E-Call module for a motor vehicle and motor vehicle

Abstract

An e-call module (11) for a motor vehicle (10), wherein the e-call module (11) has an acoustic output unit (16) and is configured to independently establish a voice connection (13) to a predetermined, vehicle-external emergency call service (14) in response to a predetermined trigger signal (12) and to output a voice signal (14') of the emergency call service (14) in the motor vehicle (10) via the acoustic output unit (16), wherein a signal receiving unit (22) of the e-call module (11) is provided to receive at least one output signal (21) from at least one control unit (18) of the motor vehicle (10) that is different from the e-call module (11), and the e-call module (11) is provided to output a respective acoustic signal (20) that is different from the voice signal (14') acoustically via the acoustic output unit (16) in response to the respective output signal (21). to spend, and where the e-call module (11) has at least one microphone (25) and a monitoring unit (26) is provided for detecting a respective microphone signal (29) of the at least one microphone (25) as a function of the output signal (21) and / or an announcement signal (35) of the at least one control unit (18), wherein the monitoring unit (26) is provided for determining an expectation signal (27) as a function of the output signal (21) and / or the announcement signal (35) of the at least one control unit (18) and for determining a difference (30) between the respective microphone signal (29) on the one hand and the expectation signal (27) on the other hand, and, if the difference (30) is greater than a predetermined threshold value (31), for generating an error signal (32), characterized in that the E-Call module (11) is configured to generate, as a system response to the error signal (32), a control signal which prohibits a driving phase piloted by an autopilot for the motor vehicle (10).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to an e-call module for a motor vehicle. The e-call module has an acoustic output unit and is configured to automatically establish a voice connection to a predetermined, vehicle-external emergency call service in response to a predetermined trigger signal (e.g., from a crash sensor). The invention also includes a motor vehicle with such an e-call module.

[0002] An e-call module is known, for example, from DE 199 20 502 A1. This known e-call module also has the ability to initially test a sound detection and / or sound emission arrangement for its functionality and communicate the results to the contacted emergency call service, allowing them to assess whether a voice connection with a vehicle user is technically possible at all.

[0003] In the event of faults in vehicle systems, warnings help the user of a motor vehicle to become aware of these faults so that further consequences of these faults can be prevented through the user's behavior. In the past, visual warnings have played a key role in this. In the future, however, acoustic warning signals will also be provided, especially when the user no longer needs to concentrate on driving or operating the vehicle because the vehicle is being controlled by an autopilot. In these cases, the user can attend to other tasks and a visual warning in an instrument cluster may therefore not be noticed by the user or not in time. An acoustic warning can, for example, be a warning tone or a sequence of tones or an announcement.

[0004] Currently, instrument clusters already offer the option of generating an acoustic warning tone. However, this requires that the acoustic output unit, such as the loudspeaker and / or the power amplifier driving the loudspeaker, is functioning properly. If the acoustic output unit in an instrument cluster is faulty, a fault in the vehicle can be detected and the warning signal generated. However, this signal is not emitted acoustically because the acoustic output unit does not emit or generate any sound.

[0005] DE 100 20 992 A1 discloses monitoring the functionality of an acoustic output unit by using a microphone to determine whether a corresponding sound is actually generated in a motor vehicle when attempting to emit an acoustic warning signal. If this is not the case, the defect in the acoustic output unit is detected, but there is still no way to send an acoustic warning to the motor vehicle user.

[0006] From DE 10 2007 058 542 A1 it is known to issue an acoustic warning or an acoustic indication by means of an acoustic output unit in a motor vehicle.

[0007] DE 10 2016 219 601 A1 discloses a motor vehicle with an emergency call unit that can receive a warning tone signal from a cluster. Based on this signal, the emergency call unit selects one of several stored tone signals, which is then output via a loudspeaker. To test the loudspeaker, a tone from a sound source can also be output during normal operation of the motor vehicle.

[0008] DE 20 2016 105 209 U1 describes an e-call module that is integrated into a vehicle seat and yet has all the elements of an e-call module, including a microphone and a loudspeaker as well as an emergency power supply.

[0009] DE 10 2016 224 603 A1 discloses a method for operating an audio, video, navigation (AVN) system, the method comprising: determining whether a vehicle loudspeaker and a vehicle microphone connected to the AVN are operational when a car accident occurs; unpairing a paired terminal and performing a role reversal of converting the terminal to a hands-free unit (HF), the vehicle loudspeaker and / or the vehicle microphone being inoperative; and performing a voice call using a loudspeaker and microphone of the terminal.

