Vehicle control system

Abstract

To provide a vehicle control device that is able to prevent a vehicle power supply from being turned on during an update process of software of an electronic control unit.SOLUTION: A vehicle control device that controls a vehicle power supply, includes: an acquisition unit that acquires input information of an operation switch for transition between on and off states of the vehicle power supply; a reception unit that receives an inhibition request for inhibiting the on state of the vehicle power supply, from one or more electronic control units mounted on a vehicle; and a control unit that controls the on / off state of the vehicle power supply. When there is the inhibition request in the off state of the vehicle power supply, the control unit inhibits the transition of the vehicle power supply to the on state resulting from input of the operation switch.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle control device that controls the power supply of a vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a device that manages the update of software of an electronic control unit that controls the operation of devices mounted on a vehicle. In this device, it is described that the update of the software of the electronic control unit is executed when the vehicle is parked (a safe place for the vehicle).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] While the software of the electronic control unit is being updated during vehicle parking, if a power - on operation (such as pressing a push - start switch) to start the vehicle system is performed by a user or the like, the system start - up process will start in a state where the vehicle is not sufficiently prepared. In this case, there is a risk that the software update process performed so far will be wasted, or the time until the software update is completed will become longer than normal, etc.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a vehicle control device that can prevent the vehicle power supply from being turned on during the software update process of an electronic control unit.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] One aspect of the disclosed technology for solving the above problems is a vehicle control device for controlling a vehicle power supply, comprising: an acquisition unit for acquiring input information of an operation switch for transitioning between on / off states of the vehicle power supply; a reception unit for receiving prohibition requests from one or more electronic control units mounted on the vehicle to prohibit the vehicle power supply from being on; and a control unit for controlling the on / off state of the vehicle power supply, wherein the control unit prohibits the transition to the on state of the vehicle power supply by input of an operation switch when there is a prohibition request while the vehicle power supply is off. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the vehicle control device described above, if a prohibition request is issued from the electronic control unit while the vehicle power is off, the transition to the vehicle power on state is prohibited even if an input is received from the operation switch. This process prevents the vehicle power from being turned on during a software update if the electronic control unit that issued the prohibition request is in the process of updating its software. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] Functional block diagram of a vehicle control device and its peripheral parts according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] Flowchart of the power control process performed by the vehicle control system [Figure 3] Timing chart of power control performed by the vehicle control system (during normal operation) [Figure 4] Timing chart of power control performed by the vehicle control system (during timeout processing) [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The vehicle control device of this disclosure, when it receives an input to turn on the vehicle power via an operating switch, prohibits the transition to the vehicle power-on state if it is not desired to start the system. This prevents the vehicle system from starting up during the software update process of the electronic control unit. Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0010] <Embodiment> [composition] Figure 1 is a functional block diagram of a vehicle control device 10 and its surrounding components according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The functional block illustrated in Figure 1 includes the vehicle control device 10, an operation switch 20, a vehicle power supply unit 30, and a plurality of electronic control units 40.

[0011] The operation switch 20 is configured to receive operations input from a user, such as the vehicle's driver, to the vehicle. Examples of this operation switch 20 include a push-start switch button that switches the vehicle's power on / off state in order to start or stop the vehicle's system.

[0012] The vehicle power supply unit 30 is configured to perform operations related to controlling the on / off state of the vehicle power supply based on control (instructions) from the vehicle control device 10. This vehicle power supply unit 30 includes equipment and devices such as an electronic control unit (HV-ECU, etc.) and relays (IG-P relay, IG-R relay, ACC relay, +BA relay, etc.).

[0013] The multiple electronic control units 40 are various devices mounted on the vehicle. Each electronic control unit 40 consists of a processor, memory, and input / output interfaces, and achieves a predetermined function by the processor reading and executing software (programs) stored in the memory. Among the multiple electronic control units 40, one or more electronic control units can have their software updated. The need for a software update is indicated by an in-vehicle device (not shown) that centrally manages the updates, which instructs the electronic control unit to be updated whether or not an update is necessary.

[0014] In the series of processes related to this software update, processes that affect the vehicle's behavior are performed when the vehicle's systems are stopped, such as when the vehicle is parked, and the vehicle power is off (IG-OFF), for safety reasons. In this embodiment, the electronic control unit to be updated (a specific electronic control unit 40) outputs a "prohibition request" to the vehicle control device 10 to prevent the transition of the vehicle power from the off state (IG-OFF) to the on state (IG-ON), so as not to interrupt the software update performed when the vehicle power is off (IG-OFF). The multiple electronic control units 40 and the vehicle control device 10 are connected to each other via an in-vehicle network 50 such as CAN (Controller Area Network).

[0015] The vehicle control device 10 is configured to control the vehicle's power supply. Typically, this vehicle control device 10 is configured as an electronic control unit (such as an extended body ECU) that includes a processor, memory, and input / output interfaces. The processor reads and executes software (programs) stored in memory, thereby realizing the functions performed by the acquisition unit 11, reception unit 12, and control unit 13 described below.

