JP2009017710A - Wireless relay and control method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a specified small power wireless relay 10 driven by a commercial power source and available during power failure in a disaster or the like, and easily maintained. <P>SOLUTION: This relay includes a lithium ion secondary battery 13. During non-power failure, a power feed switching relay 43 is set to the first switching position, and a communication-control circuit 11 is driven by DC voltage from an AC adapter 42 which is converted to DC from AC. When potential of a positive side terminal 39 lowers, charge IC12 turns on a switching transistor 46 to charge a secondary battery 13 by the output of the AC adapter 42. During power failure, the power feed switching relay 43 is set to the second switching position, and the communication-control circuit 11 is driven by power from the secondary battery 13. The communication-control circuit 11 measures the time that the secondary battery 13 is mounted at all times with a counter based on voltage of a temperature terminal 41. The communication-control circuit 11 transmitting a beep sound indicating battery runout in the communication signal being relayed when determining that the run-out of the battery based on the count time. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless repeater equipped with a backup secondary battery used during a power failure and a control method.

  The specific low-power radio repeater is mainly used for communication in factories, stores, and facilities, and there is a demand to use it for emergency communication even in the event of a power failure due to a disaster or the like.

Patent Document 1 discloses a built-in secondary battery charge control device equipped in a mobile terminal. The charging control device measures the charging time from the start of charging to the end of charging of the built-in secondary battery, and compares the charge time with that of the built-in secondary battery when it is new. (Patent Document 1, paragraph 0039 and FIG. 3). In the charging control device, the battery life of the built-in secondary battery is displayed on the liquid crystal display of the mobile terminal in blue, green, red, or the like corresponding thereto (paragraph 0059 of Patent Document 1). It is disclosed that the image is displayed on the display unit with a pictographic blinking interval mark (paragraphs 0064 and 0065 of Patent Document 1) or notified with a warning sound associated therewith (paragraph 0067 of Patent Document 1).
JP 2004-193003 A

  In order to make the specified low-power wireless repeater usable for emergency communication in the event of a power failure, a secondary battery and a battery charger are built in the repeater, and the secondary battery is used when using a normal AC commercial power supply. May be charged and the power of the secondary battery may be used during a power failure. However, because the repeater is installed in a place where the user's eyes cannot easily reach, such as the ceiling or the upper part of the wall, the monitoring becomes insufficient and the secondary battery is not aware of the end of its life. Replacement of the secondary battery may be delayed, the secondary battery may not be used in an emergency, or the secondary battery that has reached the end of its life may be left too much to leak.

  Since Patent Document 1 displays or emits sound from the display or speaker of the mobile terminal when the secondary battery of the mobile terminal carried by the user is expired, the user can quickly expire the secondary battery. However, when it is applied as a notification of the end of life in a wireless repeater that is away from the user or in a place where it is difficult to see, it is easy to miss or miss it.

  An object of the present invention is to provide wireless relay capable of accurately notifying a user of the end of the life of a secondary battery for backup even if the device is disposed in a place that is difficult to see, such as a place that is difficult to see from a user or a place that is far away. And providing a control method.

  According to the present invention, the battery life of the backup secondary battery is detected based on the mounting time of the backup secondary battery, and the sound related to the detected battery life information is included in the communication signal being relayed. The sound related to the battery life information is, for example, a beep sound or a voice that conveys the battery life information. A specific method for including the detected voice of the battery life information in the communication signal being relayed is, for example, superimposing the voice signal of the battery life information on the voice signal in the communication signal being relayed, To interrupt the signal or replace it with the audio signal.

The wireless repeater of the present invention includes a backup secondary battery that is charged by power from an external power source, operates during the power supply period from the external power source, and is not powered from the external power source. The period is activated by the power from the backup secondary battery. The wireless repeater of the present invention includes the following.
Battery life detecting means for detecting the battery life of the secondary battery for backup, and communication signal relay means for including a voice related to the detected battery life information in the communication signal being relayed.