[0010] DE 100 04 406 A1 shows an emergency reporting device for a vehicle, characterized by: a microphone, a loudspeaker, a hands-free system circuit, a device for enabling two-way hands-free communication with an emergency message receiving center via the microphone, the loudspeaker and the hands-free system circuit, and a volume control circuit connected to the loudspeaker for controlling the volume level generated by the loudspeaker to a predetermined constant level or a higher level.

[0011] The invention is based on the object of ensuring that a user of the motor vehicle receives the information to be output in the event of a defective acoustic output unit of a control unit, for example an instrument cluster.

[0012] The object is achieved by the subject matter of the independent patent claims. Advantageous embodiments of the invention are evident from the dependent patent claims, the following description, and the figures.

[0013] The invention provides an e-call module for a motor vehicle. The e-call module can be configured in a conventional manner, i.e., it can have an acoustic output unit and be configured to independently establish a voice or speech connection to a predetermined, vehicle-external emergency call service or a vehicle-external remote station in response to a predetermined trigger signal (e.g., a crash sensor), and to output a voice signal from the emergency call service or the remote station in the motor vehicle via an acoustic output unit. The acoustic output unit can, for example, have at least one loudspeaker and at least one associated power amplifier.

[0014] In order to ensure that an acoustic notification or an acoustic warning, or generally an acoustic signal intended to be output by a control unit, is reliably output to a user of the motor vehicle, the invention provides that the e-call module has a signal receiving unit configured to receive at least one output signal from at least one control unit of the motor vehicle that is different from the e-call module. The e-call module is configured to acoustically output a respective acoustic signal, different from the voice signal of the emergency call service, via the output unit of the e-call module, depending on the respective output signal. In other words, the e-call module receives an output signal from the at least one control unit and then generates a respective acoustic signal.Thus, the acoustic output unit of the E-Call module can be used as a redundant output unit by at least one control unit of the motor vehicle. If the acoustic output unit of at least one control unit is defective, the respective control unit can send an output signal to the E-Call module, and the E-Call module then outputs the respective acoustic signal for the respective control unit acoustically (i.e., as a sound signal) via its own acoustic output unit. However, the control unit that sends the output signal that is intended to lead to the acoustic signal does not have to be the control unit that also outputs an acoustic warning signal.

[0015] The invention thus provides the advantage that, without providing an additional acoustic output unit for each control unit, a redundant acoustic output in the motor vehicle is nevertheless possible by means of an E-Call module.

[0016] The invention provides that the e-call module has at least one microphone, and a monitoring unit of the e-call module detects a respective microphone signal from the at least one microphone depending on the output signal and / or an announcement signal from the at least one control unit. In other words, the e-call module uses its at least one microphone to start a recording or sound recording if the output signal arrives and / or if the at least one control unit sends an announcement signal to the e-call module. The monitoring unit can be implemented, for example, as a program module for a processor device of the e-call module. The announcement signal can be received via the described signal receiving unit of the e-call module.Therefore, whenever an acoustic output is triggered by an output signal, a respective microphone signal can also be generated by the at least one microphone. It can also be provided that no acoustic output, i.e., no acoustic signal, is to be emitted by the E-Call module itself. It is sufficient if the at least one control unit itself attempts to generate an acoustic output, i.e., emit an acoustic signal, and communicates this to the E-Call module via the notification signal. The E-Call module then records the at least one microphone signal for the control unit.

[0017] The invention provides that, depending on the output signal and / or the announcement signal of the at least one control unit, an expectation signal is determined by the monitoring unit and a difference between the respective microphone signal of the at least one microphone, on the one hand, and the expectation signal, on the other hand, is determined and, if the difference is greater than a predetermined threshold value, an error signal is generated. The expectation signal represents a target signal. It describes which acoustic signal should be output to the user and thus audible in the motor vehicle as a sound signal. In other words, the at least one microphone is used to monitor whether an acoustic sound signal is actually generated in response to the output signal and / or the announcement signal.Acoustic monitoring is therefore carried out to determine whether an acoustic signal corresponding to the acoustic signal to be output is actually being generated for the user of the motor vehicle. If the recording is triggered by the aforementioned announcement signal from a control unit, the E-Call module can monitor whether the control unit that generated the announcement signal itself successfully output an acoustic signal. If not, the E-Call module recognizes this as an error and generates the error signal. According to the invention, the E-Call module is configured to generate a control signal as a system response to the error signal, which prohibits an autopilot-controlled driving phase for the motor vehicle.

[0018] The invention also includes embodiments which provide additional advantages.

