In-vehicle device, connection destination notification method, and connection destination notification program

Abstract

To improve power saving functions in in-vehicle networks. [Solution] An in-vehicle device used in an in-vehicle network including a plurality of in-vehicle relay devices that relay frames transmitted and received between in-vehicle devices, wherein each of the in-vehicle relay devices operates in a power-saving mode when predetermined conditions are met, and the in-vehicle device includes a detection unit that detects the addition of an in-vehicle device to the in-vehicle network when an existing device which is an in-vehicle device is connected to the in-vehicle relay device, and a notification unit that performs a notification process to notify that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to another in-vehicle relay device different from the target relay device when the target relay device, which is the in-vehicle relay device to which the existing device is connected, has a new device which is an in-vehicle device whose addition has been detected by the detection unit, and the target relay device needs to deactivate the power-saving mode.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an in-vehicle device, a connection destination notification method, and a connection destination notification program.

Background Art

[0002] Techniques have been developed to reduce power consumption by performing sleep control on in-vehicle devices in in-vehicle systems. For example, Patent Document 1 (Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2018-74243) discloses the following technique. That is, a relay device includes a plurality of ports (P1 to P5) through which frames are transmitted and received, and based on the destination of a received frame that is a frame received via any one of the plurality of ports, selects any one of the plurality of ports as the relay destination of the received frame, and has a relay execution unit that executes a relay process of transmitting the received frame from the selected port. The relay execution unit can be switched between a first activation state in which the relay process can be executed and a first sleep state in which the relay execution unit cannot execute the relay process. A switch unit (31), a reception function that converts a communication signal input from the port into reception data and outputs the reception data to the switch unit, and a transmission function that converts data transmitted from the switch unit into a communication signal transmitted on a communication line and outputs the communication signal to the port. A communication execution unit that executes the reception function and the transmission function can be switched between a second activation state in which the communication execution unit can execute the reception function and the transmission function and a second sleep state in which the communication execution unit cannot execute the reception function and the transmission function. A PHY unit including a plurality of PHY units (Y1 to Y5) set corresponding to each of the plurality of ports, and when the switch unit is in the first sleep state and each of the plurality of PHY units is in the second sleep state, a first control unit (37) that causes the PHY unit corresponding to the port in which the frame is detected to shift from the second sleep state to the second activation state, and when the switch unit is in the first sleep state and each of the plurality of PHY units is in the second sleep state, when any one of the plurality of PHY units shifts from the second sleep state to the second activation state, a second control unit (38) that causes the switch unit to shift from the first sleep state to the first activation state. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2018-74243 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0004] In an in-vehicle network that includes multiple in-vehicle relay devices, it may be necessary to connect a new in-vehicle device to one of the relay devices. Depending on which relay device the new in-vehicle device is connected to, it may be necessary to wake up other relay devices that were in sleep mode in order to run services using that device. In this case, the power consumption of the in-vehicle network will increase further.

[0005] This disclosure was made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide an in-vehicle device, a connection destination notification method, and a connection destination notification program that can improve power saving functions in an in-vehicle network. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The in-vehicle device of the present disclosure is an in-vehicle device used in an in-vehicle network including a plurality of in-vehicle relay devices that relay frames transmitted and received between in-vehicle devices, wherein each of the in-vehicle relay devices operates in a power-saving mode when predetermined conditions are met, and the in-vehicle device includes a detection unit that detects the addition of an in-vehicle device to the in-vehicle network when an existing device which is an in-vehicle device is connected to the in-vehicle relay device, and a notification unit that performs a notification process to notify that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to another in-vehicle relay device different from the target relay device when the target relay device, which is an in-vehicle relay device to which the existing device is connected, has a new device which is an in-vehicle device whose addition has been detected by the detection unit, and the target relay device needs to deactivate the power-saving mode.

[0007] One aspect of this disclosure can be realized not only as an in-vehicle device equipped with such characteristic processing units, but also as a semiconductor integrated circuit that realizes part or all of the in-vehicle device, or as a system including the in-vehicle device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to this disclosure, power saving functions in in-vehicle networks can be improved. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] Figure 2 shows an example of a sleep control sequence in an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] Figure 3 shows an example of the configuration of an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] Figure 4 shows an example of the configuration of a new network in an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 5]Figure 5 shows an example of a PNC list held by an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] Figure 6 shows an example of the configuration of an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] Figure 7 shows an example of a PNC list held by an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] Figure 8 shows an example of a screen displayed in a navigation device in an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 9] Figure 9 shows another example of the configuration of an in-vehicle system according to the embodiment of this disclosure. [Figure 10] Figure 10 shows another example of a PNC list held by an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] Figure 11 shows an example of the configuration of an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 12] Figure 12 shows an example of an updated PNC list held by an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 13] Figure 13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the operation procedure when an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure performs notification processing. [Figure 14] Figure 14 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the operation procedure when an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure performs notification processing. [Figure 15] Figure 15 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the operation procedure when an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure performs notification processing. [Figure 16] Figure 16 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the operation procedure when an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of this disclosure performs the process of transmitting PNC information. [Figure 17] Figure 17 shows an example of a processing sequence for an in-vehicle relay device and in-vehicle equipment in an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] First, the content of the embodiments of the present disclosure will be listed and described. (1) The in-vehicle device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is an in-vehicle device used in an in-vehicle network including a plurality of in-vehicle relay devices that relay frames transmitted and received between in-vehicle devices. Each of the in-vehicle relay devices operates in a power-saving mode when a predetermined condition is satisfied. The in-vehicle device includes a detection unit that detects an addition of an in-vehicle device different from the existing device to the in-vehicle network in a state where the existing device, which is an in-vehicle device, is connected to the in-vehicle relay device, and a notification unit that performs a notification process of notifying the target relay device, which is the in-vehicle relay device to which the existing device is connected, that when the target relay device needs to cancel the power-saving mode because a new device, which is the in-vehicle device detected by the detection unit as an addition, is newly connected, the connection destination of the new device should be changed to another in-vehicle relay device different from the target relay device.

[0011] With such a configuration, it is possible for the user to easily confirm that the connection destination of the new device is not appropriate from the perspective of reducing power consumption in the in-vehicle network, and it is possible to change the new device to an appropriate connection destination. Therefore, the power-saving function in the in-vehicle network can be improved.

[0012] (2) In the above (1), the notification unit may perform the notification process when an in-vehicle device having a new PNCID different from the PNCID of the existing device and conforming to the AUTOSAR standard is connected to the target relay device as the new device.

[0013] With such a configuration, it is possible to appropriately determine whether the in-vehicle relay device needs to cancel the power-saving mode, that is, whether the notification process should be performed, according to the comparison result between the ID of the network to which the in-vehicle device already connected to the in-vehicle relay device belongs and the ID of the network to which the new device belongs.

