JP7438770B2 - wireless communication unit - Google Patents

Description

This invention integrates the functions of a base station device and a core network (EPC) into a portable casing, and performs wireless network communication with mobile terminals in accordance with the communication protocol stack specified by 3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project). Relating to an executable wireless communication unit.

In wireless communication networks based on high-speed communication standards based on 3GPP specifications (for example, LTE (Long Term Evolution) or WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access)), an EPC (Evolved Packet Core) that accommodates the wireless communication access network is constructed within the area. The wireless base stations to which mobile terminals connect are controlled to transmit and receive IP packets via the EPC.On the other hand, with the spread of mobile terminals such as mobile phones, smartphones, and tablet PCs, A desire to use mobile terminals even in areas where EPC and wireless base stations are not infrastructure-developed (hereinafter referred to as "wireless undeveloped areas"), such as areas where communication functions have been lost due to disasters, etc. is increasing.

In order to meet these demands, for example, Patent Document 1 proposes a composite wireless communication unit that integrates a wireless base station and a core network (EPC). By installing such a wireless communication unit in an area with no wireless infrastructure, the wireless base station module included in the unit will create a small communication area, and the EPC module within the unit will be able to communicate with the upper level communication. By performing control, it becomes possible to perform 3GPP specification wireless communication between a plurality of mobile terminals connected to the wireless base station module.

JP2016-12841A

The wireless communication unit as described above has a complicated configuration because the wireless base station module and the EPC module are integrated, and there is a problem in that it is difficult to accurately grasp the operating state and operating environment of each module. For example, when some kind of abnormality occurs, there is a problem in that it takes a lot of time and effort to identify the cause using only the error information output individually by the wireless base station module and the EPC module. Furthermore, it is difficult to grasp the relationship with the operating environment inside the casing (for example, the internal temperature of the casing).

An object of the present invention is to be able to collectively understand the operating status and operating environment of each component in a wireless communication system in which a wireless base station module and an EPC module are integrated inside a portable housing, and also to understand the causes of abnormalities when they occur. The goal is to make it easier to understand.

In order to solve the above problems, a wireless communication unit of the present invention includes a wireless base station module that performs wireless communication with a mobile terminal based on 3GPP specifications, and a wireless base station module that is connected by wire to the wireless base station module. A communication main unit including an EPC (Evolved Packet Core) module that performs upper network control for the communication main unit, a power supply module that supplies operating voltage to the communication main unit, and a portable casing that integrally houses the communication main unit and the power supply module. an operating environment information acquisition unit configured to acquire operating environment information of the communication main unit within the portable housing; an operating state information acquisition unit that obtains state information; and an operating state information acquisition unit that obtains state information of a plurality of predetermined components inside the portable casing including the wireless base station module and the EPC module based on the operating state information and the operating environment information. A GUI data creation unit that creates GUI data to be displayed on a separate GUI screen; a GUI server unit that maintains the GUI data so that it can be read and accessed from an external terminal device; The present invention is characterized by comprising: a general control module having a GUI data transmitting section that transmits data to the device.

In the wireless communication unit of the present invention, the GUI data transmission section includes a LAN interface that connects an external terminal device to the overall control module via LAN via wire or wireless, and the GUI data creation section allows the GUI data generation section to It can be configured to create GUI data so that the screen can be displayed.

The overall control module includes a password reception section that accepts password input from an external terminal device, an authentication processing section that performs authentication processing based on the received password, and an authentication processing section that accepts password input from an external terminal device. and an access permission section that permits access to the GUI server section. The overall control module also includes a password change request reception unit that accepts password change requests from external terminal devices, an auxiliary operation unit that is attached to the portable housing and is to be operated when accepting password change requests, and a password change request reception unit that receives password change requests from external terminal devices. an auxiliary operation unit operation state detection unit that detects the operation state of the auxiliary operation unit when a password change request is received; and a password that allows password change only if operation of the auxiliary operation unit is detected when a password change request is accepted. It can be configured as having a change permission section.

The overall control module includes an operating environment abnormality determining section that determines whether an abnormality has occurred in the operating state or operating environment of the communication main unit based on the operating state information and operating environment information, and the GUI data creation section includes a GUI screen The GUI data may be created so that the determination result of the operating environment abnormality determination unit is reflected in the display content of the system.

The operating environment information acquisition unit can be configured to acquire operating environment information of the communication main unit within the portable casing, including internal temperature information of the portable casing. In this case, a cooling device is provided to cool the internal space of the portable casing, and the operating environment abnormality determination unit determines whether the driving state information of the cooling device indicates an operational abnormality of the cooling device or It can be configured such that it is determined that an abnormality in the operating environment has occurred when at least either of the internal temperature information exceeds the limit temperature is established. Further, the wireless communication unit of the present invention can be provided with a cooling device that cools the internal space of the portable housing, and the operating environment abnormality determination section determines whether the driving state information of the cooling device indicates an operational abnormality of the cooling device. It can be configured such that it is determined that an operating environment abnormality has occurred when at least one of the following conditions holds true: the internal temperature information of the portable casing exceeds the limit temperature. Furthermore, the wireless communication unit of the present invention can be provided with a rechargeable battery that supplies battery voltage to the power supply module, and the operating environment information acquisition section receives the operating environment information indicating the charging state and operating state of the rechargeable battery. The information is acquired as further including battery status information, and the operating environment abnormality determination unit determines that an operating environment abnormality has occurred when the remaining battery level reflected in the battery status information is less than a threshold. Can be configured. In this case, the power supply module is provided with an external power supply voltage receiving section that receives the external power supply voltage, and the operating environment information acquisition section obtains the operating environment information that further includes power reception status information of the external power supply voltage receiving section. Yes, the operating environment abnormality determination unit detects the operating environment when the remaining battery level reflected in the battery status information is less than the threshold value in a state where the power receiving status information indicates that external power supply voltage is not being received. It can be configured to determine that an abnormality has occurred.

The wireless communication unit of the present invention can be provided with a plurality of operating environment information acquisition nodes including an internal temperature information acquisition node that acquires internal temperature information of the portable casing. The overall control module has a first network interface to which a base station computer and an EPC computer of the communication main unit are connected via a first network, and a plurality of operating environment information acquisition nodes are connected via a second network. The operating environment information acquisition unit communicates and acquires operating environment information from the operating environment information acquisition node via the second network interface, and the main body startup command transmitting unit The main unit startup command can be configured to be sent to the communication main unit via the network interface of the main unit.

The second network connects a plurality of operating environment information acquisition nodes as slave nodes to a master node included in the second network interface, and the operating environment information acquisition unit requests the acquisition target information from the master node. The master node is equipped with an information request destination notification unit that notifies nodes, and the master node sends an information request command to the second network by specifying the address of the slave node that is the request destination, and sends the information request command to the specified address among the slave nodes. It can be configured such that the corresponding node acquires the information request command and transmits the acquisition target information indicated by the information request command to the master node via the second network. Specifically, the first network is, for example, a local area network (LAN), and the second network is an I ² C network.

In addition, when a module support plate is provided inside the portable case, one main surface of the module support plate is defined as the module mounting surface, and the module support plate is arranged horizontally so that the module mounting surface is on the upper side, When the vertical direction is defined as the vertical direction from the module mounting surface, in the first direction defined along the module mounting surface, the air inlet is in the side wall on the first end side in the first direction of the portable casing. On the other hand, an air outlet is formed in the side wall on the second end side, and a cooling fan serving as a cooling device is attached to the air inlet, and when the cooling fan operates, outside air is taken in from the air inlet and the outside air is cooled. After flowing in the first direction inside the portable casing as wind, it is discharged from the air outlet, and the module mounting surface of the module support plate has a wireless connection on the side closer to the air inlet in the direction of flow of the cooling air. A wireless drive system module group including a base station module and a power supply module is placed on the side closer to the air outlet, and a control system module group including an EPC module and a general control module is placed on the side closer to the air outlet. The second temperature sensor may be disposed within the space occupied by the wireless drive system module group and within the space occupied by the control system module group.

The wireless communication unit of the present invention includes an operating state information acquisition section that is connected to a communication main body by wire and obtains operating state information of the communication main body from the communication main body, and a portable type that is indicated by the operating state information and operating environment information. a GUI data creation unit that creates GUI data for displaying the status of each related component inside the casing on a GUI screen for each component; a GUI server unit that maintains the GUI data so that it can be read and accessed from an external terminal device; It has an overall control module having a GUI data transmitting section that transmits GUI data held by the GUI server section to an external terminal device. Using the above GUI data, the external terminal device can display the operating status and internal operating environment of the wireless communication unit for each component on a GUI screen, so it is possible to collectively understand the operating status and operating environment of each component, and also to understand the causes of abnormalities when they occur. It also becomes easier to understand.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the concept of a wireless communication unit of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical configuration of the wireless communication unit in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is another block diagram showing the configuration of FIG. 2 together with a power supply system. FIG. FIG ^{. 3} is an explanatory diagram showing a connection structure of each master node and slave nodes in FIG. 2 via an I ^{2 C network, and a frame structure in I 2} C communication. A conceptual diagram of an IP packet structure. FIG. 2 is a diagram conceptually showing a 3GPP control plane protocol stack. FIG. 2 is a diagram conceptually showing a 3GPP user plane protocol stack. FIG. 3 is a diagram conceptually showing 3GPP downlink channel mapping. FIG. 4 is a diagram conceptually showing uplink channel mapping. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing the relationship between frequency band channels and resource blocks. 12 is a flowchart showing the process flow of a read mode of a master node in I ² C communication. 5 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of the write mode of the master node in I ² C communication. 5 is a flowchart showing a processing flow of a startup sequence in control firmware of an overall control module. 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of abnormality analysis processing. 12 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of the normal termination sequence. 16 is a flowchart showing the flow of the termination process in FIG. 15. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing for responding to an abnormality during operation in the control firmware of the overall control module. 2 is a flowchart showing the flow of power switching processing. The figure which shows the example of a structure of notification LED. The figure which shows the modification of the information acquisition form from a cooling fan. FIG. 3 is a side view showing an example of the arrangement of modules inside the portable case. Also a plan view. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the arrangement on the intermediate support plate. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the action of a cooling fan. FIG. 3 is a side view showing details of the functions of the cooling fan and the airflow guide plate. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of communication log recording processing in a wireless base station module and an EPC module. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of abnormal log acquisition and aggregation processing of the overall control firmware. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating types of abnormality logs. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a storage format of abnormal log data in a communication log aggregation storage unit. The figure which shows the first output example of the GUI screen in external PC. FIG. 7 is a diagram similarly showing a second output example. The figure which shows an example of the electrical structure of a mobile terminal device. The figure which shows the output example of the GUI screen in a mobile terminal device. The figure which shows the example of the password input screen in a mobile terminal device. The figure which shows the example of the password change screen in a mobile terminal device. FIG. 3 is a communication processing flow diagram related to password authentication. FIG. 3 is a communication processing flow diagram for changing a password. The figure which shows the example of the communication log data output destination selection screen in external PC. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of communication log data transfer processing.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described based on the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram conceptually showing an example of a wireless communication unit of the present invention. The wireless communication unit 1 communicates with a plurality of UEs (mobile terminal devices) 5 in accordance with the communication protocol stack of the method specified by 3GPP (in this embodiment, LTE is used, but other methods such as WiMAX may be used). It is configured to perform wireless communication between the two. The wireless communication unit 1 is installed and used in undeveloped wireless areas where EPCs and wireless base stations are not infrastructure-developed, such as on the sea, in depopulated areas, or in areas where communication functions have been lost due to disasters or the like. As described later, the wireless communication unit 1 can procure power supply voltage from a battery, a private power generator, etc., and can easily construct a private wireless network that does not depend on the public network. The UEs 5 are each connected to the radio communication unit 1 by a radio bearer 57.

