Control device, control method, and control system

Abstract

To realize both position estimation precision and response properties.SOLUTION: Provided is a control device that includes a control section for controlling execution of prescribed operation by a controlled device mounted to a moving body on the basis of reception signal strength of a signal conforming to a prescribed communication standard that a communication device mounted on the moving body receives from a portable device carried by a user of the moving body. The reception signal strength includes first reception signal strength and second reception signal strength, and the control section determines the number of measurement times of the second reception signal strength by the communication device on the basis of the first reception signal strength measured by the communication device, and determines whether the controlled device is allowed to execute the prescribed operation on the basis of the second reception signal strength measured by the communication device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a control device, a control method, and a control system. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, a technology has been developed that estimates the position of a portable device based on the received signal strength of a signal received from the portable device, and controls the operation of a controlled device mounted on a moving object based on the result of the position estimation, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-32169 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, the accuracy of estimating the position of the portable device increases as the number of times the received signal strength is measured increases, but the responsiveness decreases.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to achieve both high position estimation accuracy and responsiveness. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, according to one aspect of the present invention, a control device is provided that includes a control unit that controls the execution of a specified operation by a controlled device mounted on a mobile body based on a received signal strength of a signal conforming to a specified communication standard received by a communication device mounted on the mobile body from a portable device carried by a user of the mobile body, the received signal strength including a first received signal strength and a second received signal strength, the control unit determines the number of times the communication device measures the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength measured by the communication device, and determines whether to cause the controlled device to execute the specified operation based on the second received signal strength measured by the communication device.

[0007] In addition, in order to solve the above problem, according to another aspect of the present invention, a control method is provided, which includes controlling the execution of a specified operation by a controlled device mounted on a mobile body based on a received signal strength of a signal conforming to a specified communication standard received by a communication device mounted on the mobile body from a portable device carried by a user of the mobile body, the received signal strength including a first received signal strength and a second received signal strength, and the controlling further includes determining the number of times the communication device measures the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength measured by the communication device, and determining whether to cause the controlled device to execute the specified operation based on the second received signal strength measured by the communication device.

[0008] In addition, in order to solve the above problem, according to another aspect of the present invention, a control system is provided, comprising a communication device mounted on a mobile body, and a program executed by a computer for controlling the execution of a specified operation by a controlled device mounted on the mobile body based on a received signal strength of a signal conforming to a specified communication standard received by the communication device from a portable device carried by a user of the mobile body, wherein the received signal strength includes a first received signal strength and a second received signal strength, and the program determines the number of times the communication device measures the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength measured by the communication device, and determines whether to cause the controlled device to execute the specified operation based on the second received signal strength measured by the communication device. Effect of the Invention

[0009] As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to achieve both high position estimation accuracy and responsiveness. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of a control system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 11 is a diagram for explaining a determination of the number of times to measure a second received signal strength based on a first received signal strength according to the embodiment. FIG. [Diagram 3] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a process flow by the control system 1 according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification and the drawings, components having substantially the same functional configurations are designated by the same reference numerals, and duplicated explanations will be omitted.

[0012] In addition, in this specification and drawings, when multiple identical components are to be described separately, alphabets or the like may be added to the end of the reference numerals. On the other hand, when there is no need to distinguish between multiple identical components, the alphabets or the like may be omitted and a description common to all of the multiple identical components may be given.

[0013] <1. Embodiment> <<1.1. System configuration example>> First, an example of the functional configuration of a control system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0014] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of a control system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0015] A control system 1 according to this embodiment includes a moving object 10 and a portable device 20, as shown in FIG.

[0016] As shown in FIG. 1, a mobile object 10 according to this embodiment is equipped with a communication device 110, a control device 120, and a controlled device 130.

[0017] Moreover, the portable device 20 according to this embodiment is equipped with a communication device 210 and has a control application 220 installed therein.

[0018] (Mobile 10) The moving body 10 according to this embodiment may be, for example, a vehicle such as a car, an aircraft, or a ship.

