JP3228653B2 - Terminal network controller - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for replacing a power supply in a terminal network controller (T-NCU) used for automatic meter reading of LP gas or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a terminal network controller (T-T) used in a telemeter system for transmitting automatic meter reading information from a terminal device (for example, a gas meter) to a center network controller (C-NCU) via a telephone line. The NCU) is connected to a gas meter and a telephone line, and is often installed outdoors, which is convenient for construction, because of the installation location of the gas meter and the location of the telephone line. However, in most cases, there is no AC power supply near the outdoor installation location, and therefore, it is almost impossible to supply the power of the terminal network control device from outside in terms of construction. Therefore, it is common that a primary battery such as a lithium battery having a capacity corresponding to the product life is built in the terminal network control device as a power supply of the terminal network control device.

[0003] However, even if a battery having an appropriate capacity is built in, the battery may have a shorter life than the expected period, depending on the use condition or environmental conditions of the telephone at the installation location. In this case, in the terminal network control device having a structure in which the battery cannot be exchanged, the entire terminal network control device needs to be exchanged, and there is a problem that the exchange service cost is increased.

Accordingly, a terminal network control device capable of replacing a battery is gradually being commercialized. In this type of terminal network control device, for example, a plug-in connector of a lead wire welded to a battery is connected to a connector on the control board side. When the battery reaches the end of its life, disconnect the battery-side connector from the control-board-side connector, remove the battery from the control device body, and connect the new battery connector to the control-board-side connector. To replace the battery by inserting it into the control device body.

[0005]

In a conventional battery exchange type terminal network control device, a plug-in connector is used for connection between a battery and a control board. For example, gold plating or the like having good conductivity is applied. Even when a terminal having a contact structure is used, there is a great concern about the long-term reliability of the connection part in view of the life of the terminal network control device (7 to 10 years) and the fact that it is installed outdoors. In addition, since the connectors are provided on the battery side and the control board side, there is a problem that the device becomes large accordingly.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above, the present invention provides a method of replacing a power supply which ensures long-term reliability of a connection between a power supply and a control board.
The purpose of the present invention is to provide a terminal network control device adopting the law .

[0007]

According to the power supply replacement method of the present invention, the power supply leads 26, 27 soldered and connected to the control board 21 are cut off at the time of power supply replacement, and the new power supply D leads 41, 42 are cut off. And the lead wires 26 and 27 connected to the cut control board 21 are connected by crimping, and a new power supply D is mounted on the control device main body 20.

When the battery assembly 30 which is detachable inside the control device body 20 in which the batteries 24 and 25 and the lead wires 26 and 27 are integrated is used as the power source D, the existing power source is replaced when the power source is replaced. The battery assembly 30 is removed from the control device main body 20.

Further, the batteries 50 and 51 mounted in the control device main body 20 are used as the existing power source D, and the battery assembly 40 detachably mounted in the control device main body 20 is used as the new power source D. .

[0010]

In the above-mentioned means for solving the above problems, in order to replace an existing battery assembly 30 whose life has expired with a new one, first remove the battery assembly 30 from the control device main body 20, and replace the battery assembly 3 with a new one.
Of the battery assembly 30 and the control board 21 by cutting the lead wires 26 and 27 from the middle thereof, and leaving the lead wires 26 and 27 soldered to the control board 21 partially. In the state of. Then, the lead wires 41 and 42 of the new battery assembly 40 and the lead wires 26 and 27 protruding from the control board 21 are joined together by pressure bonding. Thereafter, a new battery assembly 40 is mounted in the control device main body 20, and the replacement is completed. Thus, the connection between the battery assemblies 30, 40 and the control board 21 is connected by a highly reliable connection method such as soldering and crimping both before and after replacement.

If the existing power source D is the batteries 50 and 51 themselves, each of the lead wires 5 connected to the batteries 50 and 51
5 and 56 are cut in the middle, and a new battery assembly 40 is connected to the control board 52 in the same manner as described above and mounted in the control device main body 20.

