Vehicle-mounted rear-mounted TBOX terminal, emergency call method and vehicle

Abstract

This application proposes an in-vehicle aftermarket TBOX terminal, an emergency call method, and a vehicle, comprising: a sensor module for collecting vehicle acceleration and corresponding timestamps; an interface module for collecting the status information of the vehicle's airbags and vehicle identification information; a positioning module for collecting the vehicle's positioning information; an audio module for voice interaction with a rescue center; and a wireless communication module connected to the sensor module, the interface module, the positioning module, and the audio module, for determining whether the acceleration is greater than an acceleration threshold. If so, it determines whether the airbag has deployed based on the airbag status information. If so, it uses the audio module to make an alarm call to the rescue center, generates a message based on the vehicle identification information, positioning information, and timestamp, and sends the message to a backend server. This application implements an emergency call function.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of intelligent connected vehicle technology, and in particular to an in-vehicle aftermarket TBOX terminal, an emergency call method, and a vehicle. Background Technology

[0002] With the increasing number of cars on the road, the demand for intelligent and connected upgrades to existing vehicles is becoming increasingly urgent. Aftermarket TBOX terminals (Telematics Boxes) read data from the vehicle's ECU (Electronic Control Unit) and utilize this data to achieve intelligent functions.

[0003] In related technologies, the vehicle-mounted aftermarket TBOX terminal only supports basic positioning and remote control functions and does not integrate a compliant AECS (Advanced Emergency Calling System), thus it cannot realize the emergency call function. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to provide an in-vehicle aftermarket TBOX terminal, an emergency call method, and a vehicle to address the aforementioned technical issues.

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application propose an in-vehicle aftermarket TBOX terminal, comprising: The sensor module is used to collect the vehicle's acceleration and the corresponding timestamps; The interface module is used to collect the status information of the vehicle's airbags and vehicle identification information; A positioning module is used to collect the positioning information of the vehicle; An audio module is used for voice interaction with the rescue center; The wireless communication module, connected to the sensor module, the interface module, the positioning module, and the audio module, is used to determine whether the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold. If so, it determines whether the airbag has deployed based on the airbag status information. If so, it uses the audio module to make an alarm call to the rescue center, generates a message based on the vehicle identification information, positioning information, and timestamp, and sends the message to the backend server.

[0006] In some embodiments, the sensor module is further configured to collect environmental parameters of the vehicle; the interface module is further configured to collect the vehicle speed. The wireless communication module is also used to determine whether the vehicle has been involved in an accident based on the acceleration, the vehicle speed, and the environmental parameters, provided that the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold and the airbag has not deployed. If so, the module uses the audio module to make an alarm call to the rescue center, generates a message based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and sends the message to the backend server.

[0007] In some embodiments, the wireless communication module includes a main communication module, a secondary communication module, and a processor; The processor is connected to the main communication module and the secondary communication module, and is used to determine whether the signal strength of the main communication module is less than the strength threshold or whether the interruption time is greater than the time threshold. If so, the processor switches to the secondary communication module to send the message to the background server.

[0008] In some embodiments, it also includes: An encryption module, connected to the wireless communication module, is used to encrypt the message and send it to the backend server.

[0009] In some embodiments, it also includes: The power management module is connected to the sensor module, the interface module, the positioning module, the audio module, and the wireless communication module, and is used to supply power to each module.

[0010] In some embodiments, it also includes: An indicator light module, connected to the wireless communication module, is used to indicate the status of the terminal.

[0011] Secondly, embodiments of this application propose an emergency call method, applied to the terminal described in the first aspect, the method comprising: Determine whether the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold. If so, determine whether the airbag has deployed based on the airbag's status information. If so, use the audio module to call the rescue center to issue an alarm. A message is generated based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and the message is sent to the backend server.

[0012] In some embodiments, the method further includes: If the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold and the airbag is determined not to have deployed, the system determines whether the vehicle has been involved in an accident based on the acceleration, vehicle speed, and environmental parameters. If so, the system uses the audio module to call the rescue center to issue an alarm, generates a message based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and sends the message to the backend server.

[0013] In some embodiments, the method further includes: Determine whether the signal strength of the main communication module is less than the strength threshold or whether the interruption time is greater than the time threshold. If so, switch to the secondary communication module to send the message to the backend server.

