Vehicle-tire-state detection/communication apparatus and tire-data communication apparatus

A detection/communication apparatus to be installed on a vehicle having a plurality of tires which include a mounted tire mounted on an axle of the vehicle and a non-mounted tire carried by the vehicle, said apparatus comprising:

• tire state detectors which are provided on the respective tires and each of which detects a state of a corresponding one of said tires;
• local transceivers which are provided on the respective tires and which transmit tire data sets relating to the respective tires, each of said tire data sets including at least one tire-state data element representative of the detected state of a corresponding one of said tires;
• a central receiver which is provided on a body of the vehicle and which receives said tire data sets transmitted by said local transceivers;
• non-mounted-tire detectors which are provided on the respective tires and each of which effects a determination as to whether a corresponding one of the tires is said non-mounted tire or not;
• and
• data-transmission modifiers which are provided on the respective tires, each of said data-transmission modifiers being operable in response to an affirmative decision by a corresponding one of said non-mounted-tire detectors in said determination, to modify transmission of a corresponding one of said tire data sets to said central receiver.

A detection/communication apparatus to be installed on a vehicle having a plurality of tires which include a mounted tire mounted on an axle of the vehicle and a non-mounted tire carried by the vehicle, said apparatus comprising:

• tire state detectors which are provided on the respective tires and each of which detects a state of a corresponding one of said tires;
• local transceivers which are provided on the respective tires;
• and
• a central receiver which is provided on a body of the vehicle and which includes a non-mounted-tire-signal receiving antenna,
• wherein said non-mounted-tire-signal receiving antenna has at least one of a sensitivity and a directivity which enables said receiving antenna to receive a signal transmitted from one of said local transceivers provided on said non-mounted tire, and which disables said receiving antenna to receive a signal transmitted from one of said local transceivers provided on said mounted tire.

A detection/communication apparatus to be installed on a vehicle having a plurality of tires which include a regular tire and a temporary tire, said apparatus comprising:

• a regular-tire state detector which is provided on said regular tire and which detects a state of said regular tire;
• a temporary-tire state detector which is provided on said temporary tire and which detects a state of said temporary tire;
• a regular-tire data transmitter which is provided on said regular tire and which transmits a regular-tire data set relating to said regular tire, said regular-tire data set including at least one regular-tire-state data element representative of the detected state of said regular tire;
• a temporary-tire data transmitter which is provided on said temporary tire and which transmits a temporary-tire data set relating to said temporary tire, said temporary-tire data set including at least one temporary-tire-state data element representative of the detected state of said temporary tire, and having a data amount smaller than that of said regular-tire data set;
• a central receiver which is provided on a body of the vehicle and which receives said regular-tire data set and said temporary-tire data set transmitted by said regular-tire data transmitter and said temporary-tire data transmitter, respectively;
• and
• a data processor which processes said regular-tire data set in a regular-tire data processing manner and which processes said temporary-tire data set in a temporary-tire data processing manner that is different from said regular-tire data processing manner.

A communication apparatus to be installed on a vehicle having a plurality of tires which include a mounted tire mounted on an axle of the vehicle and a non-mounted tire carried by the vehicle, said apparatus comprising:

• local transceivers which are provided on the respective tires and which transmit tire data sets relating to the respective tires;
• a central receiver which is provided on a body of the vehicle;
• a particular-signal transmitter which is provided on the body of the vehicle and which transmits a particular signal;
• and
• non-mounted-tire-data transmission commanders which are provided on the respective tires, each of said non-mounted-tire-data transmission commanders being operable depending upon a state of reception of said particular signal by a corresponding one of said local transceivers, to command said corresponding one of said local transceivers to transmit a corresponding one of said tire data sets as a non-mounted-tire data set relating to said non-mounted tire.