KR20210117706A - Diagnostic circuit board and method of diagnosing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

According to embodiments of the present invention, a diagnosis circuit board comprises: a board on which an electronic circuit is formed; at least one pair of diagnosis electrodes arranged on an area vulnerable to deformation on the substrate, and having a separation distance deformed over use time of the electronic circuit; and a voltage applying unit applying a voltage between the one pair of diagnosis electrodes to have a capacitance value changing in accordance with the separation distance. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a diagnosis method of a diagnosis circuit board comprises: a step of preparing a diagnosis circuit board having at least two electrodes separated from each other by a preset distance and an electronic circuit; a step of acquiring a change in capacitance between the electrodes in accordance with use in the electronic circuit; and a step of predicting an abnormality of the electronic circuit based on the change in capacitance. Accordingly, the deformation of an old board and an electronic circuit on the board can be monitored in real time, and malfunction of the board can be detected in advance.

Description

DIAGNOSTIC CIRCUIT BOARD AND METHOD OF DIAGNOSING THE SAME

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a diagnostic circuit board and a diagnostic method of the diagnostic circuit board. More particularly, embodiments of the present invention relate to a diagnostic circuit board configured to enable predictive diagnosis of a failure of a board including an electronic circuit, and a diagnostic method of the diagnostic circuit board.

In order to configure an electronic circuit used in home appliances, automobiles, aerospace, military, etc., an insulating layer may be formed on a substrate and a conductive layer may be formed thereon. The board includes a commonly used printed circuit board, and recently components constituting an electronic device are attached to the printed circuit board to manufacture the electronic device.

Conventional board diagnosis technology is a technology for detecting defects that may occur in the manufacturing process of the printed circuit board during the manufacturing process, and it is difficult to detect the abnormality of the printed circuit board in real time when the printed circuit board is used. have.

In particular, when the printed circuit board is used for a long time in a harsh environment, deformation of the printed circuit board constituting the electronic circuit may occur. This may be caused by causes such as an electron migration phenomenon, a swelling phenomenon, and a peeling phenomenon on the printed circuit board. Therefore, it is difficult to prevent malfunction of the electronic circuit formed on the printed circuit board.

Due to these problems, in fields such as automobiles, aerospace, and industry that require long-term high-reliability quality and use circuit systems related to human life, human casualties and enormous losses may occur.

Therefore, there is a need for a technology capable of monitoring abnormalities of circuit boards applied to important equipment related to human life, such as automobiles and military use, in real time, and predicting failure of the board in advance.

SUMMARY Embodiments of the present invention provide a diagnostic circuit board capable of monitoring an abnormality of a substrate in real time and predicting a failure of the substrate.

SUMMARY Embodiments of the present invention provide a circuit board diagnosis method capable of monitoring a board abnormality in real time and predicting a board failure.

A diagnostic circuit board according to embodiments of the present invention includes a substrate on which an electronic circuit is formed, and at least one pair of diagnostic electrodes disposed in a deformable region on the substrate and having a mutually spaced distance that is deformed according to the use time of the electronic circuit. and a voltage applying unit configured to apply a voltage between the electrodes and the pair of diagnostic electrodes to have a capacitance value that varies according to the separation distance.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the substrate may include a printed circuit board.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the deformation vulnerable region may include an edge portion of the substrate.

Here, the diagnostic electrodes may include upper and lower electrodes respectively disposed at upper and lower portions of the edge of the substrate.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the diagnostic electrodes may include first and second electrodes spaced apart from each other on the same plane of the substrate and each having an electric field concentrator facing each other.

Here, the first and second electrodes may have an electric field concentrating portion formed of any one selected from a triangular and a circular shape protruding in a direction facing each other.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the method for diagnosing the diagnostic circuit board includes: preparing a diagnostic circuit board including an electronic circuit and at least two electrodes spaced apart by a predetermined distance; obtaining a change amount of capacitance between electrodes and predicting an abnormality of the electronic circuit based on the change amount of the capacitance.

