JP2009278430A - Fault determination system and, method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fault detection method for preventing a radio receiver fault from being erroneously determined even in an environment of weak reception field. <P>SOLUTION: A radio wave strength is determined by a limiter detector of a radio receiver. Furthermore, it is determined by a squelch detector whether the radio wave strength is greater than a predetermined value or not. Moreover, an identification code, that a target radio wave has, is discriminated from a baseband stream obtained by demodulating a radio wave. Thus, even if two determination results indicative of the radio wave strength indicates that radio waves are being received normally, when a third determination result is negative, a fault is determined, thereby preventing erroneous reception determination even in a case where an interference radio wave of great radio wave strength is received. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to failure detection of a receiver of a relay device.

  Conventionally, relay devices used in disaster prevention systems that monitor river levels and rainfall are compliant with the telemeter device standard specifications set by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (Nippon Dentsu No. 21). It is composed of two units, a working unit and a spare unit.

The failure detection of the receiver is performed by a squelch signal indicating that the received radio wave has a predetermined intensity or more. Here, the case where it is equal to or higher than the predetermined radio wave intensity is called “squelch is open”, and the case where it is not higher than the predetermined radio wave intensity is called “squelch is closed”.
In addition, a self-diagnosis function for determining the failure of the receiver can be implemented to collect information from a remote location.
In the relay device, the failure is determined by comparing and detecting the squelch signals of the two receivers. For example, if both receivers are in a “squelch open” state, it is determined that the two receivers are normal and one receiver is in a “squelch open” state. When the other receiver is in the “squelch is closed” state, the receiver in the “squelch is closed” state is determined to be faulty.

However, the conventional fault detection method detects a fault only when the squelch signal is in the “squelch is open” state or in the “squelch is closed” state. There is a problem that when a radio wave of close strength is received, it is determined as a malfunction (incorrect determination).
Further, when the received electric field is weak, there is a problem that the probability of erroneous determination becomes higher because the predetermined radio wave intensity needs to be set low.

  The present invention has been made based on the above problem recognition, and performs accurate failure determination that is not affected by interference, and erroneous determination of receiver failure even when the radio field intensity is set low in an environment where the reception electric field is weak. It is an object of the present invention to provide a failure detection method for preventing the failure.

  In order to solve the above problems, a failure determination system according to the present invention is a failure determination system for determining failure of a relay device that relays radio waves, and a limiter that indicates whether or not receiving means that receives radio waves is receiving radio waves. First failure determination means for inputting a signal and a squelch signal indicating whether or not the strength of the radio wave received by the receiving means is equal to or higher than a predetermined strength, and making a failure determination according to the state of the limiter signal and the squelch signal And reception code decoding means for decoding the radio wave signal received by the reception means, and whether the determination result of the first failure determination means is valid or invalid according to the decoding result of the reception code decoding means And a second failure determination means for determining the above.

  Further, the first failure determination means of the present invention performs failure determination based on whether or not the squelch signal is input within a predetermined period indicating that the limiter signal is receiving radio waves. Features.

  The first failure determination means of the present invention invalidates the determination result of the first failure determination means when the limiter signal does not continue to receive radio waves for a predetermined period or longer. It is characterized by.

  Further, the second failure determination means of the present invention makes the determination result of the first failure determination means valid when the decoding result of the received code decoding means is valid, and decodes the received code decoding means. When the result is invalid, the determination result of the first failure determination means is invalidated.

  In addition, the failure determination method of the present invention is a failure determination system for determining failure of a relay device that relays radio waves, and whether the limiter signal indicating whether or not radio waves are received and the strength of the radio waves are equal to or higher than a predetermined strength. A procedure for performing failure determination according to a state of a squelch signal indicating whether or not, a procedure for decoding a received radio wave signal, and a procedure for determining whether the failure determination result is valid or invalid according to the decoding result And.

