TWI403893B - Controlling apparatus of power supply, testing system, and testing method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

A controlling apparatus of power supply, a testing system, and testing method thereof are provided. The controlling apparatus includes a switching board, a timing board, and a powering board. The switching board is used for setting the timing sequences of a plurality of DC power supplies. The timing board receives a first PS_ON signal from a tested motherboard and generates corresponding second PS_ON signals according to the timing sequences set by the switching board. The powering board supplies power from the DC power supplies to the tested motherboard according to the second PS_ON signals.

Description

Power test control device, test system and test method thereof

The invention relates to a motherboard power supply testing technology, in particular to a power testing control device, a testing system and a testing method thereof.

Generally, computer motherboards on the market usually have a large number of tests on their performance indicators before shipment. The power conversion line test of the motherboard is one of the important test items.

In the current motherboard power conversion line test, the power supply is usually directly connected to the motherboard, and the power supply is used to change or adjust the DC power supply value to the motherboard.

However, using this test method does not control the startup timing of the DC power supply. Moreover, since there is an unstable power supply in the actual situation, the power supply cannot effectively control the DC power supply value output to the motherboard.

In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a power supply test control device, a test system, and a test method thereof to improve the lack of the prior art.

According to a feature of the present invention, the present invention provides a power supply test control device, which is respectively coupled to a plurality of DC power sources and a motherboard to be tested having a standby power source. The motherboard to be tested is coupled to the power supply to receive standby power. The power test control device includes a timing setting unit, a timing control unit, and a power transmission unit. The timing setting unit is configured to set a startup timing of the DC power supply. The timing control unit is coupled to the timing setting unit and receives a first power start signal output by the motherboard to be tested. The timing control unit generates respective second power-on signals corresponding to the DC power sources according to the startup timings set by the timing setting unit. The power transmission unit is coupled to the timing control unit. The power transmission unit controls the power supply supplied by the DC power sources to the motherboard to be tested according to the second power start signals.

According to another feature of the present invention, the present invention provides a power supply testing system coupled to a motherboard to be tested having a standby power source. The test system includes multiple DC power supplies and power test controls. The power test control device is respectively coupled to the DC power supply and the motherboard to be tested. The controller includes a timing setting unit, a timing control unit, and a power transmission unit. The timing setting unit is configured to set a startup timing of the DC power supply. The timing control unit is coupled to the timing setting unit and receives a first power start signal output by the motherboard to be tested. The timing control unit generates respective second power-on signals corresponding to the DC power sources according to the startup timings set by the timing setting unit. The power transmission unit is coupled to the timing control unit. The power transmission unit controls the power supply supplied by the DC power sources to the motherboard to be tested according to the second power start signals.

According to still another feature of the present invention, the present invention provides a power supply testing method for use in a power supply test control device. The test method includes the following steps. First, set the startup timing of multiple DC power supplies. Secondly, the first power start signal outputted by the motherboard to be tested having the standby power source is received. Then, a second power-on signal corresponding to the DC power sources is generated according to the startup timings set by the DC power-on sequence. Finally, the power supply supplied by these DC power supplies is controlled to be output to the motherboard to be tested.

In summary, the present invention utilizes a power supply test control device to control the startup timing and output value of the DC power supply supplied to the motherboard to be tested, thereby effectively testing the power conversion line of the motherboard to be tested for different DC power sources and The voltage output stability of the startup sequence.

The above described features and advantages of the present invention will be more apparent from the following description.

1 is a functional block diagram of a power supply testing system in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to Figure 1. The power test system 1 provided in this embodiment is coupled to the motherboard 2 to be tested of the computer device, and includes a plurality of DC power sources, a power supply 12, and a power test control device 13.

A plurality of DC power sources and power supply 12 are coupled to the power test control device 13. The power test control device 13 is coupled to the test board 2.

