A method for measuring the distance to a short circuit in a two-conductor wire.

Abstract

Various embodiments may provide systems and methods for determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire. Various embodiments may include determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire based at least in part on a phase difference between a phase of an injected tone and a phase of a reflected tone. Various embodiments may include determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire based at least in part on both a phase difference and an amplitude difference between an injected tone and a reflected tone. Various embodiments may include determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire based at least in part on a measured peak voltage of a composite pulse.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims the benefit of priority from U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17 / 451,150, filed October 15, 2021, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. [Background technology]

[0002]

[0002] Devices for detecting and locating the position of shorts along two-conductor wires, specifically the distance from the end of the wire to the short, are valuable tools supporting system inspection, system fault detection, system diagnostics, and system topology measurement. Summary of the Invention

[0003]

[0003] Various aspects include systems and methods for determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire. Various aspects may include a method for determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire. In various aspects, the method may be performed by a processor of a device connected to the two conductor wire.

[0004] Various aspects may include injecting an initial tone having an initial known signal phase into a first end of a two-conductor wire, measuring a signal phase of an initial reflected tone at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the initial tone, determining an initial phase difference as a phase difference between the initial known signal phase and a measured signal phase of the initial reflected tone, and determining a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference. In some aspects, the initial known signal phase may be an initial known current phase, and the measured signal phase of the initial reflected tone may be a measured current phase of the initial reflected tone. In some aspects, the initial known signal phase may be an initial known voltage phase, and the measured signal phase of the initial reflected tone may be a measured voltage phase of the initial reflected tone.

[0005]

[0005] In various aspects, the initial tone may have an initial frequency. Various aspects further include injecting a second tone having a second initial voltage phase and a second frequency different from the initial frequency into a first end of the two-conductor wire, measuring a voltage phase of a second reflected tone at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the second tone, and determining a second phase difference as a phase difference between the second initial voltage phase and the measured voltage phase of the second reflected tone. In various aspects, determining a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference may include determining a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference and the determined second phase difference.

[0006]

[0006] Various aspects may further include controlling a device along the two-conductor wire to create a short in the two-conductor wire before injecting the initial tone, before injecting the second tone, and before determining the distance to the short.

[0007]

[0007] In some aspects, the initial tone may have an initial known signal amplitude. Some aspects may further include measuring an amplitude of an initial reflected tone at a first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the initial tone, and determining an initial amplitude difference as a difference between the initial known amplitude and the measured amplitude of the initial reflected tone. In some aspects, determining a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference may include determining a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference and the determined initial amplitude difference. In some aspects, the initial known signal amplitude may be an initial known current amplitude, and the measured amplitude of the initial reflected tone may be a measured current amplitude of the initial reflected tone. In some aspects, the initial known signal amplitude may be an initial known voltage amplitude, and the measured amplitude of the initial reflected tone may be a measured voltage amplitude of the initial reflected tone.

[0008]

[0008] Some aspects may include injecting a selected pulse having a selected peak voltage and a selected pulse shape into a first end of the two-conductor wire, measuring the peak voltage of a composite pulse at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the selected pulse, and determining a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the composite pulse.

[0009] Some aspects may further include determining a selected peak voltage for the selected pulse and a selected pulse shape for the selected pulse based at least in part on the known length of the two-conductor wire prior to injecting the selected pulse. In some aspects, the selected pulse may be a ramp pulse, where no modulation is applied to the ramp pulse.

[0010]

[0010] Some aspects may include injecting a test pulse into a first end of the two-conductor wire while no short circuit is present in the two-conductor wire prior to injecting the selected pulse, measuring a peak voltage of a return test pulse at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the test pulse, determining a distance to a second end of the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the return test pulse, determining whether the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire, and performing a calibration operation in response to determining that the distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is not the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire. In some aspects, injecting the selected pulse into the first end of the two-conductor wire may include injecting the selected pulse into the first end of the two-conductor wire in response to determining that the distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire.

[0011]

[0011] Various aspects may include controlling a device in the two-conductor wire to create a short in the two-conductor wire prior to injecting a selected pulse into a first end of the two-conductor wire.

[0012]

[0012] Further aspects may include a device having a processor configured to perform one or more operations of any of the methods summarized above. Further aspects may include a processing device for use in a device configured with processor-executable instructions to perform any of the operations of the methods summarized above. Further aspects may include a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium having stored thereon processor-executable instructions configured to cause a processor of the device to perform any of the operations of the methods summarized above. Further aspects include a device having means for performing the functions of any of the methods summarized above. Further aspects include a system-on-chip for use in a device including a processor configured to perform one or more operations of any of the methods summarized above. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013]

[0013] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the claims and, together with the general description given above and the detailed description of the invention below, serve to explain the features of the claims. [Figure 1A]

[0014] FIG. 1 is a system block diagram illustrating an example system including a two-conductor wire suitable for implementing various embodiments. [Figure 1B]

[0015] FIG. 1B is a system block diagram illustrating an example short circuit in the system of FIG. 1A. [Figure 1C]

[0016] FIG. 1 is a component block diagram of a device configured to be connected to a two-conductor wire suitable for use in various embodiments. [Diagram 2]

[0017] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 3A]

[0018] FIG. 1 is a system block diagram illustrating an example system including a two-conductor wire suitable for implementing various embodiments. [Figure 3B]

[0019] FIG. 3B is a system block diagram illustrating an example of a first short circuit in the system of FIG. 3A. [Figure 3C]

[0020] FIG. 3B is a system block diagram illustrating an example of a second short in the system of FIG. 3A. [Figure 3D]

[0021] FIG. 1 is a component block diagram of a device configured to be connected to a two-conductor wire suitable for use in various embodiments. [Figure 4A]

[0022] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 4B]

[0023] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for creating a short in a two-conductor wire, according to various embodiments. [Figure 5A]

[0024] 1 illustrates an exemplary distance measurement circuit, according to various embodiments. [Figure 5B]

[0025] 1 illustrates an exemplary distance measurement circuit, according to various embodiments. [Figure 5C]

[0026] 1 illustrates an exemplary distance measurement circuit, according to various embodiments. [Figure 5D]

[0027] 1 illustrates an exemplary distance measurement circuit, according to various embodiments. [Figure 6A]

[0028] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 6B]

[0029] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 7A]

[0030] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 7B]

[0031] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 8A]

[0032] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 8B]

[0033] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 9]

[0034] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 10A]

[0035] 1 is an example of a best fit line for a plot of unwrapped phase difference versus different frequencies in accordance with various embodiments. [Figure 10B]

[0036] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 10C]

[0037] 1 is an example of a calibration data set of phase and amplitude differences according to various embodiments. [Figure 10D]

[0038] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 11A]

[0039] 1 illustrates an exemplary distance measurement circuit, according to various embodiments. [Figure 11B]

[0040] 1 illustrates an exemplary pulse generation circuit, according to various embodiments. [Figure 12]

[0041] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for determining the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire according to various embodiments. [Figure 13]

[0042] 1 illustrates the behavior of pulse interference in the presence of a short circuit. [Figure 14]

[0043] 1 is a plot of an exemplary peak voltage as a result of a pulse resulting from pulse interference, in accordance with various embodiments. [Figure 15]

[0044] FIG. 1 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for calibrating a device, according to various embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014]

[0045] Various embodiments will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. References made to specific examples and implementations are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims.

[0015]

[0046] Various embodiments include systems and methods for determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire. Various embodiments may include determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire based at least in part on a phase difference between a voltage phase of an injected tone and a voltage phase of a reflected tone. Various embodiments may include determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire based at least in part on a phase difference between a current phase of an injected tone and a current phase of a reflected tone. Various embodiments may include determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire based at least in part on both a phase difference between a voltage phase of an injected tone and a voltage phase of a reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a voltage amplitude of an injected tone and a voltage amplitude of a reflected tone. Various embodiments may include determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire based at least in part on both a phase difference between a current phase of an injected tone and a current phase of a reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a current amplitude of an injected tone and a current amplitude of a reflected tone. Various embodiments may include determining a distance to a short in a two conductor wire based at least in part on a measured peak voltage of a composite pulse. Various embodiments may enable reliable determination of distance to a short in a two conductor wire. Various embodiments may provide a low cost device for determining distance to a short in a two conductor wire. Various embodiment methods for determining distance to a short in a two conductor wire may support system testing, system fault detection, system diagnostics, and system topology measurement.

[0016]

[0047] The term "two-conductor wire" is used herein to refer to a wire (sometimes referred to as a cable) having at least two conductors. As used herein, a "two-conductor wire" may be a wire (or cable) having two or more conductors, such as two conductors, three conductors, four conductors, five conductors, six or more conductors, etc. The two or more conductors in a two-conductor wire may be separated from each other by one or more insulating materials, one or more supporting structures, and / or physical distance, etc. The two-conductor wire may be an embedded structure in another device, such as an assembly of two or more conductors in a device. Alternatively, the two-conductor wire may be a unique structure, such as two or more conductors supported in a jacket structure. Examples of two-conductor wires may include power cables, transmission lines, telephone lines, communication buses, etc.

[0017]

[0048] As used herein, the term "short circuit" may refer to an electrical connection that occurs between at least two conductors of a two-conductor wire at a point on the wire between a first end of the two-conductor wire and an opposite second end of the two-conductor wire. A short circuit may allow current to flow between the at least two conductors of the two-conductor wire. A short circuit may be created unintentionally, such as by damage to the two-conductor wire, a manufacturing defect in the two-conductor wire, etc., or a short circuit may be created intentionally, such as by a device along the two-conductor wire closing one or more switches, thereby connecting the at least two conductors, a device being inserted into the two-conductor wire to electrically connect the at least two conductors, etc.

[0018]

[0049] The term "pulse" as used herein refers to a signal having a waveform that deviates from a bottom value to another value and returns to the bottom value. In some scenarios, a pulse can be a signal having a waveform that deviates from a bottom value to another value and returns to the bottom value without crossing the bottom value. In other scenarios, a pulse can be a signal having a waveform that deviates from a bottom value to another value and returns to the bottom value after crossing the bottom value at one or more points. A pulse can be a unidirectional waveform. For example, a pulse can rise from a bottom value to a peak value and return to the bottom value. The portion of the pulse that rises from the bottom value to the peak value can be the rising edge of the pulse. A positive pulse can have a non-negative bottom value, rise to a positive peak value, and return to the non-negative bottom value without crossing the zero axis. A negative pulse can have a non-positive bottom value, fall to a negative peak value, and return to the non-positive bottom value without crossing the zero axis. A positive pulse, when reflected, can result in a negative pulse propagating away from the reflecting point, and a negative pulse, when reflected, can result in a positive pulse propagating away from the reflecting point. Examples of pulses may include rectangular pulses, Gaussian, triangular pulses, and the like.

[0019]

[0050] The term "tone" as used herein refers to a periodic signal that has a positive component, a negative component, and a magnitude where the signal crosses the zero axis. Examples of tones include sine and cosine waves.

[0020]

[0051] The term "system on chip" (SOC) is used herein to refer to a single integrated circuit (IC) chip that contains multiple resources or processors integrated on a single substrate. A single SOC may include circuits for digital, analog, mixed signal, and radio frequency functions. A single SOC may also include any number of general purpose or special purpose processors (digital signal processors, modem processors, video processors, etc.), memory blocks (ROM, RAM, Flash, etc.), and resources (timers, voltage regulators, oscillators, etc.). A SOC may also include software for controlling the integrated resources and processors, as well as for controlling peripheral devices.

[0021]

[0052] The term "system in a package" (SIP) may be used herein to refer to a single module or package that contains multiple resources, computing units, cores, or processors on two or more IC chips, substrates, or SOCs. For example, a SIP may include a single substrate on which multiple IC chips or semiconductor dies are stacked in a vertical configuration. Similarly, a SIP may include one or more multi-chip modules (MCMs) on which multiple ICs or semiconductor dies are packaged in a singulated substrate. A SIP may also include multiple independent SOCs coupled to each other via high-speed communication circuits and packaged in close proximity, for example, on a single motherboard or in a single device. The proximity of the SOCs facilitates high-speed communication and sharing of memory and resources.

[0022]

[0053] Various embodiments may be implemented using any of the following standards: any of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 16.11 standards or any of the IEEE 802.11 standards, the Bluetooth standard, code division multiple access (CDMA), CDMA-2000, frequency division multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), GSM / General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE) (also known as Enhanced GPRS (EGPRS)), Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA), Wideband-CDMA (WCDMA), Evolution Data Optimized (EGPRS ...GPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGPRS, EGP Optimized (EV-DO), 1xEV-DO, EV-DO Rev A, EV-DO Rev B, High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), High Speed ​​Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), High Speed ​​Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA), Evolved High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA+), Long Term Evolution (LTE), AMPS, or IEEE802.15.Other known signals used to communicate within wireless, cellular, or Internet of Things (IoT) networks, such as 4 protocols (e.g., Thread, ZigBee, and Z-Wave), 6LoWPAN, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), LTE Machine-Type Communication (LTE MTC), Narrow Band LTE (NB-LTE), Cellular IoT (CIoT), Narrow Band IoT (NB-IoT), BT Smart, Wi-Fi, LTE-U, LTE-Direct, MuLTEfire, and other known signals used to communicate within wireless, cellular, or Internet of Things (IoT) networks, such as Random Phase Multiple Access (RPMA), Ultra Narrow Band (UNB), Low Power Long Range (LoRa), Low Power Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN), Weightless, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WLAN), and other physical layer interfaces (PHYs) with relatively extended range, such as Random Phase Multiple Access (RPMA), Ultra Narrow Band (UNB), Low Power Long Range (LoRa), Low Power Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN), Weightless, and other WLAN-based interfaces (WLAN-based interfaces) that are not part of the WLAN standard. The communication standards may include devices that operate according to various communication standards, including transmitting and / or receiving signals according to any of the following: Wireless Microwave Access (WiMAX), or multicast Domain Name Service (mDNS), or Connected Home Over IP (CHIP), or systems utilizing Third Generation (3G), Fourth Generation (4G), or Fifth Generation (5G) technologies, or further implementations thereof.

[0023]

[0054] Various embodiments may provide devices and methods for determining the distance from an end of a two-conductor wire to a short between two conductors of the two-conductor wire. For example, the short may be a short between two conductors of the same length in the two-conductor wire.

[0024]

[0055] 1A is a system block diagram illustrating an example system that includes a two-conductor wire 101. The system can include a device 106 connected to the two-conductor wire 101. In various embodiments, the device 106 can be configured to determine a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire 101.

[0025]

[0056] The two-conductor wire 101 may include two or more conductors, such as a first conductor 104 and a second conductor 105. Although illustrated as including two conductors, a first conductor 104 and a second conductor 105, the two-conductor wire 101 may include additional conductors. The two-conductor wire 101 may have a known length, such as a wire length "WL" that extends from a first end 102 of the two-conductor wire 101 to a second end 103 of the two-conductor wire 101. The first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105 may be conductors of the same length, such as conductors that extend a known length of the two-conductor wire 101, such as "WL". The two-conductor wire 101 may be an embedded structure in another device, such as a collection of two or more conductors within a device. Alternatively, the two-conductor wire 101 may be a unique structure, such as two or more conductors supported in a jacket structure.

