Information processing system

Abstract

To increase the possibility of reducing human errors in which vehicle information and vehicle information transmitted from a vehicle to an information center become inconsistent with each other.SOLUTION: An information processing system includes a control device that controls a vehicle, a communication device connected to the control device and capable of wireless communication with the outside of the vehicle, and an external device connected to the control device and the communication device. The control device transmits vehicle information of the vehicle received from the external device to the communication device. The communication device receives vehicle information, and transmits the vehicle information to an information center outside the vehicle when an instruction to transmit the vehicle information to the outside of the vehicle is received from the external device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for controlling vehicle information.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a technique in which when the vehicle power is on and the registered vehicle body number matches the vehicle body number obtained from the vehicle side, notification to an information center is permitted.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] The present disclosure aims to increase the possibility of reducing artificial errors in which vehicle information and the vehicle information transmitted from the vehicle to an information center do not match each other.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] One aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure is exemplified by an information processing system. This information processing system includes a control device for controlling a vehicle, a communication device connected to the control device and capable of wireless communication with the outside of the vehicle, and an external device connected to the control device and the communication device, and is provided with the control device transmits the vehicle information of the vehicle received from the external device to the communication device, when the communication device receives the vehicle information and receives an instruction from the external device to transmit the vehicle information outside the vehicle, the communication device transmits the vehicle information to an information center outside the vehicle.

Effects of the Invention

[0006] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to increase the possibility of reducing an artificial error in which the information of a vehicle and the information of the vehicle transmitted from the vehicle to an information center do not match each other.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0007]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0008] When an emergency related to a vehicle or an occupant occurs, there is a vehicle emergency reporting device that reports to an information center (emergency call center) outside the vehicle. In this device, a vehicle identification number (VIN number) and an emergency reporting telephone number (CIM number) are registered in the information center as a set. In this device, the vehicle identification number can be rewritten when the factory mode for registering the vehicle identification number and the emergency reporting telephone number is being executed. And when the vehicle power is on, when the registered vehicle identification number matches the vehicle identification number obtained from the vehicle side, reporting to the information center is permitted However, if an incorrect vehicle identification number is registered in the information center, the registered vehicle identification number may not match the vehicle identification number obtained from the vehicle side, and reporting to the information center may not be permitted. Therefore, it may be required that the correct vehicle identification number be registered in the information center.

[0009] An information processing system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a control device that controls a vehicle, a communication device that is connected to the control device and capable of wireless communication with the outside of the vehicle, and an external device that is connected to the control device and the communication device. The control device transmits vehicle information of the vehicle received from the external device to the communication device. The communication device transmits the vehicle information to an information center outside the vehicle when it receives the vehicle information and receives an instruction from the external device to transmit the vehicle information outside the vehicle.

[0010] According to this information processing system, when the communication device receives the vehicle information and receives an instruction from the external device to transmit the vehicle information outside the vehicle, the communication device transmits the vehicle information to an information center outside the vehicle. Therefore, it is possible to increase the possibility of reducing an artificial error in which the information of the vehicle and the information of the vehicle transmitted from the vehicle to the information center do not match each other.

[0011] Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. The dimensions, materials, shapes, relative arrangements, etc. of the components described in this embodiment are not intended to limit the technical scope of the present disclosure only to those unless otherwise specified.

[0012] (Outline of Information Processing System) FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of an information processing system 1 according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the information processing system 1 is a system for controlling a vehicle 10. The information processing system 1 includes an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 100, a communication device 200, and a factory device 30 2. The ECU 100, the communication device 200, and the factory device 302 are connected to each other. The information processing system 1 is mutually connected to an information server 401 of an information center 400 installed outside the vehicle 10 via a network N. As the network N, for example, a WAN (Wide Area Network) such as the Internet, which is a global public communication network, or a telephone communication network such as a mobile phone call may be adopted.

[0013] Vehicle 10 includes an ECU 100 and a communication device 200. Vehicle 10 can communicate with an information server 401 via a network N by means of the communication device 200. Vehicle 10 may be a vehicle driven by a driver. However, Vehicle 10 may also be a vehicle that travels automatically. In FIG. 1, one example of Vehicle 10 is illustrated. However, the information processing system 1 can include an ECU 100 and a communication device 200 in a plurality of vehicles 10 respectively. These multiple information processing systems 1 may communicate with the information server 401 in parallel respectively.