The wireless communication unit 1 includes a wireless base station module (wireless base station or eNodeB (evolved NodeB)) 4 and an EPC (EPC) that is connected by wire to the wireless base station module 4 and functions as an upper network control unit for the wireless base station module 4. Evolved Packet Core) module 3. The EPC module 3 communicates with an MME (Mobility Management Entity) 2 that is a gateway on the control plane side, a Serving Gateway (S-GW) 6 that is a gateway on the user plane side, and an upstream network element (here, a router 8). It has a P-GW (PDN (Packet Data Network) Gateway) 7 that is located at a node and manages IP addresses for upstream network elements. The router 8 connects to an application server (not shown) via an external network 60 (eg, the Internet) by wireless (eg, satellite communication) or wired connection, and has the function of acquiring content data such as terminal applications and moving images (videos). On the control plane side, the radio base station module (eNodeB) 4 is connected to the MME 2 via the S1-MME interface. Furthermore, on the user plane side, the wireless base station module 4 is connected to the S-GW 6 via the S1-U interface. The S-GW 6 is connected to the P-GW 7 via the S5 interface.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical configuration of the wireless communication unit 1. As shown in FIG. The wireless communication unit 1 includes a portable housing 23, in which the EPC module 3, wireless base station module 4, integrated control module 9, and power supply module 22 are housed together with peripheral components. Furthermore, the portable casing 23 is provided with cooling fans 14A and 14B (cooling device) for cooling the inside. The EPC module 3 and the wireless base station module 4 constitute a communication main body.

The EPC module 3 is mainly composed of an EPC computer 300. The EPC computer 300 includes a CPU 301, a RAM 302 serving as a program execution area, a mask ROM 303 (stores firmware for microcomputer hardware peripheral control, etc. that does not require permanent rewriting; the same applies hereinafter), and interconnects them. It consists of an internal bus 306 and the like. Connected to the internal bus 306 is a non-volatile storage device whose stored contents can be electrically rewritten, such as a flash memory 305, as an EPC function program storage unit, and EPC communication firmware 305a (EPC an MME entity 305b, an S-GW entity 305c, and a P-GW entity 305d, which virtually implement the functions of the MME2, S-GW6, and P-GW7 in FIG. 2 using the LTE protocol stack as a platform; And each program of the software router 305e for realizing the functions of the router 8 in FIG. 1 is installed. Further, an Ethernet interface 304 which is a LAN interface is connected to the internal bus 306. In the above configuration, the MME 2, S-GW 6, and P-GW 7 in FIG. 2 are configured as virtual function entities whose functions are realized in software on computer hardware, but each is configured with independent hardware logic. You may.

The radio base station module 4 is mainly composed of a radio base station computer 400. The wireless base station computer 400 includes a CPU 401, a RAM 402 serving as a program execution area, a mask ROM 403, and an internal bus 406 that interconnects them. A flash memory 405 is connected to the internal bus 406 as a base station function program storage unit, and base station communication firmware 405a (base station function program) including an LTE protocol stack for wireless base stations is stored therein. Also, connected to the internal bus 406 are a wireless communication unit 412 for wirelessly connecting to the UE 5 by constructing a radio bearer, and an Ethernet interface 408.

The overall control module 9 is mainly composed of an overall control computer 900. The overall control computer 900 includes a CPU 901, a RAM 902 serving as a program execution area, a mask ROM 903, an internal bus 906 interconnecting them, and the like. A flash memory 905 is connected to the internal bus 906, and central control firmware 905a is stored therein. Further, an Ethernet interface 904 (first interface), an input/output unit (I/O) 909, and a WiFi module 908 are connected to the internal bus 906. Further, in order to expand the functions of the overall control module 9, a control board 13 is separately provided to control control signals input and output to the overall control module 9. The control board 13 is equipped with an I ² C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) bus master 907 (second interface, master node) and an expansion input/output unit (I/O) 910, each of which controls the input of the integrated control module 9. It is connected to an output section (I/O) 909. Note that the control board 13 can be regarded as one component of the overall control module 9 in a broad sense.

The EPC computer 300, the wireless base station computer 400, and the general control computer 900 are connected via the switching hub (for example, L2 switch) 11 by the Ethernet bus 32 (or LAN cable) at the Ethernet interfaces 304, 408, and 904. There is. That is, the EPC computer 300, the wireless base station computer 400, and the general control computer 900 are connected to the LAN via the switching hub 11, and are capable of mutual network communication according to the Internet Protocol (IP).

The power supply module 22 supplies power supply voltage to each component such as the EPC module 3, the wireless base station module 4, the integrated control module 9, the switching hub 11, and the cooling fans 14A and 14B. :AC100V) and a rechargeable battery 21 (for example, a lithium ion rechargeable battery, a nickel metal hydride rechargeable battery, etc.) via a battery controller 24. In this embodiment, the AC voltage of the external power supply 26 is converted into a DC voltage (DC 12V) by the AC/DC converter 25 and supplied to the power supply module 22 . The power reception state (power reception voltage) from the external power supply 26 (AC/DC converter 25) is monitored by the external voltage monitoring unit 16 provided on the board of the power supply module 22.

Further, the battery voltage of the rechargeable battery 21 is converted into a stabilized direct current voltage (DC12V) by the battery controller 24 and supplied to the power supply module 22 . As a result, the wireless communication unit 1 can autonomously procure the driving power supply voltage from the rechargeable battery 21, even in installation locations where external power supply voltage such as commercial AC is unavailable (for example, in disaster-stricken areas during power outages). It can be used without any problems. Note that the portable casing 23 is, for example, a box-shaped box made of metal or reinforced resin.

Further, the battery controller 24 is configured as a commercially available I ² C device, and a plurality of rechargeable batteries 21 are mounted in parallel and detachably. When the output voltage of the rechargeable battery 21 decreases due to discharge, the rechargeable battery 21 can be removed from the battery controller 24 and another charged battery 21 can be installed. At this time, each rechargeable battery 21 can be hot-swapped on the battery controller 24. Further, while the power supply module 22 is receiving power from the external power supply 26, the battery controller 24 can charge the rechargeable battery 21 using the external power supply voltage. Furthermore, when the power supply module 22 is receiving power from the external power supply 26 and the power reception is interrupted due to a power outage, by switching to receiving power from the rechargeable battery 21, the wireless communication unit 1 can continue operating without momentary power interruption. (described later).

The power supply module 22 is equipped with a plurality of stabilized DC power supply circuits (not shown) having different output voltages in order to correspond to the plurality of DC power supply voltages required by each component. FIG. 3 shows a form of power supply to each component in the wireless communication unit 1. The ◯ marks on the frame lines of each component indicate power supply terminals, and the broken lines connecting them indicate power supply lines. In this embodiment, DC 3.5 V is distributed to the EPC module 3 whose main hardware is only the EPC computer 300, and DC 5 V is distributed to the switching hub 11 having a switching drive section through the backplane 12. . Further, DC 3.5V is input to the wireless base station module 4 having the wireless communication section 412, and DC5V is input to the overall control module 9 having the WiFi module 908. Further, in FIG. 3, the square marks on the frame lines of each component indicate LAN ports, and the solid line (single line) connecting these indicates the Ethernet bus (or LAN cable) 32 forming the first network. Further, the ■ mark on the frame line of each component indicates an I ² C port, and the solid line (double) connecting these indicates the I ² C bus 52 forming the second network. Also, ● marks indicate external connection ports (and corresponding terminals on the component). Specifically, the external port group 31A of the software router 8 includes an APP port (port for connecting an application server), an MNT port (port for connecting to the LAN for operation management of the wireless communication unit 1), and a BH port (port for connecting to the Internet, etc.). A backhaul port is provided for connection to the Further, the external port group 31B of the wireless base station module 4 is for connecting the antenna 413 to the wireless communication section 412 in FIG. The TRx1 port is a connection port for a transmitting/receiving antenna, and the Rx2 port is a connecting port for a receiving antenna that forms reception diversity with the transmitting/receiving antenna. (Illustrated in simplified form as an antenna).

Next, as shown in FIG. 2, on the portable housing 23, a power switch 65, a control switch 66, and a plurality of LEDs 60 forming an abnormality notification section are provided. The power switch 65 and the control switch 66 are connected to an expansion input/output section 910 on the control board 13. Further, the plurality of LEDs 60 are connected to an LED driver 17 configured as an I ² C device via a current adjustment resistor 62 (see FIG. 3). As shown in FIG. 3, the signal lines of the power switch 65 and the control switch 66 are pulled up by the signal power supply voltage Vcc through the resistor 67, and a binary switch signal reflecting the open/closed state of the switch is sent to the expansion input/output section 910. input. Among these, the switch signal input by operating the power switch 65 constitutes a main activation signal, and is used as a command signal to start up the EPC communication firmware 305a and the base station communication firmware 405a at once (the expansion input/output unit 910 functions as the main activation signal reception unit). Further, a switch signal input by operating the control switch 66 is used for system reset and other control inputs.

On the other hand, the wireless base station module 4 has a first temperature sensor (hereinafter also referred to as "temperature sensor 1" in the drawings) 15A, and the control board 13 described later has a second temperature sensor (hereinafter referred to as "temperature sensor 1" in the drawings). (also referred to as "sensor 2") 15B are provided respectively. Hereinafter, an example of the internal structure of the wireless communication unit 1 will be described together with the arrangement of each module, temperature sensors 15A, 15B, and cooling fans 14A, 14B. FIG. 21 is a side view showing the internal structure of the wireless communication unit 1, and FIG. 22 is a plan view. In the longitudinal direction (first direction: left-right direction in the plane of the paper) of the portable housing 23, an air inlet 23y is formed in the side wall on the first end side (left side), and the cooling fans 14A and 14B are attached thereto. There is. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 22, a pair of cooling fans 14A and 14B are arranged at a predetermined interval in the width direction (second direction: vertical direction in the plane of the paper) of the portable casing 23. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 22, an air outlet 23w is formed in the second end (right side) side wall of the portable housing 23 in the longitudinal direction, and is covered with an air filter 23f. By the operation of the cooling fans 14A and 14B, outside air FA is taken in through the air inlet 23y, flows longitudinally inside the portable casing 23 as cooling air, and is then discharged through the air outlet 23w.

A bottom support plate 233 is arranged at the bottom of the portable housing 23. A duplexer 404 is attached to the upper surface of the bottom support plate 233. As shown in FIG. 2, the duplexer 404 is provided directly below the transmitting/receiving antenna included in the antenna 413 of the wireless communication unit 412, and electrically separates the antenna transmission path and the antenna reception path to transmit strong transmission waves. This is a component to prevent the flow of data to the receiving side. In the case of a wireless base station, since the transmitted wave output is high, for example, around 100 to 250 W, a large low-pass filter component such as a cavity filter is included. Although the duplexer 404 has a large spatial dimension, the amount of heat generated is small. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 21, it can be said that it is desirable to arrange it on the bottom upper surface of the portable casing 23.

