Device and method for wireless reading and programming of tire pressure sensors

Abstract

A communication device (2) for wirelessly reading and / or programming tire pressure sensors (4) is designed to: after starting the communication device (2), search for radio signals emitted by tire pressure sensors (4) located in the vicinity of the communication device (2); receive tire pressure sensor data from the tire pressure sensors (4) from which radio signals have been received and store the received tire pressure sensor data in a memory device (14); display the tire pressure sensors (4) from which radio signals have been received for selection to a user; accept the user's selection for at least one of the displayed tire pressure sensors (4);and at least partially display the tire pressure sensor data received from the at least one selected tire pressure sensor (4) and / or transmit data to the at least one selected tire pressure sensor (4) in order to program the at least one selected tire pressure sensor (4);

Description

The invention relates to a device and a method for wirelessly reading and programming tire pressure sensors which are installed in the tires of motor vehicles.Prior ArtModern motor vehicles are often equipped with electronic tire pressure sensors which are installed in the tires of the motor vehicle. Such tire pressure sensors measure, for example, the air pressure, temperature and acceleration in the respective tire and transmit the data via radio signals that contain information about the measured sensor data. The radio signals can be received by a corresponding read-out device. In this way, for example, the air pressure in the tires of the motor vehicle can be easily and conveniently measured and monitored.The tire pressure sensors used herein may be "universal sensors" used in a variety of different vehicles. The tire pressure sensors must therefore be programmed in the workshop for the specific vehicle application or further features such as tire size and type are programmed into the sensor.In order to reduce the energy consumption and thus to increase the service life of the electronic tire pressure sensors, the electronic tire pressure sensors emit their radio signals only at predefined time intervals or intervals. This can result in waiting times during the reading and programming of the tire pressure sensors until a tire pressure sensor which is to be read out emits its radio signal and this radio signal can be received by the reading device.It is an object of the invention to reduce the waiting times during the reading and programming of wirelessly readable electronic tire pressure sensors.Disclosure of the InventionThe invention comprises a method for wirelessly reading out and programming tire pressure sensors, the method comprising: searching, with a communication device, immediately after starting the communication device, for radio signals and receiving radio signals transmitted from tire pressure sensors located in the vicinity of the device; receiving tire pressure sensor data from the tire pressure sensors from which radio signals have been received and storing the received tire pressure sensor data in a storage device; displaying, to a user, the tire pressure sensors from which radio signals have been received for selection; and accepting a selection of the user for at least one of the displayed tire pressure sensors. The method also comprises at least partially displaying the tire pressure sensor data received from the at least one selected tire pressure sensor, in particular tire pressure data, and / or transmitting data to the at least one selected tire pressure sensor in order to program it for the intended application.The invention comprises a communication device for wirelessly reading out and programming tire pressure sensors, wherein the communication device is configured to search for radio signals and receive radio signals transmitted from tire pressure sensors located in the vicinity of the communication device immediately after starting the communication device; receive tire pressure sensor data from the tire pressure sensors from which radio signals have been received and store the received tire pressure sensor data in a storage device; display to a user the tire pressure sensors from which radio signals have been received for selection; and accept the selection of the user for at least one of the displayed tire pressure sensors. The communication device is also designed to at least partially display the tire pressure sensor data received from the at least one selected tire pressure sensor, in particular tire pressure data, and / or to transmit data to the at least one selected tire pressure sensor in order to program it for the intended application.Because, in a method according to the invention, which is carried out by a device according to the invention, the tire pressure sensor data which are emitted by all tire pressure sensors which are located in the environment of the communication device are received and stored before the user has selected at least one of the tire pressure sensors, the desired tire pressure sensor data are immediately available to the user and the programming of the selected tire pressure sensors can be commenced immediately as soon as he has made his selection.After the selection of at least one tire pressure sensor, the user of a communication device according to the invention does not have to wait until the tire pressure sensor data are sent out again by the at least one selected tire pressure sensor. The reading and programming of the tire pressure sensors can be considerably accelerated and simplified in this way.In one embodiment, the tire pressure sensor data comprise a unique sensor identification, for example a MAC address, of the tire pressure sensor, which transmits the respective tire pressure sensor data. The received tire pressure sensor data can be unambiguously assigned to one of the tire pressure sensors in this way.In one embodiment, the tire pressure sensor data is transmitted, for example, via a Bluetooth® data connection. Bluetooth® data connections have been found to be well suited for transmitting data between tire pressure sensors and communication devices. The data can be transmitted in particular via a Bluetooth0-Low-Energy data connection ("BLE data connection") in order to keep the energy consumption of the tire pressure sensors as low as possible.In one embodiment, the tire pressure sensors from which radio signals have been received are ordered by the communication device according to the reception strength of the received radio signals and displayed in the order of the reception strength. The received radio signals can be ordered and displayed in particular in descending order of their reception strengths.Thus, since the reception strength of the received radio signals typically decreases with the distance of the tire pressure sensors transmitting the radio signals from the communication device, the tire pressure sensors that are located near the communication device and that are therefore of interest with a higher probability are displayed in front of the tire pressure sensors that are farther from the communication device. The selection of the desired tire pressure sensors can be simplified and improved even further in this way.In one embodiment, the communication device comprises a screen that allows the user to display all tire pressure sensors from which radio signals have been received for selection.In one embodiment, the communication device also comprises an input device, for example a keyboard, which makes it possible to accept an input of the user, in particular a selection of at least one of the tire pressure sensors from which tire pressure sensor data have been received, so that the tire pressure sensor data received from the selected tire pressure sensor can be displayed.In one embodiment, the screen of the communication device is designed as a touch-sensitive screen ("touchscreen"), which makes it possible to accept an input of the user, in particular the selection of at least one of the tire pressure sensors from which tire pressure sensor data have been received. With the aid of a touch-sensitive screen, the selection of at least one of the tire pressure sensors can be carried out particularly conveniently and with a low susceptibility to errors.Brief Description of the FiguresFIG. 