[0014] The ECU 100 is a computer mounted on Vehicle 10 that executes control of the running of Vehicle 10, processing or control of information related to Vehicle 10, etc. The ECU 100 executes a computer program deployed in an executable format. The ECU 100 functions as a control device for controlling Vehicle 10 in the information processing system 1.

[0015] The communication device 200 is a communication module mounted on Vehicle 10. The communication device 200 is connected to the ECU 100 and the communication antenna of Vehicle 10 by a communication cable. The communication device 200 may be connected to a device installed outside Vehicle 10 (hereinafter also referred to as an external device) by a communication cable. The communication device 200 has a function of communicating with other devices by a communication cable. As a communication method between each device connected by a communication cable, for example, CAN (Controller Area Network) is used. However, the communication method between each device connected by a communication cable is not limited to CAN, and other types of communication methods may be used. The communication device 2 00 has a function of communicating with other devices via the network N by wireless communication using a communication antenna. The communication device 200 may be a dedicated communication device used for the online service of an in-vehicle communication system.

[0016] The factory device 302 is a device provided in the factory 300 and connected to the vehicle 10. The factory device 302 is exemplified by a computer having a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a memory, an external storage device, etc. The factory device 302 is mutually connected to the ECU 100 and the communication device 200 of the vehicle 10 by, for example, a communication cable. The communication device 200 has a function of communicating with other devices by a communication cable. As a communication method between the devices connected by the communication cable, for example, CAN (Controller Area Network) is used. However, the communication method between the devices connected by the communication cable is not limited to CAN, and other types of communication methods may be used. However, the connection method between the factory device 302 and other devices is not limited to a communication cable. The factory device 302 may communicate with other devices via the network N by wireless communication. The factory device 302 can transmit the information of the vehicle 10 and the instructions for the vehicle 10 to other devices connected to the factory device 302. However, the information transmitted by the factory device 302 is not limited to these. The factory device 302 may transmit information other than the information of the vehicle 10 and the instructions for the vehicle 10 to other devices. In the present embodiment, the factory device 302 corresponds to an "external device" installed outside the vehicle 10.

[0017] The factory 300 is, for example, a factory that manufactures the vehicle 10. However, the factory 300 may be a factory other than manufacturing the vehicle 10. The worker 301 is a person who works in the factory 300. The worker 301 performs, for example, work related to the manufacture of the vehicle 10. However, the worker 301 may perform work other than the manufacture of the vehicle 10. The worker 301 may use the factory device 302 to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 and the instructions for the vehicle 10 to the vehicle 10. The worker 301 can use the factory device 302 to collate whether the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted to the vehicle 10 is correct with the information of the vehicle 10 owned by the factory 300. The worker 301 may transmit the instructions for the vehicle 10 to the vehicle 10 based on the above collation result.

[0018] The information server 401 is a server managed by the information center 400 that manages information of the vehicle 10. The information server 401 can be managed, for example, by the manufacturer that manufactures the vehicle 10. However, the information server 401 may be managed by a party other than the manufacturer that manufactures the vehicle 10, such as a seller of the vehicle 10, a provider that provides various services on the network N, etc. The information server 401 is exemplified by a computer having a CPU, a memory, an external storage device, etc. The information server 401 may transmit information regarding the vehicle 10 to the communication device 200 via the network N, for example.

[0019] The information center 400 manages information of the vehicle 10. The information center 400 creates a contract document (hereinafter referred to as the contract document) of the vehicle 10 based on the information of the vehicle 10 received by the information server 401.

[0020] (Functional configuration) The functional configurations of the ECU 100 and the communication device 200 included in the information processing system 1 will be described based on FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is a block diagram schematically showing an example of each functional configuration of the information processing system 1. FIG. 2 exemplifies a configuration corresponding to the processing of the information processing system 1. Therefore, each part exemplified in FIG. 2 is not necessarily a hardware component or a program module.

[0021] (ECU) The ECU 100 performs processing for controlling the vehicle 10. The ECU 100 receives and stores information of the vehicle 10 from outside the vehicle 10. The ECU 100 performs processing for transmitting information of the vehicle 10 to the communication device 200. The ECU 100 has a control unit 110, a main storage unit 120, and an auxiliary storage unit 130.

