Backboard circuit board, control unit

Abstract

This enables the simultaneous use of multiple communication buses with different bus standards. [Solution] The control device 100 comprises a backboard board 2, a system rack on which the backboard board 2 is mounted, control boards 43 and 44 inserted into slots of the system rack and connected to connectors located in those slots, a control board 46 inserted into a slot of the system rack and connected to connectors located in those slots, and conversion boards 45 inserted into slots of the system rack and connected to connectors located in those slots. The conversion board 45 has a bus conversion unit 51 that converts communication data according to bus standard A and communication data according to bus standard B to each other.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a backplane board used in a control device constituting a control system of a railway vehicle or the like, and a control device including the backplane board.

Background Art

[0002] Generally, a control device constituting a control system of a railway vehicle or the like is configured by mounting a plurality of control boards on a system rack having a backplane board and connecting between the control boards via the backplane board. For the connection between the control boards in such a control device, a communication bus conforming to an existing bus standard is often used. Therefore, in the design of the control board, it is necessary to consider which bus standard the backplane board of the control device corresponds to. Thus, using an existing bus standard in the backplane board of the control device has the advantage of enabling standardization of communication control between the control boards, but has the disadvantage of requiring a great deal of effort for changing the communication bus.

[0003] In the backplane board mounted on the control device, due to the above advantages and disadvantages, the conventional bus standard may continue to be used, and in that case, it becomes difficult to cope with an increase in the amount of communication data accompanying the sophistication of control. On the other hand, in order to adopt a new bus standard for the backplane board, it is necessary to make all the control boards compatible with that bus standard, so a large amount of development costs and development period are required.

[0004] Regarding the structure of a control device equipped with multiple control boards, for example, the technology described in Patent Document 1 is known. Patent Document 1 describes a control device comprising: a CPCIe switch board mounted in a slot of a 3U-sized CPCIe backboard compliant with the CPCIe standard, which transmits and receives PCIe bus signals with a board mounted in another slot; and a CPCI bridge board mounted in a slot of a 6U-sized CPCI backboard compliant with the CPCI standard, which transmits and receives PCI bus signals with a board mounted in another slot, and is connected to the CPCIe switch board via an external cable, which transmits and receives PCIe bus signals with the CPCIe switch board. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2010-26726 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0006] In the control device described in Patent Document 1, an external cable is required to connect the CPCIe switchboard and the CPCI bridgeboard, leaving room for further improvement in terms of ease of assembly and maintainability.

[0007] In view of the problems of the conventional technology described above, the object of the present invention is to realize a control device that can simultaneously use multiple communication buses with different bus standards. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The backboard substrate according to the present invention is mounted on a system rack constituting a control device and comprises a plurality of first connectors corresponding to a first bus standard and a plurality of second connectors corresponding to a second bus standard different from the first bus standard, wherein the system rack has a plurality of slots into which a control board that performs predetermined calculation processing is inserted, and at least one of the first connectors and at least one of the second connectors are mounted such that they are positioned in the same slot when mounted on the system rack. The control device according to the present invention comprises a backboard substrate, a system rack having a plurality of slots on which the backboard substrate is mounted, a first control board inserted into one of the plurality of slots and connected to the first connector located in the slot, a second control board inserted into one of the plurality of slots and connected to the second connector located in the slot, and a conversion board inserted into one of the plurality of slots and connected to the first connector and the second connector located in the slot, respectively, wherein the conversion board has a bus conversion unit that converts between first communication data according to the first bus standard and second communication data according to the second bus standard. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, a control device can be realized that can simultaneously use multiple communication buses with different bus standards.

[0010] Furthermore, any issues, configurations, and effects other than those mentioned above will be clarified by the following description of the embodiments. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] This figure shows an example of the configuration of a system rack according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This figure shows the structure of the backboard substrate in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3]This figure shows an example of a control device that consists of various control boards mounted in a system rack. [Figure 4] This is an explanatory diagram of the power supply method and data communication method in a control device. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of the configuration of a system rack according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] This figure shows the structure of the backboard substrate in a second embodiment of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0012] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The following description and drawings are illustrative for illustrating the present invention, and have been omitted and simplified as appropriate for clarity of explanation. The present invention can also be carried out in various other forms. Unless otherwise specified, each component may be singular or plural.

