Intelligent power and control policy for automotive applications
View Patent ↗In automotive networking applications, data about vehicle's environment is used in conjunction with a control policy to manage the performance and power usage of a networked device. The control policy can dynamically adjust the balance between link power and performance of the device's communications interface by taking into account the vehicles current situation and user preferences, e.g. location, destination, speed, and sensor status. Controlling the balance between link power and performance of networked devices is sometimes important in maximizing power savings without unacceptably decreasing network performance.
1. A method for use in an automotive area network (AAN) controller coupled via the AAN to a plurality of networked devices, the method comprising:
obtaining, by a processor of the AAN controller, input from a vehicle sensor;
selecting, by the processor, a control policy for at least one of the plurality of networked devices based, at least in part, on the input from the vehicle sensor; and
controlling, by the processor, the at least one of the plurality of networked devices in accordance with the control policy selected.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the control policy is a power control policy; and
the method further comprises controlling a power state of at least a physical layer (PHY) portion of a communications interface of the at least one of the plurality of networked devices.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the control policy is a power control policy; and
the method further comprises controlling a power state of hardware associated with a media access control (MAC) layer of the at least one of the plurality of networked devices.
4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
obtaining user input from a vehicle-occupant; and
selecting the control policy based, at least in part, on the user input and the input from the vehicle sensor.
5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the input includes a stickiness setting.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the control policy selected applies to a group of devices included in the plurality of networked devices.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the control policy selected applies exclusively to a particular type of device included in the plurality of networked devices.
8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
obtaining, by a processor of the AAN controller, input from a plurality of vehicle sensors.
9. A system including multiple devices coupled to an automotive area network (AAN) associated with a vehicle, the system comprising:
at least one controlled device coupled to the AAN via a communications interface;
a controller comprising:
memory storing a plurality of control policies;
a vehicle network interface coupled to receive input from a vehicle sensor;
a processor configured to select a control policy of the plurality of control policies for use in controlling the at least one controlled device; and
the processor further configured to control the at least one controlled device in accordance with the control policy selected.
10. The system of claim 9 , wherein:
the control policy is a power control policy; and
the processor is further configured to control a power state of at least a physical layer (PHY) portion of a communications interface of the at least one of the plurality of networked devices.
11. The system of claim 9 , wherein:
the control policy is a power control policy; and
the processor is further configured to control a power state of hardware associated with a media access control (MAC) layer of the at least one of the plurality of networked devices.
12. The system of claim 9 , wherein the processor is further configured to:
obtain user input from a vehicle-occupant; and
select the control policy based at least in part, on the user input and the input from the vehicle sensor.
13. The system of claim 12 , wherein the input includes a stickiness setting.
14. The system of claim 9 , wherein the control policy selected applies to a group of devices included in the plurality of networked devices.
15. The system of claim 9 , wherein the control policy selected applies exclusively to a particular type of device included in the plurality of networked devices.
16. The system of claim 9 , wherein the processor is further configured to:
obtain input from a plurality of vehicle sensors.
17. A communications link controller for use in an automotive area network (AAN) associated with a vehicle, and including a device having a communications interface to be controlled, the communications link controller comprising:
memory configured to store a plurality of control policies;
a vehicle interface configured to receive sensor input from a sensor included in the vehicle, the input indicating a current operating environment of the vehicle;
a processor configured to select at least one of the plurality of control policies for use in controlling the device based on the sensor input; and
the processor further configured to control the device in accordance with the control policy selected.
18. The communications link controller of claim 17 , wherein:
the control policy is a power control policy; and
the processor is further configured to control a power state of at least a physical layer (PHY) portion of a communications interface of the at least one of the plurality of networked devices.
19. The communications link controller of claim 17 , wherein the processor is further configured to:
obtain user input from a vehicle-occupant; and
select the control policy based at least in part, on both the user input and the sensor input.
20. The communications link controller of claim 17 , wherein the control policy selected applies to a plurality of devices coupled to the AAN.