Domain controller firmware upgrade device and upgrade method

Abstract

The present invention provides a domain controller firmware upgrade device and upgrade method, the device comprising: a first SOC, for outputting a high-level signal after receiving a target upgrade instruction; a second SOC; a first memory, which is connected to the first SOC in communication, for storing a first application for use by the first SOC; a second memory, which is used to store a second application for use by the second SOC; a bus switch, which is connected to the first SOC, the second SOC and the second memory in communication, for receiving the high-level signal, and establishing a communication connection between the first SOC and the second memory based on the high-level signal, so that the first SOC writes an upgrade program to the second memory. The present invention can solve the technical problem that the non-master SOC system on the domain controller is interrupted during the upgrade, and there is no applicable program after powering on again.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of domain controllers, and in particular to a domain controller firmware upgrade device and upgrade method. Background Art

[0002] At present, the internal structure of a car's autonomous driving domain controller is generally composed of several SOC (System on chip) systems, including a master SOC system and multiple slave SOC systems. Usually, each SOC system contains a program second memory chip specifically used to store programs.

[0003] When it is necessary to upgrade the software of a slave SOC system in the domain control, the software data to be upgraded is generally transferred to the second program memory chip of the SOC system to be upgraded through the master SOC system. If the transmission is interrupted due to power failure or other reasons during the upgrade process, the program before the upgrade will be erased, or the upgrade program will not be fully written into the program storage area, so that the SOC system to be upgraded has no usable program after powering on again. Summary of the invention

[0004] In view of this, it is necessary to provide a domain controller firmware upgrade device and upgrade method to solve the technical problem that the non-master SOC system on the domain controller is interrupted during the upgrade and there is no applicable program after powering on again.

[0005] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a domain controller firmware upgrade device, comprising:

[0006] The first SOC is used to output a high level signal after receiving a target upgrade instruction;

[0007] Second SOC;

[0008] A first memory, connected to the first SOC for communication, and configured to store a first application for use by the first SOC;

[0009] A second memory, used to store a second application for use by the second SOC;

[0010] A bus switch is connected to the first SOC, the second SOC and the second memory for receiving the high-level signal and establishing a communication connection between the first SOC and the second memory based on the high-level signal, so that the first SOC can write an upgrade program to the second memory.

[0011] Furthermore, the first SOC is also used to read the existing program version in the second memory after establishing a communication connection with the second memory, and directly write the upgrade program to the second memory after verifying that the existing program version meets preset requirements and determining that there is no need to back up the existing program in the second memory.

[0012] Furthermore, the first SOC is also used to write the upgrade program to the second memory after backing up the existing program in the second memory when verifying that the existing program version meets preset requirements and determining that the existing program in the second memory needs to be backed up.

[0013] Furthermore, the first SOC is also used to issue a warning when it is verified that the existing program version does not meet the preset requirements.

[0014] Furthermore, in the domain controller firmware upgrade device, the first SOC is further configured to output a low level signal after the first SOC, the second SOC and the second memory are powered on;

[0015] The bus switch is further used to control the second SOC to establish a communication connection with the second memory based on the low-level signal, so that the second SOC calls the program in the second memory.

[0016] The present invention also provides a method for upgrading domain controller firmware, which is applied to any of the above-mentioned devices, and comprises:

[0017] Outputting a high level signal to the bus switch based on the first SOC, so as to control the bus switch to establish a communication connection between the first SOC and the second memory;

[0018] An upgrade program is written into the second memory based on the first SOC.

[0019] Further, writing the upgrade program into the second memory based on the first SOC includes:

[0020] The existing program version in the second memory is read based on the first SOC, and when it is verified that the existing program version meets the preset requirements and it is determined that the existing program in the second memory does not need to be backed up, the upgrade program is directly written to the second memory.

[0021] Further, the step of writing the upgrade program into the second memory based on the first SOC further includes:

[0022] When the first SOC verifies that the existing program version meets the preset requirements and determines that the existing program in the second memory needs to be backed up, the existing program in the second memory is backed up and then the upgrade program is written to the second memory.

[0023] Furthermore, the domain controller firmware upgrade method further includes:

[0024] When the first SOC verifies that the existing program version does not meet the preset requirements, a warning is issued.