[0013] The positions, sizes, shapes, and ranges of the components shown in the drawings may not represent their actual positions, sizes, shapes, and ranges in order to facilitate understanding of the invention. Therefore, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the positions, sizes, shapes, and ranges disclosed in the drawings.

[0014] (First embodiment) Figure 1 shows an example of the configuration of a system rack according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The system rack 1 shown in Figure 1 is configured by mounting a backboard substrate 2 on a rack frame 3 and has slots 11, 12, 13 and 14 for inserting various substrates.

[0015] Slot 11 is a slot capable of mounting a control board of a predetermined size, for example, a 6U size board. On the backboard board 2, a connector 21 corresponding to a predetermined bus standard (hereinafter referred to as "bus standard A") is provided at the position corresponding to slot 11.

[0016] Slot 12 is a slot capable of mounting a control board of a predetermined size, for example, 3U size. On the backboard substrate 2, a connector 21 similar to the slot 11 is provided at a position corresponding to the slot 12.

[0017] Slot 13 is a slot capable of mounting a control board of a predetermined size, for example, 6U size. On the backboard substrate 2, at a position corresponding to the slot 13, a connector 21 similar to the slots 11 and 12 and a connector 22 corresponding to a bus standard different from the connector 21 (hereinafter referred to as "bus standard B") are provided.

[0018] Slot 14 is a slot capable of mounting a control board of a predetermined size, for example, 6U size. On the backboard substrate 2, a connector 22 similar to the slot 13 is provided at a position corresponding to the slot 14.

[0019] As described above, the system rack 1 is provided with slots 11 and 12 corresponding to the bus standard A and a slot 14 corresponding to another bus standard B. Also, in the slot 13, two types of bus standards (bus standards A and B) are mixed. Thereby, in the system rack 1 of the present embodiment, it is possible to use by combining control boards corresponding to different bus standards. This point will be described in detail later.

[0020] Note that for the connectors 21 and 22, those corresponding to bus standards such as VME (Versa Module Europe), PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect), and cPCI (compact PCI) can be used respectively.

[0021] Figure 1 shows an example of system rack 1 with one slot each of slots 11, 13, and 14, and four slots 12 in the upper and lower rows (a total of eight slots). However, the number of each slot is not limited to this. Any number of slots 11 to 14 can be provided. Also, both slots 11 and 12 are not necessarily required; either one may be provided. Furthermore, the size of slots 11 to 14 is not limited to the example above, and can be any size.

[0022] Furthermore, Figure 1 shows an example where one connector 21 or connector 22 is placed in each of the slots 11, 12, and 14, and one connector 21 and one connector 22 are placed in each of the slots 13. However, the number of connectors that can be placed in each slot is not limited to this. As long as the backboard board 2 has multiple connectors 21 and 22, and the backboard board 2 is mounted on the rack frame 3, at least one connector 21 or connector 22 is placed in the position corresponding to each of the slots 11, 12, and 14, and at least one connector 21 and at least one connector 22 are placed in the position corresponding to the same slot 13, any number of connectors 21 and 22 can be placed in each of the slots 11 to 14.

[0023] Figure 2 shows the structure of the backboard substrate 2 in the first embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the backboard substrate 2 is composed of a single substrate.

[0024] On the backboard board 2, connectors 21 and 22 are mounted in positions such that when the backboard board 2 is mounted on the rack frame 3 in Figure 1, the connectors 21 and 22 are arranged as described above in slots 11 to 14. In other words, the mounting positions of connectors 21 and 22 on the backboard board 2 are determined such that in slot 13, connectors 21 and 22 are located in the same slot, and in the other slots 11, 12, and 14, either the corresponding connector 21 or connector 22 is located in each slot.