[0026]

[0057] The device 106 may be permanently connected to the two-conductor wire 101, or the device 106 may be removably connected to the two-conductor wire 101. Whether permanently or removably connected to the two-conductor wire 101, the device 106 may be electrically connected to each of the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105. In some embodiments, the device 106 may optionally include an antenna 120 configured to transmit and / or receive electromagnetic radiation to support transmission and / or reception of wireless signals by the device 106. The antenna 120 may support communication using various radio access technologies (RATs), such as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Wi-Fi, etc. Device 106 may be any type of device connected to the two-conductor wire 101, such as a fault detector connected to the two-conductor wire 101 to detect faults in the two-conductor wire 101, a testing device connected to the two-conductor wire 101 to test attributes of the two-conductor wire 101, a control device connected to the two-conductor wire 101 to control a device connected to the two-conductor wire 101, a communication device connected to the two-conductor wire 101 to communicate with another device via the two-conductor wire 101, etc.

[0027]

[0058] FIG. 1B illustrates an exemplary short circuit 109 in the system of FIG. 1A. With reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the short circuit 109 may be an electrical connection between the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105 that allows current to travel between the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105. As an example, the short circuit 109 may be created unintentionally, such as by damage to the two-conductor wire 101, a manufacturing defect in the two-conductor wire 101, etc. As another example, the short circuit 109 may be created intentionally, such as by a connection between the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105 being inserted into the two-conductor wire 101. The short circuit 109 may be a distance DS1 from the first end 102. In various embodiments, the device 106 may be configured to determine the distance DS1 from the first end 102 to the short circuit 109 in the two-conductor wire 101.

[0028]

[0059] FIG. 1C is a component block diagram of a device 106 configured to be connected to a two-conductor wire, according to various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-1C, the device 106 may include a distance measurement circuit 128 connected to a processor 126. In various embodiments, the processor 126 may be coupled to a memory 129. The memory 129 may be a volatile or non-volatile memory. The processor 126 may be a dedicated processor, a SOC, or a SIP. The processor 126 and / or the distance measurement circuit 128 may be powered by a power source 130 of the device 106, such as a battery, a connection to an external power source, a combination of a battery and an external power source, etc.

[0029]

[0060] The distance measurement circuit 128 may be a circuit, SOC, SIP, and other type of device configured to connect to the two-conductor wire 101. In particular, the distance measurement circuit 128 may be configured to connect to any one or more of the two or more conductors of the two-conductor wire 101, such as the first conductor 104 and / or the second conductor 105. The distance measurement circuit 128 may be configured to determine a distance to a short, such as the short 109 in the two-conductor wire 101. As an example, the distance measurement circuit 128 may be configured to determine a distance DS1 from the first end 102 to the short 109 in the two-conductor wire 101. The distance measurement circuitry 128 may include various signal generation and signal processing hardware, such as one or more unique respective processors, radios, signal generators (e.g., pulse generators, tone generators, etc.), multiplexers, voltage detection circuits, phase detection circuits, resistors, capacitors, inductors, operational amplifiers, analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), digital-to-analog converters (DACs), connectors, logic gates, switches (e.g., field-effect transistors (FETs), dedicated radio frequency (RF) switch integrated circuits (ICs), thyristors, bipolar junction transistors (BJTs), logic gates, etc.), oscillators, power amplifiers, mixers, connectors, circulators, directional couplers, and / or any other type of electronic hardware.

[0030]

[0061] The device 106 may optionally include a wireless transceiver 125 connected to an optional antenna 120 and a processor 126. The antenna 120, the wireless transceiver 125, and / or the processor 126 may support communication using various RATs, such as one or more of Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, etc. The antenna 120 and the wireless transceiver 125 may be optional since the device 106 may not communicate wirelessly with other devices in all scenarios. Additionally and / or alternatively, the processor 126 and the distance measurement circuitry 128 may optionally support communication with other devices via a connection to the two-conductor wire 101. Support for communication via the distance measurement circuitry 128 may be optional since the device 106 may not communicate with other devices via the two-conductor wire 101 in all scenarios. In an optional configuration, the processor 126, the memory 129, and the distance measurement circuitry 128 may be components of the same SIP 151.

[0031]

[0062] In an optional configuration, device 106 may include a display 131 connected to processor 126 and / or power source 130. Display 131 may be a touchscreen display, such as a resistive-sensing touchscreen, a capacitive-sensing touchscreen, an infrared-sensing touchscreen, or the like.

[0032]

[0063] 2 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method 200 for determining a distance to a short in a two-conductor wire, according to various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-2, the method 200 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-2, the means for performing each of the operations of the method 200 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128.

[0033]

[0064] In optional block 202, the processor may perform operations to detect a short circuit along the two-conductor wire. For example, a distance measurement circuit (e.g., 128) may indicate a rapid current change in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101), which may indicate that a short circuit (e.g., 109) has occurred. The processor may be configured to respond to the rapid current change as an indication of the occurrence of a short circuit. Block 202 may be optional because detection of a short circuit may not be required in all scenarios. For example, the device 106 may be connected to the two-conductor wire 101 after a short circuit has been identified by a system operator, and thus detection of a short circuit may not be required.

[0034]

[0065] In block 204, the processor may perform operations to determine a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire. For example, the processor may control the distance measurement circuit (e.g., 128) to determine a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 109) based at least in part on a phase difference between a voltage phase of the injected tone and a voltage phase of the reflected tone. As another example, the processor may control the distance measurement circuit (e.g., 128) to determine a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) based at least in part on a phase difference between a current phase of the injected tone and a current phase of the reflected tone. As another example, the processor may control the distance measurement circuit (e.g., 128) to determine a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 109) based at least in part on both a phase difference between a voltage phase of the injected tone and a voltage phase of the reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a voltage amplitude of the injected tone and a voltage amplitude of the reflected tone. As another example, the processor may control the distance measurement circuitry (e.g., 128) to determine the distance to the short (e.g., 109) in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) based at least in part on both the phase difference between the current phase of the injected tone and the current phase of the reflected tone and the amplitude difference between the current amplitude of the injected tone and the current amplitude of the reflected tone. As another example, the processor may control the distance measurement circuitry (e.g., 128) to determine the distance to the short (e.g., 109) in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the composite pulse.

[0035]

[0066] In various embodiments, a short circuit, such as short circuit 109, may be controllably triggered. A controllable device connected to the two-conductor wire 101 may be controlled to close a short circuit on demand for the purpose of locating the controllable device along the two-conductor wire 101. Such a controllable device may be connected to the two-conductor wire 101 at various locations. To locate a controllable device on the two-conductor wire 101, the controllable devices may be individually controlled (e.g., by wireless signals or signals transmitted over the two-conductor wire 101) to short the two conductors of the two-conductor wire 101. After creating a short circuit (e.g., short circuit 109), the distance to the short circuit may be determined, and thus the distance to the controllable device that created the short circuit. The distance to multiple such controllable devices on the two-conductor wire 101 may be determined by sequentially controlling each controllable device to short the conductors, determining the distance, and then controlling the controllable device to un-short the conductors.

[0036]

[0067] FIG. 3A illustrates an exemplary system including a two-conductor wire 101 and a device 106 with two controllable devices 302. With reference to FIGS. 1A-3A, the controllable device 302 may be connected to the two-conductor wire 101 at various locations. The controllable device 302 may be configured to create a short between two conductors of the two-conductor wire 101, such as between a first conductor 104 and a second conductor 105. The controllable device 302 may be any type of device configured to be connected to the two-conductor wire 101. As an example, the controllable device 302 may be an IoT device connected to the two-conductor wire 101. As another example, the controllable device 302 may be a networked device connected to the two-conductor wire 101. Although two controllable devices 302 are shown in FIG. 3A , any number of controllable devices 302 may be present on the two-conductor wire 101, such as one controllable device 302, two controllable devices 302, three controllable devices 302, four or more controllable devices 302, etc.

[0037]

[0068] The controllable device 302 may be permanently connected to the two-conductor wire 101, or the controllable device 302 may be removably connected to the two-conductor wire 101. Whether permanently or removably connected to the two-conductor wire 101, the controllable device 302 may be electrically connected to each of the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105. In some embodiments, the controllable device 302 may optionally include an antenna 322 configured to transmit and / or receive electromagnetic radiation to support transmission and / or reception of wireless signals by the controllable device 302. The antenna 322 may support communication using various RATs, such as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Wi-Fi, etc.

[0038]

[0069] In an optional configuration, the controllable device 302 may communicate with the device 106 via wireless transmission 315 between the device 106 and one or more of the controllable devices 302. Support for wireless communication by the controllable device 302 may be optional, since the controllable device 302 may be controlled in other manners, such as via a wired connection to the controllable device 302. Additionally and / or alternatively, the controllable device 302 and the device 106 may optionally support communication with each other via their respective connections to the two-conductor wire 101. Support for communication between the controllable device 302 and the device 106 via the two-conductor wire 101 may be optional, since the controllable device 302 may not communicate via the two-conductor wire 101 in all scenarios. In some configurations, the device 106 may control the controllable devices 302 to cause one or more of the controllable devices 302 to create a short circuit between the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105 and / or to cause one or more of the controllable devices 302 to remove a short circuit between the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105.

[0039]

[0070] FIG. 3B is a system block diagram illustrating an example of a first short circuit 109 caused by a first one of the controllable devices 302. Referring to FIGS. 1A-3B, the short circuit 109 may be caused by the controllable device 302 closest to the first end 102. For example, the device 106 may signal the controllable device 302 closest to the first end 102 to cause the short circuit 109. Similarly, the device 106 may signal the controllable device 302 closest to the second end 103 not to cause the short circuit. The control signal to cause the controllable device 302 to cause the short circuit 109 may be transmitted via wireless transmission 315 and / or via the two-conductor wire 101. The distance to the short circuit 109 caused by the controllable device 302 closest to the first end 102 may be a distance DSA from the device 106. In various embodiments, the device 106 may be configured to determine a distance to the controllable device 302 closest to the first end 102 based on the distance to the short 109 in the two-conductor wire 101. As an example, the distance measurement circuit 128 of the device 106 may be configured to determine the distance DSA from the first end 102 to the short 109 in the two-conductor wire 101 as the distance to the controllable device 302 closest to the first end 102.

[0040]

[0071] Similarly, FIG. 3C is a system block diagram illustrating an example of a second short circuit 109 caused by a second one of the controllable devices 302. Referring to FIGS. 1A-3C, the short circuit 109 may be caused by the controllable device 302 closest to the second end 103. For example, the device 106 may signal the controllable device 302 closest to the second end 103 to cause the short circuit 109. Similarly, the device 106 may signal the controllable device 302 closest to the first end 102 not to cause the short circuit. The control signal for causing the controllable device 302 to cause the short circuit 109 may be transmitted via wireless transmission 315 and / or via the two-conductor wire 101. The distance to the short circuit 109 caused by the controllable device 302 closest to the second end 103 may be at a distance DSB from the device 106. The distance DSB may be different from the distance DSA. The controllable devices 302 may be uniquely identified by assigned identifiers, and the device 106 may uniquely signal each respective controllable device 302 using the identifier of that controllable device 302 such that only one of the controllable devices 302 creates a short circuit 109 at any given time. In various embodiments, the device 106 may be configured to determine the distance to the controllable device 302 closest to the second end 103 based on the distance to the short circuit 109 in the two-conductor wire 101. As an example, the distance measurement circuit 128 of the device 106 may be configured to determine the distance DSB from the first end 102 to the short circuit 109 in the two-conductor wire 101 as the distance to the controllable device 302 closest to the second end 103.

[0041]

[0072] FIG. 3D is a component block diagram of a controllable device 302 configured to be connected to a two-conductor wire, such as two-conductor wire 101. With reference to FIGS. 1A-3D, the device 302 may include a controllable switch 354 disposed between two connectors 352 and 353. For example, the controllable switch 354 may be any type of switch configured to move between at least two positions, such as an open position and a closed position. By way of example, the controllable switch 354 may be one or more FETs, dedicated radio frequency (RF) switch integrated circuits (ICs), thyristors, BJTs, logic gates, and the like. In various embodiments, the controllable switch 354 may be connected to a processor 356, which may be connected to a memory 357. The memory 357 may be a volatile or non-volatile memory. The processor 356 may be a dedicated processor, a SOC, or a SIP. The processor 356 and / or the controllable switch 354 may be powered by a power source 361 of the controllable device 302, such as a battery, a connection to an external power source, a combination of a battery and an external power source, and the like.

[0042]

[0073] The connectors 352 and 353 may each be configured to connect to one of the conductors of a two-conductor wire, such as the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105 of the two-conductor wire 101. The connectors 352 and 353 may electrically connect the controllable device 302 to the conductors 104, 105. The controllable switch 354 may be configured such that when the controllable switch 354 is closed, it may create a short circuit between the connectors 352 and 353, and thus a short circuit between the two conductors 104 and 105 (e.g., may create a short circuit 109). The controllable switch 354 may be configured such that when the controllable switch 354 is opened, the connectors 352 and 353 may not be electrically connected to each other, thereby preventing a short circuit between the connectors 352 and 353. The controllable switch 354 may be connected to a processor 356 and may open and close in response to a signal from the processor 356.

[0043]

[0074] The controllable device 302 may optionally include an optional antenna 322 and a wireless transceiver 355 connected to the processor 356. The antenna 322, the wireless transceiver 355, and / or the processor 356 may support communication using various RATs, such as one or more of Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, etc. The antenna 322 and the wireless transceiver 355 may be optional since the controllable device 302 may not communicate wirelessly with other devices in all scenarios. Additionally and / or alternatively, the processor 356 and the connectors 352 and 353 may optionally support communication with other devices via a connection to the two-conductor wire 101. For example, an optional wired transceiver 359 may be connected to the processor 356 and support communication via the two-conductor wire 101. Supporting communication via the controllable device 302 may be optional since the controllable device 302 may not communicate with other devices via the two-conductor wire 101 in all scenarios. If present in the controllable device 302 , the wireless transceiver 355 and / or the wired transceiver 359 may optionally be connected to and powered by a power source 361 .

[0044]

[0075] 4A illustrates a method 400 for determining a distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., 101), according to various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-4A, method 400 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-4A, the means for performing each of the operations of method 400 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128.

[0045]

[0076] In block 402, the processor may perform operations to determine one or more available controllable devices along the two-conductor wire. In various embodiments, the controllable devices (e.g., 302) may be uniquely identified by assigned identifiers. The controllable devices (e.g., 302) may transmit their identifiers, for example, wirelessly (e.g., via the antenna 322 of the controllable device) and / or via a wired connection (e.g., via the two-conductor wire 101), and the processor may determine one or more available controllable devices (e.g., 302) along the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) based on the received identifiers (e.g., identifiers received via wireless transmissions 315 received by the antenna 120 and / or identifiers received via wired transmissions received by the distance measurement circuitry 128).