[0025] Furthermore, the domain controller firmware upgrade method further includes:

[0026] After the first SOC, the second SOC and the second memory are powered on, based on the first SOC outputting a low-level signal to the bus switch, the bus switch is controlled to establish a communication connection between the second SOC and the second memory, so that the second SOC calls the program in the second memory.

[0027] The beneficial effect of adopting the above implementation method is: the domain controller firmware upgrade device and upgrade method provided by the present invention, by using a switching circuit, when it is necessary to upgrade the second SOC other than the first SOC, directly switches the second memory corresponding to the second SOC to be upgraded to the communication connection with the first SOC based on the bus switch to store the program, so as to achieve the purpose of upgrading the software program used by the second SOC, even if there is no program or the program is incomplete in the second SOC to be upgraded, it can be upgraded, solving the technical problem that the non-master SOC system on the domain controller is interrupted during the upgrade and there is no applicable program after powering on again. The domain controller firmware upgrade device provided by the present invention does not require the purchase of a special burner, nor does it require the customer to return the domain controller to the factory for upgrading, reducing maintenance time and cost. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work.

[0029] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of an embodiment of a domain controller firmware upgrade device provided by the present invention;

[0030] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the structure of another embodiment of the domain controller firmware upgrade device provided by the present invention;

[0031] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a flow chart of an embodiment of a method for upgrading the firmware of a domain controller provided by the present invention;

[0032] Figure 4 This is a flow chart of another embodiment of the domain controller firmware upgrade method provided by the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be described clearly and completely below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0034] In the description of the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified, “plurality” means two or more.

[0035] The terms "including" and "having" and any variations thereof in the embodiments of the present invention are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a process, method, apparatus, product or equipment comprising a series of steps or modules is not necessarily limited to those steps or modules clearly listed, but may include other steps or modules not clearly listed or inherent to these processes, methods, products or equipment.

[0036] The naming or numbering of the steps in the embodiments of the present invention does not mean that the steps in the method flow must be executed in the time / logical sequence indicated by the naming or numbering. The execution order of the named or numbered process steps can be changed according to the technical purpose to be achieved, as long as the same or similar technical effects can be achieved.

[0037] Reference to "embodiments" herein means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in conjunction with the embodiments may be included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. The appearance of the phrase in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor is it an independent or alternative embodiment that is mutually exclusive with other embodiments. It is explicitly and implicitly understood by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein may be combined with other embodiments.

[0038] The present invention provides a domain controller firmware upgrade device and upgrade method, which are respectively described below.

[0039] like Figure 1 As shown, the present invention provides a domain controller firmware upgrade device, comprising:

[0040] A first SOC (System on chip) 110, configured to output a high level signal after receiving a target upgrade instruction;

[0041] The second SOC 120;

[0042] A first memory 130, connected to the first SOC 110 for communication, and configured to store a first application program for use by the first SOC 110;

[0043] A second memory 140, configured to store a second application program for use by the second SOC 120;

[0044] The bus switch 150 is communicatively connected to the first SOC 110 , the second SOC 120 and the second memory 140 , and is used to receive the high-level signal and establish a communication connection between the first SOC 110 and the second memory 140 based on the high-level signal, so that the first SOC 110 can write an upgrade program to the second memory 140 .

[0045] It is understandable that there are two SOCs inside the domain controller, namely the first SOC 110 and the second SOC 120. Each SOC corresponds to a memory chip, namely the first memory 130 and the second memory 140.

[0046] By adding a bus switch 150 between the second SOC 120 and the second memory 140 and controlling the bus switch 150 to connect the second memory 140 to the second SOC 120 or the first SOC 110 through the communication bus, the function of using the first SOC 110 to upgrade the second SOC 120 can be achieved regardless of whether there is a usable program in the second memory 140.

[0047] After the first SOC110 receives the task of upgrading the second SOC120, that is, after receiving the target upgrade instruction, SOC1_GPIO outputs a high level. At this time, the bus switch 150 switches the bus to connect the first SOC110 to the second memory 140. Figure 1 Shown by the dashed line.

[0048] In some embodiments, the first SOC 110 is further used to read the existing program version in the second memory 140 after establishing a communication connection with the second memory 140, and directly write the upgrade program to the second memory 140 after verifying that the existing program version meets preset requirements and determining that there is no need to back up the existing program in the second memory 140.