[0025] Furthermore, the backboard circuit board 2 is provided with a communication bus 31 that connects each connector 21 to each other, and a communication bus 32 that connects each connector 22 to each other. Communication bus 31 is compatible with bus standard A, and communication bus 32 is compatible with bus standard B.

[0026] Furthermore, the backboard circuit board 2 has a power supply wiring pattern 33 arranged between each connector 21 and a power supply wiring pattern 34 arranged between each connector 22. The power supply wiring pattern 33 is a wiring pattern for supplying the power supply voltage used in bus standard A to the control board connected to each connector 21. The power supply wiring pattern 34 is a wiring pattern for supplying the power supply voltage used in bus standard B to the control board connected to each connector 22.

[0027] Figure 3 shows an example of a control device configured by mounting various control boards on a system rack 1. The control device 100 shown in Figure 3 is configured by inserting a power supply unit 41 into slot 11, a bus master board 42 and control boards 43 and 44 into slot 12, a conversion board 45 into slot 13, and a control board 46 into slot 14, in the system rack 1 described in Figure 1, and connecting these to connectors 21 and 22 corresponding to each slot. The control device 100 is used, for example, in a control system for railway vehicles, and is operated by being mounted on a railway vehicle or installed in a control center that controls the operation of railway vehicles.

[0028] The power supply unit 41 is the part that supplies power to each of the other control boards using power provided by an external power supply (not shown). The power supply unit 41 is connected to the connector 21 of slot 11, and supplies power to each of the connectors 21 of the other slots via this connector 21. Note that the power supply voltage supplied from the power supply unit 41 to each of the connectors 21 is compatible with bus standard A, but not with bus standard B. Therefore, power is supplied to connector 22 via a power supply voltage conversion unit 52 provided on the conversion board 45, as will be explained later.

[0029] The bus master board 42 controls communication between each control board. The bus master board 42 is connected to a connector 21 provided for a specific slot 12, and data communication is performed between the bus master board 42 and control boards 43 and 44, which are connected to connectors 21 in other slots, via the communication bus 31 shown in Figure 2, according to bus standard A. On the other hand, data communication is performed between the bus master board 42 and control board 46, which is connected to connector 22, via the bus conversion unit 51 provided on the conversion board 45, as will be explained later. This enables data communication between different bus standards.

[0030] The control boards 43 and 44 each perform various calculation processes to realize the functions of the control device 100. The control boards 43 and 44 are connected to the connectors 21 of slot 12 and operate using power supplied from the power supply unit 41. They then communicate data with other control boards in accordance with the communication control of the bus master board 42.

[0031] The conversion board 45 performs conversion processing of power supply voltage and communication data between bus standard A and bus standard B. The conversion board 45 is connected to both connectors 21 and 22, which are provided corresponding to slot 13. Details of the conversion board 45 will be described later.

[0032] The control board 46 performs various calculation processes to realize the functions of the control device 100. The control board 46 is connected to the connector 22 of slot 14 and operates using power supplied from the power supply unit 41. It then communicates data with other control boards in accordance with the communication control of the bus master board 42.

[0033] Figure 4 is an explanatory diagram of the power supply method and data communication method in the control device 100. In the control device 100, the conversion board 45 includes a bus conversion unit 51 that converts communication data between bus standard A and bus standard B, and a power voltage conversion unit 52 that converts the power supply voltage of bus standard A to a power supply voltage corresponding to bus standard B. In the conversion board 45, the bus conversion unit 51 and the power voltage conversion unit 52 are provided between the connection portion to connector 21 and the connection portion to connector 22, respectively. As a result, when the conversion board 45 is inserted into the slot 13 and connected to connectors 21 and 22, the bus conversion unit 51 is electrically connected to both communication buses 31 and 32, and the power voltage conversion unit 52 is electrically connected to both power supply wiring patterns 33 and 34.

[0034] The bus conversion unit 51 converts between communication data flowing on communication bus 31 according to bus standard A and communication data flowing on communication bus 32 according to bus standard B. This enables data communication between communication bus 31 and communication bus 32, allowing the bus master board 42 to control the communication of the control board 46.

