TWI751405B - Device and control system for wireless communication - Google Patents

Abstract

A control system 26 for converting communication from a wired mode to a wireless mode on a human-powered vehicle 10 includes a component 28A, an additional component 28B, a communication device 30A, and an additional communication device 30B. The component 28A is electrically coupled to the communication device 30A via an interface 36A of the communication device 30A. The communication device 30A further includes a converter 40A and a communicator 42A. An electrical signal E1 received from the component 28A by the interface 36A is converted to a wireless signal W by the converter 40A and communicated to the additional communication device 30B by the communicator 42A. The additional communication device 30B includes an additional communicator 42B, an additional converter 40B, and an additional interface 36B. The wireless signal W is received by the additional communicator 42B and converted to an electrical signal E2 by the additional converter 40B. The additional interface 36B is electrically coupled to the additional component 28B and communicates the electrical signal E2 from the additional communication device 30B to the additional component.

Description

Device and control system for wireless communication

When operating a human vehicle, the occupant inputs are communicated to the components of the vehicle. For example, an occupant may manipulate a lever at one location of the vehicle to apply a braking force to the wheels at a disengaged location of the vehicle. Communication of this occupant input can be accomplished through the use of wire or wireless transmitters and receivers.

Disclosed herein is a communication device for a human vehicle. According to a first aspect of the present invention, a communication device for a human vehicle includes an interface, a converter, and a communicator. The interface is configured to be electrically connected to a cable connected to a component configured to be mounted to the human vehicle. The component has a cable port configured for use in a wired state when the component communicates with additional components by wired means. The additional component is configured to be mounted to the human vehicle. The converter is configured to convert an electrical signal received from the component via the interface to a wireless signal. The communicator is configured to wirelessly communicate the wireless signal from the converter to the additional component.

With the communication device according to the first aspect, it is possible for the user to easily convert a wired system to a wireless system.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the communication device according to the first aspect is configured in such a way that the cable is a cable for power line communication.

With the communication device according to the second aspect, it is possible for a user to use the component in power line communication of the wireless system.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the communication device according to the first aspect further includes a power supply configured to supply a power to the converter and the wireless communicator.

With the communication device according to the third aspect, it is possible for the user to use a component that requires an external power source.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the communication device according to the third aspect is configured in such a way that the power supply includes a power storage.

With the communication device according to the fourth aspect, it is possible for the user to use a component that requires an external power supply.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the communication device according to the fourth aspect further includes a charging interface configured to receive a power from a charger to charge the power storage.

With the communication device according to the fifth aspect, it is possible for the user to use a component that requires an external power source.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the communication device according to any one of the third to fifth aspects is configured in a manner such that the power supply includes a generator configured to generate a power motor.

With the communication device according to the sixth aspect, it is possible to reduce the frequency of charging, thereby increasing the convenience for the user.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, the communication device according to any one of the first to sixth aspects further includes a housing configured to house the interface, the converter, and the wireless communication device.

With the communication device according to the seventh aspect, it is possible to protect the interface, the converter and the wireless communicator.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, a control system for a human-powered vehicle includes the component and the communication device according to any one of the first aspect to the seventh aspect.

With the control system according to the eighth aspect, it is possible for a user to easily convert a wired system to a wireless system.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, the control system according to the eighth aspect is configured in such a way that the assembly includes an operating member configured to receive a drive from a human vehicle An input from the occupant thus operates an additional component.

With the control system according to the ninth aspect, it is possible for a user to easily convert a wired system to a wireless system.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, the control system according to the eighth or ninth aspect further includes the additional component and an additional communication device. The additional communication device is configured to communicate wirelessly with the communication device, and the communication device is configured to communicate with the additional component via the additional communication device.

