JP2006113052A - Evaluation equipment, evaluation system, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an evaluation equipment capable of efficiently and moreover correctly measuring evaluation of the environmental characteristics, reliability, and security. <P>SOLUTION: The evaluation equipment is equipped with an alternating current stabilizing power source 2 for supplying alternating voltage to an object 12 to be measured, a direct current electronic load device 3 for controlling output current from the object 12 to being measured, an alternating current wattmeter 4 computing electric power supplying to the object 12 to be measured from the alternating current stabilizing power source 2, a digital oscilloscope 5 measuring the waveforms and the like of input current and input voltage supplied to the object 12 to be measured from the alternating current stabilizing power source 2, a multiplexor device 6 loading the waveforms measured with the digital oscilloscope 5, a thermostatic chamber 7 for holding the object 12 to be measured under an arbitrary environment condition to suffer environmental evaluation, an insulation resistance device 8 for measuring the insulation tolerance/insulation resistance of the object 12 to be measured, an optical isolator device 9 isolating the object 12 to be measured 12 to the ground of measuring system, and a controller unit 11 controlling to perform measurements of any evaluation items for the object 12 to be measured. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an evaluation apparatus capable of evaluating the environmental characteristics, reliability, safety, etc. of an object to be measured such as a DC power supply apparatus.

Many home appliances, OA equipment, and many other electronic devices have a DC power supply, and with the diversification of the functions of electronic equipment, a wide variety of DC power supplies are used.
As a DC power supply evaluation apparatus or a DC power supply inspection apparatus that evaluates this versatile DC power supply apparatus, for example, a control device sets input voltage conditions, output load conditions, etc., and performs measurement while sequentially changing the setting conditions. Some of the measurement values are recorded in a predetermined format so as to shorten the time.
Further, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, since there are many characteristic items and a large amount of characteristic data, the result data can be obtained in a form that can be easily determined to prevent erroneous determination. is there.
JP-A-5-52604

By the way, the DC power supply inspection apparatus as described above is used as a simple inspection apparatus in a manufacturing process in which, for example, items are limited to some extent, and it is determined whether or not the performance is within the allowable range. Also, for example, it should be used as a type inspection device at the stage of prototype examination to determine whether it meets the prototype and design specifications and satisfies the performance or has a margin as designed including out of the rated range. It was. Such a DC power supply inspection device is effective when testing input-output characteristics with respect to input voltage and set load conditions, but is based on the specifications of the DC power supply devices such as environmental characteristics, reliability, and safety. Automatic characteristic evaluation and pass / fail judgment cannot be performed.
That is, in the evaluation based on the specifications of the conventional DC power supply device, for the items with limited input-output characteristics, if a simple inspection device or type inspection device as described above is used, erroneous determination on a huge amount of data is prevented, In addition, the inspection time can be shortened.
However, since many evaluations such as environmental characteristics, reliability, and safety based on the specifications of the DC power supply apparatus require an operator to perform an evaluation test, it takes a lot of time to perform the evaluation test. In addition, since the data of the evaluation test is enormous, there is a risk of erroneous determination due to human error. Moreover, when the pass / fail judgment of the DC power supply device is performed after performing many evaluation tests, for example, the efficiency is low as an evaluation test of a DC power supply device having a low degree of design perfection that is not worth performing the evaluation test. There was a drawback.
Further, in the conventional simple inspection apparatus and type inspection apparatus as described above, since the enormous amount of data obtained is automatically processed, it is possible to prevent erroneous determination due to human error. However, the input voltage standard, output voltage standard, output current standard, ripple standard, noise standard and many other conditions based on the specifications of the DC power supply device are manually input and set in the inspection device. There was a risk of input. Further, as the output system of the DC power supply device increases, the input setting items also increase proportionally, which increases the possibility of erroneous determination due to erroneous input.

In addition, the evaluation by the automatic evaluation equipment has carried out many evaluations such as environmental characteristics, reliability, safety, etc., but in the evaluation of environmental characteristics, the environmental temperature is set to the specified temperature by a thermostat for each evaluation test. Thus, repeatedly performing the evaluation test has a problem that the efficiency is very low and the evaluation time becomes long.
Furthermore, since many evaluation samples are evaluated in the evaluation test, when the evaluation test for a new evaluation sample is performed after the evaluation test for one evaluation sample is completed in the environmental test, the order of the environmental test is In the case of fixing, there is a problem that it is necessary to leave the thermostat used for environmental evaluation until it is stabilized again at the specified temperature at the start of the test, and the test efficiency is poor.
Furthermore, in the conventional simple inspection apparatus and type inspection apparatus, since the evaluation items of the DC power supply apparatus are limited, the measuring apparatus constituting the inspection apparatus is determined in advance. For this reason, it has been difficult to newly add an evaluation item or meet the needs of evaluation. Further, when developing a new automatic evaluation apparatus, there has been a problem that more capital investment and time are required.
Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above points, and provides an evaluation apparatus that can efficiently and accurately determine environmental characteristics, reliability, safety, and the like. Objective. It is another object of the present invention to provide an evaluation apparatus that can easily add or change evaluation items.

