Identification method, substrate inspection method, inspection system, inspection device, air conditioning related unit, and substrate

Abstract

When inspecting circuit boards in an air conditioning unit equipped with multiple circuit boards using high-frequency signals, it can be difficult to identify the circuit board identifier of the board being inspected if the identifiers assigned to each board are random, or if it is not possible to shut off the power to boards other than the one being inspected. [Solution] A low-frequency signal is transmitted to cause a specific value to be set in the internal variable of one of several circuit boards mounted in an air conditioning unit, each having a circuit board identifier and an internal variable. A high-frequency signal is transmitted to the circuit board identifier of each circuit board to request the value of the internal variable. Based on the value of the internal variable returned from each circuit board in response to the transmission of the high-frequency signal, a computer performs a process to identify the circuit board identifier of the circuit board in which the specific value has been set in the internal variable.

Description

Technical Field

[0006] , , , ,

[0001] This disclosure relates to a specific method, a substrate inspection method, an inspection system, an inspection device, an air-conditioning related unit, and a substrate.

Background Art

[0002] Using an inspection device, the functions of a plurality of substrates are inspected (Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, when inspecting a substrate in an air-conditioning related unit having a plurality of substrates using a high-frequency signal, if the substrate identifiers assigned to each substrate are random, or if it is not possible to turn off the power supply of substrates other than the substrate to be inspected, etc., it is difficult to identify the substrate identifier of the substrate to be inspected.

[0005] An object of this disclosure is to provide a specific method using a high-frequency signal and the like. ""

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] In one aspect of this disclosure, a low-frequency signal for setting a specific value in the internal variable of any one of a plurality of substrates mounted in an air-conditioning related unit, each having a substrate identifier and an internal variable, is transmitted, a high-frequency signal for requesting the value of the internal variable with the substrate identifier of each substrate as the destination is transmitted, and based on the value of the internal variable returned from each substrate in response to the transmission of the high-frequency signal, a process of identifying the substrate identifier of the substrate in which the specific value is set in the internal variable is executed by a computer.

Effects of the Invention

[0007] According to this disclosure, a substrate identifier of a target substrate can be identified using a high-frequency signal. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is an explanatory diagram showing the system's overview. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram showing the internal structure of a circuit board. [Figure 3] This is a block diagram showing the internal structure of the checker. [Figure 4] This is an explanatory diagram of the circuit board identifier data recorded in the memory unit. [Figure 5] This is a sequence diagram of the specific method. [Figure 6] This is an explanatory diagram showing the correspondence between substrate identifiers and internal variables. [Figure 7] This is an explanatory diagram showing the correspondence between substrate identifiers and internal variables. [Figure 8] This is a flowchart explaining the operation of the checker. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The identification method, substrate inspection method, inspection system, inspection apparatus, air conditioning-related unit, and substrate according to the embodiments of this disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. This disclosure is not limited to these examples, but is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims, as indicated by the claims. Furthermore, at least some of the embodiments described below may be combined in any way.

[0010] Figure 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an overview of the system. The system of this embodiment includes an air conditioning-related unit 100 which includes multiple substrates, namely substrate 1A, substrate 1B, and substrate 1C, and a checker 2 which is a substrate inspection device that transmits and receives signals. The checker 2 is detachably connected to one of the substrates, substrate 1A, substrate 1B, or substrate 1C, by a communication line 3 which is a physical wiring. Substrates 1A, substrate 1B, and substrate 1C are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate via an inter-substrate communication line 10.

[0011] An example of an air conditioning unit 100 is a refrigerant flow path switching device for an air conditioner. An air conditioner consists of one outdoor unit and multiple indoor units connected via a refrigerant flow path switching device. The air conditioner can switch between cooling and heating operation for each indoor unit using the refrigerant flow path switching device. The air conditioning unit 100 has a circuit board for each indoor unit and performs switching control between cooling and heating operation, or monitoring the status of the indoor unit. The refrigerant flow path switching device has a relatively small rectangular prism-shaped housing that houses a large number (e.g., 16) circuit boards for the indoor units. The size of the housing is, for example, 30 cm × 30 cm × 100 cm.