Here, the diagnostic circuit board is a substrate on which an electronic circuit is formed, and at least one pair of diagnostic electrodes disposed in a deformable region on the substrate and having a separation distance that is deformed according to a change in a thickness of the substrate or a distance between the electronic circuits. and a voltage applying unit configured to apply a voltage between the electrodes and the pair of diagnostic electrodes to have a capacitance value that varies according to the separation distance.

As described above, the diagnostic circuit board and the diagnostic method of the diagnostic circuit board according to the embodiments of the present invention can monitor the deformation amount of an aged board and an abnormality of the electronic circuit on the board in real time, and predict the failure of the board. have.

As a result, the failure of the board to which the circuit system requiring long-term high-reliability quality is applied is prevented, thereby preventing human casualties and enormous losses that may occur in various fields.

1 is a cross-sectional view of the diagnostic circuit board for explaining the diagnostic circuit board according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a deformed state of the diagnostic circuit board of FIG. 1 .
3 is a plan view of the diagnostic circuit board for explaining the diagnostic circuit board according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 and 5 are plan views illustrating a deformed state of the diagnostic circuit board of FIG. 3 .
6 is a block diagram illustrating a method for diagnosing a diagnostic circuit board according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments described below and may be embodied in various other forms. The following examples are provided to fully convey the scope of the present invention to those skilled in the art, rather than to enable the present invention to be fully completed.

In embodiments of the present invention, when an element is described as being disposed or connected to another element, the element may be directly disposed or connected to the other element, and other elements may be interposed therebetween. could be Alternatively, where one element is described as being directly disposed on or connected to another element, there cannot be another element between them. Although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used to describe various items such as various elements, compositions, regions, layers and/or portions, the items are not limited by these terms. will not

The terminology used in the embodiments of the present invention is only used for the purpose of describing specific embodiments, and is not intended to limit the present invention. In addition, unless otherwise limited, all terms including technical and scientific terms have the same meaning as understood by one of ordinary skill in the art of the present invention. The above terms, such as those defined in conventional dictionaries, shall be interpreted as having meanings consistent with their meanings in the context of the relevant art and description of the present invention, ideally or excessively outwardly intuitive, unless clearly defined. will not be interpreted.

Embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to schematic diagrams of ideal embodiments of the present invention. Accordingly, variations from the shapes of the diagrams, eg, variations in manufacturing methods and/or tolerances, are those that can be fully expected. Accordingly, embodiments of the present invention are not to be described as being limited to the specific shapes of the areas described as diagrams, but rather to include deviations in the shapes, and the elements described in the drawings are entirely schematic and their shapes It is not intended to describe the precise shape of the elements, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

1 is a cross-sectional view of the diagnostic circuit board for explaining the diagnostic circuit board according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a deformed state of the diagnostic circuit board of FIG. 1 .

1 and 2 , a diagnostic circuit board 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a board 20 , at least a pair of diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 , and a voltage applying unit 80 . do.

An electronic circuit interconnecting the electronic components is formed on the substrate 20 . The substrate 20 may mount electronic components to be electrically connected to the electronic circuit. For example, the substrate 20 may have the electronic circuit designed with high density, and the electronic component may include elements such as a CPU, a memory, an ADC, and an AMP. The substrate 20 may be made of any one or more materials selected from FR-4, ceramic, and metal. For example, the substrate 20 may be formed of a printed circuit board on which an electronic circuit of copper wiring is formed.

The substrate 20 may be configured as a multi-layer substrate. That is, the substrate 20 may be formed by stacking the unit substrates 21 on which the electronic circuits are formed as a kind of layer in multiple layers. In this case, the substrate 20 may include the unit substrates 21 , insulating layers 23 , and perforated holes 25 .

The diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 are disposed in a deformable region of the substrate 20 and have separation distances D1 and D2 that are deformed according to the use time of the electronic circuit. Specifically, the deformation vulnerable region may be defined as a deformation generating region on the substrate 20 induced by long-term use of the substrate 20 . The main factors inducing the deformation of the substrate 20 may include changes in temperature and humidity of the surrounding environment, supply amounts of voltage and current applied to the substrate 20 , and use time of the substrate 20 . .

The voltage applying unit 80 is connected to the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 to apply a voltage between the pair of diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 . Accordingly, the diagnostic circuit board 100 may be configured to have a capacitance value that changes according to the separation distances D1 and D2 of the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 . The voltage applying unit 80 includes an AC power source 81 , an ADC converter 83 , and a wire 85 .