A wireless repeater to which the wireless repeater control method of the present invention is applied includes a backup secondary battery that is charged by electric power from an external power supply, and a power supply period from the external power supply is operated by electric power from the external power supply. In the non-power supply period from the external power source, the power is supplied from the backup secondary battery. The radio repeater control method of the present invention includes the following steps.
A step of detecting a battery life of the backup secondary battery, and a step of including a sound relating to the detected battery life information in a communication signal being relayed.

  According to the present invention, the battery life of the backup secondary battery is detected based on the mounting time of the backup secondary battery, and the sound related to the detected battery life information is included in the communication signal being relayed. In this way, information regarding the battery life of the secondary battery for backup is immediately transmitted to the user of the receiving wireless communication device that is making a call by relay communication, so the wireless repeater is installed in a place where it is difficult to see or in a remote place. Even so, the user can quickly know battery life information such as the end of the life of the backup secondary battery.

  FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a main part of a specific low-power radio repeater 10. The specific low-power wireless repeater 10 is used in a specific power wireless communication system for communication in factories, stores, and facilities, and is deployed in an empty space such as a ceiling or an upper wall surface of the facility. The specific low power wireless repeater 10 includes a communication / control circuit 11, a charging IC 12, and a lithium ion secondary battery 13.

  The communication / control circuit 11 is connected to an antenna 17, a reset switch 18, a light emitting diode 19 for transmission, and a light emitting diode 20 for reception. The communication / control circuit 11 includes a power supply terminal and a battery detection terminal as input terminals. The communication / control circuit 11 also includes a charging IC control terminal as an output terminal.

  The reset switch 18 is manually operated to reset a time counter (not shown) in the communication / control circuit 11. The time counter will be described later. The light emitting diode 19 at the time of transmission is continuously lit during a period in which a communication signal is transmitted from the antenna 17 to the receiving side wireless communication device, and the light emitting diode 20 at the time of reception receives the communication signal from the transmitting side wireless communication device at the antenna 17. Lights continuously during a certain period. The colors of the light emitting diode 19 for transmission and the light emitting diode 20 for reception are, for example, red and blue, respectively.

  The charging IC 12 includes a first current detection terminal 24, a second current detection terminal 25, a charge control terminal 26, a VCC power supply terminal 27, a first light emitting diode control terminal 28, a second light emitting diode control terminal 29, a battery voltage. A detection terminal 30 and a battery temperature detection terminal 31 are provided. The lithium ion secondary battery 13 is detachably attached to the specific low power wireless repeater 10 and includes a battery part 36, a thermistor 37, a + side terminal 39, a − side terminal 40, and a temperature terminal 41. The positive side of the battery part 36 is connected to the + side terminal 39. The negative side of the battery part 36 and one end of the thermistor 37 are connected to the ground via a negative terminal 40. The other end of the thermistor 37 is connected to the temperature terminal 41.

  The AC adapter 42 has an input side connected to a commercial power source (not shown), and a predetermined AC voltage is applied to the input side from the commercial power source. The AC adapter 42 converts the AC voltage of the commercial power source into a DC voltage having a predetermined value and outputs it during the non-power failure period of the commercial power source. The power supply switching relay 43 maintains the first switching position and guides the predetermined DC voltage from the AC adapter 42 to the power supply terminal of the communication / control circuit 11 during a period in which the predetermined DC voltage is supplied from the AC adapter 42.

  The communication / control circuit 11 outputs a control signal from the charging IC control terminal to the charging control switch 44 and turns on the charging control switch 44 during a period in which a predetermined DC voltage is applied to the power supply terminal from the AC adapter 42. Hold. Thereby, the DC voltage of the AC adapter 42 is applied to the VCC power supply terminal 27 of the charging IC 12 via the charging control switch 44, and the first and second charging ICs 12 are connected via the charging control switch 44 and the light emitting diode array 45. 2 is applied to the light emitting diode control terminals 28 and 29, and the charging IC 12 is activated.