[0022]

[0023] ​The control unit 110 functions as the control unit of the ECU 100. The control unit 110 is also called a processor. The processor is, for example, a CPU or a DSP (Digital Signal Processor). The processor is not limited to a single processor and may have a multi-processor configuration. The processor may have a multi-core configuration with multiple cores in a single chip connected by a single socket. The control unit 110 executes a computer program developed in the main memory unit 120 in an executable form.

[0024] The control unit 110 has a function of controlling whether to store the information of the vehicle 10 received from the outside of the vehicle 10 in either the main memory unit 120 or the auxiliary memory unit 130 of the ECU 100. The control unit 110 has a function of controlling to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 to the communication device 200.

[0025] The main memory unit 120 is, for example, a RAM (Random Access Memory). The main memory unit 120 may temporarily store control data such as programs and arithmetic parameters used by the ECU 100. The main memory unit 120 includes, for example, a main memory and a read-only memory. The main memory unit 120 includes a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and a high-speed cache memory. The main memory unit 120 may store at least a part of the instructions for these processes in addition to the data processed by the ECU 100.

[0026] The auxiliary memory unit 130 is used, for example, as a storage area to assist the main memory unit 120 and stores data and the like processed by the ECU 100. The auxiliary memory unit 130 is, for example, a ROM (Read Only Memory), an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), or a flash memory. The auxiliary memory unit 130 may include a removable medium (portable recording medium). The removable medium is, for example, a USB memory, an SD card, or a disk recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVD disk, or a Blu-ray disk.

[0027] (Communication device) The communication device 200 includes a communication unit 210, a control unit 220, and a storage unit 230.

[0028] The communication unit 210 has a function of connecting the communication device 200 to the network N. The communication unit 210 can be realized by a communication interface (hereinafter referred to as a communication I / F). The communication unit 210 communicates with external devices via the network N through the communication I / F. The communication I / F is, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network) interface board or a wireless communication circuit for wireless communication. The wireless communication circuit complies with standard specifications such as LTE (Long Term Evolution) and 5G (Generation) for accessing a mobile phone network may be used. Also, the wireless communication circuit may be an interface to a wireless LAN or the like.

[0029] The control unit 220 includes an acquisition unit 221, a determination unit 222, and a command unit 223.

[0030] The control unit 220 functions as the control unit of the communication device 200. Since the control unit 220 is the same as the control unit 110 of the ECU 100, detailed description thereof is omitted.

[0031] The acquisition unit 221 has a function of acquiring information of the vehicle 10 received by the communication device 200 from the communication unit 210. The acquisition unit 221 acts as a means for acquiring information of the vehicle 10 (hereinafter also referred to as vehicle information). The vehicle information acquired by the acquisition unit 221 includes information unique to the vehicle 10. The information unique to the vehicle 10 is, for example, the VIN (Vehicle Identification Number). The VIN is a combination of Roman letters and numbers It is a number constituted by matching. However, the information unique to the vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition unit 221 is not limited to the VIN. The information unique to the vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition unit 221 may be the vehicle body number of the vehicle 10. Further, the information of the vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition unit 221 is not limited to the information unique to the vehicle 10. The information of the vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition unit 221 may be information common to a plurality of vehicles 10.

[0032] As a method for the acquisition unit 221 to acquire the information of the vehicle 10, a known method can be adopted. For example, the acquisition unit 221 can acquire the information of the vehicle 10 received by the communication unit 210 of the communication device 200 via a communication cable. However, the means for the acquisition unit 221 to acquire the information of the vehicle 10 is not limited to this. The acquisition unit 221 may acquire the information of the vehicle 10 received by the communication unit 210 of the communication device 200 via the network N. The acquisition unit 221 may store the acquired information of the vehicle 10 in a storage unit 230 described later.

