JP4179301B2 - Tire information processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a tire information processing apparatus that processes information transmitted from a tire.

Patent Document 1 describes a tire air pressure acquisition device that acquires a plurality of air pressures including a mounted tire mounted on a vehicle and a non-mounted tire mounted on the vehicle without being mounted. In this tire pressure acquisition device, information from the non-wearing tire is not isolated from information from the wearing tire. Therefore, even when the air pressure included in the information from the non-wearing tire is lower than the set pressure or when the air pressure included in the information from the attached tire is lower than the set pressure, the alarm device is activated in the same way. It was.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-78446

  The subject of this invention is obtaining the tire information processing apparatus which can isolate the information from a non-wearing tire from the information from a wearing tire.

Means and effects for solving the problem

The tire information processing apparatus according to claim 1 is provided in each of a plurality of tires including (i) a mounted tire mounted on a vehicle and a non-mounted tire mounted on the vehicle without being mounted; A tire condition detecting device that detects the condition of the tire, (b) a transmitter that transmits a series of tire information including tire condition information representing the tire condition detected by the tire condition detecting device, and (ii) provided in the vehicle body. (C) a receiving device that receives tire information transmitted from each of the plurality of transmitting devices, and (d) based on tire information received by the receiving device, the received tire information is the non-wearing tire. a non-mounted tire information detecting unit for detecting whether or not transmitted from, (e) in which case capable of detecting the non-wearing tire information by the non-mounted tire information detecting unit, received by the receiving device Was The tire information transmitted from the mounted tire and the tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tire are processed separately. When the tire information cannot be detected, the tire information received by the receiving device is transmitted from the mounted tire. The tire information processing unit is processed in the same manner regardless of whether the tire is from a non-mounted tire .
The tire information is processed differently depending on whether the non-mounted tire information can be detected by the non-mounted tire information detection unit. When it is detectable, the case where the identification information of an actual non-wearing tire is stored corresponds, and when it is not possible to detect, the case where the identification information of an actual non-wearing tire is not stored corresponds. When the identification information of the actual non-mounted tire is not stored, the previous identification information is stored and the current identification information is not stored.
In the tire information processing device, whether or not the tire information received by the receiving device is transmitted from a non-wearing tire is the tire condition information included in the tire information as described in claim 6. Detection can be performed based on information representing the rotational acceleration of the tire.
The tire information processing apparatus according to claim 2, (f) an abnormality detection unit that detects whether or not the tire condition is abnormal based on tire condition information included in the tire information received by the receiving apparatus; (g) a notification device for notifying a driver of a detection result by the abnormality detection unit, and when the tire information processing unit can detect the non-mounted tire information, the non-mounted tire is detected by the abnormality detection unit. Even if it is detected that the tire condition of the tire is abnormal, if the tire condition of the mounted tire is detected to be abnormal without causing the notification device to notify that, the detection is performed and the detection is performed. In the case where it is impossible, when the abnormality detection unit detects that the tire condition is abnormal based on the tire condition information included in the tire information received by the reception device, Regardless of what is or is from the non-mounted tire in either those from the mounting tires, including means for informing that.
The notification device is a device that informs the driver of the condition of the tire, but here, an alarm device that notifies that when the condition of the tire is abnormal is also included. The alarm device can be considered to be included in the notification device because it notifies the driver only when the tire condition is abnormal.
The tire information processing device according to claim 3, (f) an abnormality detection unit that detects whether or not a tire state represented by tire state information included in tire information received by the reception device is abnormal; g) The detection result by the abnormality detection unit is related to the mounted tire and the non-mounted tire, and includes a notification device capable of notifying the driver in a different manner, the tire information processing unit, When the information from the non-wearing tire can be detected, the abnormality detection unit detects that the tire condition of the wearing tire is abnormal and the tire condition of the non-wearing tire is abnormal. A means for making the notification device informed in a case-sensitive manner.
The tire information processing apparatus according to claim 4 is provided in each of a plurality of tires including (i) a mounted tire mounted on a vehicle and a non-mounted tire mounted on the vehicle without being mounted; A tire condition detecting device that detects the condition of the tire, (b) a transmitter that transmits a series of tire information including tire condition information representing the tire condition detected by the tire condition detecting device, and (ii) provided in the vehicle body. (C) a receiving device that receives tire information transmitted from each of the plurality of transmitting devices, and (d) based on tire information received by the receiving device, the received tire information is the non-wearing tire. A non-wearing tire information detection unit that detects whether or not the non-wearing tire information is detected by the non-wearing tire information detection unit. Was The tire information transmitted from the mounted tire is processed without processing the tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tire. If the tire information is not detectable, the tire information received by the receiving device is Regardless of whether the tire is from a non-wearing tire or not, the tire information processing unit not to be processed is included.
The tire information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the tire condition information includes air pressure information indicating a tire air pressure, and the tire information processing unit can detect information transmitted from the non-mounted tire. In addition, among the tire information received by the receiving device, the air pressure information included in the tire information transmitted from the mounted tire is output to the vehicle control device , and the air pressure information included in the tire information from the non-mounted tire is output. Includes a pneumatic control unit that does not output.
Of the tire information received by the receiving device, the air pressure information included in the tire information transmitted from the mounted tire is output to the vehicle control device, but the air pressure information included in the tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tire is output. Not. The vehicle control device controls the vehicle control actuator based on the air pressure of the mounted tire.
In addition, the technical features described in other claims can be employed in the tire information processing apparatus described in each of the first to sixth aspects.

Supplementary explanation

Hereinafter, matters related to the present invention will be described.
(1) The tire information processing device is provided in each of a plurality of tires including (i) a tire mounted on a vehicle and a non-wearing tire mounted on the vehicle without being mounted; A tire condition detecting device for detecting the condition of the tire including, (b) a transmitting device for transmitting a series of tire information including tire condition information representing the tire condition detected by the tire condition detecting device, and (ii) the vehicle body (C) a receiving device that receives tire information transmitted from each of the transmitting devices; (d) a tire information processing unit that processes tire information received by the receiving device; and (e) the mounted tire. A non-wearing tire information processing limiting unit that processes tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire and restricts processing of tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire.
For example, when tire information from a non-wearing tire is not processed at all, when only a part of a predetermined series of information is processed, it is not finally output, but processing of information from a wearing tire This applies to cases where it is used.
In the tire information processing apparatus described in this section, the technical features described in claims 1 to 5 and the technical characteristics described in the following items can be employed. The same applies to the tire information processing apparatuses of the following items.
(2) The tire information processing apparatus may include a non-mounted tire information ignoring unit that ignores the tire information when the received tire information is detected from the non-mounted tire. .
In the tire information processing apparatus described in this section, even when both information from the non-wearing tire and information from the wearing tire are received, the information from the non-wearing tire is ignored. Information on non-mounted tires is not necessary during driving and can be ignored. Further, as described in [Embodiment of the invention], it may be desirable to ignore the case.
Ignoring the information of the non-wearing tire means that the information is not processed. For example, the following applies. (i) For tire information transmitted from a non-wearing tire, it is not determined whether the tire state is abnormal or normal based on the tire state information (for example, the air pressure is lower than the set pressure). (J) Check whether the temperature is lower than the set temperature or not, etc.) (j) As a result of determining whether there is an abnormality based on the tire condition information, it is considered abnormal Even if the error flag is not abnormal (for example, the abnormal flag is not set), and (k) when the abnormal flag is already set (for example, while the ignition switch is OFF) In this case, it is detected that the abnormal flag is set due to information from the non-wearing tire (after the ignition switch is turned ON). In case of being issued, the abnormality flag is reset, and (l) the tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire is not received, and it is left as it is. If it is detected that the tire information that could not be received was transmitted from a non-wearing tire, it is not necessary to receive the tire information, and it may be left unreceivable. It is. Furthermore, (m) when vehicle control based on tire information (including vehicle control considering tire information) is performed by an external device, tire information from a non-mounted tire is not transmitted from the tire state acquisition device to the external device. (N) When fail safe control is performed by an external device when the tire condition is abnormal, it is detected that the abnormal tire condition is transmitted from a non-wearing tire. In this case, the tire condition information is not output to the external device.
For non-wearing tires, it is less necessary to determine whether the tire condition is normal or abnormal, and the need to inform the driver of tire information is low. Further, it is not necessary to perform fail-safe control even when the state of the non-mounted tire is abnormal, and it is not necessary to perform vehicle control based on the tire state of the non-mounted tire.
(3) The tire information processing apparatus includes a non-mounted tire pressure ignoring unit that ignores the pneumatic information included in the tire information when the received tire information is detected from the non-mounted tire. Can be included.
(4) The tire information processing apparatus may include a tire state correspondence control unit that processes tire state information from the mounted tire and does not process tire state information from the non-mounted tire.
When both the information from the non-wearing tire and the information from the wearing tire are received in the receiving device, the information from the non-wearing tire and the information from the wearing tire are distinguished, and the tire condition information from the wearing tire When the tire state information from the non-wearing tire is not processed, the receiving device may not receive the information from the non-wearing tire. When information from a non-wearing tire is not received, tire condition information included in the information is not processed.
Further, when a plurality of pieces of information are included in the tire state information, it is possible to prevent all of them from being processed or to prevent some of them from being processed.
(5) The tire information processing apparatus may include a tire information processing unit that processes tire information from the mounted tire and tire information from the non-mounted tire in different modes.
For example, the tire information processing unit described in this section may include a mounted tire information corresponding processing unit and a non-mounted tire information corresponding processing unit, and processing according to each tire information transmission source is performed. Can be.
(6) The tire information processing device is provided in each of a plurality of tires including (i) a mounted tire mounted on a vehicle and a non-mounted tire mounted on the vehicle without being mounted; A tire condition detection device that detects the condition of the tire including, and (b) a transmission device that transmits a series of tire information including tire condition information representing the tire condition detected by the tire condition detection device;
(ii) provided on the vehicle body, (c) a receiving device that receives tire information transmitted from each of the transmitting devices, and (d) an air pressure represented by air pressure information included in the tire information received by the receiving device is set. An air pressure abnormality detection unit that detects whether or not the pressure is lower than the pressure, and a notification device that informs the driver of the detection result of the air pressure abnormality detection unit in a manner different from that of a tire that is attached and a tire that is not attached Can be included.
If it is found that the air pressure of the non-wearing tire is low, it is understood that the driver is highly required to replace the non-wearing tire.
The notification device may be one that appeals to the driver's vision or one that appeals to hearing. For example, the display can indicate the size of the air pressure, indicate that the air pressure is abnormal, or indicate whether it is normal or abnormal by blinking a lamp or the like. . Also, the air pressure level may be notified by voice, and a sound may be generated when there is an abnormality.
For example, when there is one notification unit of the notification device and notification is possible in a plurality of modes, the notification unit is used when the pressure of the mounted tire is low and when the pressure of the non-mounted tire is low. The mode of notification by is different. For example, the pitch of the sound may be different, the display mode may be different, or the blinking pattern of the lamp may be different.
(7) The notification device includes at least two notification units, and each of the at least two notification units determines whether or not the air pressure of the non-mounted tire is lower than a set pressure and the air pressure of the mounted tire is lower than the set pressure. It can operate in a different manner depending on whether or not.
When the notification device includes a plurality of notification units (notification operation units), the case where the air pressure of the attached tire is abnormal and the case where the air pressure of the non-attached tire is abnormal are distinguished based on the states of the plurality of notification units. Separately, the driver can be notified.
Each of the plurality of notification units may be switchable between the first state and the second state, or may be switchable between the first state, the second state, and the third state. If a plurality of (n) notification units can be switched to a plurality of states (m states), the tire pressure states (n × m states) can be distinguished and displayed.
For example, when the air pressure of the attached tire is low, one notifying unit is set to the first state and the other notifying unit is set to the second state, and when the air pressure of the non-attached tire is low, the one notifying unit is set to the second state. When the other notification unit is set to the first state and the air pressure of both the mounted tire and the non-mounted tire is low, both the notification units can be set to the first state.
Note that there may be three or more notification units. The plurality of notification units may be switchable to the same state or may be switchable to different states. For example, a notification unit that can be switched between a light-off state and a light-on state, and a notification unit that can be switched between a light-off state and a blinking state, or a notification unit that emits sound (thing that appeals to hearing) and a light notification that emits light Part (thing that appeals to the eye).
Any one of the first state and the second state described above may be inactive. When it is necessary to notify the driver of air pressure or the like, it is often possible to switch from the non-operating state to the operating state.

  Moreover, a tire information processing apparatus shall include the tire condition acquisition apparatus described below.

