JP2002202003A - Vehicle management system - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [PROBLEMS] To prevent the occurrence of a failure by managing the vehicle health state of each user and improve preventive safety. SOLUTION: While receiving a vehicle information by a user's access from a mobile phone, receiving a data request of own vehicle by a user's personal computer access, or receiving a data request by an access from a computer of another department related to the vehicle management system. It is checked whether or not the data is received (S10). If the data is received, the data is processed and stored in a database in chronological order (S11, S12). Then, diagnosis based on the learning value is performed (S13), and data such as a diagnosis result is transmitted to the access destination (S14). As a result, the safety is improved by notifying the user before a failure actually occurs in the vehicle, and the diagnosis result based on the learning value is fed back to the relevant department to reflect the result on quality control and vehicle development.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle management system that manages the vehicle health of each user to avoid occurrence of a failure.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, when diagnosing a failure of a vehicle such as an automobile, it is essential to provide a failure diagnosis device capable of reading data from an electronic control device mounted on the vehicle. As this type of failure diagnosis device, there is, for example, a failure diagnosis device disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-15427 by the present applicant. The failure diagnosis device body or a computer for an expert system external to the failure diagnosis device body is provided. To control the data in the in-vehicle electronic control unit, that is, the control signals output to the actuators such as the injectors and the detection signals of the sensors and switches stored in the in-vehicle electronic control unit, and the calculation data in the system. It is possible to read, search for a defective part or a cause of a failure, and perform necessary repair or adjustment.

[0003]

However, the conventional failure diagnosis apparatus is supposed to be used after periodic inspection or after a failure actually occurs in a vehicle, and the frequency of use and the place of use are extremely limited. I have. For this reason, it is difficult to manage the health condition of the vehicle by grasping the secular change of each part of the vehicle under the conditions of daily actual use of the user, and it is not possible to take preventive measures before a failure occurs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a vehicle management system that manages the vehicle health status of each user, avoids occurrence of a failure, and improves preventive safety. And

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a learning value in a control device mounted on an individual vehicle is stored in a database, and when a learning value is out of a normal range, the learning value is abnormal. And recording a diagnosis result based on the learning value in the database as history data of the vehicle, and distributing the result to at least one of a user of the vehicle and a department having an access right to the database. .

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, each vehicle is provided with data communication means capable of wirelessly communicating the learning value to the outside in real time, and transmitted from the data communication means. The learning value data is received and stored in the database.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect, the learning value is selected from an air-fuel ratio learning value, an ignition timing learning value, an idle control learning value, and a throttle fully closed position learning value. At least one of the following.

That is, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a learning value in a control device mounted on each vehicle is stored in a database, and when the learning value is out of a normal range, an abnormality is diagnosed. Then, the diagnosis result based on the learning value is recorded in the database as history data of the vehicle, and is distributed to at least one of the user of the vehicle and a department having an access right to the database. It is possible to improve the preventive safety by notifying the user beforehand, and to feed back the diagnosis results to related departments to reflect the results on quality control and vehicle development.

At this time, it is desirable that the learning value be transmitted in real time from the individual vehicles via the data communication means and stored in the database by wireless transmission, so that the running vehicle can transmit the learning values from the individual vehicles. It is also possible to easily collect data, and it is possible to deal with an abnormality that appears only during traveling or an abnormality with a low reproducibility. The learning value is at least one of an air-fuel ratio learning value, an ignition timing learning value, an idle control learning value, and a throttle fully closed position learning value, and includes an air-fuel ratio control system, an ignition timing control system, an idle control system,
When each learning value in the throttle control system is out of the normal range, it is diagnosed that the control system is abnormal.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 4 relate to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a vehicle management system, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a vehicle network system, FIG. 3 is a flowchart of vehicle information processing, FIG. Is a flowchart of a diagnosis process based on a learning value.

FIG. 1 shows an example in which initial values of vehicle control information on a production line of a factory are stored and managed, and vehicle health conditions of each vehicle in each market of each user are managed in real time for 24 hours. 1 shows a vehicle management system for providing vehicle information (health status). In this vehicle management system, a wireless communication terminal 2 as data communication means capable of wirelessly communicating data (vehicle information) of a vehicle-mounted control device to the outside in real time for each vehicle 1 in the market is provided. The vehicle information transmitted via this is stored and managed in the database DB of the host computer 51a in the central information management center 51.

