RELATED FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the technical field of electronics, and in particular to a Hall sensing failure processing method and apparatus for a vehicle sunroof.

BACKGROUND

[0002] A power sunroof of vehicle mainly includes a mechanical structure of the sunroof and a motor assembly for controlling the mechanical structure of the sunroof. The sunroof motor usually includes two Hall sensing components to obtain running state information such as rotation direction and speed of the sunroof motor. To monitor the signal status of the Hall sensing components is one of the diagnostic functions of a sunroof system.

[0003] In current strategies of the prior art, when one Hall signal of two channels of Hall signals from two Hall sensing components fails (also called a single Hall failure, for example, a Hall signal is lost), the sunroof system will enter a degraded mode, in which the anti-pinch function is disabled and only a closing operation is allowed. When two channels of Hall signals fail (also called a dual Hall failure), the sunroof system recognizes it as a stall event and will not respond to any actions in this mode.

[0004] However, the current strategies suffer from several disadvantages. Firstly, simply identifying a dual Hall failure as a stall event and not responding to any actions can potentially lead to various problems. For example, the current strategies cannot close the sunroof when the sunroof is partially opened, which puts the vehicle in a high-risk scenario (e.g., it will take rain in the vehicle or items in the vehicle will be stolen). Secondly, when a Hall failure occurs, the current strategies still retain the sunroof position information, which makes it impossible to successfully close the sunroof after the Hall signals are recovered. Thirdly, current strategies cannot distinguish between transient and permanent Hall failures, which reduces safety. Fourthly, the current strategies cannot recover from a dual Hall failure to a normal operating mode.

[0005] Therefore, there is a need for a solution to process Hall sensing failures. SUMMARY

[0006] An object of the invention is to overcome the above-mentioned defects in the prior art. A Hall sensing failure processing method for a vehicle sunroof, a Hall sensing failure processing apparatus for a vehicle sunroof, a controller for a vehicle sunroof, a vehicle sunroof system, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, and a vehicle are proposed.

[0007] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a Hall sensing failure processing method for a vehicle sunroof is provided. The method includes: detecting two channels of Hall signals from two Hall sensing components associated with a motor during time when the motor is driven to rotate positively and reversely respectively to move a vehicle sunroof, the two channels of Hall signals indicating running state of the motor; identifying occurrence of a first failure of the two Hall sensing components if the two channels of Hall signals are not detected during positive and reverse rotations of the motor; and causing drivement of the motor to enter a degraded mode based on identifying the occurrence of the first failure, wherein the degraded mode allows the motor to be driven gradually to rotate to move the vehicle sunroof to a closed position.

[0008] In an embodiment of the invention, detecting two channels of Hall signals from two Hall sensing components associated with a motor during a period when the motor is driven to rotate positively and reversely respectively to move a vehicle sunroof comprises: driving the motor to rotate positively to move the vehicle sunroof between an open position and a closed position; determining whether two channels of Hall signals are received from the two Hall sensing components during a first time period when the motor rotates positively; driving the motor to rotate reversely to move the vehicle sunroof between an open position and a closed position in response to determining that two channels of Hall signals are not received from either of the two Hall sensing components during the first time period; and determining whether two channels of Hall signals are received from the two Hall sensing components during a second time period when the motor rotates reversely.

[0009] In an embodiment of the invention, before causing drivement of the motor to enter a degraded mode based on identifying the occurrence of the first failure, the method further includes: obtaining supply voltage information about the two Hall sensing components; determining whether supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal based on the supply voltage information; and identifying occurrence of a second failure of the two Hall sensing components if it is determined that the supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal. Obtaining supply voltage information about the two Hall sensing components includes obtaining a plurality of sampled supply voltage signals of the two Hall sensing components during a third time period. Determining whether supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal based on the supply voltage information includes determining that the supply voltages of the two Hall sensors are abnormal based on the plurality of sampled supply voltage signals obtained during the third time period exceeding supply voltage threshold range.