Next, an intermediate support plate 234 is arranged above the bottom support plate 233 as a module support plate. The bottom support plate 233 and the intermediate support plate 234 are connected to each other by a plurality of support columns 235 arranged on the outer peripheral edge of the plate surface. The upper surface of the intermediate support plate 234 forms a module mounting surface, and a wireless base station is installed on the upstream side (the side closer to the air inlet 23y) in the cooling air circulation direction (longitudinal direction, first direction) inside the portable housing 23. A wireless drive system module group including the module 4 and the power supply module 22 is arranged, and a control system module group including the EPC module 3, the overall control module 9, and the control board 13 is arranged on the downstream side (the side closer to the air outlet 23w), respectively. ing. By placing the wireless drive system module group that generates a large amount of heat on the upwind side of the cooling air, it is possible to effectively cool the wireless drive system module group, and by separating the control system module group on the leeward side, the control system module group can be effectively cooled. Excessive temperature rise in the module group can be prevented. As for the temperature sensors 15A and 15B mentioned above, the first temperature sensor 15A is arranged in the space occupied by the wireless drive system module group, and the second temperature sensor 15B is arranged in the space occupied by the control system module group. . Note that in the following description, the direction in which the intermediate support plate 234 (module support plate) rises vertically from the top surface (module mounting surface) when it is placed horizontally is defined as the vertical direction for convenience; The orientation of the module mounting surface within 23 is not limited to the horizontal direction; for example, the module mounting surface may be inclined or perpendicular to the horizontal surface.

By arranging the first temperature sensor 15A in the space occupied by the wireless drive system module group that generates a large amount of heat during operation and detecting the temperature, the wireless drive system module group behaves as a heat source within the portable housing 23. can be understood. On the other hand, by arranging the second temperature sensor 15B in the space occupied by the control system module group that generates little heat during operation and detecting the temperature, even the cooling air that has passed through the wireless drive system module group will not affect the control system module group. It is possible to accurately grasp whether the cooling effect is sufficiently achieved. In addition, as described above, by combining temperature detection near the heat source (wireless drive system module group) and temperature detection at a position far downstream from the heat source in the air blowing direction, it is possible to This may make it easier to identify the cause when a temperature abnormality occurs. For example, if the cooling fans 14A, 14B stop due to an abnormality, the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor 15A near the heat source will immediately begin to rise, and then, with a slight delay, the temperature detected by the second temperature sensor 15B will start to rise. A peculiar behavior such as rising occurs. Furthermore, when an overcurrent occurs due to a short circuit in the control system module group, the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor 15A does not change much, but the second temperature sensor detects heat generation in the control system module group. The detected temperature of 15B begins to rise rapidly. By referring to the above-described difference in temperature detection behavior between the two temperature sensors 15A and 15B, it is possible to easily obtain information that contributes to identifying the cause of temperature abnormality occurrence.

The wireless base station module 4 and the power supply module 22 are arranged vertically adjacent to the module mounting surface (top surface) of the intermediate support plate 234 so that the main surfaces of the component mounting boards 4s and 22s overlap with each other in a plan view. At the same time, a cooling air circulation gap 231 is formed between the two. The mounting positions of the cooling fans 14A and 14B with respect to the portable housing 23 are determined so that a portion of the cooling air can be blown into the cooling air circulation gap 231. By arranging the wireless base station module 4 and the power supply module 22, which form a group of wireless drive system modules that generate a large amount of heat, adjacently as described above, the wireless drive system module group can occupy the module mounting surface within the portable housing 23. The area can be reduced, contributing to making the wireless communication unit 1 more compact. Even though the radio base station module 4 and the power supply module 22, which generate a large amount of heat, are arranged adjacent to each other, the cooling air is sent to the cooling air circulation gap 231 formed between them, so that the heat generated by both of them is Heat can be discharged more effectively, and an excessive rise in temperature of the wireless drive system module group can be further effectively suppressed.

As shown in FIG. 21, the power supply module 22 has a substrate 22s on which component parts (including a coil 22i, a capacitor 22c, a DC/DC conversion IC 22d, etc.) are mounted. Similarly, the wireless base station module 4 has a plurality of substrates 4s on which component parts (including a power semiconductor element 4a such as a power amplifier element) are mounted. These substrates 22s and 4s are vertically connected to each other by a support portion 232.

Furthermore, with respect to the module mounting surface of the intermediate support plate 234, the power supply module 22 is arranged on the lower side and the wireless base station module 4 is arranged on the upper side. In the normal direction of the first airflow CFA toward the substrate 4s of the wireless base station module 4, the side opposite to that facing the cooling air circulation gap 231 (that is, the top surface of the wireless base station module 4 in FIG. The airflow is divided into a second airflow CFB heading towards the side). Thereby, the cooling air can be distributed above and below the radio base station module 4, which generates a particularly large amount of heat, and more efficient cooling becomes possible. When the transmission output of the wireless base station module 4 is, for example, 100 to 250 W, it is preferable that the speed of the cooling air from the cooling fans 14A and 14B is maintained at about 1 to 2 m/sec.

The power semiconductor element 4a of the wireless base station module 4 is mounted on the upper surface side of the wireless base station module 4, that is, the one located at the top of the plurality of substrates 4s, and is made of aluminum in close contact with the upper surface of the power semiconductor element 4a. A heat sink plate 4h made of metal such as the like is provided. A plurality of metal radiation fins 4f are integrally formed on the upper surface of the heat sink plate 4h in a form that stands vertically from the upper surface of the heat sink plate 4h. As shown in FIG. 22, the longitudinal direction of the radiation fins 4f is arranged to match the longitudinal direction (direction of cooling air) of the portable case 23, and the gaps between the adjacent radiation fins 4f provide cooling air. A wind passage 4k (see FIG. 24) is formed. Thereby, the cooling efficiency of the power semiconductor element 4a by the second airflow CFB shown in FIG. 21 can be significantly improved.

As shown in FIG. 21, the cooling fans 14A and 14B are attached to the portable housing 23 so that the extension of the rotational axis J of the fan rotation blade 14p passes through the middle position in the height direction of the side surface of the wireless drive system module group. It is being The cooling fans 14A and 14B each have a base portion 14b in which a fan drive motor and the like are housed, and a main body portion 14m that is integrated with the base portion 14b and houses a fan rotating blade 14p. The main body part 14m is attached to the base part 14b so that the extension of the rotational axis J of the fan rotating blade 14p is inclined upward so that it enters inside the cooling air circulation gap 231. As a result, the cooling air from the cooling fans 14A and 14B is efficiently blown into the cooling air flow gap 231 from the diagonally lower side of the first air flow CFA, while the upper surface side of the wireless base station module 4 that is far from the module mounting surface (the heat sink The second airflow CFB can also be guided at a relatively large flow rate to the side where the plate 4h and the radiation fins 4f are provided.

An airflow guide plate 14s that divides the cooling air into the first airflow CFA and the second airflow CFB is provided on the front side of the cooling fans 14A, 14B in the feeding direction. The airflow guide plate 14s is arranged such that the plate surface is inclined upward from the rotation axis J of the fan rotation blade 14p so that the second airflow CFB is guided to the upper surface side of the wireless drive system module. As a result, the second airflow CFB is more efficiently guided to the upper surface side of the wireless drive system module group (in the example of FIG. 21, the upper surface side of the wireless base station module 4), and it is possible to promote cooling of the wireless drive system module group. can. As shown in FIG. 24, the airflow guide plate 14s has mounting arm portions 14sf integrated at both ends, and is fixed by the mounting arm portions 14sf to the base portions 14b of the cooling fans 14A, 14B by fastening members 14t such as screws. has been done.

Further, as shown in FIG. 21, a shielding plate 4p is attached to the upper surface side of the radiation fin 4f of the wireless base station module 4. The shielding plate 4p can also be made of metal. As shown in FIG. 24, by providing this shielding plate 4p, the above-mentioned cooling air passage 4k is formed between the adjacent radiation fins 4f, 4f in a rectangular cross section whose upper part is closed by the shielding plate 4p. . As shown in FIG. 25, if the shielding plate 4p were not present, the second airflow CFB blown obliquely from below to the entrance of the passage 4k would blow through above the passage 4k, and would flow along the surface of the heat sink plate 4h. It is difficult to form a flow of cooling air. However, if the shielding plate 4p is provided, the second airflow CFB is prevented from passing upward, and the flow inside the passage 4k becomes dominant, making the second airflow CFB more efficient than the plate surface of the heat sink plate 4h. can be brought into contact with In addition, an edge effect occurs when the second airflow CFB hits the edge of the entrance side of the shielding plate 4p from diagonally below, and the flow is narrowed and speeded up by the Karman vortex generated near the entrance inside the passage 4k. The effect of drawing airflow into the passage 4k due to the pressure reduction effect can also be expected.

Returning to FIG. 21, the EPC module 3, integrated control module 9, switching hub 11, and control board 13 that form the control system module group are connected to the wireless drive system module group (wireless base station module 4 and power source) in the cooling air blowing direction. module 22). Of these, the overall control module 9 and the control board 13 are directly mounted on the intermediate support plate 234. FIG. 23 shows the mounting layout of each board on the upper surface (module mounting surface) of the intermediate support plate 234, which is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction (air blowing direction, left-right direction in the drawing) of the portable case 23 within the module mounting surface. When the direction in which the central control module 9 and the control board 13 are attached to the intermediate support plate 234 are assembled adjacent to each other in the depth direction on the downstream side of the power supply module 22 in the air blowing direction. It is being

Furthermore, four columnar substrate support frames 236 are erected downstream of these power supply modules 22 in the air blowing direction. As shown in FIG. 21, the board of the EPC module 3 and the board of the switching hub 11 are attached to the board support frame 236 in this order from below at each of the four corner positions while forming a gap for ventilation. ing.

Next, the temperature sensors 15A and 15B are attached to internal temperature monitoring devices 85A and 85B (upper part of FIG. 4) that serve as driving state information acquisition nodes, and provide information on the internal temperature of the portable housing 23 as operating environment information of the communication main body. play a role in acquiring As shown in FIG. 21, temperature sensors 15A and 15B are both mounted on substrates that constitute internal temperature monitoring devices 85A and 85B. The first temperature sensor 15A is attached to the side surface of the wireless base station module 4 together with the board of the internal temperature monitoring device 85A. Further, the second temperature sensor 15B is mounted on the board 907s of the I ² C bus master 907, which is installed upright on the control board 13, together with the board of the internal temperature monitoring device 85B. ). Both temperature sensors 15A and 15B are arranged so as to detect temperature at side positions in the depth direction of the wireless drive system module group and the control system module group.

On the other hand, fan operation monitoring devices 84A and 84B (upper part of FIG. 4: cooling device drive state information acquisition node, slave node), which serve as drive state information acquisition nodes, are incorporated in the cooling fans 14A and 14B, and the operating environment of the communication main unit is It plays the role of monitoring and acquiring information such as fan rotation speed, temperature, and drive current value. Further, the external voltage monitoring unit 16 serves as a driving state information acquisition node, and plays the role of monitoring and acquiring the voltage received from the AC/DC converter 25 of the power supply module 22 as operating environment information. Further, the battery controller 24 also serves as a driving state information acquisition node, and plays the role of monitoring and acquiring the remaining battery (BTT) amount, battery voltage, and battery temperature as operating environment information.

As shown in the upper part of FIG. 4, fan operation monitoring devices 84A, 84B, internal temperature monitoring devices 85A, 85B, external voltage monitoring unit 16, and battery controller 24, which constitute operating environment information acquisition nodes, are configured as slave nodes of I ² C communication. has been done. On the other hand, the I ² C bus master 907 on the control board 13 functions as a master node in I ² C communication, and each slave node (operating environment information acquisition node) is connected by the I ² C bus 52, and each slave node An operating environment information acquisition unit is configured to obtain operating environment information from the system in the form of a detection log.

