Vehicle control system

Abstract

To provide a vehicle control system that can inform a user, through a terminal outside the vehicle, of the cause that a remote operation service has been stopped in the vehicle.SOLUTION: A vehicle control system provides a remote operation service for remotely operating a device mounted on a vehicle by using a terminal outside the vehicle. The vehicle comprises a service control unit that stops the remote operation service in the case where a power consumption of an on-vehicle battery exceeds a threshold value when electric power cannot be generated. The terminal comprises a display control unit that displays a reason that the remote operation service is unavailable on a display screen in the case where the remote operation service has been stopped in the vehicle.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle control system that provides a remote operation service capable of remotely operating devices mounted on a vehicle using a portable terminal or the like outside the vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a system capable of remotely operating a device mounted on a vehicle (remote operation service) by transmitting an operation command input by a user to a terminal outside the vehicle to the vehicle.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In order to prevent the vehicle-mounted battery from discharging, when the vehicle is not in a state where it can generate electricity (non-power generation), there are predetermined restrictions on the power that can be consumed from this vehicle-mounted battery. Therefore, when the power consumption of such a vehicle-mounted battery is large, it is necessary to stop the remote operation service. However, if the user is not informed of the reason why the vehicle has stopped the remote operation service, the user may feel inconvenienced due to the inability to use the remote operation service.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a vehicle control system capable of notifying a user of the cause of the suspension of the remote operation service in a vehicle via a terminal outside the vehicle.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] To solve the above problems, one aspect of the disclosed technology is a vehicle control system that provides a remote operation service for remotely operating equipment mounted on a vehicle using an external terminal, wherein the vehicle includes a service control unit that stops the remote operation service when the power consumption of the onboard battery exceeds a threshold when power generation is not possible, and the terminal includes a display control unit that displays on a display screen the reason why the remote operation service is unavailable when the remote operation service is stopped in the vehicle. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the vehicle control system described above, if the remote control service is stopped because the power consumption of the onboard battery exceeds a threshold when the vehicle is not in a state to generate power, the reason why the remote control service is unavailable can be notified to the user through a screen display on an external terminal. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] Schematic diagram of a vehicle control system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] A flowchart illustrating the display control processing procedure performed by the vehicle control system. [Figure 3] An example of information displayed on a device outside the vehicle. [Figure 4] An example of information displayed on a device outside the vehicle. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The vehicle control system disclosed herein, when the vehicle is not generating power and the power consumption of the onboard battery exceeds a threshold, stops the remote control service. In such cases, the system informs the user, via a screen display on an external terminal, that the remote control service is unavailable due to the vehicle's high power consumption. The embodiments of this disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0010] <Embodiment> [composition] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a vehicle control system 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The vehicle control system 100 illustrated in Figure 1 comprises a vehicle 110, a terminal 120, and a center 130.

[0011] (1) Vehicle Vehicle 110 is a vehicle such as an electric vehicle (BEV) or a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) equipped with a battery 112 that supplies power to one or more devices (in-vehicle equipment) mounted on the vehicle 110.

[0012] This vehicle 110 has a function to realize a "remote control service" that allows the operation of specific in-vehicle equipment in the vehicle 110 to be remotely controlled from an external terminal 120.

[0013] Furthermore, vehicle 110 is equipped with a service control unit 111 that can control the execution (permission) / stop (prohibition) status of this remote operation service based on the power generation status of vehicle 110 and the power consumption of battery 112. Vehicle 110 is also communicatively connected to center 130 and performs the sending and receiving of information, notifications, and requests between vehicle 110 and center 130. In addition, vehicle 110 can notify center 130 of the execution (permission) / stop (prohibition) status of the remote operation service controlled by the service control unit 111. In particular, if vehicle 110 stops the remote operation service due to high power consumption of battery 112 when power generation is not possible, it can notify center 130 of signals such as a signal indicating excessive power consumption or a signal indicating an increased risk of battery failure.

