Cable harness, means of transport, combined cable and use of a combined cable comprising an electrical cable and an optical cable

Abstract

A cable harness (9), a means of transportation, the use of a combined cable (1, 11), and a combined cable (1, 11) are proposed. The combined cable (1, 11) is provided for a means of transportation and comprises an electrical cable (2) and an optical cable (3).

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a cable harness, a means of transport, a combined cable, and the use of such a cable in a means of transport. In particular, the present invention relates to a possibility for increasing redundancy and further possibilities for improving encrypted transmission technologies in a means of transport.

[0002] In the current state of the art, electrical cables are used to transmit energy and information between two entities. Not only electrical power in the range of information transmission, but also higher power levels in the range of 100 watts, 1 kW or 10 kW and higher are possible. Sometimes the data is modeled on a cable simultaneously with the power signals. In addition, optical cables are known, via which particularly high transmission rates can be achieved. Particularly considering the comparatively simple structure of a fiber optic cable and despite its cross-section, a comparatively large amount of data can be sent per unit of time over an optical cable. Such cables are also combined in the current state of the art.

[0003] WO 2007 / 006167 A1, for example, discloses an electro-optical communications and power cable comprising a central loose tube made of a smooth, flexible metal tube, at least one optical fiber with a primary sheath, two layers of stranded metal wires running coaxially to the loose tube, which also serve to relieve tensile and transverse forces, and an outer sheath. The metal tube may also contain a wire filler, e.g., a gel, surrounding the loosely arranged optical fibers. If the metal tube is made of a highly conductive material, the metal wires of the inner layer can also be omitted.

[0004] WO 2011 / 035450 A2 discloses an electro-optical cable for data transmission and / or power transmission, comprising a central loose tube, wherein at least one optical fiber is arranged in the at least one central loose tube, and wherein the central loose tube is surrounded by at least one first tubular and electrically conductive braid in a coaxial arrangement. At least one second tubular electrically conductive layer, which is designed as a stranded wire layer, is arranged coaxially around the central loose tube.

[0005] DE 20 2011 105 000 U1 discloses an electro-optical cable with a central optical core surrounded by coaxial insulation and shielding jackets. This provides an energy and data transmission infrastructure, particularly for data or power transmission in mobile, portable user devices.

[0006] It is an object of the present invention to make vehicles lighter, more cost-effective, and less prone to errors. In particular, it is an object of the present invention to prevent errors in the power and data transmission in the on-board network of a means of transportation.

[0007] The above-mentioned object is achieved by a combined cable having the features according to claim 1, a cable harness having the features according to claim 5, a means of transport having the features according to claim 6 and a use of a combined cable having the features according to claim 7 and / or 8.

[0008] The subclaims show preferred developments of the invention.

[0009] The combined cable is intended for use in a means of transport or in a wiring harness of a means of transport. In particular, the (low-voltage) on-board electrical system of the means of transport is provided by a combined cable according to the present disclosure. The combined cable is thus capable of conducting energy and signals, in particular electrical and / or optical signals, in the means of transport from a first instance to a second instance. For this purpose, the combined cable comprises an electrical cable and an optical cable. The electrical cable can be made of copper, aluminum, iron, or similar, for example. The optical cable can be configured as a wire in a manner generally known in the prior art. The two cables can be arranged in a common cable sheath / cable sheath.In particular, the present disclosure does not refer to a cable bundle in the manner of a cable harness sequence combined by technical aids, but rather to a prefabricated and single-strand cable. For example, the electrical cable and the optical cable can be arranged in a common foam compound and / or another insulating compound. The combined cable can in particular have a substantially cylindrical outer shell and / or in particular only a single cylindrical outer surface. This simplifies handling, both during production of the cable harness and during installation in the means of transport (for example, as a single combined cable). In addition, the electrical insulation (if present) can be used simultaneously to protect the optical cable.The protection can relate to mechanical stress and / or thermal stress and / or fluid stress and / or bending stress. Furthermore, a shared enclosure for the electrical and optical cables can make access to signals in both of the aforementioned cables more difficult or even impossible. This makes it even more difficult for unauthorized third parties to intercept data.

