JPH0737903B2 - Measurement recorder - Google Patents

Description

Description: FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a measurement recording device for measuring and recording information.

(Prior Art) A measurement recording device for inputting and recording information, for example, a portable measuring device installed in a bridge or the like, measuring strain of the bridge over a long period of time, and recording the measured value in a recording medium is It is preferable that the recording capacity is large and the power consumption is small because a battery is used as a power source. As the recording means, a random access memory (hereinafter referred to as RAM) is used as a recording medium, and a read-only memory (hereinafter referred to as RAM) storing a predetermined processing program
And a central processing unit (hereinafter referred to as CPU) that stores information input based on a program of the ROM in the RAM in time series. The recording means having such a structure can deal with the target processing extremely flexibly, that is, the data processing can be easily performed by changing the content (program) of the ROM.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, when the number of elements is increased to increase the storage capacity of RAM in the recording means, the CPU, R
The power consumption of the OM increases, resulting in a shortage of battery capacity, making it difficult to measure and record for a long period of time. Becomes a major factor that hinders size and weight reduction. Further, there is a problem that the cost is increased due to the use of the CPU, the ROM and the like.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and is a measurement recording apparatus that is small in size, light in weight, and is low in cost, as well as being capable of measuring and recording for a long period of time by reducing power consumption of a battery. The purpose is to provide.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a sensor for taking information in a small and thin card-shaped case,
A converter that converts the information input from the sensor from an analog amount to a digital amount, and a recording medium that records the data output from the converter and can be appropriately taken out to the outside,
A counter for sequentially instructing the operation of the converter and the recording position and time of the data on the recording medium, and an external recording / reading device connected to the recording medium for taking out the data recorded on the recording medium to the outside. A read-out terminal connectable thereto, a sensor, the converter, the recording medium, and a battery for supplying necessary electric power to the counter, respectively, are integrated together.

(Operation) The measurement recording device is arranged on the object to be measured, and the analog information output from the sensor is sequentially converted into a corresponding digital amount by the converter and recorded on the recording medium. The data recorded on the recording medium is read by an external recording / reading device connected to the reading terminal.

(Embodiment) An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the structure of a measurement recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied.
The case 2 of the measurement recording device 1 has a small and thin rectangular card shape formed of a synthetic resin member such as plastic, and has a sensor 3 and an analog-digital converter (hereinafter referred to as A / D).
4, a recording means 5 and a battery 6 are built in,
A detection element 7 is provided on one end face 2a, a read terminal 8 and a changeover switch 9 to which an external recording and reading device can be connected are provided on the other end face 2b, and a volume VR for adjusting the output signal level of the sensor 3 is provided at a predetermined position on the top face 2c. Also, a display 10 is provided.

The sensor 3 is, for example, a temperature sensor, and a thermistor is used as the detection element 7. The detection element 7 is the sensor 3 shown in FIG.
Connected to one side of the bridge circuit, and the output of the bridge circuit is amplified by a differential amplifier (both not shown) and output. The amplification level of this differential amplifier can be adjusted externally by the volume VR.

The output terminal of the sensor 3 is connected to the input terminal 4a of the A / D converter 4, and the output terminal 4c of the A / D converter 4 is a recording medium such as a RAM.
11 is connected to the input terminal 11a and the input terminal of the display 10 is A / D
It is connected to the output line of the most significant bit of the output terminal 4c of the converter 4. The display 10 is provided with, for example, a light emitting diode and lights up when the most significant bit output of the A / D converter 4 is at a high level to indicate that the output level of the differential amplifier is equal to or higher than a predetermined level. At this time, the operator operates the volume VR to adjust the amplification level to an appropriate level at which the display 10 does not light up.

The output terminals 12a and 12b of the counter 12 of the recording means 5 are connected to the A / D converter 4 and the input terminals 4b and 11b of the RAM 11, respectively, and the switching input terminal 12c is connected to the terminal 9a of the multistage switching switch 9. The counter 12 is provided with a crystal oscillator and is programmable, and the cycle of each command signal output from the output terminals 12a and 12b is switched by switching the switch 9. For example, the cycle of each command signal can be switched in multiple stages from 1 (pulse / time) to several KHz. The counter 1
2 is an output terminal 1 at every predetermined cycle set by the changeover switch 9.
An operation command pulse signal (sampling signal) of the A / D converter 4 is output from 2a, and a command pulse signal designating a recording position of the RAM 11, that is, an address is output from the output terminal 12b. The address command pulse signal is a signal representing the count value of the counter 12, and specifies the address of the RAM 11 according to the counter value. Further, the counter 12 is reset by setting the changeover switch 9. As the A / D converter 4, the counter 12 and the like, CMOS type ones with low power consumption are used.