(1) a tire condition detecting device provided on each of a plurality of tires including a fitted tire mounted on a vehicle and a non-mounted tire mounted on the vehicle without being mounted; b) a transmitter for transmitting a series of tire information including tire condition information representing the tire condition detected by the tire condition detector;
(C) a receiving device that receives tire information transmitted from each of the transmitting devices;
A non-wearing tire information isolating device for isolating information sent from the non-wearing tire from information sent from the wearing tire;
Tire condition acquisition device including
For example, when the receiving device receives both information from the non-wearing tire and information from the wearing tire, the received information distinguishes information from the non-wearing tire and information from the wearing tire. The information transmitted from the mounted tire is received by the receiving device, but the information transmitted from the non-mounted tire is prevented from being received.
A non-wearing tire is a tire with high air pressure (for example, a vehicle mounted as a spare tire and not yet mounted), or a tire with low air pressure (for example, replaced with a spare tire) Tires that have been installed and have reduced air pressure). In many cases, spare tires have a smaller tire width and outer diameter (temper tire: trademark) than standard tires, so that a smaller storage space is required. The non-wearing tire may be held inside the vehicle body or held outside the vehicle body. For example, when being held in the luggage space of the vehicle (indoor storage type), in an RV (Recreational Vehicle) vehicle, being held at the rear side of the vehicle body (back-loading type), or being held at the lower side (lower hanging type) , Underfloor storage type).
The tire may be a wheeled tire or a wheelless tire. Many of the tires mounted on the vehicle as non-mounted tires are equipped with wheels. The tire condition detection device and the transmission device may be provided on a tire or a wheel.
(2) Non-wearing tire information detection device, wherein the non-wearing tire information isolating device is provided in a vehicle body and automatically detects whether or not the tire information received by the receiving device is transmitted from the non-wearing tire. The tire state acquisition device according to item (1), including a section.
In the tire condition acquisition device described in this section, it is automatically detected whether or not the tire information transmitted from the tire side is transmitted from a non-mounted tire. As described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-78446, the detection can be performed without the driver operating the manual switch. In other words, the detection can be performed even during traveling.
Note that detecting whether or not the tire information is transmitted from a non-mounted tire is the same as detecting whether or not the tire information is transmitted from a mounted tire. If it can be identified that the tire information is information transmitted from the mounted tire, it can be determined that the information is not transmitted from the non-mounted tire, and is not tire information that is transmitted from the mounted tire. It can be assumed that the information is information transmitted from a non-wearing tire. Detecting whether or not the tire information is transmitted from a non-wearing tire is the same as distinguishing whether the tire information is transmitted from a non-wearing tire or not. .
Further, detecting whether or not the tire information is transmitted from a non-wearing tire, and detecting whether or not the transmission device that transmitted the tire information is provided in the non-wearing tire; Is the same thing. This is because the tire information is transmitted from a transmission device provided in the tire.
(3) Whether or not the non-mounted tire information isolating device is provided in a vehicle body, and the received tire information is transmitted from the non-mounted tire based on the tire information received by the receiving device. The tire state acquisition device according to item (1) or (2), including a non-wearing tire information detection unit that detects whether or not.
The series of tire information often includes tire condition information, information necessary for communication, identification information individually assigned to each tire, and the like. These are arranged according to a predetermined rule and are transmitted as a series of tire information.
In the tire condition acquisition device described in this section, based on the tire information transmitted from the tire side, it is detected whether the information is information from a non-mounted tire. The tire information is information on each tire, and there are usually different portions between the mounted tire and the non-mounted tire.
The amount of tire condition includes tire pressure, tire temperature, force applied to the tire (vertical force, lateral force, longitudinal force), tire shape amount, tire motion There are quantities that represent the state. An action force detection device that detects the force applied to the tire and a motion state amount detection device that detects a motion state amount that represents the state of motion of the tire may be provided on the wheel that holds the tire. Information representing the acting force detected by the acting force detection device and information representing the movement state amount detected by the movement state amount detecting device are transmitted alone or together with air pressure information and temperature information as tire state information. Can be. The quantity representing the form of the tire includes a tire radial dimension (for example, a distance RH from the wheel outer peripheral surface to the tire inner peripheral surface), a dimension related to the tire width (for example, a distance RV between the sidewalls of the tire, Or the distance from a specific point of the wheel to the sidewall), tire volume, etc. Based on the distance from a specific point on the wheel to the sidewall of the tire, the dimension in the width direction of the tire can be obtained. The distances RH and RV can be detected by using a change in the optical path or a change in the magnetic field by a non-contact sensor. Further, based on the dimension in the radial direction and the dimension in the width direction, the flatness of the tire can be acquired.
The state of the tire differs depending on whether the tire is attached or not.
A non-mounted tire is usually mounted in a state where almost no force is applied, but at least a vertical force is applied to the mounted tire. Since the vertical force in the mounted tire is greater than that in the non-mounted tire, it can be determined whether the information is from the non-mounted tire by comparing the vertical force applied to the tire.
Further, while the vehicle is running, the mounted tire is rotated, but the non-mounted tire is stationary. The amount of motion state is different between the mounted tire and the non-mounted tire. Based on the amount of motion state, it can be determined whether the information is from the non-mounted tire.
Further, each portion of the mounted tire periodically repeats elastic deformation, whereas the non-mounted tire does not repeat elastic deformation. Therefore, it can be determined whether or not the information from the tire is information from a non-mounted tire based on whether or not the information from the tire includes information corresponding to repeated elastic deformation of the tire.
On the other hand, while the vehicle is running, the mounted tire generates heat due to repeated elastic deformation, friction with the road surface, etc., and therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, the temperature of the tire increases as the running time elapses. . Note that elastic deformation and friction with the road surface increase due to driving, braking, turning, vertical vibration, and the like.
On the other hand, the temperature of the non-mounted tire has a height corresponding to the temperature at the position where the tire is mounted (for example, the luggage space or the outside of the vehicle body). The temperature of the luggage space may decrease or increase as the travel time elapses, but the temperature change is relatively small. Even when placed on the outside of the vehicle body, it does not deform elastically or come into contact with the road surface, and the temperature is in accordance with the external environment.
Therefore, based on at least one of the tire temperature and the temperature change state, it is possible to detect whether the tire is a non-mounted tire while the vehicle is running. In vehicles, running and stopping are repeated, but the frequency of the repetition and the ratio between stopping and running vary depending on the running conditions of the vehicle, driving operations, etc., so the temperature rise gradient is not always constant. . However, as shown in FIG. 7, the temperature tends to increase with the lapse of travel time, and it is a fact that the temperature increase gradient is larger in the mounted tire than in the non-mounted tire. Further, the temperature of the tire does not increase without limitation, and when it reaches a temperature determined by the driving mode, driving environment, etc., the tire temperature is kept almost constant thereafter. The temperature in this steady state is also higher for the mounted tire. In any case, the temperature of the non-wearing tire is lower, and the temperature change tendency becomes gentler.
In addition, when the non-wearing tire is placed inside the vehicle body, the temperature of the non-wearing tire becomes the temperature in the passenger compartment, whereas the wearing tire has an external environment (running wind, rain, snow, Affected by road surface temperature). In this case, the difference in the temperature change state between the mounted tire and the non-mounted tire appears more markedly than when the non-mounted tire is placed outside the vehicle body.
If the temperature of the tire rises, the temperature of the air in the tire also rises and expands, so that the air pressure increases. In the mounted tire, the tire has a higher air pressure or a higher tendency to change the air pressure. Therefore, whether or not the tire is a non-wearing tire can be detected based on at least one of the air pressure itself and the rate of change of the air pressure or the amount of change within a predetermined time.
Further, during acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle, a longitudinal force is applied to the mounted tire. Therefore, based on the longitudinal force during acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle, it is possible to detect whether the tire is a non-mounted tire. As described above, since a vertical force or a longitudinal force is applied to the mounted tire, the ratio of the distances RH and RV (for example, the flatness ratio RH / RV) changes. Therefore, based on the above-described ratio during traveling, it is possible to detect whether the tire is a non-mounted tire.
Due to the above circumstances, the temperature difference between the mounted tire and the non-mounted tire increases as the vehicle travels (for example, as the travel time or travel distance increases or the travel distance exceeds the set value). Therefore, it is possible to detect a non-mounted tire using this fact.
Furthermore, it is also possible to detect whether the tire is a non-mounted tire based on the identification information included in the tire information. The identification information is usually used to determine whether the tire corresponds to the vehicle body, but it is possible to distinguish whether the mounted tire is in the front, back, left or right position. It can also be used to distinguish whether a tire is not attached. For example, when a spare tire is mounted on a vehicle, if the identification information and the spare tire are stored in association with each other, then the information is transmitted from the non-wearing tire based on the identification information. Whether it is present can be detected. More specifically, for example, if the spare tire is more than a certain distance from the vehicle body, the tire information from the spare tire will not be received by the receiving device, but will be received if the spare tire is approached. It can be specified that the identification information included in the generated tire information is the identification information of the spare tire.
In addition, when it is possible to identify tire information from a non-wearing tire based on tire state information (at least one of air pressure, temperature, acting force, motion state quantity, etc.), identification information included in the tire information If it is memorize | stored after that, it can be detected whether it is a non-wearing tire based on identification information.
Further, it may be possible to detect whether or not the tire information satisfies the condition that it is information on non-mounted tires individually. Information from the mounted tire can also be specified. For example, it may be detected based on a state quantity or a state change amount representing the state of each tire, or may be detected based on a difference between these state quantities or state change amounts. In many cases, the difference between the mounted tire and the non-mounted tire is large.
The tire condition (not only the tire temperature but also the air pressure, form, acting force, etc.) is also affected by the environment in which the tire is placed. For example, the deformation state of the tire may change depending on the environment, which may change the amount of change in the tire state. The tire environment may be determined based on the running state of the vehicle. As described above, in the state where acceleration / deceleration is frequently repeated, the temperature becomes higher than in the state where it is not. In this way, the environment where the tires are placed is the vehicle running state, atmospheric pressure (the atmospheric pressure is affected by altitude and weather), weather (rain, wind, humidity), road surface condition (road coefficient of friction, road surface temperature, etc.) ) And the like. Therefore, it is desirable to detect information from a non-wearing tire in consideration of environmental influences.
(4) The tire condition information includes temperature information representing tire temperature, air pressure information representing tire air pressure, form information representing tire form, action force information representing force applied to the tire, and movement representing tire motion. A tire condition that includes at least one of information, and wherein the non-wearing tire information detection unit detects whether the received information is information transmitted from the non-wearing tire based on the tire condition information The tire condition acquisition device according to item (2) or (3), including an information-based non-wearing tire information detection unit.
In the tire condition acquisition device described in this section, it is detected whether the information is from a non-mounted tire based on the tire condition information. The tire condition information is information indicating the condition of the tire, and the condition of the tire is different between the mounted tire and the non-mounted tire. Therefore, based on the tire condition information, it is possible to detect whether the tire is a non-mounted tire.
(5) The tire state information-based non-mounted tire information detection unit transmits the received information from the non-mounted tire based on the change state of the temperature of the tire represented by the temperature information included in the tire state information. The tire condition acquisition device according to item (4), further including a tire temperature change dependency detection unit that detects whether the information is information.
As shown in FIG. 7, based on the change state of the tire temperature, it is possible to detect whether the tire is a non-mounted tire. There is an advantage that it is possible to acquire that the tire is a non-wearing tire relatively early after the ignition switch before the temperature reaches a steady state.
For example, when the temperature increase gradient is smaller than the set value, the information can be assumed to be information from a non-wearing tire. Further, the temperature rise gradients of a plurality of tires are compared, and information with the smallest temperature rise gradient can be regarded as information from a non-wearing tire.
The temperature change state can be a differential value of temperature, an n-time differential value (n ≧ 2), or an average change amount and change pattern for a relatively long time. Since stopping and running are usually repeated, it is desirable to detect whether or not the tire is a non-wearing tire based on the average amount of change.
(6) Based on the difference between the temperature of the tire represented by the temperature information included in the tire condition information and the outside air temperature, the received information is determined by the tire condition information-based non-attached tire information detection unit as the non-attached tire. The tire condition acquisition device according to item (4) or (5), further including a temperature difference dependence detection unit that detects whether or not the information is transmitted from.
As shown in FIG. 10, the difference between the mounted tire and the outside air temperature and the difference between the non-mounted tire and the outside air temperature are usually smaller in the non-mounted tire. Further, when the non-wearing tire is attached to the outside of the vehicle body, the difference from the outside air temperature is smaller than when the non-wearing tire is placed in the luggage room.
(7) The tire state information-based non-wearing tire information detection unit is information in which the received information is transmitted from the non-wearing tire based on the exercise state represented by the exercise information included in the tire state information. The tire condition acquisition device according to any one of items (4) to (6), further including an exercise condition dependency detection unit that detects whether or not.
The tire motion state includes a tire vibration state, a rotation state, an acceleration state, a deceleration state, and the like. Further, the vibration state corresponds to a vibration state in the vehicle vertical direction when the tire is mounted, a vibration state in the vehicle front-rear direction or the width direction, and the like. The motion state quantity detection device may detect one predetermined motion of the tire or may detect a plurality of motions in combination. In addition, although exercise | movement may arise due to the force added to a tire, in that case, the state of exercise | movement can also be detected with the applied force detection apparatus.
The motion state dependence detection unit detects non-wearing tire information based on at least one of the motion state quantities representing the state of motion.
(8) Whether the received information is information transmitted from the non-wearing tire based on the tire state information in the running state of the vehicle, the tire state information-based non-wearing tire information detection unit. The tire condition acquisition device according to any one of items (4) to (7), including a traveling condition non-mounted tire information detection unit to detect.
In the tire state acquisition device described in this section, information from a non-mounted tire is detected not in a vehicle parking state (a stopped state for a long time as the tire temperature becomes substantially equal to the environmental temperature) but in a running state. The difference between the content represented by the tire condition information of the attached tire and the content represented by the tire condition information of the non-mounted tire is more likely to appear more significantly when the vehicle is in the running state than when the vehicle is in the parked state. The running state is not limited to the state in which the running speed of the vehicle is continuously maintained at the set speed or higher, and the running and the stop for a short time are repeatedly performed. A state in which the state can be ignored is also included. This is a state opposite to the parking state.