[0014] (3) In (1) or (2) above, the notification unit may perform the notification process if the target relay device needs to deactivate the power saving mode and an in-vehicle device with the same PNCID as the new PNCID, which is a new PNCID that conforms to the AUTOSAR standard and is different from the PNCID of the existing device, is connected to the other in-vehicle relay device. The notification unit may not perform the notification process if the target relay device needs to deactivate the power saving mode and an in-vehicle device with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is not connected to the other in-vehicle relay device.

[0015] This configuration allows for an appropriate determination of whether or not to perform notification processing depending on whether or not in-vehicle equipment belonging to the same network as the new device is connected to other in-vehicle relay devices.

[0016] (4) In any of (1) to (3) above, the in-vehicle device may further include a request unit that processes a request to the other in-vehicle relay device for information regarding the PNCID of the in-vehicle device already connected to the other in-vehicle relay device when the in-vehicle device having a new PNCID that conforms to the AUTOSAR standard and is different from the PNCID of the existing device is connected to the target relay device as the new device.

[0017] This configuration makes it easy to determine whether or not other in-vehicle equipment belonging to the same network as the new equipment is connected to the other in-vehicle relay device in an in-vehicle system where in-vehicle equipment connected to other in-vehicle relay devices may be changed.

[0018] (5) In any of (1) to (4) above, the in-vehicle device may include the in-vehicle relay device, and the in-vehicle device may further include a receiving unit that receives request information for requesting PNC information relating to the PNCID of the in-vehicle device connected to the in-vehicle device, which is a PNCID in accordance with the AUTOSAR standard, and a response unit that, when the receiving unit receives the request information, transmits the PNC information to the source of the request information.

[0019] This configuration makes it easy to determine whether or not other in-vehicle equipment belonging to the same network as the new equipment is connected to the other in-vehicle relay device in an in-vehicle system where in-vehicle equipment connected to other in-vehicle relay devices may be changed.

[0020] (6) In any of (1) to (5) above, the notification unit may further notify in the notification process information relating to power saving of the vehicle on which the in-vehicle device is installed.

[0021] This configuration allows, for example, a user to understand that the power-saving effect in the vehicle decreases when a new device is connected to the target relay device.

[0022] (7) A connection destination notification method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is a connection destination notification method for an in-vehicle device used in an in-vehicle network including a plurality of in-vehicle relay devices that relay frames transmitted and received between in-vehicle devices, wherein each of the in-vehicle relay devices operates in a power saving mode when predetermined conditions are met, and the connection destination notification method includes the steps of detecting the addition of an in-vehicle device to the in-vehicle network, when an existing device which is an in-vehicle device is connected to the in-vehicle relay device, and the steps of performing a notification process to notify that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to another in-vehicle relay device different from the target relay device, if the target relay device needs to deactivate the power saving mode because the new device which is an in-vehicle device whose addition has been detected has been newly connected to the target relay device which is the in-vehicle relay device to which the existing device is connected.

[0023] This method allows users to easily confirm if the connection destination of a new device is inappropriate from the perspective of reducing power consumption in the in-vehicle network, and to change the connection destination of the new device to an appropriate one. Therefore, the power saving function in the in-vehicle network can be improved.

[0024] (8) The connection destination notification program according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is a connection destination notification program used in an in-vehicle device used in an in-vehicle network including a plurality of in-vehicle relay devices that relay frames transmitted and received between in-vehicle devices, wherein each of the in-vehicle relay devices operates in a power saving mode when predetermined conditions are met, and the program causes the computer to function as a detection unit that detects the addition of an in-vehicle device to the in-vehicle network, when an existing device which is an in-vehicle device is connected to the in-vehicle relay device, and a notification unit that performs a notification process to notify that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to another in-vehicle relay device different from the target relay device when the target relay device, which is the in-vehicle relay device to which the existing device is connected, has been newly connected, and the detection unit has detected the addition of a new device which is an in-vehicle device, and the target relay device needs to release the power saving mode.

[0025] This configuration allows users to easily verify if the connection destination of a new device is inappropriate from the perspective of reducing power consumption in the in-vehicle network, and to switch the new device to an appropriate connection destination. Therefore, the power saving function in the in-vehicle network can be improved.

[0026] Embodiments of this disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their descriptions will not be repeated. Furthermore, at least some of the embodiments described below may be combined in any way.

[0027] [In-vehicle systems] Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to Figure 1, the in-vehicle system 301 comprises a plurality of in-vehicle relay devices 101 and a plurality of in-vehicle devices 202. The in-vehicle system 301 is mounted on a vehicle 1. The in-vehicle relay device 101 is an example of an in-vehicle device.

[0028] In-vehicle equipment 202 includes in-vehicle ECUs (Electronic Control Units), sensors, actuators, navigation systems, human-machine interfaces, and cameras. In-vehicle ECUs include TCUs (Telematics Communication Units), engine ECUs, autonomous driving ECUs, steering ECUs, and brake ECUs.

[0029] Multiple in-vehicle relay devices 101 and multiple in-vehicle devices 202 constitute an in-vehicle network 401.

[0030] In the example shown in Figure 1, the in-vehicle system 301 includes in-vehicle relay devices 101A, 101B, and 101C, which are in-vehicle relay devices 101. Also in the example shown in Figure 1, the in-vehicle system 301 includes in-vehicle equipment 202, which are in-vehicle equipment 202A, 202B, and 202C.

[0031] The in-vehicle equipment 202 is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101, for example, via an Ethernet® cable 51.

[0032] In the example shown in Figure 1, the in-vehicle devices 202A and 202B are connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101B via an Ethernet cable 51. The in-vehicle device 202C is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101C via an Ethernet cable 51.

[0033] More specifically, the in-vehicle relay device 101 includes multiple communication ports 10. Each communication port 10 is a connector to which an Ethernet cable 51 can be connected. In the example shown in Figure 1, the in-vehicle relay device 101 includes communication ports 10A, 10B, 10C, and 10D, which are the communication ports 10. Each communication port 10 is assigned a unique port number.

[0034] The in-vehicle devices 202A and 202B are connected to the communication ports 10B and 10C of the in-vehicle relay device 101B, respectively, via Ethernet cables 51.

[0035] The in-vehicle device 202C is connected to the communication port 10D of the in-vehicle relay device 101C via an Ethernet cable 51.

[0036] The in-vehicle relay device 101A is connected to the in-vehicle relay devices 101B and 101C via an Ethernet cable 51.

[0037] More specifically, the communication port 10C of the in-vehicle relay device 101A and the communication port 10A of the in-vehicle relay device 101B are connected via an Ethernet cable 51. The communication port 10D of the in-vehicle relay device 101A and the communication port 10A of the in-vehicle relay device 101C are connected via an Ethernet cable 51.