[0033] The acquisition unit 221 has a function of acquiring an instruction regarding the vehicle 10 received by the communication device 200 from the communication unit 210. The acquisition unit 221 acts as a means for acquiring an instruction regarding the vehicle 10. Examples of the instruction regarding the vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition unit 221 include an instruction to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 to the outside of the vehicle 10. However, the instruction regarding the vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition unit 221 is not limited to the instruction to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 to the outside of the vehicle 10. The instruction regarding the vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition unit 221 may be an instruction to store the acquired information of the vehicle 10 in the storage unit 230. The instruction regarding the vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition unit 221 may be an instruction to delete the information of the vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition unit 221. The instruction acquired by the acquisition unit 221 may be an instruction regarding information other than the information of the vehicle 10.

[0034] The method by which the acquisition unit 221 acquires instructions regarding the vehicle 10 can adopt a known method. For example, the acquisition unit 221 can acquire instructions regarding the vehicle 10 received by the communication unit 210 of the communication device 200 via a communication cable. However, the means by which the acquisition unit 221 acquires information about the vehicle 10 is not limited to this. The acquisition unit 221 may acquire instructions regarding the vehicle 10 received by the communication unit 210 of the communication device 200 via the network N. The communication device 200 may store the instructions regarding the vehicle 10 acquired by the acquisition unit 221 in the storage unit 230 described later.

[0035] The determination unit 222 has a function of checking whether the communication device 200 has received (acquired) an instruction to store information about the vehicle 10. Based on this check result, the determination unit 222 has a function of determining whether the communication device 200 has acquired (received) an instruction to store information about the vehicle 10. The instruction to store information about the vehicle 10 checked by the determination unit 222 may be information received from the factory device 302 or information received from outside the factory device 302. However, the instruction to store information about the vehicle 10 checked by the determination unit 222 is not limited to this. The determination unit 222 may check whether an instruction to store information about the vehicle 10 is stored in the storage unit 230 described later.

[0036] The determination unit 222 has a function of checking whether the communication device 200 has received an instruction to receive information about the vehicle 10 and transmit the information about the vehicle 10 outside the vehicle 10. Based on this check result, the determination unit 222 has a function of determining whether the communication device 200 has received an instruction to receive information about the vehicle 10 and transmit the information about the vehicle 10 outside the vehicle 10. The information about the vehicle 10 may be vehicle information received from the ECU 100 or vehicle information received from outside the ECU 100. However, the information about the vehicle 10 checked by the determination unit 222 is not limited to this. The determination unit 222 may check whether the information about the vehicle 10 is stored in the storage unit 230 described later. The instruction to transmit the information about the vehicle 10 outside the vehicle 10 may be an instruction transmitted from the factory device 302 or an instruction transmitted from outside the factory device 302. However, the judgment The instruction to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 confirmed by the fixed part 222 to the outside of the vehicle 10 is not limited to this. The determination unit 222 may check whether an instruction to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 to the outside of the vehicle 10 is stored in the storage unit 230 described later.

[0037] The command unit 223 has a function of storing the information of the vehicle 10 in the storage unit 230 described later. Specifically, when the determination unit 222 determines that the acquisition unit 221 has acquired an instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10, the command unit 223 stores the information of the vehicle 10 in the storage unit 230 based on the determination result.

[0038] The command unit 223 has a function of transmitting the information of the vehicle 10 from the communication device 200 to the outside of the vehicle 10. Specifically, there may be a case where the determination unit 222 determines that the communication device 200 has received the information of the vehicle 10 and the communication device 200 has received an instruction to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 to the outside of the vehicle 10. The command unit 223 transmits the information of the vehicle 10 to the outside of the vehicle 10 via the network based on the determination result. The transmission destination of the information of the vehicle 10 by the command unit 223 includes, for example, the information server 401 installed in the information center 400 that handles the information of the vehicle 10 outside the vehicle 10. However, the transmission destination of the information of the vehicle 10 by the command unit 223 is not limited to the information server 401. The transmission destination of the information of the vehicle 10 by the command unit 223 may be any device that manages the information of the vehicle 10. In addition, the command unit 223 may associate information for identifying the communication device 200 with the information of the vehicle 10. In that case, the command unit 223 transmits, together with the information of the vehicle 10, information for identifying the communication device 200 associated with the information of the vehicle 10 to the outside of the vehicle 10.

[0039] The storage unit 230 has a function of storing the information acquired by the acquisition unit 221. The storage unit 230 is, for example, a RAM (Random Access Memory). The main storage unit 120 may temporarily store control data such as programs and arithmetic parameters used by the communication device 200. The storage unit 230 includes, for example, a main memory and a read-only memory. The storage unit 230 includes a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and a high-speed cache memory. The storage unit 230 may store at least a part of the instructions for these processes in addition to the data processed by the communication device 200.

