Power monitoring device and monitoring method thereof

Abstract

To provide a power monitoring device and a monitoring method thereof.SOLUTION: A power monitoring device includes a power detection module and a processor. The power detection module converts a forward power into a forward signal, and converts a reverse power into a reverse signal. The processor is configured to determine whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a first judgment condition at a first time to generate a first result, and to determine whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a second judgment condition at a second time to generate a second result. The processor determines whether to send a warning signal based on the first result and the second result.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a monitoring device and a monitoring method thereof, and more particularly to a power monitoring device and a monitoring method thereof. [Background technology]

[0002] Currently, power amplifiers (PAs) used in remote radio unit (RRU) products of open radio access networks (O-RAN) generally have very high unit prices. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] If the health of power amplifiers is not constantly monitored, when an abnormality occurs in the output power, the expensive power amplifiers may burn out later, which can easily result in significant cost losses.

[0004] As can be seen from the above, there is currently a lack of power monitoring devices and monitoring methods on the market, and related businesses are all seeking solutions. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The objective of the present disclosure is to provide a power monitoring device and a monitoring method thereof that can effectively monitor the health status of a power amplifier, by checking the power of a power amplifier and an antenna through multiple verifications based on multiple judgment conditions, and by immediately taking action when the output power of the power amplifier becomes abnormal, to avoid damaging the power amplifier, and further to effectively achieve the goal of cost optimization.

[0006] According to an embodiment of a structural aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a power monitoring device electrically connected to a power amplifier and an antenna, the power monitoring device including: a power detection module for detecting forward power of the power amplifier and reverse power of the antenna and converting the forward power into a forward signal and the reverse power into a reverse signal; and a processor electrically connected to the power detection module for determining whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a first judgment condition at a first time to generate a first result, and for determining whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a second judgment condition at a second time to generate a second result, and for determining whether to transmit a warning signal based on the first result and the second result, wherein the first time is before the second time, and both the first judgment condition and the second judgment condition include the forward signal being greater than the reverse signal.

[0007] According to an embodiment of the method aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a power monitoring method including: detecting forward power of a power amplifier and reverse power of an antenna by a power detection module, and converting the forward power into a forward signal and converting the reverse power into a reverse signal; determining by a processor whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a first determination condition at a first time to generate a first result, and determining whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a second determination condition at a second time to generate a second result, and determining whether to transmit a warning signal based on the first result and the second result, wherein the first time is before the second time, and both the first determination condition and the second determination condition include the forward signal being greater than the reverse signal. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a power monitoring device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing the flow of a power monitoring method according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 shows a process flow chart for determining whether the forward and reverse signals meet the first and second criteria. [Figure 4]FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating a power monitoring device according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing the flow of a power monitoring method according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] FIG. 5 shows a process flow chart for determining whether the forward and reverse signals meet the first, second, and third criteria. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] 1 is a circuit schematic diagram of a power monitoring device 100 according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. The power monitoring device 100 is used to monitor the health status of the power amplifier 10, so that when the output power of the power amplifier 10 becomes abnormal, immediate action can be taken to prevent the power amplifier 10 from being damaged. The power monitoring device 100 is electrically connected to the power amplifier 10 and the antenna 20, and includes a power detection module 110 and a processor 120, and the processor 120 is electrically connected to the power detection module 110. In the first embodiment, the power amplifier 10 and the antenna 20 may be an amplifier and an antenna used in a remote radio unit product of an open wireless access network, although the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0010] The power detection module 110 is used to detect the forward power of the power amplifier 10 and the reverse power of the antenna 20, and convert the forward power into a forward signal and the reverse power into a reverse signal. The power detection module 110 includes a coupling circuit 111, a power detection circuit 112, and an analog-to-digital converter 113, where the coupling circuit 111 is electrically connected to the power amplifier 10 and the antenna 20, the power detection circuit 112 is electrically connected to the coupling circuit 111 and the analog-to-digital converter 113, and the analog-to-digital converter 113 is electrically connected to the processor 120.

[0011] The coupling circuit 111 includes a front-end coupler 1111, a back-end coupler 1112, a front-end attenuator 1113, and a back-end attenuator 1114, where the front-end coupler 1111 is electrically connected to the power amplifier 10 and the front-end attenuator 1113, and the back-end coupler 1112 is electrically connected to the antenna 20 and the back-end attenuator 1114. The front-end coupler 1111 is used to acquire forward power, and the back-end coupler 1112 is used to acquire reverse power. The front-end attenuator 1113 and the back-end attenuator 1114 are used to improve the reflectivity of the front-end coupler 1111 and the back-end coupler 1112 and adjust the high-frequency power in the power detection path, respectively, to avoid the problem of abnormal power readings and at the same time to improve installation flexibility.

