JP2015086634A - Door unlocking system for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a door unlocking system for a vehicle that reduces a dark current of the vehicle without lowering detection sensitivity of a portable key.SOLUTION: In a door unlocking system 1 for a vehicle which searches for a portable key 4 by transmitting a key search signal by radio at a predetermined search period, and can unlock doors 2R, 2L, and 2B of a vehicle 2 when key collation based upon collation information received by radio as a response signal thereof is good, a control unit 20 acquires current position information on the portable key 4 and the vehicle 2 and specifies the distance "d" between both of them, and changes settings so that the search period is shorter when the specified distance "d" is shorter than a reference search distance d2 than when the specified distance "d" is longer than the reference search distance d2.

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle door unlocking system.

  Some recent vehicles are equipped with an electronic key system that locks and unlocks a vehicle door by wireless communication with a portable key carried by a user. In this system, the user does not need to operate with the mobile key, and the collation process can be started even when the user is in the bag or pocket. And if it becomes collation OK as a result of collation processing, it can accept unlocking operation and can unlock (patent document 1).

JP 2009-52230 A

  However, in a vehicle employing such a system, an increase in dark current becomes a problem. That is, in such a system, it is necessary to periodically transmit a key search signal for searching for a portable key on the vehicle side in the locked state of the door, so that driving power is supplied to the transmission unit each time. The power supply power is repeatedly consumed while the power supply is not charged. In order to solve this problem, it can be considered that the transmission period of the key search signal is increased. However, this may cause a decrease in sensitivity, for example, when the mobile key cannot be detected even when the mobile key approaches the vehicle.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle door unlocking system in which the dark current of a vehicle is reduced without reducing the detection sensitivity of a portable key.

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention

In order to solve the above problems, the vehicle door unlocking system of the present invention is
A key search signal is wirelessly transmitted outside the vehicle at a predetermined search cycle from the vehicle side, a response signal including key-specific verification information is received from the portable key that has received the key search signal, and verification processing based on the response signal is performed. As a result, in the vehicle door unlocking system for making the vehicle door unlockable when the verification is OK,
Vehicle position information acquisition means for acquiring current position information of the vehicle;
Key position information acquisition means for acquiring the current position information of the portable key;
A distance specifying means for specifying a key-to-key distance from the vehicle to the mobile key based on the acquired current position information of the vehicle and the mobile key;
A search cycle changing means for changing the search cycle so that the specified distance between the keys is shorter than the predetermined reference search distance than when the specified key search distance is greater than a predetermined reference search distance;
It is characterized by providing.

  According to the configuration of the present invention, the longer the key-to-key distance (the distance from the vehicle to the portable key), the longer the key search signal transmission cycle (search cycle) can be set. That is, when the key is at a position farther than the reference distance, it can be estimated that the user will not use the vehicle. Therefore, the transmission period (search period) of the key search signal does not cause unnecessary power consumption. If the key is at a position closer than the reference distance, it can be assumed that the user may use the vehicle, so the transmission cycle (search cycle) of the key search signal is generally Therefore, it is possible to prevent a reduction in sensitivity such as missing a key search by setting the cycle to a standard cycle that is set automatically. In addition, according to the present invention, the transmission cycle may be set in a plurality of stages by setting a plurality of reference distances, or the transmission cycle may be continuously changed by setting the reference distances in more detail. A multi-stage setting may be used.

  Note that the search cycle in the present invention is set to be shorter when the calculated inter-key distance is shorter than the predetermined reference search distance than when the calculated inter-key distance is greater than a predetermined reference search distance. The search cycle set to be long or short is a cycle immediately after the setting, and the search cycle that is changed in the lapse of time after the setting need not correspond to this long or short condition.

The block diagram which shows simply the structure of the vehicle door unlocking system which is one Embodiment of this invention. The vehicle overhead view which shows the key collation area in the vehicle carrying the vehicle door unlocking system of FIG. The figure explaining the flow of the collation process by the two-way radio | wireless communication performed between a vehicle and a key. FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining a flow of processing for setting a transmission cycle of a key search signal in FIG. 3. FIG. Explanatory drawing for demonstrating the setting change according to the distance between the vehicle and the portable key corresponding to the transmission cycle of the key search signal of FIG. 4, and the acquisition cycle of present position information. The flowchart explaining the flow of the process which changes the transmission cycle of the key search signal set in FIG. 3 longer as time passes. The flowchart explaining the flow of the hospitality process at the time of user boarding in the vehicle carrying the vehicle door unlocking system of FIG. The flowchart explaining the flow of the 1st modification of the process which sets the transmission period of the key search signal of FIG. The flowchart explaining the flow of the 2nd modification of the process which sets the transmission period of the key search signal of FIG. The block diagram which shows the structure of a different part from FIG. 1 about the modification of the vehicle door unlocking system of FIG.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of a vehicle door unlocking system of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing a configuration of a vehicle door unlocking system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. A vehicle door unlocking system 1 according to this embodiment shown in FIG. 1 includes a car navigation device 100 and a key matching system 200.

