JP2006162572A - Impedance measuring apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an impedance measuring apparatus capable of measuring a wide range of impedances, by providing a capacitor with low capacity. <P>SOLUTION: An impedance element 1 with certain impedance and a capacitor 2 are connected, and the capacitor 2 is charged, by applying a negative constant DC voltage to the connected circuit. When the terminal voltage of the capacitor 2 reaches a positive threshold voltage, the capacitor 2 is discharged, by applying a positive constant DC voltage. When the terminal voltage of the capacitor 2 reaches 0 volt, the capacitor 2 is charged again by applying the negative constant dc voltage. The charging/discharging times are measured by a counter 5, and the impedance of the impedance element is determined by the measured values of a calculator 20. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an impedance measuring apparatus, and more particularly to an impedance measuring apparatus that can measure a wide range of impedances with high accuracy by providing one low-capacitance capacitor.

  Conventionally, an impedance measuring device that measures variables such as temperature, humidity, and wind speed in an environment where the device is used has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this type of impedance measuring apparatus, it is required to maintain high accuracy at low cost.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram for explaining a conventional impedance measuring device, in which reference numeral 51 is a pulse counter, 52 is a CPU, 53 is a humidity sensor, 54 is a pulse generator, and 55a and 55b are clocks of the pulse counter 51. Oscillators for generating signals, 56a and 56b are analog switches, 101 and 102 are transistors, 202, 203 and 204 are capacitors, and 301 is a comparator.

  First, a 2-bit signal is output from the CPU 52 to the analog switch 56a to determine the capacitor to be measured as the capacitor 202 (capacitor 202 if "00", capacitor 203 if "01", capacitor 204 if "10", Capacitors 202, 203, and 204 are 9100PF, 22PF, and 0.91 μF, respectively). Also, a 1-bit signal is output to the analog switch 56b to determine the counter clock as the output of the oscillator 55a (if “0”, standard) A clock oscillator 55a, and if it is "1", a high frequency oscillator 55b).

  When a pulse generation command is output from the CPU 52 to the pulse generator 54, an AC voltage is applied to the point b through the transistors 101 and 102. At the same time, it is applied to the humidity sensor 53 and the capacitor 202 (the DC voltage is applied to the humidity sensor continuously for several hundred ms or more, so the humidity sensor is rapidly deteriorated. ing.).

  After switching the point b to 0V, the CPU 52 outputs a signal for stopping the pulse generation and a start signal to the counter 51. Then, the transistors 101 and 102 are both turned off, and + 1V is applied to the series circuit of the humidity sensor 53 and the capacitor 202. The capacitor 202 starts charging, and when the potential becomes the same as Vref, the comparator 301 outputs an “H” signal. Is output to the counter 51 (a voltage corresponding to Vref is generated at the point c by resistance voltage division), and the operation of the counter 51 is stopped. Simultaneously with the above operation, the time after the start signal is output to the counter 51 is counted by the counter in the CPU 52. Then, the count value is sent to the CPU 52, and the time t until the charging voltage of the capacitor 202 reaches Vref is measured.

  Here, if the charging time t is in the range of 10 mS to 100 μS, the resistance value and the actual humidity value of the humidity sensor 53 are a certain linear function R (t) = αt + β (R Is the resistance value of the humidity sensor, and α and β are constants).

  The actual humidity can be obtained by a certain function F (R (t)) with R (t) as a variable. This process is performed inside the CPU 52.

  The measurement method described above is completed when the humidity of the environmental conditions is a medium humidity range (approximately 20% to 60%), but when the humidity is about 20% or more, the resistance value of the humidity sensor 53 is several tens of MΩ and GΩ. The charging time becomes 10 mS or more because it becomes an order, and when the DC voltage is continuously applied to the humidity sensor 53 for several hundreds mS or more, rapid deterioration occurs. Therefore, the charging time measured by the counter in the CPU 52 becomes 10 mS or more. At the moment, a pulse generation signal is sent from the CPU 52 to the pulse generator 54, a count stop signal is sent to the counter 51, and a capacitor selection signal “01” is sent to the analog switch 56a to select the capacitor 203 (22PF).

  Thereafter, as in the case described above, the charging time of the capacitor 203 is obtained, and the resistance value and actual humidity of the humidity sensor 53 are obtained. If the humidity is about 60% or less, the resistance value of the humidity sensor 53 is on the order of several KΩ and several tens of KΩ, and the charging time is 100 μS or less. Therefore, the accuracy of the count value of the counter 51 is affected. A pulse generation signal is sent from the pulse generator 54 to the analog switch 56a and a capacitance selection signal “10” is sent to the analog switch 56a to select the capacitance 204 (0.91 μF).