It is possible to detect whether or not the information is transmitted from a non-wearing tire even when the vehicle is stopped. For example, if tire information includes identification information, it can be detected on the basis of the identification information. As described in [Embodiment of the invention], a switch operation is performed by the driver after tire replacement. Can be detected based on the switch operation.
(9) The tire condition information reliance non-wearing tire information detection unit is configured based on the tire condition information in both the travel start time from the parking state of the vehicle or the travel start time after the tire replacement and the travel state. The tire condition acquisition device according to any one of (4) to (8), further including a detection unit that detects whether or not the received information is information transmitted from the non-wearing tire.
For example, as shown in FIG. 12, when the vehicle starts running after parking, and when the mounted tire and the non-wearing tire are exchanged after running for a relatively long time, and then starts running, Tire temperature and temperature change state are different. In the former case, the temperature of the mounted tire and the non-mounted tire is almost the same at the start of running, and then the temperature of the mounted tire rises with a relatively large gradient, and the temperature of the non-mounted tire hardly changes or is small. It changes with the slope (often rising). On the other hand, in the latter case, the temperature difference is large at the start of driving, and the temperature of the non-mounted tire after replacement (the tire that was installed before the replacement) decreases, and the newly installed tire (changed) The temperature of the tires that were previously non-mounted tires rises, and the temperature of the other mounted tires (those that were also mounted tires before the replacement) is almost constant. Based on the facts in either of the above two cases, tire information transmitted from a non-wearing tire can be detected.
(10) The tire state information includes temperature information indicating the temperature of the tire, and the tire state information-based non-wearing tire information detection unit includes a plurality of temperatures represented by temperature information from a plurality of tires at the start of vehicle travel. Whether or not the information is transmitted from the non-wearing tire based on at least one of a plurality of temperatures represented by temperature information from a plurality of tires in a running state and a change state of those temperatures. The tire condition acquisition device according to any one of (4) to (9), including a temperature difference dependency detection unit at the start of travel to be detected.
(11) The tire condition information includes temperature information indicating the temperature of the tire, and the tire condition information reliance non-wearing tire information detection unit detects a difference between the temperature indicated by the temperature information at the start of traveling of the vehicle and the outside air temperature. And a starting temperature difference detection unit that detects whether the information is transmitted from the non-wearing tire based on at least one of a temperature represented by temperature information in the traveling state and a change state of the temperature. The tire condition acquisition device according to any one of items (4) to (10).
The temperature change state of the tire in the running state is affected by the outside air temperature. Since the influence of the outside air temperature on the mounted tire is different from the influence on the non-wearing tire, it is desirable to detect the difference between the outside air temperature in advance and to detect the tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire. .
When the running of the vehicle is started from a state in which the outside air temperature is very low with respect to the tire temperature, the temperature of the mounted tire once decreases, but then increases with traveling. The temperature of the non-wearing tire is lowered to a temperature determined by the relationship with the outside air temperature, and then kept substantially constant. In this case, the tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tire is detected based on the temperature change or temperature represented by the temperature information after the time when the temperature of the mounted tire starts to rise after the start of traveling. It is desirable to do.
(12) The non-attached tire information detecting device determines the information from the non-attached tire when the number of pieces of information determined to be tire information from the non-attached tire is equal to or less than a set number. The tire state acquisition device according to any one of items (1) to (11), including a mounted tire confirmation unit.
Usually, the number of non-mounted tires mounted on the vehicle is determined in advance. Therefore, when the number detected as the information from the non-wearing tire is the set number, it can be assumed that the information is from the non-wearing tire.
On the other hand, if the number is larger than the set number, there is a high possibility of erroneous detection. When the number is less than the set number, a non-mounted tire is used (for example, a tire is replaced and the replaced mounted tire is discarded) and may not be replenished. can do.
For example, when tire information transmitted from a non-wearing tire is detected based on whether or not the contents represented by the tire condition information of each tire satisfy a predetermined condition, Information detected as information may be larger than the actual number of non-mounted tires, and the tire condition acquisition device of this section is effective. On the other hand, when information from non-wearing tires is selected by comparing the contents represented by a plurality of tire condition information, the information from the non-wearing tires detected is greater than the number of non-wearing tires. Almost no.
(13) Non-wearing tire identification in which the tire information includes identification information capable of identifying individual tires, and the non-wearing tire information detection unit acquires the content represented by the identification information included in the non-wearing tire information. The tire condition acquisition according to any one of items (2) to (12), which includes an information acquisition unit, and is executed every time a predetermined condition is satisfied. apparatus.
In the tire state acquisition device described in this section, the content represented by the identification information of the non-mounted tire is acquired every time a predetermined condition is satisfied. When a predetermined condition is satisfied, the content represented by the identification information of the non-mounted tire is acquired. When the condition is satisfied next, the content represented by the identification information is acquired. The content represented by the identification information of the non-installed tire acquired last time and the content represented by the identification information acquired this time may be the same or different. For example, when a mounted tire is replaced with a non-mounted tire, or when a non-mounted tire is replaced with a new non-mounted tire, the identification information of the non-mounted tire is different.
The identification information of the non-wearing tire is, for example, the tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire is detected by the tire condition acquisition device according to any of the above-mentioned items (2) to (12), and the non-wearing tire is not attached. The contents represented by the identification information included in the tire information transmitted from the tire can be acquired.
(14) The tire condition information acquisition device has acquired a content representing identification information included in the tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tire until a predetermined condition is satisfied this time, After isolating the tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire based on the content of the identification information representing the non-wearing tire information acquired last time, and acquiring the content of the identification information representing the non-wearing tire information this time, The tire condition acquisition device according to item (13), further including a non-mounted tire information isolating unit that isolates tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tire based on content represented by the identification information.
This time, until the content represented by the identification information of the non-mounted tire is acquired after the predetermined condition is satisfied, the information from the non-mounted tire is isolated based on the content expressed by the previously acquired identification information. Is done. In this case, if tire replacement or the like has not been performed after the content of the previous identification information has been acquired, the content of the previous acquired identification information and the current (this time, after a predetermined condition has been satisfied) It is the same as the content represented by the identification information of the non-wearing tire (until the content of the identification information of the wearing tire is acquired), and the information from the non-wearing tire can be accurately isolated.
(15) The tire condition information acquisition device is satisfied from the time when the predetermined condition is satisfied until the acquisition of the content representing the identification information included in the tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire, After acquiring the content of the identification information representing the current non-wearing tire information without isolating the tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire, and transmitted from the non-wearing tire based on the content represented by the current identification information The tire condition acquisition device according to item (13), including a non-mounted tire information isolation unit after acquiring identification information for isolating tire information.
In the tire condition acquisition device described in this section, the content of the previous identification information is not used until the content represented by the identification information is acquired this time. For example, information on non-mounted tires may not be isolated, and all tire states may be acquired similarly (without being distinguished), or all tire states may not be acquired.
(16) The tire state acquisition device according to any one of (1) to (15), wherein the tire state acquisition device includes a tire information sorting unit that sorts a plurality of tire information based on a threshold value. .
Based on the threshold value, a plurality of tire information can be divided into a plurality of groups. For example, tire information transmitted from non-mounted tires and tire information transmitted from mounted tires can be sorted, and information on non-mounted tires can be isolated. In addition, information is classified into information from front tires and information from rear tires, information from tires that require high tire replacement, and information from tires that require low replacement. You can also do it.
(17) The tire information sorting unit includes a threshold value determining unit that determines the threshold value based on a tire state amount represented by the tire state information when the traveling state of the vehicle is in a set state ( The tire condition acquisition device according to item 16).
In the tire state acquisition device described in this section, the threshold value is determined based on the tire state amount when the traveling state of the vehicle is set. Although the threshold value can be a predetermined constant value, it is desirable that the threshold value be determined based on the amount of tire condition in the actual running state of the vehicle. The tire state quantity and the change state of the tire state quantity may be affected by the traveling environment of the vehicle, and in this case, it is desirable that the tire state quantity is determined based on the tire state quantity. For example, when used in a special environment such as a very cold region or a tropical region, it is desirable to determine the tire state amount in an actual running state under the environment.
If the identification information of each tire is stored in advance and the tire state quantity of each tire in the running state of the vehicle is detected, the tire classification amount can be determined based on the correspondence between the identification information and the tire state quantity. Thresholds can be determined. Further, even when the identification information is not stored, when the tires are classified into mounted tires and non-mounted tires, when the tire state quantities of the four tires are close to each other and the tire state quantities of the one tire are separated, A threshold can be determined between these tire state quantities.
When sorting of tire information is performed in the running state of the vehicle, it is desirable that the threshold value be determined in the same state as when the sorting is performed. Sorting is performed in a state in which there is a difference in the amount of tire state between the tires. For example, when the running state becomes a set state (specifically, when the travel distance is equal to or greater than the set travel distance, the travel time is equal to or greater than the set time), the cumulative load applied to the tire is set. This is done when the cumulative amount is reached. The threshold value should be determined in a state suitable for the sorting, and the set state is determined by the “suitable state”.
The determination of the threshold value may be performed only once for each vehicle or may be performed a plurality of times. It is desirable to be performed every time the driving environment changes greatly, such as a change in the region where the vehicle travels and a change in season. In regions where the outside air temperature is significantly different between daytime and nighttime, it is desirable to carry out at least twice a day. In these cases, the threshold value is corrected and changed. It can also be performed periodically or every time a predetermined condition is satisfied (for example, every time the outside air temperature changes more than a set value).
(18) The tire information sorting unit is included in the non-wearing tire information detection unit, and based on the threshold value, information transmitted from the non-wearing tire and information transmitted from the wearing tire; The tire condition acquisition device according to item (16), further including a threshold value-based non-wearing tire information detection unit.
(19) The tire information includes identification information capable of identifying individual tires, and the tire condition acquisition device includes tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tires among tire information received by the receiving device. The tire condition acquisition according to any one of items (1) to (18), including a non-wearing tire identification information storage unit that stores identification information included in tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire. apparatus.
In the tire condition acquisition device described in this section, tire information transmitted from a non-mounted tire is distinguished, and identification information included in the tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tire is stored. Thereafter, based on the identification information, it is possible to determine whether the information is transmitted from the mounted tire or the information transmitted from the non-mounted tire.
The tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire can be distinguished by various methods as described above.
In addition, when it can be assumed that the tire with the lowest air pressure is a non-wearing tire, it is possible to distinguish tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire using this fact.
For example, when one of the mounted tires is replaced with a non-mounted tire when the air pressure is lowered due to puncture or the like, it is determined in advance that the mounted tire is lowered to a set pressure or less before being mounted on the vehicle. The set pressure is set to such a magnitude that, for example, this air pressure cannot travel for a predetermined set time or longer. After the replacement, when the vehicle travels for a set time or longer, a tire having a lower air pressure than the set pressure can be set as a non-wearing tire. Further, it is determined in advance that a reset switch (initialization switch) is operated when one of the mounted tires is replaced with a non-mounted tire because the air pressure becomes low due to puncture or the like. When the reset switch is operated, the tire with the lowest air pressure can be regarded as a non-wearing tire.
(20) The non-wearing tire information isolation device includes a non-wearing tire information reception blocking device that prevents the information transmitted from the non-wearing tire from being received by the receiving device. The tire condition acquisition device according to any one of the above.
If the tire information transmitted from the non-wearing tire is not received by the receiving device, the information from the non-wearing tire and the information from the wearing tire can be isolated. For example, if communication between a non-wearing tire and a receiving device is prevented, information transmitted from the non-wearing tire is not received by the receiving device. It is not indispensable to prevent transmission of signals from non-wearing tires to the receiving device. It is only necessary to prevent the signal from the non-wearing tire from reaching the receiving device, and it is only necessary to limit the emission of the signal from the non-wearing tire. For example, if the signal is attenuated, it can be prevented from reaching the receiving device.
(21) The tire condition information acquisition device according to (20), wherein the non-wearing tire information reception blocking device includes a communication blocking device that prevents information transmitted from the non-wearing tire from reaching the receiving device.
If the electromagnetic wave transmitted from the non-wearing tire is absorbed, the radiation of the electromagnetic wave is blocked, the electromagnetic wave is reflected, or the electromagnetic wave is attenuated, the electromagnetic wave does not reach the receiving device.
(22) The tire condition information acquisition device according to (20) or (21), wherein the non-wearing tire information reception blocking device includes an electromagnetic wave shielding member that blocks a transmission signal from the non-wearing tire to the receiving device.
If an electromagnetic wave shielding member is disposed between the non-wearing tire and the receiving device, it is possible to prevent the electromagnetic wave transmitted from the non-wearing tire from reaching the receiving device. The electromagnetic wave shielding member may be provided in a state that can prevent communication between the non-wearing tire and the receiving device. For example, even if the electromagnetic shielding member is provided so as to cover (enclose) the entire non-wearing tire, You may provide in the state which covers a part. However, if the electromagnetic wave shielding member is disposed in the vicinity of the receiving device, information from the mounted tire may not be received. Therefore, it is desirable to dispose the electromagnetic shielding member in the vicinity of the non-mounted tire.
The electromagnetic shielding member is a member that includes a conductive material and can block electromagnetic waves. For example, the electromagnetic shielding member is made of a conductive material, or a conductive material is contained in a substrate such as a resin or cloth. Or can be made of a product. The electromagnetic wave shielding member may be molded into a rigid container or may be manufactured into a flexible sheet.
Specifically, a conductive material is included in a resin or the like, molded, a fiber formed of a conductive material is woven together with a fiber of an organic material, or a fiber including a conductive material and an organic material is woven. Or by coating a substrate such as a resin or cloth with a conductive material. Examples of the conductive material include metal and carbon.