In order to achieve the above object, an invention according to claim 1 is an evaluation apparatus for measuring an input voltage of an object to be measured and an output voltage characteristic under a set load condition to evaluate the characteristics of the object to be measured. A plurality of measuring devices for measuring the input / output characteristics, environmental characteristics, reliability, and safety of the object to be measured; a thermostatic chamber for giving a necessary environmental condition to the object to be measured; and the plurality of measuring devices And control means for controlling the input / output characteristics, environmental characteristics, reliability, and safety of the object to be measured with respect to the thermostatic chamber, the control means comprising the object to be measured It is characterized in that measurements on input / output characteristics, environmental characteristics, reliability and safety are performed, and the measurement object is automatically evaluated based on the measurement results.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the evaluation apparatus according to the first aspect, the control means performs the measurement on the input / output characteristics, environmental characteristics, reliability, and safety of the measured object. It is characterized in that a simple measurement of a measurement object is performed.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the evaluation apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the plurality of measuring devices include an AC stabilized power supply means for supplying an AC voltage to the device under test, and the device under measurement. DC electronic load means for controlling the output current from the object, AC power calculation means for calculating the power supplied from the AC stabilized power supply means to the object to be measured, and the object to be measured from the AC stabilized power supply means A waveform measuring means for measuring a waveform of an input current and an input voltage supplied to the device and an output voltage and an output current output from the device under test; a multiplexer means for capturing a waveform measured by the waveform measuring means; Insulation resistance means for measuring the withstand voltage / insulation resistance of the object to be measured, and insulating means for insulating the object to be measured and the ground of the measurement system.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the evaluation apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, the control means stores a data file in which various specifications of the device under test are recorded via a network. It is downloadable.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the evaluation apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the control means arbitrarily sets the measurement order of the measurement object for each set temperature of the thermostat. It can be set.
A sixth aspect of the present invention is the evaluation apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the device under test is a DC power supply device.
A seventh aspect of the invention is characterized by an evaluation system configured by interlocking a plurality of the evaluation devices according to any one of the first to sixth aspects.
The invention according to claim 8 is a program of an evaluation apparatus that performs control for performing measurement of an arbitrary evaluation item on the object to be measured, and includes a main program, a test item program, and control of the measurement apparatus. It consists of a program.
The invention according to claim 9 is characterized in that the program according to claim 8 is further provided with a program for interlocking control with an evaluation device.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, not only the input / output characteristics but also the environmental characteristics, reliability, safety, and the like can be evaluated based on the specifications of the object to be measured. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently evaluate environmental characteristics, reliability, safety, etc. without relying on human hands as in the past. In addition, erroneous evaluation due to human error can be prevented.
According to the invention described in claim 2, since the determination as to whether or not the level to be evaluated is easily performed before the reliability evaluation of the measurement object is performed, for example, the measurement object having a low degree of completeness. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently perform the evaluation test of the object to be measured.
According to the invention described in claim 3, it is possible to realize an evaluation device that can reliably evaluate environmental characteristics, reliability, safety and the like of various DC power supply devices.
According to the invention described in claim 4, since the control means can download various specifications of the device under test from a data file in which the various specifications of the device under test are recorded via a network. Since manual input setting is not required, it is possible to prevent erroneous manual input setting.
According to the invention described in claim 5, since the control means can arbitrarily set the measurement order of the object to be measured for each set temperature of the thermostat, for example, the object to be measured can be minimized by changing the temperature of the thermostat. It is possible to reduce as much as possible the time for leaving the system in the specified environment. In addition, even if there are various types of evaluations under different conditions, if there are measurement items that can be performed at the same temperature, it is possible to carry out the evaluation while giving priority to the environmental temperature. Can be shortened and made more efficient.
According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to evaluate a DC power supply apparatus that takes time to evaluate environmental characteristics, reliability, safety and the like in a short time.
According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, two or more evaluation devices are interlocked and the evaluation condition of the object to be measured is shared, so that a problem occurring in the evaluation of one evaluation device can be transferred to the other evaluation device. Therefore, it is possible to improve the evaluation accuracy by performing a reproducibility evaluation whether the same defect occurs automatically. Also, by sharing the evaluation items, the evaluation items can be efficiently selected by selecting the evaluation items so that the evaluation items of the linked automatic evaluation device do not automatically overlap among the evaluation items that have not been performed. Can be implemented.
Further, according to the inventions of claims 8 and 9, the evaluation apparatus program is created by dividing the evaluation apparatus-linked control program into the main program, the test item program, and the measurement apparatus control program. Since it is not necessary to change the main program when adding the device configuration and evaluation items, it is easier to change the program, and it is possible to add new evaluation items and respond quickly to the needs of evaluation compared to the conventional one. become able to.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the evaluation apparatus of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
In the present embodiment, a DC power supply evaluation apparatus that evaluates a DC power supply apparatus will be described as an example.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a DC power supply evaluation apparatus as a first embodiment of the present invention.
The DC power supply evaluation device (hereinafter referred to as “automatic evaluation device”) shown in FIG. 1 includes an AC stabilized power supply device 2, a DC electronic load device 3, an AC wattmeter 4, a digital oscilloscope device 5, a multiplexer device 6, It is composed of a thermostatic chamber 7, an insulation resistance device 8, an optical isolation device 9, a remote control signal output device 10, and a control device 11. Such an automatic evaluation device 1 according to the present embodiment not only evaluates the input voltage and the output voltage for the set additional condition with respect to the DC power supply device (hereinafter referred to as “PSU”) 12 that is the object to be measured, It is configured so that items based on the specifications of the DC power supply device such as environmental characteristics, reliability evaluation, and safety evaluation necessary for the DC voltage device can be automatically evaluated.
The AC stabilized power supply (AC stabilized power supply means) 2 supplies a predetermined AC voltage to the DC power supply 12 that is the object to be measured based on a control signal from the control device 11.
A plurality of DC electronic load devices (DC electronic load means) 3 sets an output current based on a control signal from the control device 11 and controls an output current output from the DC power supply device (hereinafter referred to as “PSU”) 12. To do.

