DEVICE AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING AN AUDIO OUTPUT FOR A MOTOR VEHICLE

Abstract

The invention relates to a device for controlling an audio output for a motor vehicle. The device comprises the following: an output summation device for controlling a playback of generated audio output signals on the basis of first audio signals and second audio signals; a first processor device which has at least one processor core and which is designed to generate the first audio signals for a first motor vehicle component group assigned to the first processor device; and a second processor device which has at least one processor core and which is designed to generate second audio signals for a second motor vehicle component group assigned to the second processor device and to actuate the output summation device.

Claims

1-10. (canceled)

11. Apparatus comprising: a system-on-chip for controlling an audio output for a motor vehicle, the system-on-chip including: an output summation device for controlling playing of audio output signals generated from first audio signals and second audio signals; a first processor device, which comprises at least one processor core and is designed to generate the first audio signals for a first group of motor vehicle components, which group is assigned to the first processor device; a second processor device, which comprises at least one processor core and is designed to generate the second audio signals for a second group of motor vehicle components, which group is assigned to the second processor device, wherein solely the second processor device is designed to control the output summation device.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the first processor device is designed to generate audio signals that are not safety-related as the first audio signals.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the second processor device is designed to generate safety-related audio signals as the second audio signals.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the device is designed to classify vehicle components according to ASIL risk levels into vehicle components of the first group, which generate first audio signals, which are not safety-related, and into vehicle components of the second group, which generate safety-related second audio signals.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the second processor device is designed to restrict playing of the audio output signals based on the first audio signals for the first group of the motor vehicle components.

16. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the second processor device is designed to generate safety-related audio signals as the second audio signals.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the device is designed to classify vehicle components according to ASIL risk levels into vehicle components of the first group, which generate first audio signals, which are not safety-related, and into vehicle components of the second group, which generate safety-related second audio signals.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the second processor device is designed to restrict playing of the audio output signals based on the first audio signals for the first group of the motor vehicle components.

19. A method comprising: controlling a system-on-chip for an audio output in a motor vehicle, by performing operations including: generating in a first processor device first audio signals, which are assigned to a first group of motor vehicle components; generating in a second processor device second audio signals, which are assigned to a second group of motor vehicle components; and controlling an output summation device for playing of audio output signals generated from the first audio signals and the second audio signals, the controlling being performed solely by the second processor device.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the first audio signals are audio signals which are not safety-related.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the second audio signals are safety-related audio signals.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein the vehicle components are classified according to ASIL risk levels into vehicle components which generate first audio signals, which are not safety-related, and into vehicle components which generate safety-related second audio signals.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein the second audio signals are safety-related audio signals.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the vehicle components are classified according to ASIL risk levels into vehicle components which generate first audio signals, which are not safety-related, and into vehicle components which generate safety-related second audio signals.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] The accompanying drawings are intended to provide greater understanding of the embodiments of the present invention. The accompanying drawings illustrate embodiments and are used in conjunction with the description to explain concepts of the present invention.

[0024] Other embodiments and many of the stated advantages are apparent from the drawings. The depicted elements are not necessarily shown to scale in the drawings, in which:

[0025] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a device for controlling an audio output for a motor vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] FIG. 2 is a schematic flow diagram of a method for controlling an audio output for a motor vehicle according to another embodiment of the present invention; and

[0027] FIG. 3 shows for the purpose of explaining the invention a schematic diagram of a motor vehicle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] In the figures of the drawings, unless otherwise stated, the same reference signs denote elements, devices, components or method steps that are identical or have the same function.

[0029] Although the present invention has been described above with reference to preferred exemplary embodiments, it is not restricted to these embodiments but can be modified in a variety of ways. In particular, the present invention can be altered or modified in many different ways without departing from the essence of the present invention.

[0030] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a device for controlling an audio output for a motor vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] A device 1 for controlling an audio output for a motor vehicle 2 comprises, for example, an output summation device 30, a first processor device 10, a second processor device 20 and an acoustic transducer 40.

[0032] The device 1 can be incorporated in an audio system 5 for the motor vehicle 2.

[0033] The audio system 5 constitutes a processor unit, also known as a “system-on-chip” or SoC for short. This means that the first processor device 10, the second processor device 20 and the output summation device 30 are integrated in a processor, for example.

[0034] The output summation device 30 is, for example, an audio mixer for controlling playing of generated audio output signals AAS based on first audio signals AS1 and second audio signals AS2.

[0035] The output summation device 30 does not have a separate processing core, for example.

