Low cost, open approach for vehicle software installation/updating and on-board diagnostics

• US 7,913,242 B2
• Filed: 11/04/2003
• Issued: 03/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/04/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations Incorporated (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Inventors: Holland, Steven W
• Primary Examiner(s): Yigdall; Michael J
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wang; Ben C
• Application Number:
  US10/701,143
• Publication Number:
  US 20050097541A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,695 Days
• Field of Search: 717168-178
• US Class Current: 717/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57

Abstract

A vehicle software installation, upgrade, and diagnostic system for use in vehicle assembly, upgrade, and repair, includes a portable memory device, such as a USB flash disk. The device receives diagnostic information via an open architecture communications port of a vehicle, such as a USB port. An external processor has a complimentary open architecture communications port and is adapted to receive and analyze the diagnostic information from the portable device. According to various aspects, analysis of the diagnostic information verifies successful installation and testing of vehicle software transferred from the portable device to vehicle processors, identifies software versions resident on the vehicle and related upgrade history for download and installation of an appropriate software upgrade, and/or diagnoses vehicle problems in accordance with sensed vehicle conditions and predetermined fault detection criteria.

Claims

1. A software management system for use in a vehicle, comprising:

a portable memory device adapted to store software files and diagnostic information;

multiple vehicle processors connected to a system bus of the vehicle and each adapted to generate diagnostic information indicating success of software installation on the respective vehicle processor, wherein the diagnostic information for each respective vehicle processor includes an indication of a software version installed on the respective vehicle processor;

a communications port of the vehicle;

an interface processor connected to the communications port and the system bus, wherein the interface processor is adapted to, when the portable memory device is connected to the communications port;

identify software files stored on the portable memory device for each of the multiple vehicle processors,

load the identified software files onto the multiple vehicle processors, and

transmit the diagnostic information received from the multiple vehicle processors to the portable memory device; and

an external processor having a communications port and adapted to receive the diagnostic information from the portable memory device and to analyze the diagnostic information to determine successful software installation on the vehicle.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the communications ports of the vehicle and the external processor comprise open architecture communication ports.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the communications ports of the vehicle and the external processor comprise universal serial bus ports, and the portable memory device comprises a universal serial bus drive.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the portable memory device stores software files for multiple vehicle types, and the interface processor identifies the software files based at least in part on vehicle type.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the multiple vehicle processors generate the diagnostic information by automatically performing self-tests on the installed software.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the diagnostic information for each one of the vehicle processors indicates a software version resident on the one of the vehicle processors and upgrade history information corresponding to the one of the vehicle processors; and

the interface processor identifies software files stored on the portable memory device for each of the multiple vehicle processors based on the diagnostic information.

7. A vehicle comprising:

a communications port;

multiple vehicle processors connected to a system bus of the vehicle and adapted to generate diagnostic information indicating success of software installation on the multiple vehicle processors, wherein the diagnostic information indicates installed software versions on the multiple vehicle processors; and

an interface processor connected to the communications port and the system bus, wherein the interface processor is adapted to, when a portable memory device is connected to the communications port;

identify software files stored on the portable memory device for each of the multiple vehicle processors,

load the identified software files onto the multiple vehicle processors, and

transmit the diagnostic information received from the multiple vehicle processors to the portable memory device, wherein the diagnostic information is acquired from the portable memory device and analyzed by an external processor.

8. The vehicle of claim 7 wherein the communications port comprises an open architecture communication port.

9. The vehicle of claim 8 wherein the communications port comprises a universal serial bus port.

10. The vehicle of claim 7 wherein the portable memory device stores software files for multiple vehicle types, and the interface processor identifies the software files based at least in part on vehicle type.

11. The vehicle of claim 7 wherein the multiple vehicle processors generate the diagnostic information by automatically performing self-tests on the installed software.

12. The vehicle of claim 7 wherein the diagnostic information for each one of the vehicle processors indicates a software version resident on the one of the vehicle processors and upgrade history information corresponding to the one of the vehicle processors.

13. The vehicle of claim 12 wherein the interface processor identifies software files stored on the portable memory device for each of the multiple vehicle processors based on the diagnostic information.

14. A vehicle software installation method for use in vehicle assembly, comprising:

establishing communication between a portable memory device and an interface processor of a vehicle via a communications port of the vehicle, wherein the interface processor is connected to multiple vehicle processors of the vehicle via a system bus of the vehicle;

employing the interface processor to identify, for each of the multiple vehicle processors, software files on the portable memory device, and to load the software files received over the communications port onto the multiple vehicle processors;

installing the software files on the multiple vehicle processors;

transferring diagnostic information indicating success of software installation from the multiple vehicle processors to the portable memory device via the interface processor, wherein the diagnostic information indicates installed software versions on the multiple vehicles processors;

establishing communication between the portable memory device and an external processor via a communications port of the external processor; and

analyzing the diagnostic information via the external processor to determine success of software installation in the vehicle.

15. The method of claim 14 further comprising employing open architecture communications ports as the communications ports.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising employing universal serial bus ports as the communications ports.

17. The method of claim 14 further comprising employing a universal serial bus drive as the portable memory device.

18. The method of claim 14 further comprising storing software files for multiple vehicle types on the portable memory device, and identifying the software files based at least in part on vehicle type.

19. The method of claim 14 further comprising generating the diagnostic information by automatically performing self-tests on the installed software.

20. The method of claim 14 wherein the diagnostic information for each one of the vehicle processors indicates a software version resident on the one of the vehicle processors and upgrade history information corresponding to the one of the vehicle processors.

21. The method of claim 20 further comprising identifying software files stored on the portable memory device for each of the multiple vehicle processors based on the diagnostic information.