[0010] Preferably, insulation can surround the electrical line and in particular also the optical line. Depending on the design of the optical line, the optical line can be designed as a non-conductive medium and in this context can be used at least partially for the electrical insulation of the electrical line. For example, the optical line can be designed as a hollow line for this purpose. The insulation can in particular comprise plastic, PVC, a foamed medium or similar. It can be designed on the inside and / or outside with a surface-refining layer, which also facilitates handling and / or increases compatibility with regard to the optical line / electrical line.

[0011] The combined cable is preferably provided with a plug contact, in particular terminated at its distal end or at its distal ends with a respective plug contact. At least one first connection point for the electrical cable and a second connection point for the optical cable are provided in the plug contact. In other words, the plug contact receives the electrical cable and the optical cable and holds the respective connection points (“cable ends”) ready for a plug connection in a predefined position (relative to one another). The plug contact can have a housing structure within which the optical cable and the electrical cable are protected against environmental influences and unwanted opening by means of a snap-in connection and / or a seal. In particular, the plug contact orits housing must be designed to be fixed to the body of the means of transport or to other components thereof by means of a simple, reversible connection.

[0012] The combined line can comprise further lines, such as a second electrical line. The second electrical line can represent a return conductor for the first electrical line. Alternatively, the second electrical line can also have or provide a shielding function, by means of which electromagnetic interference into (or from) the first electrical line can be reduced or prevented. In particular, the first electrical line and the second electrical line can have different shapes or forms. For example, one of the electrical lines can comprise stranded wires, be designed as a compact conductor, have a wire mesh or be provided by a hollow net, while the second electrical line has a different shape and / or position within the cross-section of the combined line.The only important thing is that the two electrical lines are not electrically connected to each other, at least not within the combined line. “Electrical” insulation here means galvanic isolation. The first electrical line and / or the second electrical line can be concentric waveguides. They can be designed concentrically to the centroid of the cross-section of the combined line or coaxially around the optical line and, in particular, do not have to be rotationally symmetrical with respect to the axis defined by the optical line. In particular, the first electrical line and the second electrical line can be designed coaxially to each other. In this way, a particularly rotationally symmetrical shape can result for the combined line, whereby electromagnetic differences due to respective installation positions can be avoided.

[0013] According to a second aspect of the present invention, a cable harness for a means of transport is proposed, which has at least one combined cable, preferably two combined cables according to the first aspect of the invention. The cable harness can have a loop-type strip, by means of which noise development due to vibrations during operation of a means of transport is prevented. The loop-type strip thus provides a cable harness surface rather than a cable surface. In addition to the combined cable, the cable harness can also have other types of cables (optical, electrical cables or Bowden cables, etc.). In particular, shielding and mechanical means for fastening (for example, in the manner of cable ties, Velcro fasteners, or similar) can also be provided. In this way, the combined cable according to the invention and any other cables, cables, and the like are spatially neatly combined and easy to handle.

[0014] According to a third aspect of the present invention, a means of transport is proposed which has a combined cable according to the first-mentioned aspect of the invention or a wiring harness according to the second-mentioned aspect of the invention. The means of transport can in particular have two control units and / or a battery, which can be connected to another electrical consumer, data transmitter or data receiver via the combined cable. The means of transport can be designed as a car, van, truck, motorcycle, aircraft and / or watercraft. It can in particular represent a (road-legal) car in series production. This makes it possible to reduce the weight of the means of transport, the space required by the wiring harness strands and the susceptibility to failure of the vehicle electrical system.

[0015] According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the use of a combined line according to the first aspect of the invention is proposed. In this case, transmission security is increased in a means of transport or its on-board network by sending first data via an optical line of the combined line and additionally the same first data via an electrical line. In particular, a receiver is configured to receive and process the first data both via the optical line and via the electrical line. In particular, the receiver is configured to compare the content of the data received via the optical line and the electrical line with a predefined reference or with each other in order to ensure that, in particular, the potentially less corrupted or deficient data is used for further processing.This ensures, for example, that electromagnetic signals which interfere with the means of transport or its on-board network do not result in the data (which is the only data available in the prior art) being reused even though it contains errors. In the case of electromagnetic interference, for example, the first data transmitted via the optical line may be error-free, whereas the first data transmitted via the electrical line may contain errors. This can be determined, for example, using algorithms for detecting errors which are generally known in the prior art (for example using “checksums” or similar). The same applies to an error caused by a cable break in the optical conductor of the combined line (which is fundamentally more mechanically vulnerable). In this case, transmission can take place via the (possibly more elastic or flexible) copper cable orotherwise executed) electrical wiring remains free of errors and correct transmission and decoding of the transmitted data is ensured.

