Extensible car lamp LED array driving control circuit system and method

Abstract

The invention provides an extensible automobile lamp LED array driving control circuit system and method, and relates to the technical field of automobile electronics. The system comprises a centralized driver and a distributed extensible lamp panel, the driver integrates a communication module, a constant voltage source module, a control module, a storage module, a signal detection module and a power supply module, and vehicle body butt joint, power supply output, instruction analysis and state monitoring are achieved in a unified mode; the lamp panel completes protocol conversion through the communication control chip M0 and is matched with the LED driving chip to achieve independent on-off, brightness adjustment, fault diagnosis and ghosting elimination of at most 198 LEDs. Through the architecture design of'single MCU + single DC-DC + high-density LED driving chip ', the control logic and power loop is simplified, the hardware cost and the experiment risk are reduced, and meanwhile, the system has flexible expansibility, can quickly adapt to different LED numbers and lamp structure requirements, and is suitable for complex patterns of automobile exterior lamps and long-time animation display scenes.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of automotive electronics, in particular to an extensible vehicle lamp LED array driving control circuit system and method. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the increasing demand for recognition in automotive exterior design, vehicle lamps gradually need to control the on-off and brightness changes of a large number of LEDs to achieve specific patterns, water animation, long dynamic effects and other functions. In some scenarios, the number of required LEDs can reach several thousand.

[0003] In the existing LED driving control scheme, in order to meet the control requirements of a large number of LEDs, a large number of multi-channel linear driving chips or matrix chips are required. At the same time, multiple lamp panels included in the system need to be independently integrated with DC-DC constant voltage sources and LED driving chips, resulting in redundant DC-DC chip numbers. In addition, in order to ensure the refresh rate and control accuracy of the lamp effect, multiple high-specification MCUs are required to be integrated into the system for parsing the lighting command and controlling the peripherals, and complex synchronization handshake mechanisms are required between multiple MCUs to achieve effect connection.

[0004] Based on this, the above-mentioned prior art has the following defects: (1) the number of driving chips and DC-DC chips is large, and the hardware material cost is high; (2) the multi-MCU cooperative control logic is complex, and synchronization disorder and effect connection failure are prone to occur; (3) the power loop is dispersed and complex, and the passing difficulty and risk of automotive electronic approval experiments such as electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) are high; (4) the lamp panel expansion needs to redesign the circuit and control logic, and the expansibility is poor, and the development cycle is long.

[0005] Therefore, there is an urgent need for an ultra-large number of vehicle lamp LED driving control scheme that can reduce chip usage, simplify control logic, reduce experimental risk, and improve expansibility. SUMMARY

[0006] The present application aims to overcome at least one technical problem in the prior art and provides an extensible vehicle lamp LED array driving control circuit system and method.

[0007] In one aspect, the embodiment of the present application provides an extensible vehicle lamp LED array driving control circuit system, which comprises a centralized driver and at least one piece of distributed extensible lamp panel; the driver comprises a communication module, a constant voltage source module, a control module, a storage module, a signal detection module and a power module; the lamp panel comprises a CAN transceiver, a communication control chip, an LED driving chip and an LED array; the power module is electrically connected with a vehicle power supply at an input end and provides working voltage for the control module, the communication module, the storage module and the LED driving chip at an output end through the constant voltage source module; the communication module comprises a vehicle body communication interface for receiving vehicle body instructions and a private communication interface for connecting the lamp panel; the control module receives control instructions and / or display data issued by a vehicle body end through the vehicle body communication interface, generates corresponding control signals by analyzing the control instructions and / or display data, and transmits the control signals to the CAN transceiver of the corresponding lamp panel through the private communication interface; the communication control chip is used for converting network messages containing control signals received through the CAN transceiver into local bus commands required for controlling the LED driving chip to drive the LED array; the storage module is connected with the control module through a high-speed serial bus and is used for transmitting pre-stored display data to the control module based on the calling of the control module; the signal detection module acquires a vehicle input voltage, a constant voltage source output voltage and a driver temperature through AD, and sample data are input to the control module through AD pins of the control module; the control module performs fault analysis based on the sample data, generates corresponding control signals based on the fault analysis results to control the constant voltage source module and the LED driving chip, and feeds back fault codes to a vehicle controller of the vehicle body end through the communication module.

[0008] Further, the control module is integrated with: a signal receiving and analyzing module, which is used for receiving vehicle body instructions and / or receiving display data through the communication module and decoding the instructions and / or the display data into semanticized commands; an animation processing and rendering module, which is used for generating display state data of each LED in each frame of picture through physical mapping calculation based on the semanticized commands and pre-stored data; a display priority arbitration module, which is used for arbitrating concurrent display requests based on a preset rule table based on safety levels; a lamp panel control distribution module, which is used for dividing, packing and distributing the rendered display state data to each lamp panel according to lamp panel addresses through the private communication interface; a system diagnosis and management module, which is used for performing fault analysis based on the sample data, generating corresponding control signals based on the fault analysis results, and feeding back fault codes to the vehicle controller of the vehicle body end through the communication module.

[0009] Further, the lamp panel control distribution module maintains an independent data sending queue for each lamp panel, and utilizes a plurality of hardware serial communication peripherals of the control module to distribute data packets to the communication control chips of the lamp panels in parallel; the lamp panel communication control chip is configured as a protocol conversion node, for converting the received application layer data packet based on the UART protocol into an SPI protocol command frame required for controlling the LED driving chip.