[0040] The storage unit 230 may be a ROM (Read Only Memory), an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), or a flash memory. The storage unit 230 may include a removable medium (portable recording medium). The removable medium is, for example, a USB memory, an SD card, or a disk recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVD disk, or a Blu-ray disk.

[0041] (Flow of information processing) The flow of information processing in the information processing system 1 will be described based on FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of information processing in the information processing system 1. FIG. 3 shows the flow in which the control unit 220 of the communication device 200 processes the information of the vehicle 10. It is assumed that the information processing in the present embodiment is performed when the engine of the vehicle 10 is started or when the power of the vehicle 10 is on.

[0042] In the information processing system 1, the factory device 302 of the factory 300 that manufactures the vehicle transmits the information of the vehicle 10 to the ECU 100 of the vehicle 10 (step S1).

[0043] The control unit 110 of the ECU 100 stores the information of the vehicle 10 received from the factory device 302 in the auxiliary storage unit 130 (step S2). The ECU 100 transmits the information of the vehicle 10 to the communication device 200 (step S3). The transmission of the information of the vehicle 10 from the ECU 100 to the communication device 200 may be performed periodically or at a predetermined timing. Communication device 2 The acquisition unit 221 in the control unit 220 of 00 receives (acquires) the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the ECU 100 via the communication unit 210.

[0044] The factory device 302 transmits an instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10 to the communication unit 210 of the communication device 200 (step S4). The acquisition unit 221 of the control unit 220 receives, via the communication unit 210, the instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the factory device 302. The determination unit 222 checks whether the communication device 200 has received an instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10. When the determination unit 222 determines that the communication device 200 has received an instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10, the command unit 223 causes the information of the vehicle 10 to be stored in the storage unit 230 based on the determination result (step S5). However, in the process of the storage unit 230 storing the information of the vehicle 10, the process of being determined by the determination unit 222 to have received an instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10 is not essential. When the determination unit 222 determines that the acquisition unit 221 has received the information of the vehicle 10, the command unit 223 may cause the information of the vehicle 10 to be stored in the storage unit 230 based on the determination result.

[0045] At factory 300, in step S1, it is confirmed that the information of vehicle 10 transmitted by factory device 302 to ECU100 is correct (step S6). The confirmation that the information of vehicle 10 is correct can be performed, for example, by the factory device 302 collating predetermined data regarding the information of vehicle 10. The confirmation that the information of vehicle 10 is correct may be performed by factory worker 301 using the factory device 302 to collate predetermined data regarding the vehicle information. The confirmation that the information of vehicle 10 is correct can be performed, for example, by a method of collating the data of the vehicle information owned by factory 300 and the data of the vehicle information transmitted from factory device 302 to ECU100. In this case, when collating the data of the information of vehicle 10, factory device 302 does not access vehicle 10. However, the method for confirming the information of vehicle 10 is not limited to this. Factory device 302 may acquire again the data of the information of vehicle 10 stored in vehicle 10 and collate this data with the data of the information of vehicle 10 owned by factory 300. In this case, when acquiring again the data of the information of vehicle 10, factory device 302 accesses vehicle 10. The data of the vehicle information stored in vehicle 10 that factory device 302 accesses may be the data stored in ECU100 or the data stored in communication device 200. However, the process of confirming that the information of vehicle 10 transmitted from factory device 302 to ECU100 is correct is not essential and may be omitted.

[0046] Factory device 302 transmits an instruction to communication device 200 to transmit the information of vehicle 10 transmitted to ECU100 outside vehicle 10 (step S7). The instruction can be transmitted after confirming that the information of vehicle 10 transmitted from factory device 302 to ECU100 is correct. However, the instruction may be transmitted, for example, by worker 301 operating factory device 302 even without the above confirmation. The instruction may be transmitted from factory device 302 to ECU100 and transferred from ECU100 to communication device 200.