  According to the present invention, there is provided a function for determining a failure based on a limiter signal and a squelch signal of a receiver and a function for decoding a received radio wave signal, and a result of the failure determination based on a decoding result of the limiter signal and the radio signal of the receiver. Since it is determined whether or not is effective, even when the radio field intensity is set low in an environment where the reception electric field is weak, it is possible to prevent erroneous determination of a receiver failure.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a telemeter relay device equipped with a failure determination system according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 1, the telemeter relay device includes a distributor 10, a receiver 20, a receiver 30, a LIM detector 40, a primary determination processing unit 50, a mixer 60, a code decoder 70, and a secondary determination processing unit 80. Composed.

The outline of the failure determination method of the telemeter relay device in the present embodiment is as follows. First, the receiver 20 and the receiver 30 operate normally by the presence or absence of a limiter signal indicating that each of the receiver 20 and the receiver 30 has received a radio wave and a squelch signal indicating that the received radio wave has a predetermined intensity or higher. The primary determination processing unit 50 determines whether or not it is.
Here, the limiter signal is a flag signal that outputs “1” when the receiver receives a radio wave and outputs “0” when the receiver does not receive the radio wave. .
The squelch signal outputs “1” when the received radio wave exceeds a predetermined intensity set in advance, and “0” when the received radio wave is less than the predetermined intensity set in advance. This is a flag signal to be output.

  After the determination by the primary determination processing unit 50, the radio wave signals (hereinafter referred to as reception codes) received by the receiver 20 and the receiver 30 are decoded (for example, a specific frequency is assigned to each digital data to be transmitted and transmitted) In the case of frequency shift keying: FSK: Frequency Shift Keying, the received FSK signal is demodulated), and the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is made valid or invalid depending on whether or not the received code can be decoded. The next determination processing unit 80 makes the determination. The determination result of the secondary determination processing unit 80 is used as a failure determination result of the telemeter relay device.

Hereinafter, the function of each unit in FIG. 1 will be described in detail.
In FIG. 1, the telemeter relay device receives radio waves by receivers 20 and 30 via an antenna and a distributor 10.

Each of the receivers 20 and 30 transmits the received radio wave signal to the mixer 60 described later, and outputs limiter signals LIM1 and LIM2 and squelch signals SQ1 and SQ2 indicating whether or not the radio wave is received.
Here, the receivers 20 and 30 output the limiter signal LIM1 and the limiter signal LIM2 as “1” when radio waves are received, and output “0” when the radio waves are not received.
Further, when the received radio field intensity exceeds a preset intensity, the squelch signal SQ1 and the squelch signal SQ2 are set to "1", and when the received radio field intensity is equal to or less than the preset radio field intensity, it is set to "0".

The LIM detector 40 is a signal detector that detects limiter signals LIM1 and LIM2 output from the receivers 20 and 30.
When either the limiter signal LIM1 output from the receiver 20 or the limiter signal LIM2 output from the receiver 30 is “1” indicating that a radio wave is received, the LIM detector 40 is a primary that will be described later. In order to notify the determination processing unit 50 that the radio wave is received by the receiver 20 or the receiver 30, the limiter signal LIM is output as “1”.
When neither the limiter signal LIM1 nor the limiter signal LIM2 is “0” indicating that a radio wave is received, “0” is output to the limiter signal LIM.

The primary determination processing unit 50 is a block for determining a failure of the receiver.
The primary determination processing unit 50 receives a limiter signal LIM (= “1”) indicating that either the receiver 20 or the receiver 30 is receiving radio waves from the LIM detector 40. Monitoring of the squelch signal SQ1 output from the machine 20 and the squelch signal SQ2 output from the receiver 30 is started.
Thereafter, the squelch signal SQ1 output by the receiver 20 or the squelch signal SQ2 output by the receiver 30 within the preset period becomes “1”, that is, the reception of the radio field intensity exceeding the set intensity. It is determined that the device is operating normally, and it is determined that the receiver that did not become “1” within a preset period, that is, the radio wave strength is less than or equal to the set strength is broken. .
When the limiter signal LIM from the LIM detector 40 becomes “0” indicating that neither the receiver 20 nor the receiver 30 has received radio waves before the preset period has elapsed, the limiter signal LIM becomes “0”. The determination results of the receiver 20 and the receiver 30 that are determined to be operating normally during the period in which “1” is input to the signal LIM are invalid.