[0014] Thirdly, embodiments of this application propose a vehicle including an in-vehicle aftermarket TBOX terminal as described in the first aspect.

[0015] The aforementioned terminal, method, and vehicle collect vehicle acceleration and corresponding timestamps via a sensor module; collect the status information of the vehicle's airbags and vehicle identification information via an interface module; collect the vehicle's location information via a positioning module; interact with the rescue center via voice through an audio module; and determine whether the acceleration exceeds an acceleration threshold via a wireless communication module. If so, determine whether the airbag has deployed based on the airbag status information. If so, use the audio module to make an emergency call to the rescue center, generate a message based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and send the message to the backend server to realize the emergency call function. Attached Figure Description

[0016] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the module connection of the vehicle-mounted aftermarket TBOX terminal provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the module connection of the audio module provided in the embodiments of this application; Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the interface of the wireless communication module provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating the overall workflow of the vehicle-mounted aftermarket TBOX terminal in an example embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0017] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are merely some examples or embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, these drawings can be applied to other similar scenarios without creative effort. Unless obvious from the context or otherwise specified, the same reference numerals in the drawings represent the same structures or operations.

[0018] As indicated in this application and claims, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the words "a," "an," "an," and / or "the" are not specifically singular and may include plural forms. Generally speaking, the terms "comprising" and "including" only indicate the inclusion of explicitly identified steps and elements, which do not constitute an exclusive list, and the method or apparatus may also include other steps or elements.

[0019] While this application makes various references to certain modules in the apparatus according to embodiments of this application, any number of different modules may be used and run on computing devices and / or processors. Modules are merely illustrative, and different aspects of the apparatus and methods may use different modules.

[0020] It should be understood that when a unit or module is described as "connected" or "coupled" to other units, modules, or blocks, it may refer to a direct connection or coupling, or communication with other units, modules, or blocks, or the presence of intermediate units, modules, or blocks, unless the context explicitly indicates otherwise. The term "and / or" as used herein may include any and all combinations of one or more of the related listed items.

[0021] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the module connection of the vehicle-mounted aftermarket TBOX terminal provided in the embodiments of this application, as shown below. Figure 1 As shown, the terminal includes a sensor module, an interface module, a positioning module, an audio module, and a wireless communication module.

[0022] The sensor module connects to the wireless communication module via an I2C / SPI interface and includes an inertial measurement unit (IMU). The IMU is used to collect the vehicle's acceleration and the corresponding timestamps. The acceleration can be used as a preliminary indicator for accident detection.

[0023] In some embodiments, the sensor module further includes a temperature and humidity sensor. The temperature and humidity sensor is also used to collect environmental parameters of the vehicle, such as the temperature and humidity inside the vehicle. These environmental parameters can be used for system reliability assessment and to assist in determining accident scenarios. For example, if the temperature is detected to continuously exceed a preset range (e.g., -40°C to +85°C), it is determined that the vehicle may be in a harsh environment such as high-temperature exposure or low-temperature freezing. In this case, an alarm can be triggered to the backend server, indicating that the terminal reliability may have decreased, and a log will be recorded.

[0024] The interface module connects to the wireless communication module via interfaces such as CAN, USB, and GPIO. The interface module includes, but is not limited to, CAN / USB / GPIO interfaces, and is used to read vehicle information such as vehicle speed and airbag status.

[0025] The positioning module, for example, uses a GNSS module, which connects to the wireless communication module via a GNSS interface (UART) and is also connected to the GNSS antenna in the wireless communication module. The positioning module can output high-precision vehicle latitude and longitude, timestamp, and direction of travel, providing accurate location data for messages.

[0026] The audio module connects to the wireless communication module via I2C and an audio interface (I2S / PCM), such as... Figure 2 As shown, it mainly consists of a microphone, speaker, audio codec chip, and audio amplifier chip. Based on signal flow, it can be divided into an audio input unit and an audio output unit. The audio input unit encodes the voice signal collected by the microphone through the audio codec chip and then sends it to the rescue center via the wireless communication module. The audio output unit decodes the signal received from the rescue center by the wireless communication module, amplifies it through the audio codec chip and then plays it through the speaker, enabling two-way voice communication in emergency situations.