In this way, from the communication network (first network) connecting the overall control module 9 and the communication main unit (base station computer 400 and EPC computer 300) to the network (second network) for acquiring operating environment information, ), it is possible to separate the communication sequence for acquiring operating environment information from the complex communication sequence required to control the communication unit itself, making it easier and smoother to acquire operating environment information. can be done. In addition, a master node is provided on the second network interface side, and an information request command is sent from the master node to the slave node by specifying the address of the slave node that becomes the operating environment information acquisition node, and in response, the slave node By configuring the device so that the operating environment information is sent from the master node to the master node, there is no confusion in the sequence when obtaining operating environment information from multiple devices, and it is possible to collect operating environment information more efficiently. . If an I ² C network is used as such a second network, even relatively large operating environment information can be easily transmitted and received through serial communication, eliminating the need for complex input/output port control processing. is also unnecessary.

The outline of I ² C communication will be explained below. In I ² C communication, a master node (I ² C bus master 907) and slave nodes are clearly separated, and the master node takes the lead in control. The I ² C bus 52 that connects the master node and slave nodes is composed of two lines, a clock line SCL and a data line SDA, and is a binary data signal based on a clock signal transmitted by the master node via the clock line SCL. is serially transferred on data line SDA. Each slave node has a unique address, and when information is transmitted, an acknowledgment signal (ACK) is always returned from the destination node to the source node.

The lower part of FIG. 4 shows the structure of a data frame 1100 for I ² C communication. Data frame 1100 includes the following fields.
Address field 1101: The address of the slave node to which data is transferred is transferred in 7 or 10 bits. The information transfer direction of the address field 1101 is always from master (M) to slave (S). All slave nodes receive the address based on the current clock, and only the slave node whose address matches its own continues transmission and reception. Different addresses are assigned to the fan operation monitoring devices 84A, 84B, internal temperature monitoring devices 85A, 85B, external voltage monitoring unit 16, and battery controller 24, which constitute the operating environment information acquisition nodes, and these addresses are the targets of operating environment information acquisition. It also functions as information that identifies the type of device.
- R/W field 1102: 1 bit of R/W mode information is transferred. When the R/W mode information is "0", information is input from the slave (S) to the master (M) (Read mode: reading information from the slave node), and when the R/W mode information is "1", Indicates that information is output from the master (M) to the slave (S) (Write mode: information writing to the slave node). The transfer direction is master (M) → slave (S).
- ACK1103: This is an acknowledge signal for transmission and reception of the R/W field, and the transfer direction is master (M)←slave (S) in Read mode, and master (M)→slave (S) in Write mode.
- Data field 1104: 1 byte (8 bits) of information (data or command) is transferred. The transfer direction is master (M)→slave (S) in Read mode, and master (M)←slave (S) in Write mode. If the content is a command, the type of operating environment information to be acquired (for example, in the case of the battery controller 24, battery remaining amount, battery voltage, temperature, etc.) is unique to the type for each device forming the slave node. It will be specified by the command associated with.
- ACK1105: This is an acknowledge signal for transmission and reception of a data field, and the transfer direction is master (M)←slave (S) in Read mode, and master (M)→slave (S) in Write mode.
Note that if the total size of the information to be transferred is larger than the size of the data field 1104, the information is transferred by dividing it into a plurality of data fields 1104.

FIG. 11 shows the processing flow of the master node in Read mode. In S151, the I ² C bus (SCL and SAD) is set to the information transfer start condition (Start Condition), and in S152, the address of the slave node to which the information is requested is output, and "0" is output as R/W mode information. . If ACK is input in S153, the process advances to S154, and data (or command) from the slave node is input (if there is no ACK, the process advances to error processing in S159). If the data (or command) is successfully input in S155, the process advances to S156, and ACK is returned to the slave node (if the data (or command) cannot be input normally, the process advances to error processing in S159). If all data has not been inputted in S157, the process returns to S154 and the following process is repeated. On the other hand, if input of all data is completed in S157, the process advances to S158, puts the I ² C bus in an information transfer end state (Stop Condition), and ends the process.

FIG. 12 shows the processing flow of the master node in Write mode. In S101, the I ² C bus is set to Start Condition, and in S102, the address of the slave node to which the information is transferred is output, and "1" is output as R/W mode information. If an ACK is input in S103, the process advances to S104 and data (or command) is output (if there is no ACK, the process advances to error processing in S108). If the ACK from the slave node is successfully received in S105, the process advances to S106, and it is checked whether all data has been output. If the process has not been completed, the process returns to S104 and the following process is repeated. On the other hand, if the output of all data is completed in S106, the process proceeds to S107, puts the I ² C bus in an information transfer end state (Stop Condition), and ends the process.

An outline of the communication method according to the 3GPP specifications will be explained below. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the structure of an IP packet used for data transmission between the UE 5 and the wireless communication unit 1. The IP packet 1300 consists of an IP header 1301 and a payload 1302, and a PDU identification number, a data source address 1301a, a destination address 1301b, and the like are written in the IP header 1301. Further, the IP header 1301 has a ToS (Type of Service) field 1301c formed therein. The ToS field 1301c defines the packet transfer priority and communication type.

6 and 7 show a 3GPP-specification wireless protocol stack that is the basis of the EPC communication firmware 305a or the base station communication firmware 405a. FIG. 6 shows a user plane protocol stack, and FIG. 7 shows a control plane protocol stack. The wireless protocol stack is divided into layers 1 to 3 of the OSI reference model, with layer 1 being the PHY (physical) layer. Layer 2 includes a MAC (Medium Access Control) layer, an RLC (Radio Link Control) layer, and a PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol) layer. Layer 3 includes an RRC (Radio Resource Control) layer and a NAS (Non-Access Stratum) layer.

The role of each layer is as follows.
- PHY layer: performs encoding/decoding, modulation/demodulation, antenna mapping/demapping, and resource mapping/demapping. Data and control signals are transmitted between the PHY layer of the UE 5 and the PHY layer of the radio base station module (eNodeB) 4 via a physical channel.
- MAC layer: Performs data priority control, HARQ retransmission control processing, random access procedures, etc. Data and control signals are transmitted between the MAC layer of the UE 5 and the MAC layer of the radio base station module 4 via a transport channel. The MAC layer of the radio base station module 4 includes a scheduler that determines uplink and downlink transport formats (transport block size, modulation and coding scheme (MCS)) and resource blocks to be allocated to the UE 5.

- RLC layer: transmits data to the RLC layer on the receiving side using the functions of the MAC layer and PHY layer. Data and control signals are transmitted between the RLC layer of the UE 5 and the RLC layer of the radio base station module 4 via logical channels.
- PDCP layer: Performs header compression/decompression, encryption/decryption of PDU.
- RRC layer: Defined only in the control plane that handles control signals. Messages for various settings (RRC messages) are transmitted between the RRC layer of the UE 5 and the RRC layer of the radio base station module 4. The RRC layer controls logical, transport and physical channels according to the establishment, re-establishment and release of radio bearers. If there is a connection (RRC connection) between the RRC of UE5 and the RRC of radio base station module 4, UE5 is in RRC connected mode, otherwise it is in RRC idle mode.

The above layers are used in both the control plane and the user plane. On the other hand, only in the control plane, the UE 5 and the MME 2 are provided with a NAS layer that performs session management, mobility management, etc. higher than the RRC layer. Further, a user data transmission interface between the radio base station module 4 and the EPC module 3 side is provided with a GTP-U (GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) Tunneling Protocol for User Plane) layer. The GTP-U layer is for identifying the UE 5 to be connected and the radio bearer to be used.

Next, FIG. 8 shows downlink channel mapping. Here, a mapping relationship between a logical channel (Downlink Logical Channel), a transport channel (Downlink Transport Channel), and a physical channel (Downlink Physical Channel) is shown. Below, they will be explained in order.
- DTCH (Dedicated Traffic Channel) is a dedicated logical channel for data transmission. DTCH is mapped to DLSCH (Downlink Shared Channel), which is a transport channel.
- DCCH (Dedicated Control Channel): A logical channel for transmitting dedicated control information between the UE 5 and the network. DCCH is used when the UE 5 has an RRC connection with the radio base station module 4. DCCH is mapped to DLSCH.
- CCCH (Common Control Channel): A logical channel for transmission control information between the UE 5 and the radio base station module 4. CCCH is used when UE 5 does not have an RRC connection with radio base station module 4. CCCH is mapped to DLSCH.
- BCCH (Broadcast Control Channel): A logical channel for distributing system information. The BCCH is mapped to a BCH (Broadcast Channel) or DLSCH, which is a transport channel.
- PCCH (Paging Control Channel): A logical channel for notifying paging information and system information changes. The PCCH is mapped to a PCH (Paging Channel), which is a transport channel.

Further, the mapping relationship between transport channels and physical channels is as follows.
- DLSCH and PCH: mapped to PDSCH (Physical Downlink Shared Channel). DLSCH supports HARQ, link adaptation, and dynamic resource allocation.
- BCH: Mapped to PBCH (Physical Broadcast Channel).

FIG. 9 shows uplink channel mapping. Similar to FIG. 8, the mapping relationship between the logical channel (Downlink Logical Channel), the transport channel (Downlink Transport Channel), and the physical channel (Downlink Physical Channel) is shown. Below, they will be explained in order.
- CCCH (Common Control Channel): A logical channel used to transmit control information between the UE 5 and the EPC module 3, and is a logical channel used to transmit control information between the EPC module 3 and radio resource control (RRC). Used by UE5s that do not have a connection.
・DCCH (Dedicated Control Channel): A point-to-point bidirectional logical channel used to transmit individual control information between the UE 5 and the EPC module 3. Channel. The dedicated control channel DCCH is used by UE5s that have an RRC connection.
- DTCH (Dedicated Traffic Channel): A one-to-one two-way logical channel, dedicated to a specific UE, and used for transferring user information.

- It is a transport channel that supports ULSCH (Uplink Shared Channel: HARQ), dynamic adaptive radio link control, and discontinuous transmission (DTX).
- RACH (Random Access Channel): A transport channel on which limited control information is transmitted.

- PUCCH (Physical Uplink Control Channel): Response information for downlink data (ACK (Acknowledge)/NACK (Negative acknowledge)), downlink radio quality information (CQI: Channel Quality Indicator), and This is a physical channel used to notify the wireless base station module 4 of an uplink data transmission request (scheduling request: SR).
- PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel): A physical channel used to transmit uplink data.
・PRACH (Physical Random Access Channel): A physical channel mainly used for random access preamble transmission to obtain transmission timing information (transmission timing command) from the UE 5 to the radio base station module 4. . Random access preamble transmission is performed during the random access procedure.

As shown in FIG. 9, in the uplink, transport channels and physical channels are mapped as follows. The uplink transmission and reception channel ULSCH is mapped to the physical uplink transmission and reception channel PUSCH. Random access channel RACH is mapped to physical random access channel PRACH. The physical uplink control channel PUCCH is used as a physical channel alone. Further, the common control channel CCCH, dedicated control channel DCCH, and dedicated traffic channel DTCH are mapped to the uplink transmission and reception channel ULSCH.

In the downlink of the LTE system, the UE 5 wirelessly connects to the radio base station module 4 using OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing) access (OFDMA). The OFDMA system is characterized as a two-dimensional multiple access system that combines frequency division multiplexing and time division multiplexing. Specifically, orthogonal subcarriers on the frequency axis and time axis are divided and allocated to UE5, and the subcarriers that are orthogonal on the frequency axis are divided so that the signal of each subcarrier becomes zero (0 point). . By dividing subcarriers and allocating them on the frequency axis, even if one subcarrier is affected by fading, it is possible to select another subcarrier that is unaffected. This has the advantage that subcarriers can be used and wireless quality can be maintained.

