Tire air pressure monitoring system

• US 6,218,936 B1
• Filed: 08/25/1999
• Issued: 04/17/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Pacific Industrial Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Pacific Industrial Company Limited
• Inventors: Imao, Noboru
• Primary Examiner(s): Wu, Daniel J.
• Application Number:
  US09/382,569
• Time in Patent Office: 601 Days
• Field of Search: 340/447, 340/446, 340/448, 340/10.4, 702/138, 731/463, 731/465
• US Class Current: 340/447
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0416 allocating a corresponding wheel position on vehicle, e.g. front/left or rear/right
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0464 to avoid signal interference
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0474 Measurement control, e.g. setting measurement rate or calibrating of sensors; Further processing of measured values, e.g. filtering, compensating or slope monitoring

Abstract

A tire air pressure monitoring system includes transmitters and a receiver. The transmitters wirelessly transmit data regarding the inner pressure of tires and the receiver receives the data from the transmitters. Each transmitter has its own ID code and includes a pressure sensor for measuring the inner pressure of the corresponding tire. Every time each pressure sensor measures the pressure, the corresponding transmitter generates a time interval by performing a pseudorandom number calculation based on the measured pressure and its ID code. The pressure sensor will measure the pressure each time the obtained time interval elapses. When each pressure sensor measures the pressure for a predetermined number of times, the corresponding transmitter wirelessly transmits data. This system prevents the transmitters from interfacing with one another and facilitates the manufacture of the transmitters.

Claims

1. A transmitter for wirelessly transmitting data regarding the inner pressure of a tire, comprising:

a pressure sensor for measuring the inner pressure of the tire;

transmitting means for wirelessly transmitting data including the measured pressure;

first commanding means for commanding the pressure sensor to measure the pressure, wherein, every time the pressure sensor measures the pressure, the first commanding means obtains a time interval based on a pseudorandom number calculation using at least data representing the pressure measured by the pressure sensor, and wherein the first commanding means commands the pressure sensor to measure the pressure after the computed time interval has elapsed; and

second commanding means for commanding the transmitting means to wirelessly transmit the data every time the pressure sensor measures the pressure for predetermined number of times.

2. The transmitter according to claim 1, wherein the transmitter has its own ID code, and the data wirelessly transmitted by the transmitting means represents at least the pressure measured by the pressure sensor and the ID code, and wherein the first commanding means performs the pseudorandom number calculation using the data representing the pressure measured by the pressure sensor and the ID code.

3. The transmitter according to claim 1, wherein the pseudorandom number calculation generates a random delay time, and the first commanding means adds the random delay time to a predetermined time period and sets the resultant sum as the measuring time interval.

4. A method for wirelessly transmitting data regarding the inner pressure of a tire from a transmitter, comprising:

measuring the inner pressure of the tire at random time intervals, wherein, each time interval is generated based on a pseudorandom number calculation using at least data representing the measured pressure, and wherein the pressure is measured when each time interval elapses; and

wirelessly transmitting data including the measured pressure every time the pressure is measured for predetermined number of times.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the transmitter has its own ID code, and the data wirelessly transmitted by the transmitter represents at least the measured pressure and the ID code, and wherein the pseudorandom number calculation is performed using the data representing the measured pressure and the ID code.

6. A tire air pressure monitoring apparatus having a plurality of transmitters for wirelessly transmitting data regarding the inner pressures of respective vehicle tires and a receiver for receiving the data wirelessly transmitted by the transmitters, wherein each transmitter has its own ID code, and wherein the data transmitted from each transmitter represents at least the measured pressure and the ID code, the apparatus comprising:

a memory located in the receiver, wherein the memory includes a registration ID table for registering the ID codes of the transmitters and reception count values, each reception count value corresponding to one of the ID codes, wherein each reception count value is used for judging whether the corresponding ID code registered in the registration ID table is valid;

an initializing switch connected to the receiver, wherein the initializing switch is manipulated for initially registering the ID codes, which are contained in data received by the receiver, in the registration ID table; and

a controller located in the receiver, wherein, when a registration based on the manipulation of the initializing switch is performed, the controller sets each reception count value, which corresponds to one of the initially registered ID codes, to predetermined maximum count value.

7. The monitoring apparatus according to claim 6, wherein each transmitter transmits data at predetermined time intervals, and wherein, when any of the ID codes, which have been registered in the registration ID table, is not received for a predetermined reference period, the controller decrements the reception count value corresponding to the unreceived ID code.

8. The monitoring apparatus according to claim 7, wherein, when any of the reception count values reaches a predetermined minimum count value, the controller judges that the corresponding ID code is invalid.

9. The monitoring apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the memory has a backup ID table for storing backup ID codes, and wherein the backup ID codes are different from the ID codes that have been registered in the registration ID table.

10. The monitoring apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the maximum number of backup ID codes stored in the backup ID table is predetermined, and, if an ID code that is not included in the registration ID table or in the backup ID table is received after the number of backup ID codes stored in the backup ID table reaches the predetermined maximum number, the backup ID code that was received earliest is deleted from the backup ID table.

11. The monitoring apparatus according to claim 9, wherein, when an ID code that is the same as one of the backup ID codes stored in the backup ID table has been received for a predetermined maximum number of times, the controller judges that the backup ID code is valid.

12. The monitoring apparatus according to claim 11, wherein, when one of the reception count values becomes less than or equal to the predetermined minimum count value and an ID code that matches one of the backup ID codes stored in the backup ID table has been received for the predetermined maximum number of times, the controller deletes the ID code corresponding to the reception count value that is less than or equal to the minimum count value from the registration ID table and newly registers the backup ID code that has been received for the maximum number of times in the registration ID table.

13. The monitoring apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the controller sets the reception count value corresponding to the newly registered ID code to the maximum count value.

14. The monitoring apparatus according to claim 9, wherein, when an ID code corresponding to a reception count value that is smaller than the maximum count value is received, the controller increments the corresponding reception count value.

15. The monitoring apparatus according to claim 14, wherein, when the reception count values corresponding to all the ID codes stored in the registration ID table have been incremented to the maximum count values, the controller deletes all the backup ID codes from the backup ID table.