ALTITUDE DETECTING UNIT, LOADING/DRIVING APPARATUS, AND ALTITUDE DETECTING METHOD

摘要

The present invention intends to provide an altitude detecting unit capable of, while utilizing both the advantages of a satellite positioning system and a pressure sensor, making an altitude measurement error, which may occur when combining them, as small as possible, and provide the others, and has determined a conversion expression adapted to convert from pressure into altitude such that at each of multiple valid altitude measurement points at which a satellite positioning system detects accurate altitude, altitude based on pressure is made equal to altitude by the satellite positioning system.

主权项

1. An altitude detecting unit that detects altitude of a running vehicle along a test running route, the altitude detecting unit comprising:
a reception circuit that receives data indicating altitude of the vehicle from a satellite positioning system receiver, and data indicating pressure around the vehicle from a pressure sensor, the satellite positioning system receiver and the pressure sensor both being mounted on the test vehicle during running of a test; a conversion expression generating circuit that generates a conversion expression for converting data indicating pressure around the vehicle from the pressure sensor, into data indicating the altitude of the vehicle; and an altitude calculation circuit that converts the data indicating pressure around the vehicle based on the conversion expression into data indicating altitude, and thereby calculates the altitude of the vehicle at a part of or along the whole of the test running route of the vehicle, the altitude detecting unit being configured such that at each one of multiple predetermined valid altitude measurement points at which valid altitude data is outputted from the receiver along the test running route, pressure altitude, that is altitude obtained by converting pressure data using the conversion expression, is made substantially equal to altitude indicated by valid altitude data.