  First, the car navigation apparatus 100 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a car navigation device 100 is a device that guides a route to a destination set by a user when a control unit 10 executes a navigation program stored in a storage device 15, and has a known configuration. Have. The route guidance is performed by display on the display device (display unit) 12 or voice output from a sound output device (sound output unit) 13 such as a speaker. The display device 12 is a screen display unit that can draw an arbitrary image on the screen. On the map image stored in the storage device 15, the current position of the vehicle 2 detected by the position detector (position detection unit) 11 or The guide route set by the user operation on the operation input device (operation detection unit) 14 can be displayed as an image. The operation input device 14 includes a mechanical switch around the screen, a touch panel on the screen, and a remote operation input unit, a voice input unit, and the like provided in another part of the remote controller or the vehicle interior.

  The position detector 11 has a GPS receiver for GPS (Global Positioning System) that detects the position of the vehicle based on radio waves (GPS signals) from satellites, and acquires the current position information of the vehicle 2. Functions as an information acquisition unit. The position detector 11 of the present embodiment is a known one having a known geomagnetic sensor, gyroscope, distance sensor, and GPS receiver.

  Note that a position detector (position detection unit) 45 of the portable key 4 to be described later is also configured with a GPS receiver, and functions as a key position information acquisition unit that acquires current position information of the portable key 4. .

  Next, the key verification system 200 will be described.

  The key verification system 200 is based on the assumption that verification is successful by key verification by wireless communication between a portable key (hereinafter abbreviated as a key) 4 that can be carried by the user and the vehicle 2 side. 2L and 2B (here, reference numerals 2R and 2L are doors corresponding to the left and right seats, and reference numeral 2B is a back door) are systems similar to a so-called smart entry system.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the vehicle 2 of the present embodiment locks the doors 2R, 2L, 2B, the door locking / unlocking drive unit 24 for switching the locking / unlocking state, and the doors 2R, 2L, 2B. Assuming that the door unlocking operation unit 23 that accepts the unlocking operation for switching from the state to the unlocked state and the key collation by wireless communication between the key 4 and the vehicle 2 side results in collation OK. And 2R, 2L, 2B. The control part 20 which makes unlocking possible state (unlocking permission state) is provided.

  The door locking / unlocking drive unit 24 is a door lock motor serving as a drive source provided corresponding to the back door 2B and the seat doors 2R, 2L, and switches the corresponding door between the unlocked state and the locked state. .

  The door unlocking operation unit 23 corresponding to the back door 2B is a push button provided on a handle portion facing the lower side of the back door 2B forming the door handle portion 2h. The door unlocking operation unit 23 corresponding to each seat door 2R, 2L is a touch switch provided on the back side of the door handle 2h in the corresponding door 2R, 2L here.

  The control unit 20 has the same configuration as a normal computer having a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM, and is driven by driving power supplied from an in-vehicle power source (in-vehicle battery) 2V through a power circuit 2v. The control unit 20 is connected to an LF transmission unit 21 that constitutes a radio wave transmission unit (transmitter) and a UHF reception unit (RF reception unit) 22 that constitutes a radio wave reception unit (receiver), and performs overall control related to the key verification system 200. . The control unit 20 executes collation processing (entry control) with two-way wireless communication performed with the key 4, and collation is OK by the processing (each door 2R, 2L, 2B can be unlocked). Assuming that the doors 2R, 2L, 2B are unlocked to the door unlocking operation unit 23, the door locking / unlocking driving unit 24 is driven to drive the doors 2R, Unlocking control for switching 2L and 2B to the unlocked state is executed. When the doors 2R, 2L, and 2B in the unlocked state are operated to open and close the door handles 2h, the corresponding doors 2R, 2L, and 2B can be opened electrically or manually.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the radio wave transmission unit (transmitter) 21 receives drive power supplied from the in-vehicle power source (in-vehicle battery) 2V via the power source circuit 2v based on a command signal from the control unit 20. Drive various signals (LF signals) related to the key verification system 200 from the antennas 21a (21Ra, 21La, 21Ba: see FIG. 2) of the doors 2R, 2L, 2B in advance in the LF (Low Frequency) band. Wireless transmission at a specified frequency. As the receivable range of the LF signal, collation areas 210R, 210L, and 210B (see FIG. 2) in which the key 4 can be collated are determined.