[0027] like Figure 3 As shown, the wireless communication module serves as the core control and communication unit of the terminal, and also possesses a rich set of peripheral interfaces, such as audio interfaces, GNSS interfaces, CAN interfaces, antenna interfaces, I2C / SPI interfaces, and PWM / GPIO interfaces. The wireless communication module can receive input data from other functional modules, execute accident logic judgments, control the operating status of each output module, and communicate with the backend server and rescue center via a wireless network.

[0028] Specifically, the wireless communication module determines whether the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold. If so, it determines whether the airbag has deployed based on the airbag's status information. If so, it uses the audio module to make an alarm call to the rescue center and generates a message based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and sends the message to the backend server.

[0029] The acceleration threshold can be dynamically configured through backend parameters according to vehicle type (such as microcars, SUVs, commercial vehicles) to adapt to different vehicle centers of gravity and collision characteristics.

[0030] In this embodiment, whether the acceleration exceeds an acceleration threshold is used as the trigger condition for accident detection. When the acceleration exceeds the threshold, it indicates that the vehicle is encountering an emergency. Furthermore, the status information of the airbags is used to determine whether they have deployed, thus confirming whether the vehicle has encountered an accident. In the event of an accident, the audio module is used to make an emergency call to the rescue center, realizing the emergency call function. Simultaneously, a message is sent to the backend server to facilitate vehicle rescue and tracing.

[0031] In some special scenarios, there may be situations where a vehicle accident occurs but the airbags fail to deploy.

[0032] To achieve accident detection in this scenario, the wireless communication module is also used to determine whether the vehicle has been involved in an accident based on the acceleration, vehicle speed, and environmental parameters, provided that the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold and the airbag has not deployed. If so, the module uses the audio module to make an alarm call to the rescue center, generates a message based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and sends the message to the backend server.

[0033] In this embodiment, artificial intelligence algorithms or trained models can be used to combine acceleration, speed and environmental parameters to determine whether a vehicle accident has occurred, thus avoiding situations where an accident occurs but the airbags do not deploy, and the emergency call function is not realized.

[0034] In some embodiments, the terminal further includes an encryption module. The encryption module is connected to the wireless communication module via an I2C interface and mainly comprises an encryption chip. The encryption chip uses a preset encryption algorithm to encrypt the data that the terminal needs to send and receive, ensuring that the data exists in ciphertext form during transmission and preventing unauthorized data theft. The data it sends mainly includes messages.

[0035] In some embodiments, the terminal further includes a power management module. The power management module is connected to the sensor module, the interface module, the positioning module, the audio module, and the wireless communication module. The power management module includes a rechargeable backup battery, a DC-DC converter, and a power management chip. The power management module can draw power from the vehicle's cigarette lighter or USB port to provide stable DC power to all other modules within the terminal. When the vehicle's main power supply fails, it can automatically switch to backup battery power.

[0036] In some embodiments, the terminal further includes an indicator light module. The indicator light module is connected to the wireless communication module via PWM and consists of RGB indicator lights used to indicate the terminal's status. Users can determine the terminal's status based on the indicator light color and flashing frequency (e.g., a solid green light indicates normal operation, a flashing red light indicates an emergency call, and a flashing yellow light indicates a signal abnormality).

[0037] In some embodiments, the terminal further includes an antenna module. The antenna module is connected to the wireless communication module and the positioning module via an antenna interface, and includes two types: cellular antennas and GNSS antennas. Both are high-gain flexible FPC antennas and are internally installed, requiring no external wiring. The cellular antenna is used to ensure the reception of cellular network signals, while the GNSS antenna works with the cellular base station for location positioning.

[0038] In some embodiments, the terminal further includes a button module. The button module is connected to the wireless communication module via a GPIO interface and includes an emergency call button and function buttons. The emergency call button allows the user to manually trigger the AECS function, and the function buttons can be used to start / stop status monitoring, switch working modes, etc.

[0039] The vehicle-mounted aftermarket TBOX terminal in this application integrates sensor modules, audio modules, positioning modules, wireless communication modules, interface modules, encryption modules, and other functions into a single aftermarket terminal. It requires no additional wiring, achieves plug-and-play functionality, and significantly reduces the difficulty of aftermarket upgrades.