[0010] Further, the lamp panel further integrates a voltage detection module, an input end of the voltage detection module is electrically connected with an output end of the constant voltage source module, and an output end of the voltage detection module is electrically connected with the communication control chip, for feeding back the input voltage of the LED driving chip to the communication control chip in real time, and the communication control chip performs fault analysis on the lamp panel based on the input voltage of the LED driving chip, and sends the fault analysis result to the system diagnosis and management module based on the CAN transceiver.

[0011] Further, the power supply module includes an SBC expansion circuit, an independent DC-DC circuit and an LDO chip, and provides 5V or 3.3V power supply for each module of the driver; wherein, the power supply of the control module comes from a specific interface after SBC expansion, the power supply of the communication module is provided by the independent DC-DC circuit and is isolated from the power supply of the control module, and the power supply of the storage module is provided by the LDO chip, realizing multi-power domain isolation.

[0012] Further, the DC-DC circuit of the constant voltage source module adopts a multi-phase synchronous BUCK topology and is provided with an SPI control interface; the control module dynamically sets the output voltage, the number of phases and the spread spectrum parameters through the SPI interface.

[0013] Further, the vehicle body communication interface adopts a double-bus design of CAN bus and CANFD bus, the CAN bus transmits small data signals, and the CANFD bus transmits large data signals.

[0014] Further, the storage module adopts a flash chip powered by an adaptive voltage, supports a high-speed interface, reserves storage space redundancy, is used for storing animation display data, and realizes voltage domain switching through a level conversion chip, ensuring communication compatibility with the control module.

[0015] Further, the LED driving chip adopts a row-column scanning driving architecture, and supports realizing phase delay of on-time of multiple rows or multiple columns of LEDs by configuring internal registers, so as to reduce the total current change rate.

[0016] In a second aspect, the embodiment of the present application provides an extensible vehicle lamp LED array driving control method, which is applied to the extensible vehicle lamp LED array driving control circuit system, and is executed by a control module, and comprises the following steps: S1, receiving a control instruction and / or display data from a vehicle body through a vehicle body communication interface, decoding the received control instruction and / or display data, and converting the control instruction and / or display data into an internal executable semantic command; S2, generating or calling display frame data of all LEDs according to the semantic command and in combination with pre-stored LED physical layout information; S3, arbitrating a plurality of concurrent display requests based on a preset priority rule, and determining a currently executed display task; S4, segmenting the display frame data determined after arbitration according to physical division of the lamp panel, packing the segmented data according to lamp panel addresses, and forming independent control data packets; S5, distributing the control data packets to a communication control chip of a corresponding lamp panel through the private communication network interface; S6, converting, by the communication control chip in each lamp panel, the received control data packet into a driving command conforming to an interface timing of the LED driving chip; S7, driving, by the LED driving chip, an LED array connected thereto in a row-column scanning mode according to the driving command; and S8, collecting system working parameters in real time, including a driving voltage, a temperature and an LED fault state, dynamically adjusting output of the constant voltage source module or driving parameters of the LED according to the collected working parameters, realizing closed-loop management, and feeding back system state information to the vehicle body.

[0017] In a third aspect, the embodiment of the present application further provides an electronic device, which comprises a memory, a processor and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, and the computer program is executed by the processor to implement the extensible vehicle lamp LED array driving control method.

[0018] In a fourth aspect, the embodiment of the present application further provides a readable storage medium, and when instructions in the storage medium are executed by a processor of an electronic device, the electronic device can execute the extensible vehicle lamp LED array driving control method.

[0019] The present application has the following beneficial effects compared with the prior art: (1) Hardware cost is greatly reduced: only one MCU, one DC-DC chip and a small amount of LED driving chips are needed, a traditional multi-chip redundancy scheme is replaced, the amount of components and the procurement cost are reduced, the power loop is simplified, and the product approval experiment cost is reduced.

[0020] (2) Control logic is simplified and efficient: a single high-specification MCU coordinates the whole situation, multiple MCUs are not needed to coordinate and synchronize, effect connection confusion is avoided, software development difficulty is reduced, and the project development cycle is shortened.

[0021] (3) Strong expansibility: "Driver + light panel" architecture adapts to hundreds to thousands of LED requirements, and the number of LEDs only needs to be adjusted by adjusting the number of light panels or driver chips, without reconstructing the core architecture, saving secondary development costs.

[0022] (4) Smooth and stable light effect: CAN / CANFD communication + QSPI high-speed storage ensures high refresh rate of real-time animation and stored animation (up to 200s); LED driver chip supports grouped delay start and residual image elimination, improving display effect.

[0023] (5) High system reliability: The signal detection module monitors voltage and temperature in real time, dynamically adjusts LED brightness; the diagnostic module covers fault and working condition monitoring, fault information is fed back in time, avoids component damage, and prolongs service life. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0024] The application will be further described below in conjunction with the drawings and examples.

[0025] Figure 1 is a scalable vehicle lamp LED array drive control circuit system structure schematic diagram provided by embodiment 1 of the application.

[0026] Figure 2 is a scalable vehicle lamp LED array drive control circuit system hardware block diagram provided by embodiment 1 of the application.