[0036] The first processor device 10 comprises, for example, at least one processor core P and is designed, for example, to generate the first audio signals AS1 for a first group of vehicle components K1, which group is assigned to the first processor device 10.

[0037] The second processor device 20 comprises, for example, at least one processor core P and is designed, for example, to generate second audio signals AS2 for a second group of motor vehicle components K2, which group is assigned to the second processor device 20, and to control the output summation device 30.

[0038] For example, the first processor device 10 is designed to generate audio signals that are not safety-related as the first audio signals AS1.

[0039] Radio, music-output or entertainment audio signals, for example, can be used as the first audio signals AS1 for playing, which are not safety-related.

[0040] In addition, directions given by a vehicle navigation system or weather information from weather monitoring or weather forecasting systems can be used as the first audio signals AS1, which are not safety-related, to be played. Information on malfunctions from other vehicle components or warnings from electronic driver assistance systems, traffic reports and traffic announcements from a car radio or from a radio receiver developed for installing in a motor vehicle can be used, for example, as the safety-related second audio signals AS2 to be played.

[0041] For example, the second processor device 20 is designed to generate audio signals that are safety-related as the second audio signals AS2.

[0042] The first processor device 10 and the second processor device 20 are embodied as a multicore processor, for example, and are designed, for instance, in the form of a microprocessor having more than one complete main core processor or processor core P in a chip or in a chip combination or chipset.

[0043] In addition, the output summation device 30 is integrated on the same chip, for instance.

[0044] There are, for example, multiple instances of microprocessor resources in the form of processor cores P in the first processor device 10 and in the second processor device 20.

[0045] The individual processor cores P have dedicated register sets and arithmetic logic units, ALU, for instance.

[0046] The processor cores P are in the form of an 8-bit, 16-bit, 32-bit or 64-bit RISC processor, for example. A RISC processor can denote a Reduced Instruction Set Computing CPU or RISC CPU, which has a simplified set of instructions.

[0047] The first processor device 10 and the second processor device 20 can be designed to execute individual software modules in parallel.

[0048] In other words, individual computer programs can be executed in parallel on the first processor device 10 and/or on the second processor device 20, with the individual program segments being synchronized in parallel.

[0049] The acoustic transducer 40 can comprise, for example, a loudspeaker or a multiplicity of loudspeakers, and be used as a transducer that converts electrical signals, for instance the audio output signals AAS, into mechanical vibrations or sound.

[0050] The acoustic transducer 40 can be used for generating sound in the frequency spectrum audible to humans (approximately 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz). The design and size of the acoustic transducer 40 vary depending on the required volume and audio range.

[0051] FIG. 2 is a schematic flow diagram of a method for controlling an audio output for a motor vehicle.

[0052] Said method comprises the following steps:

[0053] as a first step of the method, generating S1 first audio signals AS1 for a first group of motor vehicle components K1, which group is assigned to the first processor device 10;

[0054] as a second step of the method, generating S2 second audio signals AS2 for a second group of motor vehicle components K2, which group is assigned to the second processor device 20;

[0055] as a third step of the method, controlling S3 the playing of the generated audio output signals AAS based on the first audio signals AS1 and the second audio signals AS2.

[0056] FIG. 3 shows for the purpose of explaining the invention a schematic diagram of a motor vehicle.

[0057] The motor vehicle 2 comprises, for example, an audio system 5 for the motor vehicle 2, which audio system 5 comprises a device 1 for controlling an audio output for a motor vehicle.

[0058] The motor vehicle 2 also comprises, for example, a first group of motor vehicle components K1, which are assigned to a first processor device 10.

[0059] The first group of motor vehicle components K1 may comprise, for example, external media reproduction devices such as, for instance, CD changers, smartphones, tablets or other multimedia devices.

[0060] The motor vehicle 2 also comprises, for example, a second group of motor vehicle components K2, which are assigned to a second processor device 20.

[0061] The second group of motor vehicle components K2 can comprise, for example, driver assistance systems such as a control module for a parking assistant, a control module for a lane-change assistant or a control module for a “blind-spot assistant”.

[0062] Although the present invention has been described above with reference to preferred exemplary embodiments, it is not restricted to these embodiments but can be modified in a variety of ways. In particular, the invention can be altered or modified in many different ways without departing from the essence of the present invention.

[0063] In addition, it should be mentioned that the terms “comprising” and “having” do not exclude any other elements or steps, and “a” or “an” does not rule out more than one.

[0064] It should also be pointed out that features or steps that have been described with reference to one of the above exemplary embodiments can also be used in combination with other features or steps of other exemplary embodiments described above. Reference signs in the claims shall not be deemed to have a limiting effect.