  Although not shown, a reference voltage of a terminal (not shown) of the charging IC 12 is applied to the temperature terminal 41 via a resistor (also not shown). Therefore, the communication / control circuit 11 and the charging IC 12 detect whether or not the lithium ion secondary battery 13 is attached and the temperature of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 from the input voltages to the battery detection terminal and the battery temperature detection terminal 31. Can do. The communication / control circuit 11 detects whether or not the lithium ion secondary battery 13 is mounted based on the input voltage to the battery detection terminal, and measures the mounting time. In addition, the charging IC 12 is applied with the voltage of the + side terminal 39 of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 to the battery voltage detection terminal 30, and the applied voltage of the battery voltage detection terminal 30 during the mounting period of the lithium ion secondary battery 13. Is less than the predetermined value, it is determined that the battery unit 36 needs to be charged, and a control current is sent from the charge control terminal 26 to the switching transistor 46 to switch the switching transistor 46 to ON.

  When the switching transistor 46 is on, the DC voltage on the output side of the AC adapter 42 is applied to the + side terminal 39 via the switching transistor 46, the diode 47, the resistor 48 and the power supply switching relay 43, and the battery unit 36 applies this applied voltage. Is charged. Both ends of the resistor 48 are connected to the first and second current detection terminals 24 and 25, and the charging IC 12 detects the value of the charging current of the battery unit 36 from the voltage across the resistor 48. The charging current value is a basis for determining whether or not the charging of the battery unit 36 is completed. When the charging IC 12 determines that the charging of the battery unit 36 has been completed, the charging IC 12 turns off the switching transistor 46.

  In a power outage period such as a disaster, the AC voltage of the commercial power supply is not applied to the input side of the AC adapter 42, thereby generating no DC voltage on the output side of the AC adapter 42. It is switched to the switching position. As a result, the DC voltage of the + side terminal 39 of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 is supplied to the power supply terminal of the communication / control circuit 11 via the power supply switching relay 43, and the communication / control circuit 11 keeps the lithium ion 2 during the power failure. The operation state is maintained by power feeding from the secondary battery 13 and the communication signal is relayed. The communication / control circuit 11 is supplied with the mounting signal from the lithium ion secondary battery 13 to the battery detection terminal even during a power failure period of the commercial power supply, and continues to measure the mounting time of the lithium ion secondary battery 13.

  The communication / control circuit 11 detects whether or not the lithium ion secondary battery 13 is attached based on the input voltage to the battery detection terminal. During the period when the lithium ion secondary battery 13 is attached, the lithium ion secondary battery is used using an internal time counter. 13 wearing time is measured. When the mounting time of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 exceeds a predetermined value, it is determined that the lithium ion secondary battery 13 has expired, and the charge control switch 44 is turned off. When the charging control switch 44 is turned off, no voltage is supplied to the VCC terminal 27 of the charging IC 12, so that the switching transistor 46 remains off. As a result, charging of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 is not performed even when power is being supplied from a commercial power source and the voltage level of the positive terminal 39 is less than a predetermined value.

  If the communication / control circuit 11 determines that the life of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 has expired, the communication / control circuit 11 notifies the user of the expiration information using voice communication between the wireless communication devices being relayed. Specifically, the transmitting-side RF signal received by the antenna 17 is demodulated, an audio signal is extracted, and an audio signal related to a predetermined beep sound is superimposed on the audio signal to obtain a new audio signal. Furthermore, an RF signal is generated by using this new audio signal as a baseband signal, and the RF signal is transmitted from the antenna 17. Thus, the user of the receiving wireless communication apparatus can hear a beep along with the voice of the user of the transmitting wireless communication apparatus. When the user hears a beep sound, the user determines that the lithium ion secondary battery 13 has expired.

  When the lithium ion secondary battery 13 has expired, the beep sound is included in the communication voice. However, the beep sound may be included in the communication voice slightly before the end of the life. In that case, it is preferable to distinguish between a beep sound that informs that the end of life is about to expire and a beep sound that indicates that the life has expired. The beep sound can be distinguished by, for example, making the frequency of the beep sound, the magnitude of the output voltage, the intermittent interval, and the like different when the service life is about to expire and when the service life has already expired.

  The beep sound that the specific low-power radio repeater 10 includes in the communication signal does not reach the transmitting side radio communication device, but in both cases of duplex communication (full duplex) and half duplex (semi duplex), Since the wireless communication devices of the parties to communication normally repeat the transmission-side wireless communication device and the reception-side wireless communication device alternately, all the parties can hear a beep during communication.

