Golf cart monitoring method and apparatus therefor

Abstract

To provide a golf cart monitoring method and an apparatus therefor.SOLUTION: After establishing short-range wireless communication with a control device of a golf cart, a mobile terminal receives state information of either a battery or a motor of the golf cart from the control device, and diagnoses the presence or absence of a failure of the golf cart based on the received state information. In another embodiment, the mobile terminal can transmit the diagnosis result of the presence or absence of a failure via e-mail.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to golf carts, and more particularly to a monitoring method and apparatus for diagnosing the condition or malfunction of a golf cart. [Background technology]

[0002] A golf cart is a type of battery-powered electric vehicle. Golf carts are equipped with a Battery Management System (BMS) for managing the battery, an inverter system for driving the motor, and various other electrical components such as wipers and heaters. Diagnosing the condition of a golf cart traditionally required connecting diagnostic equipment to the golf cart via wired communication using an RS232 cable, which was inconvenient. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a golf cart monitoring method and device that allows a user to easily check the status of a golf cart or whether or not there is a malfunction via a mobile terminal such as a smartphone. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] In order to achieve the above technical objectives, one example of a golf cart monitoring method according to an embodiment of the present invention is a golf cart monitoring method using a mobile terminal, which includes the steps of connecting to a golf cart control device via short-range wireless communication, receiving status information of the golf cart's battery or motor from the control device, and diagnosing whether the golf cart has a malfunction based on the status information.

[0005] In order to achieve the above technical objectives, an example of a golf cart control device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a control unit that collects status information of a battery or motor of a golf cart, and a communication unit that transmits the status information to a mobile terminal via short-range wireless communication so that the mobile terminal can diagnose whether or not there is a malfunction of the golf cart. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the condition of the golf cart or the presence or absence of a malfunction can be determined using a mobile device such as a smartphone without connecting a dedicated diagnostic device to the golf cart via a wire. According to another embodiment, the condition of the golf cart or the presence or absence of a malfunction can be transmitted via email, allowing for quality improvement and malfunction prediction. In yet another embodiment, the display on the golf cart can be improved to accurately display the battery condition of the golf cart. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic diagram of an overall system for golf cart monitoring according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for monitoring a golf cart in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a method for a mobile terminal to send a diagnosis result of whether or not a malfunction has occurred by email according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an example of a golf cart control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display unit of a golf cart according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a golf cart monitoring method and apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0009] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic diagram of an overall system for golf cart monitoring according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0010] As shown in FIG. 1, a golf cart control device 100 attached to a golf cart collects status information on various components of the golf cart, such as the battery and motor. The golf cart of this embodiment is an electric vehicle that runs on a battery. The golf cart control device 100 can collect status information on various electrical components in the golf cart by collecting battery status information (e.g., SOH (State of Health), SOC (State of Charge), etc.) from a Battery Management System (BMS) and by collecting inverter status information. Various conventional methods for collecting information on various components in an electric vehicle can be applied to this embodiment.

[0011] The golf cart control device 100 is capable of wireless communication with an external mobile terminal 110. For example, the golf cart control device 100 communicates with the mobile terminal 110 via short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark). The mobile terminal 110 is any type of terminal capable of wireless communication, and may be, for example, a smartphone, a tablet PC, or the like.

[0012] In this embodiment, the presence or absence of a fault such as an error in the golf cart is diagnosed using the mobile terminal 110. The method for monitoring the golf cart using the mobile terminal 110 will be described again with reference to FIG.

[0013] FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating an example method for monitoring a golf cart according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0014] 2, the golf cart control device 100 (hereinafter referred to as the "control device") establishes wireless communication with the mobile terminal (S200). For example, the control device 100 and the mobile terminal 110 can communicate via Bluetooth (registered trademark).

[0015] The control device 100 collects status information of various components (e.g., battery, motor, etc.) within the golf cart and transmits this to the mobile terminal 110 (S210). The mobile terminal 110 diagnoses whether or not there is a malfunction in the golf cart based on the status information received from the control device 100 (S220). For example, an application for diagnosing whether or not there is a malfunction in the golf cart may be pre-installed in the mobile terminal 110. A diagnostic method used in dedicated diagnostic equipment that has traditionally diagnosed whether or not there is a malfunction in golf carts via a wired connection may also be implemented in the mobile terminal 110 as an application. The method itself for diagnosing whether or not there is a malfunction in the golf cart based on the various status information collected by the control device 100 is well-known, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0016] In another embodiment, the mobile terminal 110 may not directly diagnose whether or not there is a malfunction, such as an error, in the golf cart, but may instead send the status information received from the control device 100 by a predetermined email (S230). In yet another embodiment, the mobile terminal 110 may self-diagnose whether or not there is a malfunction in the golf cart, and send the diagnosis result of whether or not there is a malfunction by a predetermined email. The configuration in which the mobile terminal 110 sends the status information received from the control device 100 and / or the diagnosis result of whether or not there is a malfunction by email will be described again with reference to FIG. 3.