A tire information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The tire information processing apparatus includes an air pressure acquisition device as a tire condition acquisition device.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, tires 10 are mounted at front, rear, left and right positions of the vehicle, and a spare tire 12 as a non-mounted tire is mounted in a rear luggage space. The tire 10 (hereinafter referred to as a mounted tire in order to distinguish it from a non-mounted tire) and the spare tire 12 each have a wheel. The mounted tire 10 and the spare tire 12 are each provided with a wheel side device 20, and the vehicle body 22 is provided with a vehicle body side device 24.

  The wheel side device 20 includes an air pressure sensor 30 that detects the air pressure of the tires 10 and 12, a temperature sensor 32 that detects the temperature of the tires 10 and 12, and air pressure information and a temperature sensor that indicate the air pressure detected by the air pressure sensors 30. The transmission antenna 34 which transmits a series of tire information containing the temperature information showing the temperature of the tire detected by 32, and the tire information preparation apparatus 36 which produces a series of tire information are included. The tire information creation device 36 includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, an input / output unit, and the like. A pneumatic sensor 30 and a temperature sensor 32 are connected to the input / output unit, and a transmission antenna 34 is connected to the input / output unit. In the present embodiment, the air pressure sensor 30 is provided at a portion corresponding to the valve of the tire of the wheel.

As shown in FIG. 3, the tire information 50 includes synchronization information 52, identification information 54, air pressure information 56, tire temperature information 58, check information 60, and the like. The synchronization information 52 is information that is located at the head of the tire information 50, and is information that is transmitted to synchronize with the receiving device. The identification information 54 is attached to each of the mounted tire 10 and the spare tire 12, and is information that can identify each tire. The identification information 54 is provided to identify that the tires 10 and 12 are included in the vehicle and are not included in other vehicles. However, according to the identification information 54, it is also possible to detect whether the tire information is information transmitted from the spare tire 12. The check information 60 is information used for parity check and the like. In addition to these, the tire information 50 may include information indicating the state of the wheel side device 24 (for example, information indicating the remaining capacity of the battery). Of the tire information 50, the air pressure information 56, the tire temperature information 58, and the like are the tire condition information.
In the wheel side device 20, the air pressure and temperature of the tires 10 and 12 are detected by the air pressure sensor 30 and the temperature sensor 32, and tire information 50 is created in the tire information creating device 36 based on the detected air pressure and temperature. It is transmitted from the transmission antenna 34. In the present embodiment, it can be considered that the transmission device 38 is configured by the transmission antenna 34, the tire information creation device 36, and the like.

The vehicle body side device 24 includes a reception antenna 70 that receives tire information transmitted from the wheel side device 20, a notification device 72, and a reception control device 74. The reception control device 74 is mainly composed of a computer, and a receiving antenna 70, an ignition switch 76, and the like are connected to an input / output unit, and a notification device 72 is connected. The reception control device 74 processes the received tire information, and based on the tire state, it is detected whether the tire information is transmitted from the spare tire 12, or the tire state is abnormal. Or not. When the tire condition is abnormal, the notification device 72 is activated.
In the present embodiment, tire information is transmitted from the wheel side devices 20 at different intervals. Therefore, in principle, two or more pieces of tire information are not received by the receiving antenna 70 in an overlapping manner. Also, even if they are received in duplicate, they will not be received again next time.

Various programs such as a tire information processing program represented by the flowchart of FIG. 4 and a notification device control program represented by the flowchart of FIG. 6 are stored in the first storage unit 77A of the reception control device 74. The non-volatile second storage unit 77B stores the identification information of the detected spare tire 12, and the third storage unit 77C identifies the tire whose tire condition is abnormal as described later. Information is stored. In the present embodiment, it is considered that the reception device 78 is configured by the reception antenna 70 and the reception control device 74, or that the reception antenna 70 and the reception control device 74 perform processing related to reception. can do.
In addition, a vehicle control device 80 is connected to the reception control device 74. The vehicle control device 80 includes a computer including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, an input / output unit, and the like, and controls the traveling state of the vehicle by controlling the vehicle control actuator 82. Communication is performed between the vehicle control device 80 and the reception control device 74, and air pressure information and the like are supplied from the reception control device 74 to the vehicle control device 80. The vehicle control device 80 is connected to a vehicle state detection device 83 that detects the state of the vehicle.

In the vehicle body side device 24, when tire information is received by the receiving antenna 70, the received information is processed by the reception control device 74, and the notification device 72 is activated as necessary.
In the present embodiment, the notification device 72 appeals to the driver's hearing by issuing an alarm when the state of the tire is considered abnormal. It may be something that appeals visually, such as what is displayed on the display. In this sense, the notification device 72 in the present embodiment can be referred to as an alarm device. The notification device 72 informs the driver that the tire condition is normal when the tire condition is normal, informs the tire condition when the tire condition is normal, and details of the tire condition (pressure level and tire temperature). It can also be set as the apparatus which notifies.

When the air pressure represented by the air pressure information 56 included in the tire information 50 transmitted from each of the tires 10 and 12 is smaller than the set pressure, the temperature represented by the temperature information 58 included in the tire information 50 is higher than the set temperature. The state is determined to be abnormal, and the notification device 72 is activated. However, when it is detected that the tire information 50 is information transmitted from the spare tire 12, the notification device 72 is not activated. Even if the condition of the spare tire 12 is abnormal, it is not necessary to promptly inform the driver.
In the receiving device 78, it is detected based on the tire information 50 whether the received tire information 50 is information transmitted from the spare tire 12. As shown in FIG. 7, when the ignition switch 76 is switched from the OFF state to the ON state and the vehicle enters the traveling state, the temperature of the mounted tire 10 is relatively large due to repeated elastic deformation, friction with the road surface, and the like. To rise. However, it does not rise indefinitely, and when it reaches a height determined by the traveling environment, it becomes almost steady. On the other hand, the temperature of the spare tire 12 changes with the temperature change of the luggage space, but the change gradient is gentle. Also, the temperature of the luggage space does not always rise. If the temperature of the luggage space decreases, it will decrease. Thereafter, when the steady state is reached, the temperature of the spare tire 12 is also kept substantially constant. Even in this steady state, the temperature of the spare tire 12 (steady temperature) is as high as the temperature of the mounted tire 10. Absent. Thus, in the present embodiment, it is detected whether or not the received tire information 50 is information transmitted from the spare tire 12 based on the tire temperature change state before reaching the steady state.

The tire information processing program represented by the flowchart of FIG. 4 is executed at predetermined time intervals. The ignition switch 76 may be executed at different time intervals depending on whether the ignition switch 76 is in the ON state or the OFF state.
In step 1 (hereinafter abbreviated as S1. The same applies to other steps), it is detected whether the ignition switch 76 is in an ON state or an OFF state. In the present embodiment, regardless of whether the ignition switch 76 is in the ON state or the OFF state, wireless communication is performed between the wheel side device 20 and the vehicle body side device 24, and the tire information 50 is transmitted. However, in the OFF state of the ignition switch 76, the notification device 72 is not operated even if the tire state is abnormal.
In the OFF state of the ignition switch 76, the information received by the receiving device 78 is processed in S2, and it is determined in S3 and 4 whether the tire condition is normal or abnormal. In the present embodiment, the tire condition is considered abnormal when at least one of the air pressure and the tire temperature has an abnormal magnitude. It is determined whether the air pressure is lower than the set pressure Ps or the temperature is higher than the set temperature Ts. If the air pressure is higher than the set pressure and the temperature is lower than the set temperature, the tire condition is normal. In step S5, the alarm flag is reset. In S6 and 7, the spare tire identified flag and the spare tire unidentifiable flag used when the ignition switch 76 is ON are reset. On the other hand, when the air pressure is smaller than the set pressure Ps or when the temperature is higher than the set temperature Ts, the tire condition is considered abnormal. In S8, the identification information 54 included in the tire information is stored in the third storage unit 77C, and in S9, an alarm flag is set.
Thereafter, S1 to S9 are repeatedly executed in the OFF state of the ignition switch 76.

In the ON state of the ignition switch 76, the information received by the receiving device 78 is processed in S10, and it is determined in S11 whether or not the spare tire identified flag is in the set state. When S11 is first executed after the ignition switch 76 is switched from the OFF state to the ON state, the spare tire identification flag is in the reset state, so the determination is NO, and the spare tire identification is performed in S12. In S13, it is determined whether or not the spare tire identification impossibility flag is in the set state.
Although identification in S12 will be described later, in the execution of S12, information from the spare tire 12 is detected, and identification information 54 (hereinafter referred to as spare tire 12) included in the tire information 50 transmitted from the transmission device 38 of the spare tire 12 is detected. Is abbreviated as identification information 54) in the second storage unit 77B, and information from the spare tire 12 can be distinguished. The determination in S13 is NO, and S14 and subsequent steps are executed.

In S14, it is determined whether or not the alarm flag is set. If the warning flag is not set, it is determined in S15 and S16 whether the tire condition is normal. If it is abnormal, it is determined in S17 whether or not the identification information 54 included in the tire information 50 matches the identification information 54 of the spare tire 12. If they match, it is assumed that the tire information 50 determined to be abnormal in the tire condition is transmitted from the spare tire 12, and no warning flag is set. However, the identification information of the spare tire 12 is not set. If it does not match 54, an alarm flag is set in S18.
If the warning flag is already set when S14 is executed, the determination is YES, and in S19, the identification information 54 stored in the second storage unit 77B and the identification information 54 of the spare tire 12 are Is determined to match. If they match, the warning flag is reset in S20. Since it has been found that the alarm flag that has already been set was set based on the tire information 50 transmitted from the spare tire 12, the alarm flag is reset.

  If the spare tire identification impossibility flag is set in the execution in S12, for example, if the information of the spare tire 12 cannot be detected yet and the identification information of the spare tire 12 cannot be acquired, the determination in S13 is YES, In S21, it is determined whether or not the alarm flag is set. If it is not in the set state, it is determined in S22 and 23 whether the tire state is normal or abnormal. If it is determined to be abnormal, an alarm flag is set in S24, and the identification information 54 is stored in the third storage unit 77C in S25. This is because an abnormal tire may be a spare tire.

The identification of the spare tire 12 in S12 is performed according to the execution of the spare tire identification routine represented by the flowchart of FIG. In S51, it is determined whether or not a spare tire identification condition is satisfied. In the present embodiment, since the identification of the spare tire 12 is detected based on the temperature change of the tire, the running state in which the spare tire 12 or the mounted tire 10 can be identified based on the temperature change has been achieved. In this case, the spare tire identification condition is satisfied. For example, it can be set as the case where the elapsed time from a driving | running | working start is more than 1st set time and less than 2nd set time.
If the identification condition is satisfied, it is determined in S52 whether or not the tire information 50 from the set number of tires Cs0 (5 in the present embodiment) or more has been received. In the vehicle in the present embodiment, since one spare tire 12 is mounted on the vehicle, a total of five tires are mounted on the vehicle including the front, rear, left, and right mounted tires 10. The set number Cs0 is the number of tires that transmit tire information. In the present embodiment, the set number Cs0 is the number of all the tires mounted on the vehicle (the value obtained by adding the number of mounted tires 10 and the number of non-mounted tires 12). . If tire information is transmitted from all tires, the received tire information 50 should be five.
When five or more pieces of tire information 50 are received, the temperature change amount ΔTh per set time of the tire temperature represented by the tire temperature information 58 included in each tire information 50 is greater than the set change amount ΔTs in S53. Each is determined. As shown in FIG. 7, when the temperature change amount ΔTh is equal to or less than the set change amount ΔTs, the tire information 50 can be regarded as information transmitted from the spare tire 12.

When the temperature change amount ΔTh is equal to or less than the set change amount ΔTs, the tire information 50 is provisionally determined to be transmitted from the spare tire 12 in S54, and the provisionally determined tire information 50 is determined in S55. Is greater than the set number Cs1 (the number of spare tires 12, which is 1 in the present embodiment). When the number is larger than the set number Cs, it is determined that the provisional determination that the tire is the spare tire 12 is an error. As described above, since the number of spare tires 12 mounted on the vehicle is fixed, it cannot be more than that. The number Cs1 of the spare tires 12 mounted on the vehicle, the number Cs0 of all the tires mounted on the vehicle, and the like may be input by the driver. This is because extra tires 12 may be mounted on the vehicle.
On the other hand, when the tire information 50 that is provisionally determined to be the spare tire 12 is equal to or less than the set number Cs1, the tire information 50 may be transmitted from the spare tire 12. In the case of the set number Cs1, it can be determined that the information is from the spare tire 12. However, if the set number Cs1 is less than the set number Cs1, the spare tire 12 is used and may not be mounted thereafter. Conceivable.
Thereafter, in S56, a spare tire identification completed flag is set, and a spare tire identification impossible flag described later is reset. In S57, the identification information 54 included in the tire information 50 transmitted from the spare tire 12 is stored in the second storage unit 77B. In S58, a later-described trie number counter is reset. The execution of S56 and 57 can be referred to as a confirmation process for the transmission device 38 of the spare tire 12.