With the control system according to the tenth aspect, it is possible for a user to easily convert a wired system to a wireless system.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, the controller according to the tenth aspect is configured in a manner such that the additional communication device includes an additional transmission communicator, an additional converter, and an additional interface. The additional communicator is configured to communicate wirelessly with the communication device. The additional converter is configured to convert a wireless signal from the additional communicator to an electrical signal for the additional component. The additional interface is configured to be electrically coupled to an additional cable connected to the additional component.

With the control system according to the eleventh aspect, it is possible for a user to easily convert a wired system to a wireless system.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, the controller according to the eleventh aspect is configured in such a way that the additional cable is a cable for power line communication.

With the control system according to the twelfth aspect, it is possible for a user to easily convert a wired system to a wireless system.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, the controller according to any one of the tenth to twelfth aspects is configured in a manner such that the additional communication device includes a separation from the housing of the communication device of an extra shell. The additional communication device is configured to accommodate the additional communicator, the additional converter and the additional interface.

With the control system according to the thirteenth aspect, it is possible to protect the additional interface, the additional communicator and the additional converter.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, the controller according to any one of the tenth to thirteenth aspects further includes an additional power supply configured to connect a Power is supplied to the additional communication device and the additional component.

With the control system according to the fourteenth aspect, it is possible for a user to easily convert a wired system to a wireless system.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, the controller according to any one of the tenth to fourteenth aspects is configured in a manner such that the additional component includes at least one of the following Those: a shifting device, a braking device, a suspension, an adjustable seat and an auxiliary travel device.

With the control system according to the fifteenth aspect, it is possible for a user to easily convert a wired system to a wireless system.

This [Summary of the Invention] is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in [Embodiments]. This [Summary] is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Furthermore, claimed subject matter is not limited to implementations that solve any or all disadvantages noted in any part of this disclosure. As used herein, the term "small and/or light vehicle" refers to electric and non-electric vehicles regardless of the number of its wheels, but does not include four-wheeled vehicles having an internal combustion engine as a power source to drive the wheels Or four-wheeled vehicles that require a driver's license to operate on the road.

Selected embodiments will now be explained with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals designate corresponding or identical elements throughout the various drawings. It will be apparent from the present invention to those skilled in the art that the following description of the embodiments is provided for illustration only and not for the purpose of limiting the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Referring initially to FIG. 1, an exemplary human-powered vehicle 10 in accordance with at least one disclosed embodiment of the present invention is shown. The human-powered vehicle 10 is, for example, a bicycle, such as an off-road bicycle (such as an off-road bicycle or a mountain bike). Alternatively, the human-powered vehicle 10 may be, for example, a road-type bicycle, scooter, pedal or handcart. The human vehicle 10 includes a frame 12 , a rear wheel 14 , a front wheel fork 16 , a front wheel 18 and a handle 20 . The rear wheel 14 is rotatably attached to the frame 12 . A front wheel fork 16 is rotatably attached to the frame 12 . The front wheel 18 is rotatably attached to the front wheel fork 16 . The handle 20 is rotatably attached to the frame 12 . The rotational movement of the front wheel fork 16 is interlocked with the rotational movement of the handle 20 .

The human vehicle 10 includes a control system 26 . In this embodiment, the control system 26 is an electronic shifting system. The control system includes a component 28A and an additional component 28B. As described below, control system 26 is configured to convert communications between components 28A and additional components 28B from a wired mode to a wireless mode. Assembly 28A is mounted on handle 20 . Additional components 28B are mounted on frame 12 . For example, assembly 28A includes at least one of: a shift operating device, a brake operating device, a suspension operating device, an adjustable seat operating device, or a travel assist unit operating device. In this embodiment, component 28A is a shift operating device for controlling the shifting device. For example, the additional components 28B include at least one of the following: a gear shift device, a brake device, a suspension device, an adjustable seat operating device, and a travel assist unit. In this embodiment, the additional component 28B is a shifter for changing the speed level of the human vehicle. The shifting device may include a front derailleur, a rear derailleur, and an internally geared hub. In this embodiment, the shifting device is a rear derailleur.