  The radio wave receiver (receiver) 22 is driven by driving power supplied from the in-vehicle power source (in-vehicle battery) 2V via the power circuit 2v, and is related to key verification in the key verification system 200 from the key 4. , A signal having a predetermined frequency in the UHF (Ultra High Frequency) band (also referred to as UHF signal / RF signal) is wirelessly received from the corresponding antennas 22Fa and 22Ba (see FIG. 2) outside the vehicle, and the received signal Is input to the control unit 20.

  The key 4 is a smart key related to the key verification system 200 of the vehicle 2. As shown in FIG. 1, the key 4 includes, as main components, a control unit 40, a UHF transmission unit that forms a radio wave transmission unit 41, an LF reception unit that forms a radio wave reception unit 42, a storage unit 43, and an operation input unit 44. An operation switch, a position detector 45, and the like.

  The control unit 40 includes a CPU and various memories, and performs general information processing necessary for the key 4. The UHF transmission unit 41 transmits a UHF signal in the UHF band related to the key verification system 200. The LF receiver 42 receives an LF signal that is wirelessly transmitted from the vehicle 2 in relation to the key verification system 200. The storage unit 43 stores various information necessary for the key 4, and stores at least a verification code unique to itself.

  Here, a collation process (entry control) involving bidirectional wireless communication performed between the vehicle 2 and the key 4 executed by the control unit 20 on the vehicle 2 side will be briefly described with reference to FIG.

  On the vehicle 2 side, the control unit 20 is activated when a predetermined transmission cycle (search cycle) arrives when the seat doors 2R, 2L and the back door 2B are locked, and is activated from the sleep state (power saving mode) (normally). Mode). The control unit 20 first drives the LF transmission unit 21 to wirelessly transmit an activation signal as a key search signal from the door antennas 21Ra, 21La, and 21Ba (T1: search signal transmission unit), and the UHF reception unit 22 to the key 4 Waiting to receive an activation response signal from. On the other hand, when the key search signal is wirelessly received by the LF receiver 42 on the key 4 side, the controller 40 releases its own sleep state and enters an activated state (starts the clock operation). Accordingly, the UHF transmitter 41 is made to transmit an activation response signal by radio (K1). And the control part 40 will be in the reception waiting state of the collation code request signal from the vehicle 2. FIG.

  Next, when the UHF reception unit 22 receives the activation response signal via the door antennas 22Fa and 22Ba, the control unit 20 on the vehicle 2 side moves from the door antennas 21Ra, 21La, and 21Ba to the key 4 side with respect to the LF transmission unit 21. A verification code request signal for requesting a verification code (key information / authentication information unique to the key) is wirelessly transmitted (T2), and the key 4 enters a state of waiting for reception of a verification signal including the verification code as a request response signal. On the other hand, on the key 4 side, when the LF reception unit 42 wirelessly receives this, the control unit 40 causes the UHF transmission unit 41 to wirelessly transmit the verification signal including the verification code stored in the storage unit 43 as a request response signal. (K2).

  And the control part 20 by the side of the vehicle 2 will perform the collation process (authentication process) of the collation code contained in this, if the UHF receiving part 22 receives a collation signal via door antenna 22Fa, 22Ba (T3: authentication) Means) If the verification is OK (the key 4 is authenticated), the doors 2R, 2L, 2B of the vehicle 2 are brought into an unlockable state (unlocking permission state) (T3: unlocking permission means). The collation process is performed by collating the received collation code with the master code stored in the storage unit 25, and collation OK (collation success) is obtained when both codes match.

  Then, the doors 2R, 2L, 2B in the unlockable state are operated by operating any one of the unlocking operation portions 23 of the doors 2R, 2L, 2B, so that the doors 2R, 2L, 2B of the vehicle 2 are operated. It can be unlocked (T4).