[0038] The in-vehicle relay device 101 and each in-vehicle device 202 communicate with each other to provide various services in the vehicle 1.

[0039] Specifically, the in-vehicle network 401 executes services related to the autonomous driving of vehicle 1 (hereinafter also referred to as "autonomous driving services"), entertainment services (hereinafter also referred to as "entertainment services"), and services for detecting malfunctions in vehicle 1.

[0040] The in-vehicle device 202 transmits frames containing various information, such as information to assist the autonomous driving performed by vehicle 1 and information used for entertainment, to other in-vehicle devices 202.

[0041] The in-vehicle relay device 101 used in the in-vehicle network 401 performs relay processing to relay frames transmitted and received between in-vehicle devices 202.

[0042] The in-vehicle relay device 101 and the in-vehicle equipment 202 operate using power supplied, for example, from the ignition power supply of the vehicle 1.

[0043] Furthermore, the in-vehicle system 301 is not limited to a configuration comprising three in-vehicle relay devices 101, but may also be configured to comprise two or four or more in-vehicle relay devices 101.

[0044] Furthermore, the in-vehicle equipment 202 is not limited to being connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101 via an Ethernet cable 51, but may also be connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101 via a transmission line conforming to other communication standards such as CAN (Controller Area Network), CAN FD (CAN with Flexible Data Rate), FlexRay (registered trademark), MOST (Media Oriented System Transport) (registered trademark), LIN (Local Interconnect Network), and CXPI (Clock Extension Peripheral Interface) (registered trademark).

[0045] [PNC] The in-vehicle relay device 101 and the in-vehicle equipment 202 form a PNC (Partial Network Cluster), which is an example of a network, in accordance with the AUTOSAR (AUTomotive Open System ARchitecture) (registered trademark) standard.

[0046] In the example shown in Figure 1, the in-vehicle relay device 101B and in-vehicle devices 202A and 202B form a PNC with PNCID "A" according to the AUTOSAR standard. The in-vehicle relay device 101C and in-vehicle device 202C form a PNC with PNCID "B".

[0047] In this embodiment, for example, the in-vehicle relay device 101B and in-vehicle devices 202A and 202B belonging to the PNC with PNCID "A" provide an autonomous driving service. The in-vehicle relay device 101C and in-vehicle device 202C belonging to the PNC with PNCID "B" provide an entertainment service.

[0048] (Wake-up mode and sleep mode) The in-vehicle relay device 101 and the in-vehicle equipment 202 transition from wake-up mode to sleep mode, and vice versa. In wake-up mode, the in-vehicle relay device 101 and the in-vehicle equipment 202 communicate with other devices in the in-vehicle system 301, and in sleep mode, they stop communicating with other devices in the in-vehicle system 301. Specifically, sleep mode is a mode in which power consumption is lower than in wake-up mode due to the stopping of some functions of the device, the stopping of power supply to the device, or a reduction in the clock frequency of the device. Sleep mode is an example of a power-saving mode.

[0049] Each in-vehicle relay device 101 and each in-vehicle device 202 operates in wake-up mode when predetermined wake-up conditions are met. In addition, each in-vehicle relay device 101 and each in-vehicle device 202 operates in sleep mode when predetermined sleep conditions are met.

[0050] Specifically, the wake-up conditions for each in-vehicle relay device 101 and each in-vehicle device 202 are when they start performing a service and when vehicle 1 is ignited on, etc. The sleep conditions for each in-vehicle relay device 101 and each in-vehicle device 202 are when they finish performing a service and when vehicle 1 is ignited off, etc.

[0051] For example, in the in-vehicle network 401 shown in Figure 1, if the in-vehicle relay device 101B and in-vehicle devices 202A and 202B belonging to the PNC with PNCID "A" are performing an autonomous driving service, then the in-vehicle relay devices 101A and 101C and in-vehicle devices 202C that do not belong to that PNC do not need to operate in wake-up mode if there are no other services to perform. In this case, in the in-vehicle network 401 shown in Figure 1, the operating mode of each of the in-vehicle relay devices 101A and 101C and in-vehicle devices 202C will be sleep mode.

[0052] Figure 2 shows an example of a sleep control sequence in an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. "Device A" and "Device B" shown in Figure 2 are in-vehicle relay devices 101 or in-vehicle equipment 202.

[0053] Referring to Figure 2, first, in wake-up mode (steps ST11 and ST12), devices A and B transmit to each other Ethernet frames containing, for example, NM (Network Management) messages that conform to the AUTOSAR standard (hereinafter also referred to as "NM frames"). Specifically, devices A and B transmit NM frames to each other for health monitoring purposes (steps ST13 and ST14).

[0054] Next, when device B's sleep condition is met in wake-up mode (step ST15), it stops transmitting NM frames (step ST16).

[0055] Next, if device B does not receive an NM frame from device A within a predetermined time after it stops transmitting NM frames, it transitions to sleep mode (step ST17).

[0056] Furthermore, in sleep mode (step ST17), if device B's wake-up condition is met, it transitions to wake-up mode and begins periodically transmitting NM frames. Also, in sleep mode (step ST17), if device B receives a wake-up request from another device in the in-vehicle system 301, it transitions to wake-up mode.

[0057] [Vehicle-mounted relay device 101C] Figure 3 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 3 shows the configuration of the in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0058] Referring to Figure 3, the in-vehicle relay device 101C comprises a relay unit 11, a processing unit 12, and a storage unit 13. The processing unit 12 includes a detection unit 21, a request unit 22, a notification unit 23, and an update unit 24. One or both of the relay unit 11 and the processing unit 12 are implemented by a processing circuit (Circuitry) including, for example, one or more processors. The storage unit 13 is, for example, a non-volatile memory included in the processing circuit.

[0059] The storage unit 13 stores an address table that shows the correspondence between the port number of the communication port 10 and the MAC (Media Access Control) address of the device connected to the communication port 10. The relay unit 11 performs relay processing using the address table in the storage unit 13.

[0060] Furthermore, when the relay unit 11 receives a frame from an in-vehicle device 202 destined for its own in-vehicle relay device 101C, it outputs the received frame to the processing unit 12.

[0061] Furthermore, the processing unit 12 creates a frame destined for the in-vehicle relay device 101A, the in-vehicle relay device 101B, or the in-vehicle equipment 202, and outputs the created frame to the relay unit 11. When the relay unit 11 receives the frame from the processing unit 12, it transmits the frame to the destination device.

[0062] [New Network] In the following explanation, the in-vehicle equipment 202 newly added to the in-vehicle network 401 will also be referred to as "new equipment," and the in-vehicle network 401 including the new equipment will also be referred to as the "new network." In addition, the in-vehicle equipment 202 included in the in-vehicle network 401 before the addition of the new equipment will also be referred to as "existing equipment."

