Energization checker

Abstract

To provide an energization checker capable of checking energization of an electric path even if the electric path is formed of a single wire.SOLUTION: A master unit 2 connected to one end of one electric wire L to be inspected and configured to output a signal, and a slave unit 3 connected to the other end of the electric wire L and configured to receive the signal, the master unit 2 including a signal generation unit 21 and a signal output unit 22 configured to generate a signal and output the signal to the electric wire L, a wireless reception unit 23 configured to receive a wireless signal transmitted from the slave unit 3, a determination unit 24 configured to determine connection of the electric wire L based on reception information, and a display unit 25 configured to notify a determination result; This device is provided with a signal arithmetic part 32 for discriminating an acquired signal and a radio transmission part 33 for transmitting the discriminated result to a master unit 2 by radio, and the ground parts of both are connected through the case body of electric equipment where an electric wire L to be inspected is arranged or connected by a separate electric wire so that the ground potentials of both can be matched.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electrical connection checker that inspects the connection state of electric wires that constitute electric circuits in electrical equipment and the like. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a current checker that checks whether the electric wires that make up the electric circuits of installed electrical equipment such as cubicles, distribution boards, etc. are connected correctly. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for an inspection device (current checker) that checks whether the individual branch wiring of an installed distribution board is connected correctly. In Patent Document 1, an inspection slave device that outputs a signal including its own ID information is connected to an outlet located at the end of a branch wiring, while an inspection master device that detects and determines the current in the neutral wire of the distribution board's lead-in wire is located on the distribution board side. Then, by turning on the branch breaker, the inspection master device receives the ID information sent from the inspection slave device via the branch wiring, and if the ID information matches the branch electric circuit ID stored in the master device, it is determined that the branch electric circuit is installed correctly. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-67530 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The technology of Patent Document 1 mentioned above was relatively easy to inspect because it required only one person to perform the inspection. However, because the inspection slave unit is connected to an outlet, it can be applied to inspecting wiring consisting of two wires, but it cannot be used for wiring consisting of a single wire. For example, wiring connected to a relay or wiring connected to a magnetic contactor has an electric circuit consisting of a single wire, and the technology cannot be applied to such electric circuits, making it impossible to inspect the wiring connections.

[0005] In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connection checker that can check the wiring of an electrical circuit even if the electrical circuit is formed of a single wire. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, the electrical continuity checker of the present invention has a parent unit that is connected to one end of an electric wire to be inspected and outputs a signal, and a child unit that is connected to the other end and receives the signal, and the parent unit has a signal generation unit and a signal output unit that generate a signal and send it to the electric wire, a wireless receiving unit that receives a wireless signal sent from the child unit, a judgment unit that judges the wiring of the electric wire based on the received information, and an alarm unit that notifies the judgment result, while the child unit has a signal acquisition unit that acquires the signal sent from the parent unit from the electric wire, a signal discrimination unit that discriminates the acquired signal, and a wireless transmission unit that wirelessly transmits the discrimination result to the parent unit, and is further characterized in that the earth parts of both units are connected via the housing of the electrical equipment in which the electric wire to be inspected is arranged, or by using a separate electric wire. According to this configuration, it is possible to judge the connection of one electric wire, that is, to check the continuity of the wire, so that it is possible to check the connection even for an electric circuit made up of a single wire.

[0007] Another aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the above configuration, the signal is a PWM signal, and the signal discrimination unit calculates the duty ratio of the PWM signal obtained from the electric wire and transmits the calculated duty ratio from the wireless transmission unit, while the judgment unit of the parent unit compares the duty ratio information received from the child unit with the duty ratio of the sent PWM signal to judge the wiring connection. This configuration makes it easier to determine the duty ratio than when using a digital signal, and by changing the duty ratio, it is possible to simultaneously test multiple single wires. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, since it is possible to judge the connection of a single electric wire, that is, to check the continuity of the electric wire, it is possible to check the connection even in an electric circuit made up of a single wire. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a configuration diagram showing an example of an electrical continuity checker according to the present invention, in which a parent unit and a child unit are shown in a functional block diagram. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the current flow checker. [Figure 3] 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of the operation of the slave unit. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of the parent device operation. [Figure 5] FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments embodying the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a continuity checker according to the present invention, showing the constituent devices in a functional block diagram. However, Fig. 1 shows a configuration capable of simultaneously checking the continuity of four single wires. The electrical continuity checker 1 is composed of a parent unit 2 and a child unit 3, and Figure 1 shows the state in which the parent unit 2 is connected to one end of each of the four electric wires L (first electric wire L1 to fourth electric wire L4) consisting of single wires to be inspected, and the child unit 3 is connected to the other end, thereby performing an electrical continuity check.