[0014] (2) terminal Terminal 120 is an information terminal device, such as a smartphone or personal computer, that has a display screen 122 owned by the user or administrator of the vehicle 110.

[0015] This terminal 120 has functions to realize remote operation services in cooperation with the vehicle 110.

[0016] In addition, the terminal 120 is communicably connected to the center 130 and performs transmission and reception of information, notifications, requests, etc. with the center 130. This terminal 120 can receive a notification from the center 130 regarding the vehicle 110 stopping (prohibiting) the remote operation service. Also, this terminal 120 can transmit a request (such as a vehicle synchronization request) necessary for executing the remote operation service to the center 130.

[0017] In addition, the terminal 120 includes a display control unit 121 that can perform control to display content related to the remote operation service on the display screen 122. When receiving a UI tone-down request described later from the center 130, it can tone down the user interface (UI) of the remote operation service and display it on the display screen 122, or illustrate on the display screen 122 that the power consumption of the vehicle 110 is high. At this time, when the tone-down displayed UI on the display screen 122 is touched, a message such as "Not available due to excessive power consumption" may be displayed in a dialog.

[0018] Typically, this terminal 120 is associated with the vehicle 110 by being registered and managed in the vehicle 110 or the center 130, etc.

[0019] (3) Center The center 130 is, for example, a so-called data center that collects and manages various data and information regarding a plurality of vehicles 110.

[0020] This center 130 is communicatively connected to the vehicle 110 and the terminal 120, and executes transmission, reception, and relay of information, notifications, requests, and the like. When the center 130 receives a notification (e.g., a signal of excessive power consumption) indicating that the remote operation service has stopped from the vehicle 110, it can manage the information of the notification, such as turning on a predefined "excessive power consumption" flag. When a request (a vehicle synchronization request) for executing the remote operation service is transmitted from the terminal 120 while the "excessive power consumption" flag is ON, the center 130 may transmit a request (a UI tone-down request) to the terminal 120 to display the stopped remote operation service on the display screen 122 in a display form different from other vehicle services that are not stopped.

[0021] The communication between the center 130 and the vehicle 110 and the communication between the center 130 and the terminal 120 are typically performed wirelessly via an external network.

[0022] [Control] Next, referring further to FIG. 2, the operation of the vehicle control system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described. FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the processing procedure of terminal screen display control executed by the present vehicle control system 100. The terminal screen display control illustrated in FIG. 2 is started, for example, when the ignition of the vehicle 110 is turned ON.

[0023] (Step S201) The service control unit 111 of the vehicle 110 determines whether the power consumption of the battery 112 exceeds a predetermined threshold when the vehicle 110 is in a state where it cannot generate power (non-power generation). This determination is made to prevent the battery 112 from running out of power. Therefore, the predetermined threshold is set based on the capacity of the battery 112 and the specifications of the on-board equipment that consumes power. The state in which the vehicle 110 cannot generate power means that the battery 112 is not being charged, and can indicate, for example, a state in which the generator is not operating or a state in which solar panel power generation is not possible. Whether the vehicle 110 is able to generate power and the power consumption of the battery 112 can be determined based on the state of the vehicle 110 detected by various detection devices (sensors, etc.) equipped in the vehicle 110, as well as physical quantities of the battery 112 (voltage value, current value).

[0024] If the service control unit 111 determines that the power consumption of the battery 112 exceeds a predetermined threshold when the vehicle 110 is unable to generate power (non-power generation) (step S201, yes), the process proceeds to step S202.

[0025] On the other hand, if the service control unit 111 determines that the power consumption of the battery 112 does not exceed a predetermined threshold when the vehicle 110 is in a state where it cannot generate power (non-power generation) (step S201, no), and the remote control service has already been stopped (prohibited), the stop (prohibition) may be lifted and the remote control service may be executed (permitted).

[0026] (Step S202) The service control unit 111 of vehicle 110 stops (prohibits) the remote control service. As a result, it becomes impossible to remotely control vehicle 110 from terminal 120. Once the remote control service of vehicle 110 is stopped (prohibited) by the service control unit 111, the process proceeds to step S203.

