Power Estimation Device, Power Consumption Control Device, Power Estimation Method, and Storage Medium

Abstract

The present invention relates to a power estimation device, a power consumption control device, a power estimation method, and a storage medium, which can estimate the magnitude of power consumption without affecting the driving of devices. The smoothing circuit 109 smooths the LED control signal 106, and outputs a smoothed voltage signal (VF2 voltage signal) through this smoothing. The MainCPU 101 functions as a power consumption estimation unit, converts the VF2 voltage signal into a digital voltage value, compares the digital voltage value with a specified threshold and makes a determination, thereby estimating the magnitude of the power consumption of the RGB-LED 103. When the digital voltage value of the VF2 voltage signal exceeds the threshold, an inhibition control for reducing the brightness value indicated to the RGB-LED 103 by the LED control signal 106 is implemented.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a power estimation device, a power consumption control device, a power estimation method, and a storage medium. Background Art

[0002] The RGB LED (Red, Green, Blue Light Emitting Diode) with a built-in microcomputer can control the brightness of each R, G, B LED in 256 levels by using an 8-bit LED control signal (a total of 24 bits) provided from the outside as serial data, thereby enabling full-color (about 16 million colors) color expression. In addition, a large number (for example, 60) of such RGB LEDs can be controlled simultaneously, and, for example, by combining with an audio device, an electronic decorative device capable of colorful light expression can be realized. Summary of the invention

[0003] Problem that the invention aims to solve

[0004] Here, the driving current required for a group of RGB LEDs is, for example, 20mA (milliamperes) in each of the R, G, and B LEDs when emitting light at maximum brightness, and 20mA×3=60mA in a group of RGB LEDs. Then, for example, when all 60 RGB LEDs connected in series emit light at maximum brightness, a driving current of 60mA×60=3.6A (amperes) flows. Therefore, when such an RGB LED electronic decorative device is used simultaneously with audio equipment or video equipment, such as at an event venue or a concert venue, each device may malfunction due to the instantaneous flow of a large current.

[0005] Means of solving the problem

[0006] An example of a power estimation device of the present application comprises: a smoothed voltage signal generating unit that generates a first smoothed voltage signal of a control data signal supplied to the device by a control device that controls the device; and a power consumption estimation unit that estimates the power consumption of the device based on the first smoothed voltage signal.

[0007] Effects of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, power consumption can be estimated without affecting the driving of the device. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 is a system block diagram of an implementation scheme.

[0010] Figure 2 This is a diagram for explaining the data format of the LED control signal (part 1).

[0011] Figure 3 This is a diagram for explaining the data format of the LED control signal (part 2).

[0012] Figure 4 This is a circuit diagram of a smoothing circuit.

[0013] Figure 5 : is a diagram showing an example of voltage time change characteristics of a voltage signal output from the terminal VF1.

[0014] Figure 6 3 is a diagram showing an example of voltage time change characteristics of a voltage signal output from the terminal VF2.

[0015] Figure 7 : is a flowchart showing an example of brightness / volume adjustment processing. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] Hereinafter, a mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 This is a system block diagram of the system of the present embodiment (hereinafter referred to as "this system"). This system includes the following elements as main structural elements: MainCPU101, SubCPU102, microcomputer built-in RGB-LED (hereinafter referred to as "RGB-LED") 103 connected in series #1 to #N, 5V (volt) LED dedicated power supply 104, buffer 108, smoothing circuit 109 that functions as a smoothing voltage signal generating unit for smoothing the control data signal, audio amplifier 112, and speaker 114. This system as a whole functions as a power consumption control device that controls the power consumption of at least any one of the devices or other devices that operate in conjunction with the device.

[0017] The MainCPU (Central Processing Unit) 101 is an overall processor that controls the light emission control of the RGB-LEDs 103 #1 to #N and the volume control of the sound in the sound amplifier 112 and the speaker 114 .

[0018] The SubCPU 102 receives the brightness control signal 105 from the MainCPU 101 irregularly, calculates a brightness correction value, and outputs the LED control signal 106 corrected based on the brightness correction value to the RGB-LEDs 103 #1 to #N at a timing described later.