In this embodiment, the DC power sources are a 5V DC power source 111, a 3.3V DC power source 112, and a 12V DC power source 113. The 5V DC power source 111 is used to drive various driver control circuits, motherboard connection devices, and USB external devices. . The 3.3V DC power supply 112 is used to drive the chipset and the memory after being converted by the motherboard 2 to be tested. The 12V DC power supply 113 is used to drive motors of various drivers, cooling fans, and motherboard connection devices.

At the same time, the DC power sources may further include an adjusting unit 1111, 1121, 1131, for example, the adjusting units 1111, 1121, 1131 may be knobs to adjust the power supply voltage of the corresponding DC power source.

In this embodiment, the power supply 12 provides a standby power supply. (5VSB) to the motherboard 2 to be tested. Since the power supply of the motherboard 2 to be tested in this embodiment conforms to the ATX standard, when the standby power supply is used and the motherboard 2 to be tested is started, the first power-on signal (PS_ON) provided by the motherboard 2 to be tested can be turned on. The power of the motherboard 2 to be tested.

In addition, when all the DC voltages supplied to the motherboard 2 to be tested are stably output, the power supply 12 of the embodiment can also output a power good signal (PG) to the motherboard to be tested, so that the computer system starts smoothly.

In this embodiment, the power test control device 13 is used to set and control the start timing of each DC power source, and can also be used to set the start timing of the power good signal. At the same time, the DC power supply that controls each DC power supply is transmitted to the motherboard 2 to be tested. In addition, the power good signal can also be provided via the power test control device 13.

2 is a flow chart of a power supply testing method in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 together. In this embodiment, as shown in step S21, during the test, the user may first select a power supply integrity signal provided by the power supply 12 or by the power test control device 13.

Then, as shown in step S22, the power supply test control device 13 sets the start timings of the 5V DC power source 111, the 3.3V DC power source 112, the 12V DC power source 113, and the power good signal, for example, the above three DCs can be set. The power source is activated at the same time, and may be set to have a predetermined delay time between each other (for example, the delay time range may be between 0 and 999 ms), which is not limited by the present invention. In order to ensure the smooth start of the computer system, in this embodiment, the power good signal can be set to Finally started with a certain delay time, for example: can be 125ms. In addition, in other embodiments, the startup timing of the power good signal may not be set.

Subsequently, as shown in step S23, the supply voltage values of the corresponding DC power sources can be adjusted by adjusting the adjustment units 1111, 1121, 1131 on the respective DC power sources. In this embodiment, the power supply voltage values of the respective DC power sources can be first adjusted to standard values, that is, 5V, 3.3V, and 12V, respectively. In the subsequent tests, the supply voltage values of the respective DC power sources were gradually changed. Generally, during the test, the supply voltage value of each DC power source can be adjusted within ±20%. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the power supply voltage values of the respective DC power sources may be first adjusted to other values.

Then, the motherboard 2 to be tested is started. As shown in step S24, the power supply test control device 13 can receive the first power start signal PS_ON outputted by the motherboard 2 to be tested.

As shown in step S25, the power source test control device 13 generates a pair of second power source activation signals corresponding to the DC power sources, respectively, based on the DC power source startup timings set in step S22.

As shown in step S26, the power supply test control device 13 correspondingly controls the power supply supplied by the DC power sources to the motherboard 2 to be tested according to the second power-on signals of the DC power sources.

In this embodiment, as shown in step S27, when all of the DC voltages supplied from the DC power sources to the motherboard 2 to be tested are stably output, according to the selection in step S21 and the power integrity signal set in step S22. The startup sequence, the power supply 12 or the power test control device 13 can output a power good signal to the motherboard 2 to be tested.

When the computer system starts up smoothly, you can choose to enter the disk operating system (DOS) or the Windows operating system (WINDOWS). At the same time, it is possible to measure and confirm whether the respective DC voltage values on the motherboard 2 to be tested are consistent with the supply voltage values of the corresponding DC power sources. Then, the motherboard 2 to be tested can be burn-in tested to determine whether the function and stability of the motherboard 2 to be tested are normal. In this embodiment, some programs may also be run on the computer system to detect whether the motherboard 2 to be tested is operating normally.

