Device for recording relevant data in a motor vehicle

Abstract

Device for recording relevant data in a motor vehicle, wherein the recording device (1) is connected to further vehicle components via at least one data bus (3), wherein one of these further vehicle components is a driver assistance system (2), characterized in that the driver assistance system (2) sends a signal to the data bus (3) when the driver assistance function (2) is activated and when the driver assistance function (2) is deactivated by the driver (6), which is received by the recording device (1) and the information (7) stored in the recording device (1) regarding relevant vehicle data (8) is recorded separately for an activated (12) and for a deactivated (13) driver assistance function (2).

Description

The present invention relates to a device and a method for detecting relevant data in a motor vehicle, wherein the detection device is connected to further vehicle components via at least one data bus, wherein one of these further vehicle components is a driver assistance system which, when the driver assistance function is activated and deactivated by the driver, respectively outputs a signal on the data bus which is received by the detection device and that the information regarding relevant vehicle data stored in the detection device is detected separately for the activated and for the deactivated driver assistance function and can be displayed in a driver information display, wherein it is specified whether this is data which was detected when the driver assistance function is activated or when the driver assistance function is deactivated. The driver assistance system or the driver assistance function is advantageously an adaptive distance and speed controller, and the detection device for relevant data in a motor vehicle is an onboard computer.Prior ArtThe publication "Adaptive Cruise Control ACC", published in April 2002 by Robert Bosch GmbH (ISBN 3-7782-2034-9) discloses an adaptive distance and speed controller which recognizes preceding vehicles and objects located in the area in front of the vehicle and, in the case that no preceding vehicle has been recognized, adjusts the speed of the vehicle to a setpoint speed predefined by the driver and, in the case that a preceding vehicle has been recognized, the speed of the vehicle is carried out below the setpoint speed predefined by the driver in the sense of a constant-distance control.Furthermore, on-board computers are known as a feature in connection with a vehicle in today's vehicles, which calculates and maintains on demand data relevant to the driver, such as average fuel consumption, travel time, carbon dioxide output or other information of interest to the driver, and optionally displays on demand on demand on the driver.DE 10 2006 025 851 A1 describes a control system for a motor vehicle for regulating the speed. A desired fuel consumption may be predetermined to the control system, wherein the control system controls the vehicle speed according to the desired fuel consumption or provides visual and audible instructions to the driver to achieve the desired fuel consumption.Disclosure of the InventionThe essence of the present invention is to provide a device or a method for detecting relevant data in a motor vehicle, wherein the detection device is connected via at least one data bus to further vehicle components, wherein one of these further vehicle components is a driver assistance system which, when the driver assistance function or the driver assistance system is activated and deactivated by the driver, respectively outputs a signal to the data bus which is received by the detection device and that the information regarding relevant vehicle data stored in the detection device is detected separately for the activated and for the deactivated driver assistance function. This makes it possible to specify the vehicle data relevant to the driver on demand, the average values of the data relevant to the driver, such as, for example, the average fuel consumption or the average carbon dioxide output, being displayed separately and it being specified to the driver with the display of this information whether the displayed average value has come to an end with the driver assistance system activated or with the driver assistance system deactivated. This makes it possible to indicate to the driver whether the use of the driver assistance system as a result of the more uniform automatic speed control in comparison with a speed specification by the driver manually via the accelerator pedal is a consumption advantage or a carbon dioxide ejection advantage and whether the driver assistance system should be switched on or switched off for a low-consumption and thus environmentally friendly driving mode. In addition to or instead of the indication of the carbon dioxide emission, any other pollutant which arises during operation of a motor vehicle with an internal combustion engine, or any other emission, can be indicated according to the invention. The subsequent use of the carbon dioxide emission is to be considered here as an example for every other pollutant emission or every other emission of the motor vehicle. In the case of electric cars or vehicles with hybrid drive, instead of or in addition to the fuel consumption, the energy consumption can also be directly indicated.Advantageous further developments are evident from the dependent claims.The driver assistance system or the driver assistance function is advantageously designed as an adaptive distance and speed controller.Furthermore, it is advantageous that the detection device for relevant data in a motor vehicle is an onboard computer. It is likewise advantageous that the relevant data in a motor vehicle, which are transmitted on the data bus, are fed to a detection device designed as an onboard computer.It is furthermore particularly advantageous that the relevant vehicle data for the activated and for the deactivated distance and speed controller are detected separately and can be displayed in a driver information display. As a result, depending on whether the adaptive distance and speed controller is currently activated or deactivated, it is possible to update the mean value for the activated driver assistance system or the mean value for the deactivated driver assistance system, so that in each case two data values are kept ready in the detection device for each relevant vehicle size which can be displayed to the driver and are displayed to the driver on request in a driver information display.Furthermore, it is advantageous that the data recorded in the recording device are displayed individually in a driver information display by the driver operating a selection device and it is thereby indicated whether these are data recorded with the driver assistance function activated or deactivated. This makes it possible to provide the driver with a decision aid as to whether he should advantageously activate or deactivate the driver assistance system in order to drive particularly in a fuel-saving or environmentally safe manner.Furthermore, it is advantageous that the captured and displayable data are mean values of relevant vehicle data. In this case, the mean values can be averaged over a past time window, which have been calculated, for example, within a predefined past time window or within a predefined distance travelled. The relevant vehicle data are vehicle sizes which are of particular interest to the driver, for example sizes such as fuel consumption, carbon dioxide output, average speed, travel time or other sizes which are usually displayed in onboard computers.The realization of the method according to the invention in the form of a control element, which is provided for a control device of an adaptive distance and speed control of a motor vehicle, is of particular importance. In this case, a program is stored on the control element, which program can be executed on a computing device, in particular on a microprocessor or signal processor, and is suitable for executing the method according to the invention. In this case, the invention is therefore implemented by a program stored on the control element, so that this control element provided with the program represents the invention in the same way as the method for which the program is suitable for executing. In particular, an electrical storage medium, for example a read-only memory, can be used as control element.Brief Description of the DrawingsAn exemplary embodiment of the invention is explained below with reference to drawings. They show FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of the apparatus according to the invention; and FIG. 2 shows a table for clearly illustrating the relevant vehicle data stored in the detection device.Embodiments of the InventionFIG. 