[0063] Figure 4 shows an example of the configuration of a new network in an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4 shows the configuration of the in-vehicle network 401 in which an in-vehicle device 202D has been newly added to the in-vehicle network 401 shown in Figure 1.

[0064] Referring to Figure 4, the in-vehicle device 202D is connected, for example, to the communication port 10C of the in-vehicle relay device 101C via an Ethernet cable 51.

[0065] [Description of the task] For example, in the new network shown in Figure 4, suppose the PNCID of the in-vehicle device 202D connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101C is "A". In this case, in order to perform the automated driving service by the in-vehicle relay device 101B and in-vehicle devices 202A, 202B, and 202D belonging to the PNC with PNCID "A", it is necessary to wake up the sleeping in-vehicle relay devices 101A and 101C, which further increases the power consumption in the in-vehicle network 401.

[0066] Therefore, the in-vehicle system 301 according to the embodiment of this disclosure solves the above problem through the following configuration and operation.

[0067] [Vehicle-mounted relay device 101C] (PNC List L11) Figure 5 shows an example of a PNC list held by an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 5 shows the PNC list L11 held by the in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0068] Referring to Figure 5, for example, in the in-vehicle relay device 101C, the storage unit 13 stores a PNC list L11 indicating the PNCIDs of one or more in-vehicle devices 202 connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0069] The PNCID registered in the PNC list L11 shown in Figure 5 is the PNCID of the in-vehicle device 202C, i.e., "B".

[0070] (Detection unit) Referring again to Figures 3 and 4, the detection unit 21 detects the addition of new equipment to the in-vehicle network 401 while existing equipment is connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101C. Here, the detection unit 21 detects the addition of in-vehicle equipment 202D while in-vehicle equipment 202C is connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0071] More specifically, for example, when the detection unit 21 starts up its own in-vehicle relay device 101C, it broadcasts a search message to each in-vehicle device 202 connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101C via the relay unit 11 to detect the addition of new equipment.

[0072] When each in-vehicle device 202 connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101C receives a search message from the in-vehicle relay device 101C, it sends an NM frame containing its own device ID to the in-vehicle relay device 101C as a response to the search message. The device ID is identification information used to identify the in-vehicle device 202.

[0073] In the in-vehicle relay device 101C, when the relay unit 11 receives an NM frame from the in-vehicle equipment 202, it outputs the received NM frame to the detection unit 21.

[0074] For example, the storage unit 13 stores a device list L20 that indicates one or more device IDs connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101.

[0075] When the detection unit 21 receives an NM frame from the relay unit 11, it checks whether the device ID included in the NM frame is registered in the device list L20 in the storage unit 13.

[0076] If the detection unit 21 receives an NM frame from the relay unit 11 and the device ID included in that NM frame is registered in the device list L20, it determines that the in-vehicle device 202 that sent the NM frame is an existing device.

[0077] On the other hand, if the device ID included in the NM frame received from the relay unit 11 is not registered in the device list L20, the detection unit 21 determines that the in-vehicle device 202 that sent the NM frame is a new device.

[0078] When the detection unit 21 detects the addition of a new device, it sends a request notification to the new device via the relay unit 11, indicating that it requests the transmission of the PNCID.

[0079] When the new device receives a request notification from the in-vehicle relay device 101C, it sends an NM frame containing its own PNCID to the in-vehicle relay device 101C as a response to the received request notification.

[0080] In the in-vehicle relay device 101C, when the detection unit 21 detects the addition of a new device, it determines whether or not to add the PNCID of the new device to the PNC list L11 in the storage unit 13.

[0081] More specifically, for example, when the detection unit 21 receives an NM frame from a new device via the relay unit 11, it checks whether the PNCID contained in the received NM frame is registered in the PNC list L11 in the storage unit 13.

[0082] The detection unit 21 determines that if the PNCID included in the NM frame received from the new device is already registered in the PNC list L11, it is unnecessary to add the PNCID to the PNC list L11.

[0083] On the other hand, if the detection unit 21 finds that the PNCID included in the NM frame received from the new device is not registered in the PNC list L11, it determines that it is necessary to add the PNCID to the PNC list L11. This PNCID is a new PNCID for the in-vehicle relay device 101C (hereinafter also referred to as the "new PNCID"), that is, a PNCID different from the PNCID of an existing device connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101C. Thus, when an in-vehicle device 202 with a new PNCID is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101C, the in-vehicle relay device 101C needs to wake up from sleep mode in order to perform a service using the in-vehicle device 202.

[0084] As described above, in the example shown in Figure 4, the PNCID of the in-vehicle device 202D is "A". In this case, the detection unit 21 determines that since PNCID "A" is not registered in the PNC list L11, it is necessary to add the PNCID to the PNC list L11.

[0085] When the detection unit 21 determines that it is necessary to add the PNCID of a new device to the PNC list L11, it outputs additional ID information indicating that PNCID, i.e., the new PNCID, to the request unit 22. The following describes an example in which the detection unit 21 outputs additional ID information indicating the PNCID "A" of the in-vehicle device 202D as the new PNCID to the request unit 22.

[0086] (Sending request information) For example, when a new in-vehicle device 202 with a new PNCID is connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101C as a new device, the request unit 22 performs a process to request PNC information regarding the PNCID of the connected in-vehicle device 202 from another in-vehicle relay device 101 different from the in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0087] More specifically, for example, when the request unit 22 receives additional ID information from the detection unit 21, it transmits request information to another in-vehicle relay device 101 to request PNC information.

[0088] For example, the memory unit 13 stores topology information that allows recognition of the topology in the in-vehicle network 401. Specifically, for example, the topology information indicates the IDs of the other in-vehicle relay devices 101 in the in-vehicle network 401 other than the in-vehicle relay device 101C, namely in-vehicle relay devices 101A and 101B.

[0089] When the request unit 22 receives additional ID information from the detection unit 21, it refers to the topology information in the storage unit 13 to identify other in-vehicle relay devices 101 that will transmit the request information. In this embodiment, for example, the request unit 22 first transmits the request information to the in-vehicle relay device 101B.

[0090] Specifically, for example, the request unit 22 includes the new PNCID indicated by the additional ID information received from the detection unit 21, i.e., the PNCID "A" of the in-vehicle device 202D, in the request information and transmits it to the in-vehicle relay device 101B via the relay unit 11 and the in-vehicle relay device 101A.

[0091] [Vehicle-mounted relay device 101B] Figure 6 shows an example of the configuration of an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 6 shows the configuration of the in-vehicle relay device 101B.

[0092] Referring to Figure 6, the in-vehicle relay device 101B comprises a relay unit 31, a response unit 32, and a storage unit 33. One or both of the relay unit 31 and the response unit 32 are implemented by a processing circuit including, for example, one or more processors. The storage unit 33 is, for example, a non-volatile memory included in the processing circuit.