As shown in FIG. 1 and discussed in detail below, control system 26 includes component 28A, additional component 28B, communication device 30A, and additional communication device 30B. Other components of the human vehicle 10 are well known and are not described herein.

FIG. 2 shows a schematic block diagram of the control system 26 of the manned vehicle 10 . Control system 26 includes component 28A and communication device 30A. Control system 26 further includes additional components 28B and additional communication devices 30B. As described above and indicated in FIG. 2 , assembly 28A is configured for installation to human vehicle 10 . The additional components 28B are configured to be mounted to the human vehicle 10 . Assembly 28A includes an operating component 32 configured to receive input from an occupant of human-powered vehicle 10 to operate additional assembly 28B. In the examples provided above, the shift operating device of the electronic transmission system is an exemplary component 28A, and the shifting device is an exemplary additional component 28B. Thus, for example, an exemplary operating member 32 included in assembly 28A may include a shift lever or a shift dial.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the assembly 28A has a cable port 34 . Cable port 34 is configured for a wired state when component 28A communicates with additional components 28B by wired means. However, it may be desirable for component 28A and additional components 28B to communicate wirelessly. As discussed above, control system 26 is configured to convert communication between component 28A and additional component 28B from wired mode to wireless mode via communication device 30A and additional communication device 30B. Communication device 30A includes interface 36A configured to be electrically coupled to cable 38A, which is connected to component 28A. The cable 38A is one used for power line communication. Thus, cable 38A can convey data in addition to current. Operating component 32 receives input from the occupant and communicates this input to assembly 28A. In the conventional wired communication mode, component 28A sends commands based on driver input to additional component 28B via wires connected to component 28A and additional component 28B, as indicated by the dashed lines in FIG. 2 . In the control system 26 described herein, commands are communicated as data from component 28A to communication device 30A via cable 38A. As indicated by the dotted line in FIG. 2, additional communication device 30B is configured to communicate wirelessly with communication device 30A. The command input by the driver is wirelessly transmitted from the communication device 30A to the additional communication device 30B. As described below, instructions are communicated from the additional communication device 30B to the additional component 28B, which then performs the action specified by the input from the occupant. In this configuration, communication device 30A is configured to communicate with additional component 28B via additional communication device 30B.

3 shows a schematic block diagram of elements of a detailed description of control system 26 and communication device 30A. As described above, communication device 30A includes interface 36A to communicate with component 28A via cable 38A. The communication device 30A further includes a converter 40A and a communicator 42A. Converter 40A is configured to convert electrical signal E1 received from component 28A via interface 36A and cable 38A to a wireless signal W, such as radio waves. Communicator 42A is configured to communicate the wireless signal W wirelessly from converter 40A to additional component 30B. Thus, the communicator 42A may be configured as a transmitter and include an antenna. As shown in FIG. 3, the communication device 30A further includes a housing 44A that is configured to house the interface 36A, the converter 40A, and the wireless communicator 42A of the communication device 30A.

In some cases, it may be desirable to apply control system 26 to components that require external power. To this end, communication device 30A further includes a power supply 46A configured to supply power to converter 40A and wireless communicator 42A, as shown in FIG. 3 . Power supply 46A includes a generator 48 to generate an electrical power. For example, generator 48 may be a solar panel or a piezoelectric device. Power supply 46A also includes power storage 50 . Power storage 50 may be configured as a battery or a capacitor. Communication device 30A further includes a charging interface 52 configured to receive power from charger 54 . The charger 54 is connected to the power supply 46A via the charging interface 52 to charge the power storage 50 . Additionally or alternatively, generator 48 may charge power storage 50 .

FIG. 4 shows a schematic block diagram of elements of a detailed description of control system 26 and additional communication device 30B. For brevity, power supply 46A is not shown in communication device 30A. Additional communication device 30B includes elements that correspond to elements of communication device 30A described above. Accordingly, elements having substantially the same function as those elements in communication device 30A will be numbered similarly in additional communication devices 30B.