  Experimental values, theoretical values, and the like can be used as appropriate for the identification condition of the non-wearing tire or the wearing tire and the temperature change threshold value for discrimination. Further, as will be described later, it may be determined in the actual running state of the vehicle. For example, according to an experiment, when the outside air temperature is 11 ° C. and the elapsed time from the start of traveling is 10 minutes or more and 30 minutes or less and the temperature change for 10 minutes is 3 ° C. or more, the tire is used as a tire. It can be assumed that the tire is not mounted. Further, the threshold value for temperature change can be set to 5 ° C. Further identification and temperature change thresholds require further experimentation and examination in the future. In addition, for example, a vehicle speed sensor is provided, and a state where the vehicle traveling speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor is equal to or higher than a set speed can be set as the traveling state.

On the other hand, if the identification condition is not satisfied in S51, or if the received tire information 50 is less than the set number in S52, the temperature change ΔTh represented by the temperature information 56 for all tire information 50 in S53. Is larger than the set change amount ΔTs, the spare tire 12 cannot be identified. In this case, there are cases where the spare tire 12 is mounted but cannot be identified or the spare tire 12 is not mounted. In the present embodiment, when the spare tire 12 cannot be identified, a predetermined set number of times (N0 times) is executed.
Even if the identification condition of the spare tire 12 is not satisfied at the time of this execution, it may be satisfied at the next execution. In communication, information from the wheel side device 20 may not be received due to noise, relative positional relationship between the wheel side device 20 and the vehicle body side device 24, etc. Sometimes it can be received.
In S59, the number-of-trials counter is incremented, and in S60, it is determined whether or not the number of trials N has reached the set number N0. If it is less than the set number of times, the process returns to the execution of S51.
If the spare tire 12 cannot be identified, S51, 52, 53, (54, 55), 59, 60 are repeatedly executed, and when the set number of times is reached, a spare tire identification impossible flag is set in S61, 62, The number of tries N is cleared.

The fact that the spare tire identification impossibility flag is set indicates that the spare tire 12 could not be identified in the current execution of S12. The determination in S13 is YES, and S21 and subsequent steps are executed. As described above, when the warning flag is set, the notification device 72 is operated without detecting whether the tire is the spare tire 12 or not. When the tire condition is abnormal, the alarm flag is set in the same manner regardless of whether the tire is the mounted tire 10 or the non-mounted tire 12.
By executing S12 a plurality of times, the spare tire 12 may be identified, but may remain unidentifiable.
When it becomes discriminable, in S56, the spare tire discriminating flag is reset and the discriminated flag is set. Therefore, the determination in S13 is NO, and S14 and subsequent steps are executed. When the alarm flag is set, it is determined whether or not the tire is related to the spare tire 12, and when the alarm flag is related to the spare tire 12, the alarm flag is reset. The alarm flag may be set when the ignition switch 76 is in the OFF state, or may be set by execution after S21. Further, when it is determined that the tire condition is abnormal after the spare tire 12 is identified, it is determined whether or not the tire information 50 is transmitted from the spare tire 12 each time. Is done. Even if the tire condition is abnormal, the alarm device 72 is not operated as long as it relates to the spare tire 12.

  The notification device 72 is controlled according to the execution of the notification device control program represented by the flowchart of FIG. In S91, it is determined whether or not the ignition switch 76 is in the ON state. If it is determined that the ignition switch 76 is in the ON state, it is determined in S92 whether or not an alarm flag is set. When the alarm flag is in the set state in the ON state, the notification device 72 is activated in S93. However, when the ignition switch 76 is in the OFF state, the alarm flag is in the reset state. In S94, the notification device 72 is not operated. When S94 is executed, if the notification device 72 is in the operating state, the operation is stopped. Further, in the OFF state of the ignition switch 76, the notification device 72 is not activated even if the alarm flag is set.

Thus, in this embodiment, even if it is determined that the tire state represented by the tire state information included in the tire information 50 is abnormal, the tire information 50 is transmitted from the spare tire 12. In such a case, the notification device 72 is not activated. For this reason, the notification device 72 is not operated unnecessarily, and the passenger compartment is quiet.
Further, since the identification of the spare tire 12 is detected based on the change state of the tire temperature, it can be detected at a relatively early time after the ignition switch 76 is switched from the OFF state to the ON state.
As a result, for example, in the OFF state of the ignition switch 76, an alarm flag is set due to the low air pressure of the spare tire 12, and the notification device 72 is activated after the ignition switch 76 is switched to the ON state. However, since the spare tire 12 is identified early, and the operation of the notification device 72 is thereby stopped, there is an advantage that the operation time of the notification device 72 is shortened. Further, by doing so, the driver knows that the air pressure of the non-mounted tire 12 is low.
In addition, the spare tire 12 is determined when the provisional determination of the spare tire 12 is performed based on the change in the temperature of the tire and the number of provisionally determined is equal to or less than the set number (the number of spare tires mounted on the vehicle). Therefore, the spare tire 12 can be accurately identified.

  In the present embodiment, the spare control unit 74 stores the spare tire identification routine represented by the flowchart of FIG. 5 (S12 of the tire information processing program represented by the flowchart of FIG. 4). A mounted tire information isolation device is configured. Non-wearing tire information isolation device includes non-wearing tire information detection unit, tire condition information based non-wearing tire information detection unit, tire information processing unit, wearing tire information processing unit, tire temperature change dependency detection unit, non-wearing tire identification information acquisition It is also a department. Of these, the portion for storing S3, 15, and 22 and the portion for executing the portion constitute an air pressure abnormality detecting portion. Further, the notification device is configured by a part for storing the notification device control program represented by the flowchart of FIG.

In this embodiment, the state where the spare tire identification flag is set is a state where a non-mounted tire can be detected, and the state where the spare tire identification impossible flag is set is a state where a non-mounted tire cannot be detected. You can think of it. In this case, it can be considered that the spare tire identification condition corresponds to a “predetermined condition”. Further, it can be considered that the state in which the spare tire identified flag is not set is an undetectable state. In this case, when the ignition switch 76 is switched to the ON state, a “predetermined condition” is set. "Can be satisfied.
In a state where the spare tire identified flag is set, S14 to S20 are executed, and in a state where the spare tire identified impossible flag is set (a state where the spare tire identified flag is not set), S21 to 25 are performed. Executed. In this case, whether the spare tire 12 has a low air pressure or the mounted tire 10 has a low air pressure, the alarm flag is set and the notification device 72 is activated. The tire information of the mounted tire 10 and the tire state of the spare tire 12 are similarly processed.

The spare tire identification impossibility flag may be set without being tried when the spare tire identification condition is not satisfied. It is also possible to set different flags depending on whether the spare tire identification condition is not satisfied or when the spare tire identification condition cannot be identified after a set number of times.
Further, the spare tire identification condition can be that the travel time is equal to or greater than the set time and the stop time is equal to or less than the set time, the travel distance exceeds the set distance, and the like. For example, as described above, the traveling time can be a time during which the traveling speed is equal to or higher than the set speed.

Further, in the above embodiment, the spare tire 12 is identified based on the temperature change state represented by the temperature information 58, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it may be detected based on a temperature (steady temperature) after reaching a steady state (for example, an elapsed time from the start of traveling is 1 hour or more). Normally, the steady temperature of the spare tire 12 is lower than that of the mounted tire 10. Further, the spare tire 12 can be identified by comparing the temperatures of a plurality of tires. For example, the tire having the lowest temperature and the tire having the smallest temperature change can be used as the spare tire.
Further, it can be detected based on the identification information 54. For example, when the spare tire 12 is mounted on the vehicle, identification information thereof may be stored. In this case, the spare tire 12 and the identification information can be stored in association with each other.
It can also be detected based on the air pressure itself. For example, when the air pressure in all tires is normal, the tire corresponding to the smallest air pressure of all the tires 10 and 12 can be used as the spare tire 12. The air pressure is higher than that of the spare tire 12 due to the vehicle weight being added to the mounted tire 10 and the temperature becoming higher. Further, the spare tire 12 can be detected based on the change state of the air pressure. While the air pressure of the spare tire 12 hardly changes, the air pressure of the mounted tire 10 changes with changes in temperature and applied force. The frequency of changes increases. For example, if the absolute value of the amount of change in air pressure is greater than or equal to the set value, and if the change rate of air pressure is greater than or equal to the set frequency (the number of changes greater than or equal to the set value per set time is greater than or equal to the set number) can do. In any case, the determination content in S53 may be changed as appropriate.

  The wheel side device 20 and the vehicle body side device 24 are not limited to those in the above embodiment. It can be set as the structure shown in FIG. In the wheel side device 100, the tire information creating device 36 is connected to the action sensor 102, the vibration sensor 104, and the form sensor 106 in addition to the air pressure sensor 30 and the tire temperature sensor 32. In addition to the ignition switch 76, an outside air temperature sensor 112, a travel speed sensor 114, a reset switch 116 (also referred to as an initialization switch) and the like are connected to 74. In this way, the tire information 50 is not limited to the air pressure and temperature, but includes information representing lateral force, longitudinal force, and vertical force applied to the wheels, or information representing vibration. , Information representing the form can be included. Note that it is not essential that all of the acting force sensor 102, the vibration sensor 104, and the form sensor 106 are included. It is sufficient that at least one of them is included, and at least one piece of information represented by these detected values is the tire. It only has to be included in the information.

The acting force sensor 102 detects at least one of a lateral force, a longitudinal force, and a vertical force applied to the tire, and may include, for example, a strain gauge. The strain gauge can be provided on a wheel, an axle, or the like.
For example, the installed tire 10 generates vertical force, whereas the spare tire 12 generates little vertical force. Therefore, whether the tire is the spare tire 12 or the mounted tire 10 based on the magnitude of the vertical force. Can be distinguished. Further, longitudinal force is generated during acceleration and deceleration, and lateral force is generated during turning, but these forces are hardly applied to the spare tire 12. Therefore, it can also be distinguished based on these. In this case, if the traveling state of the vehicle and the tire information 50 are combined, it is possible to improve the accuracy of detection as to whether the tire is the mounted tire 10 or the spare tire 12.
For example, in S53 of the spare tire identification routine of FIG. 5, instead of determining whether or not the temperature change amount is smaller than the set change amount, it is determined whether or not the vertical acting force is smaller than the set value. It can be a spare tire. In addition, it is determined whether or not the longitudinal force and lateral force are smaller than the set values in S53 by adding that the vehicle is accelerating, decelerating or turning in the spare tire identification condition. You can also. In addition, it can acquire relatively that it is the spare tire 12 based on the vertical force, the longitudinal force, and the lateral force. For example, the tire having the smallest force is the spare tire 12.

The vibration sensor 104 detects vibration applied to the vibrator and outputs a voltage corresponding to the displacement of the vibrator. In the present embodiment, the vibrator is provided in a state in which mainly vibrations in the radial direction of the tire can be detected. In the mounted tire 10, since a centrifugal force (rotational acceleration) is applied as the tire rotates, vibration in the radial direction occurs. Also, vibrations are generated due to tire rotation and vehicle travel.
On the other hand, in the non-wearing tire 12, vibration is generated due to running of the vehicle, but there is no influence of centrifugal force. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9, the output voltage of the vibration sensor 104 provided in the mounted tire 10 becomes larger at least by the influence of centrifugal force.
By utilizing this, for example, the absolute value of the output voltage of the vibration sensor 104 is the smallest MIN | Vi |
i = 1 to 5 (V5 represents the output value of the vibration sensor 104 of the spare tire 12)
Can be a spare tire 12.
Further, the average value of the output voltages of the five tires 10 and 12 <Vi> = ΣVi / 5
The output voltage Vi when the difference from
MAX | <Vi> -Vi |
It can be assumed that the information represents vibration of the spare tire 12.

In this case, since information on the spare tire 12 is relatively determined, one piece of information on the spare tire 12 is always determined. In the spare tire identification routine represented by the flowchart of FIG. 10, in S83, the smallest absolute value of the value obtained by subtracting each output voltage from the average value of the output voltage is obtained and includes information representing the vibration. It is assumed that the tire information is transmitted from the spare tire 12. In S57, the identification information included in the tire information of the spare tire 12 is stored in the second storage unit 77B.
The vibrator can detect only vibrations in a specific direction and not vibrations in other directions. For example, it is desirable that the vibrator can detect only vibrations in the radial direction. Even if this is not the case, it is desirable to easily detect radial vibration. The vibration sensor can also be referred to as an acceleration sensor.
The movement state dependence detection unit is configured by a part that stores the spare tire identification routine represented by the flowchart of FIG.

