Communication network for vehicle control and diagnosis method thereof
First Claim
1. A communication network for vehicle control having a plurality of control units (ECUs) connected to one another via communication lines for transmitting and receiving unique signals, each of the control units being connected to at least one of auxiliary input and output devices, each of at least two of the control units including a transmitter, a receiver, and a controller, and performing a diagnosis function and, each provided with an indicating means, the communication network comprising:
- a diagnosis mode signal generating means for setting at least the control unit provided with the diagnosis function to a diagnosis mode;
the receiver in the control unit with the diagnosis function, according to the diagnosis mode, receiving the unique signal from at least one other control unit; and
the controller in the control unit with the diagnosis function, according to the diagnosis mode, determining the presence of a fault in the communication network on the basis of a combination of the unique signal received and an input signal from the auxiliary input device connected to the control unit with the diagnosis function, and driving the indicating means for indicating the result of diagnosis.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A communication network for vehicle control and a method of diagnosing the same in which the self-diagnosis functions attributed to some of control units in the communication network are combined with a manual diagnosis operation, whereby the diagnosis can be carried out by a relatively simple arrangement without sacrificing readiness and correctness, thus ensuring higher cost performance and reliability. The communication network includes control units, each coupled to at least one of auxiliary input and output devices, connected with communication lines to one another for transmitting and receiving unique signals. Each of at least two of the control units includes a transmitter, a receiver, a controller, and an indicating means, and has a diagnosis function. In a diagnosis mode, a receiver of the control unit with the diagnosis function upon receiving the unique signal from another control unit examines whether the unique signal is normal or not, and whether an input signal received from the auxiliary input device connected thereto is authentic or not. On the basis of the results of examination, the control unit determines the presence of fault in the communication network and energizes the indicating means in a corresponding manner.
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Citations
21 Claims
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1. A communication network for vehicle control having a plurality of control units (ECUs) connected to one another via communication lines for transmitting and receiving unique signals, each of the control units being connected to at least one of auxiliary input and output devices, each of at least two of the control units including a transmitter, a receiver, and a controller, and performing a diagnosis function and, each provided with an indicating means, the communication network comprising:
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a diagnosis mode signal generating means for setting at least the control unit provided with the diagnosis function to a diagnosis mode; the receiver in the control unit with the diagnosis function, according to the diagnosis mode, receiving the unique signal from at least one other control unit; and the controller in the control unit with the diagnosis function, according to the diagnosis mode, determining the presence of a fault in the communication network on the basis of a combination of the unique signal received and an input signal from the auxiliary input device connected to the control unit with the diagnosis function, and driving the indicating means for indicating the result of diagnosis. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method of diagnosing a vehicle control communication network which has a plurality of control units connected to one another via communication lines, each of the control units being connected to at least one of auxiliary input and output devices, and a diagnosis mode signal generating means for setting the control unit to a diagnosis mode, each of said at least two of the control units including a transmitter, a receiver, and a controller for performing a diagnosis function and being provided with an indicating means, comprising the steps of:
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setting the control unit provided with the diagnosis function to one of a first diagnosis mode and a second diagnosis mode by operating the diagnosis mode signal generating means; switching the diagnosis mode from one to the other in the control unit provided with the diagnosis function; allowing, in the first diagnosis mode, the control unit with the diagnosis function to receive a unique signal from another control unit, automatically diagnose the condition of the other control units and communication lines on the basis of the received unique signal, and drive the indicating means connected to the control unit in a given manner for indicating the result of diagnosis; and allowing, in the second diagnosis mode, the control unit to drive the indicating means connected to the control unit with the diagnosis function in a given manner in response to a switch signal input indicative of the manual operation of selected one of the auxiliary input devices connected to the control unit. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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Specification