  In this verification process, if the key 4 side or the vehicle 2 side is in a standby state for receiving a predetermined signal and time-out occurs without receiving it, or if verification NG (code mismatch) occurs in various verification processes. This process ends when the verification fails. In these cases, if the key 4 is in the activated state, the control unit 40 of the key 4 shifts again to the sleep state (K3), while the control unit 20 on the vehicle 2 side notifies the arrival of the next transmission cycle. Is set (T5), the driving of the transmission unit 21 and the reception unit 22 is stopped, and a transition to the sleep state (power saving mode) is made.

  By the way, the control unit 20 sets the transmission cycle (search cycle) of the key search signal set in the collation process (entry control) in FIG. 3 to the distance (inter-key distance) d between the vehicle 2 and the key 4. The transmission cycle setting process (search cycle setting process) to be changed accordingly is executed here as shown in FIG.

  When locking the doors 2R, 2L, 2B, when the key 4 is in a lost state (S1: Yes), the control unit 20 first acquires current position information with the host vehicle 2 (S2: acquisition of vehicle position information). means). The control unit 20 here activates the control unit 10 to drive the position detector 11, and obtains the current position information detected by the position detector 11 from the control unit 10. Specifically, the control unit 20 acquires from the control unit 10 a communication signal received by the GPS receiver of the position detector 11 (GPS signal). After the acquisition, the control unit 10 outputs a control command for stopping the driving of the position detector 11 and switching the control unit 10 to the sleep state (power saving mode). On the other hand, the control unit 20 acquires the current position information of the key 4 corresponding to the host vehicle 2 (S3: key position information acquisition means). Here, the control unit 20 drives the communication unit 26 to cause the key 4 to wirelessly transmit a request signal for requesting the current position information of the key 4 as an activation signal of the key 4, and preliminarily such as the Internet or a dedicated communication network. The data is received by the communication unit 46 on the key 4 side via a predetermined external communication network (external communication means) 300. Then, it waits for reception of a request response signal from the key 4.

  On the other hand, on the key 4 side, when the communication unit 46 wirelessly receives this, the control unit 40 releases its own sleep state and enters the activated state (starts the clock operation), and accordingly the request response is sent to the communication unit 46. The signal including the current position information of the key 4 as a signal is received by the communication unit 26 on the vehicle 2 side via the vehicle communication network (vehicle communication means) 300. More specifically, the control unit 20 acquires from the control unit 40 a communication signal received by the GPS receiver of the position detector 45 (GPS signal). The control unit 20 stops driving the communication unit 26 after receiving the request response signal, and the control unit 40 shifts to the sleep state again after transmitting the request response signal.

  Subsequently, the control unit 20 calculates the inter-key distance d from the host vehicle 2 to the key 4 based on the current position information of both the host vehicle 2 acquired at approximately the same time and the key 4 corresponding to the host vehicle 2. Specify (S4: distance specifying means). Since the control part 20 here can calculate each present position coordinate based on each present position information of the own vehicle 2 and the key 4, based on both present position coordinates, the distance between both can be calculated. The calculation result is specified as the inter-key distance d.

  When the inter-key distance d is specified, the control unit 20 determines that the specified inter-key distance d exceeds the predetermined reference search distance d2 in the search cycle Y of the key search signal (in this case, d2 or more). The setting is changed so as to be shorter when the distance is shorter than the reference search distance d2 (that is, shorter than d2) (search period changing means).

  In the present embodiment, the control unit 20 determines the distance d1 (receivable distance: from the vehicle 2 to the limit position where the key search signal (LF signal) can be received on the key 4 side as one of the reference search distances. When the peripheral reference distance d2 (for example, the farthest search distance in the present embodiment: 10 m, for example) is set to be greater than or equal to 5 m (for example, 10 m) (see FIG. 5), and the calculated inter-key distance d exceeds the peripheral reference distance d2. In this case (in the case of d2 or more) (S5: No and S8: No), the search cycle Y is set to infinity (Y0), that is, the key search signal is set to non-transmission (S12, S14). ). As a result, input of drive power (transmission power) to the transmission unit 21 is prohibited, and wireless transmission of the key search signal is interrupted. On the other hand, when the calculated inter-key distance d is less than the peripheral reference distance d2 (peripheral search distance) (when shorter than d2) (S5: Yes or S8: Yes), the search period Y is a predetermined standard period. Set to Y1 (S6 or S9).