The AC wattmeter (AC power calculation means) 4 measures input current, input power, input voltage, efficiency, and the like input from the AC stabilized power supply device 2 to the PSU 12 based on a control signal from the control device 11.
The digital oscilloscope device (waveform measuring means) 5 measures the input current waveform and input voltage waveform of the PSU 12 from the AC stabilized power supply device 2 based on the control signal from the control device 11 and outputs the output voltage waveform and output current of the PSU 12. Measures input / output characteristics such as waveforms.
The multiplexer device (multiplexer means) 6 can switch the channel of the digital oscilloscope 5 based on the control signal from the control device 11 and can measure the output of the PSU 12.
The thermostat 7 sets temperature, humidity, and the like based on a control signal from the control device 11 of the PSU 12, and keeps the PSU 12 accommodated therein under predetermined environmental conditions.
The insulation resistance device (insulation resistance means) 8 measures insulation withstand voltage and insulation resistance related to reliability and safety of the PSU 12 based on a control signal from the control device 11.
The optical isolation device (insulating means) 9 insulates the measurement system ground of the DC power supply evaluation device 1 as the measurement system from the DC power supply device 12 as the measurement object.
The remote control signal output device 10 outputs an external input signal necessary as an output operation mode of the PSU 12 based on a control signal from the control device 11.
The control device (control means) 11 is configured by a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as “PC”). An input device such as a keyboard and a mouse, a display device, a printer device, and the like are connected to the control device 11.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the control device.
In FIG. 2, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 51 manages control processing of the entire control device 11.
A ROM (Read Only Memory) 52 stores program data and the like, and the CPU 51 reads the data via the bus 60 as necessary, thereby executing processing according to the program stored therein. it can.
A RAM (Random Access Memory) 53 appropriately stores data, programs, and the like necessary for the CPU 51 to execute various processes.
The modem 54 controls wired communication using a telephone line or a cable. For example, when updating the program data, the program data and the like are downloaded from a server on the Internet via the modem 54.
A hard disk drive (HDD) 55 includes a hard disk as a storage medium, and the CPU 51 can record or read data, programs, and the like on the hard disk. In this case, the CPU 51 reads out an application program stored in the hard disk of the HDD 55 and develops it in the RAM 53, thereby executing various processes according to the application program.
The drive device 56 can be loaded with various recording media such as an optical disc, a CD (Compact Disc) type disc, a mini disc, or a memory card such as a flash memory. The application program recorded on the medium is read and recorded on the HDD 55.
An input device 61 is connected to the internal bus 60 via an input interface (I / F) 57 and a display device 62 is connected via a display I / F 58. A printer 63 is connected to the internal bus 60 via a printer I / F 59.
The control device 11 controls the automatic evaluation device as a whole, performs an evaluation test on the PSU 12 according to the evaluation item, stores data obtained by the execution of the evaluation test, and the data of the PSU 12 based on the data. Evaluate.
In the automatic evaluation apparatus of the present embodiment, the AC stabilized power supply device 2, the DC electronic load device 3, the AC wattmeter 4, the digital oscilloscope device 5, the multiplexer device 6, the insulation resistance device 8, and the optical isolation device are used as measurement devices. 9. Although the remote control signal output device 10 is provided, this is merely an example and can be appropriately changed depending on the object to be measured.

Hereinafter, the operation of the automatic evaluation apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment as described above will be described. The automatic evaluation apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 has the setting conditions necessary for automatic evaluation of the PSU 12 and the evaluation implementation. It is necessary to input a sample number in advance in order to sort the PSU 12 to be performed. Also. It is necessary to select the device configuration required for the evaluation item to be implemented by the GPIB address and determine the configuration of the automatic evaluation device.
First, a setting input operation for inputting necessary setting conditions in the automatic evaluation apparatus 1 will be described with reference to setting input screens shown in FIGS.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an initial setting screen displayed on the monitor screen of the control device. The initial setting screen 20 in FIG. 3 includes a specification creation button 21 for selecting a specification creation screen for inputting the specifications of the PSU 12, a test condition button 22 for selecting a test condition screen, a start button 23 for executing an evaluation test, and environment priority. An environment priority button 24 for selecting the button, a GPIB setting button 25 for selecting the GPIB setting screen, and an EXIT button 26. The initial setting screen 20 is provided with a window 27 for selecting a model, a display area 28 for displaying evaluation items, a display area 29 for displaying a test order, and the like. In the input area 30, the sample number of the PSU 12 is input.
Here, for example, when an operator operates an input device such as a pointer (not shown) to select the specification creation button 21, any of the common specification setting screens shown in FIGS. 4 to 8 is displayed on the monitor.
FIG. 4 is an example of an operating environment temperature / humidity setting screen for measuring the operating environment temperature / humidity, which is an operating environment characteristic of the PSU, for example. After a required input is made using this screen 31, an update button is displayed. By clicking 31a, settings such as the operating environment temperature / humidity and storage environment temperature / humidity of the PSU 12 are stored in a memory (for example, the RAM 53) in the control device 11.
FIG. 5 is an example of an input power supply setting screen for measuring the input characteristics of the input power supply of the PSU, for example. After the required input is performed using this screen 32, the update button 32a is clicked. Thus, settings such as an input voltage range, a power allowable range, a power factor allowable range, and an efficiency allowable range are stored in the memory in the control device 11.