[0019] Each of the RGB-LEDs 103 from #1 to #N includes three LEDs that emit light of three colors corresponding to the three primary colors of R (red), G (green), and B (blue). The light emission of these LEDs is controlled by a built-in microcomputer (hereinafter referred to as "microcomputer") not particularly shown, which receives an 8-bit × 3 LED control signal 106 for this device from the SubCPU 102, extracts three luminance values specified by each 8-bit bit string, and causes the three LEDs to emit light with each luminance value.

[0020] The RGB-LEDs 103 from #1 to #N are connected in series via a serial control line 107 connected to the SubCPU 102.

[0021] That is, the serial control line 107 output from the SubCPU 102 is connected in series as the DI input terminal of the RGB-LED 103 of #1, from its DO output terminal to the DI input terminal of the RGB-LED 103 of #2, from its DO output terminal to the DI input terminal of the RGB-LED 103 of #3... and is connected from the DO output terminal of the RGB-LED 103 of #N-1 to the DI input terminal of the RGB-LED 103 of #N.

[0022] Finally, the serial control line 107 is looped back from the DO output terminal of the RGB-LED 103 of #N to the SubCPU 102.

[0023] For example, a power supply voltage of 5V is applied to the RGB-LED 103 from the LED dedicated power supply 104 via the VCC terminal.

[0024] Figure 2 and Figure 3 is an explanatory diagram of the data format of the LED control signal 106 supplied from the SubCPU 102 to the RGB-LEDs 103 from #1 to #N via the serial control line 107. First, Figure 2 (a) of is an example of the data format of the bit string of one quantity of the RGB-LED 103 output as the LED control signal 106. The transmission direction of the bit string is the direction shown by the arrow 201 from left to right in the paper surface of (a) of over time. Figure 2

[0025] For one RGB-LED 103, first, the luminance value for the LED that emits G (green) light is transmitted as an 8-bit bit string. With this 8-bit bit string, 256 levels of luminance values from 0 to 255 (in decimal representation) for the green-emitting LED can be specified.

[0026] ​Next, for one RGB-LED 103, similarly to the above, the brightness value of the LED that emits R (red) light is transmitted as an 8-bit bit string. Through this 8-bit bit string, 256 levels of brightness values from 0 to 255 (in decimal representation) for the red-emitting LED can be specified.

[0027] Furthermore, for one RGB-LED 103, similarly to the above, the brightness value of the LED that emits B (blue) light is transmitted as an 8-bit bit string. Through this 8-bit bit string, 256 levels of brightness values from 0 to 255 (in decimal representation) for the blue-emitting LED can be specified.

[0028] As described above, Figure 2 Through the three bit strings shown in (a) of, an 8-bit × 3 = 24-bit bit string is specified for one RGB-LED 103.

[0029] Figure 2 (b) of is a diagram showing a voltage pulse signal of an H signal where each bit of the above bit string corresponds to a logical value 1. In this embodiment, the high-level voltage and the low-level voltage do not directly correspond to the logical values 1 and 0, but the logical values 1 and 0 are distinguished according to the duty ratio of the time lengths of the high-level voltage and the low-level voltage. As Figure 2 shown in (b) of, the time length of a 1-bit H signal value (logical value 1) is, for example, 1.25 μs (microseconds). This 1-bit H signal value is composed of, for example, a high-level voltage period with a time length of 850 ns (nanoseconds) and a low-level voltage period with a time length of 400 ns.

[0030] Figure 2 (c) of is a diagram showing a voltage pulse signal of an L signal where each bit of the above bit string corresponds to a logical value 0. The time length of a 1-bit L signal value (logical value 0) is the same as the time length of the H signal value in (b) of Figure 2 and is, for example, 1.25 μs. This 1-bit L signal value is composed of, for example, a high-level voltage period with a time length of 400 ns and a low-level voltage period with a time length of 850 ns.

[0031] From Figure 2 (b) of and Figure 2 (c) of, it can be understood that, as Figure 2As shown in (a) of FIG. [FIGURE NUMBER], in each bit of the three bit strings specifying three luminance values, when an H signal value (logical value 1) is set for the bit, the duty ratio of the high-level voltage time to the low-level voltage time is 850:400 = 17:8. On the other hand, when an L signal value (logical value 0) is set for the bit, the duty ratio of the high-level voltage time to the low-level voltage time is 400:850 = 8:17.

