VEHICULAR CONTROL SYSTEM

• US 20030144783A1
• Filed: 02/03/2003
• Published: 07/31/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/1997
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Donnelly Mirrors Limited
• Original Assignee: Donnelly Mirrors Limited
• Inventors: Drummond, John P., Schofield, Kenneth, Schierbeek, Kenneth L., Fletcher, Sean J., Savard, Hassel J.
• Granted Patent: US 6,904,348 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/49
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/088 using a cell of electrically changeable optical characteristic, e.g. liquid-crystal or electrochromic mirrors
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2001/1284 with communication systems other than radio-receivers, e.g. keyless entry systems, navigation systems; with anti-collision systems

Abstract

A vehicle control system comprises an industry standard CAN network with a number of nodes distributed around the vehicle for controlling corresponding parts of the vehicle. One such node is located in the housing of the vehicle interior rearview mirror and directly controls the reflectivity of an electro-optic mirror unit, in accordance with the state of at least one ambient light sensor and a remote keyless entry device. The node also communicates via an ISO9141 interface with a number of slave controllers such as a sun-roof control module mounted adjacent a sun-roof and a roof control module mounted in a roof housing. By this means the UCM exercises indirect control of the sun-roof in accordance with the state of a switch, and exercises indirect control of various lamps GEN1, GEN2, FLL and FRL in the roof housing in accordance with the state of switches Gen, FL and FR mounted in the roof housing or, in the case of the lamps GEN1 and GEN2, when a vehicle door is opened.

Claims

1. A vehicle rearview mirror comprising a mirror housing containing a variable reflectivity mirror unit and a microcontroller for controlling the reflectivity of the mirror unit.

2. A vehicle rearview mirror according to claim 1, further including connection means adapted to connect the microcontroller to a vehicle control network, the microcontroller forming a node of said network.

3. A vehicle rearview mirror according to claim 2, wherein the mirror housing further includes at least one seat belt warning lamp for indicating that seat belts should be fastened.

4. A vehicle rearview mirror according to claim 2, wherein the mirror housing further includes a remote keyless entry device.

5. A vehicle rearview mirror according to claim 2, wherein the vehicle control network is a CAN network and the node is a CAN node.

6. A vehicle rearview mirror according to claim 2, wherein the connection means is further adapted to connect the microcontroller in the mirror housing to a further microcontroller located exterior to the mirror housing, the microcontroller in the mirror housing and the further microcontroller being in master/slave relationship.

7. A vehicle rearview mirror according to claim 6, wherein the master microcontroller communicates with the slave microcontroller according to an ISO 9141 communication protocol.

8. A vehicle rearview mirror according to claim 1, wherein the reflectivity of the mirror unit is varied under software control according to a selected value of at least one parameter.

9. A vehicle rearview mirror according to claim 1, wherein the microcontroller controls the reflectivity of the mirror unit according to the state of at least one ambient light sensor.

10. A vehicle rearview mirror according to claim 9, wherein the mirror unit includes an electro-optic cell whose transmissivity is determined in accordance with the duty cycle of a pulse width modulated signal provided by the microcontroller.

11. A vehicle rearview mirror according to claim 10, wherein said pulse width modulated signal is smoothed to provide a substantially constant voltage signal which is applied to the cell.

12. A vehicle control system comprising a rearview mirror housing, a variable reflectivity mirror unit mounted in the mirror housing, a first microcontroller mounted in the mirror housing for controlling the reflectivity of the mirror unit, a second microcontroller mounted in the vehicle outside the mirror housing and connected to the first microcontroller, and at least one input and/or output device connected to the second microcontroller.

13. A vehicle control system according to claim 12, wherein the first microcontroller is a master microcontroller and the second microcontroller is a slave microcontroller.

14. A vehicle control system as claimed in claim 12, further including a roof housing positioned on the interior roof of the vehicle, the second microcontroller being mounted in the roof housing.

15. A vehicle control system according to claim 12, wherein the first microcontroller controls the reflectivity of the mirror according to the state of at least one ambient light sensor.

16. A vehicle control system according to claim 15, wherein the mirror unit includes an electro-optic cell whose transmissivity is determined in accordance with the duty cycle of a pulse width modulated signal provided by the first microcontroller.

17. A vehicle control system according to claim 16, wherein said pulse width modulated signal is smoothed to provide a substantially constant voltage signal which is applied to the cell.

18. A vehicle control system according to claim 14, wherein the roof housing contains at least one vehicle interior lamp and the second microcontroller controls the operation of the lamp.

19. A vehicle control system according to claim 18, wherein the vehicle interior lamp is turned on by the second microcontroller upon opening of a vehicle door, and wherein the power dissipated by the lamp upon said turning on is gradually increased from zero to a maximum which is a function of the vehicle battery voltage.

20. A vehicle control system according to claim 19, wherein the power dissipated the lamp is determined in accordance with the duty cycle of a pulse width modulated signal provided by the second microcontroller.

21. A vehicle control system according to claim 13, wherein the master microcontroller is a node on a vehicle control network.

22. A vehicle control system according to claim 21, wherein the master microcontroller communicates with the slave microcontroller according to an ISO 9141 communication protocol.

23. A vehicle control system according to claim 13, wherein at least two slave microcontrollers are connected to the master controller, and wherein the master microcontroller controls an output device connected to one of said slave microcontrollers in response to an input device connected to the other of said slave microcontrollers.

24. A vehicle control system comprising a network controlling a plurality of functions of the vehicle, the network having a node located in a rearview mirror housing of the vehicle, such node controlling at least one function of the mirror.

25. A vehicle control system according to claim 24, wherein said node also forms part of a local sector network including at least one further node in addition to said node, said node and said further node being connected in master/slave relationship.

26. A vehicle control system according to claim 24 or 25, further including a roof housing positioned on the interior roof of the vehicle, said housing including at least one input and/or output device, the or each device being controlled directly by the node.

27. Apparatus for determining an optical characteristic of a vehicle component in accordance with the duty cycle of a pulse width modulated signal.

28. Apparatus according to claim 27, wherein the component is a rearview mirror unit and the characteristic is its reflectivity.

29. Apparatus according to claim 27, wherein the component is an interior lamp and the characteristic is its brightness.