Device outage detector including a current detector and a voltage detector

• US 10,502,772 B2
• Filed: 07/21/2017
• Issued: 12/10/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Grote Industries LLC (Grote Industries Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Grote Industries LLC (Grote Industries Incorporated)
• Inventors: Slade, Adam Broadbent
• Primary Examiner(s): Patidar, Jay
• Application Number:
  US15/655,987
• Publication Number:
  US 20180059161A1
• Time in Patent Office: 872 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/00 Arrangement of optical signalling or lighting devices, the mounting or supporting thereof or circuits therefor for lighting vehicle interior B60Q3/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/305 Indicating devices for towed vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 11/00 Arrangement of monitoring devices for devices provided for in groups B60Q1/00 - B60Q9/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 11/005 for lighting devices, e.g. indicating if lamps are burning or not
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/0207 Wire harnesses
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/006 on road vehicles, e.g. automobiles or trucks testing of ignition installations peculiar to internal combustion engines F02P17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/44 Testing lamps
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/08 Registering or indicating performance data other than driving, working, idle, or waiting time, with or without registering driving, working, idle or waiting time
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/10 Controlling the intensity of the light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/58 involving end of life detection of LEDs

Abstract

A device outage detector, comprising: a microcontroller; a plurality of shunt resistors, each connected to at least one of a plurality of vehicle elements; a current sensor configured to measure a plurality of instantaneous currents passing through the plurality of shunt resistors, respectively; and a voltage sensor configured to measure a plurality of instantaneous voltages across the plurality of shunt resistors, respectively, wherein the microcontroller is configured to issue a warning for a given shunt resistor if its corresponding instantaneous current is below the first threshold value and its instantaneous voltage is zero, or if its corresponding instantaneous current is above a second threshold value.

Claims

1. A device outage detector, comprising:

a microcontroller;

a plurality of shunt resistors, each connected to at least one of a plurality of vehicle elements;

a current sensor configured to measure a plurality of instantaneous currents passing through the plurality of shunt resistors, respectively, and configured to generate a plurality of instantaneous current values; and

a voltage sensor, separate from the current sensor, configured to measure a plurality of instantaneous voltages across the plurality of shunt resistors, respectively, and configured to generate a plurality of instantaneous voltage values different from the plurality of instantaneous current values,

wherein

the microcontroller is configured to issue a warning for a given shunt resistor if its corresponding instantaneous current is below a first threshold value and its instantaneous voltage is zero, and

the microcontroller is configured to issue a warning for the given shunt resistor if its corresponding instantaneous current is above a second threshold value.

2. The device outage detector of claim 1, wherein the vehicle elements are lights.

3. The device outage detector of claim 1, wherein each shunt resistor is connected to one of a plurality of branches of a wiring harness leading to at least one of the plurality of vehicle elements.

4. The device outage detector of claim 1, wherein the voltage sensor is a voltage divider.

5. The device outage detector of claim 1, wherein the microcontroller is configured to determine whether the instantaneous voltage of the given shunt resistor is zero after determining whether the instantaneous current of the given shunt resistor is below the first threshold value.

6. A device outage detector, comprising:

a microcontroller;

a plurality of shunt resistors, each connected to at least one of a plurality of vehicle elements;

a current sensor configured to measure a plurality of instantaneous currents passing through the plurality of shunt resistors, respectively; and

a voltage sensor configured to measure a plurality of instantaneous voltages across the plurality of shunt resistors, respectively,

wherein

the microcontroller is configured to issue a warning for a given shunt resistor if its corresponding instantaneous current is below a first threshold value and its instantaneous voltage is zero,

the microcontroller is configured to issue a warning for the given shunt resistor if its corresponding instantaneous current is above a second threshold value, and

the first threshold value is equal to a moving average current minus an adjustment value.

7. The device outage detector of claim 6, wherein the adjustment value varies with each shunt resistor.

8. The device outage detector of claim 6, wherein the adjustment value is less than a current draw of the least demanding vehicle element associated with the shunt resistor.

9. The device outage detector of claim 6, wherein the microcontroller is configured to determine whether the instantaneous voltage of the given shunt resistor is zero after determining whether the instantaneous current of the given shunt resistor is below the first threshold value.

10. A method of operating a device outage detector, comprising:

obtaining a plurality of initial current values associated with each of i shunt resistors;

determining i moving average current values associated with the i shunt resistors, respectively, based on the plurality of initial current values;

for each of the i shunt resistors,

obtaining an i^th instantaneous current value associated with an i^th shunt resistor after determining the moving average current value;

obtaining an i^th instantaneous voltage value associated with the i^th shunt resistor after determining the moving average current value;

determining whether the i^th instantaneous current value is below an i^th lower current threshold;

determining whether the instantaneous current value is above an i^th upper current threshold when the i^th instantaneous current value is not below the i^th lower current threshold;

determining whether the i^th instantaneous voltage is zero when the i^th instantaneous current value is below the i^th lower current threshold;

reporting a short circuit on a branch associated with the i^th shunt resistor when the i^th instantaneous current is above the i^th upper current threshold;

reporting an open circuit on the branch associated with the i^th shunt resistor when the i^th instantaneous voltage is zero; and

updating the i^th moving average current value based on the i^th instantaneous current value and the i^th moving average current value,

wherein i is an integer greater than one.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising

obtaining one or more initial voltage values associated with the plurality of shunt resistors;

and

determining a moving average voltage value based on the one or more initial voltage values.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising

recording the i^th instantaneous current value and the i^th instantaneous voltage value.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein each shunt resistor is connected to one of a plurality of branches of a wiring harness leading to at least one of a plurality of vehicle elements.

14. The method of claim 13, the vehicle elements are lights.

15. The device of claim 10, wherein the instantaneous voltage value is determined by a voltage divider.

16. The device of claim 10, wherein the i^th lower current threshold value is equal to the i^th moving average current value minus an i^th adjustment value.

17. The device of claim 16, wherein the i^th adjustment value is less than a current draw of a least demanding vehicle element associated with the shunt resistor.

18. The device of claim 10, wherein the determining of whether the i^th instantaneous voltage is zero occurs after the determining of whether the i^th instantaneous current value is below the i^th lower current threshold.