[0049] It can be understood that the existing program version in the second memory 140 is read by the first SOC 110 to verify whether the existing program version number in the second memory 140 meets the preset requirements. Specifically, if the version file name is not a file name newer than the current version or the version file name does not meet the requirements, the user is prompted to use a version that meets the preset requirements. If the version meets the preset requirements, the user is prompted whether to back up the program currently in the second memory 1402. If the user chooses to back up, the existing program in the second memory 140 will be backed up first. If the user chooses not to back up, the upgrade program will be directly written to the second memory 140. After writing is completed, the user is reminded to restart the system power.

[0050] After the system power is restarted, the steps are repeated: During the power-on process of the domain controller as a whole and after the power-on is completed, a GPIO port ( Figure 1 The SOC1_GPIO in the second SOC120 outputs a low level by default and maintains a time T0 that is sufficient for the second SOC120 to start up. During this period, the bus switch 150 controls the signal S to be a low level, and the bus switch 150 connects the second SOC120 to the second memory 140. The second SOC120 will start up using the program in the second memory 140. The second SOC120 can then use the program that has been upgraded to the second memory 140.

[0051] In some embodiments, the first SOC 110 is also used to write the upgrade program to the second memory 140 after backing up the existing program in the second memory 140 after verifying that the existing program version meets the preset requirements and determining that the existing program in the second memory 140 needs to be backed up.

[0052] It is understandable that the existing program in the second memory 140 can be copied to a third-party storage device for backup. After the existing program in the second memory 140 is backed up, the upgrade program is written into the second memory 140 to overwrite the existing program in the second memory 140.

[0053] In some embodiments, the first SOC 110 is further configured to issue a warning when it is verified that the existing program version does not meet preset requirements.

[0054] It is understandable that, when the first SOC 110 verifies that the existing program version does not meet the preset requirements, it can send an audible or visual warning, or send a warning message to the target terminal device to remind relevant personnel.

[0055] In some embodiments, the first SOC 110 is further configured to output a low level signal after the first SOC 110 , the second SOC 120 , and the second memory 140 are powered on;

[0056] The bus switch 150 is further configured to control the second SOC 120 to establish a communication connection with the second memory 140 based on the low level signal, so that the second SOC 120 calls the program in the second memory 140 .

[0057] It is understandable that during the power-on process of the entire domain controller and after the power-on is completed, a GPIO port ( Figure 1 The SOC1_GPIO) outputs a low level by default and maintains a time T0 that is at least sufficient for the second SOC120 to start up. During this period, the bus switch 150 controls the signal S to be a low level. The bus switch 150 connects the second SOC120 to the second memory 140, and the second SOC120 will start up using the program in the second memory 140.

[0058] In other embodiments, the domain controller firmware upgrade device provided by the present invention is as follows: Figure 2 As shown, at least two second SOCs 120 and 121 are included, and the second SOCs 120 and 121 correspond to second memories 140 and 141 .

[0059] After receiving the target upgrade instruction, the first SOC 110 outputs a high level signal to the bus switch 150, and the bus switch 150 establishes a communication connection between the first SOC 110 and the plurality of second memories 140, 141, such as Figure 3 As shown by the dotted line, the first SOC 110 writes the upgrade program into the plurality of second memories 140, 141, and then the first SOC 110 outputs a low level signal to the bus switch 150, and the bus switch 150 establishes a communication connection between each second SOC 120, 121 and the corresponding second memory 140, 141, as shown in FIG. Figure 3 As shown by the solid line in the middle, the upgraded program is provided for use by the corresponding second SOC 120 , 121 .

[0060] It should be noted that when the domain controller firmware upgrade device includes at least two second SOCs 120 and 121 , the bus switch 150 may also select part of the second memories 140 and 141 to write the upgrade program for upgrading.

[0061] In summary, the domain controller firmware upgrade device provided by the present invention includes: a first SOC110, which is used to output a high-level signal after receiving a target upgrade instruction; a second SOC120; a first memory 130, which is communicatively connected to the first SOC110 and is used to store a first application for use by the first SOC110; a second memory 140, which is used to store a second application for use by the second SOC120; a bus switch 150, which is communicatively connected to the first SOC110, the second SOC120 and the second memory 140, and is used to receive the high-level signal, and establish a communication connection between the first SOC110 and the second memory 140 based on the high-level signal, so that the first SOC110 can write an upgrade program to the second memory 140.