The form sensor 106 measures the distance in the radial direction and the distance in the width direction of the tire, and may include, for example, a non-contact type displacement sensor. The flatness ratio (RH / RV), which is the ratio of the distance RH in the radial direction of the tire to the distance RV in the width direction, is smaller for the mounted tire 10. Therefore, the spare tire 12 can be detected by using the flatness ratio.
For example, a tire having a flatness ratio equal to or higher than a set value or a tire having the largest flatness ratio can be used as the spare tire 12.
Note that the spare tire 12 can be identified based on two or more of the tire condition information included in the tire information 50. In this way, the accuracy of identifying the spare tire 12 can be improved.

Moreover, the non-wearing tire 12 can also be detected based on the difference between the tire temperature and the outside air temperature. As shown in FIG. 11, it can be seen that the difference between the tire temperature and the outside air temperature is smaller in the non-mounted tire 12 between the mounted tire 10 and the non-mounted tire 12. In the present embodiment, when the running time is equal to or longer than the set time, the absolute value of the difference between the tire temperature Ti and the outside air temperature Tout is obtained, and the tire temperature Ti when it becomes the smallest.
MIN ｜ Tout-Ti ｜
Is the temperature of the spare tire 12.
Here, in S83 of the flowchart of FIG. 10, instead of obtaining the maximum value of the distance from the average value of the output voltage of the vibration sensor 104, the minimum value of the difference between the tire temperature and the outside air temperature is obtained. . It can be considered that the temperature-difference-based detection unit is configured by a portion of the reception control device 74 that detects the spare tire 12 based on the difference between the tire temperature and the outside air temperature.

Furthermore, detection of non-mounted tire information can be performed in consideration of the state at the start of traveling. In other words, it may be detected based on both the state at the start of travel (temperature difference between tires) and the temperature and temperature change when the spare tire identification condition of the travel state is satisfied, or at the start of travel It can be considered that a method for identifying a spare tire is selected based on the state, and that the spare tire 12 is identified by the selected identification method.
As shown in FIG. 12, in the normal case, that is, when the temperature of all tires is substantially the same and the running is started from the state where the tire temperature is substantially the same as the outside air temperature (Cold start), As shown in FIG. 7, the temperature and the temperature increase gradient of the mounted tire 10 are larger than those of the spare tire 12. On the other hand, for example, when the mounted tire 10 is punctured during traveling and the traveling is started after replacement with the spare tire 12, that is, the temperature difference between the spare tire 12 and the mounted tire 10 is large. When the vehicle starts traveling from a state where the temperature is higher than the outside air temperature (Hot start), as shown in FIG. 12, the temperature of the spare tire 12 (the tire that has been installed so far) decreases. On the other hand, the temperature of the mounted tire 10 (Hs in FIG. 12) that was the spare tire 12 increases with a large gradient, and the change in the temperature of the mounted tire that has not been replaced (Ho in FIG. 12) decreases. Since the temperature of the mounted tire 10 that has not been replaced is already high and is in a steady state, it does not increase any further.

Therefore, when the temperature difference between the tires 10 and 12 when the ignition switch 76 is switched from the OFF state to the ON state is small, the set time (also referred to as the determination time) T0 as in the above embodiment. After the lapse of time, the tire with the large temperature rise gradient and the high temperature is the mounted tire 10, but when the ignition switch 76 is switched to the ON state or the temperature difference when the running is started is large, the set time It can be assumed that the tire whose temperature decreases after the lapse of T2 is the spare tire 12. Further, as shown in the figure, the tire having the lowest temperature after the set time T1 has elapsed can be regarded as a non-mounted tire.
A guard value may be provided in which a tire having a tire temperature of 50 ° or more is the mounted tire 10. It can be avoided that the attached tire 10 is erroneously detected as the spare tire 12.

In the present embodiment, a spare tire identification routine represented by the flowchart of FIG. 13 is executed. In S121, it is determined whether or not a spare tire identification method has already been determined. Since it is not determined when it is executed for the first time, it is determined in S122 whether or not the maximum temperature difference between the tires is equal to or greater than the set temperature difference. If the temperature difference is smaller than the set temperature difference, the temperature difference is assumed to be small (Cold start is set), and the spare tire is identified by a method corresponding thereto.
In S123, the small temperature difference handling method flag is set, and S51 and subsequent steps in FIG. 5 are executed. As described above, in the present embodiment, the spare tire identification condition is that the traveling time has passed the set time T0. Hereinafter, spare tires are identified in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

If the temperature difference is large, the large temperature difference handling method flag is set in S124, and the spare tire is identified in S125 and thereafter. In this case, the spare tire identification condition indicates that the traveling time has passed the set time T2. In S127, the tire whose temperature change amount is equal to or less than the negative set temperature change amount is assumed to be the spare tire 12 (the tire in a decreasing tendency) (determination in S127 is NO).
If the spare tire identification method has already been determined, the determination in S121 is YES, and in S129, is the small temperature difference correspondence method flag or the large temperature difference correspondence method flag in the set state? Is determined, and the spare tire 12 is detected by a method corresponding thereto.
Thus, if a spare tire is detected by a different method based on the temperature difference at the start of traveling, the identification accuracy of the spare tire can be improved.
Note that the identification accuracy of the spare tire 12 can be improved based on both the temperature and the temperature change.

Moreover, in the said embodiment, in the state in which the spare tire identification completion flag is not set, it processes similarly without distinguishing the mounting tire 10 and the spare tire 12, and whichever tire state is abnormal The alarm flag was set, but it is not essential to do so.
For example, before the identification of the spare tire 12 this time, the reception processing of all the tire information 50 can be prevented from being performed, or the abnormality detection of the tire condition can be prevented from being performed. In this case, even if the air pressure of the spare tire 12 is low or the air pressure of the mounted tire 10 is low, the notification device 72 cannot be operated. According to this embodiment, after the identification information of the spare tire 12 was stored last time, the spare tire 12 and the mounted tire 10 were exchanged, and the air pressure of the mounted tire 10 that was the spare tire decreased. However, there is an advantage that an alarm can be issued.
On the other hand, the spare tire 12 can be identified based on the previously stored identification information.

  Further, in the above embodiment, when the ignition switch 76 is switched from the OFF state to the ON state, the spare tire 12 is identified. However, when the vehicle is stopped and traveling is started. Identification can also be made. In this way, even when the replacement of the spare tire 12 is performed while the ignition switch 76 is in the ON state, it can be accurately identified. In any case, the driver or operator can instruct the time for identifying the spare tire 12. It is only necessary that the identification is performed after the tire change.

  For example, the spare tire 12 can be identified when the reset switch 116 is operated. The reset switch 116 is operated after exchanging the punctured tire 10 and the spare tire 12 when the mounted tire 10 is punctured. In this case, a tire with low air pressure can be replaced with a non-mounted tire (formerly mounted tire, but removed and mounted on the vehicle) 12 and tire information transmitted from the tire is transmitted. The identification information included in is stored.

The flowchart of FIG. 15 represents a part of the tire information processing program. In S150, it is determined whether or not the reset switch 116 has been switched from the OFF state to the ON state. Usually, since it is in the OFF state, the determination is NO, and in S151, reception processing is performed. In S152, it is determined whether or not the air pressure represented by the air pressure information is lower than the set pressure for all tire information. When the pressure is lower than the pressure, the identification information included in the tire information is stored in the third storage unit 77C in S153.
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 14, when the tire is changed at time T and the reset switch 116 is operated, the determination in S150 is YES, and the stored identification information is stored in S154. The identification information stored in the third storage unit 77C is stored in the second storage unit 77B.
The reset switch 116 is operated depending on whether the ignition switch 76 is in an ON state or an OFF state. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the ignition switch 76 is in an ON state and is in an OFF state. But it is done in the same way. .
Thus, every time the reset switch 116 is operated, the spare tire is identified. In the present embodiment, the previous identification information is used after the current reset switch 116 is switched from the OFF state to the ON state until the identification information of the spare tire 12 is stored.

In addition, when replacing the pre-punctured fitted tire 10 with the spare tire 12, it is determined that the air pressure of the removed tire is lowered to a set pressure or less. The set pressure (second set pressure to be described later) is a magnitude at which it is considered that the vehicle cannot travel for a set time or longer at this air pressure. As a result, when the vehicle travels for a set time or longer after the tire replacement, a tire whose air pressure is equal to or lower than the second set pressure can be used as the spare tire 12 (see FIG. 17).
The flowchart of FIG. 16 represents a part of the tire information processing program. In S170, a reception process is performed, and in S171, it is determined whether or not the air pressure is equal to or lower than the set pressure P0 for all the tires. When the air pressure of at least one wheel is equal to or lower than the first set pressure P0, the determination in S171 is YES, and in S172, tire identification information with a low air pressure is stored in the third storage unit 77C, and in S173. An alarm flag is set.
Then, in S174, it is determined whether or not the vehicle is in a stopped state. If it is stopped, it will wait to start. If the vehicle is not stopped, the determination in S175 is NO, and S177 and subsequent steps are executed. If the running state continues without tire replacement, the tire air pressure is greater than the second set pressure Pd, so the determination in S177 is NO and the alarm flag is kept in the set state. .

On the other hand, when the vehicle is stopped, the tire may have been replaced. Although it is awaited to start, when the vehicle starts, the determination in S175 is YES and the timer is started in S176. Thereafter, when the vehicle is running, the determination in S174 is NO, the determination in S175 is YES, and in S177, it is determined whether the air pressure is equal to or lower than the second set pressure Pd that is lower than the first set pressure P0. Is done.
If the air pressure is higher than the second set pressure Pd, there is a possibility that the tire has not been replaced, so the alarm flag remains set. If it is equal to or lower than the second set pressure Pd, it is determined in S178 whether the elapsed time from the start has reached the set time. If the air pressure is equal to or lower than a second set pressure (for example, it can be set to a magnitude close to atmospheric pressure) and the set time is reached, the tire can be assumed to be a spare tire 12, S179, In 180, the warning flag is reset, and the identification information stored in the third storage unit 77C is determined to be that of the spare tire and stored in the second storage unit 77B. In addition, the timer is reset.

It should be noted that when tire replacement is performed, it is possible to make a rule that the air pressure of the removed tire is lowered to the second set pressure Pd or less and the reset switch 116 is operated. In that case, when the reset switch 116 is operated, S175 and subsequent steps are executed.
Further, the reset switch 116 can be operated when a spare tire having a low air pressure is replaced with a new spare tire. In this case, new spare tire identification information can be stored instead of the conventional spare tire identification information.

Further, it is not indispensable that the abnormality determination of the tire state is performed in the OFF state of the ignition switch 76.
In the above embodiment, before the detection of the spare tire of this time, regardless of whether the tire is the mounted tire 10 or the spare tire 12, an alarm is issued if there is a tire with low air pressure. After the detection of the spare tire of the vehicle was finished, if it was detected that the tire with the low air pressure and the warning was issued was a spare tire, the warning was immediately stopped. Can be stopped after being issued for a set time. In this case, the driver can be surely notified that the air pressure of the spare tire 12 is low.

The flowchart in FIG. 18 represents a part of the tire information processing program. In S200, it is determined whether or not the spare tire identified flag is in the set state. If not set yet, tire information of all tires is processed in the same manner in S203 to S207. If there is a tire whose air pressure is lower than the set pressure, an alarm flag is set. Further, the tire identification information is stored in the third storage unit 77C, and the timer is started. While the spare tire identified flag is in the reset state, the alarm flag is maintained in the set state.
When the spare tire identified flag is set, it is determined in S208 whether the warning flag is set. If it is in the set state, in S209, it is determined whether or not the identification information stored in the third storage unit 77C stored in S205 is the identification information of the spare tire 12 stored in the second storage unit 77B. Is done. If it is the identification information of the spare tire 12, the determination in S209 is YES, and it is determined in S210 whether the set time has elapsed. If the set time has elapsed since the alarm flag was set, the alarm flag is reset in S211 and 212, and the tire is reset. On the other hand, if it is not the identification information of the spare tire 12, the alarm flag is not reset and the alarm is continuously issued. Even if it matches the identification information of the spare tire 12, an alarm is issued before the set time has elapsed.
Thus, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 19, since the alarm is issued for the set time, the driver can surely recognize that the air pressure of the spare tire 12 is low. Further, if the alarm continues, it can be seen that the pressure of the mounted tire 10 is low. Note that in the OFF state of the ignition switch 76, the alarm flag is reset in S213. In the present embodiment, whether the tire condition is abnormal is not detected when the ignition switch 76 is in the OFF state.

Further, the notification device 72 can be operated in accordance with the execution of the notification device operation program represented by the flowchart of FIG. In this embodiment, when it is determined that the air pressure is lower than the set pressure (YES in S222), it is determined whether the air pressure information representing the air pressure is from a non-mounted tire (spare tire) 12 or not. Is done. If the tire information 50 transmitted from the mounted tire 10 is included in the tire information 50, the notification device 72 is operated in a manner corresponding to the mounted tire in S224, and the tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tire 12 is the air pressure information. If it is included in 50, the notification device 72 is operated in a manner corresponding to the non-wearing tire in S225. The notification device 72 is operated in a different manner depending on whether the air pressure of the mounted tire 10 is low and the air pressure of the non-mounted tire 12 is low.
For example, when the notification device 72 emits a sound, when the air pressure of the non-wearing tire 12 is low, the sound is lower than when the tire pressure of the wearing tire 10 is low, or music with different melody is output. And so on. Moreover, when displaying on a display, it can be displayed so that it can be understood which air pressure of the mounted tire 10 or the non-mounted tire 12 is lower. The display location can be changed, or whether the non-mounted tire 12 or the mounted tire 10 can be displayed.
If it is found that the air pressure of the non-wearing tire 12 is low, the driver knows that the necessity for replacing the non-wearing tire is high.

