US 5,325,082 AGranted

Comprehensive vehicle information storage system

OwnerJuan C. Rodriguezinventor

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Abstract

A vehicle information storage system for all vehicle electronic sensors comprising a condition monitoring subsystem(7) and a storage subsystem(9). The condition monitoring subsystem(7) comprises, display(30), warning lamps(32), and a central processing unit(24) with a microprocessor and memory. The storage subsystem(9) comprising a central data processor(31) with a plurality of storage devices(16) one for each of a plurality sensor inputs(11), a plurality of remote receiving units(10), and a data routing unit(14). All the sensor inputs in the storage subsystem(7) are connected to the central data processor(31) over a single wire with the centrally located data routing unit(14) and the plurality of remote receiving units(10). Each sensor input(11) is monitored according to the information content of the associated sensor data as determined by prior analysis. Each sensor data associated with each sensor input(11) is stored in a corresponding storage device(16) and is transmitted via the vehicle electronic interface(26) to the central processing unit(24) in the condition monitoring subsystem(7 ) or to an external computer. The central processing unit(24) in the condition monitoring subsystem(7) processes and stores some of the data associated with the sensor inputs(11). All the remaining sensor data associated with all the remaining vehicle electronic sensors is stored exclusively in the central data processor(31).

Claims18

Dependent claims

A vehicle information storage system for use on a vehicle having a plurality of sensors for producing informational data about the vehicle and for use with an external computer, said information storage system comprising:

(a) a condition monitoring subsystem comprising a central processing unit adapted to receive data from the sensors and including testing means for performing tests on the data received from the sensors and generating informational outputs based on said tests, and a display unit operatively connected to said central processing unit for displaying the informational outputs from said central processing unit so as to alert a vehicle operator of malfunctions in the vehicle;
(b) a storage subsystem connected to selected ones of the sensors for storing and transmitting data from the sensors, said storage subsystem including a plurality of memory storage devices, one of said storage devices being provided for each of the sensors to which said storage subsystem is connected, storing means for storing data received from the sensors into that one of said memory storage device devices corresponding to a particular sensor;
data control means for generating control signals to control the storing of data in said memory storage devices;
prompting means for prompting said conditioning monitoring means during data transmission;
and transmission control means for controlling the transmission of data to the external computer clock means for generating a clock signal with clock cycles which is connected to said data control means and said transmission control means;
(c) a computer interface for connecting said storage subsystem to the external computer comprising an external data bus, an external address bus, and an external control bus so that said transmission control means causes transmission of data on said data bus from said memory storage devices in response to control and address signals from the external computer;
and,
(d) a vehicle electronic interface connecting said storage subsystem to said condition monitoring means comprising a vehicle data bus and a vehicle control bus so that said prompting means sends control signals over said vehicle control bus to said condition monitoring means when stored data from said memory storage means is being transmitted to said condition monitoring means over said vehicle data bus whereby said storage subsystem stores vehicle sensor data associated with one of the selected sensors in said storage subsystem once every clock cycle and transmits the vehicle sensor data stored in said storage subsystem to said condition monitoring subsystem during the same clock cycle during vehicle operation via said vehicle electronic interface and further transmitting selected sensor data from said memory storage devices to said external computer via said computer interface in response to said control and address bus signals from the external computer when the vehicle is not operational.

5 more elements

A vehicle information storage subsystem for use on a vehicle having a plurality of sensors for producing informational data about the vehicle and vehicle subsystems using the informational data from the sensors and for use with an external computer, said information storage subsystem comprising:

(a) a plurality of remote receiving units, each of said remote receiving units connected to said plurality of the sensors for receiving data therefrom;
(b) a plurality of data storage means, one of said data storage means corresponding to each of the sensors for selectively storing data from the sensors corresponding thereto at an addressable locations therein;
(c) data routing means for routing data signals from said remote receiving units to said data storage means;
(d) a vehicle electronic interface comprising a data bus and a control bus connected to the other vehicle subsystems so that data stored in said data storage means can be transmitted to the vehicle subsystems over said data bus and controlled over said control bus;
(d) a ROM having data control information recorded therein, said ROM operatively connected to said remote receiving units, said data storage means, said data routing means, and said data storage means so that said data control information recorded therein causes the informational data from a particular sensor to be recorded in said data storage means at a location having an unique address;
(e) clock means generating a timing signal with prescribed clock cycles so that the data control information recorded in said ROM causes said data storage means to store the vehicle sensor data associated with each of said sensors once every clock cycle of said clock cycles and transmit the data stored to the other vehicle subsystems during the same clock cycle while the vehicle is operating via said vehicle electronic interface and further transmitting selected sensor data from said data storage means from said data storage means to an external computer in response to control and address information from the external computer when the vehicle is not operating.

3 more elements

A vehicle information subsystem for use on a vehicle having a plurality of sensors for producing informational data about the vehicle for use with a computer controlled monitoring system, where said storage subsystem stores the informational data independently of the computer controlled monitoring system, said information subsystem comprising:

a plurality of memory storage devices,
data control means without a microprocessor connecting each of said storage devices to one of the sensors to control the storing of data in said memory storage devices and for controlling the transmission of data from said memory storage devices;
and,
clock means for generating a reference signal to said data control means.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.