[0047] The acquisition unit 221 of the communication device 200 acquires, via the communication unit 210, an instruction to transmit the information of the vehicle 10, which has been transmitted from the factory device 302, to the outside of the vehicle 10. When the determination unit 222 can confirm that the acquisition unit 221 has acquired the information of the vehicle 10 and the instruction, the determination unit 222 determines that the communication device 200 has received the information of the vehicle 10 and the instruction. Based on the determination result, the command unit 223 reads out the information of the vehicle 10 from the storage unit 230 (also referred to as loading) and transmits it to the outside of the vehicle 10 (step S8). However, when the communication device 200 receives the information of the vehicle 10 and the instruction to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 to the outside of the vehicle 10 at the same timing, the command unit 223 may directly transmit the received information of the vehicle 10 to the outside of the vehicle 10. In the present embodiment, the command unit 223 transmits the information of the vehicle 10 to the information server 401 of the information center 400 via the network N. However, the target to which the command unit 223 transmits the information of the vehicle 10 is not limited to the information server 401. The command unit 223 can transmit the information of the vehicle 10 to a device other than the information server 401 that manages and uses the information of the vehicle 10. The information can be transmitted to a device other than the information server 401 that manages and uses the information of the vehicle 10.

[0048] The information server 401 receives the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the command unit 223 via the network N. Based on the information of the vehicle 10 received by the information server 401, the information center 400 creates a contract document for the vehicle 10 (step S9). However, at the information center 400, operations other than creating the contract document for the vehicle 10 may be performed based on the received information of the vehicle 10.

[0049] By controlling the information of the vehicle 10 according to this embodiment, the communication device 200 of the information processing system 1 can hold the process of transmitting the vehicle information outside the vehicle until it receives an instruction from the factory device 302 to transmit the information outside the vehicle. The operator 301 of the factory 300 operates the factory device 302 and transmits an instruction to transmit the information outside the vehicle 10 to the communication device 200. The transmission of the instruction can be performed, for example, based on the confirmation that the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the factory device 302 to the ECU 100 is correct. When the communication device 200 receives an instruction to transmit the vehicle information outside the vehicle from the factory device 302, it transmits the information of the vehicle 10 to the information center 400 outside the vehicle. Therefore, by using the information processing system 1, it is possible to increase the possibility of reducing artificial errors in which the information of the vehicle 10 and the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the vehicle 10 to the information center 400 do not match each other.

[0050] (Flow of information processing in the communication device) The processing flow in the control of the vehicle information according to this embodiment will be described based on FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of information processing in the communication device 200. The information processing of the vehicle information is executed by the communication device 200 of the information processing system 1. The information processing of the vehicle information is performed based on the information of the vehicle 10 received by the communication device 200 and the instruction for the communication device 200 received by the communication device 200 from the factory device 302. It is assumed that the information processing in this embodiment is performed when the engine of the vehicle 10 is started or when the power supply of the vehicle 10 is on.

[0051] In this flow, the factory device 302 of the factory 300 that manufactures the vehicle transmits the information of the vehicle 10 to the ECU 100 of the vehicle 10. The ECU 100 transmits the information of the vehicle 10 received from the factory device 302 to the communication device 200. The transmission of the information of the vehicle 10 from the ECU 100 to the communication device 200 may be performed periodically or at a predetermined timing. The acquisition unit 221 in the control unit 220 of the communication device 200 receives (acquires) the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the ECU 100 via the communication unit 210 (step S101).

[0052] The factory device 302 transmits an instruction to the communication device 200 to store the information of the vehicle 10. The acquisition unit 221 of the control unit 220 receives, via the communication unit 210, the instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the factory device 302. The determination unit 222 determines (checks) whether the communication device 200 has received an instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10 (step S102). When the determination unit 222 determines that the communication device 200 has received an instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10 (determined as YES in step S102), the process proceeds to step S103. When the determination unit 222 determines that, after the communication device 200 has received the vehicle information of the vehicle 10, a certain period of time has elapsed and no instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10 has been received (determined as NO in step S102), the process returns to step S101.

[0053] In step S103, the command unit 223 causes the storage unit 230 to store the information of the vehicle 10. However, in the process of causing the storage unit 230 to store the information of the vehicle 10, the process determined by the determination unit 222 to have received an instruction to store the information of the vehicle 10 is not essential. When the determination unit 222 determines that the acquisition unit 221 has received the information of the vehicle 10, the command unit 223 may cause the storage unit 230 to store the information of the vehicle 10 based on the determination result.