[0027] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an LED drive chip provided by embodiment 1 of the application.

[0028] Figure 4 is a scalable vehicle lamp LED array drive control method flow chart provided by embodiment 2 of the application.

[0029] Figure 5 is a partial block diagram of an electronic device provided by embodiment 3 of the application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] Before discussing the example embodiments in more detail, it should be mentioned that some of the example embodiments are described as processes or methods depicted as flow charts. Although the process is described as sequential process, many of the operations can be performed in parallel, concurrently or simultaneously. In addition, the order of the operations can be rearranged. The process can be terminated when its operations are completed, but can also have additional steps not included in the figure. The process can correspond to a method, function, routine, subroutine, etc.

[0031] It should be understood that, although the terms "first", "second", etc. can be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first element could be termed a second element, and, similarly, a second element could be termed a first element without departing from the scope of the example embodiments. The term "and / or" as used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0032] The application will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The diagram is a simplified schematic diagram, which only schematically illustrates the basic structure of the application, and thus only shows the components related to the application.

[0033] Embodiment 1 For ease of understanding, before the detailed description of the embodiments of the application, the overall concept of the application is described: taking "reduced core components, modular architecture, closed-loop software control" as the core, the high complexity and high cost problem of super-multiple LED driving of vehicle lamps is solved, and thousands of LED driving control with low cost, high scalability and high reliability is realized. Specifically, it includes: replacing the traditional redundant scheme of multiple MCUs, multiple DC-DCs and a large number of driving chips with "single MCU + single DC-DC + a small number of LED driving chips", simplifying the power loop and control logic, and reducing the hardware cost and experimental risk; adopting the modular design of "driver + light panel that can be increased or decreased", and only adjusting the light panel or driving chip is needed to increase or decrease the number of LEDs, without the need to reconfigure the core architecture, which is suitable for different lamp requirements; through the whole-process module of "signal receiving-analysis-diagnosis-animation processing-display-feedback", bidirectional communication between the vehicle body and the system, efficient control of animation and real-time monitoring of faults are realized, and the smoothness of light effect and the reliability of the system are guaranteed.

[0034] The specific implementation is as follows: As shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2 A scalable vehicle lamp LED array driving control circuit system structure schematic diagram and hardware block diagram provided by the application.

[0035] As an example, the system comprises a centralized driver 1 and at least one distributed scalable lamp panel 2; the driver 1 comprises a communication module 11, a constant voltage source module 12, a control module 13, a storage module 14, a signal detection module 15 and a power supply module 16; the lamp panel 2 comprises a CAN transceiver 21, a communication control chip 22, an LED driving chip 23 and an LED array 24; the power supply module 16 is electrically connected with the vehicle power supply at the input end and provides working voltage for the control module 13, the communication module 11, the storage module 14 and the LED driving chip 23 at the output end through the constant voltage source module 12; the communication module 11 comprises a vehicle body communication interface for receiving vehicle body instructions and a private communication interface for connecting the lamp panel 2; the control module 13 receives the control instructions and / or display data issued by the vehicle body end through the vehicle body communication interface, generates the corresponding control signals by analyzing the control instructions and / or display data, and transmits the control signals to the CAN transceiver 21 of the corresponding lamp panel 2 through the private communication interface; the communication control chip 22 is used to convert the network message containing the control signals received through the CAN transceiver 21 into the local bus command required for driving the LED driving chip 23 to drive the LED array 24; the storage module 14 is connected with the control module 13 through a high-speed serial bus and is used to transmit the pre-stored display data to the control module 13 based on the call of the control module 13; the signal detection module 15 collects the vehicle input voltage, the constant voltage source output voltage and the driver temperature through AD, and the sampling data is input to the control module 13 through the AD pin of the control module 13; the control module 13 performs fault analysis based on the sampling data, generates the corresponding control signals based on the fault analysis result to control the constant voltage source module 12 and the LED driving chip 24, and feeds back the fault code to the vehicle controller of the vehicle body end through the communication module 11.

[0036] In some possible implementations, the control module 13 is integrated with: a signal receiving and analyzing module 130 for receiving vehicle body instructions and / or receiving display data through the communication module 11 and decoding into semantic commands; an animation processing and rendering module 131 for generating display state data of each LED in each frame of picture through physical mapping calculation according to the semantic commands and pre-stored data; a display priority arbitration module 132 for arbitrating concurrent display requests according to a preset rule table based on safety level; a lamp panel control distribution module 133 for splitting and packaging the rendered display state data according to lamp panel addresses and distributing to each lamp panel through the private communication interface; a system diagnosis and management module 134 for performing fault analysis based on the sampling data, generating the corresponding control signals based on the fault analysis result, and feeding back the fault code to the vehicle controller of the vehicle body end through the communication module 11.

[0037] Preferably, the lamp panel control distribution module 133 maintains an independent data sending queue for each lamp panel, and distributes data packets to the communication control chips of each lamp panel in parallel using multiple hardware serial communication peripherals of the control module; the lamp panel communication control chip 22 is configured as a protocol conversion node, for converting the received application layer data packets based on the UART protocol into SPI protocol command frames required for controlling the LED drive chip 23.