Finally, when it is confirmed that the motherboard 2 to be tested is operating normally, the computer system is shut down. Then, the 5V DC power supply 111, the 3.3V DC power supply 112, the 12V DC power supply 113, and the startup timing of the power good signal and the supply voltage value can be changed for the next round of testing.

3 is a functional block diagram of a power supply test control device in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to Figure 3. The power supply test control device 13 provided in this embodiment includes a timing setting unit 131, a timing control unit 132, and a power transmission unit 133. The timing control unit 132 is coupled to the timing setting unit 131 and the power transmission unit 133.

In this embodiment, the timing setting unit 131 is configured to set a start timing of three DC power sources and a power good signal. For example, it can be four sets of Dip switches, which are used to set the start timing of three DC power and power good signals respectively.

4 is a schematic diagram of a group of finger switches according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to Figure 4. Figure 4 only shows a set of dip switches 1311, Used to set the start timing of one of the DC power or power good signals. The other three sets of dip switches are the same as the dip switch 1311, and will not be described here.

In the present embodiment, the group of dip switches 1311 includes three four-bit (4 bit) dip switches, namely, a first dip switch 1312, a second dip switch 1313, and a third dip switch 1314. The first dip switch 1312 can be used to set a hundred digits of the startup delay time, the second dip switch 1313 can be used to set the tens digit of the startup delay time, and the third dip switch 1314 can be used to set the single digit of the startup delay time.

Please continue to refer to Figure 3. In this embodiment, the timing control unit 132 includes a timing module 1321, a signal comparison module 1322, and a control module 1323. The signal comparison module 1322 is coupled to the timing setting unit 131. The control module 1323 is coupled to the timing module 1321 and the signal comparison module 1322.

In this embodiment, the timing module 1321 generates a timing reference signal to solve the synchronization problem of each unit timing. For example, it may be a quartz oscillator, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

In the present embodiment, the signal comparison module 1322 generates a corresponding delay state signal for the 5V DC power source 111, the 3.3V DC power source 112, the 12V DC power source 113, and the power good signal according to the set value of the timing setting unit 131.

In this embodiment, when the position of the dip switch is in the "ON" position, a digital signal "1" of a high level can be generated correspondingly; when the position of the dip switch is in the "OFF" position, it can correspond A low level digital signal "0" is generated. For example, the signal comparison module 1322 can compare FIG. 4 The set values of the first dip switch 1312, the second dip switch 1313, and the third dip switch 1314 of the group of dip switches 1311 generate delay state signals 0001, 0010, and 0101 corresponding to a DC power or power good signal.

In this embodiment, the control module 1323 receives the delay state signals corresponding to the respective DC power sources and the power good signals transmitted by the signal comparison module 1322, and respectively calculates corresponding delay times. The correspondence between the delay status signal and the delay time can be seen in Table 1. In the present embodiment, the timing unit of the delay time is milliseconds (ms). Thus, the start delay time of the corresponding DC power source can be set between 0 and 999 ms by using the group of finger switches 1311 in FIG.

For example, in FIG. 4, according to Table 1, since the set value of the first dip switch 1312 representing the one hundredth of the start delay time is 0001, it corresponds to 100 ms, which represents the second dip switch 1313 of the start delay time of ten digits. The set value is 0010, which corresponds to 20ms, and the set value of the third dip switch 1314 representing the single digit of the start delay time is 0101, which corresponds to 5ms, whereby the control module 1323 can calculate the same as shown in FIG. The startup delay time of the DC power supply or power good signal corresponding to the group finger switch 1311 is 125 ms.