FIG. 6 shows a PSU output voltage setting screen 33 for measuring output voltage characteristics such as the output voltage of the PSU, for example. After a required input is made using this screen 33, the update button 33a is clicked. Thus, settings such as the output voltage channel (CH1, CH2, CH3...), Output voltage range, ripple, and noise are stored in the memory in the control device 11.
FIG. 7 shows a PSU output current setting screen 34 for measuring the output current of the PSU. After a required input is made using this screen 34, the update button 34a is clicked to output current. The minimum value, average value, rated value, standby current value, energy saving mode current value, and the like are stored in the memory in the control device 11.
FIG. 8 shows another setting screen 35. After necessary input is performed using this screen 35, the update button 35a is clicked to enable the external remote signal, select the level, and select the external remote signal. As a result of the selection, the setting of the external remote condition is stored in the memory in the control device 11.
FIG. 9 is a GPIB setting screen 36 displayed when the GPIB button 25 shown in FIG. 3 is selected, and is implemented as an evaluation test from the device configuration of the automatic evaluation device 1 shown in FIG. When a device necessary for the evaluation item to be selected is selected by the GPIB address and the update button 36a is clicked, the device is stored in the memory in the control device 11.
For example, when automatically evaluating the environmental characteristics of the PSU 12, among the devices constituting the automatic evaluation device 1 shown in FIG. 1, the AC stabilized power supply device 2, the DC electronic load device 3, the AC wattmeter 4, the thermostat 7, The remote control signal output device 10 is selected by the GPIB address, and the configuration of the automatic evaluation device 1 is selected so that the output characteristics for the environment of the PSU 12 can be automatically evaluated.
For example, when the switching waveform measurement is automatically performed as an evaluation of components mounted on the PSU 12, the AC stabilized power supply device 2, the DC electronic load device 3, the AC wattmeter 4, the digital oscilloscope device 5, the multiplexer device 6, the constant temperature The tank 7 and the remote control signal output device 10 are selected by the GPIB address, and the configuration of the automatic evaluation device is selected so that the switching waveform measurement can be automatically performed as the evaluation of the components mounted on the PSU 12.

FIG. 10 shows a test condition setting screen 37 that is displayed when the test condition button 22 shown in FIG. 3 is selected. By making necessary inputs on this screen 37, the automatic operation of this embodiment is performed. Settings such as evaluation items and test conditions for automatic evaluation by the evaluation device 1 are stored in a memory in the control device 11. After the setting is completed, the automatic evaluation of the PSU 12 can be started.
Here, processing executed by the control device 11 to realize the above-described setting input operation will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. Note that the processing described below is realized by the CPU 51 of the control device 11 executing a program stored in the ROM 52.
In this case, the control device 11 displays the initial setting screen 20 as shown in FIG. 3 in step S1. In subsequent step S2, it is determined whether or not the specification creation button 21 on the initial setting screen 20 has been operated. If an affirmative result is obtained in step S2, the process proceeds to step S3 to display a specification setting screen as shown in FIGS. If it is determined in step S4 that the update button has been operated, the PSU specification setting is stored in the memory in the control device 11 in step S5, and the process proceeds to step S14.
On the other hand, when a negative result is obtained in step S2, the process proceeds to step S6 to determine whether or not the GPIB setting button 25 on the initial setting screen 20 has been operated. If a positive result is obtained in step S6, the process proceeds to step S7 to display a GPIB setting screen 36 as shown in FIG. 9, for example. If it is determined in step S8 that the update button 36a has been operated, in step S9, the GPIB setting is stored in the memory in the control device 11, and the process proceeds to step S14.
If a negative result is obtained in step S6, the process proceeds to step S10 to determine whether or not the test condition setting button 22 on the initial setting screen 20 has been operated. If a positive result is obtained in step S10, the process proceeds to step S11, and a test condition setting screen 37 as shown in FIG. 10, for example, is displayed. If it is determined in step S12 that the update button 37a has been operated, the test condition is stored in the memory in the control device 11 in step S13, and the process proceeds to step S14.
In step S14, it is determined whether or not the start button 23 of the initial setting screen 20 has been operated. If an affirmative result is obtained in step S14, the process proceeds to step S15 to execute a test process to be described later and finish the process. It will be.
If a negative result is obtained in step S14, the process returns to step S2 to perform processing.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an example of the evaluation test process described above.
In this case, in step S21, the control device 11 automatically checks whether there is an evaluation item that cannot be implemented with the selected automatic evaluation device configuration, and whether there is a mistake in the configuration of the automatic evaluation device. Then, the process proceeds to step S22.
In step S22, a simple inspection is performed to determine whether the design quality of the PSU 12 is a design quality level worthy of evaluation. As a simple inspection, for example, an inspection of the output voltage level of the PSU 12 can be considered. Then, in the subsequent step 23, the result of the simple inspection is determined, and if a problem is detected as a result of the simple inspection, the process ends without performing the set evaluation test.
On the other hand, if no problem is detected in step S23 and the design quality of the PSU 12 is determined to be a design quality level worthy of evaluation, the process proceeds to step S23, where the temperature of the thermostatic chamber 7 in which the PSU 12 is set is the test environment temperature. Control to be When the temperature of the thermostatic chamber 7 reaches the test environment temperature, in step S25, an evaluation test is performed on an item selected from the various evaluation items set in advance. When the test for one evaluation item is completed, the data evaluated in step S26 is automatically saved in a prescribed format.
In the next step S27, it is determined whether or not all the tests at the set temperature have been completed. If all the tests have not been completed at the set temperature, the next test item is set in step S28. After that, the process returns to step S25 to perform processing. Such processing is performed until a positive result is obtained in step S27.
In step S27, when it is determined that the tests for all items have been completed at the set temperature, the process proceeds to step S29 to determine whether the test has been completed for all set environment temperatures. If the test is not completed at all the set environment temperatures in step S29, the thermostat 7 is set to the next test environment temperature in step S30, and then the process returns to step S25 to perform the process. Such processing is also performed until a positive result is obtained in step S29. Then, in step S29, when it is determined that the test is completed at all the set environmental temperatures, that is, when the evaluation items under all the environmental conditions of the set PSU 12 are completed, the evaluation test process is ended.