[0035] The power supply voltage conversion unit 52 converts the power supply voltage according to bus standard A, supplied via the power supply wiring pattern 33, to a power supply voltage corresponding to bus standard B, and outputs it to the power supply wiring pattern 34. This allows power to be supplied from the power supply unit 41 to the control board 46 via the power supply wiring patterns 33 and 34. Therefore, the control device 100 can operate the control board 46 without installing a separate power supply unit for the control board 46.

[0036] According to the first embodiment of the present invention described above, the following effects are achieved.

[0037] (1) The backboard board 2 mounted on the system rack 1 that constitutes the control device 100 includes a plurality of connectors 21 corresponding to bus standard A (first bus standard) and a plurality of connectors 22 corresponding to bus standard B (second bus standard) which is different from bus standard A. The system rack 1 has slots 11 to 14 into which control boards that perform predetermined calculation processing are inserted. At least one of the connectors 21 and at least one of the connectors 22 are mounted on the backboard board 2 such that they are positioned in the same slot 13 when mounted on the system rack 1. In this way, a backboard board can be realized for use in the control device 100 that can simultaneously use multiple communication buses with different bus standards.

[0038] (2) The backboard board 2 is made up of a single board on which multiple connectors 21 and multiple connectors 22 are mounted, and includes a communication bus 31 that connects the connectors 21 in accordance with bus standard A, and a communication bus 32 that connects the connectors 22 in accordance with bus standard B. In this way, a backboard board 2 that supports bus standards A and B can be realized using a single board.

[0039] (3) The backboard substrate 2 includes a power supply wiring pattern 33 arranged between a plurality of connectors 21 and a power supply wiring pattern 34 arranged between a plurality of connectors 22. In this way, power can be supplied to each control board that is inserted into slots 11 to 14 and connected to connectors 21 and 22 via the power supply wiring patterns 33 and 34.

[0040] (4) The control device 100 comprises a backboard board 2, a system rack 1 having slots 11 to 14 on which the backboard board 2 is mounted, control boards 43 and 44 inserted into slot 12 and connected to connector 21 located in slot 12, control board 46 inserted into slot 14 and connected to connector 22 located in slot 14, and a conversion board 45 inserted into slot 13 and connected to connector 21 and connector 22 located in slot 13, respectively. The conversion board 45 has a bus conversion unit 51 that converts communication data according to bus standard A and communication data according to bus standard B to each other. In this way, a control device 100 can be realized that can use multiple communication buses with different bus standards simultaneously.

[0041] (5) The control device 100 further includes a power supply unit 41 inserted into slot 11 that supplies a power supply voltage corresponding to bus standard A to control boards 43, 44 and a conversion board 45 via a power supply wiring pattern 33. The conversion board 45 has a power supply voltage conversion unit 52 that converts the power supply voltage supplied via the power supply wiring pattern 33 to a power supply voltage corresponding to bus standard B and supplies it to the control board 46 via a power supply wiring pattern 34. In this way, power can be supplied from one power supply unit 41 to control boards 43, 44, and 46 corresponding to different bus standards, and these control boards can be operated.

[0042] (Second embodiment) Figure 5 shows an example of the configuration of a system rack according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The system rack 1A shown in Figure 5 has a backboard board 2 made up of two separate backboard boards 2A and 2B, and has slots 12, 13 and 14 and slot 15, similar to those described in the first embodiment. Slot 15 is a slot on which a control board of a predetermined size, for example, 3U size, can be mounted. On the backboard board 2B, a connector 22 similar to that of slot 14 is provided at the position corresponding to slot 15.

[0043] In this embodiment, the lower backboard board 2A has multiple connectors 21 mounted on it, but no connectors 22 are provided. That is, backboard board 2A is compatible only with bus standard A and not with bus standard B. On the other hand, the upper backboard board 2B has multiple connectors 22 mounted on it, but no connectors 21 are provided. That is, backboard board 2B is compatible only with bus standard B and not with bus standard A. Thus, in the system rack 1A of this embodiment, a backboard board 2 that can support multiple bus standards is configured by combining backboard boards 2A and 2B that are formed separately for each bus standard.