For data communication between the vehicle 1 and the central information management center 51, a mobile radio communication system via a base station (not shown) or a satellite communication system via an artificial satellite (not shown) can be used. . The wireless communication terminal 2 that transmits the vehicle information of the vehicle 1 may be a communication terminal connected to a control device of the vehicle 1 via a harness. However, the wireless communication terminal 2 performs wireless communication with a control device mounted on the vehicle. It is desirable to adopt a small communication terminal that can be carried separately from the vehicle 1. In this embodiment, a dedicated mobile phone (mobile phone) having a built-in communication circuit for wireless communication with a vehicle-mounted control device is employed as the portable communication terminal. Explanation is made as 2. If the user already has a mobile phone, a communication terminal that connects to the user's mobile phone and transmits data may be used.

For this reason, in the present embodiment, when a single control device is mounted on the vehicle 1, a communication circuit for controlling wireless communication is built in the control device.
Also, the vehicle 1 has a plurality of control devices, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, the control devices # 01, # 02, # 03, # 04, # 0.
When each of the control devices # 01, 5,.
# 02, # 03 # 04, # 05,...
It is desirable that the control information is unified by connecting to each other via a network. A predetermined control device in the network 10, for example, the control device # 01 includes a communication circuit # 01a for controlling wireless communication. In this case, the communication circuit # 01a provided in the control device of the vehicle 1 not only enables wireless communication with the user's dedicated mobile phone 2 but also, as described below, the production line of the factory. Wireless communication with a line-end inspection tool and a service tool at a service factory such as a dealer. The network 10 is a vehicle network suitable for real-time control. As a wireless communication method with a vehicle-mounted control device, for example, Bluetooth (Bl) that controls short-range wireless communication is used.
uetooth) or other communication methods.

On the other hand, the central information management center 51
As shown in FIG. 5, a plurality of departments, such as a development headquarters 52, a software development environment 53, a sales and service headquarters 54, and an inspection and quality assurance headquarters 55, are connected via a dedicated network 50, and a production line of a factory is connected. Is connected to an inspection tool 56b for inspecting the vehicle 1 on the chassis dynamometer 56a of the line end 56 in FIG. The inspection tool 56b is provided with a communication adapter for performing wireless communication with the communication circuit # 01a provided in the control device of the vehicle 1. Also, this dedicated network 5
0 has a dedicated network 60,
Are connected, and each network 60, 70,.
Service tools 61, 71,
, And sales tools 62, 72,..., Etc., a vehicle management system is formed that enables actual diagnosis and repair of the vehicle 1 based on the management information of the central information management center 51.
Further, each dedicated network 50, 60, 70,.
It is interconnected to the Internet 80 as a public network, and provides information via the mobile phone 2 and a personal computer (PC) of each user.
Information can be provided via a PC.

In the above-described vehicle management system, the inspection tool 56b is provided at the line end 56 in the production line of the factory.
Is used to store the initial value (initial information) of the control information of each vehicle. After shipment to the market, the vehicle information is added to the initial information and stored. In this case, each user can wirelessly transmit his / her vehicle information to the central information management center 51 at any time, regardless of whether the vehicle 1 is stopped or running, if the vehicle 1 is in operation.

That is, when the user wants to know the state of his vehicle 1, the user transmits the vehicle information to the central information management center 51 using the mobile phone 2 dedicated to the vehicle 1, and the maintenance of his vehicle 1 is performed. It is possible to receive information relating to the vehicle health state such as the state and the presence or absence of a defect. In particular, since data can be transmitted in real time from a moving vehicle by wireless communication, failures that have been difficult to quickly identify in the past, such as abnormalities that appear only during driving and abnormalities with low reproducibility, are difficult. On the other hand, it is possible to quickly determine the cause and take action.

In order for the user to transmit the vehicle information of his / her vehicle 1 to the central information management center 51, the user simply uses a mobile phone 2 dedicated to the vehicle 1 and presses a specific number preset on the mobile phone 2. Then, the wireless communication with the control device # 01 of the vehicle 1 automatically stands by and calls the central information management center 51. When the connection between the mobile phone 2 and the central information management center 51 is established,
Data of each control device via the network 10 in the vehicle 1 is transmitted from the communication circuit # 01a of the control device # 01 to the mobile phone 2 with the vehicle body number added thereto, and further added with the user identification code and the like. The telephone 2 is passed through and transmitted to the central information management center 51.

