On-vehicle electronic control unit

• US 6,175,795 B1
• Filed: 07/02/1998
• Issued: 01/16/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Autonetworks Technologies, Ltd. (Sumitomo Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Harness System Technologies Research, Ltd. (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Electric Industries Limited (Sumitomo Corporation), Sumitomo Wiring Systems Limited (Sumitomo Corporation)
• Inventors: Sumida, Yoshitaka
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TAN QUANG
• Application Number:
  US09/109,731
• Time in Patent Office: 929 Days
• Field of Search: 701/49, 701/29, 701/35, 701/36
• US Class Current: 701/49
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/0239 Electronic boxes
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/0315 using multiplexing techniques multiplexing for transmission of signals G08C15/00; multiplexing for electrical communication in general H04J

Abstract

The invention provides an on-vehicle electronic control unit wherein all types of combinations of electrical equipment can be controlled by the electronic control unit with a common arrangement without changing the arrangement of the microcomputer, the print circuit board or the like, which makes it possible to reduce the number of parts of the on-vehicle electronic control unit to a large extent and reduce the cost thereof. The memory portion of a microcomputer of the electronic control unit stores the control programs for all types of electrical equipment to be controlled. Input terminals are opened and/or ground in accordance with the combination of electrical equipment to be controlled so that the microcomputer can recognize the type of the control program to read from the memory portion. In this manner, the electronic control unit is adapted to the change of the combination of the electrical equipment without changing the hardware arrangement. In this case, an alarm for key-forgotten state and a room lamp are both provided normally, and motors for locking and unlocking an electric door lock system are provided optionally so that they can be replaced by other electrical equipment such as electric flexible outer mirrors or other devices.

Claims

1. An on-vehicle electronic control unit provided in a vehicle for use with multiple types of electrical equipment, including at least one type of input side electrical equipment and at least one type of output side electrical equipment, mountable on the vehicle, comprising:

an input terminal electrically connectable to the at least one type of input side electrical equipment of the multiple types of electrical equipment mountable on the vehicle,

an output terminal electrically connectable to the at least one type of output side electrical equipment of the multiple types of electrical equipment mountable on the vehicle,

a switching terminal which receives a signal representing which of the multiple types of electrical equipment is connected to the input terminal and the output terminal, and

a controller connected to the input terminal, the output terminal and the switching terminal, the controller having multiple types of control modes such that a control mode of the multiple types of control modes can be changed in accordance with a combination of the multiple types of electrical equipment to be connected to the input terminal and the output terminal, the controller changing the control mode, in accordance with the signal received by the switching terminal, to another control mode corresponding to the combination of the multiple types of electrical equipment represented by the signal, and controlling the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal in accordance with the input signal inputted from the input side electrical equipment through the input terminal.

2. The on-vehicle electronic control unit according to claim 1, wherein the controller includes:

a memory portion that stores multiple types of control programs, in accordance with the type of the output side electrical equipment to be connected to the output terminal, for controlling the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal in accordance with the input signal inputted from the input side electrical equipment through the input terminal,

a control portion that controls the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal based on the input signal inputted from the input side electrical equipment through the input terminal in accordance with one of the multiple types of control programs read from the memory portion, and

a switching portion for informing the control portion of one type of control program to be read, corresponding to the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal, from the multiple types of control programs stored in the memory portion based on the signal inputted through the switching terminal so as to change the control mode of the controller into the control mode corresponding to the combination of electrical equipment connected to the input terminal and the output terminal.

3. An on-vehicle electronic control unit provided in a vehicle for use with multiple types of electrical equipment, including at least one type of input side electrical equipment and at least one type of output side electrical equipment, mountable on the vehicle, comprising:

an input terminal electrically connectable to the at least one type of input side electrical equipment of the multiple types of electrical equipment mountable on the vehicle,

an output terminal electrically connectable to the at least one type of output side electrical equipment of the multiple types of electrical equipment mountable on the vehicle,

switching terminal means for receiving a signal representing which of the multiple types of electrical equipment is connected to the input terminal and the output terminal, and

control means, connected to the input terminal, the output terminal and the switching terminal means, and having multiple types of control modes such that a control mode of the multiple types of control modes can be changed in accordance with a combination of the multiple types of electrical equipment to be connected to the input terminal and the output terminal, for changing the control mode, in accordance with the signal received by the switching terminal means to another control mode corresponding to the combination of the multiple types of electrical equipment represented by the signal, and controlling the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal in accordance with the input signal inputted from the input side electrical equipment through the input terminal.

4. The on-vehicle electronic control unit according to claim 3, wherein the control means includes:

memory means for storing multiple types of control programs, in accordance with the type of the output side electrical equipment to be connected to the output terminal, for controlling the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal in accordance with the input signal inputted from the input side electrical equipment through the input terminal,

control portion means for controlling the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal based on the input signal inputted from the input side electrical equipment through the input terminal in accordance with one of the multiple types of control programs read from the memory means, and

switching portion means for informing the control portion means of one type of control program to be read, corresponding to the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal, from the multiple types of control programs stored in the memory means based on the signal inputted through the switching terminal means so as to change the control mode of the control means into the control mode corresponding to the combination of electrical equipment connected to the input terminal and the output terminal.

5. A method of controlling multiple types of electrical equipment, including at least one type of input side electrical equipment and at least one type of output side electrical equipment, mountable on a vehicle, comprising the steps of:

electrically connecting an input terminal to the at least one type of input side electrical equipment of the multiple types of electrical equipment mountable on the vehicle,

electrically connecting an output terminal to the at least one type of output side electrical equipment of the multiple types of electrical equipment mountable on the vehicle,

receiving a signal, representing which of the multiple types of electrical equipment is connected to the input terminal and the output terminal, with a switching terminal, and

changing, with a controller having multiple types of control modes and connected to the input terminal, the output terminal and the switching terminal, a control mode of the multiple types of control modes, in accordance with the signal received by the switching terminal, to another control mode corresponding to the combination of the multiple types of electrical equipment represented by the signal, and controlling the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal in accordance with the input signal inputted from the input side electrical equipment through the input terminal.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the step of changing includes the steps of:

storing, with a memory portion, multiple types of control programs, in accordance with the type of the output side electrical equipment to be connected to the output terminal, for controlling the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal in accordance with the input signal inputted from the input side electrical equipment through the input terminal,

controlling, with a control portion, the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal based on the input signal inputted from the input side electrical equipment through the input terminal in accordance with one of the multiple types of control programs read from the memory portion, and

informing, with a switching portion, the control portion of one type of control program to be read, corresponding to the output side electrical equipment connected to the output terminal, from the multiple types of control programs stored in the memory portion based on the signal inputted through the switching terminal so as to change the control mode of the controller into the control mode corresponding to the combination of electrical equipment connected to the input terminal and the output terminal.