The mixer 60 mixes the signal transmitted from the receiver 20 and the receiver 30 and outputs the mixed signal to the transmitter (not shown) of the telemeter repeater.
The signal output to the transmitter is transmitted by radio waves from the transmitter to the next telemeter relay device or the like.

The code decoder 70 is a decoder that decodes the signal output from the mixer 60 to the transmitter of the telemeter repeater (which is equal to the signal received by the receiver 20 and the receiver 30).
The code decoder 70 confirms whether the radio wave received by the telemeter repeater is the target radio wave (main wave) to be relayed, so that the telemeter repeater can demodulate (for example, frequency shift keying) : FSK), and outputs a signal that tells the secondary determination processing unit 80 described later whether or not the radio signal currently being relayed has been correctly demodulated.

The secondary determination processing unit 80 determines the failure determination result of the receiver 20 and the receiver 30 determined by the primary determination processing unit 50 based on the result of whether or not the code decoder 70 has correctly demodulated the telemeter relay device. This is a block that informs the control unit (not shown) of the telemeter relay device as a result of detecting the failure of the receiver.
When the code decoder 70 can correctly demodulate the secondary determination processing unit 80, the currently received radio wave is the target radio wave (main wave) to be relayed, and the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 Is determined to be valid, and outputs a signal for transmitting the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 to the control unit of the telemeter relay device. If the code decoder 70 cannot correctly demodulate, it is determined that the currently received radio wave is not the target radio wave (main wave) to be relayed, and the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is invalid. Then, a signal is transmitted to the control unit of the telemeter relay device informing that the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is invalid.

  Thereafter, the control unit of the telemeter relay device outputs a failure determination result of the receiver of the telemeter relay device to the request source in accordance with the information collection request from a remote location.

  Next, the failure determination processing procedure will be described. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a failure determination processing procedure in the telemeter relay device equipped with the failure determination system according to the present embodiment.

  First, the primary determination processing unit 50 clears the measurement time when the limiter signal LIM is “1” and the measurement time when the limiter signal LIM is “0” when the failure determination of the receiver is started in step S1. To do.

  Next, in step S2, it is monitored whether or not the limiter signal LIM input from the LIM detector 40 is "1". If the limiter signal LIM is "1", the limiter signal LIM is checked in step S3. Starts measuring the time during which the telemeter relay is “1”, and the code decoder 70 demodulates the radio signal received by the telemeter repeater. If the limiter signal LIM is not “1”, step S2 is repeated.

  Next, in step S4, the primary determination processing unit 50 monitors whether the squelch signal SQ1 output from the receiver 20 or the squelch signal SQ2 output from the receiver 30 is “1”. When the squelch signal SQ1 or the squelch signal SQ2 is “1”, the receiver that is “1” (either the receiver 20 or the receiver 30, or both receivers) operates normally in step S41. And the process proceeds to step S5. If neither the squelch signal SQ1 nor the squelch signal SQ2 is “1”, the process proceeds to step S5.

  Next, in step S5, the primary determination processing unit 50 determines whether or not a preset period (for example, 100 ms) has elapsed since the limiter signal LIM becomes “1”. If the period has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S6. If the preset period has not elapsed in step S5, it is determined in step S51 whether the limiter signal LIM is “1”. If the limiter signal LIM is “1”, step S4 is performed. Returning to step S1, the squelch signal SQ1 or the squelch signal SQ2 is monitored for "1". If the limiter signal LIM is not “1” in step S51, the process proceeds to step S11.

  Next, in step S6, the primary determination processing unit 50 monitors whether or not the limiter signal LIM input from the LIM detector 40 is “0”, that is, whether or not the communication is finished, and the limiter signal If LIM is “0”, measurement of the time during which the limiter signal LIM is “0” is started in step S7. If the limiter signal LIM is not “0”, step S6 is repeated.

