Fleet Software Update Selection via Trigger Signals
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for updating software in a fleet of vehicles are inefficient and prone to overloading, as they lack a systematic approach for selecting vehicles and ensuring user consent, leading to potential negative impacts on vehicle functions and user experience.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a central data processing device that registers vehicles via identification data, continuously checks for trigger signals, selects vehicles for updates based on these signals, and transfers software updates via an air interface, ensuring user consent and optimizing load distribution to prevent overloading.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If software updates are transferred to all vehicles simultaneously, then update speed is improved, but system overload and network congestion occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the vehicle fleet into different groups based on trigger signals, allowing selective updating rather than simultaneous updates to all vehicles. This divides the update process into manageable portions that can be handled without overloading the system.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses periodic trigger signals from vehicles to initiate updates at different times. Instead of a single bulk update operation, updates are distributed periodically across the fleet based on when individual vehicles send trigger signals, preventing system overload.
2Productivity
If software updates are transferred without user consent, then update efficiency is improved, but user experience and vehicle function stability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates user consent as a feedback mechanism before executing software updates. The update process is conditional upon receiving affirmative user authorization, allowing users to control when updates occur and preventing unwanted changes that could affect vehicle function stability.
3Speed
If trigger signals are sent frequently by vehicles, then update responsiveness is improved, but network load and system processing burden increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system accepts trigger signals from vehicles but processes only a subset of these signals for actual update initiation. Not every trigger signal results in an update - the central device selectively processes signals based on current conditions, reducing unnecessary network traffic and processing load while maintaining responsiveness.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and a central data processing device updates software in a plurality of vehicles of a vehicle fleet during a software rollout. Vehicles of the vehicle fleet are registered in a central data processing device by transmitting vehicle identification data of the vehicles to the central data processing device via an air interface when a vehicle connects to the central data processing device for the first time. Additionally, a check is continuously carried out in order to determine whether a trigger signal is present that is suitable for initiating an update of the software in at least one of the plurality of vehicles of the vehicle fleet. At least one vehicle registered in the central data processing device is selected from the plurality of vehicles in the vehicle fleet using the vehicle identification data transmitted to the central data processing device when a trigger signal is ascertained and a software update is available. The software update is transmitted from the central data processing device to the at least one selected vehicle via the air interface.