[0093] For example, when the relay unit 31 receives request information from the in-vehicle relay device 101C via the in-vehicle relay device 101A, it outputs the received request information to the response unit 32.

[0094] Figure 7 shows an example of a PNC list held by an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 7 shows the PNC list L12 held by the in-vehicle relay device 101B.

[0095] Referring to Figure 7, the storage unit 33 stores a PNC list L12 indicating the PNC IDs of one or more in-vehicle devices 202 connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101.

[0096] The PNCID registered in the PNC list L12 shown in Figure 7 is the PNCID of the in-vehicle devices 202A and 202B, i.e., "A".

[0097] (Sending PNC information) Referring again to Figure 6, for example, when the relay unit 31 receives the request information, the response unit 32 transmits the PNC information to the source of the request information, i.e., the in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0098] More specifically, for example, when the response unit 32 receives request information from the relay unit 31, it checks whether the new PNCID "A" indicated by the request information is registered in the PNC list L12 in the storage unit 33.

[0099] In the example shown in Figure 7, the new PNCID "A" indicated by the request information received by the relay unit 31 from the in-vehicle relay device 101C is registered in the PNC list L12. In this case, the response unit 32 transmits PNC information (hereinafter also referred to as "PNC information P11") indicating that the new PNCID is registered in the PNC list L12 to the in-vehicle relay device 101C via the relay unit 31.

[0100] Referring again to Figure 2, in the in-vehicle relay device 101C, when the relay unit 11 receives PNC information P11 from the in-vehicle relay device 101B via the in-vehicle relay device 101A, it outputs the received PNC information P11 to the notification unit 23.

[0101] (Notification processing) For example, if the in-vehicle relay device 101C needs to be released from sleep mode because a new device has been connected to it, that is, if an in-vehicle device 202 with a new PNCID is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101C, the notification unit 23 performs a notification process to notify the vehicle 1 that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to another in-vehicle relay device 101 different from the in-vehicle relay device 101C, and also provides information regarding power saving for the vehicle 1.

[0102] More specifically, for example, the notification unit 23 performs a notification process if its own in-vehicle relay device 101C needs to be released from sleep mode and an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to another in-vehicle relay device 101.

[0103] Specifically, when the notification unit 23 receives PNC information P11 from the relay unit 11, it determines that an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to another in-vehicle relay device 101, which is an in-vehicle relay device 101B.

[0104] The notification unit 23 then transmits connection destination information to the IVI (In-Vehicle Infotainment) indicating that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to the in-vehicle relay device 101B, and that the power efficiency of vehicle 1 has decreased due to the connection of the new device to the in-vehicle relay device 101C. Specifically, for example, the notification unit 23 transmits the connection destination information to a navigation device (not shown) in the in-vehicle system 301 via the relay unit 11.

[0105] Figure 8 shows an example of a screen displayed in a navigation device in an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0106] Referring to Figure 8, for example, when the navigation device receives connection destination information from the in-vehicle relay device 101C, it displays a screen G showing the contents of the said connection destination information on its own display unit.

[0107] Screen G includes regions A1, A2, A3, and A4. Region A1 shows the content of information regarding power saving of vehicle 1. In the example shown in Figure 8, region A1 indicates that the power efficiency of vehicle 1 has decreased due to the connection of the in-vehicle equipment 202D to the in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0108] Area A2 indicates that a change in the connection destination of the new device, i.e., the in-vehicle device 202D, is recommended. Area A3 shows the current connection destination of the in-vehicle device 202D in the in-vehicle network 401. Area A4 shows the connection destination of the in-vehicle device 202D recommended by the in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0109] [If an in-vehicle device 202 with a different PNCID than the new PNCID is connected] Figure 9 shows another example of the configuration of an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In the in-vehicle system 301 shown in Figure 9, compared to the in-vehicle system 301 shown in Figure 1, the in-vehicle relay device 101B and the in-vehicle equipment 202A, 202B form a PNC whose PNCID is "C".

[0110] Figure 10 shows another example of a PNC list held by an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 10 shows another example of a PNC list L12 held by an in-vehicle relay device 101B.

[0111] The PNCID registered in the PNC list L12 shown in Figure 10 is "C". In other words, this PNCID is different from the PNCID "A" indicated in the request information received by the relay unit 31 from the in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0112] Referring again to Figure 6, in the in-vehicle relay device 101B, if the response unit 32 finds that the new PNCID indicated by the request information received from the relay unit 31 is different from the PNCID registered in the PNC list L12, it transmits PNC information (hereinafter also referred to as "PNC information P12") to the in-vehicle relay device 101C indicating that an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is not connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101B.

[0113] Specifically, for example, if the new PNCID indicated by the request information received from the relay unit 31 differs from the PNCID registered in the PNC list L12, the response unit 32 transmits the PNC information P12 to the in-vehicle relay device 101C via the relay unit 31 and the in-vehicle relay device 101A.

[0114] Referring again to Figure 3, in the in-vehicle relay device 101C, when the request unit 22 receives PNC information P12 from the in-vehicle relay device 101B via the in-vehicle relay device 101A and the relay unit 11, it transmits the request information to the in-vehicle relay device 101A via the relay unit 11.

[0115] Figure 11 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 11 shows the configuration of the in-vehicle relay device 101A.

[0116] Referring to Figure 11, the in-vehicle relay device 101A comprises a relay unit 41, a response unit 42, and a storage unit 43. One or both of the relay unit 41 and the response unit 42 are implemented by a processing circuit including, for example, one or more processors. The storage unit 43 is, for example, a non-volatile memory included in the processing circuit.

[0117] For example, when the relay unit 41 receives request information from the in-vehicle relay device 101C, it outputs the received request information to the response unit 42.

[0118] For example, when the relay unit 41 receives the requested information, the response unit 42 transmits the PNC information to the in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0119] Specifically, for example, when the response unit 42 receives request information from the relay unit 11, it checks whether an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID indicated in the request information is connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101A.

[0120] In the example shown in Figure 9 above, no in-vehicle equipment 202 is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101A. In this case, the response unit 42 of the in-vehicle relay device 101A transmits PNC information (hereinafter also referred to as "PNC information P21") to the in-vehicle relay device 101C via the relay unit 41, indicating that no in-vehicle equipment 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID indicated by the request information received from the relay unit 11 is connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101A.

[0121] Referring again to Figure 3, in the in-vehicle relay device 101C, when the relay unit 11 receives PNC information P21 from the in-vehicle relay device 101A, it outputs the received PNC information P21 to the notification unit 23 and the update unit 24.