In this embodiment, the control module 1323 is coupled to the motherboard 2 to be tested to receive the first power-on signal PS_ON output by the motherboard 2 to be tested. Therefore, when the control module 1323 determines that the start delay time corresponding to a certain DC power source or the power good signal arrives according to the timing reference signal generated by the timing module 1321, a second pair of DC power or power good signals is generated. Power start signal. For example, when the control module 1323 determines that the startup delay time of the corresponding 5V DC power source 111 arrives, a second power source activation signal 5Von is output correspondingly. Correspondingly, when the control module 1323 determines that the startup delay time of the corresponding 3.3V DC power source 112 arrives, a second power supply enable signal 3.3Von is output correspondingly. When the control module 1323 determines that the startup delay time of the corresponding 12V DC power source 113 arrives, a second power source activation signal 12Von is output correspondingly. When the control module 1323 determines that the start delay time of the corresponding power good signal arrives, a second power start signal PG_ON is output correspondingly.

In this embodiment, the power transmission unit 133 respectively controls the corresponding three DCs according to the received second power activation signals of the respective DC power sources. The power supplied by the power supply is output to the motherboard 2 to be tested.

In addition, in the present embodiment, when the power good signal is provided by the power supply 12 of FIG. 1, and all of the DC voltages supplied to the motherboard 2 to be tested are stably outputted, the power transmission unit 133 A control signal is transmitted to the power supply 12. Accordingly, the power supply 12 can generate a power good signal and transmit it to the power transmission unit 133. When the power transmission unit 133 receives the PG_ON signal output by the control module 1323, the control power good signal is output to the motherboard 2 to be tested.

On the other hand, when the power good signal is supplied from the power test control device 13, and the DC power is supplied to all of the DC voltages of the motherboard 2 to be tested, the power transmission unit 133 generates a power good signal. When the power transmission unit 133 receives the PG_ON signal output by the control module 1323, the power supply integrity signal is output to the motherboard 2 to be tested.

In summary, the preferred embodiment of the present invention utilizes a power supply test control device to control the startup timing and output value of the DC power supply to the motherboard under test, thereby effectively testing the power conversion line of the motherboard to be tested. Voltage output stability for different DC power supplies and startup timing. At the same time, compared with the prior art, the power test control device disclosed in the preferred embodiment of the present invention can also control the start timing of the power good signal.

The present invention has been described above with reference to the specific embodiments, which are merely illustrative of the technical content of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention to the embodiments, without departing from the invention. In the spirit and scope, when a little change and retouch can be made, therefore this The scope of the invention is defined by the scope of the appended claims.

1‧‧‧Power Test System

111‧‧‧5V DC power supply

1111, 1121, 1131‧‧‧ adjustment unit

112‧‧‧3.3V DC power supply

113‧‧12V DC power supply

12‧‧‧Power supply

13‧‧‧Power test control device

131‧‧‧ Timing setting unit

1311‧‧‧Dial switch

1312‧‧‧First Dip Switch

1313‧‧‧Second dip switch

1314‧‧‧ Third Dip Switch

132‧‧‧Time Control Unit

1321‧‧‧Time Module

1322‧‧‧Signal comparison module

1323‧‧‧Control Module

133‧‧‧Power transmission unit

2‧‧‧Testing board

5Von, 3.3Von, 12Von, PG_ON‧‧‧second power start signal

PS_ON‧‧‧First power start signal

S21~S27‧‧‧Steps

1 is a functional block diagram of a power supply testing system in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a flow chart of a power supply testing method in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a functional block diagram of a power supply test control device in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a schematic diagram of a group of finger switches according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

1‧‧‧Power Test System

111‧‧‧5V DC power supply

1111, 1121, 1131‧‧‧ adjustment unit

112‧‧‧3.3V DC power supply

113‧‧12V DC power supply

12‧‧‧Power supply

13‧‧‧Power test control device

2‧‧‧Testing board

Claims (20)