[0019] According to one embodiment, said signal receiving unit of the E-Call module is designed to receive the output signal from a control unit of an instrument cluster. This provides a redundant acoustic output unit for the instrument cluster through the E-Call module. An instrument cluster is also referred to as a combination instrument or instrument cluster. It provides an instrument cluster for a motor vehicle, which can be arranged in front of the steering wheel in the direction of travel (behind the steering wheel from the driver's perspective). An instrument cluster can, for example, provide a speedometer, an odometer, a rev counter, and / or a fuel level indicator.

[0020] The signal receiving unit of the E-Call module can, for example, have a bus controller via which the E-Call module can be connected to a communication bus, for example a CAN bus (CAN - Controller Area Network) or a Flexray bus.

[0021] The acoustic signal can, for example, be a warning tone or an advisory tone or a tone sequence or a voice announcement. One embodiment provides that at least one of the at least one output signals corresponds to the acoustic signal to be output, which therefore describes a time characteristic of the acoustic output. In other words, an acoustic signal is immediately received as the output signal. An acoustic signal is a signal which describes a time characteristic as it is to be generated as a sound signal by the acoustic output unit. A frequency description of the time characteristic can also be provided, as can be realized, for example, using the MP3 format. An acoustic signal contains, in particular, signal components in the acoustic spectrum from 0 Hz to 16,000 Hz.Having the output signal correspond to the acoustic signal itself provides the advantage that the control unit can determine which acoustic output should be generated by the E-Call module. The E-Call module therefore does not have to store the time history of the acoustic output itself.

[0022] Another embodiment provides that at least one of the at least one output signals represents only a selection signal, which is then used to select an acoustic signal from predetermined acoustic signals that can be generated in the e-call module or are already stored. This selected acoustic signal is then output by the acoustic output unit of the e-call module. This provides the advantage that only one selection signal needs to be transmitted to generate the acoustic output, which signal comprises less data than the actual acoustic signal.

[0023] One embodiment provides that the E-Call module has a redundant power supply designed to operate the acoustic output unit of the E-Call module for outputting the respective acoustic signal independently of an external power supply. The power supply can be implemented, for example, on the basis of an electric accumulator, a battery, or a storage capacitor. In the event of a failure of the external power supply, the E-Call module can continue to output the acoustic signal independently of the rest of the motor vehicle using the redundant power supply. The power supply can be arranged, in particular, in a housing of the E-Call module. This also protects the power supply against shock.

[0024] In addition to or as an alternative to the comparison with the expected signal, the respective microphone signal can be permanently stored by the monitoring unit. This then provides retrospective evidence of whether an acoustic output was actually emitted in response to the output signal and / or warning signal. This can be helpful, for example, in analyzing an accident. The recorded microphone signal can also be transmitted via a mobile radio unit to a communication partner external to the vehicle, e.g., an emergency control center or to a manufacturer of the vehicle and / or the control unit. The microphone signal is then securely stored even after a crash.

[0025] To determine the difference between the respective microphone signal and the expected signal, one embodiment provides that the difference is specified with respect to a level and / or a frequency band within a predetermined time window. In other words, a simple level comparison and / or comparison of the power in a predetermined frequency band is provided. This is a technically particularly simple comparison of a microphone signal with an expected signal.

[0026] The e-call module according to the invention is intended for a motor vehicle. Accordingly, the invention also encompasses a motor vehicle with at least one control unit and with an embodiment of the e-call module according to the invention. The at least one control unit is coupled to the e-call module for transmitting a respective output signal. The coupling can be implemented, for example, via a communications bus in the manner described.

[0027] The e-call module is preferably used to provide a redundant acoustic output unit. Accordingly, one embodiment provides that the respective control unit is configured to transmit the respective output signal to the e-call module whenever it itself performs an acoustic output (i.e., the acoustic signal described by the output signal is output twice) and / or if an acoustic output unit of the control unit has been detected as defective (i.e., the acoustic output unit of the e-call module serves as a backup).

[0028] The invention also includes combinations of the features of the described embodiments.

[0029] An embodiment of the invention is described below. The single figure shows Fig. a schematic representation of an embodiment of the motor vehicle according to the invention.

[0030] The exemplary embodiments explained below are preferred embodiments of the invention. In the exemplary embodiments, the described components of the embodiments each represent individual, independently considered features of the invention, which also further develop the invention independently of one another and are thus also to be considered as components of the invention, either individually or in a combination other than that shown. Furthermore, the described embodiments can also be supplemented by further features of the invention already described.

