JP2620155B2 - Transmitter / receiver using battery as driving power - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a transmission / reception apparatus using a battery as a driving power source so that a total power consumption of the battery can be determined based on an integrated value of operation time.

(Prior Art) In an electronic device using a battery as a driving power source, it is desirable to be able to predict the time when the battery should be replaced from the viewpoint of maintenance management. Therefore, in a conventional electronic device of this kind, when the battery is exhausted and the end of its life is approaching, the terminal voltage is reduced to a certain extent. Have judged. Then, in order to maintain stable operation of the electronic device, the electronic device is replaced as soon as a decrease in the terminal voltage of the battery is detected.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) According to the conventional method of monitoring the terminal voltage of the battery described above, it is not possible to determine the time of replacement unless the terminal voltage of the battery actually decreases and its life is approaching. It is not possible to predict in advance when the replacement should be performed. Here, if the point in time at which the battery should be replaced can be predicted in advance, the replacement battery can be prepared and replaced properly, which is convenient in terms of maintenance management.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problem of monitoring the terminal voltage and determining the point of time of battery replacement, and determines the total power consumption of the battery based on the integrated value of the operation time, and determines the total power consumption. It is an object of the present invention to provide a transmitting / receiving device that uses a battery that operates in a reduced amount of power and uses a battery as a driving power source.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, a transmitting / receiving apparatus using a battery as a driving power source according to the present invention includes an antenna, a low power consumption standby state for receiving an operation start signal, and a normal operation. A transmitting / receiving circuit that can be switched between states, a central processing unit that can be switched between inactive and active states, an operating state in which data can be read and written, and an inactive state in which data cannot be read and written but data storage is preserved A central processing unit, when the operation start signal is received by the transmission / reception circuit, the central operation unit operates itself and the transmission / reception circuit And switch the memory to an operational state, receive instructions, execute the instructions and send data, The time from the operation state of the central processing means to the time immediately before the transmission ends and the state becomes inactive is measured by the timer means, the integrated value of the operation time is read from the memory by the operation time reading means, Every time the counting is completed, the operating time measured by the timer is added to the integrated value read from the memory by the integrating means, and a new integrated value is written to the memory by the operating time writing means. Thus, the central processing means itself is switched to a non-operation state, the transmission / reception circuit is switched to a standby state, and the memory is switched to a non-operation state.

(Operation) If the power consumption per unit time of the transmitting / receiving device in the operating state is clear, the total power consumption of the battery that supplies power to the transmitting / receiving device becomes clear from the integrated value of the operating time of the transmitting / receiving device. Therefore, when the integrated value of the operating time is written into the memory every time the operation state ends, and the integrated value is read from the memory as appropriate, the total power consumption of the battery can be predicted from the integrated value, and the time when the battery needs to be replaced Can be predicted. In addition, since the measurement of the time in the operation state is terminated by the end of the data transmission, the data transmission state with large power consumption is included in the measurement of the operation time,
High accuracy in predicting total power consumption.

Then, since the mode can be switched between an operation state for executing an instruction and a standby state for receiving an operation start signal with low power consumption, the power consumption in the non-operation state can be reduced, and the total power consumption of the battery can be reduced accordingly. If possible, the replacement point can be delayed.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. FIG. 1 is a flowchart of one embodiment of writing an integrated value of operation time into a memory in a transmitting / receiving apparatus using a battery as a driving power source according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an embodiment of the transmitting / receiving apparatus of the present invention. It is a circuit diagram.

First, in FIG. 2, a transmission / reception device 10 using a battery as a driving power source according to the present invention is attached as an ID tag to a work on a flexible manufacturing line as an example, and faces a read-and-write device 12 as an ID controller at each work station. Then, data is transmitted and received between the transmission / reception device 10 and the read-and-write device 12 using microwaves or the like. The transmitting and receiving device 10 includes an antenna 14 and a transmitting and receiving circuit 16 for transmitting and receiving data, a central processing unit 18 for transmitting and receiving data from the transmitting and receiving circuit 16, a memory 20 from which data is read or written, and a power And a battery 22 for supplying the battery. Central processing unit 18
Is switched from a non-operation state to an operation state by a signal from the transmission / reception circuit 16, execution of a read command given from the read-and-write device 12, transmission of data, and transmission of an integrated value of an operation time described later to the memory 20. When the writing is completed, the state is switched to the non-operation state. The central processing unit 18 includes a clock generator and timer means for counting the clock to measure the operation time, and further includes a value counted by the timer means, that is, the operation time and the operation read from the memory 20. An integrating means for integrating the time is provided. The memory 20 is switched between an operating state and a non-operating state in conjunction with the central processing unit 18. Also memory
The inactive state of 20 is a state in which data cannot be read and written, but data recording is preserved. Then, even when the central processing unit 18 and the memory 20 are not in operation, the transmission / reception circuit 16 is in a low power consumption operation state and is in a standby state for receiving an operation start signal given from the read and write device 12. . Note that, when the transmission / reception circuit 16 receives the operation start signal in the standby state and the central processing unit 18 is activated, the central processing unit 18 is switched to the operating state. When the central processing unit 18 is brought into the non-operation state, the state is switched again to the standby state.