[0019] (Communication device 110) The communication device 110 according to this embodiment performs wireless communication with a communication device 210 mounted on the portable device 20 in accordance with a prescribed communication standard.

[0020] The prescribed communication standard may be, for example, Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy (BLE).

[0021] However, the prescribed communication standard is not limited to the above example, and may be set arbitrarily.

[0022] The mobile object 10 may be equipped with one or more communication devices 110 .

[0023] (Control device 120) The control device 120 according to this embodiment includes a control unit that controls the execution of a prescribed operation by the controlled device 130 based on a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) of a signal received by the communication device 110 from the portable device 20.

[0024] The received signal strength may include a first received signal strength and a second received signal strength.

[0025] One of the features of the control device 120 of this embodiment is that it determines the number of times to measure a second received signal strength by the communication device 110 based on a first received signal strength measured by the communication device 110, and determines whether or not to cause the controlled device 130 to execute a specified operation based on the second received signal strength measured by the communication device 110.

[0026] According to the above-mentioned features, it is possible to achieve both high accuracy and responsiveness in estimating the position of the portable device 20.

[0027] The functions of the control device 120 according to this embodiment are realized by various processors. The functions of the control device 120 according to this embodiment will be described in detail later.

[0028] (Controlled device 130) The controlled device 130 according to this embodiment may be any of various devices that execute a specified operation under the control of the control device 120.

[0029] As shown in FIG. 1, when the controlled device 130 is mounted on the moving body 10, the controlled device 130 may be, for example, a locking / unlocking device that locks / unlocks a door provided on the moving body 10 as the above-mentioned specified operation.

[0030] However, controlled device 130 and the prescribed operation are not limited to the above example.

[0031] For example, controlled device 130 may be an engine, in which case the prescribed action may be to allow or restrict engine starting.

[0032] Also, for example, controlled device 130 may be a lighting device. In this case, the specified action may be to turn on or off the light.

[0033] (Portable Devices 20) The portable device 20 according to this embodiment is carried by a user of the moving object 10 (for example, the owner of the moving object 10, or a person authorized by the owner to use the moving object 10, etc.).

[0034] The portable device 20 according to this embodiment may be, for example, a smartphone, a tablet, a wearable device, or the like.

[0035] (Communication device 210) The communication device 210 according to this embodiment performs wireless communication with the communication device 110 mounted on the mobile object 10 in accordance with a prescribed communication standard.

[0036] (Control Application 220) The control application 220 according to this embodiment includes at least a program for controlling the above-mentioned wireless communication by the communication device 210.

[0037] An example of the functional configuration of the control system 1 according to the present embodiment has been described above. Note that the functional configuration described above with reference to Fig. 1 is merely an example, and the functional configuration of the control system 1 according to the present embodiment is not limited to this example.

[0038] The functional configuration of the control system 1 according to this embodiment can be flexibly modified according to the specifications, operation, and the like.

[0039] <<1.2.Function details>> Next, the functions of the control system 1 according to this embodiment will be described in detail.

[0040] As described above, in recent years, technology has been developed to estimate the position of a portable device based on the received signal strength of a signal received from the portable device, and to control the operation of a controlled device mounted on a moving object based on the results of the position estimation.

[0041] According to the above-described technology, for example, it is possible to estimate the position of a smartphone (an example of a portable device) carried by a user by measuring the received signal strength of a signal transmitted from the smartphone, and to perform control such as permitting the unlocking of a door (an example of a controlled device) of the vehicle when the distance between the smartphone and a vehicle (an example of a moving body) is within a specified range.

[0042] However, in existing systems, the above-mentioned control is provided by a so-called active function triggered by the user's operation of a smartphone, and it is common for the vehicle to be equipped with only one communication device.

[0043] Here, when attempting to provide the above-mentioned control using a so-called passive function that is not triggered by a user's operation of the smartphone, it is important to estimate the smartphone's position with high accuracy.

[0044] In order to estimate the location of a smartphone with higher accuracy, it is possible to increase the number of times that the received signal strength of the signal transmitted from the smartphone is measured, or to increase the number of communication devices that measure the received signal strength.

