RIDE-ON SADDLE VEHICLE WITH AN INTERFACE FOR INTEGRATING THE ON-BOARD INSTRUMENTS WITH A MOBILE DEVICE

Abstract

The vehicle is provided with a dashboard and with a housing in which a mobile device, for example a mobile phone or smartphone, can be inserted. An electronic control unit of the vehicle co-acts with the mobile device by means of an electronic interface, so as to provide the mobile device with information relating to the operation of the vehicle. In this way, the mobile device provides an integration of the on-board instruments of the vehicle, which completes the instruments available on the dashboard.

Claims

1-14. (canceled)

15. A ride-on saddle vehicle comprising: a frame; at least one rear drive wheel and at least one front steered wheel associated with a handlebar to control steering of the front steered wheel; a dashboard with a first set of instruments, integrated with the handlebar; an electronic control unit of the vehicle, connected to a plurality of electronic devices on board the vehicle; a housing associated with the handlebar for a smartphone of a user of the vehicle; and an electronic interface adapted to interface the electronic control unit with a smartphone inserted in the housing; wherein the electronic control unit is adapted to provide the smartphone, by means of said electronic interface, with information viewable by the user on the smartphone and relating to a plurality of functions of the vehicle; wherein the dashboard and the housing are placed on the handlebar of the vehicle and integral therewith.

16. The vehicle of claim 15, wherein the electronic devices on board the vehicle comprise at least one of: a sensor, a transducer, an actuator.

17. The vehicle of claim 15, wherein the dashboard and the housing are placed on the handlebar one next to the other.

18. The vehicle of claim 15, wherein the housing comprises mechanical retaining members of the smartphone and a transparent closure.

19. The vehicle of claim 15, wherein the dashboard has the following instruments: speedometer, full beam warning light, position light warning light, indicator lights, low fuel warning light.

20. The vehicle of claim 15, wherein the control unit is adapted to provide, by means of the electronic interface, the smartphone with information adapted to view, on a screen of the smartphone and by means of a graphical user interface, one or more of the following functions or information: a revolution counter, an odometer, a front fog lights warning light, a rear fog lights warning light, a dipped beam warning light, a fuel level indicator, an indicator of the tire pressure based on direct or indirect information.

21. The vehicle of claim 15, wherein the control unit is adapted to provide the smartphone with information to record and view voyage data.

22. The vehicle of claim 15, further comprising an interaction member adapted to allow the user to interact with the smartphone.

23. The vehicle of claim 22, wherein said interaction member comprises a control member placed on the handlebar at a distance from the grips of the handle-bar that allows operation of the control member without removing one's hands from the handlebar.

24. The vehicle of claim 22, wherein said interaction member comprises a joy-stick.

25. The vehicle of claim 19, wherein the control unit is programmed to view on a screen of the smartphone a graphical user interface by means of which the user can set, by means of the interaction member, one or more of the following functions: the behavior of the engine; the behavior of the vehicle suspensions; enabling and disabling of a quick shift function; the behavior of the automatic transmission; management of multimedia contents of the smartphone; management of telephone calls or messaging.

26. The vehicle of claim 15, wherein the control unit is adapted to start, by means of the smartphone, an emergency call as a function of signals coming from one or more sensors installed on the vehicle and interfaced with the control unit.

27. The vehicle of claim 15, comprising warning horn/light interfaced with the electronic control unit, adapted to indicate the presence of the smartphone in said housing when at least one condition indicating that the driver has moved away from the vehicle occurs.