  Thereafter, the charging time of the capacitor 204 is obtained, and the resistance value of the humidity sensor 53 and the actual humidity are obtained. Further, if the charging time of the capacitor 204 (0.91 μF) is 100 μS or less, in order to improve the measurement accuracy, a 1-bit counter clock selection signal “1” is output to the analog switch 56 b to increase the clock frequency, The charging time of the capacitor 204 is obtained again, and the resistance value of the humidity sensor 53 and the actual humidity are obtained.

  According to such a conventional technique, the humidity range to be measured is divided into at least three types of ranges, and the combination of the humidity sensor and the capacity is also provided according to the number of divisions, and the combination is switched according to the humidity range. Expands the measurable humidity range.

  In addition, since the capacitor is switched from a medium capacity to a small capacity to a large capacity, generally, the measurement can be completed in a short time, and the element accuracy of the humidity sensor can be avoided and the measurement accuracy can be maintained.

  In addition, there are Patent Documents 2 to 6 as other prior art related to the present invention.

JP-A-6-221882 JP-A-5-149905 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-12768 JP 7-270355 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-311169 JP 2004-309501 A

  However, there is still room for further improvement in order to realize an impedance measuring device that can maintain high accuracy at low cost. That is, as a conventional technique for measuring impedance with high accuracy in a wide range as described above, for example, there is a method of switching a plurality of capacitors having different capacities depending on the magnitude of impedance (see Patent Document 1). In the conventional method, a high-capacitance capacitor is required to measure low impedance, and as a result, there is a problem that a measuring device cannot be realized at low cost.

  Further, as a search means using a lookup table, for example, there is a method as described in Patent Document 1 as described above. However, in this conventional method, the capacity of the storage device increases when attempting to increase the measurement accuracy. Therefore, there is a problem that the cost becomes high.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an impedance measuring apparatus capable of measuring a wide range of impedances with high accuracy by providing one low-capacitance capacitor. There is to do.

  The present invention has been made to achieve such an object. The invention according to claim 1 is an impedance element having a predetermined impedance to be measured, and is connected in series to the impedance element. A capacitor, first DC voltage generating means for charging the capacitor by applying a negative constant DC voltage to a circuit comprising the impedance element and the capacitor, and the terminal voltage of the capacitor becomes a positive threshold voltage. Second DC voltage generating means for discharging the capacitor by applying a positive constant DC voltage when the voltage reaches, and when the terminal voltage of the capacitor reaches 0 volts, the first DC voltage generating means again makes the negative constant voltage again. Counting means for charging the capacitor by applying a DC voltage and measuring the charge / discharge time, and the impedance from the measured value by the counting means. And an arithmetic means for calculating the impedance of the dance element, by the charging and discharging times variable, characterized in that to allow measuring the impedance of the wide range.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, characterized in that the capacitor is provided with one low-capacitance capacitor.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the invention, when the impedance of the impedance element is measured, the current flowing through the measurement object is set to be positive and negative, and the positive current flows. An average value when a negative current flows is measured.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the invention of the first, second, or third aspect, in order to measure the impedance without destroying the impedance element, a direct current flowing through the impedance element during measurement is averaged. Then, it is characterized by being set to 0.

  The invention according to claim 5 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the counting means includes a charge / discharge counter and a measurement counter, and values of the charge / discharge counter and the measurement counter are set. To a lookup table stored in a storage means constituting the calculation means.

  The invention according to claim 6 is characterized in that, in the invention according to claim 5, each point of the discrete lookup table is approximated by a linear operation.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, a comparison means for comparing a charging voltage value of the capacitor and a threshold voltage is provided before the counting means. It is characterized by that.

  The invention described in claim 8 is characterized in that, in the invention described in claim 7, a positive constant DC voltage from the second DC power supply is used instead of the threshold voltage of the comparison means. To do.

  As described above, the impedance measuring apparatus of the present invention connects an impedance element having a certain impedance and a capacitor, applies a negative constant DC voltage to the circuit to charge the capacitor, and sets the capacitor terminal voltage to be positive. When the threshold voltage is reached, a positive constant DC voltage is applied to discharge the capacitor. When the capacitor terminal voltage reaches 0 volts, the negative constant DC voltage is applied again to charge the capacitor. The measurement is performed by the counting means, and the impedance of the impedance element is obtained from the measured value by the computing means.