[0031] In the figures, functionally identical elements are provided with the same reference numerals.

[0032] The figure shows a motor vehicle 10, which may be, for example, a motor vehicle, in particular a passenger car or a truck. An e-call module 11 may be provided in the motor vehicle 10, which can establish a voice connection 13 with an emergency call service 14 depending on a predetermined trigger signal 12, for example, a signal from a crash sensor. The voice connection 13 can be established, for example, as a mobile phone connection via a mobile phone network 15. It is then at least partially a radio connection.

[0033] To enable a voice signal 14' from the emergency call service 14 to be output in the motor vehicle 10, the e-call module 11 can have an acoustic output unit 16, symbolized in the figure as a loudspeaker. The output unit 16 can have at least one loudspeaker and / or an output stage for the at least one loudspeaker. A redundant or dedicated power supply 17, for example, based on a battery or an electric accumulator, can be provided to operate the e-call module 11 even after an accident involving the motor vehicle 10.

[0034] At least one control unit 18 can be provided in the motor vehicle 10, which may itself have an acoustic output unit 19. The control unit 18 may, for example, be an instrument cluster.

[0035] In the motor vehicle 10, it is provided that the control unit 18 can use its own acoustic unit 19 to output an acoustic signal 20 and can also use the E-Call module 11 redundantly for a double output of the acoustic signal 20 or for a redundant output in the event of a defect in the acoustic unit 19.

[0036] For this purpose, the control unit 18 can send an output signal 21 to the E-Call module to trigger the acoustic signal 20 to be output by the acoustic unit of the E-Call module 11. A signal receiving unit 22 of the E-Call module 11 can receive the output signal 21 for this purpose. The output signal 21 can be transmitted, for example, via a communication bus 23 from the control unit 18 to the E-Call module 11. Instead of a communication bus 23, however, an analog communication connection can also be provided, for example.

[0037] After receiving the output signal 21, the e-call module 11 can provide for the acoustic signal 20 described by the output signal 21 to be output acoustically by means of the output unit 16 in the motor vehicle 10, so that the user of the motor vehicle 10 can perceive it as an acoustic sound 20'. In this case, it can be provided that the output signal 21 itself corresponds to the acoustic signal 20. However, it can also be provided that the output signal 21 is used as a selection signal to select the acoustic signal 20 to be output from a set of predetermined acoustic signals 24.

[0038] In the motor vehicle 10, it can further be provided that monitoring is carried out to determine whether the acoustic output is successful, i.e. whether an audible acoustic sound 20' is actually produced. At least one microphone 25 of the e-call module 11 can be used for this purpose. A monitoring unit 26 can be provided in the e-call module 11 which, upon receiving the output signal 21, determines an expected signal 27 which describes how an ambient sound 28 received via the at least one microphone 25 should proceed. For this purpose, the respective microphone signal 29 of the at least one microphone 25 can be compared by the monitoring unit 26 with the expected signal 27 and a difference 30 can be determined. If the difference 30 is greater than a predetermined threshold value 31, an error signal 32 can be generated, for example, which signals that the acoustic output was unsuccessful.It can also be provided that at least one microphone signal 29 is stored in a data storage device 33, for example, of the E-Call module 11 or in a data storage device connected to the E-Call module 11. The ambient sound 28 does not have to be checked for the acoustic signal 20 of the acoustic output unit 16. Additionally or alternatively, it can be provided that whenever the control unit 18 itself wishes to acoustically output the acoustic signal 20, the E-Call module is informed of this by an announcement signal 35 from the control unit 18. Even then, the monitoring unit 26 can perform the described comparison and determine the difference 30.

[0039] Thus, an E-Call module, such as may already be installed in a motor vehicle 10 today, is used to redundantly generate a voice output and / or at least an acoustic warning tone in the motor vehicle 10. The additional redundancy also makes it easier to meet a safety requirement, such as that specified in a safety standard such as ISO 26262. Furthermore, the redundant power supply in the E-Call module makes it possible to generate an acoustic warning or a voice output in the event of faults in the motor vehicle's power system.

[0040] In addition, the at least one built-in microphone 25 of the E-Call module can be used to validate the acoustic signals. If the acoustic signals are faulty or missing, possible system reactions can be triggered (for example, prohibiting a piloted driving phase if the acoustic warning system is defective, i.e., blocking the autopilot). In addition, the at least one microphone 25 of the E-Call module can be used to validate the acoustic warning tones of the instrument cluster or generally of the control unit 18. This allows a higher requirement for the functional safety of such a control unit 18 to be met (for example, safety integrity according to ASIL - Automotive Safety Integrity Level). For this purpose, for example, a function or a monitoring unit is stored in the E-Call module that generates a target signal, i.e.reads the expected signal, which, for example, defines or describes a level or predetermined frequencies. If the desired signal or expected signal deviates from the actual signal, as described by the microphone signal 29, this is detected as an error and signaled. This signaling can occur either through an internal error memory entry or can also be signaled to the control unit 18, which can then display a warning.