1 shows a schematic block diagram of the device according to the invention. The data acquisition device 1, which can be designed, for example, as an on-board computer and acquires the vehicle sizes which are of particular interest to the driver, calculates mean values if necessary and keeps these data ready on demand, can be seen. For this purpose, the data acquisition device 1 is connected to a data bus 3 via which the data acquisition device 1 receives signals and sends signals. Furthermore, a driver assistance system 2 is connected to the data bus 3, which driver assistance system can likewise receive signals via the data bus 3 and can transmit signals to other connected devices. The driver assistance system 2 is shown here by way of example as an adaptive distance and speed controller, which can detect vehicles and stationary objects travelling ahead in the area in front of the vehicle by means of a video sensor, laser sensor or radar sensor and can accordingly, as explained in the prior art, adjust the vehicle speed by engine requirements or brake interventions. For this purpose, an operating element 6 is provided for the driver assistance system, with which the driver assistance system 2 can be switched on and off, and operating parameters can be set and changed. The data acquisition device 1 likewise has an operating element 4, by means of which the data acquisition device can be activated, deactivated, and the operating settings thereof can be changed by the driver.It is of course alternatively possible to accommodate the operating element 4 for the data acquisition device and the operating element 6 for the driver assistance system in a separate operating element which is connected directly to the data bus 3, for example, so that the operating signals of the driver are output via the common operating element onto the data bus 3 and from there are passed on to the connected driver assistance system to be operated or to the data acquisition device connected to the data bus 3.Furthermore, a display device 5 is connected to the data acquisition device 1, on which display device the values calculated and kept ready in the data acquisition device 1 can be displayed to the driver, depending on which information the driver would like to have displayed and selected this display by means of the operating element 4. According to the invention, when the driver assistance system 2 is activated or deactivated by a driver actuation of the operating element 6, an activation signal or a deactivation signal is now output from the driver assistance system 2, which can be, in particular, an adaptive distance and speed controller, to the data bus 3, via which the signals of the data acquisition device 1, which can be, in particular, embodied as an onboard computer, are transmitted. Data informative for the driver are kept ready in the data acquisition device 1 and mean values are calculated, which are also kept ready for output, so that the driver can select the vehicle size currently of interest for the driver by operating the control element 4 for the data acquisition device and this is displayed in the display device 5, which is advantageously mounted in the dashboard or in the driver information display. As relevant data which are of particular interest to the driver, for example, the outside temperature, the remaining range of the tank contents, the travel time, the instantaneous average consumption, the instantaneous carbon dioxide output, and average values over a past time period or average values over a past travel route can be calculated and kept ready. If the driver assistance system 2 has been activated by the driver by means of the operator control element 6 for the driver assistance system and an activation signal has been output by the driver assistance system 2 via the data bus 3 to the data acquisition device 1, the data fields 9 for the active driver assistance system are updated with the current values in the data acquisition device 1 and the corresponding mean values are continuously recomputed. The data fields 10 for the vehicle sizes for the deactivated driver assistance system are not updated at this time. If the driver deactivates the driver assistance system 2 by means of the operator control element 6 for the driver assistance system, the driver assistance system 2 outputs a deactivation signal via the data bus 3 to the data acquisition device 1, whereupon the vehicle sizes 8 for the activated driver assistance system 9 are no longer updated further and instead the data fields 10 for the deactivated driver assistance system are updated in column 10 and the mean values are continuously recomputed.In FIG. 2, a table 7 is shown, which schematically illustrates the data structure of the recorded data in the data recording device 1. For this purpose, vehicle variables informative for the driver are recorded, which are listed schematically by means of the letters A, B, C and are shown in column 8. Furthermore, two data fields 12, 13 are provided for each vehicle variable 8, wherein one of the two data fields 9 is updated when the driver assistance system is activated and any mean values are continuously recomputed, which is listed in column 9, and a data field is provided in a second data field 13, here shown in column 10, which is updated and continuously recomputed when the driver assistance system 2 is deactivated. For example, the vehicle size A may be the average fuel consumption during a predetermined past travel distance, which is entered in line 11 under column 8 in this case. For this purpose, 2 data fields 12, 13 are provided in each case in column 9 and column 10, wherein one or the other data field 12, 13 is updated depending on whether the driver assistance system 2 is activated or deactivated. By actuating the operating element 4, the driver can select the vehicle variable which is currently of interest for him and is output by the data acquisition device 1 to the display device 5, such that, for example, the vehicle variable A, which is the average force load consumption in the example, is output for the activated driver assistance system. If the driver selects the next data field by means of the operating element 4, the data field 13 is output for the vehicle size A, which keeps the size ready for the deactivated driver assistance system. By further retrieving vehicle information stored in the data acquisition device 1, the vehicle size B for the activated driver assistance system can be output, for example, and after the operator control element 4 is actuated once again, the vehicle size B for the deactivated driver assistance system can be output. Depending on whether the driver actuates the operating element 6 for the driver assistance system and thus switches the driver assistance system 2 on or off, either the values in column 9 for the activated driver assistance system are updated or the values in column 10 for the deactivated driver assistance system are activated on the basis of the activation and deactivation signals transmitted by means of the data bus 3, so that the driver can determine whether the average fuel consumption or, for example, the average carbon dioxide output is more favorable when the driver assistance system is activated than when the driver assistance system is deactivated and can thus align his driving habits with respect to the activation of the driver assistance system 2.