  When a positive or negative DC voltage is applied to an impedance element with impedance to charge / discharge the capacitor. When the impedance of the impedance element is large, the current flowing through the impedance element is very small, so the charge / discharge time of the capacitor is long. Become. At this time, one charge / discharge time is measured by the measurement counter. When the impedance is small, the current flowing through the impedance element is increased and the charge / discharge time of the capacitor is shortened. Therefore, the measurement accuracy by the counter is deteriorated. For this reason, when the impedance is small, charge / discharge is repeated until the total charge / discharge time becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined counter value (for example, 32 counts or more), and this charge / discharge time is measured with a measurement counter for high accuracy. Can be measured.

  Further, by making the number of times of charging and discharging variable, a wide range of impedances can be measured with high accuracy. For example, even an impedance element whose impedance changes exponentially from several kΩ to several hundred MEGΩ can be measured with high accuracy.

  According to the present invention, when an impedance element having a certain impedance is connected to a capacitor, a negative constant DC voltage is applied to the circuit to charge the capacitor, and when the terminal voltage of the capacitor reaches a positive threshold voltage, Apply a positive constant DC voltage to discharge the capacitor, and when the capacitor terminal voltage reaches 0 volts, apply a negative constant DC voltage again to charge the capacitor, measure this charge / discharge time with a counting means, Since the impedance of the impedance element is obtained from the measured value by the calculating means, an impedance measuring device that can measure a wide range of impedance with high accuracy can be realized by providing one low-capacitance capacitor.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram for explaining an embodiment 1 of the impedance measuring apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a diagram showing signal waveforms of the circuit configuration in FIG. In the figure, reference numeral 1 is an impedance element to be measured, 2 is a capacitor, 3 is a first DC power source that generates a negative constant DC voltage, 4 is a second DC power source that generates a positive constant DC voltage, Charge / discharge number counter, 6 is a controller, 7 is a storage device (ROM), 8 is a measurement counter, 9 is a measurement clock generator, 10 is an operational amplifier, 11 to 16 are first to sixth analog switches SW1 to SW6. , 17 are comparators, 18 is a threshold voltage generating power source, and 20 is an arithmetic unit.

  The impedance device of the present invention applies a negative constant DC voltage to an impedance element 1 having a predetermined impedance, a capacitor 2 connected in series to the impedance element 1, and a circuit comprising the impedance element 1 and the capacitor 2. A first DC power supply 3 for charging the capacitor 2; a second DC power supply 4 for discharging the capacitor by applying a positive constant DC voltage when the terminal voltage of the capacitor 2 reaches a positive threshold voltage; When the terminal voltage of 2 reaches 0 volts, a negative constant DC voltage is applied again by the first DC power supply 3 to charge the capacitor 2, and a counter 5 for measuring the charge / discharge time is measured. It is comprised from the arithmetic unit 20 which calculates the impedance of the impedance element 1 from a value.

  The arithmetic unit 20 includes a controller 6 connected to the charge / discharge counter 5, a storage device 7 connected to the controller 6, a measurement counter 8 connected to the controller 6, and the measurement The measurement clock generator 9 is connected to the counter 8. The analog switches SW1 to SW6 are controlled by the controller 6.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the impedance measuring apparatus according to the first embodiment.

  First, a control signal is output from the controller 6 to the analog switches SW1 to SW6, SW1, SW2, and SW6 are turned off, and SW3, SW4, and SW5 are turned on. At the same time, the charge / discharge counter value and the measurement counter value are set to 0 (S1). At this time, the circuit is in a non-measurement state. Thereafter, the circuit transits to the measurement state, and when the controller 6 turns off SW3 and SW4 and turns on SW1 (S2), a negative DC voltage is applied to point A as shown in FIG. A positive constant direct current flows through the impedance element 1, and the capacitor 2 is charged (S3). At this time, the measurement counter 8 is counted by a clock (measurement clock generator 9) faster than the time constant for charging and discharging the capacitor 2.

  At the moment when the charging voltage value (point C) of the capacitor 2 becomes equal to the threshold voltage given to the negative input side (point B) of the comparator 17, an “H” signal is output from the comparator 17 (S4). The controller 6 turns off SW1 and SW5, and turns on SW2 and SW6 (S5). Then, since a positive DC voltage is applied to the point A, a negative constant DC current flows through the impedance element 1 to be measured, and the capacitor 2 is discharged (S6). Then, at the moment when the charging voltage value (C point) of the capacitor 2 becomes 0 Volt applied to the negative input side (B point) of the comparator 17, an "L" signal is output from the comparator 17 (S7), and charging / discharging 1 is added to the counter value (S8).

