Contactor Type Identification Through Electrical Switching Signatures
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increasing number of contactor devices in vehicles poses a significant risk of tampering, leading to safety hazards and performance degradation due to counterfeit or modified parts, making it difficult to identify the type of contactor device accurately.
Innovation Solution
A computer system with processing circuitry is configured to provide control signals to contactor devices, obtain properties through time series analysis, and compare them to baseline properties to identify the type of contactor device, ensuring safe operating conditions and accurate assessment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the number of contactor devices is increased to meet vehicle electrical system requirements, then the vehicle's electrical functionality is improved, but the risk of tampering and counterfeit devices increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary identification of contactor devices by analyzing their electrical characteristics and comparing them against stored reference data. This proactive approach allows the vehicle control unit to detect counterfeit or tampered devices before they cause safety issues, rather than waiting for failures to occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors contactor device characteristics and provides feedback to the control unit. When deviations from expected characteristics are detected, the system can alert operators or prevent operation, creating a closed-loop safety mechanism that responds to potential tampering in real-time.
2Ease of manufacture
If contactor devices are replaced or modified by third parties, then cost reduction or availability is improved, but safety and performance are degraded
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies preliminary anti-action by preemptively detecting counterfeit or non-compliant contactor devices through characteristic analysis. By identifying unauthorized replacements before they compromise safety, the system neutralizes the harmful effect of third-party modifications without requiring physical inspection or intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces physical inspection methods with electrical characteristic analysis. Instead of mechanically examining contactor devices for authenticity, the system uses electrical measurements and signal analysis to identify counterfeit devices, providing a non-intrusive and automated detection mechanism.
3Ease of operation
If traditional identification methods are used, then device replacement is simplified, but accurate type identification becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the identification parameters from physical characteristics (which are easy to copy but hard to measure accurately) to electrical characteristics (which are difficult to replicate in counterfeit devices). By measuring electrical parameters such as resistance, inductance, and switching behavior, the system achieves precise type identification that is resistant to counterfeiting.
Data Source
AI summary
A computer system including processing circuitry configured to provide a control signal to a contactor device control circuit including a contactor, the contactor device control circuit being configured to carry out a state switch in response to receiving said control signal; receive a control signal response from the contactor device control circuit in response to said state switch; obtain one or more contactor device properties based on the control signal response to the control signal; compare the one or more contactor device properties to baseline contactor device properties, the baseline contactor device properties being indicative of one or more predefined contactor device types; and based on said comparison, identify whether a type of said contactor corresponds to said one or more predefined contactor device types.