  Note that the standard cycle Y1 set as the search cycle Y in the present embodiment is set when the response signal of the key search signal from the key 4 is not received continuously for a predetermined time when set, or When the key search signal is not received after being transmitted a predetermined number of times, the setting is changed to other longer transmission periods Y2 and Y3 (see FIG. 6). That is, the search cycle Y is set not only to calculate the inter-key distance d by the process of FIG. 6, but also to increase the transmission cycle Y of the key search signal with time.

  In S6 and S9, as shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 20 sets a predetermined standard cycle (transmission cycle) Y1 (S20), counts the time, and calculates the standard cycle Y1 (the one cycle). For example, after waiting for 0.25 s to elapse (S21), a key search signal transmission process is executed (S22). That is, the processing of T1 in FIG. 3 already described is started. As a result, when the key collation is OK (S23: Yes / T3), the control unit 20 ends the process of FIG. 6, and when the key collation is NG (S23: No / T5), the NG is predetermined. It is determined whether or not the number of times (number of times C1) is NG continuously generated (S24). If the verification NG is not the NG of the predetermined number of consecutive times, the control unit 20 again transmits the key search signal in the current standard cycle Y1 (S21 and S22). If the verification NG is NG for a predetermined number of consecutive times, the control unit 20 sets a predetermined second period (transmission period) Y2 longer than the standard period Y1 instead of the standard period Y1, and sets the time. After counting and waiting until the second cycle Y2 (one cycle is set to 0.75 s, for example) elapses (S25), a key search signal transmission process is executed (S27: T1). As a result, when the key collation is OK (S28: Yes), the control unit 20 ends the processing of FIG. 6, and when the key collation is NG (S28: No), the NG is a predetermined number of times (number of times C2). It is determined whether or not the NG is continuous (S29). If the verification NG is not the NG of the predetermined number of consecutive times, the control unit 20 again transmits the key search signal in the current second period Y2 (S26 and S27). If the NG is the predetermined number of consecutive times, the control unit 20 sets a predetermined third period Y3 (transmission period) longer than the second period Y2 instead of the second period Y2, and counts the time. Then, after waiting for the elapse of the third period Y3 (the one period is assumed to be 2.25 s, for example) (S31), a key search signal transmission process is executed (S32: T1, T5). As a result, when the key verification is OK (S33: Yes), the control unit 20 ends the process of FIG. In the case of the key verification NG (S33: No), the time is counted again, and after waiting for the third period Y3 to elapse (S31), the key search signal transmission process is executed (S32). In the case of key verification NG (S33: No), as described above, it is determined whether or not the NG is a predetermined number of NGs continuously, and the third cycle Y3 is changed to a cycle with a longer cycle. Alternatively, it may be further repeated to change to a longer cycle. Eventually, the longest cycle may be set to infinity, that is, to stop transmission.

  In the present invention, the search cycle Y is less than the reference search distance d2 (that is, d2) than when the calculated inter-key distance d is greater than a predetermined reference search distance d2 (here, d2 or more). Is set so as to be shorter, but here the “long search period set when the reference search distance d2 is exceeded” and the “short search set when the reference search distance d2 is less than”. The “cycle” means the search cycles Y1 and Y0 immediately after being set, not the cycles Y2 and Y3 that are changed over time in the processing of FIG.

  Returning to FIG. In the case of the present embodiment, the control unit 20 uses the acquisition period X for acquiring the current position information of each of the host vehicle 2 and the key 4 as the reference acquisition distances d2 and d3 where the specified inter-key distance d is predetermined. The setting is changed so that it is shorter when it is below the reference acquisition distances d2 and d3 (that is, shorter than d2 and d3) than when it exceeds (here, d2 or more, d3 or more). ).

  In the present embodiment, the control unit 20 uses the reference acquisition distances d2 and d3 as the reference acquisition distances d2 and d3 from the vehicle 2 to the limit position where the key search signal (LF signal) can be received on the key 4 side (receivable distance: for example, 5m etc.) A peripheral reference distance (first distant acquisition distance: 10 m, for example) d2 that is greater than or equal to d1 and a distant reference distance d3 (second distant acquisition distance: 200 m, for example) longer than the peripheral reference distance d2 are determined. (Refer to FIG. 5), when the calculated inter-key distance d is longer than a predetermined neighborhood reference distance (peripheral acquisition distance) d1 (S8: Yes), a predetermined acquisition is performed. A cycle X1 (for example, the same as the standard cycle Y1 in FIG. 6) is set (S10), and when it is longer than the peripheral reference distance d2 (S11: Yes), an acquisition cycle X2 (for example, FIG. 6) set longer than the acquisition cycle X1. Send The period Y3 (for example, the same as 2.25 s) is set (S13), and when it is longer than the far reference distance d3 (S11: No), the acquisition period X3 (for example, one period is set to 24) longer than the acquisition period X2. Time is set (S15), and when the set acquisition periods X1, X2, and X3 have passed (S10, S13, S15), the process returns to S1.