As described above, the automatic evaluation apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention performs not only the evaluation of the output characteristics of the PSU 12 but also the evaluation of environmental characteristics, reliability evaluation, safety evaluation, and the like. . Therefore, if the PSU 12 is automatically evaluated based on these measurement results, it is possible to efficiently evaluate environmental characteristics, reliability, safety, etc. without relying on human hands as in the prior art. In addition, erroneous evaluation due to human error can be prevented.
In addition, since it is easy to determine whether or not the evaluation level should be evaluated before performing the reliability evaluation of the PSU 12, for example, it is possible to reduce the implementation of an evaluation test of a DC power supply device with a low degree of completion. Therefore, the evaluation test of the PSU 12 can be performed efficiently and in a short time compared to the conventional automatic evaluation apparatus.
Furthermore, since the conventional automatic evaluation device for PSU occupies a measuring device that is not required for the set evaluation item as a component device of the automatic evaluation device, it has not been used efficiently from the viewpoint of the device. The automatic evaluation device according to the first embodiment is characterized by selecting a device required for the set evaluation item and determining the device configuration of the automatic evaluation device. In comparison, a measuring apparatus that is not used can effectively use the equipment as a measuring apparatus that is used for another purpose.
Furthermore, it is of course possible to perform many evaluations such as environmental characteristic evaluation, reliability evaluation, safety evaluation, etc. in the evaluation by the conventional automatic evaluation apparatus, but it is also recommended that many evaluation samples be evaluated. ing. For this reason, for example, when an evaluation of a new evaluation sample is performed after the evaluation test of one evaluation sample is completed in the environmental test, the time until the constant temperature bath 7 reaches the specified temperature for starting the test again for environmental evaluation. It is inefficient to wait. Also, in environmental characteristic evaluation, it is very inefficient and requires a long evaluation time to repeatedly perform the evaluation test by setting the environmental temperature to a specified temperature by the thermostat 7 for each evaluation test. It was.

  On the other hand, in the automatic evaluation apparatus as the first embodiment, the order of the environmental temperatures for the evaluation can be arbitrarily set. Moreover, not only can the evaluation test items be evaluated, but also the environmental temperature evaluation test can be performed, so that the number of changes of the environmental temperature in the thermostat 7 is minimized, and the time for leaving the specified environment by changing the test sample of the PSU 12 ( Exposure time) can be reduced as much as possible. In addition, if the evaluation test can be performed at the same environmental temperature even for various types of evaluation tests with different conditions, it is possible to reduce the time required for the evaluation and increase the efficiency by performing the evaluation while giving priority to the environmental temperature. become.

Next, an automatic evaluation apparatus as a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an automatic evaluation apparatus as the second embodiment. The same parts as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.
In the automatic evaluation apparatus shown in FIG. 13, the control apparatus 11 downloads various specifications of the PSU 12 from the data file describing the specifications of the PSU 12 from the network 13. For example, it is conceivable to download the specifications of the PSU 12 from a LOTUS NOTES data file as shown in FIG.
Next, the setting input operation of the automatic evaluation apparatus according to the second embodiment will be described using the flowchart shown in FIG. Note that the processing described below is also realized by the CPU 51 of the control device 11 executing a program stored in the ROM 52. The same processes as those shown in FIG. 11 are given the same step numbers, and the description thereof is omitted. Although not shown, in the second embodiment, it is assumed that a download button is provided on the specification setting screen.
Also in this case, the control device 11 displays the initial setting screen 20 in step S1. Then, in the subsequent step S2, it is determined whether or not the specification creation button 21 on the initial setting screen 20 has been operated, and when it is determined that it has been operated, the specification setting screen is displayed. In subsequent step S41, it is determined whether or not the specification setting of the PSU 12 is downloaded from the database. Here, for example, when the download button on the specification setting screen is clicked, the process proceeds to step S42, the specification of the PSU 12 is downloaded from the database, and the process proceeds to step S14. On the other hand, if the download button on the specification setting screen is not clicked and another input operation is performed, it is determined that the download from the database is not performed, and the process proceeds to step S4, and the steps after step S4 described in FIG. Processing will be executed. The process illustrated in FIG. 15 is merely an example, and various processes for downloading from the database can be considered.