[0027] (Step S203) The service control unit 111 of vehicle 110 notifies the center 130 that it has stopped (prohibited) the remote control service. This notification is made via a communication unit (not shown). The notification that the remote control service has been stopped (prohibited) may also be made to terminal 120, or it may be made to both the center 130 and terminal 120 in parallel. Once the service control unit 111 notifies that the remote control service of vehicle 110 has been stopped (prohibited), the process proceeds to step S204.

[0028] (Step S204) The display control unit 121 of terminal 120 recognizes that the remote control service has been stopped in vehicle 110. This recognition can be made based on a notification received from center 130 via a communication unit (not shown) that the remote control service has been stopped. Once the display control unit 121 recognizes that the remote control service has been stopped, the process proceeds to step S205.

[0029] (Step S205) The display control unit 121 of the terminal 120 displays on the display screen 122 the reason why the remote control service for the vehicle 110 is unavailable, based on an application related to remote control installed on the terminal 120. Figures 3 and 4 show an example of the information displayed on the display screen 122 of the terminal 120.

[0030] In the example shown in Figure 3, the remote control service's user interface screen displays text indicating that the reason the remote control service is unavailable is "high vehicle power consumption." Furthermore, the remote control service's user interface screen also illustrates "high vehicle power consumption" with an image showing low battery capacity.

[0031] Furthermore, if terminal 120 receives a UI tone-down request from center 130, the unavailable remote control service may be displayed on display screen 122 in a toned-down display format (reduced display density) that differs from other available vehicle services, as shown in Figure 4.

[0032] When the display control unit 121 displays on the display screen 122 the reason why the remote control service is unavailable, the terminal screen display control is terminated.

[0033] After step S205 is completed, the process may return to step S201 and repeat the terminal screen display control.

[0034] <Effects and Actions> As described above, according to the vehicle control system 100 of one embodiment of the present disclosure, if the power consumption of the battery 112 exceeds a threshold when the vehicle 110 is unable to generate power and the remote control service is stopped, the terminal 120 is notified that the remote control service has been stopped. Upon receiving this notification, the terminal 120 displays on the display screen 122 that the excessive power consumption of the vehicle 110, which caused the remote control service to be stopped, is the reason why the remote control service is unavailable.

[0035] This control allows users who are unable to use the remote control service for vehicle 110 to find out the reason through a display on the terminal 120's display screen 122, thereby preventing them from experiencing inconvenience.

[0036] In the above embodiment, an example was described in which the vehicle 110 and the terminal 120 communicate information that the remote control service has been stopped via the center 130. However, the vehicle 110 and the terminal 120 may communicate information that the remote control service has been stopped directly without going through the center 130. [Industrial applicability]

[0037] The vehicle control system described herein can be used in vehicles that have a function for remotely controlling the vehicle using an external terminal. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0038] 100 Vehicle control systems 110 vehicles 111 Service Control Unit 112 batteries 120 devices 121 Display Control Unit 122 Display screen 130 Center

Claims

1. A vehicle control system that provides remote operation services for operating equipment mounted on a vehicle using an external terminal, The vehicle is equipped with a service control unit that stops the remote operation service when the power consumption of the onboard battery exceeds a threshold while the ignition is ON and power generation is not possible. The terminal is a vehicle control system comprising a display control unit that, when the remote control service is stopped in the vehicle, displays on a display screen the reason why the remote control service is unavailable and why remote control cannot be instructed from the terminal to the vehicle.

2. The vehicle control system according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit displays on the display screen that the vehicle consumes a lot of power as the reason why the remote control service is unavailable and remote control cannot be instructed from the terminal to the vehicle.

3. The vehicle control system according to claim 2, wherein the display control unit displays on the display screen an image indicating that the vehicle consumes a lot of power.

4. The vehicle control system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the display control unit displays the remote operation service on the display screen in a different display format from other vehicle services that are not stopped.

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