A power supply test control device is respectively coupled to a plurality of DC power sources and a test board to be tested having a standby power source, the power test control device comprising: a timing setting unit configured to set start timings of the DC power sources; The control unit is coupled to the timing setting unit, and receives a first power-on signal outputted by the motherboard to be tested, and the timing control unit generates a pair of second power sources corresponding to the DC power sources according to the startup timing set by the timing setting unit. And a power transmission unit coupled to the timing control unit, wherein the power transmission unit controls the power supply provided by the DC power sources to the motherboard to be tested according to the second power activation signals. The power supply test control device of claim 1, wherein the timing setting unit is further configured to set a start timing of a power good signal. The power supply test control device of claim 2, wherein the power good signal is generated by the power transmission unit. The power supply test control device of claim 2, wherein the power good signal is generated by a power supply. The power supply test control device of claim 1, wherein the timing setting unit comprises a plurality of finger switches for setting a start timing of the DC power sources. The power supply test control device of claim 1, wherein the timing control unit comprises: a timing module generates a timing reference signal; a signal comparison module coupled to the timing setting unit, respectively generating a pair of delay state signals corresponding to the DC power source according to the startup timing set by the timing setting unit; and a control mode a group, coupled to the timing module, the signal comparison module, and the motherboard to be tested, respectively calculating a delay time of a pair of DC power sources according to the delay state signals, when the motherboard to be tested outputs the first power source When the signal is activated to the control module, the control module generates the second power-on signals corresponding to the DC power sources according to the timing reference signals when the delay times arrive. The power supply test control device of claim 1, wherein the DC power sources generate voltages of 3.3V, 5V, and 12V, respectively. A power test system is coupled to a motherboard to be tested having a standby power supply, the power test system includes: a plurality of DC power supplies; and a power test control device coupled to the DC power supplies, the motherboard to be tested, The power test control device includes: a timing setting unit configured to set a start timing of the DC power sources; a timing control unit coupled to the timing setting unit to receive a first power start signal output by the motherboard to be tested, The timing control unit generates a pair of second power source activation signals corresponding to the DC power sources according to the startup timings set by the timing setting unit; The power transmission unit is coupled to the timing control unit, and the power transmission unit controls the power supply provided by the DC power sources to the motherboard to be tested according to the second power activation signals. The power supply test system of claim 8, wherein the timing setting unit is further configured to set a start timing of a power good signal. The power supply test system of claim 9, wherein the power good signal is generated by the power transmission unit. The power supply test system of claim 8, further comprising a power supply coupled to the motherboard to be tested to provide the standby power, wherein the power supply further generates a power good signal. The power supply test system of claim 8, wherein the timing setting unit comprises a plurality of finger switches for setting start timings of the DC power sources. The power supply test system of claim 8, wherein the timing control unit comprises: a timing module that generates a timing reference signal; a signal comparison module coupled to the timing setting unit, and the setting unit according to the timing The set start timing respectively generates a pair of delay state signals corresponding to the DC power source; and a control module coupled to the timing module, the signal comparison module and the motherboard to be tested, and respectively calculated according to the delay state signals A pair of DC power supply delay time, when the motherboard to be tested loses When the first power-on signal is sent to the control module, the control module generates the second power-on signals corresponding to the DC power sources according to the timing reference signals when the delay times arrive. The power supply test system of claim 8, wherein the DC power supplies generate voltages of 3.3V, 5V, and 12V, respectively. The power supply test system of claim 8, wherein the DC power sources each include an adjustment unit to adjust a voltage of the corresponding DC power supply. A power supply test method is applied to a power test control device, the power test method includes the following steps: setting a start timing of a plurality of DC power sources; receiving a first power start signal outputted by a motherboard to be tested having a standby power source; The startup timings of the DC power sources respectively generate a pair of second power source activation signals corresponding to the DC power sources; and control the power supply outputs of the DC power sources to the motherboard to be tested. The power supply test method described in claim 16 of the patent application further includes setting a start timing of the power good signal. The power supply test method of claim 17, wherein the power good signal is generated by the power test control device. The power supply test method of claim 17, wherein the power good signal is generated by a power supply. The power supply test method of claim 16, further comprising adjusting a supply voltage value of the DC power sources.