[0011] The parent unit 2 includes a signal generating unit 21 that generates a PWM signal, four signal output units 22 (first output unit 22a to fourth output unit 22d), a wireless receiving unit 23 that receives signals from the child unit 3, a judgment unit 24 that judges the wiring of the electric wires L, a display unit (alert unit) 25 that displays the judgment result, an operation unit 26 that operates the generation of signals according to the number of electric wires to be inspected, a power supply unit 27 that has a dry cell battery and supplies power to each unit, and an earthing unit 28 that has an earth terminal. The signal generating unit 21 generates up to four types of PWM signals so that each signal output unit 22 outputs a different PWM signal.

[0012] The slave unit 3 includes four signal receiving units (signal acquisition units) 31 (first receiving unit 31a to fourth receiving unit 31d) that receive signals, a signal calculation unit (signal discrimination unit) 32 that calculates the duty ratio of the received signal, a wireless transmission unit 33 that wirelessly transmits the calculation results to the master unit 2, a power supply unit 34 that includes a dry cell battery and supplies power to each unit, and an earth unit 35 that includes an earth terminal. Although the parent device 2 and the child device 3 are provided with dry batteries in the power supply section 27, the power supply may be any battery that outputs a constant voltage, and may be a primary battery or a secondary battery.

[0013] The continuity checker 1 configured as above is connected and operates as follows. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the operation, showing the operation of simultaneously checking three electric wires L (first electric wire L1 to third electric wire L3). When checking multiple electric wires L simultaneously, first, the signal output unit 22 of the parent unit 2 is connected to one end of each electric wire L. Here, the three signal output units 22, the first output unit 22a to the third output unit 22c, are connected to the first electric wire L1 to the third electric wire L3 in order. At the same time, the three signal receiving units 31 (the first receiving unit 31a to the third receiving unit 31c) of the child unit 3 are connected to the other end of the electric wire L to which the parent unit 2 is connected. At this time, the first receiving unit 31a is connected to the electric wire L to which the first output unit 22a is connected, and care is taken not to confuse the paired signal output unit 22 and signal receiving unit 31. The signal output unit 22 and the signal receiving unit 31 are provided with cords each having a probe at its tip, and the probe (not shown) at the tip is connected to the electric wire L to be inspected or to a terminal to which the electric wire L is connected.

[0014] Then, the ground potentials of the parent unit 2 and the child unit 3 are matched. This operation can be performed by connecting the ground parts 28, 35 of both units to the metal housing of the electrical equipment in which the electric wire L to be checked is installed, or by directly connecting the ground parts 28, 35 to each other with a separate electric wire. The dashed line K between the ground parts 28, 35 in Figure 1 indicates the housing or electric wire of this electrical equipment. Both earth portions 28, 35 are provided with earth terminals to which a cord equipped with a probe or an electric wire can be connected, and are configured so that the housing or the electric wire can be easily connected.

[0015] The probe may be provided with a gripping portion that grips the exposed portion of the electric wire L, or may be configured to have an electrically conductive magnet such as a neodymium magnet attached to it so that it comes into close contact with the electric wire L. In the case of a close contact configuration, connection can be easily made even if the connection destination is a terminal.

[0016] Once the signal output unit 22 and the signal receiving unit 31 are connected, a PWM signal is output from the parent device 2. The PWM signal is output by a predetermined operation of the operation unit 26. Here, the PWM signal is set to be output from the first output unit 22a to the third output unit 22c. By this operation, three types of PWM signals are generated by the signal generating section 21, and different PWM signals are output from the first output section 22a to the third output section 22c, respectively.