[0012] The power detection circuit 112 includes a front-end power detector 1121 and a back-end power detector 1122, where the front-end power detector 1121 is electrically connected to a front-end attenuator 1113 and the back-end power detector 1122 is electrically connected to a back-end attenuator 1114. The front-end power detector 1121 is used to convert forward power into a forward detection signal, and the back-end power detector 1122 is used to convert reverse power into a reverse detection signal. In a first embodiment, the front-end power detector 1121 and the back-end power detector 1122 may be model LMH2110 radio frequency (RF) detection integrated circuits (ICs), although the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0013] The analog-to-digital converter 113 is used to perform analog-to-digital conversion on the forward detection signal to generate a forward signal, and to perform analog-to-digital conversion on the reverse detection signal to generate a reverse signal. In a first embodiment, the forward signal and the reverse signal are voltage values, and the analog-to-digital converter 113 may be a model TLA2024 analog-to-digital converter integrated circuit, although the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0014] The processor 120 is used to determine whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a first judgment condition at a first time to generate a first result, and to determine whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a second judgment condition at a second time to generate a second result, and to determine whether to transmit a warning signal based on the first result and the second result. The first time is before the second time, that is, the processor 120 first performs a judgment on the first judgment condition, and continues to perform a judgment on the second judgment condition based on the first result. In a first embodiment, the processor 120 may be a field programmable gate array (FPGA), although the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0015] The first judgment condition includes a three-step judgment formula, where the first judgment formula is that the forward signal and the reverse signal are both greater than a valid value, the second judgment formula is that the forward signal is greater than the reverse signal, and the third judgment formula is that the reverse signal is greater than a critical value and the valid value is less than a critical value. Specifically, the first judgment formula is used to verify the validity of the forward signal and the reverse signal. The second judgment formula is a core judgment formula and is used to determine whether the power amplifier 10 is abnormal. The third judgment formula is used to verify the authenticity of the abnormality determined based on the second judgment formula. If the forward signal and the reverse signal completely meet the three-step judgment formula of the first judgment condition, it indicates that the power amplifier 10 is normal. The second judgment condition also includes that the forward signal is greater than the reverse signal. When the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the second judgment condition, it also indicates that there is no abnormality in the power amplifier 10. In the first embodiment, the effective value is 100 mV and the critical value is 1000 mV, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0016] In another possible embodiment, the processor may determine whether the power amplifier is abnormal by checking the difference or ratio between the forward signal and the reverse signal as the first and second determination conditions. In another possible embodiment, the second determination condition may include the three-stage determination formula described above to improve the accuracy of the determination.

[0017] In addition, when there are multiple pairs of power amplifiers 10 and antennas 20, the processor 120 checks whether the forward and reverse signals of each pair of power amplifiers 10 and antennas 20 meet the first judgment condition at intervals (e.g., 10 ms, which can be varied depending on different products) within a first time interval (including the first time), and checks whether the forward and reverse signals of each pair of power amplifiers 10 and antennas 20 meet the second judgment condition at intervals (e.g., 10 ms, which can be varied depending on different products) within a second time interval (including the second time).

[0018] It is noted that the detailed characteristics and order of determining the first and second criteria by the processor 120 are described in conjunction with the power monitoring method 200 of FIGS. 2 and 3 below.

[0019] Please refer to Figures 1, 2, and 3. Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing the flow of a power monitoring method 200 according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure, and Figure 3 is a process flow diagram for determining whether a forward signal and a reverse signal meet a first determination condition and a second determination condition in Figure 2. The power monitoring device 100 is configured to perform the power monitoring method 200. It should be noted that the power monitoring method 200 of the present disclosure is not limited to being performed by the power monitoring device 100 of the present disclosure, and each element in the power monitoring device 100 may be arbitrarily integrated into various combinations to perform the functions of the power monitoring method 200.

[0020] The power monitoring method 200 includes steps S01 and S02. In step S01, the power detection module 110 detects the forward power of the power amplifier 10 and the reverse power of the antenna 20, and converts the forward power into a forward signal and the reverse power into a reverse signal. In step S02, the processor 120 determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a first judgment condition at a first time to generate a first result, and determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a second judgment condition at a second time to generate a second result, and determines whether to transmit a warning signal based on the first and second results.