[0032] Therefore, in the LED control signal 106, during the H signal value, the high-level voltage period is more than twice as long as the low-level voltage period. Thus, if the proportion of the H signal value set is large, the average voltage value of the LED control signal 106 is higher than the intermediate potential value (the intermediate voltage value between the high-level voltage value and the low-level voltage value).

[0033] On the other hand, during the L signal value, contrary to the case of the H signal value, the low-level voltage period is more than twice as long as the high-level voltage period. Thus, if the proportion of the L signal value set is large, the average voltage value of the LED control signal 106 is lower than the intermediate potential value.

[0034] In the present embodiment, as described later, based on this fact, the average voltage value of the LED control signal 106 is measured, and based on the measured average voltage value, the overall power consumption of the RGB-LEDs 103 of #1 to #N is estimated.

[0035] Regarding Figure 2 of (d), it will be described later.

[0036] Figure 3 is an example showing Figure 1 the data format of the LED control signal 106 for the three sets of RGB-LEDs 103 of #1 to #3 transmitted on the serial control line 107 when the number N of the RGB-LEDs 103 in FIG. [FIGURE NUMBER] is 3. From the SubCPU 102, for each of the data update cycles 1, 2, …, the LED control signal 106 for the three sets of RGB-LEDs 103 of #1 to #3 is sent out with the reset code interposed.

[0037] That is, for example, in the data update cycle 1, first, when the LED control signal 106 is input to the DI input terminal of the RGB-LED 103 of #1 (abbreviated as “LED(#1)”) from the SubCPU 102, as Figure 3 shown in (a) of FIG. [FIGURE NUMBER], first, a 24-bit quantity for the RGB-LED 103 of #1 is input (refer to Figure 2 Please note that the "[[FIGURE NUMBER]]" in the translation is a placeholder for the actual figure number which should be filled in according to the specific context. Also, the " " etc. are preserved as they are as per the requirement.the bit string of (a)), then inputs the 24-bit bit string for the RGB-LED 103 for #2 (abbreviated as "LED(#2)" in the figure), and finally inputs the 24-bit bit string for the RGB-LED 103 for #3 (abbreviated as "LED(#3)" in the figure).

[0038] In Figure 3 In the stage of (a), the microcomputer in the RGB-LED 103 for #1 takes in the bit string "24 bits for LED(#1)" for this device transmitted on the serial control line 107, then deletes this bit string, and outputs the other bit string from the DO output terminal.

[0039] As a result, for example, in data update cycle 1, when inputting the LED control signal 106 from the DO output terminal of the RGB-LED 103 for #1 to the DI input terminal of the RGB-LED 103 for #2, as Figure 3 shown in (b), the 24-bit bit string for the RGB-LED 103 for #1 is removed, and the 24-bit bit string for the RGB-LED 103 for #2 is input, and further the 24-bit bit string for the RGB-LED 103 for #3 is input.

[0040] In Figure 3 In the stage of (b), the microcomputer in the RGB-LED 103 for #2 takes in the bit string "24 bits for LED(#2)" for this device transmitted on the serial control line 107, then deletes this bit string, and outputs the other bit string from the DO output terminal.

[0041] As a result, for example, in data update cycle 1, when inputting the LED control signal 106 from the DO output terminal of the RGB-LED 103 for #2 to the DI input terminal of the RGB-LED 103 for #3, as Figure 3 shown in (c), the 24-bit bit string for the RGB-LED 103 for #2 is removed, and only the 24-bit bit string for the RGB-LED 103 for #3 is input.

[0042] In Figure 3 In the stage of (c), the microcomputer in the RGB-LED 103 for #3 takes in the bit string "24 bits for LED(#3)" for this device transmitted on the serial control line 107, then deletes this bit string, and outputs the other bit string from the DO output terminal.

[0043] As a result, for example, in data update cycle 1, when looping back from the DO output terminal of the RGB-LED 103 for #3 to the SubCPU 102, as Figure 3As shown in (d), it becomes the result of not inputting any data. SubCPU102 determines that the LED control signal 106 is normally received in each RGB-LED103 by confirming that no signal is received in the loopback of the serial control line 107.