[0016] The parallel transmission or use of data via a combined line according to the present disclosure can offer advantages, in particular when using encryption algorithms. For example, second data can be sent via the optical line and third data via the electrical line (or vice versa). This data can be encrypted or contain a key. The second or third data can be decrypted after receipt by another entity in the means of transport (or in its on-board network), wherein, for example, the second data can be decrypted using the third data and / or the third data can be decrypted using the second data. For example, an audio stream and / or a video stream can be transmitted as second data, while the third data provides the keys required for decryption.Conversely, it is also possible to embed audio / video data in the third data stream and transmit the key in the second data stream. A data infrastructure is particularly difficult to corrupt if the roles of the two lines, or of the second and third data streams, are cyclically swapped. Even an acyclic swap of roles can result in only individual data packets being decoded by unauthorized persons (if at all) if both the optical and electrical lines have been tapped.

[0017] The first data and / or the second data and / or the third data can be sent by a first control unit of the means of transport and received by a second control unit of the means of transport via the combined line. For example, the first control unit can be a control unit of a vehicle dynamics control system that queries sensors, while an ABS control unit or a second control unit that provides or operates other actuators to increase active driving safety is configured to receive the sensor data via the combined line. In this way, data relevant to driving safety, in particular, can be transmitted within the means of transport (or its on-board network) without events that would potentially thwart transmission in the prior art also having a devastating impact on the data transmitted according to the invention.

[0018] In particular, the combined line proposed according to the invention can represent a (data) bus line or be used in a bus. For example, in topological terms, it can be a ring, a topological bus, a star architecture, or something similar. The combined line will extend across multiple instances or control units within the means of transport. In other words, different instances can listen to the bus line while interrupting the combined line and continuing it elsewhere, or they can simply "listen" to the (tapped) combined line. The bus system provided in this way can be connected to a gateway control unit of the means of transport. In particular, however, the electrical line can also be used to control electrical loads of the means of transport (such as rear window wipers, taillights, license plate lights, trailer lights, rear window heaters, etc.).) to control units and / or energy sources located further forward in the vehicle.

[0019] The combined line proposed according to the invention can be dimensioned, in particular with regard to the essential features, for example as follows: - the electrical cable can have a total cross-section of between 0.1 mm 2 and 20 mm 2 , especially between 0.2 mm 2 and 8 mm 2 lies; - the optical cable can have a cross-section which is between 0.05 mm 2 and 1mm 2 , especially between 0.1mm 2 and 0.5 mm 2 lies; - The combined cable can also be bundled in such a way that bending radii are made more difficult, which could damage the electrical cable and / or the optical cable during intended use. For this purpose, a sheath or electrical insulation is provided in the combined cable, which encloses the electrical cable and / or the optical cable to the outside by at least 0.5 mm to 5 mm, preferably 0.7 mm to 3 mm. The insulation / enclosure can be made of PVC, in particular foamed materials.

[0020] Further details, features, and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and the figures. They show: Fig. 1 a perspective detailed view of the structure of an embodiment of a combined line; Fig. 2 a schematic representation of an embodiment of a means of transport according to the invention; Fig. 3 a perspective view of a plug contact usable for a combined cable; Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a section of a cable harness according to the invention; and Fig. 5 is a flowchart illustrating steps of an embodiment of using a combined line in a means of transport.

[0021] Fig. 1 shows a section of a combined cable 1 according to the invention, the beginning and end of which illustrate the components of an exemplary embodiment according to the invention. An electrical cable 2 and an optical cable 3 are arranged in a foam body 14. The electrical cable has a smaller cross-section than the optical cable. The outside of the foam body 14 is enclosed by a shield 15 in the form of a wire mesh. Depending on the understanding of the term "cable," the shield 15 provides a second electrical cable 8. In this case, the shield 15 and the second electrical conductor 8 would be physically identical. The shield 15 is surrounded by insulation 4 with a rotationally symmetrical (cylindrical) sheath.

[0022] Fig. Figure 2 shows a schematic representation of an embodiment of a means of transport 10 according to the invention, comprising a first control unit 12, a second control unit 13, a traction energy storage unit 18, and a wiring harness 9, which has a combined line 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Data and / or energy can be exchanged between the aforementioned entities via the wiring harness 9 or the combined line 1.