[0045] However, if a vehicle is equipped with multiple communication devices and each of the multiple communication devices measures the received signal strength of the signal transmitted from the smartphone multiple times, the responsiveness of the passive function may be significantly reduced.

[0046] The technical concept according to one embodiment of the present invention has been conceived in consideration of the above points, and makes it possible to achieve both high position estimation accuracy and responsiveness.

[0047] For this purpose, the control device 120 according to this embodiment first causes the communication device 110 mounted on the moving object 10 to measure a first received signal strength of a signal transmitted from the portable device 20.

[0048] The control device 120 then determines the number of measurements of the second received signal strength by the communication device 110 based on the measured first received signal strength.

[0049] Next, the control device 120 determines whether or not to cause the controlled device 130 to execute a prescribed operation based on the second received signal strength measured the determined number of times.

[0050] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the determination of the number of times to measure the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength according to this embodiment.

[0051] In the example shown in FIG. 2, the moving object 10 is equipped with five communication devices 110A to 110E.

[0052] The five communication devices 110A to 110E are placed in different positions in the moving object 10.

[0053] For example, the communication device 110A is disposed in the front of the vehicle interior.

[0054] Moreover, for example, the communication device 110B is disposed in the rear of the vehicle 10 interior.

[0055] Also, for example, the communication device 110C is disposed on the passenger seat side outside the vehicle 10.

[0056] Also, for example, the communication device 110D is disposed outside the vehicle 10 on the driver's seat side.

[0057] Also, for example, the communication device 110E is disposed outside the vehicle cabin at the rear.

[0058] As shown in FIG. 2, when a mobile body 10 is equipped with a plurality of communication devices 110, one of the plurality of communication devices 110 performs connection communication with the portable device 20, and authenticates the portable device 20 based on information transmitted and received during the connection communication.

[0059] In the example shown in FIG. 2, the communication device 110A performs connection communication with the portable device 20, and authenticates the portable device 20 based on information such as a digital key received from the portable device 20 during the connection communication.

[0060] The other communication devices 110 that do not authenticate the portable device 20 do not need to connect and communicate with the portable device 20, but only need to be able to measure the received signal strength of the signal transmitted from the portable device 20.

[0061] Next, a detailed description will be given of how to determine the number of times to measure the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength according to this embodiment.

[0062] FIG. 2 illustrates three regions defined by the first received signal strength measured by the communication device 110 and thresholds θ1 to θ3 (θ1>θ2>θ3).

[0063] The region in which the first received signal strength exceeds the threshold value θ1 is the region among the three regions that is closest to the moving body 10. In the region close to the moving body 10, it is required to more accurately determine whether or not to cause the controlled device 130 to execute a specified operation.

[0064] Therefore, when the first received signal strength exceeds the threshold θ1, the control device 120 may cause the communication device 110 to measure the second received signal strength a greater number of times (for example, 10 times) than in the other two regions.

[0065] Moreover, the region in which the first received signal strength exceeds the threshold θ3 and is equal to or smaller than the threshold θ2 is the region among the three regions that is the farthest from the moving object 10. In the region farthest from the moving object 10, responsiveness may be given priority.

[0066] Therefore, when the first received signal strength exceeds threshold θ3 and is equal to or less than threshold θ2, the control device 120 may cause the communication device 110 to measure the second received signal strength a smaller number of times (e.g., three times) than for the other two areas.

[0067] Moreover, the region in which the first received signal strength exceeds the threshold θ2 and is equal to or smaller than the threshold θ1 is a region of the three regions that is at a medium distance from the moving object 10.

[0068] Therefore, when the first received signal strength exceeds threshold θ2 and is equal to or less than threshold θ1, the control device 120 may have the communication device 110 measure the second received signal strength a number of times that is intermediate between the other two ranges (e.g., five times).

[0069] As described above, the control device 120 according to this embodiment may determine that when the measured first received signal strength exceeds a certain threshold θ, the number of measurements of the second received signal strength is to be greater than when the first received signal strength does not exceed the threshold θ.