As shown in FIG. 1 , the AC power supply 81 and the ADC converter 83 are connected via the conductive wire 85 , and each end of the conductive wire 85 is connected to the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 . ) are associated with each Thus, the voltage output from the AC power supply 81 may be applied to the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 along the conductive wire 85 through the ADC converter 83 .

In this case, the substrate 20 interposed between the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 may serve as a kind of dielectric. Accordingly, the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 are respectively charged with electric charges of different poles. Then, the capacitance between the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 is accumulated between the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 until a potential difference equal to the magnitude of the AC voltage is achieved.

In this case, the diagnostic circuit board 100 is proportional to the area of the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 and the dielectric constant between the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30, and the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 It may have a capacitance value that is inversely proportional to the separation distances D1 and D2 between them.

Meanwhile, referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 may be disposed at an edge of the substrate 20 . That is, the deformation vulnerable region of the substrate 20 may include an edge portion of the substrate 20 .

Specifically, as the substrate 20 is used for a long time or overvoltage and overcurrent are applied to the substrate 20 , the substrate 20 may be exposed to high heat for a certain period of time or longer. In this case, the substrate 20 may swell or the unit substrates 21 may peel, which is a phenomenon in which the edge portions of the unit substrate 21 and the insulating layer 23 are spaced apart from each other. can

For example, when the substrate 20 is swollen, an edge portion of the substrate 20 may have a higher expansion rate than the central portion. This is due to a difference in the coefficient of thermal expansion between the unit substrate 21 and the insulating layer 23 included in the substrate 20 or a difference in the number of the perforation holes 25 formed in each of the unit substrates 21 , etc. may be caused by Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 2 , since the unit substrates 21 positioned at the edge of the substrate 20 are spaced apart from each other, the edge of the substrate 20 may have a relatively larger thickness than the center of the substrate 20 .

In order to prevent the above phenomenon, the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 may be respectively disposed at upper and lower portions of the edge of the substrate 20 . The diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 may include an upper electrode 10 and a lower electrode 30 .

1 and 2 , the upper electrode 10 and the lower electrode 30 may be respectively formed on upper and lower surfaces of the edge of the substrate 20 . In this case, the separation distances D1 and D2 between the upper electrode 10 and the lower electrode 30 may be defined to correspond to the thickness of the substrate 20 . Specifically, the separation distances D1 and D2 are the longest distances between the upper and lower electrodes 10 and 30 so as to detect the maximum amount of deformation of the thickness of the substrate 20 due to the swelling of the substrate 20 . can be defined.

Accordingly, when the substrate 20 is swollen, as the thickness of the substrate 20 increases, the separation distance D1 before deformation may increase to the separation distance D2 after deformation. Accordingly, the capacitance value between the upper and lower electrodes 10 and 30 may be reduced than before. Accordingly, the diagnostic circuit board 100 can detect abnormal signs of the board 20 in advance compared to a general resistance-type diagnostic method by acquiring information on the amount of change in the capacitance value. Thus, the diagnostic circuit board 100 can prevent damage due to a failure of the board 20 in advance.

Meanwhile, when moisture invades the substrate 20 , the dielectric constant of the substrate 20 increases, so that the capacitance value between the upper and lower electrodes 10 and 30 may increase. Through this, the diagnostic circuit board 100 can acquire information that the capacitance value between the upper and lower electrodes 10 and 30 increases compared to before, so that before the failure of the board 20 due to invasion occurs , it is possible to prevent damage due to malfunction of the electronic circuit in advance.

That is, the diagnostic circuit board 100 may monitor the state of the substrate 20 in real time by acquiring the change amount of the capacitance value according to the change amount of the thickness and the dielectric constant of the substrate 20 .

In addition, the upper and lower electrodes 10 and 30 may have a larger area in order to sense the amount of micro-deformation in the thickness of the substrate 20 . Accordingly, a factor for the electrode area, which is related to the capacitance value between the upper and lower electrodes 10 and 30, can be maximized. Accordingly, as the capacitance value derived from the separation distances D1 and D2 is doubled, the sensitivity to whether the substrate 20 is abnormal may be improved.