[0054] The factory device 302 transmits an instruction to the communication device 200 to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 sent to the ECU 100 outside the vehicle 10. The operator 301 of the factory 300 operates the factory device 302 and transmits an instruction to the communication device 200 to transmit the information outside the vehicle 10. The transmission of the instruction is performed, for example, based on the confirmation that the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the factory device 302 to the ECU 100 is correct. The acquisition unit 221 acquires, via the communication unit 210, an instruction to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the factory device 302 outside the vehicle 10. The determination unit 222 checks whether the acquisition unit 221 has acquired (received) the information of the vehicle 10. At the same time, the determination unit 222 checks whether the acquisition unit 221 has acquired (received) an instruction to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 outside the vehicle 10 from the factory device 302. Based on these check results, the determination unit 222 determines whether the communication device 200 has received the vehicle information and received the instruction from the factory device 302 (step S104). When the determination unit 222 determines that the acquisition unit 221 has acquired the vehicle information and acquired the instruction (determined as YES in step S104), the process proceeds to step S105. When the determination unit 222 determines that the acquisition unit 221 has not acquired at least one of the information of the vehicle 10 and the instruction (determined as NO in step S104), the process returns to step S104.

[0055] In step S105, based on the determination result by the determination unit 222, the command unit 223 reads out the information of the vehicle 10 from the storage unit 230 (also referred to as loading) and transmits it outside the vehicle 10. However, when the communication device 200 receives the information of the vehicle 10 and the instruction to transmit the information of the vehicle 10 outside the vehicle 10 at the same timing, the command unit 223 may transmit the received information of the vehicle 10 outside the vehicle 10 as it is. In the present embodiment, the command unit 223 transmits the information of the vehicle 10 to the information server 401 of the information center 400 via the network N. However, the target to which the command unit 223 transmits the information of the vehicle 10 is not limited to the information server 401. The command unit 223 can transmit the information of the vehicle 10 to a device other than the information server 401 that manages and uses the information of the vehicle 10.

[0056] The information server 401 receives the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the command unit 223 via the network N. The information center 400 creates the contract documents of the vehicle 10 based on the information of the vehicle 10 received by the information server 401. However, the information center 400 may perform operations other than creating the contract documents of the vehicle 10 based on the received information of the vehicle 10.

[0057] By controlling the information of the vehicle 10 according to this embodiment, the communication device of the information processing system 1 can hold the process of transmitting the vehicle information outside the vehicle until the communication device 200 receives an instruction to transmit the vehicle information from an external device. The operator 301 of the factory 300 operates the factory device 302 and transmits an instruction to transmit the information outside the vehicle 10 to the communication device 200. The transmission of the instruction is performed, for example, based on the confirmation that the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the factory device 302 to the ECU 100 is correct. When the communication device 200 receives the information of the vehicle 10 and an instruction to transmit the vehicle information outside the vehicle from the factory device 302, the communication device 200 transmits the vehicle information to the information center 400 outside the vehicle. Therefore, by using the information processing system 1, it is possible to increase the possibility of reducing artificial errors in which the information of the vehicle 10 and the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the vehicle 10 to the information center 400 do not match each other.

[0058] (Summary) According to this embodiment, the information processing system 1 includes an ECU 100, a communication device 200, and a factory device 302. The ECU 100 functions as a control device that controls the vehicle 10 in the information processing system 1. The ECU 100, the communication device 200, and the factory device 302 are connected to each other. The information processing system 1 is connected to an information server 401 installed outside the vehicle 10 via the network N. Therefore, the above configuration can be said to be an information processing system including a control device that controls a vehicle, a communication device connected to the control device and capable of wireless communication with the outside of the vehicle, and an external device connected to the control device and the communication device.

[0059] In this embodiment, the control unit 110 of the ECU 100 transmits the information of the vehicle 10 received from the factory device 302, which is an external device, to the communication device 200 (step S3). Therefore, the above configuration can be said to be a configuration in which the control device transmits the vehicle information of the vehicle received from the external device to the communication device.