Thus, in this embodiment, it is detected in the notification device control program whether the air pressure is lower than the set pressure and whether the tire information is information from the mounted tire 10.
Further, in the execution of the tire information processing program shown in the flowchart of FIG. 4, it is detected that the tire information is from the non-wearing tire 12 while the tire information from the non-wearing tire 12 is not detected. Even if the alarm flag is reset, the alarm flag is not reset (steps S19, 20, and 17 are eliminated), and it is also possible to determine whether or not the alarm flag is set in S222 of the flowchart of FIG.
Furthermore, in the execution of the tire information processing program represented by the flowchart of FIG. 4, different types of flags are used depending on whether the tire with low air pressure is from the attached tire 10 or the non-attached tire 12. Can also be set. For example, in S18 and 20, the original alarm flag can be reset and the non-wearing tire alarm flag can be set. In this case, the notification device 72 can be operated according to the type of the alarm flag.

In addition, the notification device 72 can include a plurality of notification units (notification operation units).
For example, as illustrated in FIG. 21, the notification device includes two lamps 150 and 152. Based on the blinking state of the two lamps 150 and 152, the operation is performed by distinguishing between when the tire state of the mounted tire 10 is abnormal (for example, when the air pressure is lower than the set pressure) and when the air pressure of the spare tire 12 is lower than the set pressure. The person can be notified. For example, as shown in (b), when the air pressure of the mounted tire 10 is lower than the set pressure, the lamp 150 is turned on (lighted or blinked), the lamp 152 is turned off (lighted off), and the non-mounted tire When the air pressure of 12 is lower than the set pressure, the lamp 150 is turned off and the lamp 152 is turned on. When both are low, both the lamps 150 and 162 are turned on. . Further, as shown in (c), when the air pressure of the mounted tire 10 is lower than the set pressure, the lamp 150 is turned on, the lamp 152 is turned off, and the air pressure of the non-mounted tire 12 is lower than the set pressure. In some cases, both lamps 150 and 152 can be turned on. This is because it is rare that the air pressure of both the mounted tire 10 and the non-mounted tire 12 is lower than the set pressure.
In the present embodiment, the tire state is considered abnormal when the air pressure is lower than the set pressure, but the present invention is not limited to this. As in each of the above embodiments, it is considered abnormal when at least one of the case where the tire temperature is higher than the set temperature and the case where the air pressure is lower than the set pressure, or when both are satisfied. Or other conditions may be met as abnormal.

Further, as shown in FIG. 22A, the notification device may include a display 158. The display 158 is provided with five display units 160 to 168. The display parts 160-166 are provided corresponding to the mounting positions on the front, rear, left and right of the tire. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 22B, the notification device may include a display 169, and the display 169 is provided with five display units 170 to 178 corresponding to the positions of the tires. The display position of the spare tire 12 may be anywhere, and may be a position corresponding to the rear part of the vehicle as shown in (a) or a position corresponding to the center part of the vehicle as shown in (b). .
When the tire pressure of the mounted tire 10 is low, if the position of the tire can be detected, the display on the display unit corresponding to the position can be switched. For example, when the identification information of each tire is provided corresponding to the position where the tire is provided, the position of the tire with low air pressure can be detected. In the case where the position of a tire with low air pressure cannot be detected, when the pressure of the mounted tire 10 is low, all displays on the display units 160 to 166 or the display units 170 to 176 are switched, and when the air pressure of the spare tire 12 is low The display on the display unit 168 or 178 can be switched.
Further, the display units 160 to 168 and 170 to 178 may display the air pressure level itself (numerals).

Further, as shown in FIG. 23A, the notification device may include a display (display unit) 180. The display unit 180 can display the number of tires whose air pressure is lower than the set pressure, or can display a value of air pressure lower than the set pressure. Further, as shown in FIG. 23 (b), five lamps 182 to 186 may be included. The lamps are provided corresponding to the number of tires, and the number of air pressures can be set to the ON state by a number equal to or less than the set pressure.
Even if there is a tire whose air pressure is lower than the set pressure, the display unit 180 can prevent the display from being displayed when the tire is the spare tire 12. The ramps 182 to 186 are also turned on when the air pressure of the spare tire 12 is low, and the predetermined ramp 182 is turned on. It can be made to be in an ON state.

  Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 24, even when the notification device includes one lamp 190, a plurality of different states can be notified by the difference in the operation pattern of the lamp 190. For example, when the lighting state is maintained, the air pressure of the spare tire 12 is low, and when the blinking is repeated, it can be indicated that the air pressure of the mounted tire is low. In addition, when the blinking is repeated, it is possible to indicate that the tire having a low air pressure is one wheel, and when the lighting is continuously performed, the tire is two wheels. Further, the driver can be notified of a plurality of types of states depending on the length of the lighting time and the lighting time.

  In the above embodiment, only one receiving antenna 70 is provided. However, it may be provided corresponding to each of the tires 10 and 12. In this case, if it is specified that the antenna is provided corresponding to the spare tire among the plurality of receiving antennas, then information received at the receiving antenna is from the spare tire. I understand.

Furthermore, a threshold value (for example, a value representing temperature change, temperature, acting force, form, etc.) for distinguishing whether the tire is a mounted tire or a non-mounted tire should be determined in the running state of the vehicle. Can do.
For example, as described above, the threshold value may be a theoretical value or the like that is determined by design at the time of manufacture of the vehicle. However, it is desirable that the threshold value be determined in the actual running state of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 25, the identification information of the fitted tire 10 and the identification information of the spare tire 12 are stored in advance, and the fitted tire 10 and the tire according to the state quantity representing the state of each tire in the actual running state The threshold value for partitioning the non-wearing tire 12 is determined. Since the tire state in the traveling state of the vehicle varies depending on the traveling environment and the like, it is desirable to determine the threshold value in a state where the vehicle is actually traveling. Further, in a state where there is a significant difference between the state of the mounted tire 10 and the state of the non-mounted tire 12, such as when the travel distance of the vehicle reaches a set distance, in other words, the identification of the non-mounted tire actually It is desirable that the determination is made in a state where the vehicle tire is performed (for example, a state where the spare tire identification condition in the above embodiment is satisfied).

The threshold value determination program represented by the flowchart of FIG. 26 is executed when the manufactured vehicle starts to travel. In S250, it is determined whether the vehicle is traveling. If the vehicle is running, the temperature of each tire and the amount of temperature change are detected in S251. In S252, it is determined whether or not the travel distance has reached the set distance. Before reaching the set distance, the temperature and the amount of temperature change are detected. When the set distance is reached, a threshold value is obtained in S253 based on the information detected so far. .
Spare tires are detected based on the threshold value thus determined. For example, the threshold value ΔTs in S253 is determined, and the spare tire is identified based on the determined threshold value ΔTs. If the threshold value is determined in this way, it is possible to improve the accuracy of discrimination between a mounted tire and a non-mounted tire.
Of the reception control device 74, a portion for storing a threshold value determination program, a portion for executing the threshold value determination portion, and the like constitute a threshold value determination portion, and a portion for identifying a spare tire based on the determined value (for example, in S253 Threshold-dependent non-equipped tire information based on the spare tire identification routine shown in the flowchart of FIG. 5 when the threshold value ΔTs is set to the value determined by the threshold value determination unit, the part to be executed, etc. A detection unit is configured.

The threshold value is determined every time the ignition switch 76 is switched from the OFF state to the ON state, or is determined every predetermined set time (for example, one month, two months, etc.). Alternatively, it may be determined for each predetermined set number of times of travel, or may be determined every time the total travel distance reaches a plurality of predetermined different set distances. In these cases, the already determined threshold value is corrected.
In this embodiment, the threshold value is determined when the travel distance from the start of travel reaches the set distance, but is determined when the elapsed time from the start of travel reaches the set time. It can also be done. In any case, when the tire load such as the cumulative load of the tire becomes equal to or higher than the set load, the tire is determined when it is in a state suitable for sorting the mounted tire 10 and the non-mounted tire 12. To.
It is not essential to store the identification information in advance. A state quantity such as temperature or temperature change of each tire is detected, and a value suitable for dividing into four tires and one tire can be set as a threshold value.
Further, not only the threshold values of temperature and temperature change, but also threshold values of acting force, vibration, and form can be determined in the same manner.

  Next, control in the vehicle control device 80 will be described. When the vehicle control device 80 outputs the air pressure information request signal to the reception control device 74, the reception control device 74 outputs air pressure information indicating the air pressure of the mounted tire 10. The vehicle control device 80 controls the vehicle control actuator based on it. Since the reception control device 74 does not output the air pressure information of the spare tire 12, the vehicle control device 80 does not control the running state of the vehicle based on the air pressure of the spare tire 12.

The vehicle control based on the air pressure as the tire state includes, for example, suspension device control, steering device control, braking device control, drive device control, and drive transmission device control based on the tire state. In these controls, there are cases where the air pressure is used as a main input and as an auxiliary input. The former is the case where the control target value is determined directly based on the air pressure, and the latter is the case where the control target value is determined based on the main input such as the running state of the vehicle, and the control target value is used as an auxiliary input. This is the case when the air pressure is changed, the control start threshold is changed, the control rule is changed, or the like.
For control in which air pressure is used as the main input, for example, when the air pressure is lower than the set pressure, suspension control that increases the damping characteristics of the shock absorber in the suspension device, and yaw moment caused by the difference in air pressure between the left and right wheels This corresponds to rear wheel rudder angle control that is suppressed by controlling the wheel rudder angle.
In addition, for control where air pressure is used as an auxiliary input, for example, vehicle stability control that suppresses the understeer tendency and oversteer tendency by controlling the braking force of each wheel when there is a strong understeer tendency or oversteer tendency during turning. In the case where the air pressure is low, in order to suppress the force acting on the tire due to the control to a lower level than in the case where the air pressure is high, the control that makes the control easy to start (changes the start condition) and the like are applicable.
Note that it is only necessary to specify whether the tire with low air pressure is in the front, rear, left or right position of the vehicle body, but if not specified, control is performed assuming that the air pressure of all tires is low. Can do. Further, for example, in the vehicle control device 80, the position of the tire with low air pressure is estimated based on the state of the vehicle and one or more tires with low air pressure, and the estimated tire position is set. Accordingly, vehicle control can be performed. Hereinafter, the vehicle control based on the air pressure as the tire state will be briefly described.

  The vehicle control device 80 and the vehicle control actuator 82 can be, for example, a braking force control device that controls the braking force of each wheel, or a braking force control actuator that can individually control the braking force of each wheel. The braking force control actuator can be a pressing force control actuator that can control the pressing force when the friction engagement member is pressed against a rotating body that rotates integrally with the tire. Even if the pressing force control actuator includes a hydraulic control valve capable of controlling the hydraulic pressure in the hydraulic braking device that presses the friction engagement member with hydraulic pressure, the friction engagement member is pressed with the pressing force of the electric motor. A drive circuit that can control the current flowing through the electric motor in the electric braking device may be included.

During braking, when the pressing force is controlled so that the slip ratio of each wheel approaches the target slip ratio determined based on the operating state of the brake operating member, the target slip ratio is lower when the air pressure is low than when it is high. Set to Thereby, the yaw moment of the vehicle due to the air pressure difference can be suppressed.
In this case, if it is not specified which of the mounted tires 10 has a low-pressure tire, the target slip ratio can be set lower for all tires. . In the present embodiment, the vehicle state detection device 83 may include an operation state detection device that detects an operation state of the brake operation member.
Further, in vehicle stability control that suppresses a drift-out tendency or a spin tendency when the actual turning state of the vehicle exceeds a limit state during turning, at least one tire having a low air pressure has a control start threshold value. If there is one, it is set to a smaller value otherwise. As a result, when the air pressure is low, the control is started earlier than when the air pressure is high, and the load applied to the tire can be reduced. In the present embodiment, the vehicle state detection device 83 may include at least one of a yaw rate sensor, a lateral G sensor, a steering wheel steering angle sensor, a steering angle sensor, and the like that detect the turning state of the vehicle. Based on these, the turning direction can also be detected.

The vehicle control device 80 and the vehicle control actuator 82 can also be a rear wheel steering angle control device and a rear wheel steering angle control actuator that control the steering angle of the rear wheels. The rear wheels may be steered by actuation of an electric motor or may be steered by hydraulic pressure. The rear wheel steering angle is controlled so that the yaw moment due to the air pressure difference is suppressed. For example, if there is a difference in air pressure between the driving wheels during driving, a yaw moment that causes the wheel with the lower air pressure to be on the outside of the turn will occur, and if there is a difference in air pressure between the non-driving wheels, the lower air pressure will occur. A yaw moment is generated in which the other wheel is on the inside of the turn. Therefore, the rear wheels are steered in a direction to suppress these yaw moments, and the steering angle is made larger when the yaw moment is large than when it is small, that is, when the difference between the left and right air pressures is large. .
In this case, for example, when it is detected that the air pressure of at least one tire is low during driving, and the vehicle is turning even though the steering wheel is in a substantially neutral position, It can be seen that the yaw moment is caused by the low air pressure. In the present embodiment, the vehicle state detection device 83 may include at least one of a yaw rate sensor, a lateral G sensor, a steering angle sensor, and the like. Further, information representing the state of the drive device as the vehicle state is supplied from the vehicle drive device.
Also, in the control for turning the rear wheel by the steering angle determined based on the steering amount of the steering wheel and the vehicle speed, the steering speed of the rear wheel is made smaller when the air pressure of the rear wheel is low than when it is high. It can also be. This is because it is not desirable to apply a large load suddenly to a tire having a low air pressure.
In addition, when it is not specified whether the wheel with low air pressure is a rear wheel, when there is a wheel with low air pressure, the turning speed can be made smaller.