[0038] Preferably, the signal receiving and analyzing module 130 is configured as a unified interface of the system and the vehicle network, and specifically configured as: dual-channel parallel processing: simultaneously listening to and processing two kinds of data streams from the vehicle body communication interface. The first channel processes real-time control messages based on the CAN protocol (such as light switch and mode switching instructions), and the second channel processes large-capacity animation data stream transmission messages based on the CAN FD protocol. Message filtering and decoding: according to the preloaded communication database (DBC file), the received message identifiers are filtered and screened by hardware and software, the valid data fields are extracted, and they are decoded into semantic command objects (such as Command_TurnSignal_Left) or data block indexes recognizable by the system. Data buffering and management: a ring buffer is provided for buffering high-speed data streams to ensure that instructions are not lost when the system is heavily loaded, and to provide stable and orderly data input for downstream processing modules.

[0039] Preferably, the animation processing and rendering module 131 is the core of display effect generation, and its workflow is: resource scheduling: according to the instruction, the corresponding animation description file (including key frames, transition curves, and layer information) is located and loaded from the storage module 14. Physical mapping calculation: call the pre-stored LED physical layout mapping table, which defines the logical coordinates (such as board number, row number, and column number) of each LED in the vehicle lamp space. The module calculates the color value (RGB) and brightness value (PWM duty cycle) required for each LED in each frame of picture through coordinate transformation of the abstract graphic elements in the animation description file. Frame buffer operation: write all the LED state data calculated into a global frame buffer. The buffer usually uses a double-buffering or multi-buffering mechanism to ensure smooth and flicker-free display refresh.

[0040] Preferably, the display priority arbitration module 132 serves as the scheduling center for system resources (display output), and its logic is as follows: Rule Engine: It has a built-in configurable priority rule table. The rules are defined based on the source of the instruction, the signal type, and the safety level. For example: Highest priority: Signals directly related to driving safety (such as emergency braking, collision warning lights). High priority: Light signals required by regulations (such as turn signals, hazard warning lights). Medium priority: Real-time animations triggered by vehicle comfort / interaction signals (such as welcome lighting effects). Low priority: Preset ambient animations called from internal storage. Conflict adjudication: When multiple display requests arrive simultaneously, the arbitration module makes an immediate adjudication based on the rule table, allowing only the highest priority request to access the frame buffer and ultimately output. Other requests are suspended or discarded to ensure that the core lighting function is not interfered with under any circumstances.

[0041] Preferably, the LED panel control distribution module 133 is responsible for distributing the centrally processed data to the distributed hardware. The specific process is as follows: Data segmentation and encapsulation: LED data segments belonging to each LED panel are extracted from the frame buffer according to the panel address. Each data segment, along with the control instructions for this panel (such as global brightness adjustment and diagnostic instructions), is encapsulated into a data packet conforming to a private application layer protocol. This protocol packet typically includes a frame header, destination address, data length, payload, and checksum. Multi-channel parallel distribution: Using multiple hardware serial communication peripherals (such as UART and CAN controllers) of the control module (MCU), the corresponding data packets are sent in parallel and synchronously to the communication control chips of each LED panel. This parallel distribution mechanism is crucial for ensuring the refresh rate of large-scale LED arrays. Communication reliability management: The mechanism manages the response timeout and retransmission of data packets to ensure reliable delivery of control instructions.

[0042] Preferably, the system diagnostics and management module 134 realizes intelligent self-monitoring and adjustment of the system. Its functions are detailed as follows: Multi-source data fusion diagnosis: Hardware status monitoring: Periodically reads analog quantities such as input voltage, drive bus voltage, and key point temperature collected by the signal detection module, compares them with preset thresholds, and performs undervoltage / overvoltage / overtemperature judgment. Communication health diagnosis: Monitors the error frame count, load rate, and ACK status of each communication bus. LED fault diagnosis: Receives and parses pixel-level fault codes (such as LED open circuit, short circuit) reported step by step from the LED driver chip. Closed-loop control and strategy execution: Adaptive adjustment: Executes predefined strategies based on diagnostic results. For example, when the input voltage is too low, it automatically commands the constant voltage source module to appropriately increase efficiency or the system to enter power-saving mode; when the temperature is too high, it activates global or regional brightness thermal derating curves. Fault handling and reporting: Converts the diagnostic results into standard diagnostic fault codes, stores them in non-volatile memory, and actively reports them to the vehicle controller through the vehicle network interface. At the same time, it can trigger local degradation mode (such as replacing constant light with flashing).

[0043] Specifically, the control module 13 uses an S32K314 MCU in a 172 MAXQFP package, which has 2 CAN, 3 SPI, and 8 UART bus interfaces, providing ample peripheral resources. It can simultaneously interface with the communication module 11 (CAN / CANFD + private CAN), the constant voltage source module 12 (DC-DC SPI control), the storage module 14 (QSPI reading), the signal detection module 15 (AD port acquisition), and all lamp boards 2, without requiring additional MCUs to handle the functions. By changing the traditional "distributed parsing and synchronous coordination" of multiple MCUs to "single-core overall management"—all core logic such as vehicle signal reception / parsing, animation priority judgment, lamp board control command issuance, fault diagnosis, and status feedback are centrally processed by this MCU, avoiding synchronization errors between multiple MCUs and supporting the control needs of thousands of LEDs with its own computing power. Through a modular software architecture (signal processing, animation control, diagnostic feedback, etc. modules), the MCU can efficiently schedule resources according to the process. For example, the switching between real-time animation and stored animation, and the parallel control of multiple lamp boards are all achieved through software timing optimization, without the need for additional hardware.