In the OFDMA system, a resource block (hereinafter also referred to as RB) defined on a virtual plane extending between a frequency axis and a time axis is employed as a radio resource. As shown in FIG. 10, RB is defined as a block in which the above plane is divided into a matrix at 180 kHz/0.5 msec, and each resource block RB divides 12 adjacent subcarriers at 15 kHz intervals on the frequency axis, on the time axis. In the above example, one slot of the frame (7 symbols) is included. These RBs are assigned to the UE 5 as a set of two adjacent RBs (1 msec) on the time axis. On the other hand, in the uplink of the LTE system, resource blocks RB having a similar concept are used as radio resources, except that SC-FDM (Single Career Frequency-Division Multiplexing) access (SC-FDMA) is adopted. In OFDMA, one resource block is divided into 12 subcarriers (bandwidth: 15 kHz) on the frequency axis, whereas SC-FDMA is a single carrier system in which division into subcarriers is not performed.

The overall control module 9 can realize the following functional operations by executing the overall control firmware 905a.
- Acquires operating state information of the communication main body from the communication main unit (operating state information acquisition unit).
- Create GUI data for displaying the status of each component inside the portable casing indicated by the operating state information and operating environment information on a GUI screen for each component (GUI data creation unit).
- Holds GUI data so that it can be read and accessed from external terminal devices (GUI server section).
- Determine whether a predetermined operating environment abnormality has occurred based on the operating environment information acquired by the operating environment information acquisition unit (I ² C bus master 907) (operating environment abnormality determination unit).
- Sends a main unit startup command to the communication main unit only when it is determined that no operating environment abnormality has occurred (main unit startup command sending unit).
- Outputs an operating environment abnormality notification when an operating environment abnormality occurs (abnormality notification section).
- After the base station function program and the EPC function program in the communication main unit are started, if the operating environment abnormality determining unit determines that an operating environment abnormality has occurred, the base station function stored in the base station function program storage unit The program and the EPC function program storage unit (flash memory 305) are stored in the EPC function program (EPC communication firmware 305a). medium abnormality response processing unit).

The LED 60 in FIG. 2 has the function of an abnormality notification section, and includes, for example, one shown in FIG. 19.
- Power LED 60A: Indicates the operating state of the power switch 65. For example, when the power module 22 is in a power receiving state, the power LED 60A lights up when the power switch 65 is turned on, and turns off when the power switch 65 is turned off.
・Activation LED 60B: Whether the communication main unit (EPC module 3 and wireless base station module 4) has received power and is operating (whether the EPC communication firmware 305a and base station communication firmware 405a have started and are being executed) ) will be announced. For example, the light will turn on when the start-up operation is in progress, and the light will turn off when it is not.
-Fan LED 60C: For example, it lights up when there is an abnormality in the cooling fans 14A and 14B, and turns off when there is no abnormality.
-Temperature LED 60D: For example, it lights up when there is an abnormality in the temperature detected by the temperature sensors 15A and 15B, and turns off otherwise.
-Battery LED 60E: Lights up when normal power supply from the battery 21 becomes difficult, such as when the remaining amount of the rechargeable battery 21 becomes less than a threshold value, and turns off otherwise.
- External power supply LED 60F: Lights up when there is input from the external power supply 26, and turns off otherwise.

The details of the function implementation processing by the overall control firmware 905a will be described below using a flowchart. In FIG. 2, when the user presses the power switch 65 in FIG. 2 while the power is off, a main activation signal is input to the input/output unit 909 of the central control computer 900. FIG. 13 shows the processing flow of the startup sequence when starting the operation of the wireless communication unit 1. When the main startup signal is detected in S201, it is determined that the power is turned on, and in S202, the central control computer 900 ( The overall control firmware 905a) is launched. In S203, the I ² C bus master 907 is notified that the power is turned on. The I ² C bus master 907 transmits a command to turn on the power LED 60A to the LED driver 17 through I ² C communication. In response to this, the LED driver 17 lights up the power supply LED 60A at T203.

Next, in S204, the I ² C bus master 907 is instructed to collect detection logs from the battery controller 24. The I ² C bus master 907 sends a detection log collection command to the battery controller 24 through I ² C communication. In response to this, the battery controller 24 transmits a detection log (operating environment information). In S205, the I ² C bus master 907 receives the detection log from the battery controller 24.

Similarly, in S206, the I ² C bus master 907 is commanded to collect detection logs from the cooling fans 14A, 14B (fan operation monitoring devices 84A, 84B) and temperature sensors 15A, 15B (internal temperature monitoring devices 85A, 85B). The I ² C bus master 907 sends a detection log collection command to the fan operation monitoring devices 84A, 84B and the internal temperature monitoring devices 85A, 85B by I ² C communication. The fan operation monitoring devices 84A, 84B and the internal temperature monitoring devices 85A, 85B each receive this and transmit detection logs (operating environment information). In S207, the I ² C bus master 907 receives detection logs from the fan operation monitoring devices 84A, 84B and the internal temperature monitoring devices 85A, 85B.

In S208, the received detection log is analyzed to determine whether there is an abnormality. FIG. 14 shows the details. In S2081, the detection logs of the first temperature sensor 15A and the second temperature sensor 15B are analyzed. Any temperature sensor is determined to be "normal" when the detected temperature d is less than or equal to the upper limit value dmax.

In S2082, a detection log analysis of the cooling fans 14A, 14B (fan operation monitoring devices 84A, 84B) is performed. The conditions for determining that the operation of the cooling fans 14A, 14B is normal are as follows.
- The rotation speed u is within the normal range (umin≦u≦umax: umin is the minimum allowable rotation speed, and umax is the maximum allowable rotation speed). The rotational speed can be detected, for example, by a rotation sensor such as a rotary encoder (none of which is shown). If the rotational speed u is less than umin, it means that the drive motors of the cooling fans 14A and 14B are not rotating normally due to disconnection or other factors, and the inside of the portable housing 23 is not sufficiently cooled. There is a risk of high temperature. On the other hand, if the rotational speed u exceeds umax, an excessive current may flow in the drive motors of the cooling fans 14A, 14B due to a short circuit or the like, causing the motors to run out of control, which may lead to failure.
-Temperature Tf is within the normal range (Tf≦Tfmax: Tfmax is the maximum allowable temperature). If the temperature Tf exceeds Tfmax, it means that the drive motors of the cooling fans 14A, 14B are generating abnormal heat due to a problem such as overload, which may lead to failure. Regarding the temperature of the cooling fans 14A and 14B, for example, the temperature of the surface of the housing of the drive motor can be detected by a temperature sensor (not shown).

- The current If is within the normal range (Ifmin≦If≦Ifmax: Ifmin is the minimum allowable current value, Ifmax is the maximum allowable current value). If the current If is less than Ifmin, it means that the drive motors of the cooling fans 14A and 14B are not rotating normally due to disconnection or other factors, and the interior of the portable housing 23 is not sufficiently cooled and the temperature rises. There is a risk of becoming On the other hand, if the current If exceeds Ifmax, an excessive current may flow through the drive motors of the cooling fans 14A, 14B due to a short circuit or the like, causing the motors to run out of control, which may lead to failure.

Note that it is possible to omit detection of either the rotation speed u or the current If, but by detecting both together, the cause of the abnormality occurring in the rotation of the cooling fans 14A, 14B can be more accurately identified. may be beneficial on the above. For example, if the current If exceeds Ifmax and the rotational speed u is umin, the drive motor is energized, but the rotation of the fan is forcibly blocked by foreign objects or a malfunction in the transmission system, resulting in excessive rotation. A possible situation is that the system is under load. On the other hand, when the current If is less than Imin and the rotational speed u is less than umin, there is a high possibility of a disconnection or power supply abnormality. When a plurality of cooling fans are provided as in this embodiment, it is desirable to perform similar monitoring for each cooling fan.

In a simpler form, when simply monitoring whether or not the cooling fans 14A, 14B are operating, the cooling fans 14A, 14B may be configured as I ² C devices accompanied by fan operation monitoring devices 84A, 84B. It goes up when it's good. For example, as shown in FIG. 20, the drive current value SF of the cooling fans 14A, 14B is converted into a voltage signal using, for example, a shunt resistor 14R, and this voltage signal is converted into a binary value indicating whether the cooling fans 14A, 14B are activated or stopped. The detection signal SF may be inputted to the overall control module 9 (in this embodiment, it is inputted to the expansion input/output unit 910).

Returning to FIG. 14, in S2083, the detection log of the battery controller 24 is analyzed.
The conditions for determining that the operation is normal are as follows.
・The remaining battery capacity Cr must be greater than or equal to the specified lower limit Crmin.
- Battery voltage Vb is within the normal range (Vbmin≦Vb≦Vbmax: Vbmin is the minimum allowable battery voltage, Vbmax is the maximum allowable battery voltage). If the battery voltage Vb is less than Vbmin, it is possible that the remaining battery power is insufficient, or that the battery voltage is not being output due to a malfunction or non-installation of the battery itself. Furthermore, if the battery voltage exceeds Vbmax, there is a possibility that a short circuit from another power source to the battery output circuit is occurring as a malfunction.
-Battery temperature Tb is below the maximum allowable temperature Tbmax. If the battery temperature Tb exceeds Tbmax, there is a possibility that abnormal heat generation is occurring due to an operation outside the specifications of the rechargeable battery, such as overcharging or overdischarging.

Then, in S2084, it is checked whether all of the above analysis items are normal. If even one of them is abnormal, the process advances to S2085 and an abnormality determination is performed. On the other hand, if all the analysis items are normal in S2084, the process advances to S2086 and a normality determination is made.

Returning to FIG. 13, if it is determined that there is no abnormality in S209 (that is, if it is determined to be normal), the process proceeds to S210 according to the IP protocol via the switching hub 11 and the Ethernet bus 32 (LAN, first network) in FIG. A startup instruction command (main unit startup command) for starting up the EPC communication firmware (EPC function program) 305a is sent to the EPC computer 300. In response to this, the EPC computer 300 starts the system, the EPC communication firmware 305a starts up, and if the start-up process is successfully completed, a start-up completion notification is returned to the overall control module 9. Further, in S211, a startup instruction command (main unit startup command) for starting up the base station communication firmware (base station function program) 405a is similarly transmitted to the wireless base station computer 400. Upon receiving this, the wireless base station computer 400 starts up the system, starts up the base station communication firmware 405a, and returns a start-up completion notification to the overall control module 9. In S212, the overall control module 9 confirms the normal startup of the EPC computer 300 and the wireless base station computer 400 based on whether or not the startup completion notification has been received. If normal startup is confirmed, the process advances to S213, and the I ² C bus master 907 is notified of normal startup. In response to this, the I ² C bus master 907 transmits an LED lighting command indicating "operation" to the LED driver 17. Thereby, the LED driver 17 lights up the LED 60B in FIG. 19 (T213).

On the other hand, if an abnormality is determined in S209, the processes in S210 and S211 are not executed. That is, a startup instruction command (main body startup command) is not sent to the EPC computer 300 and the wireless base station computer 400, and the startup process of the EPC communication firmware 305a and the base station communication firmware 405a, that is, the EPC module 3 and the wireless base station module The startup process of the communication main unit including 4 is not performed. Instead, the process advances to S214, and the I ² C bus master 907 is notified of the occurrence of the abnormality. In response to this, the I ² C bus master 907 transmits an LED lighting command indicating "abnormality" to the LED driver 17. Specifically, the I ² C bus master 907 is notified of the type of device (temperature sensor, cooling fan, and battery) in which ^an abnormality has occurred in the abnormality analysis process shown in FIG. sends a command to turn on the LED corresponding to the device.