1 shows a schematic illustration of two motor vehicles, in the tires of which electronic tire pressure sensors are arranged, and a communication device according to the invention, which is designed for the wireless reading out of the tire pressure sensors. FIG. 2 shows a flow diagram of an exemplary embodiment of a method according to the invention for wirelessly reading out the tire pressure sensors.DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURESFIG. 1 shows a schematic illustration of two motor vehicles 8, in the tires 6 of which electronic tire pressure sensors 4 are arranged, and a communication device 2 according to the invention, which is designed for the wireless reading out of the tire pressure sensors 4.The tire pressure sensors 4 each have a transmitter 10 which is designed to emit radio signals repeatedly, in particular periodically, wherein the radio signals contain tire pressure sensor data which uniquely identify the respective tire pressure sensor 4. The tire pressure sensor data can furthermore comprise tire pressure data which contain information about the current air pressure in the respective tire 6.The radio signals can be, for example, Bluetooth® radio signals, in particular Bluetooth® low-energy radio signals ("BLE radio signals"). However, the invention is not limited to Bluetooth® radio signals, but can also be realized in conjunction with other types of radio signals.A communication device 2 according to the invention for wirelessly reading out and / or programming the tire pressure sensors 4 comprises a receiving device 12 for receiving the radio signals transmitted by the transmitters 10 of the tire pressure sensors 4. The communication device 2 is designed to search for radio signals which are emitted by tire pressure sensors 4 which are located in the environment, i.e. within the reception range of the communication device 2, immediately after the communication device 2 is started up, in particular after the switching-on, and to receive these radio signals.The communication device 2 is further configured to store the tire pressure sensor data included in the received radio signals in a storage device 14 provided within the communication device 2.The communication device 2 is also designed to display a unique identification of all tire pressure sensors 4 from which radio signals have been received on a display device 16 of the communication device 2 in order to enable a user of the communication device 2 to select at least one of these tire pressure sensors 4.The identifications of the tire pressure sensors 4 from which radio signals have been received can be ordered by the communication device 2 according to the reception strength of the radio signals and displayed on the display device 16 in the order of the reception strength, in particular in descending order of the reception strength. Thus, since the reception strength of the received radio signals typically decreases with the distance of the tire pressure sensors 4 transmitting the radio signals from the communication device 2, the tire pressure sensors 4 that are located near the communication device 2 and that are therefore of interest with a higher probability are displayed in front of the tire pressure sensors 4 that are farther from the communication device 2.The display device 16 can be designed, for example, as a touch-sensitive screen ("touchscreen") in order to allow the user to select the at least one desired tire pressure sensor 4 directly on the display device 16.Alternatively or additionally, the communication device 2 can also have an additional input device 18, for example a keyboard, which enables the user to select the at least one desired tire pressure sensor 4.After the user has selected at least one tire pressure sensor 4, the at least one selected tire pressure sensor 4 can be programmed by wirelessly transmitting data, in particular programming data, from the communication device 2 to the at least one selected tire pressure sensor 4.If the at least one selected tire pressure sensor 4 has already been previously programmed, the tire pressure sensor data, in particular tire pressure data, which have been provided and received by the at least one selected tire pressure sensor 4 and which in particular contain the current air pressure in the tire 6 in which the selected tire pressure sensor 4 is arranged, can be displayed on the display device 16.FIG. 2 shows a flow diagram of an exemplary embodiment of a method 100 according to the invention for wirelessly reading out the tire pressure sensors 4.The method 100 comprises, immediately after the starting 110 of the communication device 2, searching in a step 120 for radio signals which are emitted by tire pressure sensors which are located in the environment of the communication device 2. In a following step 130, tire pressure sensor data is received from those tire pressure sensors 4 from which radio signals have been received, and the received tire pressure sensor data is stored in the storage device 14 in step 140. In the following step 150, the tire pressure sensors 4 from which radio signals have been received are displayed to a user for selection. In step 160, a selection of the user is received for at least one of the displayed tire pressure sensors 4. In step 170, programming data is transmitted to the at least one selected tire pressure sensor 4 to program the at least one selected tire pressure sensor 4.If the at least one selected tire pressure sensor 4 has already been previously programmed, the tire pressure sensor data, in particular the tire pressure data that have been received by the at least one selected tire pressure sensor 4, are displayed on the display device 16 in step 180.Because, in a method according to the invention, the tire pressure sensor data which are transmitted by all tire pressure sensors 4 which are located in the environment of the communication device 2 are received and stored before the user has selected at least one of the tire pressure sensors 4, the user is immediately available the desired tire pressure sensor data as soon as he has made his selection. The user does not have to wait until the desired tire pressure sensor data have been transmitted again from the selected tire pressure sensor 4 after his selection.The reading and programming of the tire pressure sensors 4 can be considerably accelerated and simplified in this way.