[0046]

[0077] At block 404, the processor may perform an operation to select a controllable device along the two-conductor wire to create a short circuit. For example, the processor may select one of the one or more controllable devices (e.g., 302) to create a short circuit.

[0047]

[0078] In block 406, the processor may perform operations to control a selected controllable device along the two-conductor wire to create a short circuit in the two-conductor wire. For example, the processor may send a signal to the selected controllable device (e.g., 302) that includes an identifier of the controllable device and indicates that the controllable device should create a short circuit (e.g., 109) in the two-conductor wire 101. The signal to the selected controllable device (e.g., 302) may be sent wirelessly (e.g., via wireless transmission 315 sent by the antenna 120) and / or sent over a wire (e.g., via wired transmission by the distance measurement circuit 128 over one or more conductors of the two-conductor wire 101). Optionally, the processor may send a signal to non-selected controllable devices (e.g., 302) instructing them not to create a short circuit in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) and / or to remove the short circuit created in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101).

[0048]

[0079] In block 204, the processor may perform the operations of similarly numbered blocks of method 200 (FIG. 2) to determine the distance to a short in a two-conductor wire, as described. For example, the processor may control a distance measurement circuit (e.g., 128) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., 109) created in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) by a selected controllable device (e.g., 302) based at least in part on a phase difference between a voltage phase of an injected tone and a voltage phase of a reflected tone. As another example, the processor may control a distance measurement circuit (e.g., 128) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., 109) in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) based at least in part on a phase difference between a current phase of an injected tone and a current phase of a reflected tone. As another example, the processor may control the distance measurement circuit (e.g., 128) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., 109) in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) based at least in part on both the phase difference between the voltage phase of the injected tone and the voltage phase of the reflected tone and the amplitude difference between the voltage amplitude of the injected tone and the voltage amplitude of the reflected tone. As another example, the processor may control the distance measurement circuit (e.g., 128) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., 109) in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) based at least in part on both the phase difference between the current phase of the injected tone and the current phase of the reflected tone and the amplitude difference between the current amplitude of the injected tone and the current amplitude of the reflected tone. As another example, the processor may control the distance measurement circuit (e.g., 128) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., 109) created in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) by a selected controllable device (e.g., 302) based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the composite pulse. In various embodiments, the processor may be configured to set the distance to the selected controllable device (e.g., 302) equal to the determined distance to the short (e.g., 109) in the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101).

[0049]

[0080] In block 408, the processor may perform operations to control the selected controllable device to remove the short in the two-conductor wire. For example, the processor may send a signal to the selected controllable device (e.g., 302) that includes an identifier of the controllable device and indicates that the controllable device should remove the short in the two-conductor wire 101 (e.g., 109). The signal to the selected controllable device (e.g., 302) may be sent wirelessly (e.g., via wireless transmission 315 sent by antenna 120) and / or sent over a wire (e.g., via wired transmission by distance measurement circuit 128 over one or more conductors of the two-conductor wire 101).

[0050]

[0081] FIG. 4B illustrates an embodiment method 450 for creating a short circuit in a two-conductor wire (e.g., 101). With reference to FIGS. 1A-4B, method 450 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 356) of a controllable device (e.g., controllable device 302). With reference to FIGS. 1A-4B, the means for performing each of the operations of method 450 may be one or more processors of the controllable device (e.g., controllable device 302), such as one or more processors 356, and one or more controllable switches of the controllable device (e.g., controllable device 302), such as one or more controllable switches 354. In various embodiments, the operations of method 450 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of method 400 (FIG. 4A).

[0051]

[0082] At block 452, the processor may perform an operation to receive a signal to create a short in the two-conductor wire. For example, the processor may receive a signal from a device (e.g., 106) that includes an identifier of the controllable device and indicates that the controllable device should create a short (e.g., 109) in the two-conductor wire 101. The signal from the device (e.g., 106) may be received wirelessly (e.g., via wireless transmission 315 received by antenna 322) and / or received over a wire (e.g., via wired transmission over one or more conductors of the two-conductor wire 101). The signal may include an indication of the identifier of the controllable device and an indication to create the short.

[0052]

[0083] In block 454, the processor may perform an operation to create a short circuit in the two-conductor wire. For example, the processor (e.g., 356) may send a signal to a controllable switch (e.g., 354) to cause the controllable switch (e.g., 354) to close. The controllable switch (e.g., 354) may be configured such that when the controllable switch (e.g., 354) is closed, the connectors (e.g., 352 and 353) connected to the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) are electrically connected to each other, thereby creating a short circuit (e.g., 109) between the conductors (e.g., 104 and 105).

[0053]

[0084] At block 456, the processor may perform operations to receive a signal to clear the short in the two-conductor wire. For example, the processor may receive a signal from a device (e.g., 106) that includes an identifier of the controllable device and indicates that the controllable device should clear a short (e.g., 109) in the two-conductor wire 101. The signal from the device (e.g., 106) may be received wirelessly (e.g., via wireless transmission 315 received by antenna 322) and / or received over a wire (e.g., via wired transmission over one or more conductors of the two-conductor wire 101). The signal may include an indication of the identifier of the controllable device and an indication to clear the short.

[0054]

[0085] In block 458, the processor may perform an operation to remove the short in the two-conductor wire. For example, the processor (e.g., 356) may send a signal to a controllable switch (e.g., 354) to cause the controllable switch (e.g., 354) to open. The controllable switch (e.g., 354) may be configured such that when the controllable switch (e.g., 354) opens, the connectors (e.g., 352 and 353) connected to the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) are electrically isolated from one another, thereby removing (or preventing) the short (e.g., 109) between the conductors (e.g., 104 and 105).

[0055]

[0086] FIG. 5A illustrates an exemplary distance measurement circuit 500 according to various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-5A, the circuit 500 may be an example of a configuration of a distance measurement circuit, such as the distance measurement circuit 128. With reference to FIGS. 1A-5A, the distance measurement circuit 500 may be an exemplary means for performing at least a portion of the operations of the methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). The distance measurement circuit 500 may be an SOC or a SIP. The distance measurement circuit 500 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., 101). The distance measurement circuit 500 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to the short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on a phase difference between a voltage phase of an injected tone and a voltage phase of a reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 500 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on a phase difference between a current phase of an injected tone and a current phase of a reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 500 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on both a phase difference between a voltage phase of the injected tone and a voltage phase of the reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a voltage amplitude of the injected tone and a voltage amplitude of the reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 500 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on both a phase difference between a current phase of the injected tone and a current phase of the reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a current amplitude of the injected tone and a current amplitude of the reflected tone.

[0056]

[0087] The distance measurement circuit 500 may include two radios 501 and 502. As an example, the two radios 501 and 502 may each be a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) radio configured to perform angle-of-arrival (AoA) measurements according to a BLE protocol. The distance measurement circuit 500 may include a first connector 503 and a second connector 504. The first connector 503 may be an electrical connector configured to electrically connect the distance measurement circuit 500 to a conductor of a two-conductor wire, such as the first conductor 104 of the two-conductor wire 101. The second connector 504 may be an electrical connector configured to electrically connect the distance measurement circuit 500 to a conductor of a two-conductor wire, such as the second conductor 105 of the two-conductor wire 101. The first connector 503 and the second connector 504 may be electrically isolated from each other.

[0057]

[0088] The first radio unit 501 may be connected to the first connector 503. For example, an antenna connection of the first radio unit 501 may be hardwired to the first connector 503. In this way, instead of generating a wireless transmission via an antenna or receiving a wireless transmission via an antenna, the first radio unit 501 may output a wired communication to the first connector 503, thereby outputting on a conductor of a two-conductor wire connected to the first connector 503, such as the first conductor 104 of the two-conductor wire 101, or receiving a wired communication from the first connector 503 received via a conductor of a two-conductor wire connected to the first connector 503, such as the first conductor 104 of the two-conductor wire 101.

[0058]

[0089] The second radio 502 may be connected to a controllable switch 505. An antenna connection of the second radio 502 may be connected to the controllable switch 505. The controllable switch 505 may be any type of switch configured to move between two positions, such as at least an open position and a closed position. By way of example, the controllable switch 505 may be one or more FETs, dedicated RF switch ICs, thyristors, BJTs, logic gates, etc. The controllable switch 505 may be controlled to connect the second radio 502 to the first connector 503 or the second connector 504. In this way, when the controllable switch 505 connects the second radio unit 502 to the first connector 503, instead of generating a wireless transmission via an antenna or receiving a wireless transmission via an antenna, the second radio unit 502 outputs a wired communication to the first connector 503, thereby outputting it onto a conductor of a two-conductor wire connected to the first connector 503, such as the first conductor 104 of the two-conductor wire 101, and receiving a wired communication from the first connector 503 received via a conductor of a two-conductor wire connected to the first connector 503, such as the first conductor 104 of the two-conductor wire 101. Similarly, instead of generating a wireless transmission via an antenna or receiving a wireless transmission via an antenna, when the controllable switch 505 connects the second radio unit 502 to the second connector 504, the second radio unit 502 may output a wired communication to the second connector 504, thereby outputting onto a conductor of a two-conductor wire connected to the second connector 504, such as the second conductor 105 of the two-conductor wire 101, or receiving a wired communication from the second connector 504 received via a conductor of a two-conductor wire connected to the second connector 504, such as the second conductor 105 of the two-conductor wire 101.

[0059]

[0090] In various embodiments, the controllable switch 505 may be connected to a processor of a device, such as processor 126 of device 106, by connection 512. Through connection 512, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the operation of the controllable switch 505. For example, the processor (e.g., 126) may send a signal to the controllable switch 505 to cause the controllable switch 505 to connect the second radio 502 to the first connector 503 or to connect the second radio 502 to the second connector 504.

[0060]

[0091] The first radio 501 may be connected to a processor of a device, such as processor 126 of device 106, by connection 510. Through connection 510, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the operation of the first radio 501. For example, the processor (e.g., 126) may send a signal to the first radio 501 to output one or more tones. As an example, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the first radio 501 to transmit AoA packets per the BLE protocol.

[0061]

[0092] The second radio 502 may be connected to a processor of the device, such as the processor 126 of the device 106, by connection 511. Through connection 511, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the operation of the second radio 511. For example, the processor (e.g., 126) may send a signal to the second radio 502 to cause the second radio 511 to receive one or more tones. As an example, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the second radio 511 to receive AoA packets per a BLE protocol. In various embodiments, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the first radio 501 and the second radio 502 through their respective connections 510 and 511 to communicate with each other and perform connected BLE AoA measurements.

[0062]

[0093] In various embodiments, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the first radio 501 to inject one or more tones into the first connector 503. The processor (e.g., 126) may control the controllable switch 505 to connect the second radio 502 to the first connector 503, and the processor (e.g., 126) may control the second radio 502 to measure the one or more tones injected by the first radio 501. For example, the second radio 502 may be controlled to capture phase samples (e.g., in-phase / quadrature (I / Q) samples) and / or amplitude samples of the tones injected by the first radio 501. Specifically, the second radio 502 may be controlled to measure the voltage phase of the tones injected by the first radio 501 and / or the current phase of the tones injected by the first radio 501. The phase samples (e.g., voltage phase, current phase, etc.) may be provided by the second radio 501 to a processor (e.g., 126). In particular, the second radio 502 may be controlled to measure the voltage amplitude of the tone injected by the first radio 501 and / or the current amplitude of the tone injected by the first radio 501. The amplitude samples (e.g., voltage amplitude, current amplitude, etc.) may be provided by the second radio 501 to a processor (e.g., 126). The processor (e.g., 126) may control the controllable switch 505 to connect the second radio 502 to the second connector 504, and the processor (e.g., 126) may control the second radio 502 to measure one or more tones received at the second radio 504. For example, the second radio 502 may be controlled to capture phase samples (e.g., I / Q samples) and / or amplitude samples of a tone received at the second connector 504. In particular, the second radio 502 may be controlled to measure a voltage phase of a tone received at the second connector 504 and / or a current phase of a tone received at the second connector 504. The phase samples (e.g., voltage phase, current phase, etc.) may be provided by the second radio 501 to a processor (e.g., 126).In particular, the second radio 502 may be controlled to measure a voltage amplitude of a tone received at the second connector 504 and / or a current amplitude of a tone received at the second connector 504. The amplitude samples (e.g., voltage amplitude, current amplitude, etc.) may be provided by the second radio 501 to a processor (e.g., 126).

[0063]

[0094] To illustrate the operation of the exemplary distance measurement circuit 500, reference is made to an implementation in which a short circuit (e.g., 109) occurs between the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105 of a two-conductor wire 101, and the first connector 503 is connected to the first conductor 104, and the second connector 504 is connected to the second conductor 105. In this implementation, the injected tone from the first radio 501, when injected, may be sampled by the second radio 501 (e.g., measured voltage phase, measured current phase, measured voltage amplitude, and / or measured current amplitude). The injected tone may travel through the first conductor 104, across the short circuit (e.g., 109), and return as a reflected tone down the second conductor 105 to the second connector 504. The reflected tone may have a phase difference (e.g., different voltage phase and / or different current phase) from the injected tone and / or the reflected tone may have an amplitude difference (e.g., different voltage amplitude and / or different current amplitude) from the injected tone. The controllable switch 505 may be controlled (e.g., by the processor 126) to connect the second radio 502 to the second connector 504. The controllable switch 505 may be controlled (e.g., by the processor 126) to connect the second radio 502 to the second connector 504 such that the second radio 502 may collect a sample at a sample separation point of the sampling of the injected tone, such as 1 microsecond (μs) between the sampling of the injected tone and the sampling of the reflected tone. The second radio 502 may sample the reflected tone received at the second connector 504 (e.g., measured voltage phase, measured current phase, measured voltage amplitude, and / or measured current amplitude). Samples of the injected tone and reflected tone (e.g., measurements of the voltage phase of the injected tone and the voltage phase of the reflected tone, measurements of the current phase of the injected tone and the current phase of the reflected tone, measurements of the voltage amplitude of the injected tone and the voltage amplitude of the reflected tone, and / or measurements of the current amplitude of the injected tone and the current amplitude of the reflected tone) may be passed by the second radio section 502 to a processor (e.g., processor 126). A phase difference between the injected tone and the reflected tone may be determined based on the samples.The amplitude difference between the injected tone and the reflected tone may be determined based on the samples. In various embodiments, one or more injected tones may be BLE carriers, and the injected tone and the reflected tone may be sampled for each BLE carrier. For example, all 37 BLE carriers of the 37 BLE channels may be sampled as injected tone and reflected tone pairs, each with a 1 μs interval between associated injected tone and reflected tone samples.

[0064]

[0095] FIG. 5B illustrates an exemplary distance measurement circuit 550, according to various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-5B, the circuit 550 may be an example of a configuration of a distance measurement circuit, such as the distance measurement circuit 128. With reference to FIGS. 1A-5B, the distance measurement circuit 550 may be an exemplary means for performing at least a portion of the operations of the methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). The distance measurement circuit 550 may be an SOC or a SIP. The distance measurement circuit 550 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., 101). The distance measurement circuit 550 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to the short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on a phase difference between a voltage phase of an injected tone and a voltage phase of a reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 550 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on a phase difference between a current phase of an injected tone and a current phase of a reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 550 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on both a phase difference between a voltage phase of the injected tone and a voltage phase of the reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a voltage amplitude of the injected tone and a voltage amplitude of the reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 550 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on both a phase difference between a current phase of the injected tone and a current phase of the reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a current amplitude of the injected tone and a current amplitude of the reflected tone. As an example, the distance measurement circuit 550 may differ from the distance measurement circuit 500 in that the distance measurement circuit 550 may include a single radio portion 565 that includes two radio portions 501 and 502.