[0122] For example, the notification unit 23 does not perform notification processing if its own in-vehicle relay device 101C needs to be released from sleep mode, and no other in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to another in-vehicle relay device 101.

[0123] More specifically, when the notification unit 23 receives PNC information P21 from the relay unit 11, it determines that no in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to any other in-vehicle relay device 101, and therefore does not perform the notification process.

[0124] When the update unit 24 receives PNC information P21 from the relay unit 11, it updates the PNC list L11 in the storage unit 13.

[0125] Specifically, for example, the update unit 24 registers the new PNCID indicated by the PNC information P21 received from the relay unit 11 in the PNC list L11.

[0126] Figure 12 shows an example of an updated PNC list held by an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 12 shows the updated PNC list L11.

[0127] Referring to Figure 12, the updated PNC list L11 has PNCID "A" added compared to the PNC list L11 shown in Figure 6.

[0128] Furthermore, assuming that in the in-vehicle system 301 shown in Figure 9, an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101A, the in-vehicle relay device 101C performs the following notification processing.

[0129] Specifically, in the in-vehicle relay device 101A shown in Figure 11, if the response unit 42 finds that an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID indicated in the request information received from the relay unit 11 is connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101A, it transmits PNC information (hereinafter also referred to as "PNC information P22") indicating that the in-vehicle device 202 is connected to its own in-vehicle relay device 101A to the in-vehicle relay device 101C via the relay unit 41.

[0130] Referring again to Figure 3, in the in-vehicle relay device 101C, when the notification unit 23 receives PNC information P22 from the in-vehicle relay device 101A via the relay unit 11, it determines that an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to another in-vehicle relay device 101, which is the in-vehicle relay device 101A.

[0131] The notification unit 23 then transmits connection destination information to the navigation device via the relay unit 11, indicating that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to the in-vehicle relay device 101A, and that the power efficiency of the vehicle 1 has decreased due to the connection of the new device to the in-vehicle relay device 101C.

[0132] [Operation Flow] Next, the operation flow of each device in the in-vehicle system 301 according to the embodiment of this disclosure will be explained with reference to the drawings.

[0133] Figures 13, 14, and 15 are flowcharts illustrating an example of the operation procedure when an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure performs notification processing.

[0134] Referring to Figures 13, 14, and 15, first, the in-vehicle relay device 101C starts up when power is supplied from the ignition power supply (step ST101).

[0135] Next, the in-vehicle relay device 101C waits for the arrival of the detection processing timing T (NO in step ST102).

[0136] Then, when the processing timing T arrives (YES in step ST102), the in-vehicle relay device 101C broadcasts a search message to one or more in-vehicle devices 202 connected to itself to detect the addition of new equipment (step ST103).

[0137] Next, the in-vehicle relay device 101C awaits the reception of NM frames from one or more in-vehicle devices 202 connected to it (NO in step ST104).

[0138] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101C receives an NM frame from the in-vehicle equipment 202 connected to it (YES in step ST104), it checks whether the equipment ID included in the received NM frame is registered in the equipment list L20 in the storage unit 13 (step ST105).

[0139] Then, if the device ID included in the received NM frame is registered in the device list L20 (YES in step ST105), the in-vehicle relay device 101C determines that the in-vehicle device 202 that sent the NM frame is an existing device (step ST106), and waits for the next processing timing T to arrive (NO in step ST102).

[0140] On the other hand, if the in-vehicle relay device 101C finds that the device ID included in the received NM frame is not registered in the device list L20 (NO in step ST105), it determines that the in-vehicle device 202 that sent the NM frame is a new device (step ST107).

[0141] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101C detects the addition of a new device, it sends an ID request notification to the new device indicating that it requests the transmission of a PNCID (step ST108).

[0142] Next, the in-vehicle relay device 101C awaits the reception of an NM frame containing the PNCID from the new device (NO in step ST109).

[0143] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101C receives an NM frame containing a PNCID from a new device (YES in step ST109), it checks whether the PNCID is registered in the PNC list L11 in the storage unit 13 (step ST110).

[0144] Then, if the in-vehicle relay device 101C does not have a PNCID included in the NM frame received from the new device registered in the PNC list L11 (NO in step ST110), it determines that it is necessary to add the PNCID to the PNC list L11 (step ST111).

[0145] Next, the in-vehicle relay device 101C sends request information to the in-vehicle relay device 101B to request PNC information regarding the PNCID of the in-vehicle device 202 that is already connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101B (step ST112).

[0146] Next, the in-vehicle relay device 101C waits for the reception of PNC information from the in-vehicle relay device 101B (NO in step ST113).

[0147] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101C receives PNC information from the in-vehicle relay device 101B (YES in step ST113), it refers to the received PNC information to check whether the in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNC ID as the new device, i.e., the new PNC ID, is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101B (step ST114).

[0148] Then, if an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101B (YES in step ST114), the in-vehicle relay device 101C performs a notification process to notify that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to the in-vehicle relay device 101B, and also provides information regarding power saving for vehicle 1 (step ST115), and waits for the arrival of the next processing timing T (NO in step ST102).

[0149] On the other hand, if the in-vehicle relay device 101C does not have an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101B (NO in step ST114), it sends the request information to the in-vehicle relay device 101A (step ST117).

[0150] Next, the in-vehicle relay device 101C waits for the reception of PNC information from the in-vehicle relay device 101A (NO in step ST118).

[0151] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101C receives PNC information from the in-vehicle relay device 101A (YES in step ST118), it checks whether an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNC ID as the new PNC ID is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101A by referring to the received PNC information (step ST119).

[0152] Then, if an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101A (YES in step ST119), the in-vehicle relay device 101C performs a notification process to notify that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to the in-vehicle relay device 101A, and also provides information regarding power saving for vehicle 1 (step ST120), and waits for the arrival of the next processing timing T (NO in step ST102).

[0153] On the other hand, if the in-vehicle relay device 101C does not have an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101A (NO in step ST119), it updates the PNC list L11 (step ST121) and waits for the next processing timing T to arrive (NO in step ST102).

[0154] Furthermore, if the in-vehicle relay device 101C finds that the PNCID included in the NM frame received from the new device is registered in the PNC list L11 (YES in step ST110), it determines that it is not necessary to add the PNCID to the PNC list L11 (step ST116) and waits for the next processing timing T to arrive (NO in step ST102).

[0155] Figure 16 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the operation procedure when an in-vehicle relay device according to an embodiment of this disclosure performs the process of transmitting PNC information. Figure 16 shows the case when the in-vehicle relay device 101B performs the process of transmitting PNC information. The operation procedure when the in-vehicle relay device 101A performs the process of transmitting PNC information is the same as the operation procedure when the in-vehicle relay device 101B performs the process of transmitting PNC information.