  Next, in step S8, the primary determination processing unit 50 determines whether or not a preset period (for example, 50 ms) has elapsed since the limiter signal LIM has become “0”, and is set in advance. If the period has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S9. If the preset period has not elapsed in step S5, step S8 is repeated.

  Next, in step S9, the secondary determination processing unit 80 confirms whether or not the code decoder 70 has correctly demodulated the radio signal received by the telemeter repeater, and the code decoder 70 corrects the radio signal. If it can be demodulated, the determination result in step S41 is validated in step S10. If the code decoder 70 cannot correctly demodulate the radio signal, the determination result in step S41 is invalidated in step S11.

In this way, it is primarily determined whether or not the receiver 20 and the receiver 30 are operating normally based on the limiter signals LIM1 and LIM2 and the squelch signals SQ1 and SQ2 of the receiver 20 and the receiver 30, respectively. Whether the primary determination result is valid or invalid is determined based on whether the radio signal has been decoded.
Let this secondary determination result be a failure determination result of the telemeter relay device.

  Next, a determination example of the primary determination processing unit 50 will be described. FIG. 3 is a timing chart showing a determination example of the primary determination processing unit 50 in the telemeter relay device equipped with the failure determination system according to the present embodiment.

In FIG. 3, when the limiter signal LIM becomes “1”, the primary determination processing unit 50 starts the failure determination of the telemeter relay device, and the squelch signal SQ1 output from the receiver 20 and the squelch output from the receiver 30. It is monitored for each receiver that the signal SQ2 becomes “1”.
When the limiter signal LIM (= “1”) has the squelch signals SQ1, SQ2 become “1” at least once within a predetermined detection period (100 ms) set in advance. Determines that the receiver is operating normally, and if the squelch signals SQ1 and SQ2 do not become "1", it is determined that the receiver has failed.
Further, the primary determination processing unit 50 determines whether or not the limiter signal LIM (= “1”) is longer than a predetermined detection period (100 ms) set in advance, and when the limiter signal LIM is 100 ms or longer, The determination result obtained by monitoring the squelch signals SQ1 and SQ2 is validated. If the determination result is less than 100 ms, the determination result obtained by monitoring the squelch signals SQ1 and SQ2 is invalidated.

FIG. 3A shows a case where it is determined that the two receivers are operating normally.
In FIG. 3A, the squelch signal SQ1 output from the receiver 20 and the squelch signal SQ2 output from the receiver 30 are both “1” during the period of 100 ms after the limiter signal LIM becomes “1”. Therefore, it is determined that the receiver 20 and the receiver 30 are operating normally.
Further, since the limiter signal LIM (= “1”) is 100 ms or longer, the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is valid.

FIG. 3B shows a case where it is determined that one receiver is operating normally and the other receiver is determined to be faulty.
In FIG. 3B, since the squelch signal SQ1 output from the receiver 20 during the period of 100 ms after the limiter signal LIM becomes “1” does not become “1”, the receiver 20 is broken. Determined.
Further, since the squelch signal SQ2 output from the receiver 30 during the period of 100 ms after the limiter signal LIM becomes “1” may be “1”, the receiver 30 is determined to be operating normally. The
Further, since the limiter signal LIM (= “1”) is 100 ms or longer, the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is valid.

FIG. 3C shows a case where the determination results of the two receivers are determined to be invalid.
In FIG. 3C, since the squelch signal SQ1 output from the receiver 20 during the period in which the limiter signal LIM is “1” does not become “1”, it is determined that the receiver 20 has failed. Since the squelch signal SQ2 output from the receiver 30 may be “1”, it is determined that the receiver 30 is operating normally, but the limiter signal LIM (= “1”) is not continued for more than 100 ms. The determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is invalid.
Thereafter, the limiter signal LIM becomes “1” again, and the squelch signal SQ1 output from the receiver 20 and the squelch signal SQ2 output from the receiver 30 may also be “1”. Although the machine 30 is determined to be operating normally, the limiter signal LIM (= “1”) is not continued for 100 ms or longer, so the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 becomes invalid.