Therefore, according to the automatic evaluation apparatus as the second embodiment of the present invention, the control device 11 can download the specifications of the PSU 12 from the data file in which various specifications of the PSU 12 are recorded via the network 13. This eliminates the need for manual input settings, thereby preventing erroneous manual input settings. As a result, the evaluation can be further shortened and erroneous determination can be prevented as compared with a conventional automatic evaluation apparatus.
Also in the automatic evaluation apparatus according to the second embodiment, a measurement apparatus that is not used as compared with the conventional automatic evaluation apparatus can effectively use the equipment as a measurement apparatus used for another purpose.
Furthermore, it is of course possible to perform many evaluations such as environmental characteristic evaluation, reliability evaluation, safety evaluation, etc. in the evaluation by the conventional automatic evaluation apparatus, but it is also recommended that many evaluation samples be evaluated. ing. For this reason, for example, when an evaluation of a new evaluation sample is performed after the evaluation test of one evaluation sample is completed in the environmental test, the time until the constant temperature bath 7 reaches the specified temperature for starting the test again for environmental evaluation. It is inefficient to wait. Further, in the environmental characteristic evaluation, it is very inefficient and requires a long evaluation time to repeatedly perform the evaluation test by setting the environmental temperature to a prescribed temperature by the thermostat 7 for each evaluation test.
On the other hand, in the automatic evaluation apparatus as the second embodiment, the order of the environmental temperatures for the evaluation can be arbitrarily set. Moreover, not only can the evaluation test items be evaluated, but also the environmental temperature evaluation test can be performed, so that the number of changes of the environmental temperature in the thermostat 7 is minimized, and the time for leaving the specified environment by changing the test sample of the PSU 12 ( Exposure time) can be reduced as much as possible. In addition, if the evaluation test can be performed at the same environmental temperature even for various types of evaluation tests with different conditions, it is possible to reduce the time required for the evaluation and increase the efficiency by performing the evaluation while giving priority to the environmental temperature. become.

Next, the program structure of the automatic evaluation apparatus of the present embodiment described so far will be described.
FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a program structure of the automatic evaluation apparatus of this embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 16, the program is composed of a main program 41, a test item program 42, and 43 blocks of a control program for each measuring apparatus. In the main program 41, each test item is selected for the selected test item. The test is executed in accordance with the above conditions and test method and the control program of the selected measuring instrument.
In the test item program 42, test conditions and test methods are programmed for each test item. Further, in the control program 43 of the measuring apparatus, a control method is programmed for each measuring instrument.
Therefore, for example, when a new test item and measuring instrument are newly added, a new test can be easily added by adding the main program 41 to the block of the test item program 42 or the control program 43 of the measuring apparatus without changing the main program 41. Or, a new measuring instrument can be controlled.
As a result, in the conventional automatic evaluation apparatus, the configuration of the apparatus is fixed, and as a result, the evaluation items of the PSU are limited at the time of development. For this reason, it is difficult to add new evaluation items or meet the needs of new evaluations, and more capital investment and time are required when responding by developing new equipment.
On the other hand, in the automatic evaluation apparatus of the present embodiment, it is easy to add a device configuration of a new measurement apparatus, and new evaluation items can be easily added, so that it is possible to immediately respond to evaluation needs.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 17 is a block diagram of an automatic evaluation system according to the third embodiment of the present invention. The automatic evaluation system shown in FIG. 17 is configured by connecting two or more automatic evaluation apparatuses 1 shown in FIG. In addition, since the structure of each automatic evaluation apparatus 1-1, 1-2 ... 1-N is the same as FIG. 1, description is abbreviate | omitted here.
As described above, in the automatic evaluation system of this embodiment, two or more automatic evaluation apparatuses 1 are linked and the evaluation condition of the DC power supply device that is the object to be measured is shared. It is possible to improve the evaluation accuracy by performing reproducibility evaluation on whether the same failure occurs automatically with the other automatic evaluation device, and by sharing the evaluation items It is possible to efficiently perform the evaluation by selecting the evaluation items so that the evaluation execution items of the automatic evaluation apparatus linked with the automatic evaluation devices are not automatically duplicated from the evaluation items that have not been executed.
Here, the setting input operation in the automatic evaluation system will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. Note that the processing described below is realized by executing a program stored in the ROM 52 by the CPU 51 of the control device 11 of any one of the plurality of automatic evaluation devices 1.
Also in this case, the control device 11 displays the initial setting screen 20 as shown in FIG. 3 in step S51. In a subsequent step S52, it is determined whether or not the specification creation button 21 on the initial setting screen 20 has been operated. When an affirmative result is obtained in step S52, the process proceeds to step S53, and for example, a specification setting screen as shown in FIGS. 4 to 8 is displayed. If it is determined in step S54 that the update button has been operated, in step S55, the PSU specification setting is stored in the memory in the control device 11, and the process proceeds to step S64.