[0065]

[0096] The radio section 565 may include a local oscillator (LO) 551 connected to a power amplifier (PA) 552. The LO 551 may be connected to a processor of the device, such as the processor 126 of the device 106, by a connection 570. Through the connection 570, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the operation of the LO 551. For example, the processor (e.g., 126) may send a signal to the LO 551 to output one or more tones. As an example, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the LO 551 to output a carrier tone, such as one or more of the 79 Bluetooth carrier tones between the frequencies of 2402 mega-hertz (MHz) and 2480 MHz.

[0066]

[0097] The radio section 565 may include a mixer 553 connected to an analog-to-digital (ADC) converter 554. The ADC 554 may be connected to a processor of a device, such as processor 126 of device 106, by connection 571. Through connection 571, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the operation of the ADC 554 and / or receive output from the ADC 554. For example, the processor (e.g., 126) may receive indications of captured phase samples (e.g., in-phase / quadrature (I / Q) samples) from the ADC 554.

[0067]

[0098] The radio section 565 may include an output connection 567 that may be connected to the PA 552 and the first connector 503. The output of the PA 552 may be provided to the output connection 567 of the radio section 565, and thereby provided on a conductor of the two conductor wire connected to the first connector 503, such as the first conductor 104 of the two conductor wire 101. The radio section 565 may include an input connection 568 that may be connected to the second connector 504. A tone from a conductor of the two conductor wire connected to the second connector 504, such as the second conductor 105 of the two conductor wire 101, may be provided to the input connection 568 of the radio section 565.

[0068]

[0099] The mixer 553 may be connected to a controllable switch 555. The controllable switch 555 may be any type of switch configured to move between at least two positions, such as an open position and a closed position. By way of example, the controllable switch 555 may be one or more FETs, dedicated RF switch ICs, thyristors, BJTs, logic gates, etc. The controllable switch 555 may be controlled to connect the mixer 553 to the output connection 567 or the input connection 568. In this manner, when the controllable switch 555 connects the mixer 553 to the output connection 567, the mixer 553 may also receive tones output by the PA 552 in addition to those tones going to the first connector 503. Similarly, when the controllable switch 555 connects the mixer 553 to the input connection 568, the mixer 553 may receive tones received at the input connection 568.

[0069]

[0100] In various embodiments, the controllable switch 555 may be connected to a processor of a device, such as processor 126 of device 106, by connection 572. Through connection 572, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the operation of the controllable switch 555. For example, the processor (e.g., 126) may send a signal to the controllable switch 555 to cause the controllable switch 555 to connect the mixer 553 to the output connection 567 or the input connection 568.

[0070] In various embodiments, the processor (e.g., 126) may control the LO 551 and the PA 552 to inject one or more tones into the first connector 503 via the output connection 567. The processor (e.g., 126) may control the controllable switch 555 to connect the mixer 553 to the output connection 567, and the processor (e.g., 126) may control the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 to measure the one or more tones injected by the LO 551 and the PA 552. For example, the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 may be controlled to capture phase samples (e.g., in-phase / quadrature (I / Q) samples) of the tones injected by the LO 551 and the PA 552 and / or to capture amplitude samples of the tones injected by the LO 551 and the PA 552. Specifically, the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 may be controlled to measure the voltage phase of the tone injected by the LO 551 and the PA 552, measure the current phase of the tone injected by the LO 551 and the PA 552, measure the voltage amplitude of the tone injected by the LO 551 and the PA 552, and / or measure the current amplitude of the tone injected by the LO 551 and the PA 552. Samples such as phase samples (e.g., voltage phase and / or current phase), amplitude samples (e.g., voltage amplitude and / or current amplitude), etc. may be provided by the ADC 554 to a processor (e.g., 126). The processor (e.g., 126) may control the controllable switch 555 to connect the mixer 553 to the input connection 568, and the processor (e.g., 126) may control the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 to measure one or more tones received on the input connection 568. For example, mixer 553 and ADC 554 may be controlled to capture phase samples (e.g., I / Q samples) of the tones received on input connection 568 and / or to capture amplitude samples of the tones received on input connection 568. In particular, mixer 553 and ADC 554 may be controlled to measure the voltage phase of the tones received on input connection 568, measure the current phase of the tones received on input connection 568, measure the voltage amplitude of the tones received on input connection 568, and / or measure the current amplitude of the tones received on input connection 568.Samples such as phase samples (eg, voltage phase and / or current phase), magnitude samples (eg, voltage magnitude and / or current magnitude), etc. may be provided by the ADC 554 to a processor (eg, 126).

[0071]

[0101] To illustrate the operation of the exemplary distance measurement circuit 550, reference is made to an implementation in which a short circuit (e.g., 109) occurs between the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105 of the two-conductor wire 101, and the first connector 503 is connected to the first conductor 104, and the second connector 504 is connected to the second conductor 105. In this implementation, the injected tone from the LO 551 and the PA 552, when injected, may be sampled by the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 (e.g., measured voltage phase, measured current phase, measured voltage amplitude, and / or measured current amplitude). The injected tone may travel through the output connection 567, the first connector 503, and the first conductor 104, across the short circuit (e.g., 109), and return up the second conductor 105 to the second connector 504 and the input connection 568 as a reflected tone. The reflected tone may have a phase difference (e.g., different voltage phase and / or different current phase) and / or amplitude difference (e.g., different voltage amplitude and / or different voltage phase) from the injected tone. The controllable switch 555 may be controlled (e.g., by the processor 126) to connect the mixer 553 to the input connection 568. The controllable switch 555 may be controlled (e.g., by the processor 126) to connect the mixer 553 to the input connection 568 such that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 may collect samples at sample separation points of the sampling of the injected tone. The mixer 553 and the ADC 554 may sample the reflected tone received on the input connection 568 (e.g., measured voltage phase, measured current phase, measured voltage amplitude, and / or measured current amplitude). Samples of the injected tone and the reflected tone (e.g., measurements of the voltage phase of the injected tone and the voltage phase of the reflected tone, measurements of the current phase of the injected tone and the current phase of the reflected tone, measurements of the voltage amplitude of the injected tone and the voltage amplitude of the reflected tone, and / or measurements of the current amplitude of the injected tone and the current amplitude of the reflected tone) may be passed by the ADC 554 to a processor (e.g., processor 126). A phase difference between the injected tone and the reflected tone may be determined based on the samples. An amplitude difference between the injected tone and the reflected tone may be determined based on the samples.In various embodiments, one or more of the injected tones may be Bluetooth carriers, and an injected tone and a reflected tone may be sampled for each Bluetooth carrier frequency, for example, all 79 Bluetooth carriers may each be sampled as an injected tone and a reflected tone pair.

[0072]

[0102] FIG. 5C illustrates an exemplary distance measurement circuit 580, according to some embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-5C, the circuit 580 may be an example of a configuration of a distance measurement circuit, such as the distance measurement circuit 128. The distance measurement circuit 580 may be an exemplary means for performing at least a portion of the operations of the methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). The distance measurement circuit 580 may be an SOC or a SIP. The distance measurement circuit 580 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., 101). The distance measurement circuit 580 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to the short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on a phase difference between a voltage phase of an injected tone and a voltage phase of a reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 580 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on a phase difference between a current phase of an injected tone and a current phase of a reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 580 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on both a phase difference between a voltage phase of the injected tone and a voltage phase of the reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a voltage amplitude of the injected tone and a voltage amplitude of the reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 580 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on both a phase difference between a current phase of the injected tone and a current phase of the reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a current amplitude of the injected tone and a current amplitude of the reflected tone. As an example, the distance measurement circuit 580 may differ from the distance measurement circuit 500 in that the distance measurement circuit 580 may include a directional coupler 513 and in that the second connector 504 in the distance measurement circuit 580 may be grounded.

[0073]

[0103] The directional coupler 513 may be configured to separate an input signal conveyed to the first connector 503, such as an injection tone, from an output signal from the first connector 503, such as a reflected tone. In the distance measurement circuit 580, the first connector 503 may be connected to the directional coupler 513, while the second connector 504 may be grounded. The directional coupler 513 may include an input port configured to receive a tone as an input signal from the first radio section 501. The directional coupler 513 may be connected to the first connector 503 and transmit the injection tone to the first connector 503 and receive the reflected tone from the first connector 503. The directional coupler 513 may include an output port configured to output the reflected tone received from the first connector 503. In the distance measurement circuit 580 , the controllable switch 505 may either connect the second radio section 502 to an input port of the directional coupler 513 or connect the second radio section 502 to an output port of the directional coupler 513 .

[0074]

[0104] To illustrate the operation of the exemplary distance measurement circuit 580, reference is made to an implementation in which a short circuit (e.g., 109) occurs between the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105 of the two-conductor wire 101, and the first connector 503 is connected to the first conductor 104, and the second connector 504 is connected to the second conductor 105. In this implementation, an injection tone from the first radio 501 may be sampled (e.g., measured voltage phase, measured current phase, measured voltage amplitude, and / or measured current amplitude) by the second radio 501 when injected into an input port of the directional coupler 513. The injection tone may be received at the input port of the directional coupler 513 and conveyed by the directional coupler 513 to the first connector 503. The injection tone may be reflected from the short circuit (e.g., 109) and travel back to the first connector 503 along the first conductor 104 as a reflected tone. The reflected tone may have a phase difference (e.g., different voltage phase and / or different current phase) from the injected tone and / or an amplitude difference (e.g., different voltage amplitude and / or different current amplitude) from the injected tone. The reflected tone from the first connector 503 may be conveyed by the directional coupler 513 to an output port of the directional coupler 513. The controllable switch 505 may be controlled (e.g., by the processor 126) to connect the second radio 502 to the output port of the directional coupler 513. The controllable switch 505 may be controlled (e.g., by the processor 126) to connect the second radio 502 to the output port of the directional coupler 513 such that the second radio 502 may collect a sample at a sample separation point of the sampling of the injected tone, such as 1 μs between the sampling of the injected tone and the reflected tone. The second radio 502 may sample the reflected tone received at the output port of the directional coupler 513 (e.g., measured voltage phase, measured current phase, measured voltage amplitude, and / or measured current amplitude). The samples of the injected tone and reflected tone may be measurements of the voltage phase of the injected tone and the voltage phase of the reflected tone, measurements of the current phase of the injected tone and the current phase of the reflected tone, measurements of the voltage amplitude of the injected tone and the voltage amplitude of the reflected tone, and / or measurements of the current amplitude of the injected tone and the current amplitude of the reflected tone.The samples of the injected tone and the reflected tone may be passed by the second radio 502 to a processor (e.g., processor 126). A phase difference between the injected tone and the reflected tone may be determined based on the samples, and / or a voltage difference between the injected tone and the reflected tone may be determined based on the samples. In some embodiments, one or more injected tones may be BLE carriers, and the injected tone and the reflected tone may be sampled for each BLE carrier. For example, all 37 BLE carriers of the 37 BLE channels may each be sampled as an injected tone and reflected tone pair with a 1 μs interval between the associated injected tone and reflected tone samples.

[0075]

[0105] FIG. 5D illustrates an exemplary distance measurement circuit 585, according to some embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-5D, the circuit 585 may be an example of a configuration of a distance measurement circuit, such as the distance measurement circuit 128. With reference to FIGS. 1A-5D, the distance measurement circuit 585 may be an exemplary means for performing at least a portion of the operations of the methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). The distance measurement circuit 585 may be an SOC or a SIP. The distance measurement circuit 585 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., 101). The distance measurement circuit 585 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to the short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on a phase difference between a voltage phase of an injected tone and a voltage phase of a reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 585 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on a phase difference between a current phase of an injected tone and a current phase of a reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 585 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on both a phase difference between a voltage phase of the injected tone and a voltage phase of the reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a voltage amplitude of the injected tone and a voltage amplitude of the reflected tone. The distance measurement circuit 585 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on both a phase difference between a current phase of the injected tone and a current phase of the reflected tone and an amplitude difference between a current amplitude of the injected tone and a current amplitude of the reflected tone. As an example, the distance measurement circuit 585 may differ from the distance measurement circuit 550 in that the distance measurement circuit 585 may include a directional coupler 513 and in that in the distance measurement circuit 585, the second connector 504 may be grounded.

[0076]

[0106] The directional coupler 513 may be configured to separate an input signal conveyed to the first connector 503, such as an injection tone, from an output signal from the first connector 503, such as a reflected tone. In the distance measurement circuit 580, the first connector 503 may be connected to the directional coupler 513, while the second connector 504 may be grounded. The directional coupler 513 may include an input port configured to receive a tone as an input signal from the PA 552 via the output connection 567. The directional coupler 513 may be connected to the first connector 503 and may transmit the injection tone to the first connector 503 and receive the reflected tone from the first connector 503. The directional coupler 513 may include an output port configured to output the reflected tone received from the first connector 503 to the input connection 568. In distance measurement circuit 585 , controllable switch 555 may connect mixer 553 to an input port of directional coupler 513 via output connection 567 or to an output port of directional coupler 513 via input connection 568 .

[0077]

[0107] To illustrate the operation of the exemplary distance measurement circuit 585, reference is made to an implementation in which a short circuit (e.g., 109) occurs between the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105 of the two-conductor wire 101, and the first connector 503 is connected to the first conductor 104, and the second connector 504 is connected to the second conductor 105. In this implementation, the injected tone from the LO 551 and the PA 552, when injected, may be sampled by the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 (e.g., measured voltage phase, measured current phase, measured voltage amplitude, and / or measured current amplitude). The injected tone may travel through the output connection 567, the directional coupler 513, the first connector 503, and the first conductor 104 to the short circuit (e.g., 109). The injected tone may be reflected from the short circuit (e.g., 109) and travel back to the first connector 503 along the first conductor 104 as a reflected tone. The reflected tone may travel from the first connector 503 to the directional coupler 513, and the reflected tone may be output by an output port of the directional coupler 513 to the input connection 568. The reflected tone may have a phase difference (e.g., different voltage phase and / or different current phase) from the injected tone and / or an amplitude difference (e.g., different voltage amplitude and / or different current amplitude) from the injected tone. The controllable switch 555 may be controlled (e.g., by the processor 126) to connect the mixer 553 to the input connection 568. The controllable switch 555 may be controlled (e.g., by the processor 126) to connect the mixer 553 to the input connection 568 such that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 may collect samples at sample separation points of the sampling of the injected tone. Mixer 553 and ADC 554 may sample the reflected tone received on input connection 568 (e.g., the voltage phase may be measured, the current phase may be measured, the voltage magnitude may be measured, and / or the current magnitude may be measured). The reflected tone received on input connection 568 may be the reflected tone as output by the output port of directional coupler 513.Samples of the injected tone and reflected tone (e.g., measurements of the voltage phase of the injected tone and the voltage phase of the reflected tone, measurements of the current phase of the injected tone and the current phase of the reflected tone, measurements of the voltage amplitude of the injected tone and the voltage amplitude of the reflected tone, and / or measurements of the current amplitude of the injected tone and the current amplitude of the reflected tone) may be passed by the ADC 554 to a processor (e.g., processor 126). A phase difference between the injected tone and the reflected tone may be determined based on the samples, and / or an amplitude difference between the injected tone and the reflected tone may be determined based on the samples. In various embodiments, one or more injected tones may be Bluetooth carriers, and the injected tone and the reflected tone may be sampled for each Bluetooth carrier frequency. For example, all 79 Bluetooth carriers may each be sampled as an injected tone and reflected tone pair.