  If the measurement counter value is smaller than a threshold value (for example, 32) (S9), the controller 6 turns off SW2 and SW6, turns on SW1 and SW5, and repeats the charge / discharge operation of the capacitor 2 again (S10). When the measurement counter value is larger than a threshold value (for example, 32) (S9), the controller 6 turns off SW1, SW2, and SW6, and turns on SW3, SW4, and SW5 (S11), and the controller 6 measures the charge / discharge counter value. The impedance is obtained by linear calculation with reference to the counter value and the lookup table stored in the storage device 7 as shown in FIG. 4 (S12).

  Specifically, first, (measurement counter value ÷ charge / discharge counter value) is compared with address 01 of the lookup table of the storage device 7, and (measurement counter value ÷ charge / discharge counter value)> (data at address 01) ) Is compared with the data at address 02. In this way, the comparison is made while changing the address of the lookup table, and when the address P is (measurement counter value ÷ charge / discharge counter value) <(lookup table data), the controller 6 determines the address (P−1). ) The impedance is obtained by linearly interpolating the data of the address and the address P.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram for explaining a second embodiment of the impedance measuring apparatus according to the present invention. Components having the same functions as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals. The difference from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 is that the point B which is the threshold voltage of the comparator 17 is connected to the second DC power source 4 that generates a positive DC voltage via SW5. The signal waveform diagram, the flowchart, and the look-up table stored in the recording apparatus are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  In the second embodiment, SW5 is connected to the second DC power supply 4, and the threshold voltage generating power supply 18 of the comparator 17 is eliminated, and a positive constant DC voltage applied to the impedance element 1 to be measured is used. It is a feature. For this reason, an impedance measuring device can be provided at a lower cost than in the first embodiment.

It is a block diagram for demonstrating Example 1 of the impedance measuring apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows each signal waveform of the circuit structure in FIG. It is a figure which shows the flowchart for demonstrating operation | movement of the impedance measuring apparatus of Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the look-up table stored in the memory | storage device. It is a block diagram for demonstrating Example 2 of the impedance measuring apparatus of this invention. It is a block diagram for demonstrating the conventional impedance measuring apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Impedance element to be measured 2 Capacitor 3 First DC power source 4 that generates a negative constant DC voltage Second DC power source 5 that generates a positive constant DC voltage 5 Charge / discharge counter 6 Controller 7 Storage device (ROM)
8 Counter for Measurement 9 Clock Generator for Measurement 10 Operational Amplifiers 11 to 16 First to Sixth Analog Switches SW1 to SW6
17 Comparator 18 Threshold Voltage Generating Power Supply 20 Arithmetic Unit

Claims (8)

  Charge the capacitor by applying a negative constant DC voltage to an impedance element to be measured having a predetermined impedance, a capacitor connected in series to the impedance element, and a circuit including the impedance element and the capacitor. First DC voltage generating means, second DC voltage generating means for discharging the capacitor by applying a positive constant DC voltage when the terminal voltage of the capacitor reaches a positive threshold voltage, and the capacitor When the terminal voltage reaches 0 volts, the first DC voltage generating means applies a negative constant DC voltage again to charge the capacitor, and the counting means measures the charge / discharge time, and the counting means Calculation means for calculating the impedance of the impedance element from the measured value, and making the number of charge / discharge cycles variable. In the impedance measuring device being characterized in that to allow measuring the impedance of the wide range.   The impedance measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the capacitor is provided with one low-capacitance capacitor.   3. The impedance value of the impedance element is measured by measuring an average value when a positive current flows and a negative current when the current flowing through the measurement target is bidirectional between positive and negative. The impedance measuring apparatus described.   4. The impedance measurement according to claim 1, wherein the direct current flowing through the impedance element is averaged to be zero during measurement in order to measure the impedance without destroying the impedance element. apparatus.   The counting means includes a charge / discharge counter and a measurement counter, and searches a lookup table stored in a storage means constituting the calculation means from values of the charge / discharge counter and the measurement counter. The impedance measuring apparatus according to claim 1.   The impedance measuring apparatus according to claim 5, wherein each point of the discrete lookup table is approximated by a linear operation.   7. The impedance measuring apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a comparison unit that compares a charging voltage value of the capacitor and a threshold voltage before the counting unit.   8. The impedance measuring apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a positive constant DC voltage from the second DC power supply is used in place of the threshold voltage of the comparison means.

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