Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Vehicle control – guidance – operation – or indication
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-15
2001-02-27
Nguyen, Tan (Department: 3661)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Vehicle control, guidance, operation, or indication
C701S099000, C701S102000, C340S426110, C340S457000, C455S422100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06195597
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an onboard information processing apparatus well suitable for processing carried out by information handling equipment mounted on a movable body such as an automobile and relates to an automobile on which the information processing apparatus is mounted.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In recent years, various kinds of information handling equipment are mounted on a movable body such as an automobile, allowing various kinds of information processing to be carried out. An example of information handling equipment becoming popular is a radio receiver that is capable of reproducing audio information from a broadcast wave received from a radio broadcasting station and displaying literal data such as information on traffic included in the broadcast wave. In addition, an apparatus for playing back information from a variety of audio recording media such as a compact disc (CD) is also becoming popular as the so-called car audio apparatus.
Furthermore, there are some movable bodies each having an onboard navigation apparatus for processing information included in a position measurement signal received from a source such as an artificial satellite to determine the position and the running state of the movable body.
On the top of that, there are also some movable bodies each provided with a radio telephone apparatus called a car telephone or a portable telephone allowing the movable body to establish a telephone conversation and to transmit or receive data. As such, the information handling equipment mounted on a movable body such as an automobile has been exhibiting an increasing trend in volume in recent years.
By the way, these kinds of onboard information handling equipment are installed in a vehicle with almost no relation to other information handling equipment. As an apparatus having a plurality of functions, the equipment is no more than a car audio apparatus with a radio receiver incorporated therein. Thus, each time a new piece of information handling equipment is added, it is traditionally necessary to provide wiring for installing the new equipment in the vehicle. As a result, it is necessary to provide an extremely large amount of wiring for information handling equipment installed in the automobile.
Accompanying the increasing amount of wiring, there has been developed an onboard information bus line for integrating and controlling pieces of information handling equipment by connecting the pieces of equipment to each other. Each piece of information handling equipment has a connection unit for connecting the piece of equipment to the onboard information bus line. The onboard information bus line has a configuration wherein the connection unit of each piece of information handling equipment is connected to the onboard information bus line.
However, such onboard information bus line requires electric power for operating the connection unit of each piece of information handling equipment. Thus, as the number of pieces of onboard information handling equipment increases, the required electric power may exceed the capacity of a battery which serves as a power source. For this reason, the need to save electric power further rises.
On the other hand, while it is desirable to turn off the power supply of each of information handling equipment to save electric power, the pieces of equipment can not be activated individually and independently of each other since they are connected to each other through the onboard information bus line. As a result, there arises a problem of poor operatability.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide an onboard information processing apparatus which is capable of saving electric power and allows pieces of information handling equipment to be activated individually, and to provide an automobile with the onboard information processing apparatus mounted thereon.
The object of the present invention can be achieved by providing an onboard information processing apparatus comprising a plurality of pieces of onboard information handling equipment installed in a movable body such as a vehicle. The pieces of onboard information handling equipment each have a bus line connection unit for connecting the equipment to a bus line of a predetermined type. The connection units of the pieces of onboard information handling equipment are connected to each other by the bus line. A connection unit is put in a sleep mode when the onboard information handling equipment employing the connection unit is not in use to implement an onboard information processing apparatus wherein only a minimum required power supply is consumed.
In the configuration described above, the connection units of a plurality of pieces of onboard information handling equipment are connected to each other by the bus line and a connection unit is put in a sleep mode when the onboard information handling equipment employing the connection unit is not in use so as to supply only a minimum required electric power. As a result, the amount of electric power consumed by the connection units is reduced considerably and energy consumed during the use of the onboard information bus line can hence be saved.
It is desirable to provide an onboard information processing apparatus and an automobile with the onboard information processing apparatus mounted thereon wherein the sleep mode of a connection unit is ended and the connection unit is switched to a standby mode after a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the start of the sleep mode.
In this configuration, a connection unit transits from a sleep mode to a standby mode after a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the start of the sleep mode so that, in the standby mode, when an operation is operated on the information handling equipment employing the connection unit, the power supply of the information handling equipment is turned to supply electric power to the entire connection unit, allowing processing corresponding to the operation to be carried out.
It is also desirable to provide an onboard information processing apparatus and an automobile with the onboard information processing apparatus mounted thereon wherein a connection unit transits back to a sleep mode if neither data is transferred nor operation is carried out during a predetermined period of time following the transition to a standby mode.
In this configuration, a connection unit transits back to a sleep mode after a standby mode has been continuing for a predetermined period of time, allowing saving of electric power to be implemented in a finely controlled manner.
It is further desirable to provide an onboard information processing apparatus and an automobile with the onboard information processing apparatus mounted thereon wherein components receiving electric power in a sleep mode of a connection unit include a state saving means for saving states of the connection unit prior to the sleep mode and a clock means for measuring a predetermined period of time.
In this configuration, when the end of the predetermined period of time in a sleep mode is detected by the clock means, the sleep mode is terminated to let the each connection unit enters a standby mode in which the states prior to the sleep mode saved by the state saving means are read and in when electric power is supplied to the entire connection unit, allowing all portions of the connection unit to be returned to the states prior to the sleep mode.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5148546 (1992-09-01), Blodgett
patent: 5423045 (1995-06-01), Kannan et al.
patent: 5659459 (1997-08-01), Wakabayashi et al.
patent: 6025695 (2000-02-01), Friel et al.
patent: 6028537 (2000-02-01), Suman et al.
Frommer William S.
Frommer Lawrence & Haug LLP.
Mancho Ronnie
Nguyen Tan
Smid Dennis M.
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