[0012]

【Example】

(First Embodiment) As shown in FIG. 2, the telemeter system including the terminal network control device of the first embodiment includes a host computer 1, a center network control device (C-NCU) 2,
It is composed of an exchange 3 connected to the center, an exchange 4 connected to the terminal, a terminal network controller (T-NCU) 5, a telephone 6, and a gas meter 7 for reading LP gas and the like. ing. Reference numeral 8 denotes an interoffice trunk line, 9, 10, and 11
Is a connection line, and 12 and 13 are telephone lines.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the terminal network control device 5 is fixedly housed in a control device
A control board 21 on which a control circuit having U, ROM, RAM, etc. is mounted, and a power supply D which is detachably mounted in the outer case 20 and supplies power to the control board 21 are provided.

A connection line 10 from the gas meter 7 and a telephone line drawn from the telephone line 13 are connected to the terminal block 22 of the control board 21 at the lower portion of the front surface of the outer case 20. An opening for replacement is formed, and this opening is covered by a lid 23 engaged with the outer case 20. Although not shown, a small hole is formed in the lower part of the outer case 20 for inserting the connection line 10 or a telephone line.

The control circuit includes an I / O converter such as a DD converter.
It can be driven at 3V using C. As shown in FIG. 4, the power source D uses two lithium batteries 24 and 25 connected in series, and a lead wire 2 is connected to the positive electrode of one lithium battery 24 and the negative electrode of the other lithium battery 25.
6 and 27 by welding, respectively, and lithium batteries 24 and 25
Is a battery assembly 30 integrated with a heat-shrinkable tube 28 made of a polyolefin resin or the like over the outer periphery of the battery assembly 30. A conductive fitting 31 is welded between the negative electrode of one lithium battery 24 and the positive electrode of the other lithium battery 25, and the two lithium batteries 24, 25 are assembled batteries of a series structure.

If there is no problem with the capacity of the battery,
As shown in FIG. 5, when the lead wires 26 and 27 are connected by welding to the positive electrode side and the negative electrode side of one lithium battery 24, the structure is simple and space can be saved.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the battery assembly 30 is fixed to the inside of the outer case 20 by a holding metal fitting 32. As shown in FIG. The holding member 32 is fixed to the outer case 20 by the screw 33.
And an L-shaped base 32a fixed to the metal fitting mounting portion 20a below and on which the battery assembly 30 is placed, and a pressing plate 3 protruding upward from the front end of the base 32a and pressing the side surface of the battery assembly 30.
2b.

The lead wires 26, 2 of the battery assembly 30
7 is accommodated in the lower part of the outer case 20 with a sufficient length (slack). And each lead wire 26,2
Numeral 7 is displayed in red and black by color for polarity display, and the conductor portion is soldered and connected to the control circuit pattern of the control board 21 through the lead wire connection hole 21a of the control board 21. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, a label 33 on which precautions for replacing the battery assembly are described is attached near the center of each of the lead wires 26 and 27.

In the above configuration, in order to replace the existing battery assembly 30 whose life has expired with a new one, first open the lid 23 of the outer case 20, remove the screw 33 and remove the holding bracket 32, and remove the battery assembly. The product 30 is pulled out downward and removed from the outer case 20.

Next, the lead wires 26, 2 of the battery assembly 30
7, the lead wires 26 and 27 are cut off from the middle to disconnect the battery assembly 30 from the control board 21, and the respective lead wires soldered to the control board 21 are connected. 26 and 27 are left partially.

Then, as shown in FIG. 7, a new battery assembly 40 is provided.
Lead wires 41 (same structure as existing battery assembly 30),
42 and the lead wires 26, 2 extending from the control board 21.
7 and match the same color with the end of the commercially available sealed crimp terminal 4
3, the conductor portions of the lead wires 41 and 42 are connected by crimping. As a result, the connection portion between the lead wires does not become exposed, and the insulating oil filled in the sealed crimp terminal 43 does not come into contact with the outside air, so that a highly reliable connection not affected by the outside air is possible. Becomes Thereafter, a new battery assembly 40 is inserted into the outer case 20 and fixed with the presser fitting 32, and the cover 23 is closed to complete the replacement.