28. The vehicle of claim 16, wherein the dashboard and the housing are placed on the handlebar one next to the other.

29. The vehicle of claim 16, wherein the housing comprises mechanical retaining members of the smartphone and a transparent closure.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] The invention will be better understood by following the description and accompanying drawings, which illustrate a non-limiting example of embodiment of the invention. More in particular, in the drawing:

[0025] FIG. 1 shows a side view of a motorcycle;

[0026] FIG. 2 shows a top view of the instruments of the motorcycle;

[0027] FIG. 3 shows a section of a housing for a mobile device that can be combined with the motorcycle; and

[0028] FIG. 4 shows a functional block diagram of the control unit and of the connections to the sensors and to the on-board instruments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT

[0029] FIG. 1 shows a view of a two-wheeled saddle motorcycle, in the case in hand a scooter, which can be provided with instruments according to the present invention. The motorcycle, indicated as a whole with 1, comprises a frame 3 with a saddle 5, a rear wheel 7 and at least one front steered wheel 9 controlled by a handlebar 11. It must be understood that the motorcycle represented is merely an example. The instruments described below can also be installed on different motorcycles, for example motorcycles with two or three wheels, three-wheeled scooters, quad bikes and the like.

[0030] A panel on which a dashboard 13 is mounted is associated with the handlebar 11 of the motorcycle 1. The dashboard 13 comprises instruments for viewing and controlling various functions of the motorcycle 1. An embodiment of the dashboard 13 is shown in FIG. 2. By way of example, in FIG. 2 the dashboard 13 comprises a speedometer 15, a low fuel warning light, full beam and position light warning lights 17, and indicator lights.

[0031] In general, the instruments provided on the dashboard 13 can be limited to those indicated as mandatory by the current legislation in the country of sale and use of the motorcycle 1.

[0032] To allow the user of the vehicle to have available additional instruments, without impacting on the production cost of the motorcycle, advantageously the motorcycle 1, and more precisely an electronic control unit thereof, better described below, can be interfaced with a mobile device belonging to the user or owner of the motorcycle 1. The mobile device can be any device provided with viewing means and with the possibility of interfacing with the electronic control unit of the motorcycle 1. Typically, but not exclusively, the mobile device can be a smartphone.

[0033] Hereinafter, specific reference will be made to a smartphone, as mobile device provided with Internet connection. However, it must be understood that this type of mobile device, although currently preferred, could be substituted by other mobile devices with similar features. In some cases, a mobile device without an Internet connection could be used, although in this case some of the functions described herein would not be available.

[0034] As will be clear below, in order to be used in the context of the present invention, the mobile device will advantageously have some features and functions, which can also be provided on different mobile devices to a current smartphone.

[0035] In particular, advantageously the mobile device is provided with a possibility of interfacing with external electronics, in particular the electronic control unit of the vehicle, and is also provided with a screen on which a graphical user interface can be viewed, for the purposes described below.

[0036] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2, with the handlebar 11 is associated a housing 19, which is provided in the panel integral with the handlebar 11. FIG. 3 shows a section of the housing 19, into which a smartphone 21 is inserted. The housing 19 can advantageously be closed by a cover, a covering or a door 23 (FIG. 3) to protect the smartphone 21, for example from rain or from accidental impacts. The door 23 is advantageously transparent, so as to allow the user to view the screen of the smartphone 21, as shown in FIG. 2. The door 23 can be provided with a closing system, to prevent the smartphone 21 from accidentally falling out, for example in the event of dynamic stresses occurring while the motorcycle 1 is traveling. In other embodiments, not illustrated, the smartphone 21 can be housed in a sort of pocket provided with a transparent wall to allow viewing of the screen of the smartphone. Said pocket (not illustrated) allows lateral insertion of the smartphone through an opening of the pocket to a limit stop position in which the smartphone is almost completely inserted into the pocket. If necessary, release means of the smartphone can be provided to facilitate removal of the smartphone from the pocket once the vehicle is parked.

[0037] Advantageously, the motorcycle 1 can comprise, for example, a warning light and/or horn, to inform the driver of the presence of the smartphone on board the motorcycle when one of the following conditions occurs: switching off the engine of the motorcycle, interruption of the power supply to the dashboard, motorcycle placed on the kickstand. In this way, the driver is informed of the fact of having forgotten the smartphone 21 on the motorcycle 1. The warning device is operatively connected to the electronic control unit of the motorcycle 1 as described in more detail below. In some embodiments, the warning device can be activated when the electronic control unit detects an active connection with the smartphone 21 and the simultaneous occurrence of at least one of the aforesaid conditions. In some embodiments, a presence sensor, or another detection means, for example a simple button for detecting the presence of the smartphone 21 in its housing 19, can be provided. In this case, the presence of the smartphone 21 is indicated even if it is switched off or not connected to the electronic control unit.