On the other hand, if a negative result is obtained in step S52, the process proceeds to step S56 to determine whether or not the GPIB setting button 25 on the initial setting screen 20 has been operated. If a positive result is obtained in step S56, the process proceeds to step S57 to display a GPIB setting screen 36 as shown in FIG. 9, for example. If it is determined in step S58 that the update button 36a has been operated, in step S59, the GPIB setting is stored in the memory in the control device 11, and the process proceeds to step S64.
If a negative result is obtained in step S56, the process proceeds to step S60 to determine whether or not the test condition setting button 22 on the initial setting screen 20 has been operated. If an affirmative result is obtained in step S60, the process proceeds to step S61 to display a test condition setting screen 37 as shown in FIG. 10, for example. If it is determined in the subsequent step S62 that the update button 37a has been operated, in the subsequent step S63, the test conditions are stored in the memory in the control device 11, and the process proceeds to step S64.
In step S64, when two or more automatic evaluation apparatuses 1 can be operated simultaneously, for example, it is determined whether or not two automatic evaluation apparatuses 1 are operated in conjunction with each other, and it is determined that the interlock mode is set. In such a case (Y in S64), the interlock mode is turned on (S65), and NO of the automatic evaluation apparatus 1 to be interlocked is input (S66).
Thereafter, the sample No. of the PSU 12 to be tested is input (S67), the test item of the PSU 12 is selected (S68), and the GPIB setting and the test item are checked for errors (S69). If there is no mistake, the evaluation test process is started (S71).
On the other hand, if a negative result is obtained in step S69, the selection is corrected (S71), and the process returns to step S68 to perform processing.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing an example of the evaluation test process shown in FIG.
In this case, in step S81, the control device 11 performs a simple inspection for determining whether the design quality of the PSU 12 is a design quality level worth performing an evaluation. As a simple inspection, for example, an inspection of the output voltage level of the PSU 12 can be considered. Then, in the subsequent step 82, the result of the simple inspection is determined, and if a problem is detected as a result of the simple inspection, the process ends without performing the set evaluation test.
On the other hand, if no problem is detected in step S82 and the design quality of the PSU 12 is determined to be a design quality level worthy of evaluation, the process proceeds to step S83, where it is determined whether or not the interlock mode is selected. If (N in S83), the process proceeds to step S84, and the temperature of the thermostatic chamber 7 in which the PSU 12 is set is controlled to be the test environment temperature. When the temperature of the thermostatic chamber 7 reaches the test environment temperature, in step S85, an evaluation test is performed on an item selected from the various evaluation items set in advance. When the test for one evaluation item is completed, the data evaluated in step S86 is automatically saved in a prescribed format.
Then, in the following step S87, it is determined whether or not all the tests at the set temperature have been completed. If all the tests have not been completed at the set temperature, the next test item is set in step S88. After that, the process returns to step S85 to perform the process. Such processing is performed until a positive result is obtained in step S87.
In step S87, when it is determined that the tests for all items have been completed at the set temperature, the process proceeds to step S89, where it is determined whether the tests have been completed for all set environment temperatures. If the test is not completed at all the set environment temperatures in step S89, the thermostat 7 is set to the next test environment temperature in step S90, and then the process returns to step S85 to perform the process. Such processing is also performed until a positive result is obtained in step S89. Then, in step S89, when it is determined that the test is completed at all the set environmental temperatures, that is, when the evaluation items under all the environmental conditions of the set PSU 12 are completed, the evaluation test process is ended.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S83 that the interlock mode is selected (Y in S83), the control device 11 performs setup and data storage processing of evaluation item data, evaluation execution item data, defect item data, and evaluation condition data (S91). ). Next, data transmission / reception with the designated automatic evaluation apparatus is performed (S92). If there is a defect item in the evaluation of the PSU 12 of the same model (Y in S93), the evaluation item is re-selected preferentially ( S94), an evaluation execution process is performed so that the evaluation can be performed under the same evaluation condition of the defect evaluation item.
First, control is performed so that the temperature of the thermostatic chamber 7 in which the PSU 12 is set becomes the test environment temperature by a control signal from the control device 11 (S95). When the temperature of the thermostatic chamber 7 reaches the test environment temperature, an evaluation test is performed on the next re-selected evaluation item in step S96. When the test for one evaluation item is completed, the data evaluated in step S97 is automatically saved in a prescribed format.
In step S98, it is determined whether or not the test has been completed at all the set environment temperatures. If the test has not been completed at all the set environment temperatures, the thermostat 7 is moved to the next test environment temperature in step S99. Then, the process returns to step S96 to perform processing. Such processing is also performed until a positive result is obtained in step S98. In step S98, when a positive result is obtained, the process returns to step S91 to perform processing.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S93 that there is no defect item (S93), the process proceeds to step S100, the efficiency-up test mode is performed, and the evaluation item with the automatic evaluation device selected in the interlocking mode in the subsequent step S101 A comparison process with the evaluation execution item is performed, and an evaluation item reselection process is performed (S102). Next, the thermostatic chamber 7 is controlled by the control signal from the control device 11 so as to become an environment for evaluation (S103), and the evaluation items reselected when the thermostatic chamber 7 reaches the set environment are evaluated. Implement (S104). When the test for one evaluation item is completed, the data evaluated in step S105 is automatically saved in a prescribed format.
In the subsequent step S106, it is determined whether or not all the tests at the set temperature have been completed. If the tests for all items have not been completed at the set temperature, the next test item is set in step S107. After that, the process returns to step S104 for processing. Such processing is performed until a positive result is obtained in step S106. In step S106, when it is determined that the tests for all items have been completed at the set temperature, the process proceeds to step S108, where it is determined whether the test has been completed for all set environment temperatures. If the test is not completed at all the set environment temperatures in step S108, the thermostat 7 is set to the next test environment temperature in step S109, and then the process returns to step S104 to perform the process. Such processing is also performed until a positive result is obtained in step S108. In step S108, when it is determined that the test is completed at all the set environmental temperatures, that is, when the evaluation items under all the environmental conditions of the set PSU 12 are completed, the evaluation test process is ended.