[0010] In an embodiment of the invention, the method further includes: determining whether the motor is driven to rotate based on identifying the occurrence of the second failure; if it is determined that the motor is rotating, stopping rotation of the motor before the motor enters the degraded mode; performing power supply compensation for the two Hall sensing components when it is in the degraded mode; obtaining supply voltage information of the two Hall sensing components after performing the power supply compensation; determining whether the supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal based on the supply voltage information; if it is determined that the supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are not abnormal, driving the motor to rotate to move the vehicle sunroof, and detecting two channels of Hall signals from the two Hall sensing components during rotation of the motor; if two channels of Hall signals are detected during the rotation of the motor, initializing parameters marking an initial motion state of the vehicle sunroof, and causing drivement of the motor to exit the degraded mode.

[0011] In an embodiment of the invention, performing power supply compensation for the two Hall sensing components includes: disconnecting power supply circuits of the two Hall sensing components during a fourth time period and activating the power supply circuits after the fourth time period.

[0012] According to a second aspect of the invention, a Hall sensing failure processing apparatus for a vehicle sunroof is provided. The apparatus includes: a driving unit configured to control drivement of a motor; a detecting unit configured to detect two channels of Hall signals from two Hall sensing components associated with the motor during time when the driving unit drives the motor to rotate positively and reversely respectively to move a vehicle sunroof, the two channels of Hall signals indicating running state of the motor; a first identifying unit configured to identify occurrence of a first failure of the two Hall sensing components if the two channels of Hall signals are not detected during positive and reverse rotations of the motor; and a mode controlling unit configured to cause drivement of the motor to enter a degraded mode based on identifying the occurrence of the first failure, wherein the degraded mode allows the driving unit to drive the motor gradually to rotate to move the vehicle sunroof to a closed position.

[0013] According to a third aspect of the invention, a controller for a vehicle sunroof is provided. The controller is configured to execute the Hall sensor failure processing method for a vehicle sunroof according to the Hall sensing failure processing method of the first aspect mentioned above.

[0014] According to a fourth aspect of the invention, a vehicle sunroof control system is provided. The vehicle sunroof control system includes: a controller; and a memory to store instructions which, when executed by the controller, cause the controller to execute the Hall sensing failure processing method for a vehicle sunroof of the first aspect mentioned above.

[0015] According to a fifth aspect of the invention, a vehicle is provided. The vehicle includes a Hall sensing failure processing apparatus for a vehicle sunroof of the second aspect, or a controller for a vehicle sunroof of the third aspect, or a vehicle sunroof control system of the fourth aspect mentioned above.

[0016] The invention avoids a traditional potential risk of not responding to any operation when stall events occur by providing a control strategy that can correctly identify false stall events caused by Hall sensing failures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be better understood through the following embodiments described in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein the same reference numerals indicate identical or similar components.

[0018] FIG. 1 illustrates a flow chart of a Hall sensing failure processing method for a vehicle sunroof according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0019] FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic block diagram of a Hall sensing failure processing apparatus for a vehicle sunroof according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0020] FIG. 3 illustrate an exemplary environment including a controller for a vehicle sunroof according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0021] FIG. 4 illustrate a vehicle sunroof control system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] As described below, some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure provide a Hall sensing failure processing method and apparatus for a vehicle sunroof, a controller for a vehicle sunroof and a vehicle sunroof control system. More particularly, the embodiments provide a failure processing method, apparatus, controller and control system for identifying false stall events caused by Hall sensing failures and a vehicle includes the apparatus, controller and control system.

[0023] A power sunroof of a vehicle mainly includes a mechanical structure of the sunroof and a motor assembly for controlling the mechanical structure of the sunroof. When the vehicle sunroof is blocked while it moves under the driving of a motor, a shaft of the motor will be fixed so that it does not rotate, therefore a stall event occurs. The sunroof motor usually includes two Hall sensing components, which can be arranged, for example, on a rotor of the motor (e.g., at different positions on the same circumference), or can be arranged on a component coupled with the motor shaft, to obtain two channels of Hall signals representing running state information such as rotation direction and speed of the sunroof motor when the motor is rotating (e.g., by sensing magnetic field changes caused by a magnetic ring disposed on the motor shaft). For example, the two channels of Hall signals can be pulse signals with a phase difference. In the prior art, the sunroof system simply recognizes the failure of the two channels of Hall signals as a stall event and will not respond to any actions in this mode. However, as mentioned above, the current control strategies have several disadvantages and will not be able to identify false stall events caused by Hall sensing component failure itself.