[0078]

[0108] FIG. 6A illustrates an embodiment method 600 for determining a distance to a short in a two-conductor wire. With reference to FIGS. 1A-6A, method 600 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-6A, the means for performing each of the operations of method 600 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 500, 550, 580, 585. In various embodiments, the operations of method 600 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). For example, the operations of method 600 may be performed as part of the operations of block 204 of method 200 (FIG. 2) or method 400 (FIG. 4A) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).

[0079]

[0109] In block 602, the processor may perform operations to inject an initial tone having an initial known signal phase into a first end of a two-conductor wire. The initial tone may be a carrier of a selected frequency. As an example, the initial tone may be a BLE carrier, a Bluetooth carrier, etc. As an example, the initial tone may be injected into a first end 102 of a two-conductor wire 101, such as the first conductor 104. The initial known signal phase may be a voltage phase measurement and / or a current phase measurement determined by sampling the initial tone as it is injected. As an example, the first radio 501 may be controlled by the processor to inject the initial tone into the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 505 may be aligned so that the second radio 502 samples the injected initial tone. As another example, the LO 551 and the PA 552 may be controlled by the processor to inject an initial tone into the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 555 may be aligned so that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 sample the injected initial tone.

[0080]

[0110] In block 604, the processor may perform operations to measure a signal phase of an early reflected tone at a first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting an initial tone. The early reflected tone may be an injected tone that travels back up another conductor of the two-conductor wire after the injected tone passes through a short circuit. As an example, the early reflected tone may be a tone received at the second conductor 105 at the first end 102 of the two-conductor wire 101 after the initial injected tone travels up the first conductor 104, through the short circuit 109, and back through the second conductor 105 to the first end 102 of the two-conductor wire 101. The voltage phase of the early reflected tone may be measured, and the voltage phase of the early reflected tone may differ from the voltage phase of the injected initial tone. The current phase of the early reflected tone may be measured, and the current phase of the early reflected tone may differ from the voltage phase of the injected initial tone. As one example, the controllable switch 505 may be aligned such that the second radio 502 samples the early reflected tone received from the second conductor 105 at the second connector 504. As another example, the controllable switch 555 may be aligned such that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 may be controlled by the processor to sample the early reflected tone received from the second conductor 105 at the second connector 504 and the input connection 568.

[0081]

[0111] At block 606, the processor may perform operations to determine an initial phase difference as the phase difference between the initial known signal phase and the measured signal phase of the early reflected tone. For example, the processor may subtract the measured voltage phase of the early reflected tone from the initial known voltage phase to determine the initial phase difference. For example, the processor may subtract the measured current phase of the early reflected tone from the initial known current phase to determine the initial phase difference.

[0082]

[0112] At block 608, the processor may perform operations to determine a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference. For example, the phase difference value may correlate with a distance in a memory structure (e.g., an array, a lookup table, etc.) in a memory available to the processor, and the processor may determine the distance to the short in the two-conductor wire as the distance that correlates with the phase difference in the memory structure that matches the initial phase difference.

[0083]

[0113] FIG. 6B illustrates an embodiment method 650 for determining a distance to a short in a two-conductor wire. With reference to FIGS. 1A-6B, method 650 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-6B, the means for performing each of the operations of method 650 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 500, 550, 580, 585. In various embodiments, the operations of method 650 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). For example, the operations of method 650 may be performed as part of the operations of block 204 of method 200 (FIG. 2) or method 400 (FIG. 4A) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).

[0084]

[0114] In block 652, the processor may perform operations to inject an initial tone having an initial known signal phase and an initial known signal amplitude into a first end of the two-conductor wire. The initial tone may be a carrier of a selected frequency. As an example, the initial tone may be a BLE carrier, a Bluetooth carrier, etc. As an example, the initial tone may be injected into a first end 102 of the two-conductor wire 101, such as the first conductor 104. The initial known signal phase may be a voltage phase measurement and / or a current phase measurement determined by sampling the initial tone as the initial tone is injected. The initial known signal amplitude may be a voltage amplitude measurement and / or a current amplitude measurement determined by sampling the initial tone as the initial tone is injected. As an example, the first radio 501 may be controlled by the processor to inject the initial tone into the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 505 may be aligned so that the second radio 502 samples the injected initial tone. As another example, the LO 551 and the PA 552 may be controlled by the processor to inject an initial tone into the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 555 may be aligned so that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 sample the injected initial tone.

[0085]

[0115] At blocks 604 and 606, the processor may perform the operations of similarly numbered blocks of method 600 (FIG. 6A) to measure the signal phase and determine the initial phase difference, as described.

[0086]

[0116] In block 654, the processor may perform an operation to measure a signal amplitude of an initial reflected tone at a first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the initial tone. The signal amplitude may be a voltage amplitude measurement and / or a current amplitude measurement determined by sampling the initial tone as it is injected. As an example, the first radio 501 may be controlled by the processor to inject the initial tone into the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 505 may be aligned so that the second radio 502 samples the injected initial tone. As another example, the LO 551 and the PA 552 may be controlled by the processor to inject the initial tone into the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 555 may be aligned so that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 sample the injected initial tone.

[0087]

[0117] In block 656, the processor may perform operations to determine an initial amplitude difference as an amplitude difference between the initial known signal amplitude and the measured signal amplitude of the initial reflected tone. A voltage amplitude of the early reflected tone may be measured, where the voltage amplitude of the early reflected tone may differ from the voltage amplitude of the injected initial tone. A current amplitude of the early reflected tone may be measured, where the current amplitude of the early reflected tone may differ from the current amplitude of the injected initial tone. As an example, the controllable switch 505 may be aligned such that the second radio 502 samples the early reflected tone received from the second conductor 105 at the second connector 504. As another example, the controllable switch 555 may be aligned such that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 may be controlled by the processor to sample the early reflected tone received from the second conductor 105 at the second connector 504 and the input connection 568.

[0088]

[0118] At block 658, the processor may perform operations to determine a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference and the determined initial amplitude difference. For example, the phase difference value and the amplitude difference value may be compared to a stored calibration data set in a memory available to the processor to identify a calibration data set that best matches the phase difference value and the amplitude difference value. The calibration data set may be a phase difference and an amplitude difference previously captured for the two-conductor wire having a short at a different distance, e.g., during an initial calibration procedure, during post-manufacturing testing, etc. The calibration data set may be correlated with the distance in a memory structure (e.g., an array, a look-up table, etc.) in the memory available to the processor, and the processor may determine the distance to the short in the two-conductor wire as the distance that correlates with the calibration data set that best matches the phase difference value and the amplitude difference value.

[0089]

[0119] FIG. 7A illustrates an embodiment method 700 for determining a distance to a short in a two-conductor wire. With reference to FIGS. 1A-7A, method 700 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-7A, the means for performing each of the operations of method 700 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 500, 550, 580, 585. In various embodiments, the operations of method 700 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2), 400 (FIG. 4A), 600 (FIG. 6A), and / or 650 (FIG. 6B). For example, the operations of method 700 may be performed as part of the operations of block 204 of method 200 (FIG. 2) or method 400 (FIG. 4A) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).

[0090]

[0120] At blocks 602, 604, and 606, a processor may perform the operations of similarly numbered blocks of method 600 (FIG. 6A) to determine an initial phase difference as described.

[0091]

[0121] In block 702, the processor may perform operations to inject a second tone having a second initial signal phase and a second frequency different from the initial frequency of the initial tone into a first end of the two-conductor wire. The second initial signal phase may be a voltage phase of the second tone. The second initial signal phase may be a current phase of the second tone. The second tone may be a carrier at a selected frequency. The second tone may be a carrier at a different frequency than the initial tone. By way of example, the second tone may be a BLE carrier, a Bluetooth carrier, etc. By way of example, the second tone may be injected into a first end 102 of a two-conductor wire 101, such as the first conductor 104. The second initial signal phase may be a voltage phase measurement determined by sampling the second tone as the second tone is injected and / or may be a current phase measurement determined by sampling the second tone as the second tone is injected. As an example, the first radio 501 may be controlled by the processor to inject a second tone onto the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 505 may be aligned so that the second radio 502 samples the injected second tone. As another example, the LO 551 and PA 552 may be controlled by the processor to inject a second tone onto the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 555 may be aligned so that the mixer 553 and ADC 554 sample the injected second tone.

[0092]

[0122] In block 704, the processor may perform operations to measure a signal phase of a second reflected tone at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the second tone. The signal phase of the second reflected tone may be a voltage phase of the second reflected tone. The signal phase of the second reflected tone may be a current phase of the second reflected tone. The second reflected tone may be a second tone that travels back up another conductor of the two-conductor wire after the injected tone has passed through a short circuit. As an example, the second reflected tone may be a tone received at the second conductor 105 at the first end 102 of the two-conductor wire 101 after the second injected tone has traveled through the first conductor 104, through the short circuit 109, and back through the second conductor 105 to the first end 102 of the two-conductor wire 101. The voltage phase of the second reflected tone may be measured, and the voltage phase of the second reflected tone may be different from the voltage phase of the injected second tone. The current phase of the second reflected tone may be measured, and the current phase of the second reflected tone may differ from the voltage phase of the injected second tone. As an example, the controllable switch 505 may be aligned such that the second radio 502 samples the second reflected tone received from the second conductor 105 at the second connector 504. As another example, the controllable switch 555 may be aligned such that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 may be controlled by the processor to sample the second reflected tone received from the second conductor 105 at the second connector 504 and the input connection 568.

[0093]

[0123] At block 706, the processor may perform operations to determine a second phase difference as a phase difference between the second initial signal phase and the measured signal phase of the second reflected tone. For example, the processor may subtract the measured voltage phase of the second reflected tone from the second initial voltage phase to determine the second phase difference. For example, the processor may subtract the measured current phase of the second reflected tone from the second initial current phase to determine the second phase difference.

[0094]

[0124] At block 708, the processor may perform operations to determine a distance to a short in the two conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference and the determined second amplitude difference. For example, the slope of a line connecting the initial phase difference and the determined second phase difference may be used to determine a round trip distance, such as the distance from a first conductor (e.g., 104) where a tone is injected through a short (e.g., 109) and back to a second conductor (e.g., 105) where the tone is received. The round trip distance may be divided in half to determine the distance to the short (e.g., 109).

[0095]

[0125] FIG. 7B illustrates an embodiment method 750 for determining a distance to a short in a two-conductor wire. With reference to FIGS. 1A-7B, method 750 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-7B, the means for performing each of the operations of method 750 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 500, 550, 580, 585. In various embodiments, the operations of method 750 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2), 400 (FIG. 4A), 600 (FIG. 6A), and / or 650 (FIG. 6B). For example, the operations of method 750 may be performed as part of the operations of block 204 of method 200 (FIG. 2) or method 400 (FIG. 4A) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).

[0096]

[0126] At blocks 652, 604, 606, 654, and 656, the processor may perform the operations of similarly numbered blocks of method 650 (FIG. 6B) to determine initial phase and amplitude differences as described.

[0097]

[0127] At block 752, the processor may perform operations to inject a second tone having a second initial signal phase, a second frequency different from the initial frequency of the initial tone, and a second initial amplitude into a first end of the two-conductor wire. The second initial signal phase may be a voltage phase of the second tone. The second initial signal phase may be a current phase of the second tone. The second initial amplitude may be a voltage amplitude of the second tone. The second initial amplitude may be a current amplitude of the second tone. The second tone may be a carrier at a selected frequency. The second tone may be a carrier at a different frequency than the initial tone. As an example, the second tone may be a BLE carrier, a Bluetooth carrier, etc. As an example, the second tone may be injected into a first end 102 of a two-conductor wire 101, such as a first conductor 104. The second initial signal phase may be a voltage phase measurement determined by sampling the second tone when the second tone is injected and / or a current phase measurement determined by sampling the second tone when the second tone is injected. The second initial amplitude may be a voltage amplitude measurement determined by sampling the second tone when the second tone is injected and / or a current amplitude measurement determined by sampling the second tone when the second tone is injected. As an example, the first radio 501 may be controlled by the processor to inject the second tone into the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 505 may be aligned so that the second radio 502 samples the injected second tone. As another example, the LO 551 and the PA 552 may be controlled by the processor to inject the second tone into the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 555 may be aligned so that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 sample the injected second tone.

[0098]

[0128] At blocks 704 and 706, the processor may perform the operations of similarly numbered blocks of method 700 (FIG. 7A) to measure the signal phase of the second reflected tone and determine the second phase difference, as described.

[0099]

[0129] In block 754, the processor may perform an operation to measure a second amplitude of a second reflected tone at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the initial tone. The second amplitude of the second reflected tone may be a voltage amplitude measurement and / or a current amplitude measurement determined by sampling the second tone as the second tone is injected. As an example, the first radio 501 may be controlled by the processor to inject the second tone into the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 505 may be aligned so that the second radio 502 samples the injected second tone. As another example, the LO 551 and the PA 552 may be controlled by the processor to inject the second tone into the first conductor 104, and the controllable switch 555 may be aligned so that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 sample the injected second tone.

[0100]

[0130] In block 756, the processor may perform operations to determine a second amplitude difference as an amplitude difference between the second initial amplitude and the measured second amplitude of the second reflected tone. A voltage amplitude of the second reflected tone may be measured, where the voltage amplitude of the second reflected tone may differ from the voltage amplitude of the second initial tone. A current amplitude of the second reflected tone may be measured, where the current amplitude of the second reflected tone may differ from the current amplitude of the injected second tone. As an example, the controllable switch 505 may be aligned such that the second radio 502 samples the initial reflected tone received from the second conductor 105 at the second connector 504. As another example, the controllable switch 555 may be aligned such that the mixer 553 and the ADC 554 may be controlled by the processor to sample the initial reflected tone received from the second conductor 105 at the second connector 504 and the input connection 568.

[0101]

[0131] At block 758, the processor may perform operations to determine a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference, the determined initial amplitude difference, the determined second phase difference, and the determined second amplitude difference. For example, the phase difference value and the amplitude difference value may be compared to a stored calibration data set in a memory available to the processor to identify a calibration data set that best matches the phase difference value and the amplitude difference value. The calibration data set may be a phase difference and an amplitude difference previously captured for the two-conductor wire having a short at a different distance, e.g., during an initial calibration procedure, during post-manufacturing testing, etc. The calibration data set may be correlated with the distance in a memory structure (e.g., an array, a look-up table, etc.) in the memory available to the processor, and the processor may determine the distance to the short in the two-conductor wire as the distance that correlates with the calibration data set that best matches the phase difference value and the amplitude difference value.