[0012] For simplicity, Figure 1 illustrates a configuration in which the air conditioning unit 100 includes circuit boards 1A, 1B, and 1C. Note that the number of circuit boards included in the air conditioning unit 100 is not limited to three.

[0013] Substrates 1A, 1B, and 1C are components of the air conditioning unit 100 and are semiconductor substrates, such as silicon wafers or compound semiconductor wafers, on which multiple electronic circuits are formed. In this embodiment, substrates 1A, 1B, and 1C correspond to one of a plurality of indoor units connected to the air conditioning unit 100. Substrates 1A, 1B, and 1C perform processing related to the air conditioning function of the corresponding indoor unit, such as processing related to the control of motors and other various actuators.

[0014] Hereinafter, when there is no need to distinguish between substrate 1A, substrate 1B, or substrate 1C, it is denoted as "substrate 1". FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of substrate 1. Substrate 1 has a control unit 11, a communication unit 12, and connection terminals 13.

[0015] The control unit 11 includes an arithmetic processing device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a storage device having a memory element such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) or a ROM (Read Only Memory). The control unit 11 responds to a request from the checker 2 received by the communication unit 12 and returns necessary information to the checker 2 via the communication unit 12.

[0016] The control unit 11 has internal variables in its storage device. In this embodiment, the internal variable is an internal flag, but other variables may be used. Also, in the initial state, the internal flag is 0, but it is assumed that the internal flag changes to 1 by receiving a low-frequency signal described later.

[0017] The communication unit 12 receives a low-frequency signal and a high-frequency signal transmitted from the checker 2 and outputs the received signals to the control unit 11. The communication unit 12 also acquires information output from the control unit 11, converts it into communication information, and transmits it to the checker 2.

[0018] The connection terminal 13 is a terminal for connecting the checker 2 via the communication line 3. The connection terminal 13 is connected to the communication unit 12 and outputs the signal transmitted from the checker 2 to the communication unit 12. Note that the connection terminal 13 may be integrated with the communication unit 12.

[0019] The substrates 1 have different substrate identifiers. The substrate identifier in this embodiment is a MAC (Media Access Control) address, but the substrate identifier is not limited to the MAC address as long as it can identify each substrate.

[0020] Figure 3 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of Checker 2. Checker 2 is an inspection device having functions for transmitting and receiving various signals, information processing, and information display, and is, for example, a computer capable of transmitting and receiving various signals. Checker 2 includes a control unit 21, a communication unit 22, a storage unit 23, a display unit 24, and an operation unit 25.

[0021] The control unit 21 includes an arithmetic processing unit such as a CPU. The control unit 21 performs commands to transmit various signals, process received information, and display information.

[0022] The communication unit 22 is a communication module that transmits and receives low-frequency or high-frequency signals. The communication unit 22 can communicate using two types of protocols, for example, HD-PLC (High Definition Power Line Communication) and RS-485. HD-PLC is an example of communication using high-frequency signals, while RS-485 is an example of communication using low-frequency signals.

[0023] The communication unit 22 transmits a low-frequency signal or a high-frequency signal to the circuit board 1 connected by the communication line 3, in accordance with the command of the control unit 21. The communication unit 22 also receives a signal output from the communication unit 12 of the circuit board 1 and outputs the received signal to the control unit 21.

[0024] In this embodiment, when a high-frequency signal is transmitted from the checker 2 to one circuit board 1, the high-frequency signal is assumed to propagate to other circuit boards 1 inside the housing through crosstalk via the communication lines connecting each circuit board 1. Generally, it is known that crosstalk is likely to occur when signals of 100 kHz or higher are used. In this embodiment, a MHz-level signal is used as the high-frequency signal.

[0025] In this embodiment, "low frequency" refers to a wave with a frequency that does not cause crosstalk under the aforementioned conditions. A frequency below 100 kHz is preferable, but frequencies above 100 kHz may be used as long as they do not cause crosstalk.

[0026] In this embodiment, the high-frequency signal and the low-frequency signal consist of a header containing destination and source identifiers, and a payload containing commands.