As a result, for example, when the above-mentioned abnormality (one or more) occurs in at least one of the cooling fans 14A and 14B, the LED 60C in FIG. 19 lights up. Moreover, when an abnormality occurs in the detected temperature of at least one of the temperature sensors 15A and 15B, the LED 60D lights up. Further, when the battery controller 24 detects (one or more) of the above abnormalities, the LED 60E in FIG. 19 lights up. Note that if there are a plurality of devices in which an abnormality has occurred, a plurality of corresponding LEDs are lit at the same time. On the other hand, when the above abnormality occurs, the LED 60B indicating "operation" is not lit.

In the method of the above embodiment, if even one abnormality occurs in the operating environment of the communication main unit, the start-up process of the communication firmware of the EPC module 3 and the wireless base station module 4 is postponed. For example, if the temperature inside the portable housing 23 rises and the temperatures detected by the temperature sensors 15A, 15B become abnormal, there is a high probability that the operation of the EPC computer 300 or the wireless base station computer 400 will become unstable, and the wireless There is a possibility that the base station module 4 and the EPC module 3 may malfunction or act as a source of radio wave interference for other wireless systems. However, the above-mentioned problems can be effectively prevented by detecting an operating environment abnormality including an internal temperature abnormality when the wireless communication unit is started up and preventing the communication main body from starting up.

On the other hand, even if the temperatures detected by the temperature sensors 15A and 15B do not indicate an abnormality, if an abnormality occurs in the cooling fans 14A and 14B, such as stopping, cooling inside the case will not proceed, so the temperature will inevitably become abnormal. This will inevitably lead to similar problems. Therefore, as described above, information on the internal temperature inside the portable housing 23 as well as information on the driving state of the cooling fan (cooling device) is acquired, and an abnormality is detected when the wireless communication unit 1 is started up, and the communication main unit is started up. By preventing this, the above-mentioned problems can be more effectively prevented.

EPC communication firmware 305a (EPC function program) and base station communication firmware 405a (base station function program) are stored in rewritable non-volatile memory such as flash memory, but during operation, the setting parameters are Part of the stored content may be changed, including rewriting. Therefore, the occurrence of temperature abnormality may lead to part of the software data being destroyed due to program runaway or the like. However, by adopting the above method, it is possible to prevent such software data from being destroyed. In particular, in the above configuration in which the EPC computer 300 or the wireless base station computer 400 starts up all at once by a single push operation of the power switch 65, the EPC computer 300 or the wireless base station computer 400 starts up all at once. The communication firmware 305a and 405a of both computers can be extremely effectively protected from runaway or destruction.

Next, in the method of the above embodiment, the state of the rechargeable battery 21 by the battery controller 24 is also acquired as operating environment information, and if an abnormality occurs, the communication firmware of the EPC module 3 and the wireless base station module 4 of the communication main unit is startup processing is blocked. Specifically, the start-up process of the communication firmware is blocked when a battery abnormality is detected, regardless of the detected temperatures of the temperature sensors 15A, 15B and the presence or absence of an abnormality in the cooling fans 14A, 14B. It has become.

In an environment where the wireless communication unit 1 is operated by a battery, for example, when normal power supply from the battery is not possible due to insufficient remaining power, etc., the EPC communication firmware 305a (EPC function program) and the base station communication firmware 405a (base station communication If the station function program) attempts to start up, software data may be destroyed due to power interruption while the program is running. Therefore, by blocking the start-up process of the communication firmware when a battery abnormality is detected, the problem can be effectively prevented.

In particular, when the power reception voltage information (power reception state information) indicated by the detection log of the external voltage monitoring unit 16 in FIG. Since the voltage cannot be used as a backup, it is particularly desirable to avoid startup processing of the communication firmware in the communication main unit when a battery abnormality is detected. In this case, if power is being received from an external power supply voltage, it is possible to configure the system so that even if a battery abnormality is detected, startup processing of the communication firmware in the communication main unit is executed while using the external power supply voltage. It is possible.

On the other hand, even if the external power supply voltage is normally being received, the configuration may be such that startup processing of the communication firmware of the communication main unit is avoided when a battery abnormality is detected. If the power reception of the external power supply voltage is interrupted due to a power outage while executing the start-up process of the communication firmware of the communication main unit while using the external power supply voltage, the communication firmware will detect that a battery abnormality has occurred. It becomes impossible to secure the power supply voltage to continue the start-up process, and there is a possibility that the aforementioned software data will be destroyed. Therefore, by configuring as described above, it is possible to protect software data from destruction even in the event of a power outage or the like during communication firmware startup processing.

Next, FIG. 15 shows the termination sequence of the wireless communication unit 1 during normal operation by the overall control firmware 905a. In S401, when the power switch 65 in FIG. 2 is pressed while the wireless communication unit 1 is being activated, the process proceeds to S402, where termination processing is executed. FIG. 16 shows details of the termination process, in which the EPC communication firmware is sent to the EPC computer 300 in S4021 according to the IP protocol via the switching hub 11 and the Ethernet bus 32 (LAN, first network) in FIG. A termination instruction command is sent to terminate (close) the (EPC function program) 305a. In response to this, the EPC computer 300 moves to a closing process, closes the EPC communication firmware 305a, and returns a termination completion notification to the overall control module 9 if the termination process is successfully completed. Further, in S4022, a termination instruction command for terminating (closing) the base station communication firmware (base station function program) 405a is similarly transmitted to the wireless base station computer 400. Upon receiving this, the wireless base station computer 400 moves to a termination (closing) process, closes the base station communication firmware 405a, and returns a termination completion notification to the overall control module 9 if the termination process is successfully completed. In S4023, the overall control module 9 confirms whether the EPC computer 300 and the wireless base station computer 400 have terminated normally, based on whether or not the termination notification has been received. If normal termination is confirmed, the process advances to S4024, and the I ² C bus master 907 is notified of the normal termination. In response to this, the I ² C bus master 907 transmits an LED lighting command indicating "end" to the LED driver 17. As a result, the LED driver 17 turns off the LEDs 60A (power supply) and 60B (operation) in FIG. 19. Then, the process of the overall control module 9 proceeds to S4025, and after the overall control computer termination process is executed, the power is shut off.

On the other hand, if it is determined in S4023 that the process has not ended normally (that is, it is determined to be abnormal), the process advances to S4026, and the I ² C bus master 907 is notified of the occurrence of the abnormality. In response to this at T4026, the I ² C bus master 907 performs a process in which the LED 60A (power supply) in FIG. 19 continues to light up and the LED 60B (operation) turns off. By continuing to light the LED 60A, the user can know that the end processing of the communication main unit has not been completed normally. In this case, for example, the forced termination process may be executed by pressing and holding the power switch 65 for a long time.

Next, once each communication firmware (EPC communication firmware and base station communication firmware) of the communication main unit has started up normally, the overall control firmware 905a continues the process of collecting the operating environment information, and the communication main unit It also collects and aggregates communication logs recorded by the EPC module 3 and wireless base station module 4 that make up the system.

FIG. 26 shows the flow of communication log recording processing by the EPC module 3 and the wireless base station module 4. The protocol stacks of the EPC module 3 and the wireless base station module 4 have already been explained in FIGS. 6 and 7, and communication processing is performed by the corresponding protocol stack for each layer. Specifically, primitives are transmitted and received between adjacent upper and lower layers. The primitives are exchanged every time a communication event occurs, and the content is uniquely determined by the type of communication event. Primitives exchanged each time one communication event occurs include specific information of the layer involved in primitive transmission/reception (e.g. destination layer), specific information of the sending/receiving direction (upper layer or lower layer), and event occurrence time. It is associated with each piece of information and stored in a buffer within the communication module as a communication log.

As shown in FIG. 2, in the EPC module 3, a communication log buffer 302a is formed in the RAM 302 as the above buffer. Furthermore, the radio base station module 4 also has a communication log buffer 402a formed in the RAM 402 as the above buffer. These buffer memory areas are configured, for example, as FIFO (First In First Out) memory areas, and are used to update and store communication logs for a certain number of times.

Here, the above communication logs are generated even for communication events when the flow of communication processing is normal, and in a mobile communication system in which a large number of UE5s are involved, all communication logs that continuously occur are recorded. This is undesirable because it consumes extra memory area. Therefore, the types of communication logs recorded in the communication log buffer 302a or the communication log buffer 402a are divided into levels based on their relevance to the occurrence of an abnormality, and communication logs that are closely related to the occurrence of an abnormal state with a particularly large impact are logged as abnormalities. It can be said that it is desirable to extract or aggregate the information and selectively store it in the abnormality log memory. As shown in FIG. 2, in the EPC module 3, an abnormality log memory 302b is formed in the RAM 302. Furthermore, the wireless base station module 4 also has an abnormality log memory 402b formed in the RAM 402.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart showing the flow of communication log recording processing in the EPC module 3 and the wireless base station module 4. When a communication event is executed in S701, a primitive generated in S702 is acquired as a communication log and stored in the communication log buffer described above. In S703, it is determined whether or not the communication log is an abnormal log. If it is an abnormal log, the process advances to S704, and the contents of the communication log are stored in the abnormal log memory. On the other hand, if the communication log is not an abnormal log in S703, S704 is skipped. Thereafter, the above processing is repeated until it ends in S705.

Next, the overall control module 9 periodically collects the error logs individually recorded in the EPC module 3 or the wireless base station module 4 by executing the error log acquisition/aggregation process included in the overall control firmware 905a. Acquire and aggregate. The communication process related to acquiring the abnormality log is executed according to the IP protocol via the switching hub 11 and the Ethernet bus 32 (LAN, first network) in FIG. FIG. 27 shows the flow of the process. In S801, the EPC module 3 and the wireless base station module 4 are requested to send an abnormality log. The EPC module 3 and the wireless base station module 4 read the abnormality log stored in the abnormality log memory 302b or the abnormality log memory 402b and transfer it to the overall control module 9. Note that the abnormality log data that has been transferred to the overall control module 9 is deleted from the abnormality log memory 302b or abnormality log memory 402b at any time. The overall control module 9 receives the abnormality log in S802.

As shown in FIG. 2, the overall control module 9 has a communication log aggregation storage section 905c secured in the flash memory 905, and stores the received abnormality log (communication log) therein in S803 (i.e., the wireless base A function is realized to selectively store abnormality logs among the communication logs generated by the station module 4 and the EPC module 3). FIG. 28 shows an example of the types of abnormal logs, each of which is associated with an abnormal log code (abnormal log type identification information). Specifically, the error log types include: protocol error (IV001), transaction service not supported (IV002), reception buffer overflow (IV003), retransmission timeout (IV004), and transmission service discarded. (IV005), base station system abnormality (IV101), EPC system abnormality (IV102), etc. (the abnormality log code is in parentheses). For example, an abnormality log related to retransmission timeout is recorded as an abnormality log that aggregates communication logs related to retransmission control when they are continuously transmitted and received a certain number of times. In addition, base station system abnormality (IV101) and EPC system abnormality (IV102) are used as abnormality logs at the termination target level, which are the conditions for executing abnormality termination processing of the communication main unit (EPC module 3 and wireless base station module 4). It is determined.

Note that the results of the abnormality determination made using the above-mentioned operating environment information collected using the I ² C network etc. are also stored in the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c as an abnormality log in a broad sense. Figure 28 shows the error log corresponding to this. Base station temperature abnormality (temperature abnormality detected by the first temperature sensor 15A, IV201), base station downstream temperature abnormality (temperature abnormality detected by the second temperature sensor 15B, IV202), cooling fan abnormality (IV203), external power supply abnormality ( IV204) and battery abnormality (IV205).