Thus, when the battery assembly is replaced, the control board 2
1. Lead wires 26 and 27 soldered to 1 are cut,
Lead wires 41 and 42 of new battery assembly 40 and control board 2
1 and the remaining lead wires 26 and 27 connected by soldering.
Is connected by crimping with the hermetically sealed crimp terminal 43, so that the battery assemblies 30, 40 can be used both before and after replacement of the battery assembly.
Connection between the control board 21 and the
Since the connection is made by a highly reliable connection method such as crimping, long-term reliability can be ensured as compared with the conventional connection using a connector.

Further, the existing battery assembly 30 whose life has expired due to battery exhaustion is removed from the outer case 20, a new battery assembly 40 is mounted on the outer case 20, and the new battery assembly 40 and the control board 21 are connected to each other. Is a crimping connection between the lead wires, so that even in a battery exchange type structure, the storage space in the outer case 20 may be substantially the same size as the terminal network control device in which the battery cannot be exchanged. Can be reduced to a compact size that is almost the same size as the terminal network control device whose battery cannot be replaced.

Further, the lead wires 26, 2 of the battery assembly 30
7 is provided with a label 33 on which precautions for replacing the battery assembly are attached, so that connection can be made without error to anyone.

(Second Embodiment) Normally, a lithium battery as a power source for a terminal network control device uses a battery having a capacity corresponding to the product life. In reality, the number of control devices is small. In the first embodiment, the battery assembly 30 that can be attached to and detached from the outer case 20 is used as the power supply D of the terminal network control device. There is no point in using the expensive battery assembly 30, and the initial cost during product production may be high.

Therefore, the terminal network control device of the second embodiment
As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, two lithium batteries 50 and 51 mounted on a control board 52 are used as the existing power supply D. In FIG. 9, 53a, 53b and 54a, 54
b is fixed to the control board 52 and each of the lithium batteries 50,5
1 shows terminals connected to the positive electrode and the negative electrode by welding, respectively. The terminal 53b on the negative electrode side of the lithium battery 50 and the terminal 54a on the positive electrode side of the lithium battery 51 are connected by soldering H. Lead wires 55 and 56 connected by soldering H to the pattern of the control circuit 52a of the control board 52 are connected by soldering H to the positive terminal 53a and the negative terminal 54b of the lithium battery 51, respectively. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 10, two lithium batteries 50 and 51 are connected in series to the control circuit 52a to supply power. When there is no problem in battery capacity, the structure can be simplified by using one lithium battery 50 and soldering lead wires 55 and 56 to the positive terminal 53a and the negative terminal 53b, respectively. Can save space.

In the outer case 20, a storage space S for storing a new battery assembly 40 similar to that of the first embodiment is formed below a portion where the lithium batteries 50 and 51 are mounted.

In the above configuration, the lithium batteries 50, 5
When the end of the service life of each lead wire 55, 56, follow the precautionary notes described on the label 33 of each lead wire 55, 56.
The connection between the lithium batteries 50 and 51 and the control circuit 52a is cut off by disconnecting 56 from the middle.

Then, as shown in FIG. 11, while the lithium batteries 50 and 51 whose life has expired are left on the control board 52,
The new battery assembly 40 is connected to the control board 52 by the sealed crimp terminal 43 as in the first embodiment, and
Is stored in the storage space S. Other configurations and operations are the same as those of the first embodiment, and members having the same functions as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals.