The read terminal 8 is for connecting an external recording / reading device, and one terminal 8a is the input terminal 11c of the RAM 11 and the other terminal is
8b is connected to the output terminal 11d of the RAM 11. As the battery 6, for example, a nickel battery is used, and as shown in FIG. 1, the sensor 3, the A / D converter 4, the RAM are connected via the power supply line 30.
It is connected to 11 and the counter 12, and supplies required electric power.

The measuring device 1 starts operating when the battery 6 is attached. The measuring device 1 is fixed to an object to be measured (not shown) with an adhesive tape or the like.

The operation will be described below.

When inputting and recording information, the change-over switch 9 is set to, for example, a range of 1 (pulse / time) and a reset operation is performed. As a result, the counter 12 is reset, and thereafter, each command pulse signal is output from the output terminals 12a and 12b every hour. On the other hand, the resistance value of the detection element 7 changes according to the temperature change of the object to be measured, and the sensor 3 outputs a signal corresponding to this and applies it to the A / D converter 4. The A / D converter 4 operates every time a command pulse signal is input from the counter 12 and converts an analog signal to be input into a corresponding digital signal and outputs it. Each time the command pulse signal is input from the counter 11, the RAM 11 writes and stores the data output from the A / D converter 4 at the address position designated by the command pulse signal. In this way, the temperature information is sequentially input and recorded in the RAM 11 every hour. As a result, the measurement recording device 1 can measure and record for a considerably long time.

To read the data written in RAM11 to the outside,
An external recording / reading device (not shown) such as a data analyzer is connected to each terminal 8a, 8b of the reading terminal 8, and the changeover switch 9 is set to an optimum reading speed for medium processing (data processing) of the external recording / reading device. Switch to the frequency range of. For example,
The external recording / reading device reads one data from the RAM 11,
In the case where the data is analyzed and then the next data is read and the analysis is performed, the data read speed is slowed, and the data in the RAM 11 is simply written in the recording device of the external recording / reading device. Speeds up the reading speed and finishes reading the data quickly.

The RAM 11 is capable of reading data to be recorded when a command signal is input from the external recording / reading device to the input terminal 11c, and each time the command pulse signal for addressing is input from the counter 12, the specified address Output data sequentially. The output data is sequentially written in the storage device of the external recording / reading device. In this way, the temperature information measured and recorded by the measurement recording device 1 is read by the external recording / reading device.

The recording means 5 uses the counter 12 to store the measurement data in the RAM 11
Since the recording position and time are instructed and the CPU, ROM, etc. are not used, the power consumption of the battery 6 is greatly saved.

The data recorded in the measurement recording device 1 may be read out to the external recording / reading device after a predetermined period has elapsed after the start of the measurement, or at any time during the measurement period.
In addition, the reading of the data is performed by measuring and recording the data on the measurement target device 1
It may be performed with the attached or removed.

Further, in the present embodiment, the cycle of the command pulse signal of the counter 12 can be changed by the changeover switch 9, but the present invention is not limited to this, and it is not always necessary depending on the purpose of use and is fixed to a predetermined cycle. Of course, in this case, the changeover switch 9 is unnecessary.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the case where the temperature sensor is used as the sensor is described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and other sensors such as a pressure sensor, a vibration sensor, and a strain sensor may be used depending on the object to be measured. Of course, it is also good.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the present invention, a sensor that takes in information and a converter that converts the information input from the sensor from an analog amount to a digital amount are provided in a small and thin card-shaped case. A recording medium capable of recording the data output from the converter and taking out the data as appropriate, a counter for sequentially instructing the operation of the converter and the recording position and time of the data on the recording medium, A read terminal which is connected to a recording medium and which can be connected to an external recording / reading device for taking out the data recorded in the recording medium to the outside;
By integrating the sensor, the converter, the recording medium, and the battery that respectively supply the required power to the counter, it becomes possible to significantly reduce the power consumption of the battery. Accordingly, it is possible to measure and record for a long period of time, and to reduce the size of the battery, and it is possible to reduce the size and weight of the measurement and recording device.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway plan view showing an embodiment of a measurement recording apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a circuit configuration of the measurement recording apparatus of FIG. 2 ... Case, 3 ... Sensor, 4 ... A / D converter, 5 ...
... recording means, 6 battery, 7 detection element, 8 read terminal, 9 changeover switch, 11 RAM, 12 counter.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A small and thin card-shaped case, a sensor for taking in information, a converter for converting the information input from the sensor from an analog quantity to a digital quantity, and data outputted from the converter. A recording medium that can be recorded and taken out as appropriate, a counter that sequentially indicates the operation of the converter and the recording position and time of the data on the recording medium, and a recording medium that is connected to the recording medium and recorded on the recording medium. In addition, a reading terminal to which an external recording / reading device for taking out the data to the outside can be connected, and a battery that supplies necessary power to the sensor, the converter, the recording medium, and the counter are integrally incorporated. A measurement recording device characterized by the fact that