[0044] After SubCPU102 sends out the 24-bit bit string for the RGB-LED103 with the last N = 3 as the LED control signal 106 to the serial control line 107, as Figure 3 shown in (a) and Figure 2 shown in (d), it sends out the reset code composed of a low-level voltage period with a time length of 50 μs or more as the LED control signal 106 to the serial control line 107.

[0045] When it is recognized that the state of the LED control signal 106 on the serial control line 107 input from the DI input terminal becomes a low-level voltage with a time length of 50 μs or more at the timing shown in Figure 3 (a), the microcomputer in the #1 RGB-LED103 causes the three LEDs of R, G, and B to start emitting light with the three brightness values indicated by the received 24-bit bit string.

[0046] By recognizing that the state of the LED control signal 106 on the serial control line 107 input from the DI input terminal becomes a low-level voltage with a time length of 50 μs or more in the time period shown in Figure 3 (b), which is approximately the same as the case in Figure 3 (a), the microcomputer in the #2 RGB-LED103 also causes the three LEDs of R, G, and B to start emitting light with the three brightness values indicated by the received 24-bit bit string.

[0047] By recognizing that the state of the LED control signal 106 on the serial control line 107 input from the DI input terminal becomes a low-level voltage with a time length of 50 μs or more in the time period shown in Figure 3 (c), which is approximately the same as the cases in Figure 3 (a) and Figure 3 (b), the microcomputer in the #3 RGB-LED103 also causes the three LEDs of R, G, and B to start emitting light with the three brightness values indicated by the received 24-bit bit string.

[0048] As described above, in each of the RGB-LEDs 103 of #1 to #3, the light emission of each LED is refreshed based on each brightness value newly updated in the data update cycle 1.

[0049] After the sending of the reset code is completed, in the next data update cycle 2, based on the data received irregularly from Figure 1The latest brightness control signal 105 supplied from the Main CPU 101 to the Sub CPU 102 is used to set new brightness values for each of the LEDs of the RGB-LEDs 103 for #1 to #3 as in the case of the data update cycle 1, and the LED control signal 106 is sent to the serial control line 107.

[0050] As described above, in Figure 1 the RGB-LEDs 103 for #1 to #N, based on the respective brightness values updated for each data update cycle as described in Figure 3 each LED is controlled to emit light in a full-color manner. Thereby, a colorful electronic decorative display or the like is realized.

[0051] Return Figure 1 Regarding the description of , the smoothing circuit 109 is an example of a smoothing circuit that functions as a smoothing voltage signal generation unit. The smoothing voltage signal generation unit smooths the LED control signal 106 (control data signal) output from the Sub CPU 102 (control device) that drives the RGB-LED 103 (device) to generate a smoothed voltage signal.

[0052] As Figure 2 described in (b) of Figure 2 and the description of (c) of , in the present embodiment, for each bit of each bit string designated as the LED control signal 106, when the H signal (logical value 1) is designated and when the L signal (logical value 0) is designated, based on the fact that the voltage value of the LED control signal 106 changes, the magnitude of the power consumption is estimated based on the smoothed voltage signal obtained by smoothing the LED control signal 106.

[0053] Figure 4 is Figure 1 the circuit structure diagram of the smoothing circuit 109 of . Terminal A is connected to the output of the Figure 1 buffer 108 of . The voltage value of the LED control signal 106 on the serial control line 107 is substantially input to this terminal A. The buffer 108 is inserted for the purpose of separating the signal so that the smoothing circuit 109 does not affect the LED control signal 106 supplied to the RGB-LED 103. The ground wire of the serial control line 107 of Figure 1 is connected to terminal G. As a result, the voltage value of the LED control signal 106 is smoothed by a low-pass filter circuit composed of a resistor R1 having a resistance value of, for example, 47 KΩ (kiloohm) and a capacitor C1 having a capacitance value of, for example, 220 pF (picofarad), and a smoothed voltage signal (first smoothed voltage signal) is output from terminal VF1.

