Distributed display device for vehicles and an object provided with a distributed display device

• US 9,916,808 B2
• Filed: 04/08/2014
• Issued: 03/13/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/09/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BAE Systems Hã¤Gglunds AB
• Original Assignee: BAE Systems Hã¤Gglunds AB
• Inventors: Backstrm, Ronny, Hgglund, Patrik
• Primary Examiner(s): INGRAM, THOMAS P
• Application Number:
  US14/783,396
• Publication Number:
  US 20160071482A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,435 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/52 Control of displays
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/81 for controlling displays
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1423 controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/06 in graphical form
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/12 in graphical form
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/08 Fault-tolerant or redundant circuits, or circuits in which repair of defects is prepared
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/12 Overlay of images, i.e. displayed pixel being the result of switching between the corresponding input pixels
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2358/00 Arrangements for display data security
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2380/10 Automotive applications
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2380/12 Avionics applications
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/006 Details of the interface to the display terminal specific for a display terminal using a CRT G09G1/167; using a flat panel G09G3/2096; circuits for interfacing with colour displays G09G5/04
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/377 for mixing or overlaying two or more graphic patterns G09G5/02, G09G5/397 take precedence

Abstract

The invention relates to a distributed display device for a vehicle comprising a set of subsystems, wherein said display device comprises at least one operator station, comprising at least one display unit arranged to receive and present information from at least one subsystem of a set of subsystems of the vehicle, wherein said at least one display unit comprises at least one dedicated safety critical input and at least one shared non safety critical input so as to be able to receive and present information from said at least one predetermined subsystem via at least one dedicated safety critical link and at least one shared non safety critical link.

Claims

1. A distributed display device for a vehicle comprising a set of subsystems, said display device comprising:

at least one operator station of a first configuration, wherein said at least one operator station of the first configuration comprises at least one display unit arranged to receive and present information from at least one predetermined subsystem of said set of subsystems, said at least one display unit of said at least one operator station of the first configuration comprises, at least one dedicated safety critical input for only receiving safety critical information via a dedicated safety critical link, at least one shared non safety critical input for receiving non safety critical information and/or safety critical information via a shared non safety critical link, and at least one shared security critical input for receiving security critical information via at least one shared security critical link, so as to be able to receive and present information from said at least one predetermined subsystem via the dedicated safety critical link, the shared non safety critical link and the shared security critical link.

2. The distributed display device of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of information processing units, each being arranged to receive and process information from at least one predetermined subsystem of said subsystems for generating and sending processed information via at least one of said at least one dedicated safety critical link and said at least one shared non safety critical link of said at least one display unit of said at least one operator station of the first configuration for causing presentation of said processed information.

3. The distributed display device of claim 2, wherein at least two information processing units of said plurality of information processing units are arranged to provide substantially the same processed information for providing redundancy so that functionally may be maintained at an error condition associated with one of the at least two information processing units.

4. The distributed display device of claim 2, wherein processed information, sent from one or more of said plurality of information processing units, which is received, in at least one display unit of said of at least one operator station, via said at least one shared non safety critical input is presented overlaid and/or beside processed information received via said at least one dedicated safety critical input.

5. The distributed display device of claim 2, wherein said at least one shared non safety critical input is connected via at least a first network via at least one first switch to the plurality of said information processing units and/or a plurality of said subsystems.

6. The distributed display device of claim 1, further comprising at least one event monitor unit arranged to detect and register at least one critical event based on information from sensors and/or any subsystem of said set of subsystems of the vehicle.

7. The distributed display device of claim 6, further comprising at least one display overriding unit arranged to receive information from said event monitor unit, wherein said display overriding unit is configured for connection to at least one display overriding input, arranged at said at least one display unit and wherein said display overriding unit further is configured to send a signal to said at least one display overriding input for causing said at least one display unit to shift from presenting a display representation of primary configuration to presenting a display representation of secondary configuration associated with a detected critical event received from said event monitor unit.