As shown in FIG. 4, the additional communication device 30B of the control system 26 includes an additional transmission communicator 42B, an additional additional converter 40B, and an additional additional interface 36B. Similar to communication device 30A, additional communication device 30B includes an additional housing 44B configured to accommodate additional communicator 42B, additional converter 40B, and additional interface 36B. It should be appreciated that the additional housing 44B is separate from the housing 44A of the communication device 30A. Control system 26 further includes an additional power supply 46B configured to supply power to additional communication device 30B and additional component 28B.

Additional communicator 42B is configured to communicate wirelessly with communication device 30A to receive instructions from occupant input at operating component 32, as described above and indicated by dotted line W. Accordingly, the additional communicator 42B may be configured as a receiver and include an antenna. The additional converter 40B is configured to convert the wireless signal W received from the communication device 30A via the additional communicator 42B to an electrical signal E2 for the additional component 28B. The additional interface 36B is configured to be electrically coupled to an additional cable 38B that is connected to the additional component 28B. Similar to cable 38A, additional cable 38B is a cable for power line communication. Thus, additional cable 38B can convey data in addition to current. In this way, the instructions according to the occupant input are communicated as data from the additional communication device 30B to the additional component 28B, which then performs the action specified by the input from the occupant.

The arrows in FIG. 4 show the flow of information from component 28A to additional components 28B as communicated through control system 26 . As described above, operating member 32 receives input from the occupant of human-powered vehicle 10 at assembly 28A. Input is communicated from component 28A to communication device 30A in the form of data transmitted over cable 38A via interface 36A. The communication device 30A converts the data from the electrical signal E1 to the wireless signal W via the converter 40A. Additionally or alternatively, converter 40A may convert electrical signal El according to a first agreement for component 28A to a wireless signal W according to a second agreement for additional component 28B. The communicator 42A transmits the wireless signal W to the additional communication device 30B, wherein the wireless signal W is received by the additional communicator 42B. Additional converter 40B converts wireless signal W into electrical signal E2, which is then communicated to additional component 28B in the form of data transmitted via additional cable 38B. Additionally or alternatively, the additional converter 40B may convert the wireless signal W according to the first agreement for the component 28A to the electrical signal E2 according to the second agreement for the additional component 28B. As such, the control system 26 enables the communication between the components 28A of the human vehicle and the additional components 28B to be converted from a wired mode to a wireless mode.

While only selected embodiments have been chosen to illustrate the invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the invention that work can be done herein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. Various changes and modifications. For example, the size, shape, location or orientation of the various components can be changed as needed and/or desired. Components shown directly connected or in contact with each other may have intermediate structures disposed therebetween. The functions of one element can be performed by two elements, and vice versa. The structures and functions of one embodiment may be adopted in another embodiment. It is not necessary that all advantages be present in a particular embodiment. Each feature that is unique from the prior art alone or in combination with other features should also be considered by the applicant as a separate description of additional inventions, including the structural and/or functional concepts embodied by such feature(s). Accordingly, the foregoing descriptions of embodiments in accordance with the present invention are provided for illustration only and not for the purpose of limiting the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

10‧‧‧Exemplary Human Vehicle 12‧‧‧Framework 14‧‧‧Rear wheel 16‧‧‧Front wheel fork 18‧‧‧Front wheel 20‧‧‧Handle 26‧‧‧Control system 28‧‧‧Components 28A‧‧‧Component 28B‧‧‧Additional components 30A‧‧‧Communication device 30B‧‧‧Additional communication device 32‧‧‧Operating parts 34‧‧‧Cable Port 36A‧‧‧Interface 36B‧‧‧Additional interface 38A‧‧‧Cable 38B‧‧‧Extra cable 40A‧‧‧Converter 40B‧‧‧Extra Converter 42A‧‧‧communicator 42B‧‧‧Extra communicator 44A‧‧‧Enclosure 44B‧‧‧Extra Housing 46A‧‧‧Power Supply 46B‧‧‧Extra Power Supply 48‧‧‧Generator 50‧‧‧Power Storage 52‧‧‧Charging interface 54‧‧‧Charger E1‧‧‧electrical signal E2‧‧‧electrical signal W‧‧‧Wireless signal/dotted line

A more complete appreciation of the present invention and its many attendant advantages will readily be gained in view of the foregoing, which may be better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

1 is a right side elevational view of an example bicycle incorporating a control system according to the present invention.