[0044] In some feasible implementations, the lamp board 2 also integrates a voltage detection module 25. The input terminal of the voltage detection module 25 is electrically connected to the output terminal of the constant voltage source module 12, and the output terminal of the voltage detection module 25 is electrically connected to the communication control chip 22. It is used to provide real-time feedback of the input voltage of the LED driver chip 23 to the communication control chip 22. The communication control chip 22 performs fault analysis on the lamp board 2 based on the input voltage of the LED driver chip 23, and sends the fault analysis results to the system diagnosis and management module 134 via the CAN transceiver 21.

[0045] In some feasible implementations, the power module 16 includes an SBC extension circuit, an independent DC-DC circuit, and an LDO chip, providing each module of the driver with an adapted 5V or 3.3V power supply; wherein, the power supply of the control module comes from a specific interface after the SBC extension, the power supply of the communication module is provided by an independent DC-DC circuit and is isolated from the power supply of the control module, and the power supply of the storage module is provided through the LDO chip, thereby achieving multi-power domain isolation.

[0046] Preferably, the power supply module primarily provides 5V and 3.3V power to the main chips. The MCU's required 5V power comes from the SBC extended V1, with a maximum output capacity of 250mA. The communication module's power comes from a low-power DC-DC circuit; this 5V circuit is isolated from the MCU's power supply, preventing interference. This BUCK circuit ensures high current output even under conditions of short circuits in certain proprietary CAN buses, while also maintaining low cost. The memory chip requires a separate 3.3V power supply, implemented through another LDO chip.

[0047] In some feasible implementations, the DC-DC circuit of the constant voltage source module 12 adopts a multi-phase synchronous BUCK topology and is equipped with an SPI control interface; the control module dynamically sets its output voltage, number of phases and spread spectrum parameters through the SPI interface.

[0048] Preferably, the driver is provided by a single DC-DC module, eliminating the need to integrate DC-DC circuitry on each LED board. The constant voltage source flexibly adjusts its output voltage and power based on the number of LEDs to be controlled and the current required, while simultaneously selecting appropriate heat dissipation measures according to the overall power consumption. The constant voltage source includes a high-efficiency synchronous DC-DC converter using a BUCK topology. The DC-DC chip employs a two-phase configuration with two channels outputting in opposite phases to reduce the current variability. The DC-DC chip has a built-in spread spectrum module, adjusting the spread spectrum amplitude based on approved experimental results. Furthermore, the chip supports the SPI bus, allowing the MCU to determine the chip status and set the output voltage. In other words, by using a high-current DC-DC chip with a BUCK topology, configured in two-phase mode (dual-channel phase-shifted output), it can provide sufficiently high output power (meeting the total current requirements of thousands of LEDs) while reducing the current variability and ensuring power supply stability. Traditional solutions integrate a separate DC-DC converter for each LED board. This implementation allows a single DC-DC converter to directly provide a constant voltage source for all LED boards. Power is evenly distributed to each board via proprietary CAN communication wiring, eliminating the need for a separate power supply circuit for each board and significantly reducing the number of DC-DC chips and power loop area. Furthermore, the DC-DC converter supports communication with the MCU via the SPI bus. The MCU dynamically adjusts the DC-DC converter's output voltage and power based on the total number of LEDs and current brightness requirements, adapting to power supply needs in different scenarios. It can power hundreds to thousands of LEDs without requiring chip replacement.

[0049] In some feasible implementations, the vehicle communication interface adopts a dual-bus design of CAN bus and CANFD bus, whereby the CAN bus transmits small data signals and the CANFD bus transmits large data signals.

[0050] Preferably, the CAN bus primarily transmits signals with relatively small data volumes, such as LED activation and sleep / wake-up messages, while the CANFD mainly downloads and updates animation effects and displays larger data volumes, such as patterns. The two have clearly defined roles and do not interfere with each other, ensuring the system can quickly respond and refresh the display. Specifically, a standard CAN transceiver can be used for the CANFD channel. The other part uses proprietary CAN communication, with the number of channels determined primarily by the refresh frequency, the number of LEDs, and their distribution. The MCU supports a maximum of 16 UART channels.

[0051] In some feasible implementations, the storage module 14 uses a flash chip with an adaptive voltage power supply, supports a high-speed interface, reserves redundant storage space for storing animation display data, and achieves voltage domain switching through a level conversion chip to ensure communication compatibility with the control module.

[0052] Preferably, the flash chip specification is selected based on the data size of the animation effects to be stored. This embodiment supports the storage of animation effects up to 200 seconds long, while reserving 30% storage space redundancy. The storage chip uses a 3.3V power supply, requiring a level conversion chip to switch between the 3.3V and 5V voltage domains of the SPI bus. Furthermore, the storage chip supports the higher transmission rate QSPI bus interface, further improving the data refresh speed.

[0053] In some feasible implementations, the LED driver chip 23 adopts a row and column scanning drive architecture and supports the implementation of phase delay of conduction time for multiple rows or columns of LEDs by configuring internal registers, so as to reduce the total current change rate.