[0062] When upgrading the second SOC120 to be upgraded, the existing upgrade method can generally only be performed when there is an available program in it. After power-on, the existing program is run, and the communication between it and the first SOC110 is established, and then the program to be upgraded is sent to the memory of the second SOC120 to be upgraded through the first SOC110. Once there is no available program in the second memory 140 corresponding to the second SOC120, it is impossible to establish communication between it and the first SOC110, and it cannot be upgraded again through the first SOC110. It can only be burned using a dedicated JTAG (Joint Test Action Group) upgrade tool, and the JTAG burning method requires the purchase of a special burner, which customers often do not have. For products that have been sold to customers, the upgrade is often interrupted due to customer operation errors, resulting in no complete available program in the memory of the SOC system to be upgraded, and the communication with SOC1 cannot be established. When you want to upgrade again, you can only return it to the factory, which is very inconvenient and increases maintenance time and transportation costs.

[0063] In the domain controller firmware upgrade device provided by the present invention, by using a switching circuit, when it is necessary to upgrade the second SOC120 other than the first SOC110, the second memory 140 corresponding to the second SOC120 to be upgraded is directly switched to the communication connection with the first SOC110 based on the bus switch 150 to store the program, so as to achieve the purpose of upgrading the software program used by the second SOC120. Even if there is no program or the program is incomplete in the second SOC120 to be upgraded, the upgrade can be performed, which solves the technical problem that the non-master SOC system on the domain controller is interrupted during the upgrade and there is no applicable program after powering on again. The domain controller firmware upgrade device provided by the present invention does not require the purchase of a special burner, nor does it require the customer to return the domain controller to the factory for upgrading, thereby reducing maintenance time and cost.

[0064] The present invention also provides a domain controller firmware upgrade method, which is applied to the above-mentioned domain controller firmware upgrade device. Figure 3 As shown, the domain controller firmware upgrade method includes:

[0065] Step 310: Based on the first SOC 110 outputting a high level signal to the bus switch 150, the bus switch 150 is controlled to establish a communication connection between the first SOC 110 and the second memory 140;

[0066] Step 320 : Writing an upgrade program into the second memory 140 based on the first SOC 110 .

[0067] In some embodiments, writing the upgrade program to the second memory 140 based on the first SOC 110 includes:

[0068] Based on the first SOC 110 reading the existing program version in the second memory 140 and verifying that the existing program version meets the preset requirements and determining that the existing program in the second memory 140 does not need to be backed up, the upgrade program is directly written to the second memory 140.

[0069] In some embodiments, writing the upgrade program to the second memory 140 based on the first SOC 110 further includes:

[0070] When the first SOC 110 verifies that the existing program version meets the preset requirements and determines that the existing program in the second memory 140 needs to be backed up, the existing program in the second memory 140 is backed up and then the upgrade program is written to the second memory 140 .

[0071] In some embodiments, the domain controller firmware upgrade method further includes:

[0072] When the first SOC 110 verifies that the existing program version does not meet the preset requirements, a warning is issued.

[0073] In some embodiments, the domain controller firmware upgrade method further includes:

[0074] After the first SOC110, the second SOC120 and the second memory 140 are powered on, based on the first SOC110 outputting a low-level signal to the bus switch 150, the bus switch 150 is controlled to establish a communication connection between the second SOC120 and the second memory 140, so that the second SOC120 calls the program in the second memory 140.

[0075] In other embodiments, the process of the domain controller firmware upgrade method is as follows: Figure 4 As shown, including:

[0076] Step 410, during the overall power-on process of the domain controller and after the power-on is completed, a GPIO port of the first SOC110 outputs a low level by default and maintains a time T0 that is at least sufficient for the second SOC120 to complete startup. During this period, the bus switch 150 controls the signal S to a low level, and the bus switch 150 connects the second SOC120 to the second memory 140. The second SOC120 will use the program in the second memory 140 to start.

[0077] Step 420 , after the first SOC 110 receives the task to upgrade the second SOC 120 , it makes SOC1_GPIO output a high level. At this time, the bus switch 150 switches the bus so that the first SOC 110 is connected to the second memory 140 .