[0070] According to the above-described control, it is possible to improve the responsiveness when the portable device 20 is located at a place relatively far from the moving object 10. This is expected to enable earlier detection of the approach of the portable device 20 to the moving object 10, and also to reduce power consumption.

[0071] On the other hand, according to the above-mentioned control, when the portable device 20 is located relatively close to the moving body 10, it is possible to improve the accuracy of judging whether or not the prescribed operation can be executed by increasing the number of times the second received signal strength is measured. This improves security and prevents a situation in which the prescribed operation is not executed even though the user carrying the portable device 20 is close to the moving body 10, thereby reducing the discomfort felt by the user.

[0072] In addition, when multiple communication devices 110 are installed in the mobile body 10 as shown in FIG. 2, the communication device 110 that measures the second received signal strength may be all of the multiple communication devices 110, or may be at least one of the multiple communication devices 110.

[0073] For example, the control device 120 may determine the number of times to measure the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength measured by the communication device 110A during connection communication between the communication device 110A and the portable device 20, and cause the communication devices 110A to 110E to measure the second received signal strength the determined number of times.

[0074] Also, for example, after connection and communication between communication device 110A and portable device 20 is established, control device 120 may cause each of communication devices 110A-110E to measure a first received signal strength, and cause communication device 110 that measured the strongest first received signal strength to measure a second received signal strength. Since communication device 110 that measured the strongest first received signal strength is predicted to be closest to portable device 20 at the time of measuring the first received signal strength, an effect of further improving responsiveness is expected by causing only that communication device 110 to measure the second received signal strength.

[0075] The above describes the determination of the number of times to measure the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength. The control device 120 according to the present embodiment may apply a filter to the plurality of second received signal strengths measured as described above, and determine whether to cause the controlled device 130 to execute a prescribed operation based on the value after applying the filter.

[0076] The filter may, for example, be a moving average.

[0077] When applying the filter, processing such as removing outliers may be performed.

[0078] In addition, the control device 120 according to this embodiment may determine whether or not to cause the controlled device 130 to execute a specified operation further based on the result of authentication of the portable device 20 based on a signal conforming to a specified communication standard transmitted and received between the communication device 110 and the portable device 20.

[0079] Specifically, the control device 120 may cause the controlled device 130 to execute a specified operation if the value after application of the filter exceeds a predetermined threshold value and the authenticity of the portable device 20 is recognized based on the connection communication between any of the communication devices 110 and the portable device 20.

[0080] <<1.3. Processing flow>> Next, an example of the flow of processing by the control system 1 according to this embodiment will be described.

[0081] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of processing by the control system 1 according to this embodiment.

[0082] In the example shown in FIG. 3, first, any one of the communication devices 110 establishes connection communication with the portable device 20 and authenticates the portable device 20 (S101).

[0083] Next, one or more communication devices 110 measure a first received signal strength according to the control of the control device 120 (S102).

[0084] The control device 120 determines the number of times to measure the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength measured in step S102 (S103).

[0085] Next, the one or more communication devices 110, under the control of the control device 120, measure the second received signal strength the number of times determined in step S103 (S104).

[0086] The control device 120 applies a filter to the plurality of second received signal strengths measured in step S104 (S105).

[0087] Next, the control device 120 determines whether or not to execute a prescribed action based on the filtered value obtained in step S105 and the result of the authentication in step S101 (S106).

[0088] An example of the flow of processing by the control system 1 according to the present embodiment has been described above. Note that the processing in steps S102 to S106 shown in Fig. 3 may be repeatedly performed while connection and communication between any of the communication devices 110 and the portable device 20 continues.

[0089] <2. Supplementary Information> Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention is not limited to such an example. It is clear that a person having ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention pertains can conceive of various modified or altered examples within the scope of the technical ideas described in the claims, and it is understood that these also naturally fall within the technical scope of the present invention.