Figure 2 is a schematic block diagram of a control system according to the present invention.

3 is a schematic block diagram of a control system according to the present invention.

Figure 4 is a schematic block diagram of a control system according to the present invention.

10‧‧‧Exemplary Human Vehicle

26‧‧‧Control system

28‧‧‧Components

28A‧‧‧Component

28B‧‧‧Additional components

30A‧‧‧Communication device

30B‧‧‧Additional communication device

32‧‧‧Operating parts

34‧‧‧Cable Port

36A‧‧‧Interface

38A‧‧‧Cable

Claims (15)

A communication device 30A for a human-powered vehicle 10 comprising: an interface 36A configured to electrically couple to a cable 38A connected to a component configured to be mounted to the human-powered vehicle 10 28A, the component 28A has a cable port 34 configured for a wired state when the component 28A communicates by a wired means with an additional component 28B configured to Mounted to the manpower vehicle 10; a converter 40A configured to convert an electrical signal E1 received from the component 28A via the interface 36A to a wireless signal W; and a communicator 42A configured by state to wirelessly communicate the wireless signal W from the converter 40A to the additional component 28B. The communication device 30A of claim 1, wherein the cable 38A is a cable for power line communication. The communication device 30A of claim 1, further comprising a power supply 46A configured to supply a power to the converter 40A and the wireless communicator 42A. The communication device 30A of claim 3 , wherein the power supply 46A includes a power storage 50 . The communication device 30A of claim 4, further comprising A charging interface 52 configured to receive a power from a charger 54 to charge the power storage 50 . The communication device 30A of any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the power supply 46A includes a generator 48 configured to generate an electrical power. The communication device 30A of any one of claims 1-5, further comprising: a housing 44A configured to house the interface 36A, the converter 40A, and the wireless communicator 42A. A control system 26 for a human-powered vehicle 10 comprising: an assembly 28A; and a communication device 30A as in any one of claims 1-7. The control system 26 of claim 8, wherein the component 28A includes an operating component 32 configured to receive an input from an occupant of the human-powered vehicle 10 to operate an additional component 28B. The control system 26 of claim 8 or 9, further comprising: the additional component 28B; and an additional communication device 30B configured to communicate wirelessly with the communication device 30A, wherein The communication device 30A is configured to communicate with the additional component 28B via the additional communication device 30B. The control system 26 of claim 10, wherein the additional communication device 30B comprises: an additional transmission communicator 42B configured to communicate wirelessly with the communication device 30A, an additional converter 40B configured to communicate A wireless signal W from the additional communicator 42B is converted to an electrical signal E2 for the additional element 28B, and an additional interface 36B configured to be electrically coupled to an additional cable 38B that is connected to the additional element 28B. This additional component 28B is connected. The control system 26 of claim 11, wherein the additional cable 38B is a cable for power line communication. The control system 26 of claim 10, wherein the additional communication device 30B includes an additional housing 44B separate from the housing 44A of the communication device 30A and configured to accommodate the additional communicator 42B, the additional converter 40B and the additional interface 36B. The control system 26 of claim 10, further comprising an additional power supply 46B configured to supply a power to the additional communication device 30B and the additional component 28B. The control system 26 of claim 9, wherein the additional component 28B includes at least one of: a shifter, a brake, a suspension, an adjustable seat, and a travel assist unit.

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