[0027] The storage unit 23 includes memory elements such as RAM or ROM and stores the board identifiers of each board 1 included in the air conditioning unit 100. It also stores control programs or data necessary for the control unit 21 to execute processing. In addition, the storage unit 23 temporarily stores data necessary for the control unit 21 to execute arithmetic processing.

[0028] The display unit 24 is an information display device such as a monitor, and displays various information transmitted from the control unit 21 in a way that the user can visually understand.

[0029] The control unit 25 is the control unit for checker 2. By operating the control unit 25, the user can input various commands, switch signals, transmit various signals, or specify the destination of signals. Alternatively, an external monitor or computer may be used as the display unit 24 and the control unit 25.

[0030] Next, the identification method in this embodiment will be described. The following description will focus on the case where the purpose is to inspect all circuit boards 1 included in the air conditioning unit 100.

[0031] Figure 4 is an explanatory diagram of the substrate identifier data stored in the memory unit 23. The left column lists the name of the checker or substrate. The right column lists the MAC address used as the substrate identifier.

[0032] If the air conditioning unit 100 is assembled while recording the correspondence between each circuit board 1 and its circuit board identifier, the number of man-hours required for assembly will increase. Therefore, the air conditioning unit 100 is assembled without knowing the correspondence between each circuit board 1 and its circuit board identifier. Accordingly, as shown in Figure 4, the storage unit 23 stores information on all the circuit boards 1 included in the air conditioning unit 100, as well as information on all the circuit board identifiers, but it does not store the correspondence between each circuit board 1 and its circuit board identifier.

[0033] Figure 5 is a sequence diagram of the identification method. The following description will explain the case where checker 2 is connected to board 1B via communication line 3.

[0034] First, checker 2 receives a command to send a low-frequency signal containing the command "set the internal flag to 1" to board 1B connected to checker 2 via communication line 3. Upon receiving the command, checker 2 transmits the low-frequency signal (step S1). The low-frequency signal emitted from the communication unit 22 of checker 2 is received by the communication unit 12 of board 1B and output to the control unit 11 of board 1B. Since the low-frequency signal does not cause crosstalk, the low-frequency signal is not received by boards 1 other than board 1B, and only the internal flag of board 1B changes from 0 to 1 (step S2). At this time, the internal flags of boards 1A and 1C, which have not received the low-frequency signal, remain at 0.

[0035] Next, checker 2 receives a command to send a high-frequency signal containing the command "Send the current internal flag" to the board identifiers of boards 1A, 1B, and 1C. Upon receiving the command, checker 2 transmits the high-frequency signal (step S3). The high-frequency signal transmitted from communication unit 22 causes crosstalk. Therefore, the high-frequency signal is received not only by board 1B, which is connected to checker 2 via communication line 3, but also by all other boards 1 in the air conditioning unit 100, namely boards 1A and 1C.

[0036] The high-frequency signals received by each board 1 are output to the control unit 11 of each board 1. A signal indicating that the internal flag is "1" is transmitted from board 1B, and signals indicating that the internal flag is "0" are transmitted from boards 1A and 1C to the checker 2 via the communication unit 12 (step S4). The communication unit 22 receives these signals transmitted from each board 1.

[0037] The board identifier is used as the source information for the internal flags. Figure 5 shows an example where checker 2 receives information indicating that "the internal flag for board identifier 00:00:10 is 0", "the internal flag for board identifier 00:00:15 is 1", and "the internal flag for 00:00:20 is 0".

[0038] Figure 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the correspondence between board identifiers and internal variables. Checker 2, which receives this information transmitted from each board 1, automatically displays the correspondence between each internal flag contained in the received information and its source information, the board identifier, on the display unit 24 in the manner shown in Figure 6. By checking this display, the user can recognize that the board identifier of board 1B to which the communication line 3 is connected is 00:00:15.

[0039] Next, checker 2 receives a command specifying the board identifier 00:00:15. Furthermore, checker 2 receives a command to transmit an inspection signal, which is a high-frequency signal containing an inspection command, to board 1B having the specified board identifier. Upon receiving the command, checker 2 transmits the inspection signal and performs an inspection of the board (step S5). An inspection command is a command that includes requests such as sensor temperature or the on / off status of a switch. In addition, motor test control may be performed from the inspection command.