  The vehicle control device 80 and the vehicle control actuator 82 can further control the assisting force control device that controls the assisting force in the steering force assisting device (power steering device) that assists the steering force applied to the steering member, and can control the assisting force. The assisting force control actuator can be used. The power steering device may apply an assisting force by an electric motor or may apply an assisting force by hydraulic pressure. When the non-drive wheel is a steered wheel, the yaw moment is generated in the direction in which the lower air pressure wheel turns inside, so the wheel with the higher air pressure matches the turning direction intended by the driver. The assisting force is increased, and in the opposite case, the assisting force is decreased. Thereby, the turning state of the vehicle can be set to the state intended by the driver. The turning direction intended by the driver can be acquired based on the steering direction of the steering wheel.

The vehicle control device 80 and the vehicle control actuator 82 can also be a suspension control device or a suspension control actuator (for example, a damping characteristic adjusting device). The damping characteristic of the shock absorber corresponding to a tire having a low air pressure can be made a strong characteristic (a characteristic that increases the roll rigidity). Thereby, it is possible to suppress the deterioration of the riding comfort due to the low air pressure, and to make the roll rigidity appropriate.
In this case, the position of the wheel with low air pressure can be estimated based on the state of the vehicle as described above. When the vehicle height is low due to a decrease in air pressure, the vehicle height can be raised by the vehicle height adjusting device.
Further, the vehicle control device 80 and the vehicle control actuator 82 can be a drive control device, a drive transmission control device, a drive control actuator in the drive device, or a drive transmission control actuator in the drive transmission device. When the air pressure of the drive wheel is low, a sudden increase in the drive torque transmitted to the drive wheel having the low air pressure is suppressed.
Even when it is not specified whether a wheel with low air pressure is a driving wheel, a rapid increase in driving torque can be suppressed.
In any case, since the air pressure information of the spare tire 12 is not output to the vehicle control device 80, the vehicle control is not performed based on the air pressure information of the spare tire 12.

In addition, the spare tire 12 can be mounted in a vehicle covered with the electromagnetic wave shielding member. In this case, the tire information transmitted from the spare tire is not received by the receiving device 78, and the tire information from the spare tire 12 is not processed by the reception control device 74.
As shown in FIG. 27, when the spare tire 12 is placed in the luggage space, the spare tire 12 is accommodated in a recess (formed with an electromagnetic shielding material) 200 provided in the luggage space, and the electromagnetic shielding. Cover with a lid 202 molded of material. The lid 202 can be manufactured, for example, by including a conductive material in a base material such as a resin, or by forming with a conductive material. As a result, electromagnetic waves transmitted from the spare tire 12 can be prevented from being radiated to the outside. In the present embodiment, the recess 200, the lid 202 and the like constitute a non-wearing tire information reception blocking device as a non-wearing tire information isolating device.
In the present embodiment, it is assumed that all information can be received if the receiving device 78 can receive the tire information of the number of tires mounted (in this embodiment, the number of tires located in the front, rear, left, and right respectively is 4). be able to. Further, there is an advantage that it is not necessary to execute a program for distinguishing between a non-mounted tire and a mounted tire.

In the tire information processing program represented by the flowchart of FIG. 30, it is determined in S <b> 302 whether the number of pieces of information that can be received is the set number 4. If the number of information that can be received is the set number 4, in S303 and 304, it is determined for each information whether the air pressure is lower than the set pressure and whether the temperature is higher than the set temperature. If the air pressure or temperature is abnormal, an alarm flag is set in S305, and if the air pressure or temperature is normal, the alarm flag is reset in S306. In S307, the number of tries is reset to zero.
If the number of pieces of information that can be received is smaller than the set number, the determination in S302 is NO, and in S308 and 309, the number of tries is incremented by 1, and it is determined whether the number of tries has exceeded the set number. If it is less than the set number of times, it is retried, but if the set number of times is reached, the number of tries is reset to zero. The alarm flag is not changed and remains the previous detection result.
Note that the steps S302 and 308.309 are not indispensable. This is because the tire information acquired by the reception control device 74 is necessarily tire information of the mounted tire 10, and an alarm flag may be set or reset according to the air pressure.

As shown in FIGS. 28 and 29, when the spare tire 12 is mounted on the rear or lower part of the vehicle body, the spare tire 12 can be covered with the electromagnetic shielding members 210 and 212.
The spare tire 12 is fixed to the vehicle body by an attachment device, but may be fixed via the electromagnetic wave shielding members 210 and 212 or directly. The electromagnetic shielding members 210 and 212 may be container-shaped or sheet-shaped. In the case of a sheet form, it can be produced by coating a base material such as a cloth with a conductive material or weaving a fiber containing the conductive material. Moreover, when it is a sheet-like thing, when the spare tire 12 is directly fixed, it can be covered in the fixed state.
The electromagnetic wave shielding material can almost completely block the emission of electromagnetic waves, but is not limited thereto. For example, the radiated electromagnetic wave may be attenuated. In any case, the electromagnetic wave radiated from the wheel side device 20 may be prevented from reaching the receiving antenna 70.

  Further, the air pressure sensor 30 is often provided in a portion corresponding to the valve of the tire of the wheel, but is not limited thereto. For example, it can be embedded in the tire itself or provided inside the tire (hollow part). It can be provided in the bead portion, sidewall portion, tread portion, etc. of the tire.

Further, the tire information processing program and the spare tire identification routine are examples, and the present invention can be applied to a program that can distinguish information from the mounted tire 10 and information from the non-mounted tire 12 based on the tire information. it can. Also, providing the notification device 72 is not essential. Furthermore, it is not indispensable to perform vehicle control based on air pressure. Further, the present invention can be applied not only to ordinary passenger cars but also to large vehicles such as trucks and trailers.
In addition to the above-described embodiments, the present invention can be carried out in various modifications and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art.

1 is a diagram conceptually showing an entire vehicle on which a tire information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is mounted. It is a block diagram showing the said tire information processing apparatus. It is a figure showing a tire information notionally. It is a flowchart showing the tire information processing program stored in the memory | storage part of the reception control apparatus of the vehicle body side apparatus contained in the said tire information processing apparatus. It is a flowchart showing a part of said tire information processing program. It is a flowchart showing the alerting | reporting apparatus control program stored in the said memory | storage part. It is a figure showing the temperature change of a tire. It is a block diagram showing the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the vibration state of a tire. It is a flowchart showing a part of tire information processing program stored in the memory | storage part of the reception control apparatus of the vehicle body side apparatus contained in the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure showing the change state of the temperature of the tire in the driving | running | working state of a vehicle, and the change state of external temperature. It is a figure showing the temperature change of the tire contained in the wheel of the vehicle by which the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention is mounted. It is a flowchart showing a part of tire information processing program stored in the memory | storage part of the reception control apparatus of the vehicle body side apparatus contained in the said tire information processing apparatus. It is a figure showing the change of the air pressure of the tire contained in the wheel of the vehicle by which the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention is mounted. It is a flowchart showing a part of tire information processing program stored in the memory | storage part of the reception control apparatus of the vehicle body side apparatus contained in the said tire information processing apparatus. It is a flowchart showing a part of tire information processing program stored in the memory | storage part of the reception control apparatus of the vehicle body side apparatus contained in the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the state before and after a tire is replaced in the vehicle by which the said tire information processing apparatus is mounted. It is a flowchart showing a part of tire information processing program stored in the memory | storage part of the reception control apparatus of the vehicle body side apparatus contained in the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the operating state of the alerting | reporting apparatus controlled by the said tire information processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the alerting | reporting apparatus control program stored in the memory | storage part of the reception control apparatus of the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows notionally the alerting | reporting apparatus contained in the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows notionally the alerting | reporting apparatus contained in the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows notionally the alerting | reporting apparatus contained in the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention. (a) When the notification device includes a display (b) When the notification device includes a plurality of lamps It is a figure which shows notionally the operating state of the alerting | reporting apparatus contained in the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the relationship between the temperature of the tire in the vehicle by which the tire information processing apparatus which is another one Embodiment of this invention is mounted, and a travel distance. It is a flowchart showing the threshold value determination program stored in the memory | storage part of the reception control apparatus of the vehicle body side apparatus contained in the said tire information processing apparatus. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram conceptually showing a state in which a spare tire is housed in a vehicle in a vehicle equipped with a tire information processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows notionally the state by which the spare tire was stored in the back side of the vehicle body in another vehicle by which the said tire information processing apparatus was mounted. FIG. 10 is a diagram conceptually showing a state in which a spare tire is stored under the floor of a vehicle body in still another vehicle equipped with the tire information processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the tire condition information acquisition program stored in the memory | storage part of the reception control apparatus of the said tire information processing apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

30 air pressure sensor 32 temperature sensor 34 transmitting antenna 36 tire information creation device 50 tire information 54 identification information 56 air pressure information 58 tire temperature information 70 receiving antenna 72 notification device 74 reception control device 102 acting force sensor 104 vibration sensor 106 form sensor 112 outside temperature Sensor 116 Reset switch 202 Lid 210, 212 Electromagnetic wave shielding member

Claims (6)

(A) a tire condition detection device for detecting the condition of the tire, and (b) A transmission device for transmitting a series of tire information including tire state information representing the tire state detected by the tire state detection device;
(C) a receiving device that receives tire information transmitted from each of the plurality of transmitting devices, and (d) based on the tire information received by the receiving device, the received tire information is A non-wearing tire information detection unit that detects whether the non-wearing tire is transmitted from the non-wearing tire ; and The tire information transmitted from the mounted tire received by the receiving device and the tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tire are processed separately. When the tire information cannot be detected, the tire information received by the receiving device. , said regardless of whether those from the non-mounted tire in either one of the mounting tires, tire information processing which comprises a tire information processing section for processing similarly Apparatus.   The tire information processing apparatus includes: (f) an abnormality detection unit that detects whether or not the tire condition is abnormal based on tire condition information included in the tire information received by the receiving device; and (g) the abnormality A notification device for notifying a driver of a detection result by the detection unit, and when the tire information processing unit can detect the non-mounted tire information, the abnormality detection unit causes an abnormal tire condition of the non-mounted tire. If it is detected that the tire condition of the mounted tire is abnormal without letting the notification device notify that, even if it is detected, in the case where the detection is impossible, If the abnormality detection unit detects that the tire condition is abnormal based on the tire condition information included in the tire information received by the receiving device, Regardless of whether those from the non-mounted tire in either one of the Ya, tire information processing apparatus according to claim 1 comprising means for notifying that. The tire information processing device includes: (f) an abnormality detection unit that detects whether or not the tire state represented by the tire state information included in the tire information received by the receiving device is abnormal; and (g) the abnormality detection. And a notification device capable of notifying a driver in a manner different from that of the attached tire and the non-attached tire. In the case where the information of the tire is detected by the abnormality detection unit, the case where the tire state of the non-wearing tire is detected to be abnormal is distinguished. The tire information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for informing the notification apparatus.   (A) a tire condition detection device for detecting the condition of the tire, and (b) a tire condition detection apparatus provided on each of a plurality of tires including a tire mounted on the vehicle and a non-mounted tire mounted on the vehicle without being mounted. A transmission device for transmitting a series of tire information including tire state information representing the tire state detected by the tire state detection device;
  (C) a receiving device that receives tire information transmitted from each of the plurality of transmitting devices, and (d) based on the tire information received by the receiving device, the received tire information is A non-wearing tire information detection unit that detects whether or not the non-wearing tire is transmitted, and (e) when the non-wearing tire information can be detected by the non-wearing tire information detection unit, The tire information transmitted from the non-mounted tire received by the receiving device is processed without processing the tire information transmitted from the mounted tire, and if the detection is impossible, the tire information received by the receiving device. Regardless of whether the tire is from the mounted tire or the non-mounted tire,
A tire information processing apparatus comprising: Among the tire information received by the receiving device when the tire condition information includes air pressure information indicating the air pressure of the tire, and the tire information processing unit can detect information transmitted from the non-mounted tire. An air pressure corresponding output control unit that outputs air pressure information included in tire information transmitted from the mounted tire to a vehicle control device and does not output air pressure information included in tire information from the non-mounted tire. 5. The tire information processing apparatus according to any one of 4 above. The tire condition information includes information representing rotational acceleration of the tire, and the non-mounted tire information detection unit is received based on information representing the rotational acceleration included in tire information received by the receiving device. 6. The tire information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for detecting whether the tire information is transmitted from a non-mounted tire.

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