Method for processing data in an influencing device

• US 8,626,395 B2
• Filed: 08/09/2012
• Issued: 01/07/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dspace GmbH
• Original Assignee: Dspace GmbH
• Inventors: Dressler, Marc
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung, Mary
• Assistant Examiner(s): Trivedi, Atul
• Application Number:
  US13/571,143
• Publication Number:
  US 20130041551A1
• Time in Patent Office: 516 Days
• Field of Search: 701/27, 701/30.2, 701/32.2, 701/32.7, 701/33.3, 701/33.4, 701/42, 701/102, 701/430, 701451-452, 701476-480, 701/540
• US Class Current: 701/42
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3648 using additional hardware
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3656 using a specific debug interface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4843 by program, e.g. task dispatcher, supervisor, operating system

Abstract

A method is provided for processing data in an influencing device, whereby the influencing device is connectable to a vehicle control unit and to a data processing unit. If the influencing device receives a first trigger or a second trigger, the first trigger is checked for a valid assignment to a function implemented in the hardware or software. If there is a valid assignment, the assigned function is started. A first address and/or a second address and/or the value are checked for a valid assignment to a first sub-function or a second sub-function. Depending on the called sub-function, the value is checked and/or manipulated and depending on the result of the check, the checked value and/or the manipulated value are sent by the influencing device to the vehicle control unit and/or to the data processing unit and/or stored in the memory of the influencing device.

Claims

1. A method for processing data, the method comprising:

providing a vehicle control unit, an influencing device connectable to the vehicle control unit, and a data processing unit connectable to the influencing device, the influencing device comprising a first execution unit, the vehicle control unit and the influencing device being arranged in a motor vehicle or the vehicle control unit and the influencing device being arranged on a test bench or laboratory bench;

running a first program in the vehicle control unit;

running a second program that is implemented in software or hardware in the execution unit of the influencing device;

exchanging data according to an XCP protocol and/or a CCP protocol between the data processing unit and the influencing device;

receiving a first trigger or a second trigger from the vehicle control unit, from the data processing unit, or from the influencing device;

checking the first trigger for a valid assignment to a function implemented in the hardware or software; and

starting, by the influencing device, the assigned function if there is a valid assignment, the function having a first sub-function and/or a second sub-function, and the function having at least one first address;

reading out a value from a memory of the influencing device and/or a memory of the vehicle control unit via the first address;

checking the first address and/or a second address and/or the read value for a valid assignment to the first sub-function or the second sub-function, wherein, if there is a valid assignment, the assigned first sub-function and/or the assigned second sub-function is called up;

checking and/or manipulating the read value based on the called sub-function; and

sending, based on the result of the check, the checked value and/or the manipulated value via the influencing device to the vehicle control unit and/or to the data processing unit and/or storing the checked value and/or the manipulated value in the memory of the influencing device.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the checking of the assignment of the first address and/or a second address and/or of the value to the first sub-function or the second sub-function occurs after the function is started.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the checking of the assignment of the first address and/or the second address and/or of the value to the first sub-function or the second sub-function occurs before the function is started.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the content of the first sub-function and/or the second sub-function is predetermined by a programming language and/or a modeling language before the start of the second program and/or before the start of the function.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein a program code is generated and/or an FPGA (field-programmable gate array) is programmed and/or is configured from the predetermined content.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein a data format is set by the first sub-function or the second sub-function.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the value, which is detected as faulty based on the execution of the first sub-function, is not sent to the data processing unit and/or the vehicle control unit and/or stored in the memory of the influencing device.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the data processing unit sends data to the influencing device and these data are stored in the memory of the influencing device.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first trigger or the second trigger is received by the influencing device.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the checking and/or manipulating of the read value is performed by the influencing device prior to the sending or storing of the checked value and/or the manipulated value by the influencing device.

11. An influencing device for processing data as an interface between a vehicle control unit running a first program and a data processing unit testing functions of the vehicle control unit, the influencing device comprising:

an execution unit configured to run a second program implemented in software or hardware and to manage an exchange of data with the data processing unit according to an XCP protocol and/or a CCP protocol;

memory coupled to the execution unit and configured to store instructions for causing the execution unit to;

check a received trigger for a valid assignment to a function of the second program,

start the assigned function if there is a valid assignment, the function having a sub-function and an address,

read out a value from memory according to the address,

check the address and/or the read value for a valid assignment to the sub-function,

call the assigned sub-function if there is a valid assignment,

check and/or manipulate the read value based on the called sub-function; and

an interface configured to send the checked value and/or the manipulated value to the data processing unit according to the XCP protocol and/or the CCP protocol.