[0102]

[0132] FIG. 8A illustrates an embodiment method 800 for determining a distance to a short in a two-conductor wire. With reference to FIGS. 1A-8A, method 800 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-8A, the means for performing each of the operations of method 800 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 500, 580. In various embodiments, the operations of method 800 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). For example, the operations of method 800 may be performed as part of the operations of block 204 of method 200 (FIG. 2) or method 400 (FIG. 4A) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).

[0103]

[0133] In block 802, the processor may perform operations to establish a connected BLE AoA session between the first radio and the second radio. For example, the processor may control the first radio 501 and the second radio 502 to establish the connected BLE AoA session such that the first radio 501 transmits BLE AoA packets over the first conductor 104 of the two-conductor wire 101.

[0104]

[0134] At block 804, the processor may perform operations to set an initial BLE channel to measure as the selected BLE channel. As an example, the first BLE channel may be the first of 37 BLE channels to measure.

[0105]

[0135] In block 806, the processor may perform operations to control a switch to connect the second radio to the first conductor. For example, the processor may control the controllable switch 505 to connect the second radio 502 to the first connector 503, which is connected to the first conductor 104.

[0106]

[0136] At block 808, the processor may perform operations to control the first radio to output the selected BLE channel carrier on the first conductor. For example, the processor may control the first radio 501 to output the selected BLE channel carrier on the first connector 503, and thereby on the first conductor 104. The output of the selected BLE channel carrier may thereby inject the BLE channel carrier as a tone on the first conductor 104 connected to the first connector 503.

[0107]

[0137] At block 810, the processor may perform operations to control the second radio to capture phase samples (e.g., I / Q samples) on the first conductor for the selected BLE channel carrier. For example, the processor may control the second radio 502 to measure a voltage phase at the first connector 503 connected to the first conductor 104.

[0108]

[0138] In block 812, the processor may perform operations to control a switch to connect the second radio to the second conductor. For example, the processor may control the controllable switch 505 to connect the second radio 502 to the second connector 504, which is connected to the second conductor 105.

[0109]

[0139] At block 814, the processor may perform operations to control the second radio to capture phase samples (e.g., I / Q samples) on the second conductor for the selected BLE channel carrier. For example, the processor may control the second radio 502 to measure a voltage phase at a second connector 504 connected to the second conductor 105. The tone sampled by the second radio 502 at the second connector 504 may be a reflected tone that traveled down the first conductor 104, through the short 109, and returned down the second conductor 105.

[0110]

[0140] At block 816, the processor may perform operations to store phase samples captured at the first conductor and the second conductor for the selected BLE channel carrier. For example, the phase samples may be stored in a memory structure in the memory 129. As an example, the voltage phase measured at the first connector 503 connected to the first conductor 104 and the second connector 504 connected to the second conductor 105 may be stored in the memory 129 and associated in the memory 129 with an index of the selected BLE channel carrier that was the tone injected into the two-conductor wire 101.

[0111]

[0141] At decision block 818, the processor may perform operations to determine whether all BLE channels have been measured. For example, the processor may determine whether phase samples have been captured and stored for all 37 BLE channels.

[0112]

[0142] In response to determining that all BLE channels have not been measured (i.e., decision block 818="NO"), the processor may set the next BLE channel to measure as the selected BLE channel in block 820. As an example, the next BLE channel may be the next of the 37 BLE channels to measure.

[0113]

[0143] In response to setting the next BLE channel to be measured as the selected BLE channel, the processor may perform operations of blocks 806-816 for the newly selected BLE channel. At decision block 818, the processor may perform operations to determine whether all BLE channels have been measured. In this manner, BLE channels may be selected and phase samples may be captured for all BLE channels until all BLE channels have been injected as tones and their reflected tones measured.

[0114]

[0144] In response to determining that all BLE channels have been measured (i.e., decision block 818="yes"), the processor may determine, for each respective BLE channel, a phase difference between the stored phase samples in block 822. For example, the processor may subtract one of the phase samples from the other phase sample for each respective BLE channel to determine a phase difference for that BLE channel. The phase differences may be associated with the frequencies of their respective BLE channels and stored in memory 129.

[0115]

[0145] At block 824, the processor may determine a distance to a short in the two conductor wire based at least in part on the determined phase difference. For example, the processor may fit a line to the distribution of determined phase differences using a selected method, such as linear regression, orthogonal regression, etc. The slope of the line (or the gradient of the line) may be determined and used to determine a round trip distance, such as the distance from a first conductor (e.g., 104) where a tone was injected through a short (e.g., 109) and back to a second conductor (e.g., 105) where the tone was received. The round trip distance may be divided in half to determine the distance to the short (e.g., 109).

[0116]

[0146] FIG. 8B illustrates an embodiment method 850 for determining a distance to a short in a two-conductor wire. With reference to FIGS. 1A-8B, method 850 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-8B, the means for performing each of the operations of method 850 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 500, 580. In various embodiments, the operations of method 850 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). For example, the operations of method 850 may be performed as part of the operations of block 204 of method 200 (FIG. 2) or method 400 (FIG. 4A) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).

[0117]

[0147] At blocks 802 and 804, the processor may perform the operations of similarly numbered blocks of method 800 (FIG. 8A) to establish a BLE AoA session and set the initial BLE channel to measure as the selected BLE channel, as described.

[0118]

[0148] At block 852, the processor may start a measurement timer. The measurement timer may be any type of timer, such as a count-up timer, a count-down timer, etc.

[0119]

[0149] At blocks 806, 808, 810, 812, 814, and 816, the processor may perform the operations of similarly numbered blocks of method 800 (FIG. 8A) to capture and store phase samples in the first conductor and the second conductor for the selected BLE channel carrier, as described.

[0120]

[0150] At decision block 854, the processor may determine whether a measurement time has been reached. The measurement time may be a maximum time allotted to attempt to determine the distance to a short in a two conductor wire. The processor may determine whether the measurement time has been reached based on a measurement timer. For example, a measurement timer that is a count-up timer that reaches or exceeds a selected time may indicate that the measurement time has been reached. As another example, a measurement timer that is a count-down timer that reaches zero may indicate that the measurement time has been reached.

[0121]

[0151] In response to determining that the measurement time has not been reached (i.e., decision block 854="no"), the processor may perform similar operations of decision block 818 of method 800 (FIG. 8A) to determine whether all BLE channels have been measured, as described. In this manner, additional channels that may remain to be measured may be selected and phase samples may be captured for those BLE channels, as long as the measurement time has not been reached.

[0122]

[0152] In response to determining that the measurement time has been reached (i.e., decision block 854="yes"), the processor may perform similar operations of block 822 of method 800 (FIG. 8A) to determine a phase difference between the stored phase samples, as described. In this manner, when the measurement time is reached, a phase difference may be determined regardless of whether all BLE channels have been measured. Thus, when the measurement time does not support testing all BLE channels, less than all BLE channels may be tested.

[0123]

[0153] FIG. 9 illustrates an embodiment method 900 for determining a distance to a short in a two-conductor wire. With reference to FIGS. 1A-9, the method 900 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-9, the means for performing each of the operations of the method 900 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 550, 585. In various embodiments, the operations of the method 900 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). For example, the operations of method 900 may be performed as part of the operations of block 204 of method 200 (FIG. 2) or method 400 (FIG. 4A) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).

[0124]

[0154] In block 902, the processor may perform operations to set an initial carrier to be measured as the selected carrier. For example, the processor may set one of 79 Bluetooth carrier tones at frequencies between 2402 MHz and 2480 MHz as the selected carrier.

[0125]

[0155] In block 904, the processor may perform operations to control a switch to connect the mixer to a transmitter output. For example, the processor may control the controllable switch 555 to connect the mixer 553 to an output connection 567 that may receive the transmitter output from the LO 551 and the PA 552.

[0126]

[0156] In block 906, the processor may perform operations to control the local oscillator to output the selected carrier on the first conductor. For example, the processor may control LO 551 to output the selected carrier on output connection 567 via PA 552.

[0127]

[0157] In block 908, the processor may perform operations to capture phase samples (e.g., I / Q samples) at the transmitter output for the selected carrier. For example, the selected carrier, which may be a tone output by the LO 551 and the PA 552 on output connection 567, may be provided by the controllable switch 555 to the mixer 553 and the ADC 554, and phase samples, such as voltage phase measurements, may be output to the processor, thereby capturing phase samples at the transmitter output for the selected carrier.

[0128]

[0158] In block 910, the processor may perform operations to control a switch to connect the mixer to a receiver input. For example, the processor may control the controllable switch 555 to connect the mixer 553 to an input connection 568 that may receive the receiver input from the second connector 504 connected to the second conductor 105.

[0129]

[0159] In block 912, the processor may perform operations to capture phase samples (e.g., I / Q samples) at the receiver input for a selected carrier. For example, the processor may control the mixer 553 and ADC 554 to measure the voltage phase of a tone received via the input connection 568. The tone sampled by the mixer 553 and ADC 554 may be a reflected tone that traveled down the first conductor 104, through the short 109, and returned down the second conductor 105.

[0130]

[0160] In block 914, the processor may perform operations to store phase samples captured at the transmitter output and the receiver input for the selected carrier. For example, the phase samples may be stored in a memory structure in memory 129. As an example, the voltage phase measured at the first connector 503 connected to the first conductor 104 and the second connector 504 connected to the second conductor 105 may be stored in memory 129 and associated in memory 129 with an index of the selected carrier that was the tone injected into the two-conductor wire 101.

[0131]

[0161] At decision block 916, the processor may perform operations to determine whether all carriers have been measured. For example, the processor may determine whether phase samples have been captured and stored for all 79 Bluetooth carrier frequencies.

[0132]

[0162] In response to determining that all carriers have not been measured (i.e., decision block 916="no"), the processor may set the next carrier to measure as the selected carrier in block 918. As an example, the next carrier may be the next of the 79 Bluetooth channels to measure.

[0133]

[0163] In response to setting the next carrier to be measured as the selected carrier, the processor may perform the operations of blocks 904-914 for the newly selected carrier. At decision block 916, the processor may perform operations to determine whether all carriers have been measured. In this manner, carriers may be selected and phase samples may be captured for all carriers until all carriers have been injected as tones and their reflected tones measured. For example, carriers may be selected and phase samples may be captured until all 79 Bluetooth carriers have phase samples captured when injected as tones and when received as reflected tones.

[0134]

[0164] In response to determining that all carriers have been measured (i.e., decision block 916="yes"), the processor may determine, for each respective carrier, a phase difference between the stored phase samples in block 920. For example, the processor may subtract one of the phase samples from the other phase sample for each respective carrier to determine a phase difference for that carrier. The phase difference may be associated with the frequency of the carrier and stored in memory 129.

[0135]

[0165] At block 824, the processor may perform the operations of similarly numbered blocks of method 900 (FIG. 9) to determine the distance to the short in the two conductor wire based at least in part on the determined phase difference, as described. For example, the processor may fit a line to the distribution of the determined phase differences using a selected method, such as linear regression, orthogonal regression, etc. The slope of the line (or the gradient of the line) may be determined and used to determine a round trip distance, such as the distance from a first conductor (e.g., 104) where a tone was injected through a short (e.g., 109) and back to a second conductor (e.g., 105) where the tone was received. The round trip distance may be divided in half to determine the distance to the short (e.g., 109).

[0136]

[0166] FIG. 10A is an example of a best-fit line 1002 for a plot 1001 of phase difference versus different frequencies, according to various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-10A, FIG. 10A shows the unwrapped phase difference 1001 in radians plotted by frequency in Hz. For example, the phase difference 1001 may be the phase difference determined by any of the operations of methods 600 (FIG. 6A), 650 (FIG. 6B), 700 (FIG. 7A), 750 (FIG. 7B), 800 (FIG. 8A), 850 (FIG. 8B), and / or 900 (FIG. 9). The best-fit line 1002 may be determined by a line-fitting method, such as linear regression, orthogonal regression, etc. The best-fit line 1002 may have a slope (or inclination) defined as the number of radians divided by the number of Hz. The slope of line 1002 may represent an approximation of the distance to a short along a two-conductor wire, such as the distance to short 109 along two-conductor wire 101. As an example, the product of the gradient (g) in the material from which the conductors of the two-conductor wire are formed (e.g., the material forming first conductor 104 or second conductor 105) and the speed of light (c) divided by two times pi (π) to obtain the round trip distance (e.g., round trip distance = (g * c) / (2 * π)) can be obtained. The round trip distance can be divided by 2 to determine the distance to the short circuit.

[0137]

[0167] 10B illustrates an embodiment method 1010 for determining a distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101). With reference to FIGS. 1A-10B, method 1010 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-10B, the means for performing each of the operations of method 1010 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 500, 550, 580, 585. In various embodiments, the operations of method 1010 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2), 400 (FIG. 4A), 600 (FIG. 6A), 650 (FIG. 6B), 700 (FIG. 7), 750 (FIG. 7B), 800 (FIG. 8A), 850 (FIG. 8B), and / or 900 (FIG. 9). As an example, the operations of method 1010 may be performed as part of the operations of block 204 of method 200 (FIG. 2) or method 400 (FIG. 4A) for determining a distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101), as part of the operations of block 708 of method 700 (FIG. 7A) for determining a distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101), as part of the operations of block 758 of method 700 (FIG. 7B) for determining a distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101), and / or as part of the operations of block 824 of method 800 (FIG. 8A), method 850 (FIG. 8B), or method 900 (FIG. 9) for determining a distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).

[0138]

[0168] At block 1012, the processor may perform operations to determine a slope of a best-fit line for the determined phase difference. The best-fit line (e.g., line 1002) may be determined by a line fitting method such as linear regression, orthogonal regression, etc. The best-fit line (e.g., line 1002) may have a slope (or gradient) defined as the number of radians divided by the number of Hz.

[0139]

[0169] At block 1014, the processor may perform operations to determine a round trip distance based at least in part on the determined slope. The slope of line 1002 may represent an approximation of the distance to a short along the two-conductor wire, such as the distance to the short 109 along the two-conductor wire 101. As an example, the product of the slope (g) in the material from which the conductors of the two-conductor wire are formed (e.g., the material forming the first conductor 104 or the second conductor 105) and the speed of light (c) divided by two times pi (π) to determine the round trip distance (e.g., round trip distance = (g * c) / (2 * π) can be obtained.

[0140]

[0170] In block 1016, the processor may perform operations to determine the distance to the short in the two-conductor wafer as half the round trip distance. For example, the round trip distance may be divided by two to determine the distance to the short.