[0024] With reference to FIG.1, a flow chart of a Hall sensing failure processing method 100 for a vehicle sunroof according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Any or all of the steps in the method 100 can be implemented by, for example, any of a Hall sensing failure processing apparatus 200 for a vehicle sunroof of FIG. 2, a controller 301 for a vehicle sunroof of FIG. 3 and a vehicle sunroof control system 400. The method 100 includes steps 110 , 120 and 130 .

[0025] At step 110, the method includes detecting two channels of Hall signals from two Hall sensing components associated with a motor during time when the motor is driven to rotate positively and reversely respectively to move a vehicle sunroof. The two channels of Hall signals indicate running state of the motor. For example, the running state may include rotation direction and speed of the motor, and the Hall signals can be stored to determine where the sunroof moves to.

[0026] At step 120, the method includes identifying occurrence of a first failure of the two Hall sensing components if neither of the two channels of Hall signals are detected during positive and reverse rotations of the motor. For a motor, if the rotation is stuck in a first rotation direction (e.g., positive rotation), the motor can be rotated in a second rotation direction (e.g., reverse rotation) opposite to the first rotation direction, and the two channels of hall signals are received in the second direction of rotation. If the two channels of Hall signals are not received in both the first and second rotation directions, a false stall event caused by a failure in the Hall sensing component itself can be identified.

[0027] At step 130, the method includes causing drivement of the motor to enter a degraded mode based on identifying the occurrence of the first failure, wherein the degraded mode allows the motor to be driven gradually to rotate to move the vehicle sunroof to a closed position. The method 100 avoids the traditional potential risk of not responding to any operation when a stall event occurs. For example, the current strategies cannot close the window when the sunroof is partially opened, which puts the vehicle in a high-risk scenario (e.g., it will take rain in the vehicle or items in the vehicle will be stolen), and the current strategies still retains the sunroof position information, which makes it impossible to successfully close the sunroof after the Hall signals are recovered.

[0028] The method 100 detects the two channels of Hall signals by driving the motor in opposite rotation directions, so that false stall events caused by Hall sensing failures can be correctly identified, and avoids the traditional potential risk of not responding to any operations when stall events occur.

[0029] In some embodiments, the step 110 includes: driving the motor to rotate positively to move the vehicle sunroof between an open position and a closed position; determining whether two channels of Hall signals are received from the two Hall sensing components during a first time period when the motor rotates positively; driving the motor to rotate reversely to move the vehicle sunroof between an open position and a closed position in response to determining that two channels of Hall signals are not received from either of the two Hall sensing components during the first time period; and determining whether two channels of Hall signals are received from the two Hall sensing components during a second time period when the motor rotates reversely. For example, the motor is driven to rotate in a first rotation direction (e.g., positive rotation), and a first timer (e.g., a first time period) may be set. If two channels of Hall signals are not received after the first timer expires when the motor is rotating in the first rotation direction, then it is determined that a first stall event occurs. Next, when the first stall event occurs, the motor is driven to rotate in a second rotation direction (e.g., reverse rotation), and a second timer (e.g., a second time period) may be set. If two channels of Hall signals are not received after the second timer expires when the motor is rotating in the second rotation direction, then it is determined that a second stall event occurs. If no valid Hall signal is received during the timing of the first timer and the second timer, a false stall event caused by a dual Hall sensing failure may be identified.

[0030] In some embodiments, before the step 130, the method 100 may further include: obtaining supply voltage information about the two Hall sensing components; determining whether supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal based on the supply voltage information; and identifying occurrence of a second failure of the two Hall sensing components if it is determined that the supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal.

[0031] In some embodiments, obtaining supply voltage information about the two Hall sensing components includes obtaining a plurality of sampled supply voltage signals of the two Hall sensing components during a third time period, and determining whether supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal based on the supply voltage information includes determining that the supply voltages of the two Hall sensors are abnormal based on the plurality of sampled supply voltage signals obtained during the third time period exceeding supply voltage threshold range. In this step, by sampling the power supply voltages of the Hall sensing components multiple times (e.g., continuously sampling multiple times), it can avoid false identification of voltage fluctuations as a power supply failure, so that the power supply failure can be identified more reliably.