[0040] Upon receiving the inspection signal, the circuit board 1B transmits various information related to the inspection, such as the sensor temperature or the on / off status of the switch, to the checker 2, which receives the information (step S6). The checker 2 may also automatically display the received information on the display unit 24.

[0041] When checker 2 receives the information related to the inspection, it is considered that the inspection of board 1B, which has board identifier 00:00:15, is complete. If there are no uninspected boards 1, the entire inspection is complete. If there are uninspected boards 1, the user switches the communication line 3 from board 1B to the next board 1, for example, board 1C.

[0042] The following describes the case where the board identifier of board 1C is 00:00:20. After the communication line 3 is reconnected to board 1C, checker 2 and each board 1 operate similarly from step S1 to step S4.

[0043] Figure 7 is an explanatory diagram showing the correspondence between board identifiers and internal variables. In this embodiment, the internal flag that has changed to 1 will not return to 0 until all inspections are completed. Therefore, after the communication line 3 is reconnected to board 1C and steps S1 to S4 are completed, the display unit 24 will show, as in Figure 7, that the internal flags of board identifiers 00:00:15 and 00:00:20 are 1. By confirming this display, the user can recognize that the board identifier of board 1C to which the communication line 3 is connected is 00:00:20, whose internal flag has now become 1.

[0044] Next, checker 2 receives a command specifying the board identifier 00:00:20. Furthermore, checker 2 receives a command to transmit an inspection signal, which is a high-frequency signal containing an inspection command, to board 1C having the specified board identifier. Upon receiving the command, checker 2 transmits the inspection signal (step S5). Board 1C, having received the inspection signal, transmits various information related to the inspection to checker 2, and checker 2 receives this information (step S6) and displays the received information on the display unit 24. Once checker 2 has received the information related to the inspection, the inspection of board 1C is considered complete.

[0045] In this embodiment, the air conditioning unit 100 includes three circuit boards 1: circuit board 1A, circuit board 1B, and circuit board 1C. The list of circuit board identifiers for circuit board 1 is known before the start of the inspection. Therefore, when the circuit board identifiers for circuit board 1B and circuit board 1C are identified as 00:00:15 and 00:00:20, respectively, the circuit board identifier for circuit board 1A is naturally identified as 00:00:10. Accordingly, the user reconnects the communication line 3 to the uninspected circuit board 1A, the checker 2 sends an inspection signal to circuit board identifier 00:00:10 (step S5), and the checker 2 receives the inspection result (step S6), thus completing the inspection of circuit board 1A. With this, the inspection of all circuit boards 1 in the air conditioning unit 100 is completed, and the entire inspection is finished.

[0046] In this embodiment, once the communication line 3 is reconnected and the second internal flag information acquisition operation is completed, the board identifier of the board 1 to which the communication line 3 is connected is identified, and at the same time, the board identifier of the board 1 to which the communication line 3 is not connected is also automatically determined. That is, if the air conditioning-related unit 100 contains N boards 1, the board identifiers of all N boards 1 are identified by performing (N-1) internal flag information acquisition operations and (N-2) communication line 3 reconnections.

[0047] In this embodiment, an example is shown in which a high-frequency signal is transmitted by the user operating the operation unit 25 after the low-frequency signal has been transmitted (step S1) (step S3). However, the system may be configured to automatically transmit the high-frequency signal after the low-frequency signal has been transmitted.

[0048] The purpose of the inspection may not be to inspect all circuit boards 1 within the air conditioning unit 100, but rather to inspect a circuit board 1 having a specific circuit board identifier. In this case, if the internal flag of the target circuit board identifier changes to 1 after the completion of step S4, steps S5 and S6 are performed to terminate the inspection. However, if the internal flag of the target circuit board identifier does not change to 1 after the completion of step S4, the communication line 3 is reconnected without performing step S5, and steps S1 to S4 are performed again. In other words, the reconnection of the communication line 3 and the execution of steps S1 to S4 are repeated until the internal flag of the target circuit board identifier changes to 1, and once the internal flag of the target circuit board identifier changes to 1, steps S5 and S6 are performed.

