Electronic control apparatus for failure diagnosis

• US 5,583,770 A
• Filed: 03/30/1994
• Issued: 12/10/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 04/02/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Iwasaki, Toshio, Sekido, Tatsuya
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Gary
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TAN QUANG
• Application Number:
  US08/220,336
• Time in Patent Office: 986 Days
• Field of Search: 364/424.01, 364/424.03, 364/424.04, 364/424.05, 307/9.1, 307/10.1, 307/10.8, 340/904, 340/438, 340/458
• US Class Current: 701/36
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/0315 using multiplexing techniques multiplexing for transmission of signals G08C15/00; multiplexing for electrical communication in general H04J
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0227 Qualitative history assessment, whereby the type of data acted upon, e.g. waveforms, images or patterns, is not relevant, e.g. rule based assessment; if-then decisions

Abstract

An apparatus for driving an actuator loaded on an automotive vehicle in accordance with ON-OFF operation of an operation switch includes: an operation switch; an input circuit activated by operation of the operation switch for driving the actuator; an input detecting section for detecting whether the input circuit is in an activated or deactivated status; a storing section for storing the detected status of the input circuit; a comparing section for comparing a present status of the input circuit newly detected by the input detecting section with a previous status of the input circuit stored in the storing section; an informing section for providing external information indicative of a mismatch between the present status and the previous status of the input circuit on the basis of comparison results of the comparing section; and a stored status updating section for updating the previous status stored in the storing section on the basis of the newly detected present status after the present status and the previous status have been compared with each other. When the operation switch is operated to the ON-state, if the informing section does not provide external mismatch information the apparatus thus indicates that at least one of the operation switch and the input circuit is operating abnormally, while if the informing section does provide the external mismatch information, the apparatus is indicating that both the operation switch and the input circuit are operating normally.

Claims

1. An electronic control apparatus for driving an actuator loaded on an automotive vehicle in accordance with ON-OFF operation of an operation switch, said electronic control apparatus comprising:

an operation switch;

an input circuit connected to said operation switch and said actuator, said input circuit being activated by the operation of said operation switch for driving said actuator;

input detecting means connected to said input circuit for detecting whether said input circuit is in an activated or deactivated status, repeatedly;

storing means connected to said input detecting means for storing the status of said input circuit detected by said input detecting means;

comparing means connected to said input detecting means and said storing means for comparing a present status of said input circuit newly detected by said input detecting means with a previous status of said input circuit stored in said storing means;

informing means connected to said comparing means for providing external information indicative of a mismatch between the present status of said input circuit and the previous status of said input circuit stored in said scoring means on the basis of comparison results by said comparing means; and

stored status updating means connected to said comparing means and said storing means for updating the previous status stored in said storing means on the basis of the present status newly detected by said input detecting means after the present status and the previous status have been compared with each other,

thereby indicating that at least one of said operation switch and said input circuit is operating abnormally when said informing means does not provide said external mismatch information when said operation switch is operated to the ON-state; and

indicating that both said operation switch and said input circuit are operating normally when said informing means provides said external mismatch information and said operation switch is operated to the ON-state.

2. The electronic control apparatus of claim 1, wherein said informing means is a room lamp turned from on to off or vice versa to inform of the comparison results.

3. An electronic control apparatus for driving an actuator loaded on an automotive vehicle in accordance with ON-OFF operation of an operation switch, said electronic control apparatus comprising:

a master station;

a slave station connected to said master station;

a load connected to said slave station, said load having an operated status and an unoperated status;

a communication device disposed in said master station, for transmitting and receiving signals to and from said slave station through a transmission line; and

an output circuit disposed in said slave station, for applying signals transmitted by said master station through the transmission line to said load, and

wherein said master station includes;

transmitting means for transmitting to said slave station a command signal for commanding said load to a predetermined status;

detecting means for receiving a status of the output circuit of said slave station;

comparing means for comparing the status received by said detecting means with the predetermined status transmitted by said transmitting means; and

a room lamp turned from on to off and vice versa in response to a result of a comparison by said comparing means for informing of a mismatch between the status received by said detecting means and the predetermined status transmitted by said transmitting means.