Electrical transmission or interconnection systems – Vehicle mounted systems – Automobile
Patent
1996-12-16
1998-11-17
Elms, Richard T.
Electrical transmission or interconnection systems
Vehicle mounted systems
Automobile
180287, B60R 2504
Patent
active
058380752
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to an anti-theft device for a vehicle, and more particularly to a device for preventing a vehicle from being driven away by a burglar.
BACKGROUND ART
There are various methods for preventing vehicle theft such as a method for preventing a vehicle from being burgled, a method for disabling a vehicle from steering by locking a steering wheel, and a method for disabling an internal-combustion engine from starting. In the method for preventing the vehicle from being burgled, an attempt to burgle the vehicle by prying a door or breaking a window is detected using, for example, a broken window detector or the like, to prevent the burglary by sounding an alarm, however, once the door is opened, the vehicle can be easily driven away by the burglar.
The method for disabling an internal-combustion engine from starting is effective in preventing a vehicle from being burgled and driven. A first prior art of such method is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 4-11544 (1992). This prior art is characterized in that an anti-theft computer performs control so that a relay interposed in an ignition coil line is deenergized to inhibit the internal-combustion engine from starting.
A second prior art method is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 4-331647 (1992). This prior art method uses an anti-theft control unit which operates to deenergize a relay interposed in a power supply line from the battery to the load and thereby inhibit the internal-combustion engine from starting.
Thus these two prior art methods disable the internal-combustion engine from starting by deenergizing the relay inserted in the load line. These methods, therefore, require a large-size expensive relay, and particularly in the case of the first prior art, an expensive high-voltage relay that can be inserted in an ignition coil line, resulting in an increase in cost. Furthermore, persons experienced in vehicle electronics would be able to easily defeat the anti-theft function by short-circuiting the input and output of the relay.
A third prior art method that overcomes these problems is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 63-284054(1988). In this prior art, the internal-combustion engine is stopped if a gear shift operation is performed without a person's sitting on the driver's seat which is folded backward or without entering an identification code.
A fourth prior art method is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 2-164648 (1990). This prior art is intended to prevent vehicle theft in case the driver forgot to remove the ignition key; that is, after a predetermined time has elapsed from the time the internal-combustion engine was stopped, the internal-combustion engine can be started only when a correct password is entered.
Thus, the third and fourth prior art methods do not require inserting a relay or the like in an aftermarket fashion in an originally installed internal-combustion engine control unit, etc. as in the first and second prior art, but are designed to stop the control operation of the control unit itself.
However, neither the third nor the fourth prior art provides specific details about the method of stopping the internal-combustion engine after detecting a theft, though detailed explanations are given about the detection of the theft. Accordingly, the third and fourth prior art may also involve the same problems as described in connection with the first and second prior art. The present invention, on the other hand, is intended to prevent theft reliably by proposing a specific configuration for stopping the internal-combustion engine when a theft is detected.
Furthermore, both the third and fourth prior art methods use a dedicated microcomputer for verifying the identification code, the configuration being such that only when the identification code has been verified, the microcomputer sends a binary signal to an internal-combustion engine control computer to permit the internal-combustion e
REFERENCES:
patent: 4955453 (1990-09-01), Nishioka et al.
patent: 4958084 (1990-09-01), Carlo et al.
patent: 4965460 (1990-10-01), Tanaka et al.
patent: 5247279 (1993-09-01), Sato
patent: 5539260 (1996-07-01), Khangura et al.
patent: 5561332 (1996-10-01), Udo et al.
patent: 5635900 (1997-06-01), Hasegawa et al.
Patent Abstracts of Japan, Burglar-Proof Device for Electronically Controlled Hydraulic Machine, JP 2-132233, May 21, 1990.
Patent Abstracts of Japan, Combined Controller and Alarm for Starting of Automotive Engine, JP-A-5713270, Jan. 23, 1982.
Elms Richard T.
Fujitsu Ten Limited
LandOfFree
Anti-theft device for a vehicle does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Anti-theft device for a vehicle, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Anti-theft device for a vehicle will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-887208