[0049] Next, the operation of checker 2 in this embodiment will be described. Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of checker 2. The communication line 3 is connected to board 1B, and the board identifier of board 1B is 00:00:15. Furthermore, the acceptance of various command inputs, the acceptance of commands for transmitting various signals, the acceptance of commands for switching various signals, and the acceptance of commands for specifying the board identifier are assumed to be inputs to checker 2 via the operation of the operation unit 25 by the user.

[0050] First, checker 2 receives an input command to "set the internal flag to 1" for the low-frequency signal payload (step S801). Next, checker 2 receives a command to send a low-frequency signal containing the command to "set the internal flag to 1" to board 1B, and transmits the low-frequency signal (step S802). Upon receiving the low-frequency signal, the internal flag of board 1B is changed from 0 to 1.

[0051] After the internal flag is changed, checker 2 receives a command to switch from a low-frequency signal to a high-frequency signal and performs the switch (step S803). Next, checker 2 receives input of a command to "transmit the current internal flag" to the payload of the high-frequency signal (step S804). Furthermore, checker 2 receives a command to send a high-frequency signal containing the command to "transmit the current internal flag" to the board identifiers of all boards 1A, 1B, and 1C, and transmits the high-frequency signal (step S805). The high-frequency signal is received by all boards 1 in the air conditioning unit 100 due to crosstalk.

[0052] When a high-frequency signal is received by each board 1, each board 1 transmits a signal containing information about its own internal flag to the checker 2, and the checker 2 receives the signal (step S806). After the checker 2 receives the signal, the checker 2 automatically displays the correspondence information between each internal flag and the board identifier, which is the source information, on the display unit 24 in the manner shown in Figure 6 (step S807).

[0053] Checker 2 receives a command specifying board identifier 00:00:15, whose internal flag is 1 (step S808). Next, Checker 2 receives input of an inspection command to a high-frequency signal payload (step S809), receives a command to send an inspection signal, which is a high-frequency signal containing the inspection command, to the specified board identifier, and sends the inspection signal (step S810). Board 1B having board identifier 00:00:15, which has received the inspection signal, sends various information related to the inspection to Checker 2, and Checker 2 receives this information (step S811).

[0054] The inspection of board 1B is completed when checker 2 receives various information related to the inspection. If there are no uninspected boards 1 (step S812; NO and step S813; NO), the entire inspection is completed.

[0055] If the number of uninspected boards 1 is 1 (step S812; NO and step S813; YES), communication line 3 is reconnected to uninspected board 1. Since the board identifier of uninspected board 1 is automatically determined when the number of uninspected boards 1 is 1, checker 2 accepts a command to specify the board identifier of uninspected board 1 (step 808). Checker 2 then performs the predetermined operations from step S809 onward to complete the inspection of all boards.

[0056] If there are two or more uninspected circuit boards 1 (step S812; YES), the communication line 3 is reconnected to the next circuit board 1, and the checker 2 receives a command to switch from a high-frequency signal to a low-frequency signal and performs the switch (step S814). After that, the checker 2 performs the predetermined operations from step S801 onwards and completes the inspection of all circuit boards.

[0057] In this embodiment, an example using a high-frequency signal as the inspection signal is shown (step S5), but a low-frequency signal may also be used as the inspection signal. When a low-frequency signal is used as the inspection signal, step S808 becomes "switching to a low-frequency signal" instead of "specifying the board identifier". Also, when a low-frequency signal is used as the inspection signal, step S814 can be omitted.

[0058] In this embodiment, the checker 2 is shown to accept command input each time (steps S801, S804, S809), but the checker 2 may automatically input commands as the steps progress. Also in this embodiment, the checker 2 is shown to accept the specification of the board identifier to which the inspection signal is to be sent each time (step S808), but the checker 2 may automatically specify the board identifier whose internal flag has newly become 1.

[0059] By performing the above operations, the substrate identifier of the target substrate can be identified using a high-frequency signal.