8. The distributed display device of claim 7, wherein the signal sent from said at least one display overriding unit to said at least one display overriding input is arranged to electrically deactivate said at least one shared non safety critical input of said at least one display unit associated with a detected critical event.

9. The distributed display device of claim 6, wherein said at least one event monitor unit further is arranged to register information indicating a kind of detected event.

10. The distributed display device of claim 9, wherein said at least one display overriding unit associated with a detected critical event is arranged to send a signal indicating said kind of event to said at least one display overriding input for causing said at least one display unit to shift from presenting a display representation of primary configuration to present a display representation of secondary configuration selected from a plurality of display representations of secondary configuration, based on said information indicating kind of detected event, associated with a detected critical event.

11. The distributed display device of claim 1, wherein said at least one operator station of the first configuration comprises a plurality of display units, wherein each comprises at least one dedicated safety critical input and at least one shared non safety critical input.

12. The distributed display device of claim 11, wherein said at least one dedicated safety critical input of each of one of said plurality of display units is configured for connection via a predetermined dedicated safety critical link to a predetermined information processing unit of said plurality of information processing units wherein said at least one shared non safety critical input of each and one of said plurality of display units is configured for connection to at least one predetermined information processing unit of said plurality of the information processing units.

13. The distributed display device of claim 11, wherein safety critical processed information generated by each one of said plurality of the information processing units is sent at least via said predetermined dedicated safety critical link to said at least one dedicated safety critical input of a predetermined display unit of said plurality of display units of said at least one operator station.

14. The distributed display device of claim 11, wherein non safety critical processed information generated by each one of said at least one information processing units is sent via said at least one shared non safety critical link to said at least one shared non safety critical input of at least one of said plurality of display units of said at least one operator station.

15. The distributed display device of claim 1, further comprising at least one user input unit arranged to allow for at least one of operator of said distributed display device to interact with at least one of said subsystems and/or at least one of said plurality of information processing units.

16. The distributed display device of claim 1, further comprising at least one error detection unit arranged to detect and register error conditions of said distributed display device and/or said subsystems.

17. The distributed display device of claim 1, comprising a plurality of operator stations of the first configuration.

18. The distributed display device of claim 1, further comprising at least one operator station of a second configuration, comprising at least one display unit arranged to receive and present information from at least one subsystem of said set of subsystems, wherein said at least one display unit of said operator station of the second configuration comprises at least one shared non safety critical input for via at least one shared non safety critical link be able to receive and present information from said at least one subsystem.

19. The distributed display device of claim 1, wherein said at least one operator station of the second configuration comprises a plurality of displays, wherein each and one comprises at least one shared non safety critical input.

20. The distributed display device of claim 1, wherein said at least one shared security critical input is connected via at least a second network via at least one second switch to a plurality of information processing units and/or a plurality of said subsystems arranged to generate security critical information.

21. The distributed display device of claim 1, wherein said at least one shared non safety critical input is a network interface or a data bus interface configured for connection to a network or to a data bus.

22. The distributed display device of claim 1, wherein said at least one dedicated safety critical link is a link of at least a kind of link selected from a group consisting of “

Video Graphics Array”

(VGA), “

Digital Visual Interface”

(DVI), and “

High-Definition Multimedia Interface”

(HDMI), Display Port and Low-Voltage Differential Signaling Interface (LVDS).

23. A vehicle comprising a display, wherein the display device comprises;

at least one operator station of a first configuration, wherein said at least one operator station of the first configuration comprises at least one display unit arranged to receive and present information from at least one predetermined subsystem of said set of subsystems, said at least one display unit of said at least one operator station of the first configuration comprises, at least one dedicated safety critical input for only receiving safety critical information via a dedicated safety critical link, at least one shared non safety critical input for receiving non safety critical information and/or safety critical information via a shared non safety critical link, and at least one shared security critical input for receiving security critical information at least one shared security critical link, as to be able to receive and present information from said at least one predetermined subsystem via the dedicated safety critical link, the shared non safety critical link and the shared security critical link.