Next, the operation of the transmitting / receiving device 10 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The transmitting and receiving device 10 is a read and write device 12
When the operation start signal transmitted from the read and write device 12 is received by the antenna 14 and the transmission / reception circuit 16 (step), the transmission / reception circuit 16 switches the central processing unit 18 to the operation state (step). . In the central processing unit 18, the timer means starts counting at the same time as the switching to the operation state (step), and the central processing unit 18
Continue counting until just before is switched to the inactive state. Then, the central processing unit 18 receives the data read command transmitted from the read and write device 12 (step), and further executes the command (step).
Then, the data read from the memory 20 is transmitted to the read and write device 12 via the transmission / reception circuit 16 (step). When this data read command is completed, the central processing unit 18 reads from the memory 20 the integrated value of the operation time from the last time the battery 22 was replaced to the present (step), and the operation time was counted by the timer means. The current operation time is integrated by the integrating means (step). Then, the new integrated value is written into the memory 22 again (step), the central processing unit 18 is switched to the non-operation state, and the transmission / reception apparatus 10 is again in the standby state (step).

Note that the integrated value of the operation time is appropriately read by the read-and-write device 12. Also battery 22
Of course, the integrated value of the operation time written in the memory 20 is initialized to zero as a matter of course.

In such a configuration, the power consumption per unit time when the transmitting and receiving apparatus 10 is in the operating state is apparent from pre-measurement, and the power consumption in the standby state and the non-operating state is negligibly small. From the value, the total power consumption of the battery 22 can be determined.
Therefore, it is possible to accurately predict the time when the battery 22 should be replaced based on this.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of another embodiment in which the integrated value of the operation time is written in the memory in the transmitting / receiving device using the battery as the driving power source according to the present invention. In FIG. 3, the same steps as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

In FIG. 3, the difference from FIG. 1 is that when the integrated value of the operating time is written in the memory 20 in the step, whether or not the integrated value exceeds a predetermined value is compared by the comparing means. (Step). Here, if the integrated value does not exceed the predetermined value, the state is switched to the standby state again (step). However, if the step integrated value is equal to or exceeds the predetermined value, a warning signal is output from the warning signal sending means and transmitted to the read and write device 12 via the transmission / reception circuit 16 (step). When the transmission of the warning signal ends, the state is switched to the standby state or the non-operation state (step).

In such a configuration, by appropriately setting the predetermined value, before the terminal voltage of the battery 22 actually decreases,
A warning signal is output at any arbitrary power consumption.

In the above embodiment, the case where the data read command is received from the read-and-write device 12 has been described. However, even when the data write command is received, it is needless to say that the operation time is similarly accumulated as a count.

(Effect of the Invention) A transmitting / receiving device using a battery of the present invention as a driving power source is
The configuration as described above has the following effects.

First, the total power consumption of the battery can be determined from the integrated value of the operation time. Therefore, by monitoring the integrated value, it is possible to predict the time to replace the battery before the terminal voltage of the battery actually decreases. In addition, since the data transmission state involving large power consumption is included in the measurement of the operation time, the prediction accuracy of the total power consumption is high. Therefore, the replacement battery can be prepared and the replacement operation can be appropriately performed, which is extremely useful in maintenance management.

Then, the operation mode is switched between the operation state in which the instruction is executed and the standby state for receiving the operation start signal with low power consumption, so that the central processing unit does not consume power unnecessarily, thereby saving the total power consumption of the battery. It is economical because it can delay the point of battery replacement.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a flowchart of one embodiment of writing an integrated value of operation time into a memory in a transmitting / receiving apparatus using a battery as a driving power source according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an embodiment of the transmitting / receiving apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram, and FIG. 3 is a flowchart of another embodiment in which the integrated value of the operation time is written in the memory in the transmitting / receiving device using the battery as the driving power source according to the present invention. 10: Transmitter / receiver using battery as driving power, 16: Transmitter / receiver circuit, 18: Central processing unit, 20: Memory, 22: Battery.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-63-246035 (JP, A) JP-A-61-218328 (JP, A) Jpn. 2] (1982) CQ Publishing Co. 327-328

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] An antenna, a transmitting / receiving circuit that can be switched between a standby state of low power consumption for receiving an operation start signal and a normal operation state, a central processing unit that can be switched between a non-operation state and an operation state, An operating state in which reading and writing can be performed, a memory in which reading and writing of data cannot be performed, but storage of data can be switched to an inactive state in which data is stored, and a battery for supplying power; When the operation start signal is received by the circuit, the central processing means itself is set to the operation state, the transmission / reception circuit and the memory are switched to the operation state, and the instruction is received, the instruction is executed, and the data is transmitted. In addition, the time from when the central processing means is in the operating state to when the transmission is completed and immediately before the non-operating state is reached is determined by the timer means. And reading the integrated value of the operating time from the memory by the operating time reading means. Each time the counting of the timer means ends, the operation measured by the timer means to the integrated value read from the memory by the integrating means. The time is integrated, a new integrated value is written into the memory by the operating time writing means, and when the writing is completed, the central processing means itself is switched to the inactive state, the transmitting / receiving circuit is switched to the standby state, and the memory is disabled. A transmission / reception device using a battery as a driving power source, wherein the transmission / reception device is configured to switch to an operation state.