[0141]

[0171] FIG. 10C is an example of a calibration data set of phase and amplitude differences that may be observed in various embodiments. Referring to FIGS. 1A-10C, FIG. 10C illustrates phase and amplitude differences versus frequency. FIG. 10C illustrates a set of determined phase and amplitude differences that may be used to determine a distance to a short. In various embodiments, a device (e.g., 106) may be calibrated to a two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) prior to use. For example, in a laboratory environment, a short may be placed at a known distance along the conductors (e.g., 104, 105) of the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101). For each calibration distance, the amplitude and phase may be captured versus frequency and stored as a calibration data set. The stored calibration data set may be correlated to the distance at which the short associated with the data set was captured. When the device (e.g., 106) is deployed to determine a distance to a short, the amplitude and phase may be captured and compared to the calibration data set. The calibration data set that best matches the sampled amplitude and phase may be selected, and the distance to the short may be determined as the distance that correlates with the best matching calibration data set.

[0142]

[0172] FIG. 10D illustrates an embodiment method 1020 for determining a distance to a short (e.g., 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., 101). With reference to FIGS. 1A-10D, the method 1020 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-10D, the means for performing each of the operations of the method 1020 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 500, 550, 580, 585. In various embodiments, the operations of the method 1020 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2), 400 (FIG. 4A), 650 (FIG. 6B), and / or 750 (FIG. 7B). As an example, the operations of method 1020 may be performed as part of the operations of block 204 of method 200 (FIG. 2) and method 400 (FIG. 4A) to determine a distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101) and / or as part of the operations of block 758 of method 750 (FIG. 7B) to determine a distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).

[0143]

[0173] In block 1022, the processor may perform operations to compare the determined phase difference and determined amplitude difference data set to a calibration data set of phase difference and amplitude difference to determine the best matching calibration set. For each potential distance to a short in the two conductor wire (e.g., 101), the amplitude and phase may have been previously captured versus frequency and stored as a calibration data set. The stored calibration data set may be correlated with the distance at which the short associated with the data set was captured. When the device (e.g., 106) is deployed to determine the distance to the short, the amplitude and phase may be captured and compared to the calibration data set. The calibration data set that best matches the sampled amplitude and phase may be selected.

[0144]

[0174] At block 1024, the processor may perform operations to determine the distance to the short as the distance associated with the determined best matching calibration set. The stored calibration data sets may be correlated with the distance at which the short associated with the data set was acquired. The calibration data set that best matches the sampled amplitude and phase may be selected, and the distance to the short may be determined as the distance correlated with the best matching calibration data set.

[0145]

[0175] FIG. 11A illustrates an exemplary distance measurement circuit 1100, according to various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-11A, the circuit 1100 may be an example of a configuration of a distance measurement circuit, such as the distance measurement circuit 128. With reference to FIGS. 1A-11A, the distance measurement circuit 1100 may be an exemplary means for performing at least a portion of the operations of the methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). The distance measurement circuit 1100 may be a SOC or a SIP. The distance measurement circuit 1100 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., 101). The distance measurement circuit 1100 may be configured to enable a determination of a distance to a short circuit (e.g., 109) based at least in part on a measured peak voltage of a composite pulse.

[0146]

[0176] The distance measurement circuit 1100 may include a processor 1102. The processor 1102 may be connected to a processor of a device, such as the processor 126 of the device 106. The processor 1102 may be connected to a pulse generator 1103. For example, the pulse generator may be a 20 nanosecond (ns) pulse generator. The processor 1102 may be configured to control the operation of the pulse generator 1103 to cause the pulse generator 1103 to output pulses, such as voltage pulses. The pulse generator 1103 may output the generated pulses to a matching circuit 1104, which may output the pulses to the connector 1101 and a peak detection circuit 1106. The peak detection circuit 1106 may be connected to an ADC 1108, which may be connected to the processor 1102.

[0147]

[0177] The connector 1101 may be connected to a conductor of the two-conductor wire, such as the first conductor 104 of the two-conductor wire 101 or the second conductor 105 of the two-conductor wire 101. The other conductor of the two-conductor wire, such as the two-conductor wire 101, that is not connected to the connector 1101 may be grounded. The pulse generator 1103 may be controlled to output a pulse to the connector 1101 via the matching circuit 1104. The pulse output to the connector 1101 may travel to a conductor (e.g., the first conductor 104 or the second conductor 105). The pulse output to a conductor (e.g., the first conductor 104 or the second conductor 105) may travel down the conductor (e.g., the first conductor 104 or the second conductor 105) and reflect back at a short (e.g., the short 109). The reflected pulse may interfere with the injected pulse and reduce the peak voltage of the composite pulse. The peak detection circuit 1106 may detect the peak voltage of the composite pulse (e.g., a waveform resulting from the interference combination of the injected and reflected pulses). As the transmitted pulse travels along the conductors being tested (e.g., the first conductor 104 and the second conductor 105), it reaches a short (e.g., the short 109) and bounces back in reverse along the conductor being tested (e.g., the first conductor 104 or the second conductor 105). The forward and reverse pulses may be summed along the conductors (e.g., the first conductor 104 or the second conductor 105) and measured at the connector 1101 by the peak detection circuit 1106. The peak voltage of the composite pulse may be related to the distance to the short (e.g., the short 109). The two pulses combine to produce a change in the height of the test waveform (e.g., a change in peak voltage) that may be proportional to the distance from the end of the two-conductor wire to the short (e.g., the distance from the end 102 to the short 109 in the two-conductor wire 101). The farther the distance from the end of the two-conductor wire to the short circuit (e.g., the distance from end 102 of two-conductor wire 101 to short circuit 109), the higher the peak voltage in the composite signal. The value of the peak voltage of the composite pulse may be proportional to the distance to the short circuit (e.g., the distance from end 102 of two-conductor wire 101 to short circuit 109) such that the peak voltage value may correlate with the distance along the two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).Based on the measured peak voltage of the feedback signal, a distance to a short (eg, short 109) that correlates with the measured peak voltage can be determined.

[0148]

[0178] FIG. 11B illustrates an exemplary pulse generation circuit 1119, according to various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-11B, the circuit 1119 may be an example of a configuration of a pulse generation circuit, such as the pulse generation circuit 1103. With reference to FIGS. 1A-11B, the pulse generation circuit 1119 may be an exemplary means for performing at least a portion of the operations of the method 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). The pulse generation circuit 1119 may be a SOC or a SIP. The pulse generation circuit 1119 may be configured to convert a slow input edge pulse, such as a pulse with a pulse width of 50 ns or more, into a fast output pulse, such as a pulse with a pulse width of 20-30 ns. The pulse generation circuit 1119 may include four NAND gates 1120, 1121, 1122, and 1123. An input may be sent to a first input of the NAND gate 1120 and to a first input of the NAND gate 1123. The output of NAND gate 1120 may be sent to both inputs of NAND gate 1121. The output of NAND gate 1121 may be sent to both inputs of NAND gate 1122. The output of NAND gate 1121 may also be the output of pulse generation circuit 1119. The output of NAND gate 1122 may be sent to a second input of NAND gate 1123. The output of NAND gate 1123 may be sent to a second input of NAND gate 1120. The duration of the pulse may be related to the propagation delay of NAND gates 1120, 1121, 1122, and / or 1123. To adjust the speed of the pulse, a particular speed of NAND gates 1120, 1121, 1122, and / or 1123 may be selected and additional components such as capacitors, inductors, and resistors may be added to pulse generation circuit 1119.

[0149]

[0179] FIG. 12 illustrates an embodiment method 1200 for determining a distance to a short in a two-conductor wire. With reference to FIGS. 1A-12, the method 1200 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126, 1102) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-12, the means for performing each of the operations of the method 1200 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, 1102, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 1100. In various embodiments, the operations of the method 1200 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2) and / or 400 (FIG. 4A). For example, the operations of method 1200 may be performed as part of the operations of block 204 of method 200 (FIG. 2) or method 400 (FIG. 4A) to determine the distance to a short (e.g., short 109) in a two-conductor wire (e.g., two-conductor wire 101).

[0150]

[0180] At block 1202, the processor may perform an operation to receive an indication of a known length of the two-conductor wire. By way of example, the known length of the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) may be indicated by user input, loaded from a memory, etc. For example, the known length of the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101) may be the length (or distance) from a first end (e.g., 102) to a second end (e.g., 103) of the two-conductor wire (e.g., 101).

[0151]

[0181] At block 1204, the processor may perform operations to determine a selected peak voltage for a selected pulse and a selected pulse shape for a selected pulse based at least in part on the known length of the two-conductor wire. For example, the shape of the pulse may be any pulse shape, such as a Gaussian, triangular pulse, etc. In various embodiments, the selected pulse may be a ramp pulse, where no modulation is applied. In some embodiments, the pulse shape may be configured such that a ramp-up portion of the pulse has a different shape than a ramp-down portion of the pulse.

[0152]

[0182] At block 1206, the processor may perform an operation of injecting a selected pulse into a first end of the two-conductor wire, the selected pulse having a selected peak voltage and a selected pulse shape. For example, the injected pulse may be any pulse shape, such as a Gaussian, triangular pulse, etc. In various embodiments, the injected pulse may be a ramp pulse, where no modulation is applied. In some embodiments, the pulse shape may be configured such that a ramp-up portion of the pulse has a different shape than a ramp-down portion of the pulse.

[0153]

[0183] In block 1208, the processor may perform operations to measure a peak voltage of a composite pulse at a first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the selected pulse. For example, the processor may use the peak detection circuit 1106 and the ADC 1108 to measure a peak voltage of a composite pulse at the first conductor 104 at the first end 102 of the two-conductor wire 101.

[0154]

[0184] At block 1210, the processor may perform operations to determine a distance to a short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the composite pulse. For example, the peak voltage value may correlate with a distance in a memory structure (e.g., an array, a lookup table, etc.) in a memory available to the processor, and the processor may determine the distance to the short in the two-conductor wire as the distance that correlates with the peak voltage in the memory structure that matches the measured peak voltage.

[0155]

[0185] FIG. 13 illustrates aspects of pulse interference in the presence of a short circuit, such as short circuit 109. Referring to FIGS. 1A-13, FIG. 13 illustrates a snapshot of an instant in time showing the spatial voltages of an injected pulse 1302, a reflected pulse 1303, and a composite pulse 1304. The injected pulse 1302 may be injected into a conductor, such as conductors 104, 105, of a two-conductor wire 101. FIG. 13 illustrates the spatial arrangement of the pulse in a conductor, such as conductors 104, 105, of a two-conductor wire 101. The injected pulse 1302 may have a pulse width and may travel toward a short circuit, such as short circuit 109. The pulse width (or pulse duration) of the injected pulse 1302 may be selected such that the entire injected pulse 1302 fills the two-conductor wire 101 with a gap when no short circuit is present. When the short circuit 109 is present, the injected pulse 1302 may be reflected from a short circuit, such as short circuit 109, and the reflected pulse 1303 may travel back down the conductors (e.g., 104, 105). For example, the injected pulse 1302 may be inverted when reflected from the short circuit 109 and travel back down the conductors (e.g., 104, 105) as a reflected pulse 1303. The reflected pulse 1303 and the injected pulse 1302 may sum together to form a composite pulse 1304 having a peak voltage lower than the peak voltage of the injected pulse 1302.

[0156]

[0186] FIG. 14 is a plot of an exemplary peak voltage resulting from a pulse resulting from pulse interference, according to various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1A-14, FIG. 14 illustrates various composite pulses having various pulse peak voltages that may result from an injection pulse, such as pulse 1302, being reflected from a short, such as short 109. The various pulse peak voltages may be proportional to the distance to a short, such as short 109. For example, a closer short may result in a lower peak voltage 1402 than a peak voltage resulting from a more distant short 1401. The peak voltage value may correlate with the distance in a memory structure (e.g., an array, lookup table, etc.) in the memory, and the resulting peak voltage may be matched with a stored peak voltage to determine the distance to the short as the distance correlates with the matching peak voltage value in the memory.

[0157]

[0187] FIG. 15 illustrates an embodiment method 1500 for calibrating a device, such as device 106. With reference to FIGS. 1A-15, method 1500 may be performed by a processor (e.g., 126, 1102) of a device (e.g., device 106). With reference to FIGS. 1A-15, the means for performing each of the operations of method 1500 may be one or more processors of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more processors 126, 1102, and one or more distance measurement circuits of the device (e.g., device 106), such as one or more distance measurement circuits 128, 1100. In various embodiments, the operations of method 1500 may be performed in conjunction with the operations of methods 200 (FIG. 2), 400 (FIG. 4A), and / or 1200 (FIG. 12). For example, the operations of method 1500 may be performed in response to the operations of block 1204 of method 1200 (FIG. 12) to determine a selected peak voltage for a selected pulse and a selected pulse shape for a selected pulse based at least in part on a known length of a two-conductor wire.

[0158]

[0188] At block 1502, the processor may perform operations to inject a test pulse into a first end of the two-conductor wire while no short circuit is present in the two-conductor wire. For example, the injected test pulse may be any pulse shape, such as a Gaussian, triangular pulse, etc. In various embodiments, the injected test pulse may be a ramp pulse, where no modulation is applied. In various embodiments, the pulse shape may be configured such that a ramp-up portion of the pulse has a different shape than a ramp-down portion of the pulse.

[0159]

[0189] In block 1504, the processor may perform operations to measure a peak voltage of a composite pulse at a first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting a test pulse. For example, the processor may use the peak detection circuit 1106 and the ADC 1108 to measure a peak voltage of a returned test pulse at the first conductor 104 at the first end 102 of the two-conductor wire 101.

[0160]

[0190] At block 1506, the processor may perform operations to determine a distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the test pulse. For example, the peak voltage value may correlate with a distance in a memory structure (e.g., an array, a look-up table, etc.) in a memory available to the processor, and the processor may determine the distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire as the distance that correlates with the peak voltage in the memory structure that matches the measured peak voltage.

[0161]

[0191] At decision block 1508, the processor may perform an operation to determine whether the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire. For example, the processor may subtract the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire from the known length of the two-conductor wire to determine whether the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire. A non-zero result may indicate that the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is not the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire. A zero result may indicate that the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire.

[0162]

[0192] In response to determining that the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is not the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire (i.e., decision block 1508="No"), the processor may perform one or more calibration operations at block 1510. For example, the processor may perform calibration operations including adjusting device (e.g., device 106) settings, modifying a test pulse shape, etc. A difference between the known length and the determined length may indicate that the known length of the wire is inaccurate, that the peak detection circuitry is not operating properly, or another anomaly in the system. The calibration operations may allow the anomaly to be corrected.

[0163]

[0193] In response to performing the calibration operation, the processor may proceed to block 1502 to inject a test pulse into the first end of the two-conductor wire while no shorts are present in the two-conductor wire, measure the peak voltage in block 1504, again determine the distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire in block 1506, and determine whether the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire in decision block 1508. In this manner, the test pulse injection / measurement and calibration operations may be repeatedly performed to calibrate a device (e.g., device 106).

[0164]

[0194] In response to determining that the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire (i.e., decision block 1508="No"), the processor may perform the operations at block 1206 of method 1200 (FIG. 12) to inject a selected pulse into the first end of the two-conductor wire, the selected pulse having a selected peak voltage and a selected pulse shape, as described.