[0038] Advantageously, elements adapted to retain and/or protect the smartphone 21 can be provided inside the housing 19. For example, FIG. 3 schematically shows an inner covering 25 made of elastomeric material, preferably of expanded elastomeric material, which can deform to accommodate and retain the smartphone 21 with slight peripheral pressure inside the housing. The covering 25 can be sufficiently pliable to adapt to the different shapes and sizes of various smartphones 21, without the need to substitute the covering. In some cases, the covering 25 can be replaceable, for example in the event of damage or wear, or also to accommodate different smartphone models, with variations in size and/or shape that cannot be accommodated in a single covering 25.

[0039] The use of a pliable covering, typically made of expanded elastomeric material, is a possible solution to the need to retain and protect the smartphone while the vehicle is traveling. However, other solutions, such as the use of snap fastening blocking devices, or other suitable means, would also be possible.

[0040] A system for charging the battery of the smartphone 21 can be associated with the housing 19. To avoid the need to connect the smartphone 21 to a cable, battery charging can take place with an induction supply system, indicated schematically with 27. The induction supply system 27 is universal and can power smartphones of different brands without the need for power cable adaptors.

[0041] An electronic interface, adapted to interface the electronic control unit of the motorcycle 1 with the smartphone 21 housed in the housing 19, is also associated with the housing 19. In some embodiments, the electronic interface can comprise an antenna 29, for example a Bluetooth antenna or a Wi-Fi antenna adapted to transfer data between the electronic control unit of the motorcycle 1 and the smartphone 21.

[0042] As will be clarified below, by means of the electronic interface between electronic control unit and smartphone 21 it is possible to configure and use the latter as supplementary and integrating on-board instrument relative to the instruments installed on the dashboard 13 of the motorcycle. This offers many advantages. Firstly, it simplifies the structure of the dashboard 13, eliminating the need to provide it with additional instruments to those indicated as mandatory by current legislation. In fact, the information to be made available to and viewable by the user will appear on the screen of the smartphone. In this way the cost of manufacturing the motorcycle 1 is reduced.

[0043] Moreover, the possibility of representing only some supplementary instruments on the smartphone allows easier viewing by the driver while riding. To clarify the concept, the screens of smartphones are normally relatively small in size, for example a few inches, and consequently the graphic surface available is generally smaller than that used for the conventional analog instruments of motorcycle dashboards. Concentrating all the instruments of the vehicle on the screen of a smartphone would make it very difficult to view the information while riding. Smartphones are conceived to be read at a distance of around 30-40 cm from the eyes, while during riding the dashboard is almost double this distance from the driver's eyes. Consequently, the characters and images on the screen of the smartphone must be at least double the size to allow the instruments to be easily read while riding. This means that the screen of the smartphone cannot on its own represent all the instruments of the motorcycle, especially those mandatory by law, which must be clearly visible while riding. For this reason, the present invention divides the instruments of the motorcycle between the dashboard of the motorcycle 1 and the smartphone 21. In this way, the supplementary instruments represented on the smartphone are more visible.

[0044] Moreover, it is possible to provide the driver with a larger or smaller number of control and management functions by means of the smartphone through suitable programming of the electronic control unit, without the need to produce different versions of the same motorcycle. Therefore, it will be possible to customize the instruments viewed on the smartphone 21 according to the driver's needs. For example, a sports driver could desire a revolution counter while a city driver prefers traffic information, which could be viewed by means of a navigation function.