[0023] Fig. 3 shows a perspective view of a plug contact 5, which has the Fig. 1. The housing of the plug contact 5 spatially combines a first connection point 6 of the electrical line 2 and a second connection point 7 of the optical line 3 such that they are located at a predefined orientation and distance from one another. In other words, the lines 2, 3 are held at a predefined distance and parallel to one another such that they can be inserted into corresponding cavities and brought into contact with corresponding continuing lines or sensors / transmitters. The housing of the plug contact 5 can have a bayonet lock, a seal, or the like and can thus be configured to create temporary connections suitable for automotive use.

[0024] Fig. 4 shows a section of an embodiment of a cable harness 9 according to the invention, which spatially combines two combined cables 1, 11 according to the invention and two further cables 16, 17 in a loop-type strip 19. By wrapping the loop-type strip 19, a strand of a cable harness 9 is created, in which a plurality of cables are contained, two of which represent the combined cables 1, 11 according to the invention.

[0025] Fig.5 shows steps of an embodiment of an inventive use of a combined line. In step 100, first data is sent via the optical line of the combined line, and in step 200 the same first data is sent via the electrical line of the combined line. In other words, a completely redundant transmission of the first data takes place both via the optical line and via the electrical line. In step 300, second data is also sent via the optical line of the combined line, and in step 400, third data is sent via the electrical line. The data is received and decoded at a further instance (e.g., control unit). In step 500, the second data is decrypted using the third data. In other words, the third data represents a key that can be used to decode / decrypt the second data.Alternatively or additionally, in step 600, the third data is decrypted using the second data. In other words, the second data also contains a key that can be used to decrypt the third data. Thus, the second data can include payload data as well as one or more keys. This also applies accordingly to the third data. The second data can be identical to the first data. Alternatively, the third data can also be identical to the first data. List of reference symbols: 1 combined line 2 electrical cables 3 optical lines 4 Isolation 5 plug contact 6 first junction 7 second junction 8 second electrical cable / shielding 9 Wiring harness 10 means of transport 11 combined line 12 first control unit 13 second control unit 14 foam bodies 15 Shielding / second electrical cable 16, 17 further line 18 traction energy storage 19 Velcro tape 100 to 600 process steps QUOTES CONTAINED IN THE DESCRIPTION

[0000] This list of documents submitted by the applicant was generated automatically and is included solely for the convenience of the reader. This list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA assumes no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature

[0000] WO 2007 / 006167 A1

[0003] WO 2011 / 035450 A2

[0004] DE 20 2011 105 000 U1

[0005]

Claims

[1] Combined line (1) for a means of transport (10) comprising: • an electrical cable (2) and • an optical cable (3). [2] Combined line (1) according to claim 1 comprising: - an insulation (4) which surrounds both the electrical line (2) and the optical line (3) or is provided by the optical line for the electrical line. [3] Combined line (1) according to one of the preceding claims, further comprising: - a plug contact (5) in which a first connection point (6) for the electrical line (2) and a second connection point (7) for the optical line (3) are contained. [4] Combined line (1) according to one of the preceding claims, further comprising: - a second electrical line (8), wherein the first and the second electrical line (2, 8) in particular have different shapes and / or are designed as concentric waveguides. [5] Cable harness (9) for a means of transport (10) comprising at least one combined line (1), preferably two combined lines (1, 11), according to one of the preceding claims. [6] Means of transport (10) comprising a combined cable (1) according to one of the preceding claims 1 to 4 or a cable harness (9) according to claim 5. [7] Use of a combined line (1) according to one of the preceding claims 1 to 4 in a means of transport (10) comprising the steps: - Sending (100) first data via the optical line (3) and additionally - Sending (200) the first data via the electrical line (2). [8] Use of a combined line (1) according to one of the preceding claims 1 to 4 in a means of transport (10) or use according to claim 7 further comprising the steps: - Sending (300) second data via the optical line (3) and - Sending (400) third data via the electrical line (2), further comprising: - Receiving the second and third data and - Decrypting (500) the second data using the third data and / or - Decrypting (600) the third data using the second data. [9] Use according to claim 8, wherein the first data and / or the second data and / or the third data are sent by a first control unit (12) of the means of transport (10) and received by a second control unit (13) of the means of transport (10) via the combined line (1). [10] Use according to one of the preceding claims 7 to 9, wherein the combined line (1) is a bus line.

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