Vehicle ECU Grouped Rewriting for Faster Updates and Rollback
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing vehicle master devices face challenges in efficiently rewriting programs across multiple electronic control units (ECUs) simultaneously, leading to prolonged processing times and potential interference with vehicle functions, thereby affecting user convenience.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle master device is configured to acquire update data, distribute it to multiple ECUs, and instruct them to perform installation, rollback, or activation in groups, based on analyzed rewrite specification data, allowing for quicker program rewriting and switching between old and new programs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If program rewriting is performed on multiple ECUs simultaneously, then productivity is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the plurality of ECUs into multiple groups based on their functional relationships and rewriting dependencies. The master device performs program rewriting on each group sequentially rather than simultaneously on all ECUs, which reduces control complexity while maintaining improved productivity compared to traditional single-ECU rewriting
Solution Approach 2:
The patent dynamically determines the grouping of ECUs based on their interdependencies and the specific rewriting task. The control program adapts the rewriting sequence and group composition according to the actual system state, allowing flexible management of complexity while achieving parallel processing benefits
2Productivity
If program rewriting is performed on multiple ECUs simultaneously, then productivity is improved, but reliability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
By dividing ECUs into separate groups that are rewritten sequentially, the patent isolates potential errors to specific groups rather than affecting the entire system. This segmentation allows for better error containment and recovery, improving reliability while still achieving faster overall rewriting compared to traditional methods
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements validation and checkpoint mechanisms before and during the rewriting process. Each group is prepared and validated before rewriting begins, and the system can rollback to previous stable states if errors occur, providing a cushion against reliability issues while enabling parallel processing
3Productivity
If program rewriting is performed on multiple ECUs simultaneously, then productivity is improved, but loss of time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments ECUs into groups that can be rewritten in optimized sequences, minimizing the time that critical vehicle functions are disrupted. By carefully ordering group rewriting and potentially performing less critical ECUs in parallel, the system achieves faster overall rewriting while reducing the impact on vehicle operation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs periodic rewriting cycles where different groups of ECUs are rewritten in alternating periods. This allows the vehicle to maintain normal operation during non-critical rewriting periods while completing all necessary updates across multiple cycles, reducing overall disruption time
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle master device includes a rewrite specification data acquisition unit that is configured to acquire rewrite specification data from outside, a rewrite specification data analysis unit that is configured to analyze the rewrite specification data acquired by the rewrite specification data acquisition unit, a group generation unit that is configured to divide the plurality of rewrite target ECUs to generate a plurality of groups based on the rewrite specification data analyzed by the rewrite specification data analysis unit, and an instruction execution unit that is configured to instruct the plurality of rewrite target ECUs for each group of the plurality of groups generated by the group generation unit to perform at least one of installation, rollback, and activation.