FIG. 29 shows an example of the storage contents of the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c, in which the date and time of occurrence of the abnormal log, the address of the abnormal log transmission source node (if the abnormal log transmission source node is the EPC The IP address in the case of the module 3 or the wireless base station module 4, the slave node address in the case of the I ² C slave node), the module or device type, and the error log code are associated with each other, and are stored in chronological order. ing.

In addition, all communication logs generated in the EPC module 3 and wireless base station module 4 are transferred to the integrated control module 9, and the integrated control module 9 performs processing to identify whether or not the transferred communication log is an abnormal log. It may also be executed. However, considering the additional processing load of transferring communication logs to the overall control module 9, it is preferable that the identification processing is performed separately in the EPC module 3 and the wireless base station module 4 as described above. .

Next, FIG. 17 shows the flow of processing by the overall control firmware 905a when each communication firmware (EPC communication firmware and base station communication firmware) of the communication main unit starts up normally and then an abnormality occurs during operation. It shows. This process is repeatedly executed at predetermined time intervals by, for example, a timer process. In S501, the I ² C bus master 907 is instructed to collect detection logs from the cooling fans 14A, 14B (fan operation monitoring devices 84A, 84B), temperature sensors 15A, 15B (internal temperature monitoring devices 85A, 85B), and battery controller 24. , the detection log of each device is received from the I ² C bus master 907 in S502. This step is similar to the processing from S204 to S207 in FIG. Then, in S503, an abnormality analysis process similar to that in FIG. 14 is performed. If it is determined in S505 that there is an abnormality, the process advances to S506 and the termination process shown in FIG. 16 is executed.

Note that the determination result of the abnormality analysis process in S503 (FIG. 14) is stored in the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c as an abnormality log as described above. In addition, in the abnormality analysis process, a caution threshold level, which is a step before termination processing, is set for the acquired operating environment information, and a caution judgment is also made based on the comparison with the caution threshold level. It's okay. For example, in the case of temperature abnormality, the caution upper limit value dmax' as a caution threshold level is set to the lower temperature side than the above-mentioned upper limit value dmax, and if the detected temperature d exceeds the caution upper limit value dmax' and becomes less than the upper limit value dmax. Then, a caution determination is made (in this case, as will be described later, the termination process is not performed and only the caution notification is performed). The above concept of caution determination can be similarly implemented for other types of operating environment information, and in that case, the results of the caution determination are also stored in the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c.

Returning to FIG. 17, if it is determined to be normal in S505, the process advances to S507, and the abnormality logs from the EPC module 3 and base station module 4 are read out from the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c and referenced. In S508, if an abnormality log whose level is determined as a target for executing the above-mentioned termination process, such as a base station system abnormality (IV101) or an EPC system abnormality (IV102), is detected at the most recent time, the process similarly proceeds to S506. Then, the end processing shown in FIG. 16 is executed.

As described above, if an operating environment abnormality occurs in the communication main unit after starting up the base station communication firmware 405a (base station function program) and EPC communication firmware 305a (EPC function program), termination processing of both firmware is performed. Since the power is cut off after the software is installed, the software data can be protected from destruction even in the above-mentioned abnormality.

FIG. 18 shows the flow of processing by the overall control firmware 905a regarding switching between the external power source and the battery power source for the power supply module 22. This process is also repeatedly executed at predetermined time intervals. In S601, the I ² C bus master 907 is instructed to acquire a detection log related to the received voltage from the external voltage monitoring unit 16 (FIG. 4). In S602, the detection log is received from the I ² C bus master 907. In S603, if the detection log indicates that power is being received, the process advances to S604 and notifies the I ² C bus master 907 that external power is being received. In response to this, the I ² C bus master 907 sends an LED lighting command indicating "receiving external power" to the LED driver 17. As a result, the LED driver 17 lights up the LED 60F (external power supply) in FIG. 19 (T604).

On the other hand, if the detection log does not indicate that power is being received in step S603, the process advances to step S606, and the I ² C bus master 907 is notified that no external power is being received. In response to this, the I ² C bus master 907 transmits to the LED driver 17 a command to turn off the LED indicating "receiving external power". Thereby, the LED driver 17 turns off the LED 60F (external power supply) in FIG. 19 (T606). Then, the process advances to S605 and the power source is switched to the rechargeable battery 21.

Next, in FIG. 2, the overall control firmware 905a of the overall control module 9 connects the terminal node connected to the overall control module 9 via IP based on the content of the operating environment information being acquired and the storage content of the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c. On the other hand, it has a function to create GUI data for displaying images on the screen of the display device so that the operating state information and operating environment information of the communication main unit can be identified by related components in the portable housing ( GUI data creation department). Specifically, the GUI data creation unit creates GUI data so that a GUI screen can be displayed by a web browser on an external terminal device. Further, a GUI server section 905b is formed in the flash memory 905, and the GUI data is stored and held in the GUI server section 905b so that it can be read and accessed from an external terminal device. Specifically, the above GUI data creation section includes the operating states of the wireless base station module 4 and EPC module 3 that form the communication main unit, the operating states of the cooling fans 14A and 14B, the detected temperatures of the temperature sensors 15A and 15B, and the power supply module. It has a function of GUI displaying battery status information indicating the power reception status of the external power supply 26 (see FIG. 3) of the battery 22 and the operating status of the rechargeable battery 21.

For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the terminal nodes targeted for GUI display include an external PC 911 that connects to the overall control module 9 via a wired LAN via an Ethernet interface 904, and a UE that connects to a wireless LAN via a WiFi module 908. By pre-installing web browser software or a terminal application with a web browser function on these terminal nodes, the above GUI display can be displayed on a monitor or other device installed in the terminal node. It can be displayed on the device. In other words, the Ethernet interface 904 and the WiFi module 908 function as a GUI data transmitting unit that transmits GUI data held by the GUI server unit 905b to the external PC 911 and the UE 5 (external terminal device).

For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the external PC 911 is equipped with an input section 912 such as a keyboard or a touch panel, and a monitor 913, and when the web browser software is launched, the node identification information (IP address or By inputting the URL), the overall control module 9 can be accessed via IP connection. Upon this access, the overall control module 9 side distributes the GUI data to the external PC 911.

The external PC 911 downloads GUI data from (the GUI server section 905b of) the overall control module 9, and displays, for example, a GUI screen G as shown in FIG. 30 on the monitor 913 on a Web browser. The GUI screen G includes the wireless base station module 4, the EPC module 3, the cooling fans 14A and 14B (fan operation monitoring devices 84A and 84B), the temperature sensors 15A and 15B (internal temperature monitoring devices 85A and 85B), and the external voltage monitoring section. 16, and display fields DF4, DF3, DF14A, DF14B, DF15A, DF15B, DF16 and DF24 for individually displaying the operating state or detection state of each component or device of the rechargeable battery 21 (battery controller 24). It is formed. The above-mentioned GUI data creation unit converts text information TJ indicating the operating state or detection state of each component or device into the contents of the detection log acquired by the corresponding drive status information acquisition node or the storage contents of the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c. and display it in the corresponding display field.

Regarding the wireless base station module 4 and the EPC module 3, if the abnormality log indicating the occurrence of these abnormalities is not stored in the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c, information indicating that the communication state is normal (for example, " "Communicating normally") is displayed. In addition, if the detection log of the driving state information acquisition node indicates an abnormality or a caution state, or if an abnormality log (including a communication log indicating a caution state) is stored in the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c, the appropriate action is taken. The display field to be displayed is switched from a normal display state to a caution display state or an abnormal display state. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 31, each display field is set to be displayed in a different color depending on the state (specifically, normal: blue, caution: yellow, abnormal: red, etc.) . Further, together with or separately from the color of the display field, the display color of the text information TJ may be set to be different depending on the state. FIG. 31 shows a state in which the cooling fan 14A has stopped and the wireless base station module 4 and EPC module 3 are performing termination processing, and the corresponding display fields DF14A, DF4, and DF3 are in an abnormal display state. ing.

FIG. 32 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical configuration of the UE (mobile terminal device) 5. As shown in FIG. UE5 is configured as a smartphone including microcomputer 100 as a processing entity. The microcomputer 100 includes a CPU 101, a RAM 102 serving as a program execution area, a ROM 103, an input/output section 104, a bus 106 interconnecting them, and the like. Further, a flash memory 105 is connected to the bus 106, and communication firmware 105a for constructing the operating environment of the UE 5 and a terminal application 105b are installed therein.

Further, a monitor 109 is connected to the input/output unit 104 via a graphic controller 1091. A touch panel 110 serving as an input unit is superimposed on the monitor 109, and works with various software operation units (buttons, icons, etc.: see FIGS. 13 to 17) displayed on the monitor 109 to control the operation of the UE 5. Various necessary information inputs are made. Touch panel 110 is connected to input/output section 104 via touch panel controller 110A. A camera 111 for taking still images or moving images is connected to the input/output unit 104. Furthermore, a wireless communication section 112 is connected to the bus 106. The UE 5 is wirelessly connected to the radio base station module 4 of the radio communication unit 1 in FIG. 2 via the terminal radio bearer 57 at the radio communication unit 112.

As shown in FIG. 2, by connecting the UE 5 to the central control module 9 via the WiFi module 908 and launching the terminal application 105b, the GUI screen G similar to that shown in FIG. 30 can be displayed on the monitor 109 as shown in FIG. 33. can be displayed. As a result, by installing the terminal application 105b on the user's UE5, the user can easily grasp the current operating state of the wireless communication unit 1 on the GUI screen G, and perform maintenance work on the wireless communication unit 1. It can be useful for troubleshooting work.

Note that in this embodiment, when the UE 5 accesses (logs in) to the GUI server section 905b and displays the GUI screen G, authentication using a password is required. To input a password, read the password input screen shown in FIG. 34 from the menu of the terminal application 105b, enter the password as authentication information in the window 110W using the soft keyboard 110k displayed on the screen, and press the send button (password confirmation operation section) 110B. This operation causes the password to be wirelessly transmitted to the overall control module 9 and authentication processing is executed. That is, the overall control firmware 905a of the overall control module 9 has a password reception section that accepts a password input from an external terminal device, an authentication processing section that performs authentication processing based on the accepted password, and an authentication processing section that performs authentication processing based on the received password. This implements the function of an access permission section that permits access to the GUI server section for an external terminal device only if the external terminal device is present.

FIG. 36 shows the flow of processing in that case, and the UE 5 (terminal) launches the terminal application at J101 and calls the password screen. A password is input in J102 and transmitted in J103. The overall control module 9 receives this and performs authentication by comparing it with the password registered in the password storage section 905d of the flash memory 905 at J104. The authentication result is transmitted to UE5 in J105. If the authentication result is positive in J106, the central control module 9 is requested to transmit GUI data in J107. The overall control module 9 receives the request and transmits GUI data to the UE 5 at J108. The UE 5 displays a GUI screen on the monitor 109 using the GUI data.

Next, a process when the user wants to change the above password will be described. In this case, two processes are required: authentication using the old password and input of the new password. In addition, the following specific security methods are required to prevent unauthorized password changes by impersonation or remote control. It has been adopted. That is, as shown in FIG. 35, the password change screen shown in FIG. 34 is read from the menu of the terminal application 105b, the password before change is entered as authentication information in window 110W1 using the soft keyboard 110k, and the password after change is entered in window 110W2. Enter. Thereafter, by operating the send button (password sending operation unit) 110B, the above two passwords are wirelessly sent to the overall control module 9 and authentication processing is executed. At this time, the operation of the transmission button 110B on the UE 5 side is different from the operation state of the auxiliary operation section (in this embodiment, the control switch 66 (FIG. 2)) provided on the portable housing 23 of the wireless communication unit 1. It is only valid if certain conditions are met.