  However, in the present embodiment, the acquisition cycle X (X1 to X3) is set when the calculated inter-key distance d is greater than the neighborhood reference distance (peripheral acquisition distance) d1 (here, d1 or more). Limited. When the calculated inter-key distance d is less than the proximity reference distance d1 (when it is shorter than d1) (S5: Yes), the control unit 20 sets the acquisition period X to a distance d that exceeds the proximity reference distance d1. The acquisition cycle X0 longer than the shortest acquisition cycle X1 is set (S7), and when the set acquisition cycle X0 elapses (S7), the process returns to S1.

  In the present embodiment, the neighborhood reference distance (peripheral acquisition distance) d1 is determined to be the same as the receivable distance d1, but may not be the same as long as it is at least within the receivable distance d1.

  4 and 6, the control unit 20 sets the search cycle Y and the acquisition cycle X to the receivable distance d1 or more of the reference acquisition distances d2 and d3 having a calculated inter-key distance d of 1 or more. While changing the setting so that the acquisition cycle X is shorter than the search cycle Y (X2 <Y1, X3 <∞ (Y0)) when it exceeds the predetermined reference acquisition distance d2 (peripheral acquisition distance) defined in (1). When the reference acquisition distance d2 (peripheral acquisition distance) is shorter, the setting is changed so that the search cycle Y is shorter than the acquisition cycle X. That is, the current position information is used more effectively for detecting the key 4 as the key 4 moves away from the vehicle 2.

  Further, the control unit 20 of the present embodiment is connected to predetermined hospitality drive units 29 and 26 related to the user's ride on the vehicle, and a part of the control unit 20 uses the calculated inter-key distance d. To drive (hospitality control means). As shown in FIG. 5, the hospitality driving units 29 and 26 are driven by receiving driving power supplied from an in-vehicle power source (in-vehicle battery) 2V via a power circuit 2v. A lighting drive section (headlight lighting section) 29A for lighting a headlight (headlight), a lighting driving section (footlight lighting section) 29B for lighting a footlamp that illuminates the foot position outside the door, and immediately after starting the engine The display unit 29 </ b> C that displays information and the communication unit 26 that acquires display information from the information distribution device 9 outside the vehicle by wireless communication are provided.

  Specifically, using the inter-key distance d, the case where the key 4 is in the vicinity of the vehicle 2 to a certain extent is entered before entering the verification area 210, and if it is specified, the vehicle is boarded. The user starts driving the hospitality driving units 29 and 26 in a predetermined manner. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the control unit 20 determines that the inter-key distance d is a predetermined distance from the peripheral reference distance (based on the specific result of the inter-key distance d in S <b> 4 that is repeatedly performed in the process of FIG. When it is determined that the distance is less than the reference distance d2 (S51: Yes), the communication unit 26 constituting the hospitality drive units 29 and 26 is driven to start wireless communication for acquiring display information (S52). That is, an information request signal is wirelessly transmitted to the information distribution device 9 via the communication network 300, and display information is wirelessly received as a response signal. Subsequently, when the collation process (T3) results in collation OK (S53: Yes), the control unit 20 drives the lighting drive unit 29A to light the headlamp (S54), and the unlocking operation is performed. When the door of the vehicle is unlocked (S55: Yes), the lighting drive unit 29B is driven to light the foot lamp. Then, when the engine start switch (IG switch ON operation) is performed (S57: Yes), the control unit 20 drives the display unit (display) 29C to previously determine the display information received previously. It is displayed according to the format (S58). As a result, this process ends.

  The display information here is current traffic jam information, weather information, latest news, and the like. These may be selected in advance by the user as information desired by the user. As a result, the information that the user faces as the engine starts can be viewed immediately without requiring a reception waiting time. Note that the news as the display information can also be selected as news in the selected genre by letting the user select news in the genre desired by the user in advance. The display unit (display) 29C may be the display device 12.

