vehicle in such a way that they irradiate with respective irradiation characteristics,

wherein the irradiation characteristics do not overlap or only overlap slightly.

16. The vehicle-to-X communication system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the communication unit is designed to define the transmission pattern in such a way that a proportion of transmissions via the second antenna is higher the less relevant the signals are for road users in front of the vehicle and/or the more relevant the signals are for road users behind the vehicle.

15. A method for transmitting vehicle-to-X messages comprising:

generating a signal which contains a respective vehicle-to-X message,

determining whether the signal is to be transmitted via a first antenna or a second antenna, and

selective transmission of the signal as a function thereof via the first antenna or the second antenna.