As described above, since the lithium batteries 50 and 51 mounted on the control board 52 are used as the existing power source D, the outer case 20 has a storage space S for storing a new battery assembly 40. Although the size is slightly larger, the initial cost at the time of product production can be reduced as compared with the case where the battery assembly is used as the existing power supply as in the first embodiment.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it goes without saying that many modifications and changes can be made to the above-described embodiment within the scope of the present invention. For example, the connection between the lithium battery and the lead wire is not limited to the welding connection, but may be a soldering connection. Further, the lithium batteries 50 and 51 may not be mounted on the control board 52 as in the second embodiment, but may be detached from the outer case 20 at the time of battery replacement. In this case, the storage space S for storing the new battery assembly 40 in the outer case 20 is not required, and the device can be made compact.

[0032]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, the connection portion between the power supply and the control board has high reliability such as soldering, welding and crimping both before and after the replacement of the power supply. Will be connected by the connection method,
Long-term reliability can be ensured as compared to a conventional connection using a connector.

The power and a removable battery assembly body, and since the connection with the new battery assembly body and the control board is crimped connection between the lead wire, the structure is a by the control apparatus main body even battery replacement type The storage space may be approximately the same size as the terminal network control device whose battery cannot be replaced, and the overall size of the device can be reduced to the same compact size as the terminal network control device whose battery cannot be replaced.

[0034] Using the battery itself fixed to the controller body as a power source for existing, it is possible to reduce the initial cost at the time of product production than when using a battery Assembly as existing power.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway front view of a terminal network control device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a telemeter system.

FIG. 3 is a bottom sectional view of the terminal network control device.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of a battery assembly.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of another battery assembly.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a connection between a battery assembly and a control board.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the connection between the battery assembly and the control board after the replacement of the battery assembly;

FIG. 8 is a partially cutaway front view of the terminal network control device of the second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a side view of a control board on which a battery is mounted.

FIG. 10 is an electric circuit diagram of a terminal network control device.

FIG. 11 is a partially cutaway front view of the terminal network control device after replacement of the battery assembly.

[Explanation of symbols]

 D power supply 20 control device main body 21, 52 control board 24, 25, 50, 51 battery 26, 27, 41, 42, 55, 56 lead wire 30, 40 battery assembly

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Akira Okamoto 22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Inside Sharp Corporation (72) Inventor Nariki Ashihara 22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Sharp Corporation (56) References JP-A-3-85055 (JP, A) JP-A-63-274256 (JP, A) JP-A-4-87150 (JP, A) JP-A-2-112297 (JP, A) Japanese Utility Model Application No. Sho 61-80575 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model Application Hei 6-31073 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model Application No. Sho 62-84955 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H04M 11/00-11/10 H01M 2/10 H05K 1/02

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] In a terminal network control device to which a terminal device is connected and performs data communication with a center device by using a telephone line, a battery as a power source is disposed adjacent to a control board on a side in an outer case. And one end of a lead wire is attached to the battery via a detachable presser fitting, and one end of a lead wire is welded to the battery.
Alternatively, the other end of the lead wire is connected to the control
The lead wire was soldered to a board, and the lead wire was mounted so that when the battery was removed from the outer case for battery replacement, the lead wire was cut to make a crimp connection with the lead wire of a new battery. A terminal network control device having a length having a slack between the battery and the control board and housed in an opening for exchanging a battery formed in the outer case. 2. A terminal network control device in which a terminal device is connected and performs data communication with a center device using a telephone line, a battery as a power supply is located next to the control board on the side in the outer case. And one end of a lead wire is detachably attached to the outer case, and one end of a lead wire is welded or soldered to the battery.
The other end of the lead wire is connected to the control board by soldering
The battery and the control board are mounted so that when the battery is removed from the outer case for battery replacement, the lead wire is cut to make a crimp connection with a new battery lead wire. And the length of the battery, which has been slackened, is stored in the opening for replacing the battery formed in the outer case, and is cut and replaced with the lead wire which is still connected to the control board. The lead wire
A terminal net control device characterized in that the terminal net control device is crimped and connected by a sealed crimp terminal filled with insulating oil. 3. A label on which precautions for replacement are attached is attached to a lead wire connected to the control board, and a cut portion is set on the battery side of the label. 3. The terminal network control device according to 2.