[0156] Referring to Figure 16, first, the in-vehicle relay device 101B waits for the receipt of request information from the in-vehicle relay device 101C (NO in step ST201).

[0157] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101B receives request information from the in-vehicle relay device 101C (YES in step ST201), it checks whether the new PNCID indicated by the received request information is registered in the PNC list L12 in the storage unit 33 (step ST202).

[0158] Then, if the new PNCID indicated by the received request information is registered in the PNC list L12 (YES in step ST202), the in-vehicle relay device 101B sends PNC information P11 to the in-vehicle relay device 101C indicating that an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to it (step ST203), and waits to receive new request information from the in-vehicle relay device 101C (NO in step ST201).

[0159] On the other hand, if the new PNCID indicated by the received request information is not registered in the PNC list L12 (NO in step ST202), the in-vehicle relay device 101B sends PNC information P12 to the in-vehicle relay device 101C indicating that no in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to it (step ST204), and waits to receive new request information from the in-vehicle relay device 101C (NO in step ST201).

[0160] Figure 17 is a diagram showing an example of the processing sequence of an in-vehicle relay device and in-vehicle equipment in an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 17 shows the processing of in-vehicle relay devices 101B, 101C and in-vehicle equipment 202C, 202D in the in-vehicle system 301 shown in Figure 4.

[0161] Referring to Figure 17, first, the in-vehicle relay device 101C broadcasts a search message to each in-vehicle device 202 connected to it in order to detect the addition of new equipment (step ST301).

[0162] Next, when the in-vehicle device 202C receives a search message from the in-vehicle relay device 101C, it sends an NM frame containing its own device ID to the in-vehicle relay device 101C (step ST302).

[0163] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101C receives an NM frame containing the device ID from the in-vehicle device 202C, it refers to the device list L20 in the storage unit 13 to determine whether the in-vehicle device 202C is a new device or not. Here, it is assumed that the in-vehicle relay device 101C has determined that the in-vehicle device 202C is an existing device (step ST303).

[0164] Furthermore, when the in-vehicle device 202D receives a search message from the in-vehicle relay device 101C, it sends an NM frame containing its own device ID to the in-vehicle relay device 101C (step ST304).

[0165] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101C receives an NM frame containing the device ID from the in-vehicle device 202C, it refers to the device list L20 in the storage unit 13 to determine whether or not the in-vehicle device 202D is a new device. Here, it is assumed that the in-vehicle relay device 101C has determined that the in-vehicle device 202D is a new device (step ST305).

[0166] Next, the in-vehicle relay device 101C sends an ID request notification to the in-vehicle device 202D indicating that it requests the transmission of the PNCID (step ST306).

[0167] Next, when the in-vehicle device 202D receives an ID request notification from the in-vehicle relay device 101C, it sends an NM frame containing its own PNCID to the in-vehicle relay device 101C. Here, we assume that the PNCID of the in-vehicle device 202D is "A" (step ST307).

[0168] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101C receives an NM frame containing PNCID "A" from the in-vehicle device 202D, it refers to the PNC list L11 in the storage unit 13 to determine whether or not to add PNCID "A" to the PNC list L11. Here, it is assumed that the in-vehicle relay device 101C has determined that it is necessary to add PNCID "A" to the PNC list L11 (step ST308).

[0169] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101C determines that it is necessary to add PNCID "A" to the PNC list L11, it includes PNCID "A" in the request information for requesting PNC information and sends it to the in-vehicle relay device 101B (step ST309).

[0170] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101B receives request information from the in-vehicle relay device 101C, it checks whether an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as PNCID "A" included in the received request information is connected to it. Here, it is assumed that the in-vehicle device 202 is connected to the in-vehicle relay device 101B (step ST310).

[0171] Next, the in-vehicle relay device 101B transmits PNC information P11 to the in-vehicle relay device 101C indicating that an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as PNCID "A" is connected to it (step ST311).

[0172] Next, when the in-vehicle relay device 101C receives PNC information P11 from the in-vehicle relay device 101B, it performs a notification process to notify the vehicle relay device 101B that the connection destination of the new device should be changed, and also provides information regarding power saving for vehicle 1 (step ST312).

[0173] In the in-vehicle system 301 according to the embodiment of this disclosure, the in-vehicle relay device 101C is configured to include a detection unit 21, a request unit 22, and a notification unit 23, but this is not the only configuration. Instead of the in-vehicle relay device 101C, or in addition to the in-vehicle relay device 101C, at least one of the in-vehicle relay devices 101A and 101B may be configured to include a detection unit 21, a request unit 22, and a notification unit 23. Furthermore, in the in-vehicle network 401, devices other than the in-vehicle relay devices 101A, 101B, and 101C may be configured to include a detection unit 21, a request unit 22, and a notification unit 23.

[0174] Furthermore, in the in-vehicle system 301 according to the embodiment of this disclosure, the in-vehicle relay devices 101A and 101B are configured to have the function of transmitting PNC information when they receive request information from the in-vehicle relay device 101C, but the invention is not limited to this. As described above, if devices other than the in-vehicle relay device 101C are equipped with a detection unit 21, a request unit 22, and a notification unit 23, the in-vehicle relay device 101C may be configured to have the above function. Specifically, the in-vehicle relay device 101C may be configured to include a receiving unit that receives request information and a response unit that, when the receiving unit receives request information, transmits PNC information to the source of the request information. In this case, for example, in the in-vehicle relay device 101C, the relay unit 11 corresponds to the receiving unit, and the processing unit 12 includes the response unit.

[0175] Furthermore, while the in-vehicle system 301 according to the embodiment of this disclosure is configured such that the in-vehicle relay device 101 and the in-vehicle device 202 form a PNC that conforms to the AUTOSAR standard, the disclosure is not limited to this configuration. The in-vehicle relay device 101 and the in-vehicle device 202 may be configured to form a network that conforms to a standard other than AUTOSAR. In this case, for example, the in-vehicle relay device 101C performs notification processing when an in-vehicle device 202 with a new ID different from the ID of the network to which it belongs is connected to it.

[0176] Furthermore, in the in-vehicle system 301 according to the embodiment of this disclosure, the in-vehicle relay device 101C is configured to perform notification processing when it needs to deactivate its power saving mode and an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to another in-vehicle relay device 101, but it is not limited to this. The in-vehicle relay device 101C may be configured to perform notification processing when it needs to deactivate its power saving mode, regardless of whether an in-vehicle device 202 with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is connected to another in-vehicle relay device 101.

[0177] Furthermore, in the in-vehicle system 301 according to the embodiment of this disclosure, the in-vehicle relay device 101C is configured to request PNC information from other in-vehicle relay devices 101 when an in-vehicle device 202 with a new PNCID is connected to it, but it is not limited to this. For example, if the connection relationship between another in-vehicle relay device 101 and the in-vehicle device 202 is fixed, the storage unit 13 of the in-vehicle relay device 101C may be configured to store the PNC information of the other in-vehicle relay device 101 in advance. In this case, the in-vehicle relay device 101C does not perform the process of requesting PNC information from other in-vehicle relay devices 101.