[0060] In this embodiment, the acquisition unit 221 in the control unit 220 of the communication device 200 acquires (receives) the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the ECU 100 via the communication unit 210. The factory device 302 transmits an instruction to the effect that the information of the vehicle 10 is to be transmitted outside the vehicle 10 to the communication device 200 (step S7). The acquisition unit 221 acquires (receives) an instruction to the effect that the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the factory device 302 is to be transmitted outside the vehicle 10 via the communication unit 210. The determination unit 222 confirms that the acquisition unit 221 has acquired the information of the vehicle 10 and that the instruction has been acquired from the factory device 302. The determination unit 222 determines that the communication device 200 has received the information and the instruction based on these confirmation results. The command unit 223 reads out the information of the vehicle 10 from the storage unit 230 (also referred to as loading) based on the determination result, and transmits it to the information server 401 of the information center 400 installed outside the vehicle 10 (step S8). Therefore, the above configuration can be said to be a configuration in which the communication device transmits the vehicle information to the information center outside the vehicle when it receives the vehicle information and an instruction to transmit the vehicle information outside the vehicle from an external device.

[0061] According to this embodiment, when the communication device 200 of the information processing system 1 receives the information of the vehicle 10 and receives an instruction from an external device (factory device 302) to transmit the vehicle information outside the vehicle, it transmits the vehicle information to the information center 400 outside the vehicle. Therefore, after receiving the information of the vehicle 10, the communication device 200 can hold the process of transmitting the vehicle information outside the vehicle until it receives an instruction from an external device to transmit the vehicle information outside the vehicle. The operator 301 of the factory 300 operates the factory device 302 and transmits an instruction to the communication device 200 to transmit the information outside the vehicle 10. The transmission of the instruction is performed, for example, based on the confirmation that the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the factory device 302 to the ECU 100 is correct. When the communication device 200 receives the information of the vehicle 10 and receives an instruction to transmit the vehicle information outside the vehicle from the factory device 302, it transmits the information to the information center 400 outside the vehicle. Therefore, by using the information processing system 1, it is possible to increase the possibility of reducing artificial errors in which the information of the vehicle 10 and the information of the vehicle 10 transmitted from the vehicle 10 to the information center 400 do not match each other.

[0062] <Other Embodiments> The above embodiments are merely examples, and the present disclosure can be appropriately modified and implemented without departing from the gist thereof. In addition, the processes and means described in the present disclosure can be freely combined and implemented as long as no technical contradiction occurs.

[0063] Also, the processes described as being performed by one device may be shared and executed by a plurality of devices. Alternatively, the processes described as being performed by different devices may be executed by one device. In a computer system, it is possible to flexibly change how each function is realized by a hardware configuration (server configuration).

[0064] The present disclosure can also be realized by supplying a computer program that implements the functions described in the above embodiments to a computer and causing one or more processors included in the computer to read and execute the program. Such a computer program is It may be provided to a computer by a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium connectable to a system bus of the computer, or may be provided to the computer via a network. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium includes, for example, any type of disk such as a magnetic disk (e.g., a floppy (registered trademark) disk, a hard disk drive (HDD), etc.), an optical disk (e.g., a CD-ROM, a DVD disk, a Blu-ray disk, etc.), a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), an EPROM, an EEPROM, a magnetic card, a flash memory, or any type of medium suitable for storing electronic instructions, such as an optical card.

Explanation of Signs

[0065] 1 ··· Information processing system 10 ··· Vehicle 100 ··· ECU 110 ··· Control unit 120 ··· Main memory unit 130 ··· Auxiliary storage unit 200 ··· Communication device 210 ··· Communication unit 220 ··· Control unit 221 ··· Acquisition unit 222 ··· Determination unit 223 ··· Command unit 230 ··· Storage unit 300 ··· Factory 301 ··· Worker 302 ··· Factory equipment 400 ··· Information center 401 ··· Information server N ··· Network

Claims

【Claim 1】 A control device for controlling a vehicle, A communication device connected to the control device and capable of wireless communication with the outside of the vehicle, An external device connected to the control device and the communication device, Comprising: The control device transmits vehicle information including a number for identifying the vehicle received from the external device to the communication device, The communication device receives the vehicle information and, when receiving an instruction from the external device to transmit the vehicle information outside the vehicle, transmits the vehicle information to an information center outside the vehicle. An information processing system.

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