Claims

Device for detecting relevant data in a motor vehicle, wherein the detection device (1) is connected to further vehicle components via at least one data bus (3), wherein one of these further vehicle components is a driver assistance system (2), characterized in that the driver assistance system (2), when the driver assistance function (2) is activated and deactivated by the driver (6), in each case transmits a signal to the data bus (3), which signal is received by the detection device (1) and the information (7) stored in the detection device (1) regarding relevant vehicle data (8) is detected separately for an activated (12) and for a deactivated (13) driver assistance function (2).Device according to Claim 1, characterized in that the driver assistance system (2) or the driver assistance function (2) is an adaptive distance and speed controller.Device according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the device (2) for acquiring relevant data in a motor vehicle is an onboard computer.Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the relevant vehicle data (12, 13) for an activated and a deactivated distance and speed controller (2) are detected separately and can be displayed in a driver information display (5).Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the data (7) recorded in the recording device (1) are displayed individually in a driver information display (5) by the driver operating a selection device (4) and it is specified whether this is data (9, 10) recorded when the driver assistance function (2) is activated or when the driver assistance function (2) is deactivated.Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the recorded and displayable data (12, 13) are mean values of relevant vehicle sizes (8).Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the recorded and displayable data (12, 13) are at least one of the variables fuel consumption, carbon dioxide output, average speed or travel time.Method for detecting relevant data in a motor vehicle, wherein the detection apparatus (1) is connected to further vehicle components via at least one data bus (3), wherein one of these further vehicle components is a driver assistance system (2), characterized in that the driver assistance system (2), when the driver assistance function is activated and when the driver assistance function is deactivated by the driver (6), in each case transmits a signal to the data bus (3), which signal is received by the detection device (1) and the information (12, 13) regarding relevant vehicle data (8) stored in the detection device (1) is detected separately for an activated and for a deactivated driver assistance function (2).Method according to Claim 8, characterized in that the driver assistance system (2) or the driver assistance function (2) is an adaptive distance and speed controller.Method according to Claim 8 or 9, characterized in that the device (2) for acquiring relevant data in a motor vehicle is an on-board computer.Method according to one of Claims 8 to 10, characterized in that the relevant vehicle data (8) for activated and deactivated distance and speed regulators are detected separately and can be displayed in a driver information display (5).Method according to one of Claims 8 to 11, characterized in that the data (12, 13) recorded in the recording device (1) are displayed individually in a driver information display (5) by the driver operating a selection device (4) and it is specified in this case whether these are data recorded when the driver assistance function (2) is activated or when the driver assistance function (2) is deactivated.Method according to one of Claims 8 to 12, characterized in that the recorded and displayable data (12, 13) are mean values of relevant vehicle data (8).Method according to one of Claims 8 to 13, characterized in that the recorded and displayable data (12, 13) are at least one of the greater fuel consumption, carbon dioxide output, average speed or journey time.

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