  As described above, the vehicle door unlocking system 1 according to the present embodiment wirelessly transmits a key search signal for searching for the corresponding key 4 by applying transmission driving power to the transmission unit 21 of the vehicle 2 in a predetermined search cycle. In addition, when the receiving unit 22 wirelessly receives authentication information including key information unique to the key 4 from the outside of the vehicle according to the key search signal, the authentication process of the key 4 of the transmission source is performed based on the authentication information. And when the transmission source key 4 is authenticated as the corresponding key 4 by the authentication process, the vehicle doors 2R, 2L, 2B are in a state where they can be unlocked. The inter-distance d is specified, and the longer the specified inter-key distance d is, the shorter the search cycle for wirelessly transmitting the key search signal is configured. Accordingly, in a situation where the vehicle 2 and the key 4 are located far apart and the possibility that the vehicle 2 is used is low, the key search signal transmission drive is not executed, so that the power consumption of the vehicle 2 can be suppressed. On the other hand, in a situation where the vehicle 2 and the key 4 are located close to each other and there is a possibility that the vehicle 2 is used, the key search signal transmission drive is executed in the standard cycle Y1, and thus the detection of the key 4 is missed. There is nothing.

  The operation input unit 44 of the key 4 includes a known unlocking operation unit and locking operation unit. When any of the unlocking operation unit and the locking operation unit is operated, the key 4 wirelessly transmits to the vehicle 2 an unlocking signal or a locking signal including a unique verification code. The vehicle 2 receives this, and when the received verification code is verified by verification processing, the vehicle 2 drives the door locking / unlocking drive unit 24 to unlock or lock each door 2R, 2L, 2B. Switch to state.

  Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, this is merely an example, and the present invention is not limited to this, and the knowledge of those skilled in the art can be used without departing from the spirit of the claims. Various modifications based on this are possible.

  In the above embodiment, the key search signal is simultaneously transmitted from all the transmission antennas 21Ra, 21La, and 21Ba at the same transmission cycle. However, as shown in FIG. 10, the radio wave transmission unit (transmitter) 21 is connected to each door 2R, The transmitters 21R, 21L, and 21B are provided corresponding to 2L and 2B, respectively, connected to the outside antennas 21Ra, 21La, and 21Ba, and the main transmitter is selected from the transmitters 21R, 21L, and 21B. The transmission cycle (search cycle) of the key search signal by the selected main transmission unit 21 may be shorter than the transmission cycle of the key search signal of the remaining transmission units 21.

  For example, the control unit 20 executes the search cycle setting process of FIG. That is, the control unit 20 executes S1 to S4 as in FIG. 4, and the direction in which the key 4 exists with respect to the vehicle 2 based on the current position information of the vehicle 2 and the key 4 acquired in S2 and S3. The key presence direction is specified (S4 ′: direction specifying means). After that, the control unit 20 executes S5 to S15 in the same manner as in FIG. 4, but with respect to S6 and S9, the control unit 20 executes in a form changed to S6 ′ and S6 ″ and S9 ′ and S9 ″. The control unit 20 associates and determines transmission ranges 220R, 220L, and 220B (see FIG. 2) including the signal transmission directions of 21Ra, 21La, and 21Ba from the respective transmission antennas to the transmission units 21R, 21L, and 21B. The transmission range including the key presence direction specified in S4 ′ is specified, and the search period of the key search signal wirelessly transmitted by the transmission unit 21 corresponding to the specified transmission range is determined by the remaining transmission unit. It is set shorter than the search cycle of the key search signal transmitted by radio (S6 ′ and S6 ″ and S9 ′ and S9 ″: search cycle changing means). Here, the control unit 20 sets the standard cycle (see FIG. 6) in S6 ′ and S9 ′ and first sets the transmission cycle Y1 and varies by the processing of FIG. 6, while S6 ″ and S9 ″. The transmission cycle Y3 longer than the transmission cycle Y1 is fixedly set.