[0165]

[0195] The processors of the various devices discussed herein, such as processor 126, 356, 1102, etc., may be one or more chips of any programmable microprocessor, microcomputer, or multiple processors that may be configured with software instructions (applications) to perform a variety of functions, including those of the various embodiments described below. In some devices, multiple processors may be provided, such as one processor in a SOC dedicated to communication functions and one processor in a SOC dedicated to running other applications. Typically, software applications may be stored in memory (e.g., memory 129, 357) before the software application is accessed and loaded into the processor. The processor may include sufficient internal memory to store application software instructions.

[0166]

[0196] As used in this application, terms such as "component," "module," "system," and the like, are intended to include computer-related entities, such as, but not limited to, hardware, firmware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software in execution, configured to perform certain operations or functions. For example, a component may be, but is not limited to, a process running on a processor, a processor, an object, an executable, a thread of execution, a program, and / or a computer. By way of example, both an application running on a wireless device and the wireless device may be referred to as a component. One or more components may reside within a process and / or thread of execution, and a component may be localized on one processor or core and / or distributed among two or more processors or cores. Additionally, these components may execute from various non-transitory computer-readable media having various instructions and / or data structures stored thereon. Components may communicate by way of local and / or remote processes, function or procedure calls, electronic signals, data packets, memory reads / writes, and other known network, computer, processor, and / or process related communication methods.

[0167]

[0197] A number of different cellular and mobile communication services and standards are available or are contemplated in the future, all of which may implement and benefit from the various embodiments. Such services and standards include, but are not limited to, third generation partnership project (3GPP), long term evolution (LTE) systems, third generation wireless mobile communications technology (3G), fourth generation wireless mobile communications technology (4G), fifth generation wireless mobile communications technology (5G), global system for mobile communications (GSM), universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), 3GSM, general packet radio service (GPRS), code division multiple access (CDMA) systems (e.g., cdmaOne, CDMA1020™, etc.), enhanced data rates for GSM evolution (EDGE), advanced mobile phone system (AMPS), digital AMPS (IS-136 / TDMA), evolution data optimized (EV-DO), digital enhanced cordless telecommunications (DTT), digital enhanced wireless communications (DTT), digital enhanced wireless systems ... Examples of technologies include digital to wireless telecommunications (DECT), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX), wireless local area network (WLAN), Wi-Fi Protected Access I & II (WPA, WPA2), and integrated digital enhanced network (iDEN), etc. Each of these technologies involves the transmission and reception of voice, data, signaling, and / or content messages, for example.It should be understood that any reference to terminology and / or technical details relating to particular telecommunications standards or technologies is for illustrative purposes only and does not limit the scope of the claims to any particular communications system or technology unless specifically recited in the claim language.

[0168]

[0198] The various embodiments shown and described are provided only as examples to illustrate various features of the claims. However, features shown and described with respect to any given embodiment are not necessarily limited to the associated embodiment, and may be used or combined with other embodiments shown and described. Furthermore, the claims are not limited by any one exemplary embodiment. For example, one or more of the operations of methods 200, 400, 450, 600, 650, 700, 750, 800, 850, 900, 1010, 1020, 1200, and / or 1500 may be replaced with or combined with one or more operations of methods 200, 400, 450, 600, 650, 700, 750, 800, 850, 900, 1010, 1020, 1200, and / or 1500.

[0169]

[0199] Implementation aspects are described in the following paragraphs. Although some of the implementation aspects below are described with respect to example methods, further example implementation aspects may include the example methods discussed in the following paragraphs implemented by a device including a processor configured with processor-executable instructions to perform the operations of the methods of the following implementation aspects. The example methods discussed in the following paragraphs may be implemented by including means for performing the functions of the methods of the following implementation aspects, and the example methods discussed in the following paragraphs may be implemented as a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium having stored thereon processor-executable instructions configured to cause a processor of the device to perform the operations of the methods of the following implementation aspects.

[0170]

[0200] Example 1.2 A method for determining a distance to a short in a conductor wire, the method comprising: injecting an initial tone having an initial known signal phase into a first end of a two conductor wire; measuring a signal phase of an initial reflected tone at the first end of the two conductor wire resulting from injecting the initial tone; determining an initial phase difference as the phase difference between the initial known signal phase and the measured signal phase of the initial reflected tone; and determining a distance to the short in the two conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference.

[0171]

[0201] Example 2. The method of example 1, wherein the initial known signal phase can be an initial known current phase and the measured signal phase of the early reflected tone is the measured current phase of the early reflected tone.

[0172]

[0202] Example 3. The method of example 1, wherein the initial known signal phase can be an initial known voltage phase and the measured signal phase of the early reflected tone is the measured voltage phase of the early reflected tone.

[0173]

[0203] Example 4. The method of example 3, wherein the initial tone has an initial frequency, the method further comprising: injecting a second tone having a second initial voltage phase and a second frequency different from the initial frequency into a first end of the two conductor wire; measuring a voltage phase of a second reflected tone at the first end of the two conductor wire resulting from injecting the second tone; and determining a second phase difference as a phase difference between the second initial voltage phase and the measured voltage phase of the second reflected tone, wherein determining a distance to a short in the two conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference comprises determining a distance to a short in the two conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference and the determined second phase difference.

[0174]

[0204] Example 5. The method of any one of Examples 1-4, further comprising controlling a device in the two-conductor wire to create a short in the two-conductor wire before injecting the initial tone, before injecting the second tone, and before determining the distance to the short.

[0175]

[0205] Example 6. The method of any one of Examples 1-5, wherein the initial tone has an initial known signal amplitude, and the method further includes measuring an amplitude of an initial reflected tone at a first end of the two conductor wire resulting from injecting the initial tone and determining an initial amplitude difference as the difference between the initial known signal amplitude and the measured amplitude of the initial reflected tone, and determining a distance to a short in the two conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference includes determining a distance to a short in the two conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference and the determined initial amplitude difference.

[0176]

[0206] Example 7. The method of example 6, wherein the initial known signal amplitude can be an initial known current amplitude and the measured signal amplitude of the early reflected tone is a measured current amplitude of the early reflected tone.

[0177]

[0207] Example 8. The method of example 6, wherein the initial known signal amplitude can be an initial known voltage amplitude and the measured signal amplitude of the early reflected tone is a measured voltage amplitude of the early reflected tone.

[0178]

[0208] Example 9.2 A method for determining a distance to a short in a conductor wire, the method comprising: injecting a selected pulse having a selected peak voltage and a selected pulse shape into a first end of a two conductor wire; measuring the peak voltage of a composite pulse at the first end of the two conductor wire resulting from injecting the selected pulse; and determining the distance to the short in the two conductor wire based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the composite pulse.

[0179]

[0209] Example 10. The method of example 9, further comprising, prior to injecting the selected pulse, determining a selected peak voltage for the selected pulse and a selected pulse shape for the selected pulse based at least in part on the known length of the two-conductor wire.

[0180]

[0210] Example 11. The method according to any one of Examples 1 to 10, wherein the selected pulse is a ramp pulse, and no modulation is applied to the ramp pulse.

[0181]

[0211] Example 12. The method of any one of Examples 9-11, further comprising: injecting a test pulse into a first end of the two-conductor wire while no short circuit is present in the two-conductor wire prior to injecting the selected pulse; measuring a peak voltage of a return test pulse at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the test pulse; determining a distance to a second end of the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the return test pulse; determining whether the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire; and performing a calibration operation in response to determining that the distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is not the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire,

[0182]

[0212] Example 13. The method of any one of Examples 9 to 12, further comprising controlling a device between the two conductor wires to create a short circuit in the two conductor wires prior to injecting the selected pulse into the first end of the two conductor wire.

[0183]

[0213] The above method descriptions and process flow diagrams are provided as illustrative examples only and do not require or imply that the operations of the various embodiments must be performed in the order presented. As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, the order of operations in the above-described embodiments may be performed in any order. Words such as "thereafter," "then," and "next" do not limit the order of operations. These words are used to guide the reader through the method descriptions. Furthermore, any reference to a claim element in the singular, for example, using the articles "a," "an," or "the," should not be construed as limiting the element to the singular.

[0184]

[0214] The various exemplary logical blocks, modules, components, circuits, and algorithmic operations described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, the various exemplary components, blocks, modules, circuits, and operations have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Those skilled in the art may implement the described functionality in various ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the claims.

[0185]

[0215] The hardware used to implement the various example logic, logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented or performed using general purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but alternatively, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of receiver smart objects, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. Alternatively, some operations or methods may be performed by circuitry specific to a given function.

[0186]

[0216] In one or more embodiments, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage medium. The operations of a method or algorithm disclosed herein may be embodied in a processor-executable software module or processor-executable instructions that may reside on a non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage medium. A non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage medium may be any storage medium that may be accessed by a computer or processor. By way of example and not limitation, such a non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage medium may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, FLASH memory, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage smart objects, or any other medium that may be used to store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that may be accessed by a computer. Disk and disc as used herein include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc, where disks typically reproduce data magnetically and discs reproduce data optically using a laser. Combinations of the above are also included within the scope of non-transitory computer-readable and processor-readable media. Additionally, operations of a method or algorithm may reside as one or any combination or set of code and / or instructions on a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium and / or a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, which may be incorporated into a computer program product.

[0187]

[0217] The foregoing description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the claims. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the scope of the claims. Thus, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the following claims and the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. 1. A method for determining a distance to a controllable device along a two-conductor wire, comprising: controlling the controllable devices along the two-conductor wire to create a short circuit in the two-conductor wire; injecting an initial tone having an initial known voltage phase into a first end of the two-conductor wire; measuring a voltage phase of an initial reflected tone at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the initial tone; determining an initial phase difference as the phase difference between the initial known voltage phase and the measured voltage phase of the initial reflected tone; injecting a second tone into the first end of the two-conductor wire, the second tone having a second initial voltage phase and a second frequency different from the initial frequency; measuring a voltage phase of a second reflected tone at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the second tone; determining a second phase difference as the phase difference between the second initial voltage phase and the measured voltage phase of the second reflected tone; determining a distance to the short in the two-conductor wire caused by the controllable device based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference and the determined second phase difference; A method comprising:

2. the initial tone having an initial known signal amplitude, and the method comprising: measuring the amplitude of the initial reflected tone at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the initial tone; determining an initial amplitude difference as the difference between the initial known signal amplitude and the measured amplitude of the initial reflected tone; Further comprising:

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the distance to the short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference comprises determining the distance to the short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference and the determined initial amplitude difference.

3. the initial known signal amplitude is an initial known current amplitude; the measured amplitude of the early reflected tone is the measured current amplitude of the early reflected tone; or the initial known signal amplitude is an initial known voltage amplitude; The method of claim 2 , wherein the measured amplitude of the early reflected tone is a measured voltage amplitude of the early reflected tone.

4. 1. A method for determining a distance to a controllable device along a two-conductor wire, comprising: controlling the controllable devices along the two-conductor wire to create a short circuit in the two-conductor wire; injecting a selected pulse having a selected peak voltage and a selected pulse shape into a first end of the two-conductor wire; measuring a peak voltage of a composite pulse at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the selected pulse; determining a distance to the short circuit in the two-conductor wire caused by the controllable device based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the composite pulse; A method comprising:

5. determining the selected peak voltage for the selected pulse and the selected pulse shape for the selected pulse based at least in part on a known length of the two-conductor wire prior to injecting the selected pulse. The method of claim 4.

6. The method of claim 4 , wherein the selected pulse is a lamp pulse, and no modulation is applied to the lamp pulse.

7. before injecting the selected pulse; injecting a test pulse into the first end of the two-conductor wire while no short circuit is present in the two-conductor wire; measuring a peak voltage of a return test pulse at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the test pulse; determining a distance to a second end of the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the return test pulse; determining whether the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as a known length of the two-conductor wire; performing a calibration operation in response to determining that the distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is not the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire; Further comprising:

5. The method of claim 4, wherein injecting the selected pulse into the first end of the two-conductor wire comprises injecting the selected pulse into the first end of the two-conductor wire in response to determining that the distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire.

8. a distance measurement circuit; a processor connected to the distance measurement circuit, the processor: controlling a controllable device along the two-conductor wire to create a short circuit in the two-conductor wire; injecting an initial tone having an initial known voltage phase into a first end of the two-conductor wire; measuring a voltage phase of an initial reflected tone at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the initial tone; determining an initial phase difference as the phase difference between the initial known voltage phase and the measured voltage phase of the initial reflected tone; injecting a second tone into the first end of the two-conductor wire, the second tone having a second initial voltage phase and a second frequency different from the initial frequency; measuring a voltage phase of a second reflected tone at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the second tone; determining a second phase difference as the phase difference between the second initial voltage phase and the measured voltage phase of the second reflected tone; determining the distance to the short in the two-conductor wire caused by the controllable device based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference and the determined second phase difference; A device configured with processor-executable instructions.

9. the initial tone has an initial known signal amplitude; the processor: measuring the amplitude of the initial reflected tone at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the initial tone; determining an initial amplitude difference as the difference between an initial known signal amplitude and the measured amplitude of the initial reflected tone; further configured with processor-executable instructions, 10. The device of claim 8, wherein the processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to determine the distance to the short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference by determining the distance to the short in the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the determined initial phase difference and the determined initial amplitude difference.

10. the initial known signal amplitude is an initial known current amplitude; the measured amplitude of the early reflected tone is the measured current amplitude of the early reflected tone; or the initial known signal amplitude is an initial known voltage amplitude; 10. The device of claim 9, wherein the measured amplitude of the early reflected tone is a measured voltage amplitude of the early reflected tone.

11. the distance measurement circuit includes only one radio unit, or the distance measurement circuit comprises a first radio unit and a second radio unit; 10. The device of claim 9, wherein optionally the first radio and the second radio are both Bluetooth radios.

12. a distance measurement circuit; a processor connected to the distance measurement circuit, the processor: controlling a controllable device along the two-conductor wire to create a short circuit in the two-conductor wire; injecting a selected pulse having a selected peak voltage and a selected pulse shape into a first end of the two-conductor wire; measuring a peak voltage of a resultant pulse at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the selected pulse; determining a distance to a short circuit in the two-conductor wire caused by the controllable device based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the composite pulse; A device configured with processor-executable instructions.

13. the processor: determining the selected peak voltage for the selected pulse and the selected pulse shape for the selected pulse based at least in part on a known length of the two-conductor wire prior to injecting the selected pulse; The device of claim 12 further configured with processor-executable instructions.

14. The device of claim 12 , wherein the selected pulse is a lamp pulse, and no modulation is applied to the lamp pulse.

15. before the processor injects the selected pulse, injecting a test pulse into the first end of the two-conductor wire while no short circuit is present in the two-conductor wire; measuring a peak voltage of a return test pulse at the first end of the two-conductor wire resulting from injecting the test pulse; determining a distance to a second end of the two-conductor wire based at least in part on the measured peak voltage of the return test pulse; determining whether the determined distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as a known length of the two-conductor wire; performing a calibration operation in response to determining that the distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is not the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire. further configured with processor-executable instructions, 13. The device of claim 12, wherein the processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to inject the selected pulse into the first end of the two-conductor wire in response to determining that the distance to the second end of the two-conductor wire is the same as the known length of the two-conductor wire by injecting the selected pulse into the first end of the two-conductor wire.

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