[0090] For example, in the above embodiment, an example was given of a case in which the control device 120 determines that when the first received signal strength exceeds a certain threshold, the number of times to measure the second received signal strength is to be greater than when the first received signal strength does not exceed the threshold.

[0091] On the other hand, when the first received signal strength exceeds a certain threshold, the control device 120 can also determine to measure the second received signal strength fewer times than when the first received signal strength does not exceed the threshold. In this case, the determination accuracy improves when the portable device 20 is located relatively far from the moving object 10, and the responsiveness improves when the portable device 20 is located relatively close to the moving object 10.

[0092] In the above embodiment, the case where three thresholds θ1 to θ3 are used to determine the number of measurements of the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength is illustrated, but at least one threshold θ may be set. Furthermore, the number and value of the thresholds θ may be statically or dynamically determined.

[0093] In the above embodiment, the case has been described where the control device 120 mounted on the mobile object 10 determines the number of times to measure the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength. On the other hand, the control application 220 installed in the portable device 20 may determine the number of times to measure the second received signal strength based on the first received signal strength.

[0094] Furthermore, the steps of the processes described above do not necessarily have to be processed in chronological order according to the order described in the flowchart or sequence diagram. For example, the steps of the processes of each device may be processed in an order different from the order described, or may be processed in parallel.

[0095] Furthermore, a series of processes performed by each device described in this specification may be realized by a program stored in a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. Each program is, for example, loaded into a RAM when executed by a computer, and executed by a processor such as a CPU. The storage medium is, for example, a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a flash memory, etc. Furthermore, the program may be distributed, for example, via a network, without using a storage medium. [Explanation of symbols]

[0096] 1: control system, 10: mobile object, 110: communication device, 120: control device, 130: controlled device, 20: portable device, 210: communication device, 220: control application

Claims

1. A control unit that controls execution of a prescribed operation by a controlled device mounted on a mobile body based on a received signal strength of a signal conforming to a prescribed communication standard received by a communication device mounted on the mobile body from a portable device carried by a user of the mobile body; Equipped with the received signal strengths include a first received signal strength and a second received signal strength; The control unit determines the number of times to measure the second received signal strength by the communication device based on the first received signal strength measured by the communication device, and determines whether to cause the controlled device to execute the specified operation based on the second received signal strength measured by the communication device. Control device.

2. When the first received signal strength exceeds a threshold, the control unit determines a number of times to measure the second received signal strength to be greater than a number of times to measure the second received signal strength when the first received signal strength does not exceed the threshold. The control device according to claim 1 .

3. The control unit applies a filter to the measured second received signal strengths, and determines whether or not to cause the controlled device to execute the specified operation based on a value after application of the filter. The control device according to claim 1 .

4. The filter includes calculating a moving average. The control device according to claim 3.

5. The control unit determines whether to cause the controlled device to execute the specified operation further based on a result of authentication of the portable device based on a signal conforming to the specified communication standard transmitted and received between the communication device and the portable device. The control device according to claim 1 .

6. The prescribed communication standard includes BLE, A control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

7. Controlling execution of a prescribed operation by a controlled device mounted on a mobile body based on a received signal strength of a signal conforming to a prescribed communication standard received by a communication device mounted on the mobile body from a portable device carried by a user of the mobile body; Including, the received signal strengths include a first received signal strength and a second received signal strength; The controlling includes determining a number of times to measure the second received signal strength by the communication device based on the first received signal strength measured by the communication device, and determining whether or not to cause the controlled device to execute the specified operation based on the second received signal strength measured by the communication device; Further comprising: Control methods.

8. A communication device mounted on the moving object; A program executed by a computer controls execution of a prescribed operation by a controlled device mounted on the mobile body based on a received signal strength of a signal conforming to a prescribed communication standard received by the communication device from a portable device carried by a user of the mobile body; Equipped with the received signal strengths include a first received signal strength and a second received signal strength; The program determines a number of times to measure the second received signal strength by the communication device based on the first received signal strength measured by the communication device, and determines whether to cause the controlled device to execute the specified operation based on the second received signal strength measured by the communication device. Control system.

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