Next, the program structure of the automatic evaluation apparatus according to the third embodiment will be described.
FIG. 20 is a diagram showing a program structure of the automatic evaluation apparatus of the third embodiment. The same blocks as those in FIG. 16 are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.
As shown in FIG. 20, the program is composed of blocks of a main program 41, a test item program 42, and a control program 43 for each measuring apparatus, and a program 44 for automatic evaluation interlocking control.
According to such an automatic evaluation system of the present embodiment, the automatic evaluation apparatus of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1 not only evaluates output characteristics, but also evaluates environmental characteristics, evaluates reliability, and evaluates safety. Judgment of whether or not it is possible to perform the evaluation and whether or not the evaluation should be performed before the reliability evaluation of the PSU is automatically determined by a simple test before the test, thereby reducing the unnecessary evaluation. On the other hand, in the automatic evaluation system of the third embodiment, two or more automatic evaluation devices are linked to share the PSU evaluation items, so that the automatic evaluation device can be linked even during an evaluation test. Since the evaluation execution items can be automatically selected so as not to overlap, the evaluation period can be further shortened. In addition, by sharing the PSU evaluation conditions, a reproducibility evaluation is performed to determine whether a failure that occurred in the evaluation of one automatic evaluation device will automatically occur in the other automatic evaluation device. By doing so, the evaluation accuracy can be improved.
In the automatic evaluation apparatus of the present embodiment described so far, the DC power supply device has been described as an example of the object to be measured. However, it goes without saying that the object to be measured may be other than the DC power supply apparatus. In addition, the measuring device provided in the evaluation device of this embodiment is merely an example, and the type of the measuring device can be arbitrarily set depending on the object to be measured. However, when evaluating a DC power supply device, an evaluation device that can reliably evaluate the environmental characteristics, reliability, safety, etc. of various DC power supply devices when the evaluation device is configured as in this embodiment. Can be realized.

The block diagram which showed the structure of the automatic evaluation apparatus as the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The block diagram which showed the hardware constitutions of the control apparatus. The figure which showed an example of the initial setting screen displayed on the monitor screen of a control apparatus. The figure which showed an example of the operating environment temperature / humidity setting screen which sets the operating environment temperature / humidity of PSU. The figure which showed an example of the input power supply setting screen which sets the input power supply of PSU. The figure which showed an example of the PSU output voltage setting screen which sets the output voltage of PSU. The figure which showed an example of the PSU output current setting screen which sets the output current of PSU. The figure which showed an example of the other setting screen. The figure which showed an example of the GPIB setting screen. The figure which showed an example of the test condition setting screen. The flowchart which showed the process for performing the setting input operation | movement which concerns on 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which showed the evaluation test process which concerns on 1st Embodiment. The block diagram which showed the structure of the automatic evaluation apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. The figure which showed an example of the data file. The flowchart for performing the setting input operation | movement which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. The figure which showed the program structure of the automatic evaluation apparatus of 1st, 2nd embodiment. The block diagram which the automatic evaluation system which concerns on 3rd Embodiment comprised. The flowchart which showed the process for performing the setting input operation | movement which concerns on 3rd Embodiment. The flowchart which showed the evaluation test process which concerns on 3rd Embodiment. The figure which showed the program structure of the automatic evaluation apparatus of 3rd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Automatic evaluation apparatus, 2 AC stabilization power supply apparatus, 3 DC electronic load apparatus, 4 AC watt meter, 5 Digital oscilloscope apparatus, 6 Multiplexer apparatus, 7 Constant temperature bath, 8 Insulation resistance apparatus, 9 Optical isolation apparatus, 10 Remote control Signal output device, 11 Control device, 12 Device under test, 13 Network, 20 Initial setting screen, 21 Specification creation button, 22 Test condition button, 23 Start button, 24 Environment priority button, 25 GPIB setting button, 26 EXIT button, 27 Window, 28 29 display area, 30 input area

Claims (9)

  In the evaluation apparatus for measuring the input voltage of the device under test and the output voltage characteristics under the set load conditions and evaluating the properties of the device under test, the input / output characteristics, environmental characteristics, reliability, A plurality of measuring devices for measuring safety, a thermostatic chamber that gives a necessary environmental condition to the object to be measured, and input / output characteristics of the object to be measured with respect to the plurality of measuring devices and the thermostat Control means for performing control for carrying out measurement of environmental characteristics, reliability, and safety, and the control means performs measurement related to input / output characteristics, environmental characteristics, reliability, and safety of the object to be measured. An evaluation apparatus characterized in that the measurement object is automatically evaluated based on the measurement results.   2. The evaluation device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit performs simple measurement of the measurement object before performing measurement related to input / output characteristics, environmental characteristics, reliability, and safety of the measurement object. Characteristic evaluation device.   3. The evaluation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of measuring devices include AC stabilized power supply means for supplying an AC voltage to the device under test, and direct current for controlling an output current from the device under test. Electronic load means; AC power calculation means for calculating power supplied from the AC stabilized power supply means to the device under test; and input current and input voltage supplied from the AC stabilized power supply means to the device under test. Waveform measuring means for measuring the waveform of the output voltage and output current output from the object to be measured, multiplexer means for taking in the waveform measured by the waveform measuring means, and withstand voltage / insulation resistance of the object to be measured An evaluation apparatus comprising: an insulation resistance means for measuring the measurement value; and an insulation means for insulating the object to be measured from a measurement system ground.   The evaluation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the control means can download a data file in which various specifications of the device under test are recorded via a network. Evaluation device.   5. The evaluation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit can arbitrarily set a measurement order of the object to be measured for each set temperature of the thermostat. 6.   6. The evaluation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the object to be measured is a direct current power supply device.   An evaluation system comprising a plurality of the evaluation devices according to claim 1 in conjunction with each other.   A program of an evaluation apparatus that performs control for performing measurement of an arbitrary evaluation item on an object to be measured, comprising a main program, a test item program, and a control program of the measurement apparatus program.   9. The program according to claim 8, further comprising a program for evaluation device linkage control.

Images