[0054] Here, as described above, if only the output of the terminal VF1 in the simple RC filter circuit of the resistor R1 and the capacitor C1 is made into a smoothed voltage signal, the following problems exist.

[0055] Problem 1: If resistor / capacitor values with low averaging effect (low resistance value, small capacitance for the capacitor) are used, the voltage of the smoothed voltage signal output from the terminal VF1 is likely to fluctuate, immediately becoming high voltage but also easily becoming low.

[0056] Problem 2: If resistor / capacitor values with high averaging effect (high resistance value, large capacitance for the capacitor) are used, the voltage of the smoothed voltage signal output from the terminal VF1 is difficult to rise. When a considerable number of bits in the LED control signal 106 do not persist at the high-level voltage value, the voltage will not rise (however, since it is also difficult to decrease, signal unevenness can be eliminated).

[0057] That is, as the effect of the filter, the following situation is optimal: "If bits of the high-level voltage value are continuous, the voltage rises smoothly, and even if bits of the low-level voltage value are continuous, it is not desired that the voltage drop speed becomes fast."

[0058] Figure 5 It is a diagram showing an example of the voltage-time change characteristic of the voltage signal output from the terminal VF1. The vertical axis represents the output voltage value [volt], and the horizontal axis represents the elapsed time [second]. In the LED control signal 106, it can be seen that compared with the voltage characteristic 502 when most bits change to the low level (logical value 0), it takes a longer time to reach the average voltage value corresponding to the high level for the voltage characteristic 501 when most bits change to the high level (logical value 1).

[0059] Therefore, even in the LED control signal 106, when most bits change to the high level (logical value 1) and a large current instantaneously flows through the RGB-LEDs 103 of #1 to #N, it takes time to detect this state, and the control for suppressing the instantaneous flow of a large current through the RGB-LEDs 103 of #1 to #N may be too late.

[0060] Therefore, in the present embodiment, in Figure 4 the smoothing circuit 109 shown, a bias of an intermediate potential is applied to the smoothed voltage signal at the terminal VF1, achieving an operation of "assisting and accelerating when the voltage rises, but braking and slowing down when the voltage drops." This can make the output waveform (output fluctuation) clear when the current consumption is large.

[0061] Specifically, in Figure 4In [the circuit], the voltage across both ends of a power supply V1 stabilized by a capacitor C4 having a capacitance value of, for example, 10 μF (microfarad) is divided into an intermediate potential by two resistors R3 and R4 having a resistance value of, for example, the same 2.2 KΩ. For example, two capacitors C2 and C3 having the same capacitance value of 1 nF (nanofarad) are connected to the high-potential side and the ground side of the intermediate potential, so that the waveform of the intermediate potential does not change rapidly (jitter).

[0062] The intermediate potential signal stabilized in this way is applied as a bias voltage signal to the smoothing voltage signal of terminal VF1 via a resistor R2 having a resistance value of, for example, 22 KΩ and an anti-backflow diode D2. Then, the bias voltage in the above bias voltage signal is output from terminal VF2 as a smoothed voltage signal (second smoothed voltage signal) after high-speedization.

[0063] In addition, Figure 4 Terminal VF3 of [] is a terminal for enabling MainCPU101 to confirm the potential of power supply V1 that generates the intermediate potential signal.

[0064] Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of the voltage-time change characteristic of the voltage signal output from terminal VF2. The vertical axis and the horizontal axis are the same as those in Figure 5 In the LED control signal 106, it can be seen that the time until the average voltage value corresponding to the high level is reached is shorter compared to the voltage characteristic 501 in Figure 5 when most of the bits change to the high level (logical value 1).

[0065] Therefore, in the LED control signal 106, when most of the bits change to the high level (logical value 1) and a large current flows instantaneously through the RGB-LEDs 103 from #1 to #N, this state can be detected quickly, and the control to suppress the instantaneous large current flowing through the RGB-LEDs 103 from #1 to #N can be executed quickly.