[0021] 3, step S02 further includes steps S021, S022, S023, and S024. In step S021, a first result is generated according to a first judgment condition. In step S022, the power amplifier 10 is turned off and then turned on again after an interval time has elapsed. In step S023, a second result is generated according to a second judgment condition. In step S024, the power amplifier 10 is turned off and a warning signal is transmitted.

[0022] In detail, in step S021, if the first result is "yes", it indicates that there is no abnormality in the power amplifier 10, and in order to avoid erroneous judgment, the processor 120 repeatedly executes step S021 to judge whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the first judgment condition; if the first result is "no", it indicates that there is an abnormality in the power amplifier 10, and the processor 120 immediately executes step S022 to turn off the power amplifier 10, and after an interval time has elapsed, turns the power amplifier 10 on again, and continues to execute step S023 to judge whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the second judgment condition.

[0023] If the second result in step S023 is "yes", it indicates that there is no abnormality in the power amplifier 10. To avoid further misjudgment, the processor 120 repeatedly executes step S023 to determine whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the second judgment condition. If the second result is "no", it indicates that there is an abnormality in the power amplifier 10. The processor 120 immediately executes step S024 to turn off the power amplifier 10 and send a warning signal. If the second result is "no", it can be inferred that there is indeed an abnormality in the power amplifier 10 after the second confirmation. In addition to turning off the power amplifier 10, the processor 120 simultaneously turns off the power supply of the remote radio unit product and sends a warning signal to notify an engineer to arrange for maintenance.

[0024] This allows the power of the power amplifier 10 and the antenna 20 to be checked in a double verification manner based on two judgment conditions, thereby effectively monitoring the power amplifier 10 and avoiding the problem of the power amplifier 10 being damaged.

[0025] 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a power monitoring device 300 according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. The power monitoring device 300 includes a power sensing module 310 and a processor 320. The power sensing module 310 includes a coupling circuit 311, a power detection circuit 312, and an analog-to-digital converter 313. In the third embodiment, the processor 320, the coupling circuit 311, the power detection circuit 312, and the analog-to-digital converter 313 are respectively the same as the processor 120, the coupling circuit 111, the power detection circuit 112, and the analog-to-digital converter 113 according to the first embodiment, and will not be described again here. The difference between the third embodiment and the first embodiment is that the power sensing module 310 further includes a current sensor 314, which is electrically connected between the power detection circuit 312 and the analog-to-digital converter 313. There are two current sensors 314, each used to acquire a different forward signal and a different reverse signal. In a third embodiment, the forward signal and the reverse signal are voltage values, and the other forward signal and the other reverse signal are current values. In other possible embodiments, the forward signal and the reverse signal may be current values, and the other forward signal and the other reverse signal may be voltage values, and the current values ​​may be obtained by converting the forward power and the reverse power other than by the current sensor, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0026] The processor 320 is further used to determine whether another forward signal and another reverse signal meet a third decision condition at a third time to generate a third result, and to determine whether to transmit a warning signal based on the first result, the second result, and the third result. The second time is before the third time, i.e., the processor 320 first performs the decision on the second decision condition, and then continues to perform the decision on the third decision condition based on the second result.

[0027] The third judgment condition includes that the separate forward signal is greater than the separate reverse signal. If the separate forward signal and the separate reverse signal meet the third judgment condition, it can be further ensured that the power amplifier 10 is normal. In another possible embodiment, the processor may determine whether the power amplifier is abnormal by checking the difference or ratio between the separate forward signal and the separate reverse signal as the third judgment condition. In another possible embodiment, the third judgment condition may include the three-stage judgment formula described above to improve the accuracy of the judgment.

[0028] In particular, the detailed characteristics and order in which the processor 320 performs the first, second, and third decision condition determinations are described in conjunction with the power monitoring method 400 of Figures 5 and 6 below.

[0029] Please refer to Figures 5 and 6. Figure 5 is a schematic diagram showing the flow of a power monitoring method 400 according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure, and Figure 6 is a process flow diagram for determining whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the first, second, and third judgment conditions in Figure 5. The power monitoring device 300 is configured to perform the power monitoring method 400. It should be noted that the power monitoring method 400 of the present disclosure is not limited to being performed by the power monitoring device 300 of the present disclosure, and each element in the power monitoring device 300 may be arbitrarily integrated into various combinations to perform the functions of the power monitoring method 400.