[0017] The PWM signals thus output to the individual electric wires L are received by the slave unit 3, and information on the received signals is notified to the master unit 2 wirelessly. 3 shows the operation flow of the slave unit 3. As shown in FIG. 3, when the slave unit 3 receives a PWM signal (S11), the signal calculation unit 32 identifies the received signal. Specifically, the duty ratio is calculated (S12). The signal calculation unit 32 further adds ID information of the received signal receiving unit 31 to the calculated duty ratio information. The signal thus identified is wirelessly transmitted from the wireless transmission unit 33 to the master unit 2 and notified (S13). For example, the signal is transmitted via Bluetooth (registered trademark).

[0018] 4 shows the operational flow of the master unit 2 that receives duty ratio information wirelessly transmitted from the slave unit 3. When the master unit 2 receives the duty ratio information from the slave unit 3 (S21), it identifies the signal receiving unit 31 that received the PWM signal based on the ID information that was also received, and determines (S22) whether the duty ratio matches the PWM signal output by the paired signal output unit 22. If they match, the display unit 25 displays "Connection OK" (S23), and if they do not match, it displays "Connection NG" (S24).

[0019] 5 shows the display unit 25 displaying the check results based on the duty ratio information received by the master unit 2 from the slave unit 3. Here, the display shows the result of checking three electric wires L. Specifically, the first electric wire L1 and the third electric wire L3 are "OK," meaning that the wiring is OK, while the second electric wire L2 is "NG," meaning that the wiring is not OK. Note that the fourth receiving unit 31d is not in use, so no display is shown.

[0020] In this way, it is possible to judge the connection of one electric wire L, that is, to check the continuity of the wire, so that it is possible to check the connection even for an electric circuit made up of a single wire. Furthermore, since the judgment is based on the duty ratio, it is easier to judge than when using a digital signal, and by changing the duty ratio, multiple single wires can be inspected simultaneously.

[0021] Although the conductivity checker 1 of the above embodiment is configured to be able to check four single wires (electric wires L) simultaneously, it may be configured to check only one single wire, or may be configured to be able to check five or more single wires simultaneously. Although the display unit 25 displays text information, other display formats are also possible. For example, the test results may be displayed by lighting up an LED or by using a different color. Furthermore, notification may be provided by outputting a sound. Furthermore, the signal sent from the parent device 2 is a PWM signal, but it is sufficient if the child device 3 can distinguish the signal, and for example, a PFM (Pulse Frequency Modulation) signal or a signal with a unique pulse pattern may be sent. [Explanation of symbols]

[0022] 1··Power checker, 2··Main unit, 3··Slave unit, 21··Signal generation unit, 22··Signal output unit, 23··Wireless receiving unit, 24··Determination unit, 25··Display unit (alarm unit), 31··Signal receiving unit (signal acquisition unit), 32··Signal calculation unit (signal discrimination unit), 33··Wireless transmission unit, L··Electric wire

Claims

1. The tester has a parent unit connected to one end of an electric wire to output a signal, and a child unit connected to the other end to receive the signal, The parent device has a signal generating unit and a signal output unit that generate the signal and send it to the electric wire, a wireless receiving unit that receives the wireless signal transmitted from the child device, a determining unit that determines the wiring connection of the electric wire based on the received information, and a notifying unit that notifies the determination result, the slave unit comprises a signal acquisition unit that acquires the signal sent from the master unit through the electric wire, a signal discrimination unit that discriminates the acquired signal, and a wireless transmission unit that wirelessly transmits the discrimination result to the master unit; Furthermore, the electrical conductivity checker is characterized in that the earthing parts of both are connected via the housing of the electrical equipment in which the electric wire to be inspected is arranged, or by using a separate electric wire.

2. The signal is a PWM signal, and the signal discriminator calculates a duty ratio of the PWM signal received from the electric wire and transmits the calculated duty ratio from the wireless transmitter.

2. The power checker according to claim 1, wherein the determining unit of the parent device determines wiring by comparing duty ratio information received from the child device with the duty ratio of the transmitted PWM signal.

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