Claims

A communication device (2) for wirelessly reading out and / or programming tire pressure sensors (4), the communication device (2) being configured to: after starting the communication device (2), search for radio signals transmitted from tire pressure sensors (4) located in the vicinity of the communication device (2) and receive these radio signals; receive tire pressure sensor data from the tire pressure sensors (4) from which radio signals have been received and store the received tire pressure sensor data in a storage device (14); display to a user the tire pressure sensors (4) from which radio signals have been received for selection; accept the selection of the user for at least one of the displayed tire pressure sensors (4); and at least partially display the tire pressure sensor data received from the at least one selected tire pressure sensor (4) and / or transmit data to the at least one selected tire pressure sensor (4) in order to program the at least one selected tire pressure sensor (4).Communication device (2) according to claim 1, wherein the tire pressure sensor data comprise a unique sensor identification, for example a MAC address, of the tire pressure sensor emitting the tire pressure sensor data.Communication device (2) according to Claim 1 or 2, wherein the communication device (2) is designed to transmit the tire pressure sensor data via a Bluetooth® data connection, wherein the communication device (2) is designed in particular to transmit the tire pressure sensor data via a Bluetooth® low-energy data connection.Communication device (2) according to one of the preceding patent claims, wherein the communication device (2) is designed to order and display the tire pressure sensors (4) in the order of the strength of the received radio signals; wherein the communication device (2) is designed in particular to order and display the tire pressure sensors (4) in descending order of the strength of the received radio signals.Communication device (2) according to one of the preceding patent claims, wherein the communication device (2) comprises a display device (16) which makes it possible to display the tire pressure sensors (4) from which radio signals have been received for selection to the user; wherein the display device (16) is designed in particular as a touch-sensitive screen.Communication device (2) according to one of the preceding patent claims, wherein the communication device (2) comprises an input device (18) which is designed to accept a selection by the user.A method for wirelessly reading and / or programming tire pressure sensors (4), the method comprising: with a communication device (2), after starting the communication device (2), searching for radio signals transmitted from tire pressure sensors (4) located in the vicinity of the device and receiving these radio signals; receiving tire pressure sensor data from the tire pressure sensors (4) from which radio signals have been received and storing the received tire pressure sensor data in a storage device (14); displaying to a user the tire pressure sensors (4) from which radio signals have been received for selection; accepting the user selection for at least one of the displayed tire pressure sensors (4); and at least partially display the tire pressure sensor data received from the at least one selected tire pressure sensor (4) and / or transmit data to the at least one selected tire pressure sensor (4) in order to program the at least one selected tire pressure sensor (4).Method according to claim 7, wherein the tire pressure sensor data comprise a sensor identification, for example a MAC address, of the tire pressure sensor (4) transmitting the tire pressure sensor data.Method according to Claim 7 or 8, wherein the tire pressure sensor data are transmitted via a Bluetooth® data connection, wherein the tire pressure sensor data are transmitted in particular via a Bluetooth® low-energy data connection.Method according to one of Claims 7 to 9, wherein the tyre pressure sensors (4) are ordered and displayed in the order of the strength of the received radio signals; wherein the tyre pressure sensors (4) are ordered and displayed in particular in descending order of the strength of the received radio signals.

Images