Vehicle-equipment control apparatus

• US 6,114,776 A
• Filed: 12/09/1998
• Issued: 09/05/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: ALPS Electric Company Limited (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: ALPS Electric Company Limited (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Yokoyama, Tatsuya, Ito, Susumu, Sato, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Jackson, Stephen W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): POLK, SHARON A
• Application Number:
  US09/208,150
• Time in Patent Office: 636 Days
• Field of Search: 307/9.1, 307/10.1, 361/115, 324/76.63, 700/100, 455/346
• US Class Current: 307/10.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/0315 using multiplexing techniques multiplexing for transmission of signals G08C15/00; multiplexing for electrical communication in general H04J

Abstract

A vehicle-equipment control apparatus comprises a plurality of types of control instruction units respectively having different switch functions and incorporating different diode-connected circuits therein, unit mounting portions to which the plurality of types of control instruction units are mountable, and a control instruction unit determinator which, when any of the plurality of types of control instruction units is fit to the unit mounting portions, determines the type of the fit control instruction unit based on the output of each built-in diode-connected circuit. In this case, the diode-connected circuit is made up of two or more diodes or comprised of two or more diodes and one resistor.

Claims

1. A vehicle-equipment control apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of types of control instruction units respectively having different switch functions and incorporating different diode-connected circuits therein, said diode-connected circuits having a plurality of pins and at least one diode, each diode connecting at least two of the plurality of pins, said diode-connected circuits having a unique combination of a number of diodes and an arrangement of connections between the plurality of pins using the number of diodes;

unit mounting portions to which said plurality of types of control instruction units are fittable; and

a control instruction unit determinator to determine, when any of said plurality of types of control instruction units is fit to the unit mounting portions, the type of said control instruction unit based on a digital signal output of said plurality of pins of said each diode-connected circuit.

2. The vehicle-equipment control apparatus according to claim 1, said each diode-connected circuit further comprising a resistor.