[0078] Step 430, read the program version in the second memory 140 through the first SOC 110, and check whether the version number meets the preset requirements. If the version file name is not a file newer than the current version or the version file name does not meet the requirements, the user is prompted to use a version that meets the preset requirements. If the version meets the preset requirements, the user is prompted whether to back up the current program in the second memory 140. If the user chooses yes, the program is backed up. If the user chooses no, the upgrade program is directly written to the second memory 140. After writing is completed, the user is reminded to restart the system power.

[0079] Step 440 , after restarting, step 410 is repeated, and the second SOC 120 can use the program that has been upgraded to the second memory 140 .

[0080] If a sudden power failure during the upgrade process causes the program to not be completely upgraded to the second memory 140 , the above steps 410 - 440 may be repeated once to write the upgrade program into the second memory 140 again.

[0081] The domain controller firmware upgrade device provided in the above embodiment can implement the technical solution described in the above domain controller firmware upgrade method embodiment. The specific implementation principles of the above modules or units can refer to the corresponding contents in the above domain controller firmware upgrade method embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

[0082] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that all or part of the processes of the above-mentioned embodiments can be implemented by instructing related hardware through a computer program, and the program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable storage medium is a disk, an optical disk, a read-only storage memory, or a random access memory, etc.

[0083] The domain controller firmware upgrade device and upgrade method provided by the present invention are introduced in detail above. Specific examples are used in this article to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of the present invention. The description of the above embodiments is only used to help understand the method of the present invention and its core idea; at the same time, for technical personnel in this field, according to the idea of ​​the present invention, there will be changes in the specific implementation method and application scope. In summary, the content of this specification should not be understood as a limitation on the present invention.

Claims

1. A domain controller firmware upgrade device, characterized in that: include: The first SOC is used to output a high level signal after receiving a target upgrade instruction; Second SOC; A first memory, connected to the first SOC for communication, and configured to store a first application for use by the first SOC; A second memory, used to store a second application for use by the second SOC; a bus switch, connected in communication with the first SOC, the second SOC and the second memory, for receiving the high-level signal and establishing a communication connection between the first SOC and the second memory based on the high-level signal, so that the first SOC writes an upgrade program to the second memory; The first SOC is further configured to output a low level signal after the first SOC, the second SOC and the second memory are powered on; The bus switch is further used to control the second SOC to establish a communication connection with the second memory based on the low-level signal, so that the second SOC calls the program in the second memory.

2. The domain controller firmware upgrade device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first SOC is also used to read the existing program version in the second memory after establishing a communication connection with the second memory, and directly write the upgrade program to the second memory after verifying that the existing program version meets preset requirements and determining that there is no need to back up the existing program in the second memory.

3. The domain controller firmware upgrade device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The first SOC is also used to write the upgrade program into the second memory after backing up the existing program in the second memory when verifying that the existing program version meets the preset requirements and determining that the existing program in the second memory needs to be backed up.

4. The domain controller firmware upgrade device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The first SOC is further configured to issue a warning when it is verified that the existing program version does not meet preset requirements.

5. A method for upgrading domain controller firmware, characterized in that: The method is applied to the device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, and the method comprises: Outputting a high level signal to the bus switch based on the first SOC, so as to control the bus switch to establish a communication connection between the first SOC and the second memory; An upgrade program is written into the second memory based on the first SOC.

6. The method for upgrading the domain controller firmware according to claim 5, characterized in that: The step of writing the upgrade program into the second memory based on the first SOC includes: The existing program version in the second memory is read based on the first SOC, and when it is verified that the existing program version meets the preset requirements and it is determined that the existing program in the second memory does not need to be backed up, the upgrade program is directly written to the second memory.

7. The method for upgrading the domain controller firmware according to claim 6, characterized in that: The step of writing the upgrade program into the second memory based on the first SOC further includes: When the first SOC verifies that the existing program version meets the preset requirements and determines that the existing program in the second memory needs to be backed up, the existing program in the second memory is backed up and then the upgrade program is written to the second memory.

8. The method for upgrading the domain controller firmware according to claim 7, characterized in that: Also includes: When the first SOC verifies that the existing program version does not meet the preset requirements, a warning is issued.

9. The method for upgrading the domain controller firmware according to any one of claims 5 to 8, characterized in that: Also includes: After the first SOC, the second SOC and the second memory are powered on, based on the first SOC outputting a low-level signal to the bus switch, the bus switch is controlled to establish a communication connection between the second SOC and the second memory, so that the second SOC calls the program in the second memory.

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