3 is a plan view of the diagnostic circuit board for explaining the diagnostic circuit board according to an embodiment of the present invention. 4 and 5 are plan views illustrating a deformed state of the diagnostic circuit board of FIG. 3 .

3 to 5 , the diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 may be spaced apart from each other on the same plane of the substrate 20 . In this case, the diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 may be disposed parallel to each other on the deformable region of the substrate 20 . Here, the deformable region includes a region in which corrosion may occur in the diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 due to invasion and a region in which an electron transfer phenomenon may occur between the diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 . That is, the deformation vulnerable region may be defined as a region in which a short between electronic circuits on the substrate 20 may occur due to corrosion or electron movement.

The distance L between the diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 may be set to correspond to the distance between the electronic circuits on the deformable region where the diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 are disposed. For example, the distance L between the diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 is the same as the distance between the electronic circuits. In this case, the reduction amount of the distance between the electronic circuits may be predicted in consideration of the reduction ratio of the gap L between the diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 . Accordingly, the occurrence of a short between the electronic circuits may be predicted using the amount of change in the spacing between the diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 .

The diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 include a first electrode 50 and a second electrode 70 . The first electrode 50 and the second electrode 70 are respectively connected to the voltage applying unit (not shown), so that a voltage may be applied between the pair of the diagnostic electrodes 50 and 70 . Accordingly, the diagnostic circuit board 100 may be configured to have a capacitance value that changes according to the separation distance between the diagnostic electrodes 10 and 30 .

Meanwhile, the first electrode 50 and the second electrode 70 may have electric field concentration portions 51 and 71 facing each other. The electric field concentrators 51 and 71 are configured to intentionally concentrate the electric fields formed in the first and second electrodes 50 and 70 in mutually facing directions. The electric field concentrators 51 and 71 may be integrally formed with the first and second electrodes 50 and 70 . The electric field concentrators 51 and 71 may be formed of any one selected from triangular and circular protruding from the first and second electrodes 50 and 70 in mutually facing directions, respectively.

3 and 4 , the electric field concentrating portions 51 and 71 on the change vulnerable region extend toward each other due to invasion and electron movement between the electric field concentrating portions 51 and 71 , etc. transformed into a form that becomes Accordingly, the separation distance D3 before deformation between the electric field concentrators 51 and 71 is reduced to the separation distance D4 after deformation, and accordingly, the amount of electron movement between the electric field concentrators 51 and 71 also increases. As a result, as shown in FIG. 5 , a short circuit occurs between the first and second electrodes 50 and 70 .

Using this, the diagnostic circuit board 100 obtains the amount of change in the capacitance value between the first and second electrodes 50 and 70 with respect to the amount of deformation of the electric field concentrator 51 and 71, so that the change vulnerable region It is possible to predict whether there is an abnormality in the electronic circuit of the phase. That is, the diagnostic circuit board 100 obtains information on an increase in the capacitance value between the first and second electrodes 50 and 70 according to the deformation of the electric field concentrator 51 and 71 , so that the first The state of the change vulnerable region in which the first and second electrodes 50 and 70 are disposed can be predicted. Accordingly, the diagnostic circuit board 100 may prevent a short circuit between electronic circuits on the change vulnerable region.

The separation distances D3 and D4 between the first electrode 50 and the second electrode 70 may be defined as the shortest distance between the electric field concentrators 51 and 71 .

Meanwhile, in order to sense the amount of micro-deformation of the electric field concentrators 51 and 71 , the area A of the first and second electrodes 50 and 70 may be formed to be larger. As a result, the diagnostic circuit board 100 is more sensitive to the presence or absence of abnormalities in the electronic circuit in the change-prone region through the adjusted capacitance value to enable precise detection of the amount of deformation of the electric field concentrators 51 and 71. can be observed closely.

6 is a block diagram illustrating a method for diagnosing a diagnostic circuit board according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6 , according to the diagnostic method of the diagnostic circuit board 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, an electronic circuit and at least two electrodes 10 , 30 , 50 , and 70 spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance are formed. Preparing the provided diagnostic circuit board 100 (S100), obtaining a change in capacitance between the electrodes 10, 30, 50, and 70 according to use in the electronic circuit (S200), and the electrostatic and predicting an abnormality of the electronic circuit based on the amount of change in capacity ( S300 ).