[0054] Preferably, the number of light boards is mainly determined by the lamp structure and the number of LEDs, and the number of light boards can be increased or decreased according to actual needs. The light board mainly consists of three parts: an LED driver chip, a communication control chip, and an LED array. Specifically, the light board needs to integrate a CAN transceiver module to support long-distance cross-board communication without interference. Due to the communication interface of the LED driver chip, an M0 chip is needed to complete the conversion of the communication protocol from UART to SPI. The LED driver chip supports the individual control of up to 198 LEDs through row and column scanning, and the brightness of each LED can be adjusted. The LED driver chip supports delayed channel activation in groups to reduce current changes at the same time, and can also perform open-circuit and short-circuit fault diagnosis for any LED. This chip can also achieve the effect of eliminating afterimages by adjusting different register values. Figure 3 The diagram shown is a schematic of an LED driver chip. Based on the results of the approval experiment, a small-value capacitor can be added to the output channel. Due to the large number of LEDs and structural limitations, a multi-layer PCB with better shielding, such as a 6-layer FR4 board, can be selected for the PCB stack-up structure.

[0055] In some feasible implementations, to facilitate understanding of the above implementations, specific application examples are used here for illustration: Taking the configuration of 11 light panels as an example: First, the hardware configuration of the light panel includes: Number and layout of light panels: A total of 11 light panels are configured, evenly distributed according to the structure of a through-type taillight. Each light panel controls approximately 190 LEDs, accommodating a total of over 2000 LEDs. The light panels are connected to the driver in parallel via communication and power lines. The spacing between the light panels is reasonable, ensuring sufficient space for installation and heat dissipation. Communication control chip: An M0 core chip is used, whose core function is to complete the bidirectional conversion between UART and SPI protocols, solving the communication interface adaptation problem between the driver and the LED driver chip, and ensuring accurate transmission of control commands. LED driver chip: Each light panel is equipped with one LED driver chip. This chip achieves independent control of over 190 LEDs through row and column scanning, supporting the switching of individual LEDs on / off and brightness adjustment. The chip supports dividing the LED driving channel into 3 groups, with each group turning on at a preset time delay, effectively reducing current surges caused by simultaneous startup. A built-in voltage detection unit accurately detects open-circuit and short-circuit faults in individual LEDs and feeds this information back to the MCU via a communication link. Adjusting the chip's internal register values ​​effectively eliminates afterimages after LEDs are turned off, improving display smoothness. Small-value capacitors are selectively connected in parallel on the chip's output channels to further optimize electromagnetic compatibility. LED array and PCB design: High-brightness surface-mount LEDs are selected and soldered onto the PCB in a row × column matrix layout, ensuring uniform light emission and a compact layout. The PCB uses a 6-layer FR4 multilayer board, providing excellent shielding and heat dissipation. The top and bottom layers are signal layers, while the middle layers include power, ground, and shielding layers. The ground layer uses a full copper-plated design to enhance system stability and anti-interference capabilities. The PCB edge design features a snap-on mounting structure for precise fixation to the taillight housing. CAN transceiver: Each lamp board integrates a CAN transceiver, which supports long-distance cross-board communication, has good bus protection function, can withstand electromagnetic interference and voltage fluctuations in the vehicle environment, and ensures the stability and reliability of the communication link.

[0056] The workflow includes: Welcome animation startup process: After the vehicle is powered on, the vehicle body sends a "start welcome animation" command to the driver via the CAN bus. The driver's signal receiving and parsing module receives the command, caches it, and parses the command function according to the protocol, then passes it to the display priority arbitration module. The display priority arbitration module determines the priority of the command, and after confirming that there is no higher priority command, it issues an execution command to the animation processing and rendering module. The animation processing and rendering module reads the welcome animation data from the storage module, generates LED control commands frame by frame, and sends them to the M0 chip of each light board through the light board control distribution module. The M0 chip converts the UART protocol command into the SPI protocol and transmits it to the LED driver chip. The driver chip controls the LED array to perform on / off and brightness changes through row and column scanning, presenting the welcome animation. During the animation execution, the system diagnostic and management module monitors data such as voltage and temperature in real time, the diagnostic application module performs fault diagnosis simultaneously, and the signal feedback module periodically feeds back the system operating status to the vehicle body. After the animation ends, the system automatically switches to the daily static pattern display mode.

[0057] Steering animation flow: The driver activates the turn signal switch, and the vehicle sends a "left turn animation" command via the CAN bus. The signal receiving and parsing module receives the command, caches and parses it, and then transmits it to the display priority arbitration module. This module determines that the steering animation has a higher priority than the currently displayed static pattern, immediately interrupts the static pattern display, and sends a steering animation execution command to the animation processing and rendering module. The animation processing and rendering module reads the left turn animation data from the flash chip, generates control commands according to the logic of "lights lighting up sequentially from left to right with gradual brightness changes," and sends them to each light panel through the light panel control distribution module. The light panels execute the commands to achieve the left turn animation effect; after the turn signal switch returns to its original position, the vehicle sends a "stop steering animation" command, and the system switches back to the previous display mode.