  The user replaces the lithium ion secondary battery 13 with a new one when the lithium ion secondary battery 13 has expired or shortly before the lifetime expires. When the user finishes the replacement work, the user presses the reset switch 18. As a result, the time counter in the communication / control circuit 11 is reset, and the time counter starts measuring the mounting time of the newly replaced lithium ion secondary battery 13 from zero.

  The specific low-power wireless repeater 10 can notify the battery life of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 to the surroundings by visual display and sound separately from the communication signal being relayed. Specifically, when the life of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 is about to expire, instead of sounding the first warning sound or turning off the blue light emitting diode 20 during reception other than the relay signal reception period, Or blink. In addition, when the lithium ion secondary battery 13 has reached the end of its life, the second warning sound having a frequency higher than the first warning sound, the magnitude of the output voltage, or the intermittent interval is sounded, or other than the relay signal reception period, Instead of always turning off the red light emitting diode 19 during transmission, the light emitting diode 19 is blinked.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a main part configuration in the housing 55 of the specific low-power radio repeater 10. A battery case 56 and a circuit board 57 are disposed in the housing 55.

  The battery case 56 has a loading / unloading port for the lithium ion secondary battery 13 (in FIG. 2, hidden behind the housing 55) on the side surface of the housing 55, and the lithium ion 2 through the loading / unloading port. The secondary battery 13 is inserted therein, and the lithium ion secondary battery 13 is accommodated therein. The wall surface on the back side of the battery case 56 is open to the opposite side of the + side terminal 39, the − side terminal 40 and the temperature terminal 41 with respect to the lithium ion secondary battery 13 housed in the battery case 56. Yes. The three wire-like battery terminals 60 are connected to the + side terminal 39, the − side terminal 40, and the temperature of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 in the battery case 56 through these terminal openings on the back side of the battery case 56 on one end side. In addition to being connected to the terminal 41, the terminal 41 extends from the terminal 41 toward the circuit board 57 and is connected to the corresponding wiring on the circuit board 57 at the other end.

  A gap is formed between the opening of the inner wall surface of the battery case 56 and the end of the battery terminal 60 to the wiring on the circuit board 57 in the extending direction of the battery terminal 60. The cushion 63 is filled with the gap, and seals the gap of the terminal opening on the inner wall surface of the battery case 56. The cushion 63 is made of a porous elastic material, so that the gap 63 can be tightly packed, and the leakage of the electrolyte from the lithium ion secondary battery 13 should end its life. Even if it occurs later, the leaked liquid is effectively absorbed by the cushion 63 and the outflow toward the circuit board 57 is prevented.

  FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of main parts of another specific low-power radio repeater 50. Among the elements of the specific low-power wireless repeater 50, the same elements as those of the specific low-power wireless repeater 10 (FIG. 1) are designated by the same reference numerals as those of the specific low-power wireless repeater 10 and described. Is omitted. The main points of the specific low power wireless repeater 50 will be described.

  In the specific low power wireless repeater 10, the charging control switch 44 is interposed between the output side of the AC adapter 42 and the VCC power supply terminal 27 of the charging IC 12, whereas in the specific low power wireless repeater 50, It arrange | positions in the position of A or B of FIG. The position A is a position on the control line where the control signal from the charging control terminal 26 of the charging IC 12 is sent to the switching transistor 46. The position B is a position between the resistor 48 and the power supply switching relay 43.

  The charge control switch 44 arranged at the position A opens and closes a control signal line from the charge IC control terminal of the communication / control circuit 11 to the switching transistor 46. When the lithium ion secondary battery 13 expires, the charge control switch 44 at position A prevents transmission of a control signal from the charge control terminal 26 to the switching transistor 46. As a result, the switching transistor 46 is always turned off. Retained. Therefore, the battery unit 36 is not charged by the DC voltage from the AC adapter 42 after the end of its service life, despite the potential drop.