[0040] In related technologies, vehicle-mounted aftermarket TBOX terminals are only equipped with a single wireless communication link. In an emergency, if the cellular network is interrupted, the terminal cannot send distress information through the backup channel, posing a risk of losing contact during rescue.

[0041] To address this technical problem, in some embodiments, the wireless communication module includes a main communication module, a secondary communication module, and a processor. The processor is connected to the main communication module and the secondary communication module, and is used to determine whether the signal strength of the main communication module is less than a strength threshold or whether the interruption time is greater than a time threshold. If so, the processor switches to the secondary communication module to send the message to the backend server.

[0042] The main communication module may use a CAT.1 communication module, and the secondary communication module may use an NB-IoT communication module. In terms of communication link selection, the CAT.1 communication module is used first to establish voice calls and transmit data; if the CAT.1 signal strength is less than -105dBm or the connection is interrupted for more than 3 seconds, the system automatically switches to the NB-IoT communication module to prioritize message transmission and ensure that critical alarm information is not lost.

[0043] If the emergency call connection fails to be established, the voice call connection will be re-established at intervals not exceeding 2 minutes. If the alarm data fails to be sent, the alarm data will also be resent at intervals not exceeding 2 minutes, until the connection is successful or the timeout occurs.

[0044] In one example embodiment, the overall workflow of the vehicle-mounted aftermarket TBOX terminal is as follows: Figure 4 As shown, it specifically includes the following steps: S1: The wireless communication module reads the acceleration and temperature / humidity data of the inertial measurement unit in the sensor module in real time through the I2C interface and records the timestamp; S2: The wireless communication module compares the acceleration with an acceleration threshold; S3: If the acceleration exceeds the set acceleration threshold, proceed to step S4; otherwise, return to step S1. S4: The wireless communication module reads the airbag status information, vehicle speed, and other information through the CAN interface of the interface module; S5: The wireless communication module performs multi-level judgment: if the airbag is deployed, it is directly judged as a serious collision accident; if the airbag is not deployed, it is judged whether the vehicle has been involved in an accident based on the fusion of acceleration, vehicle speed and environmental parameters. If so, it can still be judged as a serious accident that requires triggering the AECS function. S6: The wireless communication module generates messages based on vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamps; S7: The wireless communication module controls the indicator light to flash red and activates the communication function. It uses the audio module to make an outbound alarm to the rescue center and simultaneously pushes encrypted messages to the backend server via the MQTT protocol.

[0045] S8: The terminal enters standby monitoring mode. If the emergency call connection fails to be established, it will try to re-establish the voice call connection at intervals not exceeding 2 minutes. If the alarm data fails to be sent, it will also resend the alarm data at intervals not exceeding 2 minutes, until the connection is successful or the timeout occurs.

[0046] S9: After a successful voice call connection, the terminal uses the audio module and wireless communication module to achieve two-way voice communication with the rescue center.

[0047] Based on the above hardware embodiments, this application also proposes an emergency call method, the method comprising: Determine whether the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold. If so, determine whether the airbag has deployed based on the airbag's status information. If so, use the audio module to call the rescue center to issue an alarm. A message is generated based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and the message is sent to the backend server.

[0048] In some embodiments, the method further includes: If the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold and the airbag is determined not to have deployed, the system determines whether the vehicle has been involved in an accident based on the acceleration, vehicle speed, and environmental parameters. If so, the system uses the audio module to call the rescue center to issue an alarm, generates a message based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and sends the message to the backend server.

[0049] In some embodiments, the method further includes: Determine whether the signal strength of the main communication module is less than the strength threshold or whether the interruption time is greater than the time threshold. If so, switch to the secondary communication module to send the message to the backend server.

[0050] It should be understood that although the steps in the flowcharts of the embodiments described above are shown sequentially according to the arrows, these steps are not necessarily executed in the order indicated by the arrows. Unless explicitly stated herein, there is no strict order restriction on the execution of these steps, and they can be executed in other orders. Moreover, at least some steps in the flowcharts of the embodiments described above may include multiple steps or multiple stages. These steps or stages are not necessarily completed at the same time, but can be executed at different times. The execution order of these steps or stages is not necessarily sequential, but can be performed alternately or in turn with other steps or at least some of the steps or stages of other steps.

[0051] This application also proposes a vehicle including an in-vehicle aftermarket TBOX terminal as described in the above embodiments.

