In the field of broadcasting system, a satellite broadcasting system which can provide with local service covering a wide range has been developed and diversification of broadcasting service is being planned. In such a satellite broadcasting system, compared with an existing broadcasting system, without requiring any large-scale broadcasting equipment on the ground, it is realizable that broadcasting signals containing images and sounds are provided to a wide range of service area.
However, conventional satellite broadcasting system has a problem that it cannot implement reception unless it comprises comparatively large-scale reception system. That is, radio wave for satellite broadcasting is very weak, and therefore was considered to require a comparatively large receiving antenna, etc.
Radio wave from a satellite is also being received by a base station, etc. so that this is redistribution via a CATV network, but a reception terminal (set top box) of CATV, etc. is necessary. In addition, under a mobile environment it does not work.
This invention was made in view of the above described actual situation, and a first objective hereof is to make digital contents transmittable to a mobile body with a small scale deployment.
As a conventional contents distribution apparatus for such a mobile body terminal, for example, “Information Supply system for Vehicles” (Japanese Laid Open Gazette No. 10-73440) which is configured to receive music or map data by connecting a plug for information transmission provided in the vicinity of an oil supply nozzle at a gas station with a connector for reception provided in the vicinity of an oil supply orifice of an automobile, “Digital Information Distribution System” (Japanese Laid Open Gazette No. 11-168464) which receives distribution of music information and the like by connecting an information recording-reproducing device in a customer's possession with a vending machine exclusive for digital information, “Digital Information Distribution System” (Japanese Laid Open Gazette No. 11-191266) which is configured so that a plurality of music distribution terminals are brought into connection with a service center which digitalize a large amount of music data to store by way of communication lines, and “Digital Information Distribution System” (Japanese Laid Open Gazette No. 2000-48479) which is configured to perform reproduction by bringing a user's information reproducing terminal into connection with a music information vending terminal via a predetermined interface, sending and receiving encoded music information and the user's ID, and decoding the encoded information, and the like, are known.
Next, vehicle electronic equipment as a receiving terminal installed in a mobile body in the above described contents distribution system is provided with various antitheft device.
For example, panel detachable type vehicle electronic equipment (panel detachable type equipment), in which an operation panel disposed in the front surface is detachable, is given as an example. This panel detachable equipment has a operation panel which is removed by a user at the time when he/she leaves the car for a long time so as to make the equipment unusable as well as to place the equipment under incomplete state for antitheft. An example of technology of such a panel detachable equipment is disclosed in Japanese Laid Open Gazette No. 6-252565.
In such conventional panel detachable equipment, antitheft can be planned by physically removing a operation panel, but the operation panel under the removed state could not be used effectively. That is, the operation panel under the removed state could not be used at all, and in spite of its smallness, it turned out to be burdensome.
A similar problem is broadly applicable to electric equipment comprising a detachable operation panel.
The present invention, which was made in view of the above described actual conditions, has a second objective to provide electric equipment which can utilize effectively a operation panel under removed state, and a panel which can be utilized effectively under removed state, and to provide vehicle electronic equipment for planning antitheft as well as effective use.
Moreover, as the above described electric equipment, there is one which uses a semiconductor element, especially a flash memory which is a nonvolatile memory having a large capacity and being rewritable, as storage medium. This kind of electric equipment does not need any rotary driving portion, and can make an apparatus smaller and control consumed energy.
However, a flash memory has a problem that it has a narrow working temperature range. Normally, around 65° C. is the limit. In addition, when the temperature to not less than the temperature, recorded data could even disappear.
In normal electric equipment, the temperature inside the apparatus does not frequently up to 65° C., and even so, can be coped with an appropriate ventilating mechanism being provided.
However, in case of an apparatus to be mounted on a vehicle, due to its peculiarity on installation site such as that the main body portion is stored in a dashboard of the vehicle, it is not exceptional that the temperature increases to not less than 65° C. Moreover, inside a vehicle in summer, even at time of stopping, the temperature happens to reach around 100° C.
Due to this, simple use of a flash memory in electric equipment to be mounded on a vehicle as memory media gives rise to a problem that it lacks stability and reliability.
Similar problem commonly exists in electric equipment to be mounded on vehicles which stores not only music data but also image data such as map data, text data, etc. in a flash memory for use.
The present invention, which was made in view of the above described actual conditions, has a third objective to improve reliability of electric equipment to be mounded on a vehicle in which semiconductor recording element is used as storage medium, and to use the semiconductor recording element within an appropriate temperature range.