[0032] In some embodiments, the method may further include: determining whether the motor is driven to rotate based on identifying the occurrence of the second failure; if it is determined that the motor is rotating, stopping rotation of the motor before the motor enters the degraded mode; performing power supply compensation for the two Hall sensing components when it is in the degraded mode; obtaining supply voltage information of the two Hall sensing components after performing the power supply compensation; determining whether the supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal based on the supply voltage information; if it is determined that the supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are not abnormal, driving the motor to rotate to move the vehicle sunroof, and detecting two channels of Hall signals from the two Hall sensing components during rotation of the motor; if two channels of Hall signals are detected during the rotation of the motor, initializing parameters marking an initial motion state of the vehicle sunroof, and causing drivement of the motor to exit the degraded mode. In this step, when the dual Hall failure is identified as a power supply failure, compensation can be performed on the power supply voltages of the Hall sensing component. After performing power supply compensation, it is detected whether the power supply failure is eliminated. After the power supply failure is eliminated, it can be detect whether the dual Hall failure is eliminated. After the dual Hall failure is eliminated, the drivement of the motor can exit the degraded mode, i.e., return to a normal operation mode. In addition, in this step, before exiting the degraded mode, the relevant parameters marking an initial motion state of the vehicle sunroof (e.g., the sign of the sunroof being opened or closed to the end, Hall count value, anti -pinch parameter threshold, etc.) are initialized (i.e., re-learned) so that the sunroof can be successfully closed after the Hall signals are recovered, because part of the Hall signals is lost during the motor rotation process so that the previously stored Hall signals cannot be used to accurately determine the position of the sunroof. In addition, when in the degraded mode, this step can be executed repeatedly in order to exit the degraded mode after determining that the failure is eliminated, such as stopping rotation of the motor, performing power supply compensation and detecting whether the power supply failure is eliminated, driving the motor to rotate if the power supply failure is eliminated and detecting whether the dual Hall failure is eliminated, and initializing the parameters marking the initial motion state of the vehicle sunroof when the dual Hall failure is eliminated.

[0033] In some embodiments, performing power supply compensation for the two Hall sensing components may include disconnecting power supply circuits of the two Hall sensing components during a fourth time period and activating the power supply circuits after the fourth time period. In this step, temporary Hall sensing failures such as those caused by dust or moisture etc. can be eliminated by performing a cut-off (e.g., by relay opening the switch) and activation (e.g., by relay closing the switch) of the power supply circuits.

[0034] With reference to FIG. 2, a schematic block diagram of a Hall sensing failure processing apparatus 200 for a vehicle sunroof according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. The apparatus 200 incudes a driving unit 201, a detecting unit 202, a first identifying unit 203 and a mode controlling unit 204. [0035] The driving unit 201 is configured to control drivement of a motor.

[0036] The detecting unit 202 is configured to detect two channels of Hall signals from two Hall sensing components associated with the motor during time when the driving unit 201 drives the motor to rotate positively and reversely respectively to move a vehicle sunroof, wherein the two channels of Hall signals indicate running state of the motor.

[0037] The first identifying unit 203 is configured to identify occurrence of a first failure of the two Hall sensing components if the two channels of Hall signals are not detected during positive and reverse rotations of the motor.

[0038] The mode controlling unit 204 is configured to cause drivement of the motor to enter a degraded mode based on identifying the occurrence of the first failure, wherein the degraded mode allows the driving unit 201 to drive the motor gradually to rotate to move the vehicle sunroof to a closed position.

[0039] The apparatus 200 detects the two channels of Hall signals by driving the motor in opposite rotation directions, so that false stall events caused by Hall sensing failures can be correctly identified, and avoids the traditional potential risk of not responding to any operations when stall events occur.

