Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Vehicle control – guidance – operation – or indication – Vehicle diagnosis or maintenance indication
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-03
2002-08-06
Nguyen, Tan (Department: 3661)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Vehicle control, guidance, operation, or indication
Vehicle diagnosis or maintenance indication
C701S030000, C340S447000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06430484
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle wheel information supply device for supplying wheel information representative of a state of a wheel of a vehicle, to a receiver disposed on a body of the vehicle.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
JP-U-5-13802 discloses an example of such kind of vehicle wheel information supply device in the form of a tire air pressure information supply device adapted to supply tire air pressure information indicating whether an air pressure in a tire of a wheel of an automotive vehicle is normal or not. This tire air pressure information supply device includes an air pressure detector disposed on the vehicle wheel to detect the air pressure of the wheel tire, and an air pressure information transmitter also disposed on the vehicle wheel to transmit the tire air pressure information. Based on an output of the air pressure detector, the air pressure information transmitter intermittently transmits a pulse signal of a predetermined pattern when the output indicates that the tire air pressure is normal, and continuously transmits a pulse signal of another predetermined pattern when the output indicates that the tire air pressure is abnormal. The tire air pressure information transmitted by the tire air pressure information supply device is received by a receiver which is disposed on the vehicle body.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an improved vehicle wheel information supply device. This object may be achieved according to any one of the following modes of the invention, each of which is numbered like the appended claims and depends from the other mode or modes, where appropriate, to indicate possible combinations of elements or technical features. However, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the modes described below and that any one of technical features recited in any one of the modes may be a subject matter of this invention.
(1) A vehicle wheel information supply device disposed on a wheel of a vehicle and supplying wheel information representative of a state of the wheel, to a receiver disposed on a body of the vehicle.
The wheel information is supplied from the vehicle wheel information supply device disposed on the vehicle wheel, to the receiver disposed on the vehicle body. The wheel information received by the receiver is available to a driver of the vehicle. The wheel information relating to the air pressure of the wheel tire may include: air pressure information indicative of the tire air pressure; air pressure reduction rate information indicative of a rate of reduction of the tire air pressure; air pressure assessment information indicative of whether the tire air pressure is normal; and abrupt air pressure reduction information indicating that the tire air pressure is lowered at a rate higher than a predetermined threshold. The wheel information relating to the temperature of the wheel tire may include: tire temperature information indicative of the temperature of the tire; tire temperature rise rate information indicative of a rate of rise of the tire temperature; excessive tire temperature rise information indicating that the tire temperature is higher than a predetermined upper limit; and an abrupt tire temperature rise information indicating that the tire temperature is rising at a rate higher than a predetermined threshold. The wheel information relating to the shape or deformation of the tire may include: tire deformation information indicative of a deformation of the tire; excessive tire deformation information indicative of an excessive amount of deformation of the tire; and other sorts of information as described above with respect to the tire air pressure and temperature.
(2) A vehicle wheel information supply device disposed on a wheel of a vehicle and comprising; a wheel state detector which detects a state of the wheel; a wheel information generator which generates wheel information on the basis of an output of the wheel state detector; and a transmitter which transmits the wheel information to a receiver disposed on a body of the vehicle.
The wheel information generated by the information generator may be information indicative of the state of the wheel detected by the wheel state detector, information indicative of a state relating to the state of the wheel, or assessment information indicative of whether the state of the wheel is normal.
(3) A vehicle wheel information supply device according to mode (2), further comprising an information supply controller which controls at least one of the wheel information generator and the transmitter, for thereby controlling a condition in which the wheel information is supplied.
(4) A vehicle wheel information supply device according to any one of modes (1)-(3), wherein the vehicle wheel information supply device is capable of successively supplying a plurality of wheel data sets, as the wheel information, which represent the state of the wheel at the same point of time and which have respective data volumes different from each other, and wherein the vehicle wheel information supply device supplies the plurality of wheel data sets to the receiver in a predetermined order such that a smallest one of the wheel data sets whose data volume is the smallest among the wheel data sets is supplied earlier than the other of the wheel data sets.
The vehicle wheel information supply device according to this mode (4) of the invention is designed with an object of increasing a probability that at least one of the supplied wheel data sets is completely received by the receiver, thereby making the complete wheel data set available on the side of the vehicle body as early as possible even within a short time of data reception, after each update of the wheel information in which the wheel information is updated to represent the wheel state at the latest point of time.
In the vehicle wheel information supply device defined in this mode (4), a smallest one of the wheel data sets whose data volume is the smallest among the wheel data sets is supplied earlier than the other of the wheel data sets. Since the time period required to supply the smallest wheel data set to the receiver is shorter than the time required to supply the other wheel information set or sets, the above-described probability is made larger than where a largest one of the wheel data sets whose data volume is the largest among the wheel data sets is supplied earlier than the other of the wheel data set. Thus, the present vehicle wheel information supply device is effective to provide a high probability that at least one of the supplied wheel data sets is completely received by the receiver even where the time period in which the wheel information can be received by the receiver is short. In other words, the present vehicle wheel information supply device permits a complete wheel data set to be available on the vehicle body as early as possible, after each update of the wheel information, even where the receivable time period is short.
It is noted that, where three or more wheel data sets having the respective data volumes different from each other are supplied by the present vehicle wheel information supply device, the smallest wheel data set may be followed by the second smallest wheel data set, as described below in mode (5), or alternatively may be followed by other wheel data set. That is, after the smallest wheel data set has been supplied, the remaining wheel data sets may be supplied in any order irrespective of the respective data volumes. If the largest wheel data set is supplied following the smallest wheel data set, for example, it is possible to make the detailed wheel data set available on the vehicle body earlier than where the largest wheel data set is supplied later than the other wheel data set or sets.
It is also noted that each of the wheel data sets may be supplied once or a plurality of times. Further, the numbers of the supply of the respective wheel data sets do not have to be equal to ea
Taguchi Akihiro
Takamura Yoshinori
Nguyen Tan
Toyota Jidosha & Kabushiki Kaisha
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