[0060] The method disclosed in this embodiment is intended to be performed during pre-shipment inspections of air conditioning units, but it may also be performed in other situations, such as inspecting air conditioning units that have malfunctioned due to user use. Furthermore, while the air conditioning unit according to this embodiment is intended to be used as a heating / cooling switching unit for a refrigerant flow path switching device, it may have other uses. The air conditioning unit according to this embodiment is intended to be applied to large-scale air conditioning systems for commercial facilities, or to air conditioning systems equipped with a dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS), but it may also be applied to other air conditioning systems. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0061] 1: Circuit board, 2: Checker, 3: Communication line, 10: Inter-board communication line, 11: Control unit, 12: Communication unit, 13: Connection terminal, 21: Control unit, 22: Communication unit, 23: Memory unit, 24: Display unit, 25: Operation unit, 100: Air conditioning related unit

Claims

1. A low-frequency signal is transmitted to set a specific value in the internal variable of one of several circuit boards mounted in an air conditioning unit, each having a circuit board identifier and internal variables. A high-frequency signal is sent to the board identifier of each board, requesting the value of an internal variable. Based on the values ​​of internal variables returned from each board in response to the transmission of the aforementioned high-frequency signal, the board identifier of the board for which the specific value is set as an internal variable is identified. A specific method for executing a process using a computer.

2. The low-frequency signal is transmitted to the aforementioned substrate via physical wiring. The identification method according to claim 1.

3. The aforementioned high-frequency signal propagates to all circuit boards mounted on the air conditioning unit due to crosstalk. The identification method according to claim 1.

4. The computer includes a storage unit that stores the board identifiers of all boards mounted on the air conditioning unit. The identification method according to claim 1.

5. The low-frequency signal is transmitted from the first board, whose board identifier has been identified, to the second board, whose physical wiring has been reconnected. A high-frequency signal is sent to the board identifier of each board, requesting the value of an internal variable. Based on the values ​​of internal variables returned from each board in response to the transmission of the aforementioned high-frequency signal, the board identifier of the second board, for which the specific value is set as an internal variable, is identified. The process is executed by a computer. The identification method according to claim 1.

6. A high-frequency signal for inspection is transmitted to a substrate whose substrate identifier has been identified by the identification method described in any one of claims 1 to 5. A circuit board inspection method in which processing is performed by computer.

7. In an inspection system including an air conditioning unit equipped with a plurality of circuit boards, each having a circuit board identifier and an internal variable, and an inspection device for inspecting the plurality of circuit boards, The inspection device, A low-frequency signal is transmitted to cause a specific value to be set in the internal variable of any one of the aforementioned multiple boards. A high-frequency signal is sent to the board identifier of each board, requesting the value of an internal variable. Based on the values ​​of the internal variables returned from each board in response to the transmission of the aforementioned high-frequency signal, the board identifier of the board for which the specific value is set as an internal variable is identified. A high-frequency signal for testing is transmitted to the substrate whose substrate identifier has been identified. Inspection system.

8. A low-frequency signal is transmitted to set a specific value in the internal variable of one of several circuit boards mounted in an air conditioning unit, each having a circuit board identifier and internal variables. A high-frequency signal is sent to the board identifier of each board, requesting the value of an internal variable. Based on the values ​​of the internal variables returned from each board in response to the transmission of the aforementioned high-frequency signal, the board identifier of the board for which the specific value is set as an internal variable is identified. A high-frequency signal for testing is transmitted to the substrate whose substrate identifier has been identified. An inspection device equipped with a control unit.

9. In an air conditioning-related unit comprising multiple circuit boards, each having a circuit board identifier and internal variables, A low-frequency signal is received by one of the multiple boards to set a specific value for an internal variable. In response to the reception of the low-frequency signal, one of the boards sets an internal variable to the specific value. Each board receives a high-frequency signal addressed to its board identifier, requesting the value of an internal variable. In response to the reception of the aforementioned high-frequency signal, each board returns the value of an internal variable. Air conditioning-related units.

10. A circuit board having a circuit board identifier and internal variables, which is mounted in an air conditioning-related unit together with other circuit boards, When a low-frequency signal is received that causes an internal variable to set a specific value, the specific value is set to the internal variable. When a high-frequency signal is received that requests the value of an internal variable and is addressed to the board identifier of each board, the system will return a specific value set by the low-frequency signal. A circuit board equipped with a control unit.

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