  The charging control switch 44 arranged at the position B opens and closes the charging line for the lithium ion secondary battery 13 between the resistor 48 and the power supply switching relay 43. When the lithium ion secondary battery 13 expires, the charge control switch 44 at the B position is always held in the open position. As a result, the charging current of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 from the AC adapter 42 to the power supply switching relay 43 is maintained. Reaching is blocked. Therefore, the battery unit 36 is not charged by the DC voltage from the AC adapter 42 after the end of its service life, despite the potential drop.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the wireless repeater 65. The specific low-power radio repeaters 10 and 50 described above are specific examples of the radio repeater 65. The wireless repeater 65 is not limited to a specific power-saving wireless communication.

  The housing 55 includes a backup secondary battery 69 that is charged by power from an external power source. The power supply period from the external power source operates by power from the external power source, and the non-power feed period from the external power source is secondary backup power. It operates with the electric power from the battery 69.

  The external power source means a power source external to the wireless repeater 65, and is typically a commercial power source, but does not exclude a power source by private power generation. A specific example of the lithium ion secondary battery 13 is the backup secondary battery 69, but the backup secondary battery 69 may be a secondary battery other than the lithium ion secondary battery.

  The wireless repeater 65 includes at least battery life detection means 66 and communication signal relay means 67. Preferably, the wireless repeater 65 further includes charge control means 73. The battery life detection unit 66 can include a counter 75 and an operation member 76.

  The battery life detecting means 66 detects the battery life of the backup secondary battery 69. The communication signal relay means 67 includes the sound related to the detected battery life information in the communication signal being relayed.

  The information on the battery life is, for example, a service life expired, a service life expired soon, and / or a remaining mounting time until the service life is expired. “Out of life” means that battery life = 0, and is covered by the concept of battery life.

  It is assumed that the voice related to the detected battery life information need not be included in all communication signals being relayed. In particular, information notifications that are not out of service but will soon be out of service can be thinned out as appropriate so that the user does not feel bothered.

  The sound related to the battery life information is, for example, a beep sound. Voices related to battery life information can be spoken voices such as “Battery life is XX%” or “Out of life”.

  Typically, the charge control means 73 stops charging the backup secondary battery 69 when it detects the end of life. As a result, it is possible to prevent an adverse effect caused by the backup secondary battery 69 being charged even after its lifetime has expired.

  The specific method of inserting the voice related to the battery life information into the communication signal being relayed by the communication signal relay means 67 is, for example, the following (a) and / or (b). (A) Superimposing the audio signal related to the detected battery life information on the audio signal in the communication signal being relayed. (B) An audio signal related to the detected battery life information is interrupted or replaced with the audio signal in the communication signal being relayed.

  In the case of (a), the volume ratio between the user's voice of the transmitting side wireless communication device and the battery life information sound is appropriately selected so that the voice of the call can be heard and the battery life information sound can be heard. .

  In the interrupt method in (b), the interrupted original audio signal is resumed from the point of interruption after the interruption, and reaches the user of the receiving wireless communication device. On the other hand, in the replacement method of (b), the replaced original audio signal is erased for the replacement period, and the user of the receiving wireless communication device cannot hear the original sound of the replacement period. .

  Therefore, in the case of replacement, it is preferable to appropriately control or set each replacement time, replacement timing, and / or replacement interval so that loss of the original voice is not fatal. Even in the case of an interrupt, since the original voice is transmitted to the user of the receiving wireless communication device by the interrupt, the interrupt time, the interrupt timing and / or the interrupt are prevented so that the influence of the delay is not significant. It is preferable to appropriately control or set the interval. For example, if the silent period in the original audio signal lasts for a predetermined time, it can be replaced with or interrupted by a battery life information audio signal for an appropriately limited short period of time to minimize the negative effects of replacement and interruption. Try to suppress.

  Typically, the counter 75 measures the mounting time of the backup secondary battery 69, and the battery life detection means 66 detects the battery life of the backup secondary battery 69 based on the measured value of the counter 75. It has become. However, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, it is assumed that the battery life may be detected by other methods such as the time required for one charge. When the counter 75 is equipped, an operation member 76 that is manually reset by the user is further provided. A specific example of the operation member 76 is the reset switch 18 of FIG. When the backup secondary battery 69 is replaced with a new one, the user operates the operation member 76 to reset the counter 75. Thereby, it is possible to appropriately measure the mounting time of each backup secondary battery 69.