[0045] It is also possible to overcome the problem of rapid obsolescence of the on-board instruments of motorcycles. In fact, it is sufficient to use different more advanced smartphones 21 to obtain increased or additional functions, if necessary simply reprogramming the electronic control unit, which can take place, for example, during servicing or vehicle inspection of the motorcycle 1.

[0046] FIG. 4 shows a functional block diagram of an electronic control unit 31 on board the motorcycle 1, with which instruments, such as sensors, transducers, actuators, or generic instruments adapted to detect one or more operating parameters or conditions of the motorcycle or parts thereof, are interfaced. Some of these instruments are represented schematically by the functional blocks 33.1, 33.2, . . . 33.n

[0047] The instruments 33.1 . . . 33.n can provide the electronic control unit 31 with information on the status of the various devices, apparatus, components or assemblies on board the motorcycle 1. By way of non-limiting example, the instruments 33.1 . . . 33.n can comprise the following: a transducer of the fuel level in the tank; a speed transducer; a sensor for direct or indirect detection of the tire pressure; a thermometer for detecting the temperature of the lubricant; a pressure transducer for measuring the pressure of the lubricant, an odometer; a coolant temperature sensor (when the motorcycle has a liquid rather than air cooling system); sensors for detecting whether lamps and lights, such as position lights, dipped beam, full beam, fog lights, direction indicators, are switched on or off; a flow meter for measuring fuel consumption; one or more accelerometers; a tilt sensor.

[0048] Moreover, transducers or other control members 35.1, 35.2, . . . 35.n can be associated with the electronic control unit 31 to transfer commands or operating settings for one or more devices or assemblies of the motorcycle 1. By way of non-limiting example, by means of the transducers or other control members 35.1, . . . 35.n the following functions of the motorcycle 1 can be implemented: setting of the behavior of the engine 39 (sport, comfort, eco mode, etc.) by means of the control unit 37 of the engine 39; setting of the behavior of one or more suspensions (in sport, comfort, normal mode, etc.), by means of actuators of the suspensions; setting of the behavior of the automatic transmission, if present (in sport, comfort, eco mode, etc.); enabling or disabling of the quick shifter.

[0049] As mentioned above, the motorcycle 1 can be provided with an alarm system that warns the user of the presence of the smartphone in the housing 19 when given conditions occur, for example switching off the engine, placing the motorcycle 1 on the kickstand, interrupting the power supply to the dashboard. The diagram of FIG. 4 illustrates a generic warning device 36, for example a warning horn and/or warning light, that generates an alarm signal controlled by the electronic control unit 31 based on the combination of the aforementioned conditions. The presence of the smartphone 21 can be detected in any suitable way, but preferably so as to inhibit the emission of an alarm when the smartphone has been removed from the housing 19 thereof, even if still connected to the electronic control unit 31. For this purpose, a detection member of the physical presence of the smartphone 21 in the housing can be associated with said housing 19.

[0050] The electronic control unit 31 can be connected to the aforementioned devices directly or indirectly, for example by means of connection to a further control unit. For example, the motorcycle 1 can be provided with a controller 37 of the engine 39 (see diagram of FIG. 4). In this case, the electronic control unit 31 can dialog with the controller 37 in order to exchange data with the controller 37 of the engine and manage the engine 39 of the motorcycle 1. Based on the setting selected by the user by means of the smartphone 21, it is possible to operate the engine in one of various selectable modes (sport, comfort, eco, etc.). Similar settings can be selected for the suspensions, for example.

[0051] The electronic control unit 31 is interfaced by means of an electronic interface 41 with the smartphone 21 when this is inserted in its housing 19.

[0052] The smartphone 21 can be provided with a suitable application to dialog with the electronic control unit 31 and therefore display on its screen the information relating, for example, to the reading of one or more operating parameters or states of the motorcycle 1, if necessary with the possibility of selecting one or more consecutive screenshots if all the information required cannot be viewed on a single screenshot.

[0053] One or more pages that can be viewed on the screen of the smartphone 21 can be used to select one or more behaviors of components of the motorcycle, such as engine, transmission and suspensions.