[0016] The acquisition unit 11 acquires input information from the operation switch 20 for switching the vehicle's power supply on / off state. Examples of input information include electrical signals indicating that the button on the operation switch 20 has been pressed down or made contact. The acquisition unit 11 detects this electrical signal to determine that an input operation has occurred on the operation switch 20.

[0017] The reception unit 12 receives a prohibition request from one or more of the multiple electronic control units 40 that are subject to software updates, prohibiting the vehicle power supply from being turned on (IG-ON). This prohibition request may be accepted from all of the electronic control units 40 that are subject to software updates, or it may be accepted only from the electronic control unit 40 that is the last in the update process to be performed.

[0018] The control unit 13 performs various controls regarding the on / off state of the vehicle power supply. As one of the characteristic controls executed by the control unit 13 in this embodiment, when the vehicle power supply is in the off state (IG-OFF) such as during parking, if the reception unit 12 has received a prohibition request from one or more electronic control units 40, even if the acquisition unit 11 newly acquires (detects) the input of the operation switch 20, the control that prohibits the transition of the vehicle power supply from the current off state (IG-OFF) to the on state (IG-ON) is exemplified. Also, as another one of the characteristic controls executed by the control unit 13 in this embodiment, regarding the electronic control unit 40 that continues to issue a prohibition request for an excessive period, since an abnormality such as a failure is suspected, the control that releases the prohibition of the transition to the on state (IG-ON) of the vehicle power supply (permits the on-state transition of the vehicle power supply) is exemplified. Hereinafter, these controls and the like executed by the control unit 13 will be described in detail.

[0019] [Control] Next, referring further to FIGS. 2, 3, and 4, the control performed by the vehicle control device 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described.

[0020] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the power supply control executed by the vehicle control device 10 of this embodiment. The power supply control process illustrated in this FIG. 2 starts when the vehicle power supply becomes the off state (IG-OFF).

[0021] (Step S201) The control unit 13 of the vehicle control device 10 determines whether a predetermined time has elapsed since the vehicle power supply was turned off (IG-OFF). This determination is made to determine that the software update process performed in the electronic control unit 40 after the vehicle power supply was turned off (IG-OFF) has been completed. Therefore, this predetermined time is set to any time that is longer than the time required from the time the vehicle power supply was turned off (IG-OFF) until the software update process of the electronic control unit 40 was completed. The fact that the vehicle power supply was turned off (IG-OFF) is determined based on the input information of the operation switch 20 acquired by the acquisition unit 11.

[0022] Here, the time required for the software update process to complete is, for example, if the software download is completed while the vehicle power is on (IG-ON), the "time required for the update to complete" is the sum of the time required for installation and the time required for activation. If the software installation is completed while the vehicle power is on (IG-ON), then only the time required for activation is considered the "time required for the update to complete."

[0023] If the control unit 13 determines that a predetermined time has elapsed since the vehicle power supply was turned off (IG-OFF) (step S201, yes), the process proceeds to step S203. On the other hand, if the control unit 13 determines that a predetermined time has not yet elapsed since the vehicle power supply was turned off (IG-OFF) (step S201, no), the process proceeds to step S202.

[0024] (Step S202) The receiving unit 12 of the vehicle control device 10 determines whether or not it has received a prohibition request from the electronic control unit 40 to prohibit the vehicle power being turned on (IG-ON) (hereinafter referred to as the "power-on prohibition request"). This power-on prohibition request requests that software updates be prioritized over starting the vehicle system, and is sent from the electronic control unit 40 that has downloaded or installed the software update data.

[0025] If the reception unit 12 has received a request to prohibit power-on from at least one electronic control unit 40 (step S202, yes), the process proceeds to step S204. On the other hand, if the reception unit 12 has not received a request to prohibit power-on from any of the electronic control units 40 (step S202, no), the process proceeds to step S203.

[0026] (Step S203) The control unit 13 of the vehicle control device 10 prohibits the vehicle's power from being turned on (IG-ON). In other words, even if the control unit 13 receives input from the user or other party using the operation switch 20 to instruct the system to start, it controls the vehicle's power to remain in the current off state (IG-OFF) without transitioning to the on state (IG-ON). The control unit 13 also notifies the electronic control unit 40, which sent the power-on prohibition request, that it has prohibited the vehicle's power from being turned on. This notification allows the electronic control unit 40, upon receiving the notification, to complete the software update without worrying about the process being interrupted.

[0027] When the control unit 13 prevents the vehicle's power from being turned on (IG-ON), the process proceeds to step S201.

[0028] (Step S204) The control unit 13 of the vehicle control device 10 permits the vehicle's power to be turned on (IG-ON) (permits power on). If power on is prohibited by step S203 above, the control unit 13 releases the prohibition on power on. In other words, when the vehicle's power is currently off (IG-OFF), the control unit 13 performs control that permits the transition of the vehicle's power from the off state (IG-OFF) to the on state (IG-ON) if an input from the user or the like is received from the operation switch 20 instructing the system to start.

[0029] In this case, if the request to prohibit power-on from the electronic control unit 40 in step S202 ceases and the process proceeds to step S204 (Case 1), then power-on of the vehicle is permitted based on the judgment that the software update of the electronic control unit 40 has been successfully completed.