[0058] Fault Handling Process: If an LED on a certain light panel experiences an open circuit fault, the corresponding LED driver chip detects the fault and sends a fault signal to the M0 chip via the SPI interface. The M0 chip converts the fault signal into a UART signal and feeds it back to the driver's MCU. The system diagnostics and management module receives the fault signal, combines it with the light panel number and LED row and column address to identify the fault location, and generates a fault identifier. The fault information (including fault location and fault type) is fed back to the vehicle body via the CAN bus, and the vehicle's instrument panel illuminates the fault indicator light to remind the driver to have it inspected. At the same time, the MCU automatically adjusts the display logic of that light panel, using the brightness of adjacent LEDs to compensate for the faulty LED area, ensuring that the overall display effect is not significantly affected.

[0059] In the above implementation, by "selecting highly integrated core components (MCU / DC-DC / LED driver chips) + reconstructing the architecture (global power supply + centralized control + chip cascading) + efficient software scheduling", a single component can undertake the functions of traditional multi-component systems. This reduces chip redundancy and ensures that the system can stably drive thousands of LEDs through topology optimization and function reuse, achieving low-cost and highly reliable control.

[0060] Example 2 Please see Figure 4 This embodiment provides a flowchart of an scalable LED array driving control method for vehicle lights.

[0061] As an example, the method is applied to the scalable automotive LED array drive control circuit system described in Embodiment 1. The method is coordinated and executed by the control module and includes: Step S1: Receive control commands and / or display data from the vehicle body through the vehicle body communication interface, decode the received control commands and / or display data, and convert them into internally executable semantic commands.

[0062] Step S2: Based on the semantic command and combined with the pre-stored LED physical layout information, generate or call the display frame data of all LEDs.

[0063] Step S3: Based on preset priority rules, arbitrate multiple concurrent display requests to determine the display task to be executed.

[0064] Step S4: Divide the display frame data determined after arbitration according to the physical division of the light board, and package the divided data according to the light board address to form an independent control data packet.

[0065] Step S5: Distribute each control data packet to the communication control chip of the corresponding lamp board through the private communication network interface.

[0066] Step S6: In each lamp board, the communication control chip converts the received control data packets into drive commands that conform to the timing of the LED driver chip interface.

[0067] Step S7: The LED driver chip drives the connected LED array to light up in a row and column scanning manner according to the driving command.

[0068] Step S8: Real-time acquisition of system operating parameters, including drive voltage, temperature, and LED fault status; dynamically adjust the output of the constant voltage source module or the drive parameters of the LEDs based on the acquired operating parameters to achieve closed-loop management, and feed back the system status information to the vehicle body.

[0069] It is not difficult to see that this embodiment is a method embodiment corresponding to the first embodiment, and this embodiment can be implemented in conjunction with the first embodiment. The relevant technical details mentioned in the first embodiment are still valid in this embodiment, and will not be repeated here to reduce repetition. Accordingly, the relevant technical details mentioned in this embodiment can also be applied to the first embodiment.

[0070] Example 3 Please see Figure 5 The present invention also provides an electronic device, including: a memory and a processor; the memory stores at least one program instruction; the processor loads and executes the at least one program instruction to implement the scalable vehicle LED array driving control method provided in Embodiment 2.

[0071] The memory 51 and processor 50 are connected via a bus, which may include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges, connecting various circuits of one or more processors 50 and memory 51 together. The bus may also connect various other circuits, such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and therefore will not be described further herein. A bus interface provides an interface between the bus and the transceiver. The transceiver may be a single element or multiple elements, such as multiple receivers and transmitters, providing a unit for communicating with various other devices over a transmission medium. Data processed by processor 50 is transmitted over a wireless medium via an antenna, which further receives data and transmits it to processor 50.

[0072] Processor 50 is responsible for managing the bus and general processing, and can also provide various functions, including timing, peripheral interfaces, voltage regulation, power management, and other control functions. Memory 51 can be used to store data used by processor 50 during operation.

[0073] Example 4 This invention also proposes a storage medium storing a scalable vehicle LED array driving control method. When executed, the scalable vehicle LED array driving control program implements the steps of the scalable vehicle LED array driving control method described above. Since this storage medium employs all the technical solutions of the above embodiments, it possesses at least all the beneficial effects brought about by the technical solutions of the above embodiments, which will not be elaborated upon further here.

[0074] The above descriptions are merely embodiments of the present invention. Commonly known structures and characteristics are not described in detail here. Those skilled in the art are aware of all common technical knowledge in the field prior to the application date or priority date, are aware of all existing technologies in that field, and have the ability to apply conventional experimental methods prior to that date. Those skilled in the art can, based on the guidance provided in this application, improve and implement this solution in combination with their own capabilities. Some typical known structures or methods should not be obstacles for those skilled in the art to implement this application. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make several modifications and improvements without departing from the structure of the present invention. These should also be considered within the scope of protection of the present invention, and will not affect the effectiveness of the implementation of the present invention or the practicality of the patent. The scope of protection claimed in this application should be determined by the content of its claims, and the specific embodiments described in the specification can be used to interpret the content of the claims.