[0054] The display logic of the information and of scrolling of the video screens can be the same as that already provided for on the on-board instruments di motor vehicles provided with a large number of functions. The application of the smartphone can if necessary by adapted to organize a plurality of screenshots, each of which groups together a certain amount of information organized and structured according to the user's needs, who in this way can prepare a kind of “pages” that can be browsed, i.e. viewed in sequence on the screen and each of which contains, if necessary with a distribution that can be set by the user, a certain amount of information. The information is displayed on the screen of the smartphone 21 by means of a suitable graphical user interface.

[0055] By means of the electronic interface 41 between the electronic control unit 31 and the smartphone 21 it is also possible to display on the screen thereof one or more video screens for activation/deactivation, control, selection or operation of one or more operating modes or functions. For example, it is possible to display on the screen of the smartphone a video screen by means of which it is possible to set the behavior of an automatic transmission, the behavior of the suspensions, the behavior of the engine, or other selectable operating modes, for example the activation or deactivation of the quick-shifter, where present.

[0056] The smartphone 21 is normally equipped with a touch screen. However, this cannot be used practically by the user for a series of reasons. Firstly, the housing 19 is advantageously provided with a cover 23 that makes the surface of screen of the smartphone 21 inaccessible. Moreover, the user could be wearing gloves and in any case interaction with the smartphone by means of the touch screen could be dangerous while riding, as the user would need to release at least one of the grips 11.1 of the handlebar 1.

[0057] In order to make interaction between user and smartphone practical and safe, the handlebar 11 can be provided with an interaction member 43 (see FIGS. 2 and 4) that allows the user to interact with the smartphone 21. In the example illustrated, the interaction member 43 comprises a joy-stick. The interaction member 43 is connected to the electronic control unit 31 and allows controls to be given to the smartphone 21 through the electronic control unit 31 and the electronic interface 41.

[0058] The interaction member 43 is placed adjacent to one of the grips 11.1 of the handlebar 11, so that the user can maneuver it without removing the hand from the grip of the handlebar and thus continuing to safely control the motorcycle 1.

[0059] For example, with the joy-stick it is possible to give upward or downward, left and right movements to a cursor moving on a graphical user interface (GUI) displayed on the screen of the smartphone 21. The joy-stick can be used to act on the graphical user interface of the smartphone 21 substituting contact on the screen with a pressure control on the lever of the joy-stick or on another button of the interaction member 43.

[0060] In some embodiments, the interaction member 43 can be used to scroll (with an upward or downward movement, for example) a list of selectable pages and to open, for example with a pressure control, a selected page, on which information relating to the driving conditions can appear, such as instantaneous speed, average speed, instantaneous fuel consumption, average fuel consumption, length of route traveled, total number of kilometers traveled by the motorcycle, gear engaged, tire pressure, oil temperature, oil pressure.

[0061] One or more pages can be provided to display on the graphical user interface the possibility of selecting one or more operating modes of one or more components of the motorcycle 1, such as the transmission, the suspensions and the engine. By means of the interaction member 43, the user can select the desired function and set it according to the desired driving conditions (for example: sport, comfort or eco behavior of the engine; sport, comfort or eco behavior of the automatic transmission, sport, comfort or normal behavior of the suspensions) using the interface member.

[0062] The interaction member 43 also allows the user to access the functions of the smartphone, and in particular to manage calls, messages, music and multimedia files, to access the Internet, to manage satellite navigation functions available by means of the smartphone, and in general to make use of any function with which the smartphone is provided.

[0063] Interfacing of the smartphone 21 with tilt sensors and/or with accelerometers with which the motorcycle 1 is provided can allow, by means of suitable programming of the electronic control unit 31, emergency calls to be made by means of the smartphone 21 when the signals supplied by these sensors indicate an accident.

[0064] The invention has been described in terms of various specific embodiments. However, it will be clear to those skilled in the art that many modifications, changes and omissions are possible without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention, defined in the appended claims.