  Next, a determination example of the secondary determination processing unit 80 will be described. FIG. 4 is a timing chart showing a determination example of the secondary determination processing unit 80 in the telemeter relay device equipped with the failure determination system according to the present embodiment.

In FIG. 4, the secondary determination processing unit 80 performs the code in a signal decoding period of a predetermined period (for example, 50 ms) after the limiter signal LIM has changed from “1” to “0”. The decoding result of the received radio signal indicating whether or not the decoder 70 has been demodulated correctly is monitored.
The secondary determination processing unit 80 validates the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 when the radio wave signal received by the code decoder 70 can be correctly decoded, and the radio wave signal received by the code decoder 70. If the signal cannot be correctly decoded as a result of decoding the signal, the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is invalidated.

FIG. 4A shows a case where the code decoder 70 can correctly decode the received signal during the signal decoding period, and the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 that the two receivers are operating normally is valid. Show.
In FIG. 4A, the squelch signal SQ1 output from the receiver 20 and the squelch signal SQ2 output from the receiver 30 are both “1” during the 100 ms period in which the limiter signal LIM is “1”. Therefore, since the receiver 20 and the receiver 30 are operating normally and the limiter signal LIM (= “1”) is 100 ms or longer, the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is valid.
Thereafter, it is confirmed that the radio wave signal received by the code decoder 70 has been correctly decoded. Finally, the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is valid, and there are two failure determination results of the telemeter relay device. Is determined to be operating normally.

FIG. 4B shows that the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 that the radio signal received by the code decoder 70 during the signal decoding period cannot be correctly decoded and the two receivers are operating normally is invalid. Shows the case.
In FIG. 4B, the squelch signal SQ1 output from the receiver 20 and the squelch signal SQ2 output from the receiver 30 are both “1” during the 100 ms period in which the limiter signal LIM is “1”. Therefore, since the receiver 20 and the receiver 30 are operating normally and the limiter signal LIM (= “1”) is 100 ms or longer, the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is valid.
Thereafter, it is confirmed that the radio wave signal received by the code decoder 70 cannot be correctly decoded, and the determination result of the primary determination processing unit 50 is a primary determination that both receivers are operating normally. However, it is finally determined that the failure determination result of the telemeter relay device is invalid.

  Next, FIG. 5 shows failure determination results when failure determination is performed according to the above-described determination processing method with respect to each state of the limiter signal LIM, each squelch signal SQ1, SQ2, and the result of decoding the signal. .

  In FIG. 5, when the limiter signal LIM (= “1”) is less than the predetermined detection period (100 ms), the squelch signals SQ1, SQ2, and the signals are decoded as shown in step S11 and FIG. Regardless of the result, the fault diagnosis result of the telemeter relay device is invalid.

In FIG. 5, when the limiter signal LIM (= “1”) is longer than a predetermined detection period (100 ms), the primary determination is performed by the squelch signals SQ1 and SQ2, and the secondary determination is performed based on the result of decoding the signal. And the final failure diagnosis result of the telemeter relay device is different.
For example, the squelch signal SQ1 output from the receiver 20 during the period of 100 ms after the limiter signal LIM becomes “1” becomes “1”, and it is determined that the receiver 20 is operating normally. Since the squelch signal SQ2 output by is not “1” and the receiver 30 is primarily determined to be faulty, a secondary determination is made based on the result of decoding the radio signal received by the code decoder 70, If the radio signal can be correctly decoded, the final failure determination result of the telemeter relay device is the normal operation of the receiver 20 and the failure of the receiver 30 as with the primary determination result.
Further, in the same primary determination result, when the secondary determination is performed based on the result of decoding the radio signal received by the code decoder 70 and the radio signal cannot be correctly decoded, the final failure determination result of the telemeter relay device is: The determination result is invalid for both the receiver 20 and the receiver 30.

  Similarly, in other cases, the primary determination is performed based on the limiter signals LIM1 and LIM2 and the squelch signals SQ1 and SQ2 of the receiver 20 and the receiver 30, respectively, and the primary determination result is valid based on the decoding result of the received radio signal. A secondary determination is made as to whether or not the telemeter relay device is valid, and the result is the final failure determination result of the telemeter relay device.