  Note that the processing of FIG. 8 may be changed as shown in FIG. That is, in S6 ″ and S9 ″, the non-transmission of the key search signal is fixed to the remaining transmission units 21 excluding the transmission unit 21 corresponding to the transmission range including the key presence direction as in S12 and S15. You may make it set to.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vehicle door unlocking system 100 Car navigation apparatus 10 Control part 11 Position detector 2 Vehicle 2R, 2L Door (door of each seat)
2B door (back door)
200 Key verification system 20 Control unit 21 Transmission unit 22 Reception unit 26 Communication unit (hospitality drive unit)
29 hospitality drive unit 4 key 40 control unit 41 transmission unit 42 reception unit 45 position detector 46 communication unit d distance between keys d1 proximity reference distance (peripheral acquisition distance)
d2 Perimeter reference distance (first distance acquisition distance / farthest search distance)
d3 Distant reference distance (second distant acquisition distance)

Claims (9)

A key search signal is wirelessly transmitted outside the vehicle at a predetermined search cycle from the vehicle side, a response signal including key-specific verification information is received from the portable key that has received the key search signal, and verification processing based on the response signal is performed. As a result, in the vehicle door unlocking system for making the vehicle door unlockable when the verification is OK,
Vehicle position information acquisition means for acquiring current position information of the vehicle;
Key position information acquisition means for acquiring current position information of the portable key;
Distance specifying means for specifying a distance between the vehicle and the portable key based on the acquired current position information of the vehicle and the portable key;
Search period changing means for changing the search period so that the specified distance between the keys is shorter than the predetermined reference search distance than when the specified inter-key distance is longer than the predetermined reference search distance;
A vehicle door unlocking system comprising:   The search cycle changing means sets the key search signal to non-transmission when the distance specified by the distance specifying means is longer than the farthest search distance determined as the longest reference search distance. Item 2. The vehicle door unlocking system according to Item 1.   The vehicle position information acquisition unit and the key position information acquisition unit each have a predetermined acquisition period of the current position information to be acquired, and the acquisition period is determined in advance by the distance specified by the distance specifying unit. 3. The vehicle door unlocking system according to claim 1, further comprising an acquisition cycle changing unit configured to change a setting so that a case where the reference acquisition distance is shorter than a case where the reference acquisition distance is exceeded is shorter than a case where the reference acquisition distance is exceeded.   The acquisition cycle changing means sets the acquisition cycle only when the distance specified by the distance specifying means exceeds the peripheral acquisition distance determined to be greater than the receivable distance on the portable key side of the key search signal. , The setting is changed so that the distance when the distance specified by the distance specifying means is shorter than the reference acquisition distance set in advance is shorter than the case when the distance is less than the reference acquisition distance. 4. The vehicle door unlocking system according to claim 3, wherein when the value is less than 1, the acquisition cycle is set to be longer than the shortest acquisition cycle set at a distance exceeding the peripheral acquisition distance.   The search cycle changing unit and the acquisition cycle changing unit are configured to use the portable key of the key search signal as the reference acquisition distance with the search cycle and the acquisition cycle set by the distance specified by the distance specifying unit as the reference acquisition distance, respectively. If it exceeds the peripheral acquisition distance determined more than the receivable distance on the side, while changing the setting so that the acquisition cycle is shorter than the search cycle, while below the peripheral acquisition distance, The vehicle door unlocking system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the setting is changed so that the search cycle is shorter than the acquisition cycle.   The search cycle changing means sets the key search signal to non-transmission when the distance specified by the distance specifying means exceeds the peripheral acquisition distance as the reference acquisition distance. Or the vehicle door unlocking system of Claim 5.   The acquisition cycle changing means is configured to set the far acquisition distance to be greater than the distance specified by the distance specifying means, when the distance specified by the distance specifying means exceeds a far acquisition distance determined longer than the peripheral acquisition distance as the reference acquisition distance. The vehicle door unlocking system according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein a setting change is made so that the lower case becomes shorter. The key search signal is wirelessly transmitted from a plurality of transmission antennas provided at different positions of the vehicle, respectively.
Based on the current position information of the vehicle and the portable key acquired by the vehicle position information acquisition means and the key position information acquisition means, a key presence direction that is a direction in which the portable key exists with respect to the vehicle is specified. A direction specifying means for
The search cycle changing means specifies a transmission range including the key presence direction specified by the direction specifying means, out of transmission ranges determined including the signal transmission directions from the transmission antennas. The search period of the key search signal wirelessly transmitted from the transmission antenna corresponding to the specified transmission range is set shorter than the search period of the key search signal wirelessly transmitted from the remaining transmission antennas The vehicle door unlocking system according to any one of claims 1 to 7.   The hospitality control means for driving a predetermined hospitality driving unit when the distance between the keys specified by the distance specifying means is below a predetermined reference distance continuously for a predetermined number of times. The vehicle door unlocking system according to claim 8.

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