Vehicle ECU OTA Update Sharing via Gateway Wireless Relay
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vehicle control and communication systems face increased costs and complexity due to the need for hardwire communication lines or wireless OTA transceivers in vehicles with multiple electronic control units (ECUs), especially when CAN malfunctions occur, preventing efficient OTA updates.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing a master ECU with long-range wireless communication to receive OTA updates from a remote server and format them into a compressed packet-based file, which is then distributed via short-range wireless communication (such as WiFi or BLE) to other ECUs, eliminating the need for individual OTA transceivers and allowing updates during CAN malfunctions without hardwire connections.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If hardwire communication lines or wireless OTA transceivers are added to each ECU, then OTA update capability is improved, but vehicle cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway ECU is designed to perform multiple functions: it serves as both a regular vehicle control unit and as a centralized OTA update distribution hub. By consolidating the long-range wireless transceiver functionality in the gateway ECU rather than distributing it to all ECUs, the system achieves cost reduction while maintaining reliable OTA update capability across all vehicle control units.
2Reliability
If hardwire communication lines are added between ECUs, then OTA update data sharing is improved, but vehicle cost and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces physical hardwire communication infrastructure with wireless communication technology. The gateway ECU uses a long-range wireless transceiver to receive OTA updates and then distributes them via short-range wireless communication to other ECUs, eliminating the need for additional physical communication lines between vehicle control units.
3Device complexity
If CAN communication is used for OTA updates, then system simplicity is maintained, but updates fail during CAN malfunctions
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway ECU acts as an intermediary between the external OTA update source and the vehicle's internal CAN network. It receives updates through a dedicated long-range wireless transceiver, processes and formats the update data, then distributes it via short-range wireless communication to target ECUs. This intermediary approach isolates the CAN network from direct OTA update dependencies, allowing updates to proceed even when CAN communication is malfunctioning.
4Reliability
If individual OTA transceivers are installed in each ECU, then update independence is improved, but vehicle cost increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges the OTA update reception functionality into a single gateway ECU rather than distributing transceivers to all ECUs. The gateway ECU consolidates the long-range wireless communication capability and serves as a central distribution point, while other ECUs rely on short-range wireless reception from the gateway. This merging approach significantly reduces the total number of transceivers required while maintaining effective update independence across the vehicle network.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for receiving and sharing or distributing over-the-air (OTA) update data between a plurality of electronic control units (ECUs) of a vehicle include, by a controller of the vehicle, obtaining OTA update data for one of the plurality of ECUs from a remote server via long-range wireless communication, formatting the OTA update data to a packet-based file format to obtain formatted OTA update data, and sharing or distributing the formatted OTA update data with a remainder of the plurality of ECUs via short-range wireless communication, wherein receipt of the formatted OTA update data causes each of the remainder of the plurality of ECUs to perform a corresponding firmware upgrade, and wherein the remainder of the plurality of ECUs do not require their own one or more OTA update data transceivers thereby decreasing costs of the vehicle.