[0030] In the fourth embodiment, the power monitoring method 400 includes steps S11, S12, S13, and S14. Step S11 is the same as step S01 in the second embodiment described above, and will not be described again here. In step S12, the processor 320 determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a first determination condition at a first time to generate a first result, and determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a second determination condition at a second time to generate a second result. In step S13, the current sensor 314 of the power sensing module 310 acquires another forward signal and another reverse signal. In step S14, the processor 320 determines whether another forward signal and another reverse signal meet a third determination condition at a third time to generate a third result, and determines whether to transmit a warning signal based on the first, second, and third results.

[0031] 6, step S12 further includes steps S121, S122, and S123, and step S14 further includes steps S141 and S142. In step S121, a first result is generated according to a first judgment condition. In step S122, the power amplifier 10 is turned off and then turned on again after an interval time has elapsed. In step S123, a second result is generated according to a second judgment condition. In step S141, a third result is generated according to a third judgment condition. In step S142, the power amplifier 10 is turned off and a warning signal is transmitted.

[0032] In detail, in step S121, if the first result is "yes", it indicates that there is no abnormality in the power amplifier 10, and in order to avoid erroneous judgment, the processor 320 repeatedly executes step S121 to judge whether the forward signal and reverse signal acquired later meet the first judgment condition; if the first result is "no", it indicates that there is an abnormality in the power amplifier 10, and the processor 320 immediately executes step S122 to turn off the power amplifier 10, and after an interval time has elapsed, turns the power amplifier 10 on again, and continues to execute step S123 to judge whether the forward signal and reverse signal currently acquired meet the second judgment condition.

[0033] If the second result in step S123 is “yes”, it indicates that there is no abnormality in the power amplifier 10 at this time. In order to avoid another erroneous judgment, the processor 320 repeatedly executes step S123 to determine whether the forward signal and the reverse signal acquired later meet the second judgment condition. If the second result is “no”, it indicates that the abnormality in the power amplifier 10 has been confirmed twice. The processor 320 immediately executes step S141 to determine whether another forward signal and another reverse signal meet the third judgment condition, and checks three times with a current value signal different from the voltage value.

[0034] If the third result is "yes" in step S141, the processor 320 repeats step S123 to determine whether the forward signal and reverse signal acquired later meet the second determination condition, so as to further avoid another erroneous determination. If the third result is "no", it indicates that there is an abnormality in the power amplifier 10, and the processor 320 immediately executes step S142 to turn off the power amplifier 10 and send a warning signal. If the third result is "no", after checking three different parameter signals (voltage signal and current signal), it can be inferred that there is indeed an abnormality in the power amplifier 10. In addition to turning off the power amplifier 10, the processor 320 simultaneously turns off the power of the remote radio unit product and sends a warning signal to notify an engineer to arrange for maintenance, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0035] As can be seen from the above embodiments, the present disclosure has the following advantages: First, the power of the power amplifier and antenna is checked multiple times according to multiple judgment conditions, and when the output power of the power amplifier becomes abnormal, immediate action can be taken to avoid damaging the power amplifier, and the health status of the power amplifier can be effectively monitored, so that the purpose of cost optimization can be effectively achieved; Second, the double checking of different parameter signals (voltage signal and current signal) can improve the accuracy of judgment, and avoid the occurrence of the processor making a wrong judgment and turning off the power amplifier.

[0036] Although the present disclosure has been disclosed as above by way of embodiments, the embodiments do not limit the present disclosure, and those skilled in the art may make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of the disclosed disclosure is determined by the content specified in the following claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0037] 10 Power Amplifier 100, 300 power monitoring device 110, 310 Power Sensing Module 111, 311 coupling circuit 1111 Front end coupler 1112 Back-end coupler 1113 Front-end attenuator 1114 Back-end Attenuator 112, 312 Power detection circuit 1121 Front-end Power Detector 1122 Back-end Power Detector 113, 313 Analog-to-Digital Converter 314 Current Sensor 120, 320 processors 20 Antenna 200, 400 Power monitoring method

Claims

1. a power monitoring device electrically connected to the power amplifier and the antenna, a power detection module for detecting a forward power of the power amplifier and a reverse power of the antenna, and converting the forward power into a forward signal and converting the reverse power into a reverse signal; a processor electrically connected to the power sensing module, for determining whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a first determination condition at a first time to generate a first result, and for determining whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a second determination condition at a second time to generate a second result, and for determining whether to transmit a warning signal based on the first result and the second result; Including, The power monitoring device, wherein the first time is before the second time, and both the first and second determination conditions include the forward signal being greater than the reverse signal.