[0017] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a method for a mobile terminal to transmit a diagnosis result of whether or not a malfunction has occurred by email according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] As shown in FIG. 3 , email addresses 310 and 312 may be pre-entered in the mobile terminal 110, or the email addresses 310 and 312 may be entered by the user in real time. For example, when the user requests the mobile terminal 110 to send an email, the mobile terminal 110 transmits at least one or both of golf cart status information and a malfunction diagnosis result to the predetermined email addresses 310 and 312. Alternatively, an input window for entering an email address may be displayed so that the user can enter the email address directly. Alternatively, the mobile terminal 110 may display the predetermined email addresses 310 and 312 on the screen, and after the user confirms the email address, the mobile terminal 110 may either send the email address as is or modify the email addresses 310 and 312 before sending the malfunction diagnosis result, etc.

[0019] In another embodiment, the mobile terminal 110 may be configured to set email addresses 310, 312 for each type of fault 300, 302. For example, an email address for sending either or both of battery status information and battery failure diagnosis results, and an email address for sending either or both of motor status information and motor failure diagnosis results may be configured to be set separately. The email addresses 310, 312 set for each type of fault 300, 302 may all be different addresses, or only some of them may be different addresses.

[0020] If the mobile terminal 110 detects a battery failure as a result of diagnosing the presence or absence of a failure based on the status information received from the control device 100, it sends the battery diagnosis results to the email address corresponding to the battery. Since the results can be sent directly to the email address of the person in charge of dealing with the failure or the company responsible for the failure, a prompt response is possible.

[0021] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a golf cart control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 4, the control device 100 includes a control unit 400 and a communication unit 410. The control unit 400 can be implemented by an MCU (Micro Control Unit) or the like. The communication unit 410 can be realized by a short-range communication module such as a Bluetooth (registered trademark) communication module. The control unit 400 receives status information of various electrical components such as a battery management system and an inverter. The communication unit 410 transmits the status information collected by the control unit 400 to the outside via wireless communication.

[0023] The control device 100 may also control the screen of the display unit of the golf cart. For example, the control device 100 may display the heater on / off and headlight on / off status in an LED display window 440 of the display unit, or may display the battery status (e.g., remaining battery charge, remaining travel distance, etc.) and the golf cart speed numerically on a seven-segment display 430. An example of a display unit controlled by the control device 100 is shown in FIG. 5.

[0024] The control device 100 may also notify various states of the golf cart by voice, and may output voice data that is uploaded to the memory 420 and that corresponds to various situations, as needed.

[0025] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display unit of a golf cart according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] 5, golf cart 500 has a display unit 510. Display unit 510 includes an LED display unit 514 that displays the on / off status of various electrical components, a battery display unit 516 that displays the remaining battery charge, and a 7-segment display unit 512 that displays various information in numbers. Also, on the outside of display unit 510 are buttons 520, 522, and 524 that control the on / off of the electrical components of the golf cart.

[0027] The present invention may also be implemented as computer-readable program code on a computer-readable recording medium. The computer-readable recording medium includes any type of recording device that stores data readable by a computer system. Examples of the computer-readable recording medium include ROM, RAM, CD-ROM, magnetic tape, floppy disk, and optical data storage device. The computer-readable recording medium may also be distributed across computer systems connected via a network so that the computer-readable code is stored and executed in a distributed manner.

[0028] The present invention has been described above with a focus on preferred embodiments. Those skilled in the art will understand that the present invention can be embodied in various modified forms without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the disclosed embodiments should be considered from an illustrative rather than a restrictive perspective. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, not the foregoing description, and all variations within the scope of the claims should be construed as being within the scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0029] 100 Golf cart control device 110 Mobile Devices

Claims

1. 1. A method for monitoring a golf cart using a mobile device, comprising: a communication step of establishing short-range wireless communication between the golf cart control device and the mobile terminal; a receiving step of receiving status information of at least one of a battery and a motor of the golf cart from the control device; a diagnostic step of diagnosing whether or not there is a malfunction of the golf cart based on the status information; 10. A method for monitoring a golf cart, comprising:

2. 2. The golf cart monitoring method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of sending the status information received in the receiving step or the diagnosis results in the diagnosing step to a predetermined email address.

3. 3. The golf cart monitoring method according to claim 2, wherein the predetermined email address is set for each type of golf cart malfunction.

4. a control unit that collects status information of at least one of a battery and a motor of the golf cart; a communication unit that transmits the status information to the mobile terminal via short-range wireless communication so that the mobile terminal can diagnose whether or not there is a malfunction of the golf cart; 1. A golf cart control device comprising:

5. a display unit that displays the remaining amount of the battery; a button unit disposed on the outside of the display unit for controlling the on / off of electrical components of the golf cart; 5. The golf cart control device of claim 4, further comprising:

6. A computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a computer program for executing the method of claim 1.

Images