[0044] Figure 4 shows an example of system rack 1A with one slot each of slots 13 and 14, five slots 15 on the upper level, and five slots 12 on the lower level, but the number of each slot is not limited to this. Any number of slots 12 to 15 can be provided. Also, both slots 15 and 12 are not necessarily required; either one may be provided, or slot 11 as described in the first embodiment may be provided. Furthermore, the size of slots 12 to 15 is not limited to the example above, and can be any size.

[0045] Figure 4 shows an example where one connector 21 or connector 22 is placed in each of slots 12, 14, and 15, and one connector 21 and one connector 22 are placed in slot 13. However, the number of connectors that can be placed in each slot is not limited to this. As long as the backboard boards 2A and 2B each have multiple connectors 21 and 22, and when the backboard boards 2A and 2B are mounted on the rack frame 3, at least one connector 21 or connector 22 is placed in the position corresponding to slots 12, 14, and 15, and at least one connector 21 and at least one connector 22 are placed in the position corresponding to the same slot 13, any number of connectors 21 and 22 can be placed in each of slots 12 to 15.

[0046] Figure 6 shows the structure of backboard substrates 2A and 2B in a second embodiment of the present invention.

[0047] The backboard board 2A is provided with a communication bus 31 that connects each connector 21 to each other, and a power supply wiring pattern 33 arranged between each connector 21. On the other hand, the backboard board 2B is provided with a communication bus 32 that connects each connector 22 to each other, and a power supply wiring pattern 34 arranged between each connector 22. The communication buses 31 and 32 and the power supply wiring patterns 33 and 34 are the same as those described in the first embodiment. That is, the communication bus 31 corresponds to bus standard A, and the communication bus 32 corresponds to the second communication bus. The power supply wiring pattern 33 is a wiring pattern for supplying the power voltage used in bus standard A to the control board connected to each connector 21, and the power supply wiring pattern 34 is a wiring pattern for supplying the power voltage used in bus standard B to the control board connected to each connector 22.

[0048] The control device 100 shown in Figure 3 can also be configured using the system rack 1A of this embodiment instead of the system rack 1 described in the first embodiment. That is, the control device 100 can be configured by inserting the power supply unit 41 into either slot 12 or slot 15, inserting the bus master board 42 and control boards 43 and 44 into slot 12, the conversion board 45 into slot 13, and the control board 46 into slot 14, and connecting these to the connectors 21 and 22 installed corresponding to each slot. In this case as well, as described in the first embodiment, the bus conversion unit 51 of the conversion board 45 performs data conversion processing of communication data, enabling data communication between the communication bus 31 and the communication bus 32, and allowing the bus master board 42 to control the communication of the control board 46. In addition, the power supply voltage conversion processing performed by the power supply voltage conversion unit 52 of the conversion board 45 allows power to be supplied from the power supply unit 41 to each control board via the power supply wiring patterns 33 and 34, enabling each control board to operate.

[0049] According to the second embodiment of the present invention described above, the backboard substrate 2 includes a backboard substrate 2A on which a plurality of connectors 21 are mounted, and a backboard substrate 2B on which a plurality of connectors 22 are mounted. The backboard substrate 2A is equipped with a communication bus 31 that connects the connectors 21 to each other in accordance with bus standard A, and the backboard substrate 2B is equipped with a communication bus 32 that connects the connectors 22 to each other in accordance with bus standard B. In this way, by combining backboard substrates 2A and 2B that correspond to different bus standards, a backboard substrate 2 that corresponds to bus standards A and B can be realized.

[0050] Furthermore, backboard board 2A includes a power supply wiring pattern 33 arranged between multiple connectors 21, and backboard board 2B includes a power supply wiring pattern 34 arranged between multiple connectors 22. In this way, power can be supplied to each control board inserted into slots 12 to 15 and connected to connectors 21 and 22 via the power supply wiring patterns 33 and 34.