2. If the first result is "yes," the processor repeatedly determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the first determination condition; If the first result is "no", the processor turns off the power amplifier, turns on the power amplifier again after an interval time, and determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the second determination condition; and 2. The power monitoring device of claim 1, wherein if the second result is "yes," the processor repeatedly determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the second determination condition.

3. 3. The power monitoring device of claim 2, wherein if the second result is "NO," the processor turns off the power amplifier and transmits the warning signal.

4. the power sensing module is used to obtain yet another forward signal and another reverse signal, and the processor is further used to determine at a third time whether the yet another forward signal and the yet another reverse signal meet a third determination condition to generate a third result, and the processor determines whether to transmit the warning signal based on the first result, the second result, and the third result; 3. The power monitoring device of claim 2, wherein the third condition includes the other forward signal being greater than the other reverse signal, and the second time is before the third time.

5. If the second result is "no," the processor determines whether the further forward signal and the further reverse signal meet the third decision condition; If the third result is "yes," the processor repeatedly determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the second determination condition; and 5. The power monitoring device of claim 4, wherein if the third result is "NO", the processor turns off the power amplifier and transmits the warning signal.

6. 5. The power monitoring device according to claim 4, wherein the forward signal and the reverse signal are voltage values, and the other forward signal and the other reverse signal are current values.

7. 2. The power monitoring device of claim 1, wherein the first determination condition further comprises the forward signal being greater than a valid value and the reverse signal being greater than the valid value.

8. The power monitoring device of claim 7 , wherein the first determination condition further comprises that the backward signal is greater than a critical value and the effective value is less than the critical value.

9. The power sensing module includes: a coupling circuit electrically connected to the power amplifier and the antenna for obtaining the forward power and the reverse power; a power detection circuit electrically connected to the coupling circuit for converting the forward power into a forward detection signal and converting the reverse power into a reverse detection signal; an analog-to-digital converter electrically connected to the power detection circuit and the processor, for performing analog-to-digital conversion on the forward detection signal to generate the forward signal and for performing analog-to-digital conversion on the reverse detection signal to generate the reverse signal; The power monitoring device of claim 1 , comprising:

10. 10. The power monitoring device of claim 9, wherein the power sensing module further comprises a current sensor electrically connected between the power detection circuit and the analog-to-digital converter.

11. detecting the forward power of the power amplifier and the reverse power of the antenna by a power detection module, and converting the forward power into a forward signal and converting the reverse power into a reverse signal; determining, by a processor, at a first time whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a first determination condition to generate a first result, and at a second time whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet a second determination condition to generate a second result, and determining whether to transmit a warning signal based on the first result and the second result; Including, The power monitoring method, wherein the first time is before the second time, and both the first and second determination conditions include the forward signal being greater than the reverse signal.

12. If the first result is "yes," the processor repeatedly determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the first determination condition; If the first result is "no", the processor turns off the power amplifier, turns on the power amplifier again after an interval time, and determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the second determination condition; and 12. The method of claim 11, wherein if the second result is "yes," the processor repeatedly determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the second determination condition.

13. 13. The method of claim 12, wherein if the second result is "NO," the processor turns off the power amplifier and transmits the warning signal.

14. acquiring another forward signal and another reverse signal with the power sensing module; determining, by the processor, at a third time whether the other forward signal and the other reverse signal meet a third determination condition to generate a third result, and determining whether to transmit the warning signal based on the first result, the second result, and the third result; Further comprising:

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the third condition includes the other forward signal being greater than the other reverse signal, and the second time is before the third time.

15. If the second result is "no," the processor determines whether the further forward signal and the further reverse signal meet the third decision condition; If the third result is "yes," the processor repeatedly determines whether the forward signal and the reverse signal meet the second determination condition; and 15. The method of claim 14, wherein if the third result is "NO," the processor turns off the power amplifier and transmits the warning signal.

16. 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the forward signal and the reverse signal are voltage values, and the further forward signal and the further reverse signal are current values.

17. 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the first determination condition further comprises the forward signal being greater than a valid value and the reverse signal being greater than the valid value.

18. 18. The method of claim 17, wherein the first determination condition further comprises the reverse signal being greater than a critical value and the effective value being less than the critical value.

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