[0052] Each module in the aforementioned terminal can be implemented entirely or partially through software, hardware, or a combination thereof. These modules can be embedded in the processor of the computer device in hardware form or independent of it, or stored in the memory of the computer device in software form, so that the processor can call and execute the operations corresponding to each module.

[0053] It should be noted that the user information (including but not limited to user device information, user personal information, etc.) and data (including but not limited to data used for analysis, data stored, data displayed, etc.) involved in this application are all information and data authorized by the user or fully authorized by all parties, and the collection, use and processing of the relevant data must comply with relevant regulations.

[0054] Those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the processes in the methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by a computer program instructing related hardware. The computer program can be stored in a non-volatile computer-readable storage medium. When executed, the computer program can include the processes of the embodiments of the above methods. Any references to memory, storage, databases, or other media used in the embodiments provided in this application can include at least one of non-volatile and volatile memory. Non-volatile memory can include read-only memory (ROM), magnetic tape, floppy disk, flash memory, or optical storage, etc. Volatile memory can include random access memory (RAM) or external cache memory. By way of illustration and not limitation, RAM can be in various forms, such as static random access memory (SRAM) or dynamic random access memory (DRAM), etc.

[0055] The technical features of the above embodiments can be combined in any way. For the sake of brevity, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0056] The above embodiments merely illustrate several implementation methods of this application, and while the descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention patent. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various modifications and improvements without departing from the concept of this application, and these all fall within the protection scope of this application. Therefore, the protection scope of this patent application should be determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A vehicle-mounted aftermarket TBOX terminal, characterized in that, include: The sensor module is used to collect the vehicle's acceleration and the corresponding timestamps; The interface module is used to collect the status information of the vehicle's airbags and vehicle identification information; A positioning module is used to collect the positioning information of the vehicle; An audio module is used for voice interaction with the rescue center; The wireless communication module, connected to the sensor module, the interface module, the positioning module, and the audio module, is used to determine whether the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold. If so, it determines whether the airbag has deployed based on the airbag status information. If so, it uses the audio module to make an alarm call to the rescue center, generates a message based on the vehicle identification information, positioning information, and timestamp, and sends the message to the backend server.

2. The terminal according to claim 1, characterized in that, The sensor module is also used to collect environmental parameters of the vehicle; the interface module is also used to collect the vehicle speed. The wireless communication module is also used to determine whether the vehicle has been involved in an accident based on the acceleration, the vehicle speed, and the environmental parameters, provided that the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold and the airbag has not deployed. If so, the module uses the audio module to make an alarm call to the rescue center, generates a message based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and sends the message to the backend server.

3. The terminal according to claim 1, characterized in that, The wireless communication module includes a main communication module, a secondary communication module, and a processor; The processor is connected to the main communication module and the secondary communication module, and is used to determine whether the signal strength of the main communication module is less than the strength threshold or whether the interruption time is greater than the time threshold. If so, the processor switches to the secondary communication module to send the message to the background server.

4. The terminal according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: An encryption module, connected to the wireless communication module, is used to encrypt the message and send it to the backend server.

5. The terminal according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: The power management module is connected to the sensor module, the interface module, the positioning module, the audio module, and the wireless communication module, and is used to supply power to each module.

6. The terminal according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: An indicator light module, connected to the wireless communication module, is used to indicate the status of the terminal.

7. An emergency call method, applied to a terminal as described in any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The method includes: Determine whether the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold. If so, determine whether the airbag has deployed based on the airbag's status information. If so, use the audio module to call the rescue center to issue an alarm. A message is generated based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and the message is sent to the backend server.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that, The method further includes: If the acceleration is greater than the acceleration threshold and the airbag is determined not to have deployed, the system determines whether the vehicle has been involved in an accident based on the fusion of the acceleration, vehicle speed, and environmental parameters. If so, the system uses the audio module to make an alarm call to the rescue center, generates a message based on the vehicle identification information, location information, and timestamp, and sends the message to the backend server.

9. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that, The method further includes: Determine whether the signal strength of the main communication module is less than the strength threshold or whether the interruption time is greater than the time threshold. If so, switch to the secondary communication module to send the message to the backend server.

10. A vehicle, characterized in that, Including the vehicle-mounted aftermarket TBOX terminal as described in any one of claims 1-6.

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