  The wireless repeater 65 can further include a battery case and an electrolyte absorbing member 78. The battery case is disposed in the housing of the specific low-power radio repeater 10, and the backup secondary battery 69 is inserted from the outside of the housing so as to be freely inserted and removed to accommodate the backup secondary battery 69. The electrolyte solution absorbing member 78 seals the gap at the terminal side portion of the battery case.

  Specific examples of the battery case and the electrolyte solution absorbing member 78 are the battery case 56 and the cushion 63 of FIG. Even if the liquid leakage from the backup secondary battery 69 that is likely to occur after the end of the service life actually occurs, the leakage liquid is absorbed by the electrolyte absorbing member 78 and is prevented from flowing out to the surroundings. Rise.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the radio repeater control method 80. The wireless repeater control method 80 is applied to the wireless repeater 65 (FIG. 4). In S81, the battery life of the backup secondary battery 69 is detected. In S82, the voice related to the detected battery life information is included in the relayed communication signal.

  The processes of S81 and S82 correspond to the functions of the battery life detection means 66 and the communication signal relay means 67 of the wireless repeater 65 (FIG. 4), respectively. Therefore, the specific modes described for the functions of the battery life detection unit 66 and the communication signal relay unit 67 can also be applied as specific modes for the processes of S81 and S82. In the wireless repeater control method 80, a step of executing processing corresponding to the function of the charging control means 73 of the wireless repeater 65 can be added as appropriate. As long as the step corresponding to the charge control means 73 is after S81, it may be before or after S82.

  This specification discloses various inventions. In these inventions, in the best mode of the invention in the present specification, one or a plurality of elements exhibiting independent actions and effects are extracted, or one or a plurality of elements are changed within a obvious range Or a combination of one or more elements interchanged between forms of the invention within the obvious scope.

It is a principal part block diagram of a specific low power radio repeater. It is a perspective view which shows the principal part structure in the housing of a specific low power radio repeater. It is a principal part block diagram of another specific low power radio repeater. It is a block diagram of a radio repeater. It is a flowchart of a radio repeater control method.

Explanation of symbols

65: wireless repeater, 66: battery life detection means, 67: communication signal relay means, 69: secondary battery for backup, 73: charge control means, 75: counter, 76: operation member, 78: electrolyte absorbing member, 80: Radio repeater control method.

Claims (7)

A backup secondary battery that is charged by electric power from an external power source, wherein a power supply period from the external power source is operated by electric power from the external power source, and a non-power supply period from the external power source is the backup secondary battery In a wireless repeater that operates with power from
Battery life detecting means for detecting the battery life of the secondary battery for backup, and communication signal relay means for including the voice related to the detected battery life information in the communication signal being relayed,
A wireless repeater comprising: A charge control means for stopping the charging of the backup secondary battery when it has detected the end of life;
The wireless repeater according to claim 1, further comprising:    3. The radio repeater according to claim 1, wherein the communication signal relay unit superimposes a voice signal related to the detected battery life information on a voice signal in a communication signal being relayed.    The said communication signal relay means interrupts the audio | voice signal which concerns on the detected battery life information into the audio | voice signal in the communication signal in relay, or replaces this audio | voice signal of Claim 1-3 A wireless repeater according to any one of the above. The battery life detecting means is
A counter for measuring the mounting time of the secondary battery for backup, and an operation member for a user to manually reset the counter;
With
5. The wireless repeater according to claim 1, wherein the battery life detecting unit detects a battery life of the backup secondary battery based on a measurement value of the counter. A battery case that is disposed in the housing of the wireless repeater and in which the backup secondary battery is detachably inserted from the outside of the housing to store the backup secondary battery;
An electrolyte-absorbing member that seals a gap in the terminal-side portion of the battery case;
The wireless repeater according to claim 1, comprising: A backup secondary battery that is charged by electric power from an external power source, wherein a power supply period from the external power source is operated by electric power from the external power source, and a non-power supply period from the external power source is the backup secondary battery In the control method of the radio repeater operated by the power from
Detecting a battery life of the secondary battery for backup, and including a voice related to the detected battery life information in a communication signal being relayed,
A method for controlling a wireless repeater, comprising:

Images