  As described above, according to the best mode for carrying out the present invention, it is possible to perform accurate failure determination that is not affected by interference, so that the reliability of failure determination results can be improved. This makes it possible to prevent erroneous determination of receiver failure even when the radio field intensity is set low in an environment where the reception electric field is weak.

In the present embodiment, the wireless relay device is configured with two receivers. However, according to the present invention, the failure determination is performed using the limiter signal and the squelch signal, so the failure determination is performed on the receiver alone. It is possible. Therefore, the present invention can be applied even when the receiver of the wireless relay device is configured by one.
In addition, the present invention can be applied even when it is configured with two or more receivers.

  In addition, you may make it implement | achieve the function of a part of remeter relay apparatus in embodiment mentioned above, for example, a primary determination process part, a code decoder, or a secondary determination process part with a computer. In that case, the program for realizing the control function may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded on the recording medium may be read by a computer system and executed. Here, the “computer system” includes an OS and hardware such as peripheral devices. The “computer-readable recording medium” refers to a storage device such as a flexible medium, a magneto-optical disk, a portable medium such as a ROM and a CD-ROM, and a hard disk incorporated in a computer system. Further, the “computer-readable recording medium” dynamically holds a program for a short time, like a communication line when transmitting a program via a network such as the Internet or a communication line such as a telephone line. It is also possible to include those that hold a program for a certain time, such as a volatile memory inside a computer system serving as a server or client in that case. The program may be a program for realizing a part of the functions described above, and may be a program capable of realizing the functions described above in combination with a program already recorded in a computer system.

  As described above, the embodiment of the present invention has been described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5, but the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Changes are also included.

It is the block diagram which showed the structure of the telemeter relay apparatus carrying the failure determination system by embodiment of this invention. It is the flowchart which showed the failure determination processing procedure in the telemeter relay apparatus carrying the failure determination system by embodiment of this invention. It is the timing chart which showed the example of determination of the primary determination process part in the telemeter relay apparatus carrying the failure determination system by embodiment of this invention. It is the timing chart which showed the example of determination of the secondary determination process part in the telemeter relay apparatus carrying the failure determination system by embodiment of this invention. It is the table | surface which put together the failure determination result in the telemeter relay apparatus carrying the failure determination system by embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Distributor 20 Receiver 1 30 Receiver 2 40 LIM detector 50 Primary determination processing part 60 Mixer 70 Code decoder 80 Secondary determination processing part

Claims (5)

In a failure determination system for determining failure of a relay device that relays radio waves,
A limiter signal indicating whether or not the receiving means for receiving the radio wave is receiving a radio wave and a squelch signal indicating whether or not the intensity of the radio wave received by the receiving means is equal to or higher than a predetermined intensity, First failure determination means for performing failure determination according to the state of the limiter signal and the squelch signal;
A received code decoding means for decoding a radio wave signal received by the receiving means;
Second failure determination means for determining whether the determination result of the first failure determination means is valid or invalid according to the decoding result of the received code decoding means;
A failure determination system comprising: The first failure determination means includes
A failure is determined by whether or not the squelch signal is input within a predetermined period indicating a state in which the limiter signal is receiving radio waves.
The failure determination system according to claim 1. The first failure determination means includes
If the limiter signal does not continue to receive radio waves for a predetermined period or longer, invalidate the determination result of the first failure determination means,
The failure determination system according to claim 1. The second failure determination means includes
If the decryption result of the received code decryption means is valid, the determination result of the first failure determination means is valid,
If the decryption result of the received code decryption means is invalid, the determination result of the first failure determination means is invalidated,
The failure determination system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: In a failure determination system for determining failure of a relay device that relays radio waves,
A procedure for performing a failure determination according to a state of a limiter signal indicating whether or not a radio wave is received and a squelch signal indicating whether or not the intensity of the radio wave is equal to or higher than a predetermined intensity;
The procedure to decode the received radio signal,
A procedure for determining whether the failure determination result is valid or invalid according to the decoding result;
A failure determination method comprising:

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