[0051] In the embodiments described above, examples of application to a control device 100 used in control systems such as train control systems were explained, but the present invention can also be applied to industrial systems other than railway systems with a similar configuration.

[0052] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are included. For example, each of the embodiments described above is explained in detail to make the present invention easier to understand, and is not necessarily limited to having all of the described configurations. Furthermore, it is possible to replace parts of the configuration of one embodiment with the configuration of another embodiment, and it is also possible to add configurations from other embodiments to the configuration of one embodiment. In addition, it is possible to add, delete, or replace parts of the configuration of each embodiment with other configurations.

[0053] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0054] 1.1A System Rack 2,2A,2B Backboard Circuit Board 3 Rack Frames Slots 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 21,22 Connectors 31,32 Communications Bus 33,34 Power supply wiring pattern 41 Power supply unit 42 Bus Master Board 43, 44, 46 Control board 45 Conversion board 51 Bus conversion section 52 Power supply voltage conversion section

Claims

1. A backboard circuit board mounted on a system rack that constitutes a control device, Multiple first connectors corresponding to the first bus standard, It comprises a plurality of second connectors, each corresponding to a second bus standard different from the first bus standard, The system rack has multiple slots into which control boards that perform predetermined calculation processing are inserted. At least one of the first connectors and at least one of the second connectors are mounted such that they are positioned in the same slot when mounted in the system rack. Backboard circuit board.

2. A backboard substrate according to claim 1, The backboard substrate is composed of a single substrate on which multiple first connectors and multiple second connectors are mounted. A first communication bus that connects the first connectors to each other in accordance with the first bus standard, A second communication bus that connects the second connectors in accordance with the second bus standard, Backboard circuit board.

3. The backboard substrate according to claim 2, A first power supply wiring pattern is arranged between a plurality of the first connectors, A second power supply wiring pattern is provided between a plurality of the second connectors, Backboard circuit board.

4. A backboard substrate according to claim 1, The backboard substrate comprises a first backboard substrate on which a plurality of the first connectors are mounted, and a second backboard substrate on which a plurality of the second connectors are mounted. The first backboard substrate includes a first communication bus that connects the first connectors to each other in accordance with the first bus standard, The second backboard substrate includes a second communication bus that connects the second connectors to each other in accordance with the second bus standard. Backboard circuit board.

5. The backboard substrate according to claim 4, The first backboard substrate includes a first power supply wiring pattern arranged between a plurality of the first connectors, The second backboard substrate includes a second power supply wiring pattern arranged between a plurality of the second connectors. Backboard circuit board.

6. A backboard substrate according to any one of claims 1 to 5, A system rack having multiple slots and equipped with the backboard circuit board, A first control board is inserted into one of the plurality of slots and connected to the first connector located in that slot, A second control board is inserted into one of the plurality of slots and connected to the second connector located in that slot, The system includes a conversion board that is inserted into one of the plurality of slots and connected to the first connector and the second connector, respectively, located in the said slot, The conversion board has a bus conversion unit that converts between first communication data according to the first bus standard and second communication data according to the second bus standard. Control device.

7. A backboard substrate according to claim 3 or claim 5, A system rack having multiple slots and equipped with the backboard circuit board, A first control board is inserted into one of the plurality of slots and connected to the first connector located in that slot, A second control board is inserted into one of the plurality of slots and connected to the second connector located in that slot, A conversion board is inserted into one of the plurality of slots and connected to the first connector and the second connector located in that slot, respectively. The system includes a power supply unit that is inserted into one of the plurality of slots and supplies a first power supply voltage corresponding to the first bus standard to the first control board and the conversion board via the first power supply wiring pattern, The conversion board has a power voltage conversion unit that converts the first power voltage supplied via the first power supply wiring pattern into a second power voltage corresponding to the second bus standard, and supplies it to the second control board via the second power supply wiring pattern. Control device.

8. A control device according to claim 7, The conversion board has a bus conversion unit that converts between first communication data according to the first bus standard and second communication data according to the second bus standard. Control device.

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