[0178] Furthermore, while the in-vehicle system 301 according to the embodiment of this disclosure is configured to notify information regarding power saving of the vehicle 1 during notification processing, it is not limited to this configuration. The in-vehicle relay device 101C may be configured not to notify such information.

[0179] The embodiments described above should be considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the claims rather than the above description, and all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims are intended to be included.

[0180] Each process (each function) of the above-described embodiment is implemented by a processing circuit including one or more processors. The processing circuit may consist of one or more memories, various analog circuits, various digital circuits, and other integrated circuits in addition to the one or more processors. The one or more memories store programs (instructions) that cause the one or more processors to execute each of the above processes. The one or more processors may execute each of the above processes according to the programs read from the one or more memories, or they may execute each of the above processes according to logic circuits that have been pre-designed to execute each of the above processes. The processors may be various processors suitable for computer control, such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), DSP (Digital Signal Processor), FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), and ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Furthermore, the physically separated multiple processors may cooperate with each other to execute each of the above processes. For example, the processors installed in each of several physically separate computers may cooperate with each other via a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network), WAN (Wide Area Network), and the Internet to perform the above processes. The program may be installed in the memory via the network from an external server device, or it may be distributed on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disk Read Only Memory), and semiconductor memory, and then installed in the memory from the recording medium.

[0181] The above description includes the following features. [Note 1] An in-vehicle device used in an in-vehicle network that includes multiple in-vehicle relay devices that relay frames transmitted and received between in-vehicle devices, Each of the above-mentioned in-vehicle relay devices operates in power-saving mode when predetermined conditions are met. The aforementioned in-vehicle device is Equipped with a processing circuit, The aforementioned processing circuit is While an existing in-vehicle device is connected to the in-vehicle relay device, the addition of another in-vehicle device to the in-vehicle network, An in-vehicle device that, when a new in-vehicle device, which has been detected as an addition, is newly connected to the target relay device, which is the in-vehicle relay device to which the existing device is connected, and the target relay device needs to deactivate the power saving mode, performs a notification process to notify that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to another in-vehicle relay device different from the target relay device. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0182] 1 vehicle 10, 10A, 10B, 10C, 10D Communication Ports 11,31,41 Relay section 12 Processing Units 13,33,43 Storage part 21 Detection unit 22 Request part 23 Notification Department 24 Update section 32,42 Response section 51 Ethernet cable 101, 101A, 101B, 101C In-vehicle relay device 202,202A,202B,202C,202D Vehicle equipment 301 In-vehicle systems 401 In-vehicle network L11, L12 PNC List

Claims

1. An in-vehicle device used in an in-vehicle network that includes multiple in-vehicle relay devices that relay frames transmitted and received between in-vehicle devices, Each of the above-mentioned in-vehicle relay devices operates in power-saving mode when predetermined conditions are met. The aforementioned in-vehicle device is A detection unit that detects the addition of a vehicle-mounted device to the vehicle network when an existing vehicle-mounted device is connected to the vehicle-mounted relay device, An in-vehicle device comprising: a notification unit that, when a new device, which is an in-vehicle device whose addition has been detected by the detection unit, is newly connected to the target relay device, which is an in-vehicle relay device to which the aforementioned existing device is connected, and the target relay device needs to deactivate the power saving mode, the notification unit notifies that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to another in-vehicle relay device different from the target relay device.

2. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1, wherein the notification unit performs the notification process when the in-vehicle device having a new PNCID that conforms to the AUTOSAR standard and is different from the PNCID of the existing device is connected to the target relay device as the new device.

3. The notification unit performs the notification process when the target relay device needs to deactivate the power saving mode, and when an in-vehicle device with the same PNCID as the new PNCID, which is a new PNCID that conforms to the AUTOSAR standard and is different from the PNCID of the existing device, is connected to the other in-vehicle relay device. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the notification unit does not perform the notification process when the target relay device needs to deactivate the power saving mode and the in-vehicle device with the same PNCID as the new PNCID is not connected to the other in-vehicle relay device.

4. The aforementioned in-vehicle device further includes, The in-vehicle device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a request unit that processes a request to the other in-vehicle relay device for information regarding the PNCID of an in-vehicle device already connected to the other in-vehicle relay device, when the in-vehicle device having a new PNCID that conforms to the AUTOSAR standard and is different from the PNCID of the existing device is connected to the target relay device as the new device.

5. The in-vehicle device includes the in-vehicle relay device, The aforementioned in-vehicle device further includes, A PNCID conforming to the AUTOSAR standard, a receiving unit that receives request information for requesting PNC information relating to the PNCID of the in-vehicle device connected to the in-vehicle device, The in-vehicle device according to claim 1 or claim 2, further comprising: a response unit that transmits the PNC information to the source of the request information when the receiving unit receives the request information.

6. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the notification unit further notifies information regarding power saving of the vehicle on which the in-vehicle device is installed during the notification process.

7. A method for notifying a connection destination in an in-vehicle device used in an in-vehicle network that includes multiple in-vehicle relay devices that relay frames transmitted and received between in-vehicle devices, Each of the above-mentioned in-vehicle relay devices operates in power-saving mode when predetermined conditions are met. The aforementioned connection destination notification method is: The steps include detecting the addition of a vehicle-mounted device to the vehicle network, while an existing vehicle-mounted device is connected to the vehicle-mounted relay device, and the addition of a vehicle-mounted device other than the existing device to the vehicle-mounted network, A connection destination notification method, which includes the step of performing a notification process to notify that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to another vehicle relay device different from the target relay device, when the target relay device, which is the vehicle relay device to which the existing device is connected, needs to deactivate the power saving mode because a new device, which is the vehicle device to which an addition has been detected, has been newly connected to the target relay device.

8. A connection destination notification program used in an in-vehicle device used in an in-vehicle network that includes multiple in-vehicle relay devices that relay frames transmitted and received between in-vehicle devices, Each of the above-mentioned in-vehicle relay devices operates in power-saving mode when predetermined conditions are met. Computers, A detection unit that detects the addition of a vehicle-mounted device to the vehicle network when an existing vehicle-mounted device is connected to the vehicle-mounted relay device, If the target relay device, which is the in-vehicle relay device to which the existing equipment is connected, has a new in-vehicle device, which has been detected as being added by the detection unit, connected to it, and the target relay device needs to deactivate the power saving mode, the notification unit performs a notification process to notify that the connection destination of the new device should be changed to another in-vehicle relay device different from the target relay device. A connection destination notification program to enable it to function as such.

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