[0040] In some embodiments, the detecting unit 202 is configured to: drive the motor, via the driving unit 201, to rotate positively to move the vehicle sunroof between an open position and a closed position; determine whether two channels of Hall signals are received from the two Hall sensing components during a first time period when the motor rotates positively; drive the motor, via the driving unit 201, to rotate reversely to move the vehicle sunroof between an open position and a closed position in response to determining that two channels of Hall signals are not received from either of the two Hall sensing components during the first time period; and determining whether two channels of Hall signals are received from the two Hall sensing components during a second time period when the motor rotates reversely.

[0041] In some embodiments, the apparatus may further include a second identifying unit 205. The second identifying unit 205 is configured to: obtain supply voltage information about the two Hall sensing components; determine whether supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal based on the supply voltage information; and identify occurrence of a second failure of the two Hall sensing components if it is determined that the supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal.

[0042] In some embodiments, the second identifying unit 205 may be configured to: obtain a plurality of sampled supply voltage signals of the two Hall sensing components during a third time period; and determine that the supply voltages of the two Hall sensors are abnormal based on the plurality of sampled supply voltage signals obtained during the third time period exceeding supply voltage threshold range.

[0043] In some embodiments, the apparatus 200 may further include a failure eliminating unit 206. The failure eliminating unit 206 is configured to: determine whether the motor is driven to rotate based on identifying the occurrence of the second failure; perform power supply compensation for the two Hall sensing components when it is in the degraded mode; obtain supply voltage information of the two Hall sensing components after performing the power supply compensation; determine whether the supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are abnormal based on the supply voltage information; if it is determined that the supply voltages of the two Hall sensing components are not abnormal, drive the motor to rotate to move the vehicle sunroof, and detect two channels of Hall signals from the two Hall sensing components during rotation of the motor; if two channels of Hall signals are detected during the rotation of the motor, initialize parameters marking an initial motion state of the vehicle sunroof, and cause drivement of the motor to exit the degraded mode.

[0044] With reference to FIG. 3, an exemplary environment 300 including a controller 301 for a vehicle sunroof is shown. The controller 301 may be, for example, a sunroof electronic control unit (ECU). The controller 301 may be coupled to a vehicle communication network 302, e.g., via a communication bus or a wireless network. The controller 301 may be configured to execute any one or more steps of the method 100.

[0045] With reference to FIG. 4, a vehicle sunroof control system 400 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. The control system 400 may include at least one processor 401 and a memory 402 coupled to the at least one processor 401. The memory 402 is used to store instructions which when executed by the at least one processor 401, cause the processor 401 to execute the method in the above embodiments (e.g., any one or more steps in the method 100 mentioned above).

[0046] Further, alternatively, the method in the above embodiments can be implemented by a computer-readable storage medium. A computer-readable storage medium carries computer- readable program instructions for implementing various embodiments of the present disclosure. A computer readable storage medium may be a tangible device that can retain and store instructions for use by an instruction execution device. A computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electrical storage device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

[0047] Accordingly, in another embodiment, the present disclosure proposes a non- transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable instructions stored thereon for implementing methods in various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0048] As mentioned above, a Hall sensing failure processing apparatus for a vehicle sunroof, a controller for a vehicle sunroof, and a vehicle sunroof control system in vehicle applications has been discussed herein. Accordingly, in another embodiment, the present disclosure proposes a vehicle which includes a Hall sensing failure processing apparatus for a vehicle sunroof, a controller for a vehicle sunroof, and a vehicle sunroof control system.

[0049] Compared with the strategies in the prior art, the failure processing strategy proposed in the present disclosure can realize the following functions: efficiently distinguishing between a dual Hall failure and a stall event; responding to new motion requests in a degraded mode when both hall sensing components are shorted to ground at the same time; reliably closing the sunroof if the sunroof is in partly open; differentiating the instantaneous fault or permanent fault, recovering from the degraded mode to a normal operating mode for the instantaneous fault; and working properly after the Hall sensing components are reset. Therefore, the failure processing strategy proposed in the present disclosure has the following advantages: improving the robustness of the system; improving the safety performance of the system; enriching the diagnosis function of the system and expanding the scope of diagnosis; and improving the failure detection strategy and recovery process.

[0050] The foregoing discussions merely discloses and describes exemplary embodiments of the invention. From these discussions, together with the drawings and claims, those skilled in the art will readily recognize that various changes, modifications and variations can be made to this invention.