[0066] In addition, when biased by the intermediate potential signal, the voltage value of the voltage characteristic 601 when most of the bits change to the high level (logical value 1) becomes a value relatively close to the voltage value of the voltage characteristic 602 when most of the bits change to the low level (logical value 0). However, even to this extent, it can be [achieved] by the ADC (A / D conversion unit) 110 of MainCPU101 (refer to Figure 1) can detect the difference with sufficient high accuracy. In particular, in the present embodiment, for a situation where a large current flows when most bits change to a high level (logical value 1), appropriate suppression control can be implemented without much need to detect the intermediate state. Therefore, the control method of the present embodiment can implement sufficiently effective current suppression control.

[0067] Figure 7 It means based on Figure 4 This is a flowchart of an example of brightness / volume adjustment processing performed by MainCPU101 based on the VF2 voltage signal output from the terminal VF2 of the smoothing circuit 109. This processing performs operations as a power consumption estimation unit and a power consumption control device.

[0068] First, for Figure 1 The smoothing circuit 109 Figure 4 The VF2 voltage signal output from the terminal VF2 of the main CPU 101 is converted into a digital value by the ADC 110 in the main CPU 101, and a digital voltage value (hereinafter referred to as "VF2 value") is taken in (step S701).

[0069] Next, it is determined whether the VF2 value is larger than a threshold value 1 which is closer to a high-level voltage value (step S702 ).

[0070] If the determination in step S702 is yes, "0.7" is set as the brightness coefficient (step S703), and "0.8" is set as the volume coefficient (step S704).

[0071] If the determination in step S702 is negative, it is determined whether the VF2 value is greater than threshold 2 (<threshold 1) (step S705).

[0072] If the determination in step S705 is yes, "0.8" is set as the brightness coefficient (step S706), and "1.0" is set as the volume coefficient (step S707).

[0073] If the determination in step S705 is negative, "1.0" is set as the brightness coefficient (step S708), and "1.0" is also set as the volume coefficient (step S709).

[0074] MainCPU 101 uses the brightness coefficient and volume coefficient set as above, first, as Figure 1 The brightness information provided by the brightness control signal 105 is replaced with the new brightness information by multiplying the original brightness information by the brightness coefficient. Then, the brightness control signal 105 replaced in this way is supplied to the SubCPU 102.

[0075] In addition, as a Figure 1The amplifier gain 113 set in the audio amplifier 112 is replaced by a value obtained by multiplying the original amplifier gain 113 by the volume coefficient. Then, the replaced amplifier gain 113 is supplied to the audio amplifier 112. The audio amplifier 112 is an example of another device that operates in conjunction with the RGB-LED 103 as a device.

[0076] Thus, if the VF2 value detected from the LED control signal 106 is very high, since the maximum current may flow through the RGB-LEDs 103 #1 to #N, control is performed to reduce the value of the brightness information in step S703, so that the brightness value to be provided to the RGB-LEDs 103 is reduced. At the same time, control is also performed to suppress the loud volume in the audio amplifier 112 in step S704. In this way, control to suppress power consumption is performed in both the RGB-LEDs 103 and the audio amplifier 112.

[0077] Furthermore, if the VF2 value detected from the LED control signal 106 is somewhat high but does not reach the vicinity of the maximum voltage value, control is performed in step S706 so that the brightness value to be provided to the RGB-LED 103 is reduced to some extent, and the value of the brightness information is reduced to some extent. However, in step S707, control is performed without suppressing the sound amplification in the sound amplifier 112 by setting the volume coefficient to 1.0. In this way, control to suppress power consumption can be performed in both the RGB-LED 103 and the sound amplifier 112 or only in the RGB-LED 103 as needed.

[0078] If the VF2 value detected from the LED control signal 106 has not increased, in steps S708 and S709 , the brightness coefficient and the volume coefficient are both set to 1.0, so that neither the RGB-LED 103 nor the audio amplifier 112 suppresses power consumption.

[0079] In the above-described embodiment, Figure 4 The structure Figure 1 The smoothing circuit 109 generates a smoothed voltage signal of the LED control signal 106. In contrast, for example, the MainCPU 101 itself may replace the smoothing circuit 109 and perform the function of program processing, and calculate the average voltage of the LED control signal 106 supplied by the SubCPU 102 to the RGB-LED 103 by performing information processing operations on the LED control signal 106.