In this embodiment, specifically, the operation of the send button 110B is valid when the control switch 66 is being operated at the same time. Since this method requires the operator of the UE 5 to enter the password into the wireless communication unit 1 within reach, it is particularly effective in preventing unauthorized password changes by remote control. That is, the overall control firmware 905a of the overall control module 9 includes a password change request receiving unit that accepts a password change request from an external terminal device, an auxiliary operation unit that is scheduled to be operated when receiving the password change request, and a password change request receiving unit that receives a password change request from an external terminal device. an auxiliary operation unit operation state detection unit that detects the operation state of the auxiliary operation unit when a password change request is received; and a password that allows password change only if operation of the auxiliary operation unit is detected when a password change request is accepted. This implements the function of the change permission section.

FIG. 37 shows the flow of password change processing in that case, and in J201, the terminal application is launched and a password change screen is called. The password before change is input in J202 and the password after change is input in J203, and is transmitted in J204 by operating the send button 110B (password change request operation section). The overall control module 9 receives these passwords, and at the same time confirms the operating state of the control switch 66 at J205. If the operation of the control switch 66 cannot be confirmed in J206, the process proceeds to J209 and the authentication is rejected. On the other hand, if the operation of the control switch 66 is confirmed, the process proceeds to J207, and the received password before change is compared with the password registered in the password storage section 905d for authentication. In J208, if the authentication result is positive, that is, if the password matches the password before the change, the process advances to J210, and the received changed password is registered in the password storage unit 905d. For example, the old password in the password storage unit 905d is overwritten and erased. The authentication result is sent to the UE5 in J211. If the received result is positive at J211, a message indicating that the password change has been completed is displayed on the monitor 109, for example. On the other hand, if the answer is negative, the process returns to J202 and the password is input again.

Note that if the user forgets the password and is unable to log in, for example, a password initialization process is performed (since the registered password is changed, this can be said to fall under the "password change process"). In the password initialization process, for example, the central control module 9 issues and notifies the UE 5 of a temporary password via the WiFi module 908, and the processes of FIGS. 35 and 37 are performed to change the "pre-change password" to the "temporary password" Alternatively, you can perform the same procedure by replacing the "post-change password" with the "new password". In addition, as a simpler password initialization process, the issuance of a "temporary password" and authentication process are omitted, and the UE5 side send button 110B (password change request operation section: in this case, the name is "initialization button" etc.) Initialization of the password (registration of a new password) may be permitted by executing the command (which may be present) simultaneously with the operation of the control switch 66 (auxiliary operation section).

Next, the storage contents of the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c in FIG. 2 (see also FIG. 29) are downloaded and acquired as communication log (abnormality log) data in a batch at the terminal node such as the external PC 911 or UE5. can do. The communication logs (abnormality logs) acquired at various locations in the wireless communication unit 1 are aggregated in the communication log aggregation storage unit 905c of the integrated control module 9, and the communication logs (abnormality logs) are configured to be outputted all at once. ) data can be utilized as diagnostic information (diagnosis data) for the entire wireless communication unit 1, and it is possible to easily analyze the tendency of malfunction occurrence and identify the cause of failure.

The output destination of the communication log data is selected and input on the transfer destination device selection screen of the terminal node (for example, the monitor 913 in the case of the external PC 913, and the monitor 109 in the case of the UE5) as shown in FIG. 38, for example. In the figure, reference numeral 913A indicates a selection button for the UE5 (smartphone, external terminal device), and reference numeral 913B indicates a selection button for a USB memory (removable storage device). When UE5 is selected, communication log data is wirelessly transmitted to UE5 via WiFi module 908 (LAN interface) (function of communication log data transfer control unit). The UE 5 can download the communication log data and display its contents on the monitor 109 (FIG. 32), for example. On the other hand, a USB memory mounting section 915 (storage device mounting section) is connected to the bus 906 of the general control computer 900 in FIG. 2, and a USB memory 914 (removable storage device) can be mounted here. When a USB memory is selected as the output destination for the communication log data, the USB memory installation unit 915 is designated as the data destination, and the communication log data is transferred and written to the USB memory 914 installed here ( communication log data writing control unit). Note that by specifying a path, for example, a USB memory attached to the external PC 911 may be selected as the output destination of the communication log data. FIG. 39 is a flowchart showing the flow of communication log data transfer processing in the overall control firmware 905a in this case. In step S901, the transfer destination device selection screen shown in FIG. 32 is displayed. In step S902, an output destination device selection input is accepted. In S903, a transfer destination port (or node, path) is specified according to the input contents. In S904, it is confirmed whether the device to be the transfer destination is ready. If preparation is completed in S905, the process advances to S906 and transfer of communication log data is started. On the other hand, if the preparation is not completed in S905, the process returns to S904 and the following processing is retried.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, they are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

1 Wireless communication unit 2 MME
3 EPC module 4 Wireless base station module 4a Power semiconductor element 4f Radiation fin 4h Heat sink plate 4k Passage 4p Shielding plate 4s Mounting board 5 UE (mobile terminal)
6 S-GW
7 P-GW
8 Router 9 General control module 11 Switching hub 12 Backplane 13 Control board 14A Cooling fan (cooling device)
14b Base part 14B Cooling fan (cooling device)
14m Body part 14p Fan rotating blade 14R Shunt resistor 14s Air flow guide plate 14sf Mounting arm part 14t Fastening member 15A Temperature sensor 15B Temperature sensor 16 External voltage monitoring part 17 LED driver 21 Rechargeable battery 22 Power supply module 22c Capacitor 22i Coil 22s Mounting board 23 Portable housing 23f Air filter 23w Air outlet 23y Air inlet 24 Battery controller (slave node)
25 AC/DC converter 26 External power supply 31A External port group 31B External port group 32 Ethernet bus (first network)
52 I2C bus (second network)
57 Radio bearer 60 LED (abnormality notification section)
62 Current adjustment resistor 65 Power switch 66 Control switch 67 Resistor 84A Fan operation monitoring device (cooling device drive status information acquisition node, slave node)
84B Fan operation monitoring device (cooling device drive status information acquisition node, slave node)
85A Internal temperature monitoring device (internal temperature information acquisition node, slave node)
85B Internal temperature monitoring device (internal temperature information acquisition node, slave node)
100 Microcomputer 101 CPU
102 RAM
104 Duplexer 105 Flash memory 105a Communication firmware 105b Terminal application 106 Bus 109 Monitor 110 Touch panel 110B Send button (password confirmation operation section)
110k Soft keyboard 110W1, 110W2 Window 111 Camera 112 Wireless communication section 231 Cooling air circulation gap 232 Support column 233 Bottom support plate 234 Intermediate support plate (module assembly support plate)
235 Support column 236 Board support frame 300 EPC computer 301 CPU
302 RAM
302a Communication log buffer 302b Abnormal log memory 303 Mask ROM
304 Ethernet interface 305 Flash memory 305a EPC communication firmware 305b MME entity 305c S-GW entity 305d P-GW entity 305e Software router 306 Internal bus 400 Wireless base station computer 401 CPU
402 RAM
402a Communication log buffer 402b Abnormal log memory 403 Mask ROM
404 Duplexer 405 Flash memory 405a Base station communication firmware 406 Internal bus 408 Ethernet interface 412 Wireless communication section 413 Antenna 900 General control computer 901 CPU
902 RAM
903 Mask ROM
904 Ethernet interface (first interface, main unit startup command transmitter)
905 Flash memory 905a Overall control firmware (operating environment abnormality determination unit, operating abnormality response processing unit)
905b GUI server section 905c Communication log aggregation storage section 905d Password storage section 906 Internal bus 907 I2C bus master (second interface, master node)
907s Board 908 WiFi module 909 Input/output section (main activation signal reception section)
910 Expansion input/output unit (I/O)
911 External PC
912 Wireless communication section 913 Monitor 914 USB memory 915 USB memory installation section 1091 Graphic controller 1100 Data frame 1101 Address field 1102 R/W field 1104 Data field 1300 IP packet 1301 IP header 1301a Source address 1301b Destination address 1301c ToS field 1302 Payload

Claims (9)

A wireless base station module that performs wireless communication with a mobile terminal based on 3GPP specifications, and an EPC (Evolved Packet Core) module that is connected by wire to the wireless base station module and performs upper network control for the wireless base station module. a communication main body including;
a power supply module that supplies operating voltage to the communication main body;
a portable casing that integrally accommodates the communication main unit and the power supply module;
an operating environment information acquisition unit that obtains operating environment information of the communication main unit in the portable housing;
an operating state information acquisition unit that is provided in the portable housing and is connected to the communication main unit by wire, and that obtains operating state information of the communication main unit from the communication main unit; and the operating state information and the operating environment information. A GUI data creation unit that creates GUI data for displaying the states of a plurality of predetermined components inside the portable casing including the wireless base station module and the EPC module on a GUI screen for each component based on the above. a GUI data transmission unit that transmits the GUI data held by the GUI server unit to the external terminal device; a control module;
A wireless communication unit characterized by comprising: The GUI data transmission unit includes a LAN interface that connects the external terminal device to the overall control module via a LAN via wire or wireless, and the GUI data creation unit allows the GUI screen to be displayed on the external terminal device using a web browser. The wireless communication unit according to claim 1, wherein the GUI data is created so as to be displayable. The overall control module includes a password reception section that accepts a password input from the external terminal device, an authentication processing section that performs authentication processing based on the received password, and only when the result of the authentication processing is positive. The wireless communication unit according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising an access permission section that permits the external terminal device to access the GUI server section. The overall control module includes a password change request reception unit that receives a password change request from the external terminal device, an auxiliary operation unit that is provided on the portable housing and is to be operated when accepting the password change request, and the an auxiliary operation unit operation state detection unit that detects an operation state of the auxiliary operation unit when the password change request is received, and only when an operation of the auxiliary operation unit is detected when the password change request is received; The wireless communication unit according to claim 3, further comprising a password change permission section that permits password change. The overall control module includes an operating environment abnormality determination unit that determines whether an abnormality has occurred in the operating state or operating environment of the communication main body based on the operating state information and the operating environment information, and The wireless communication according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the creation unit creates the GUI data so that the determination result of the operating environment abnormality determination unit is reflected in the display content of the GUI screen. unit. 6. The wireless communication unit according to claim 5, wherein the operating environment information acquisition section obtains operating environment information of the communication main body within the portable casing so as to include internal temperature information of the portable casing. A cooling device that cools an internal space of the portable casing is provided, and the operating environment abnormality determination unit determines whether drive state information of the cooling device indicates an abnormality in operation of the cooling device, or whether the operating environment abnormality determination unit 7. The wireless communication unit according to claim 6, wherein it is determined that an operating environment abnormality has occurred when at least one of the following holds true: internal temperature information exceeds a limit temperature. A rechargeable battery that supplies battery voltage to the power supply module is provided, and the operating environment information acquisition unit obtains the operating environment information as further including battery status information indicating a charging state and an operating state of the rechargeable battery. 5 or 7, wherein the operating environment abnormality determination unit determines that an operating environment abnormality has occurred when the remaining battery level reflected in the battery status information is less than a threshold value. 7. The wireless communication unit according to any one of 7. The power supply module is provided with an external power supply voltage receiving section that receives an external power supply voltage, and the operating environment information acquisition section obtains the operating environment information as further including power receiving state information of the external power supply voltage receiving section. and the operating environment abnormality determination unit determines that the remaining battery level reflected in the battery status information is less than a threshold in a state where the power reception status information indicates that external power supply voltage is not being received. 9. The wireless communication unit according to claim 8, wherein it is determined that an abnormality in the operating environment has occurred.

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