[0041] This provides a cost-effective way to provide or meet higher safety requirements for an acoustic warning system or acoustic unit. It is possible to meet the potential safety requirements for acoustic warning systems according to ISO 26262. The increased robustness through redundancy also enables future warning systems for piloted driving.

[0042] The core of this is the use of the E-Call module and its processor device as a fallback solution in the event of failure of an acoustic output unit of another control unit 18, in particular an instrument cluster, for the output and / or control of acoustic warnings and / or messages (generally acoustic signals), for example in piloted or autonomous driving.

[0043] The use of at least one microphone 25 in the interior of the motor vehicle to monitor the signal quality and / or volume of an acoustic signal that is being or will be emitted is possible. Selective storage of the microphone signal 29 for later review and / or legal protection is also possible.

[0044] In summary, the idea of ​​the E-Call module with its acoustic output unit is to be used redundantly in the motor vehicle for at least one other control unit 18 in order to be able to warn the driver or a user of the motor vehicle if the acoustic output unit 19 of the respective control unit is defective.

[0045] Overall, the examples show how the invention can provide a redundant acoustic warning through an e-call module.

Claims

[1] E-call module (11) for a motor vehicle (10), wherein the E-call module (11) has an acoustic output unit (16) and is configured to independently establish a voice connection (13) to a predetermined, vehicle-external emergency call service (14) in response to a predetermined trigger signal (12) and to output a voice signal (14') of the emergency call service (14) in the motor vehicle (10) via the acoustic output unit (16), wherein a signal receiving unit (22) of the E-call module (11) provides for receiving at least one output signal (21) from at least one control unit (18) of the motor vehicle (10) that is different from the E-call module (11), and the E-call module (11) provides for acoustically outputting a respective acoustic signal (20) that is different from the voice signal (14') via the acoustic output unit in response to the respective output signal (21). (16) and where the e-call module (11) has at least one microphone (25) and a monitoring unit (26) is provided for detecting a respective microphone signal (29) of the at least one microphone (25) as a function of the output signal (21) and / or an announcement signal (35) of the at least one control unit (18), wherein the monitoring unit (26) is provided for determining an expectation signal (27) as a function of the output signal (21) and / or the announcement signal (35) of the at least one control unit (18) and for determining a difference (30) between the respective microphone signal (29) on the one hand and the expectation signal (27) on the other hand, and, if the difference (30) is greater than a predetermined threshold value (31), for generating an error signal (32), characterized by , that the E-Call module (11) is configured to generate, as a system response to the error signal (32), a control signal which prohibits a driving phase piloted by an autopilot for the motor vehicle (10). [2] E-Call module (11) according to claim 1, wherein the signal receiving unit (22) is arranged to receive the output signal (21) from the control unit (18) of an instrument cluster. [3] E-Call module (11) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein of the at least one output signal (21), at least one output signal (21) corresponds to the acoustic signal (20) to be output, which describes a time course of an acoustic output. [4] E-call module (11) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein at least one output signal (21) of the at least one output signal is a selection signal which selects the acoustic signal (20) from predetermined acoustic signals (24) which can be generated or stored in the E-call module (11). [5] E-Call module (11) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the E-Call module (11) has a redundant power supply (17) which is designed to operate the acoustic output unit (16) for acoustically outputting the respective acoustic signal (20) independently of an external power supply. [6] E-Call module (11) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the monitoring unit (26) provides a) to permanently store the respective microphone signal (29) and / or b) to be sent via a mobile radio unit to a communication partner outside the vehicle. [7] E-Call module (11) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the difference (30) is specified with respect to a level and / or a frequency band within a predetermined time window. [8] Motor vehicle (10) with at least one control unit (18), characterized bythat the at least one control device (18) for transmitting a respective output signal (21) is coupled to an e-call module (11) according to one of the preceding claims. [9] Motor vehicle (10) according to claim 8, wherein the respective control unit (18) is configured to always transmit the respective output signal (21) to the E-Call module (11) if it itself performs an acoustic output and / or if an acoustic output unit (19) of the control unit (18) has been detected as defective.

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