[0080] In this case, Figure 1In this case, instead of inputting the output signal of the buffer 108 (substantially equal to the LED control signal 106) into the smoothing circuit 109, it is directly connected to the ADC 110 of the MainCPU 101. The program of the MainCPU 101 only needs to smooth the LED control signal 106 input to the ADC 110 and converted into a digital signal through information processing operations such as low-pass filtering or moving average filtering of a digital filter. In addition, the arithmetic mean of the signal values can be calculated through ordinary numerical operations (included in the information processing operations).

[0081] In addition, in this embodiment, the MainCPU 101 compares the signal obtained by digitally converting the smoothed voltage signal VF2 with a threshold value to estimate the magnitude of power consumption, but it can also be estimated by an analog circuit.

[0082] In this case, the voltage serving as the threshold value is connected to the reference voltage input terminal of the comparator (comparison circuit), and the smoothed voltage signal VF2 is connected to the signal input terminal. The output signal of the comparator is connected to the ADC 110 of the MainCPU 101. If the digital signal value converted by the ADC 110 is at the H level, by processing it as a large power consumption, the present invention can be implemented.

Claims

1. A power estimation device, in, have: a smoothing voltage signal generating unit, which is a unit for generating a smoothing voltage signal of a control data signal supplied to the device by a control device for controlling the device, generating an intermediate potential signal as a stabilized signal having an intermediate potential relative to a maximum potential of the control data signal, applying the intermediate potential signal as a bias voltage signal to a voltage signal obtained by smoothing the control data signal by low-pass filtering, and outputting a bias voltage in the bias voltage signal applied to the voltage signal as a smoothing voltage signal of the control data signal; as well as The power consumption estimation unit estimates the magnitude of power consumption of the device by comparing the smoothed voltage signal with one or more predetermined threshold values ​​and making a determination.

2. The power estimation device according to claim 1, in, The smoothed voltage signal generating unit applies the intermediate potential signal as a bias voltage signal to a voltage signal obtained by smoothing the control data signal through a diode.

3. The power estimation device according to claim 1 or 2, in, The smoothed voltage signal generating unit is a functional unit executed by a computer, and generates the smoothed voltage signal by performing information processing calculation on the control data signal.

4. The power estimation device according to claim 1 or 2, in, The device is a light emitting diode with a built-in microcomputer. The control device specifies the brightness value and supplies a bit string of a specified number of bits as the control data signal to the light-emitting diode, so that the microcomputer causes the light-emitting diode to emit light at the brightness value indicated by the bit string. The logic value 1 or logic value 0 of each bit of the bit string of the specified number of bits is specified by a voltage pulse signal with different duty cycles between the time of a high-level voltage and the time of a low-level voltage.

5. A power consumption control device, in, When the power consumption of the device estimated by the power estimation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is estimated to be large, control is performed to reduce power consumption of at least one of the device and other devices operating in conjunction with the device.

6. A sound device, in, have: The power estimation device according to any one of claims 1 to 4; Audio amplifiers; and speaker.

7. A method for estimating power, in, generating an intermediate potential signal, the intermediate potential signal being a stabilized signal having an intermediate potential relative to a maximum potential of a control data signal supplied to the device by a control device for controlling the device, applying the intermediate potential signal as a bias voltage signal to a voltage signal obtained by smoothing the control data signal by low-pass filtering, and generating a bias voltage in the bias voltage signal applied to the voltage signal as a smoothed voltage signal of the control data signal, The magnitude of power consumption of the device is estimated by comparing the smoothed voltage signal with one or more predetermined threshold values ​​and making a determination.

8. A storage medium, Among them, a program is stored, and the program is used to cause a computer to perform the following processing: generate an intermediate potential signal, which is a stabilized signal having an intermediate potential relative to the maximum potential of the control data signal supplied to the device by a control device for controlling the device, apply the intermediate potential signal as a bias voltage signal to the voltage signal obtained by smoothing the control data signal through low-pass filtering, and generate the smoothed voltage signal of the control data signal as the bias voltage in the bias voltage signal applied to the voltage signal, estimate the magnitude of the power consumption of the device by comparing and determining the smoothed voltage signal with one or more specified thresholds respectively.

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