In the step of preparing the substrate 20 ( S100 ), the upper 10 electrode and the lower electrode 30 are respectively disposed on the upper and lower portions of the edge of the substrate 20 according to the region to be diagnosed. It may include disposing, or disposing the first electrode 50 and the second electrode 70 each including the electric field concentrators 51 and 71 on the same plane on the substrate 20 .

In addition, through the step (S200) of obtaining the change amount of the capacitance and the step (S300) of estimating the abnormality of the electronic circuit, the failure of the substrate 20 can be monitored in real time by monitoring the capacitance in real time. can

Specifically, in the step ( S300 ) of estimating the abnormality of the electronic circuit based on the amount of change in the capacitance, when the amount of change in the measured capacitance exceeds a preset allowable range, the substrate 20 is abnormal. It may include the step of determining that there is. If the change amount of the capacitance measurement value is measured within a preset allowable range, it is determined that the change amount of the capacitance sufficient to detect the abnormal prediction of the substrate 20 is not obtained, and the change amount of the capacitance again Returning to the step ( S200 ) of obtaining , a diagnosis step for the substrate 20 may be performed. That is, by acquiring the change amount of the capacitance value, the state of the substrate 20 can be monitored in real time.

On the other hand, when the change amount of the capacitance measurement value exceeds a preset allowable range, it is determined that the abnormal prediction of the substrate 20 is detected, and a warning signal is outputted through a circuit connected to the outside from the substrate 20 can do. Accordingly, the user can diagnose whether there is an abnormality in the substrate 20 . In addition, when an abnormal prediction of the substrate 20 is detected, an electrical signal is provided to the substrate 20 to measure an electrical characteristic such as a current with respect to the resistance of the substrate 20 , so that the substrate 20 is You can perform the steps to analyze the failure of

Since the diagnostic circuit board 100 has been described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5 , a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Although the above has been described with reference to preferred embodiments of the present invention, those skilled in the art can variously modify and change the present invention within the scope without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the following claims. You will understand that there is

10: upper electrode 20: substrate
21: unit substrate 23: insulating layer
30: lower electrode 50: first electrode
51, 71: electric field concentration part 70: second electrode
80: voltage applying unit 81: AC power
83: ADC converter 85: conducting wire
100: diagnostic circuit board

Claims (7)

a substrate on which an electronic circuit is formed;
at least one pair of diagnostic electrodes disposed in a deformable region on the substrate and having a mutually spaced distance that is deformed according to a use time of the electronic circuit; and
and a voltage applying unit configured to apply a voltage between the pair of diagnostic electrodes to have a capacitance value that varies according to the separation distance. The diagnostic circuit board of claim 1 , wherein the deformable region includes an edge of the substrate. The diagnostic circuit board of claim 2 , wherein the diagnostic electrodes include upper and lower electrodes respectively disposed on upper and lower portions of an edge of the substrate. The diagnostic circuit board of claim 1 , wherein the diagnostic electrodes include first and second electrodes spaced apart from each other on the same plane of the substrate and each having an electric field concentrator facing each other. 5. The diagnostic circuit board of claim 4, wherein the first and second electrodes have an electric field concentrator formed of any one selected from triangular and circular protruding directions facing each other. The diagnostic circuit board of claim 1 , wherein the board comprises a printed circuit board. preparing a diagnostic circuit board including an electronic circuit and at least two electrodes spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance;
obtaining a change in capacitance between the electrodes according to use in the electronic circuit; and
based on the amount of change in the capacitance, predicting an abnormality in the electronic circuit,
The diagnostic circuit board comprises:
a substrate on which an electronic circuit is formed;
at least one pair of diagnostic electrodes disposed in a deformable region on the substrate and having a mutual separation distance that is deformed according to a change in a thickness of the substrate or a distance between the electronic circuits; and
and a voltage applying unit configured to apply a voltage between the pair of diagnostic electrodes to have a capacitance value that varies according to the separation distance.

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