[0030] Figure 3 shows an example of a timing chart for power control performed by the vehicle control device 10 in this Case 1. As shown in Figure 3, if the software update is performed correctly, power-on is permitted during periods when there is no request to prohibit power-on, and power-on is prohibited during periods when there is a request to prohibit power-on.

[0031] On the other hand, if the process proceeds to step S204 after a predetermined amount of time has elapsed since the vehicle power was turned off (IG-OFF) in step S201 (Case 2), then the vehicle power is permitted to be turned on based on the determination that some kind of abnormality (including a failure in software updates) has occurred in the electronic control unit 40. In this case, the electronic control unit 40, which has experienced an abnormality, will continue to send out requests to prohibit turning on the power. However, in order to avoid a situation where the vehicle power cannot be turned on (IG-ON) indefinitely, the control unit 13 will discard these requests to prohibit turning on the power and permit the vehicle power to be turned on.

[0032] Figure 4 shows an example of a timing chart for power control performed by the vehicle control device 10 in this case 2. As shown in Figure 4, if a request to prohibit power on persists for a certain period of time after the vehicle power is turned off (IG-OFF) due to an abnormality such as a software update not being performed correctly, the prohibition on power on is forcibly lifted and power on is permitted. In this case 2, the abnormality in the electronic control unit 40 may be notified to the user or others by means of display or sound.

[0033] When the control unit 13 authorizes the vehicle to be turned on (IG-ON), the process proceeds to step S205.

[0034] (Step S205) The acquisition unit 11 of the vehicle control device 10 determines whether or not an input operation has been made to the operation switch 20 for switching the vehicle power on / off state by a user or the like. If the acquisition unit 11 determines that an input operation has been made to the operation switch 20 (step S205, yes), the process proceeds to step S206.

[0035] (Step S206) The control unit 13 of the vehicle control device 10 controls (instructs) the vehicle power supply unit 30 to transition the vehicle's power from the off state (IG-OFF) to the on state (IG-ON). This starts the vehicle's system. Once the vehicle's power is controlled to the on state (IG-ON), this power control process ends.

[0036] <Effects and Actions> As described above, according to the vehicle control device 10 of one embodiment of the present disclosure, when the vehicle power supply is in the off state (IG-OFF) and the electronic control unit 40 requests a prohibition on turning the power on, the control device performs a control that prohibits the transition from the off state (IG-OFF) to the on state (IG-ON) of the vehicle power supply based on the input of the operation switch 20.

[0037] This control prevents, for example, a driver who overlooks the "Software Update in Progress" message displayed on the vehicle's information display from attempting to turn on the vehicle's power (IG-ON) by pressing the operation switch 20. This prevents the system startup process from beginning before the vehicle is fully prepared and ensures that the ongoing software update process is completed successfully.

[0038] Furthermore, according to the vehicle control device 10 of this embodiment, while it prohibits turning on the power when the vehicle power is off (IG-OFF) and there is a request to prohibit turning on the power, if a predetermined time has elapsed since the vehicle power was turned off (IG-OFF), it performs control to forcibly release the prohibition on turning on the power and permit turning on the vehicle power (IG-ON), regardless of whether there is a request to prohibit turning on the power.

[0039] This control allows the vehicle's power to be turned on (IG-ON) after a predetermined time has elapsed, even if, for example, a request to prohibit power-on continues to be sent to the vehicle control device 10 due to a failure in the software update process in the electronic control unit 40. This prevents situations where the vehicle's power cannot be turned on (IG-ON) indefinitely.

[0040] Although one embodiment of the present disclosure has been described above, the present disclosure can be interpreted not only as the vehicle control device described above, but also as a method executed by a vehicle control device equipped with a processor and memory, a program for the method, a computer-readable non-temporary recording medium storing the program, or a vehicle equipped with the vehicle control device. [Industrial applicability]

[0041] The vehicle control device described herein can be used in vehicles equipped with an electronic control unit capable of performing software update processing. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0042] 10. Vehicle control system 11 Acquisition Department 12 Reception Department 13 Control Unit 20 Operating switches 30 Vehicle power supply unit 40 Electronic control unit 50 In-vehicle network

Claims

1. A vehicle control device for controlling the vehicle's power supply, An acquisition unit that acquires input information for an operation switch that transitions the on / off state of the vehicle power supply, A receiving unit that receives a prohibition request from one or more electronic control units installed in the vehicle to prohibit the vehicle power supply from being turned on, The vehicle power supply is controlled by a control unit that controls the on / off state of the vehicle power supply, The receiving unit receives the prohibition request from a specific electronic control unit among the one or more electronic control units that is subject to software update. The control unit, when the vehicle power supply is in the off state and the prohibition request is made, prohibits the transition of the vehicle power supply to the on state by input of the operation switch, and notifies the specific electronic control unit that the transition of the vehicle power supply to the on state has been prohibited.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit permits the vehicle power to be turned on by input from the operation switch after a predetermined time has elapsed since the vehicle power was turned off.

3. The vehicle control device according to claim 2, wherein the predetermined time is set to be longer than the time required to complete the software update in the specific electronic control unit.

Images