The initial information of the vehicle and the information on the market (vehicle information for each user) stored in the database DB of the central information management center 51 are transmitted to the network 50 to each department given the right to access the database DB. It is distributed via the Internet and manages vehicle health and provides various services. In other words, collection of usage frequency information of various parts in the user's vehicle, evaluation of control algorithms, real-time diagnosis and troubleshooting, predictive diagnosis by grasping changes over time and learning values of each part, and Diagnosis, etc. is performed by the relevant department, and information collection for improvement of control algorithms and new development is performed by the relevant department. In addition, as a part of the user service, a pre-diagnosis before the user's vehicle 1 enters the warehouse, a notification of the arrival of the vehicle such as a periodic inspection corresponding to the individual user, etc. are performed in the corresponding department, and the information is distributed to a dealer or the like, and the service tool 61 transmits the information. Instruct inspection or diagnosis. In addition, the relevant department performs absolute quality evaluation at the component level in the market, collection of real-time raw statistical data, relative quality evaluation of each component manufacturer, and feedback of the evaluation result to each department.

Information such as data analysis results and diagnosis results for each user's vehicle is accumulated in the central information management center 51 in time series as history information for each user.
Then, it is provided to each user via a homepage on the Internet 80 or directly via the mobile phone 2. That is, each user has his own personal computer P
C accesses the corresponding homepage via the Internet 80, or directly accesses the central information management center 51 from the mobile phone 2, and inputs his / her own identification number, name, password, etc., and enters his / her vehicle information. Can be browsed. It should be noted that the central information management center 51 from a registered user through a personal computer PC.
It is also possible to access the host computer 51a, but in that case, access is restricted from the user in consideration of security, and only browsing of general information such as a diagnosis result regarding the own vehicle is permitted. .

Next, processing of vehicle information in the central information management center 51 will be described. FIG. 3 shows a case where the central information management center 51 is accessed from the registered user's mobile phone 2 or personal computer PC, or a computer of another department (a computer having an access right to the database DB) related to the vehicle management system. This processing is executed by the host computer 51a. In this processing, first, in the first step S10, reception of vehicle initial information by access from the inspection tool 56b of the line end 56 in the production line, and reception from the user's mobile phone 2 It is checked whether the vehicle information is received by the access, the data request of the user's own vehicle by the access from the personal computer PC of the user, or the data request by the access from the computer of another department related to the vehicle management system is being received. If the data is not being received, the routine exits. If the data is received, the process proceeds to step S11 to process the data.
In step S12, data is stored.

For example, when vehicle initial information by access from the inspection tool 56b of the line end 56 in the production line or vehicle information by access from the user's mobile phone 2 in the market is received, the vehicle number and the user identification code are (Of course, there is no user identification code from the line end inspection until the product is sold), vehicle type, control conditions (mileage, running conditions), data and data type (input / output data of the onboard controller) , Control data (computation data), learning value data, self-diagnosis data, etc.) in accordance with the type of the corresponding device or component such as a sensor or an actuator, etc., and accumulate in the database DB in chronological order. Also, in the case of a data request of the own vehicle by access from the user's personal computer PC or a data request of the vehicle by access from a computer of another department related to the vehicle management system, the requesting party, the contents of the request, and the like are recorded in the data request history. Accumulate as

Next, the routine proceeds to step S13, where a diagnosis process based on the learning value shown in FIG. 4 is executed. In the case of a data request for the stored vehicle information, the diagnosis process based on the learning value is skipped. Then, step S14
Go to and send the data. For example, in the case of access from the user's mobile phone 2, display data to be displayed on the display of the mobile phone 2, a diagnosis result based on a learning value, and the like are transmitted. In the case of a data request for a corresponding vehicle by access from a computer in another department related to the system, data corresponding to the request is transmitted. Then, it is determined whether or not the communication has been completed in step S15, and as a result,
If the communication has not ended, the process returns to step S10 to continue the above processing, and if the communication has ended, the routine ends.