Claims

1. A scalable LED array drive control circuit system for automotive lights, characterized in that, The system includes a centralized driver and at least one distributed scalable light panel; The driver includes a communication module, a constant voltage source module, a control module, a storage module, a signal detection module, and a power supply module; the lamp board includes a CAN transceiver, a communication control chip, an LED driver chip, and an LED array. The power module input terminal is electrically connected to the vehicle power supply, and the output terminal provides operating voltage to the control module, communication module, storage module and LED driver chip through the constant voltage source module; The communication module includes a body communication interface for receiving body commands and a proprietary communication interface for connecting the light panel. The control module receives control commands and / or display data sent from the vehicle body through the vehicle communication interface, and generates corresponding control signals by parsing the control commands and / or display data, and transmits them to the CAN transceiver of the corresponding light board through the private communication interface. The communication control chip is used to convert network messages containing control signals received through the CAN transceiver into local bus commands required to control the LED driver chip to drive the LED array. The storage module is connected to the control module via a high-speed serial bus and is used to transmit pre-stored display data to the control module based on the control module's calls. The signal detection module collects the vehicle input voltage, constant voltage source output voltage, and driver temperature via an AD converter. The sampled data is input to the control module through the AD pin of the control module. The control module performs fault analysis based on the sampled data, generates corresponding control signals based on the fault analysis results to control the constant voltage source module and the LED driver chip, and feeds back the fault code to the vehicle controller at the vehicle body through the communication module.

2. The scalable automotive LED array drive control circuit system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The control module integrates: The signal receiving and parsing module is used to receive vehicle body commands and / or display data through the communication module, and decode them into semantic commands; The animation processing and rendering module is used to generate the display status data of each LED in each frame by physical mapping calculation based on the semantic commands and pre-stored data. The priority arbitration module is used to arbitrate concurrent display requests according to a preset rule table based on security levels. The light board control and distribution module is used to divide and package the rendered display status data according to the light board address, and distribute it to each light board through a private communication interface. The system diagnostic and management module is used to perform fault analysis based on the sampled data, generate corresponding control signals based on the fault analysis results, and feed back the fault codes to the vehicle controller at the vehicle body through the communication module.

3. The scalable automotive LED array drive control circuit system according to claim 2, characterized in that, The lamp board control and distribution module maintains an independent data transmission queue for each lamp board and uses multiple hardware serial communication peripherals of the control module to distribute data packets in parallel to the communication control chip of each lamp board. The LED board communication control chip is configured as a protocol conversion node to convert received application layer data packets based on the UART protocol into SPI protocol command frames required to control the LED driver chip.

4. The scalable automotive LED array drive control circuit system according to claim 2, characterized in that, The lamp board also integrates a voltage detection module. The input terminal of the voltage detection module is electrically connected to the output terminal of the constant voltage source module, and the output terminal of the voltage detection module is electrically connected to the communication control chip. It is used to provide real-time feedback of the input voltage of the LED driver chip to the communication control chip. The communication control chip performs fault analysis on the lamp board based on the input voltage of the LED driver chip and sends the fault analysis results to the system diagnosis and management module via the CAN transceiver.

5. The scalable automotive LED array drive control circuit system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The power module includes an SBC expansion circuit, an independent DC-DC circuit, and an LDO chip, providing each module of the driver with an appropriate 5V or 3.3V power supply. The power supply for the control module comes from a specific interface after the SBC expansion, the power supply for the communication module is provided by an independent DC-DC circuit and is isolated from the power supply for the control module, and the power supply for the storage module is provided by the LDO chip, achieving multi-power domain isolation.

6. The scalable automotive LED array drive control circuit system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The DC-DC circuit of the constant voltage source module adopts a multi-phase synchronous BUCK topology and is equipped with an SPI control interface; the control module dynamically sets its output voltage, phase number and spread spectrum parameters through the SPI interface.

7. The scalable automotive LED array drive control circuit system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The vehicle communication interface adopts a dual-bus design of CAN bus and CANFD bus. The CAN bus transmits small data signals, and the CANFD bus transmits large data signals.

8. The scalable automotive LED array drive control circuit system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The storage module uses a voltage-adaptive flash chip, supports a high-speed interface, and reserves redundant storage space for storing animation display data. It also uses a level conversion chip to achieve voltage domain switching, ensuring communication compatibility with the control module.

9. The scalable automotive LED array drive control circuit system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The LED driver chip adopts a row and column scanning drive architecture and supports the phase delay of the conduction time of multiple rows or columns of LEDs by configuring internal registers, so as to reduce the total current change rate.

10. A scalable vehicle LED array driving control method, said method being applied to the scalable vehicle LED array driving control circuit system according to any one of claims 1-9, characterized in that, The method is coordinated and executed by the control module, including: Step S1: Receive control commands and / or display data from the vehicle body through the vehicle body communication interface, decode the received control commands and / or display data, and convert them into internally executable semantic commands; Step S2: Based on the semantic command and combined with the pre-stored LED physical layout information, generate or call the display frame data of all LEDs; Step S3: Based on preset priority rules, arbitrate multiple concurrent display requests to determine the display task to be executed. Step S4: Divide the display frame data determined after arbitration according to the physical division of the light board, and package the divided data according to the light board address to form an independent control data packet; Step S5: Distribute each control data packet to the communication control chip of the corresponding lamp board through the private communication network interface; Step S6: In each lamp board, the communication control chip converts the received control data packet into a drive command that conforms to the timing of the LED driver chip interface. Step S7: The LED driver chip drives the connected LED array to light up in a row and column scanning manner according to the driving command; Step S8: Real-time acquisition of system operating parameters, including drive voltage, temperature, and LED fault status; dynamically adjust the output of the constant voltage source module or the drive parameters of the LEDs based on the acquired operating parameters to achieve closed-loop management, and feed back the system status information to the vehicle body.

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