Next, the diagnosis process based on the learning value in step S13 will be described. In the diagnosis process based on the learning values in FIG. 4, first, each learning value data K of the corresponding vehicle stored corresponding to the vehicle body number and the user identification code is read, and each learning value K is used to determine abnormality based on the corresponding learning value. Is determined to be within a normal range between an upper limit value KMAX and a lower limit value KMIN set in advance. The upper limit value KMAX and the lower limit value KMIN determine the range of the learning value in a state where the control system is functioning well. For each vehicle type and model, the characteristics of the corresponding control system and the characteristics of the sensors and actuators in the vicinity thereof. The appropriate range is determined based on the value obtained by simulation or experiment in consideration of the above and the value obtained by analyzing the information from the actual vehicle accumulated in the database DB.

Specifically, in step S20, the learning value K is compared with the upper limit value KMAX. If K≤KMAX, the learning value K and the lower limit value KMIN are further determined in step S21.
Compare with If KMIN ≦ K ≦ KMAX in steps S20 and S21 and the learning value K is within the normal range, the process proceeds to step S22, where the learning value K is set.
Is diagnosed as normal. On the other hand, K> KMAX in step S20 or K> K in step S21.
If <KMIN and the learning value K is out of the normal range, the process proceeds to step S23, and the control system having the learning value K is diagnosed as abnormal. Then, step S2
At 4, the diagnosis result based on the learning value is recorded in the database DB as history data for each vehicle based on the vehicle body number and the user identification code, and the data of the diagnosis result is set to be transmitted to the access destination, and the routine exits.

For example, as is well known, when the air-fuel ratio sensor performs the air-fuel ratio feedback control, the deviation from the reference air-fuel ratio is learned as the air-fuel ratio learning value and is reflected in the air-fuel ratio control. Therefore, when the air-fuel ratio learning value is out of the normal range, the control state of the air-fuel ratio control system is abnormal, and it can be diagnosed that a problem will occur in the near future. Similarly, if the ignition timing learning value is out of the normal range, it can be diagnosed that the ignition timing control system is abnormal, and if the idle control (ISC) learning value is out of the normal range, the ISC ISC including valve
An abnormality in the control system can be predicted. Further, in a system having an electronically controlled throttle and learning the fully closed position of the throttle valve based on the throttle opening, when the learned value of the throttle valve fully closed position is out of a normal range, a throttle opening sensor system and an electronic throttle control system are provided. Can be diagnosed as abnormal.

That is, by notifying the user in advance before an actual failure occurs, it is possible to not only prevent the occurrence of the failure but also improve the preventive safety,
By transmitting the diagnostic result to a service factory such as a dealer, it can be used for advance arrangement of corresponding parts and promotion of storage. Furthermore, not only can the use state, use frequency, use state, etc. of each vehicle be grasped by vehicle information from the user, but also the obtained data can be subjected to secondary processing, and the diagnosis results can be fed back to the relevant departments. This can be reflected in quality control and subsequent vehicle development.

The diagnosis processing based on the learning values described above is not limited to the central information management center 51, but may be a line end 56 in a production line, a development headquarters 52, a software development environment 53, a sales / service headquarters 54, or an inspection / quality center. The program may be executed by a computer of another related department having an access right to the database DB, such as the guarantee headquarters 55.

[0028]

As described above, according to the present invention, the health condition of the vehicle of each user can be managed to prevent the occurrence of a failure and to improve the preventive safety.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a vehicle management system.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a network system of a vehicle;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of vehicle information processing.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a diagnosis process based on a learning value.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 vehicle # 01, # 02, # 03, # 04, # 05 control device 2 mobile phone (data communication means) DB database K learning value

Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat II (reference) G05B 23/02 301 G01M 17/00 J F term (reference) 2G087 AA16 AA27 BB19 BB21 EE21 FF39 3G084 DA27 DA28 EA04 EA11 EB06 EB12 EB20 EB22 FA10 FA26 FA35 5H223 AA10 DD03 DD07 DD09 EE06 FF06

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A learning value in a control device mounted on each vehicle is stored in a database, and when the value is out of a normal range, it is diagnosed as abnormal. The diagnosis result based on the learning value is stored in the database as history data of the vehicle. A vehicle management system that records the information as a user and distributes the information to at least one of the user of the vehicle and a department having an access right to the database. 2. An individual vehicle, comprising: a data communication unit capable of wirelessly communicating the learning value to the outside in real time, receiving learning value data transmitted from the data communication unit and storing the learning value data in the database. The vehicle management system according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The learning value according to claim 1, wherein the learning value is at least one of an air-fuel ratio learning value, an ignition timing learning value, an idle control learning value, and a throttle fully closed position learning value. Vehicle management system as described.