Driver and receiver circuit for a remotely arranged circuit and corresponding method

• US 20070008671A1
• Filed: 06/14/2006
• Published: 01/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
• Original Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
• Inventors: Rothleitner, Hubert, Picaud, Benoit
• Granted Patent: US 7,545,149 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 361/93.100
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/028 Arrangements specific to the transmitter end
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/0292 Arrangements specific to the receiver end

Abstract

A driver and receiver circuit includes at least one output terminal for connecting a line connection. The circuit further includes a voltage supply arrangement connected to the at least one output terminal and a current measuring arrangement connected to the at least one output terminal. The current measuring arrangement is designed to detect a current at the at least one connecting terminal and to generate a current measurement signal dependent on said current. The driver and receiver circuit further includes a control circuit, to which the current measurement signal is fed, and at least one monitoring circuit. The monitoring circuit is designed to detect the current at the at least one connecting terminal and to output an error signal if the current lies above a predetermined threshold value for a time duration which is longer than a predetermined first time duration.

Claims

1. A driver and receiver circuit comprising:

at least one output terminal configured to connect to a line connection,

a voltage supply connected to the at least one output terminal,

a current measuring arrangement connected to the at least one output terminal, the current measuring arrangement configured to detect a current at the at least one connecting terminal and to generate a current measurement signal dependent on the current,

a control circuit, to which the current measurement signal is fed,

at least one monitoring circuit configured to generate an error signal based on the current at the at least one connecting terminal, and to generate the error signal if the current lies above a predetermined threshold value for a time duration which is longer than a predetermined first time duration.

2. The driver and receiver circuit of claim 1, wherein the current measuring arrangement is operable to include information representative of information modulated on the current in the current measurement signal.

3. The driver and receiver circuit of claim 1, wherein the voltage supply arrangement can be activated and deactivated by the control circuit by means of a control signal.

4. The driver and receiver circuit of claim 2, wherein the control circuit is operably connected to receive the error signal, and wherein the control circuit is configured to generate the control signal based at least in part on the error signal.

5. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in claim 3, wherein at least one monitoring signal is configured to receive the control signal, and in which the monitoring circuit is configured to generate, after a level change of the control signal to a level that activates the voltage supply arrangement, the error signal at the earliest after a second time duration has elapsed after said level change.

6. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one monitoring circuit is configured to receive the current measurement signal and to generate an error signal based on the current measurement signal.

7. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in one of claim 1, wherein the at least one monitoring circuit has a further current measuring arrangement connected to the at least one output terminal, the further current measuring arrangement being designed to generate a current measurement signal dependent on the current at said output terminal.

8. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one monitoring circuit has the following features:

a comparator arrangement configured to generate a comparison signal dependent on a comparison of the current measurement signal and a reference value,

a time measuring arrangement configured to evaluate the temporal duration of a predetermined level of the comparison signal and to generate a time measurement signal dependent thereon, the error signal being generated dependent on said time measurement signal.

9. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in claim 8, in which the monitoring circuit has a logic circuit operable to receive the time measurement signal and a control signal, and which is operable to provide the error signal.

10. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a first and a second connecting terminal, and wherein the at least one monitoring circuit comprises a first monitoring circuit configured to monitor a current at the first output terminal, and a second monitoring circuit configured to monitor a current at the second output terminal.

11. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in claim 2, wherein the control circuit includes a decoding circuit configured to receive the current measurement signal.

12. A method for monitoring a line connection connected to a driver and receiver circuit, comprising:

generating a current measurement value based on a current flowing via the line connection,

comparing the current measurement value with a reference value, and

generating an error signal if the current measurement value exceeds the reference value for a time duration which is longer than a predetermined first time duration.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein an error signal is generated at the earliest after a second time duration has elapsed after a level change of a voltage present at the line connection.

14. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the predetermined first time duration exceeds a maximum time duration of a data block of a modulated signal present on the current flowing via the line connection.

15. A driver and receiver circuit comprising:

at least one output terminal configured to connect to a line connection,

a voltage supply connected to the at least one output terminal,

at least one monitoring circuit configured to generate the error signal if the current at the at least one connecting terminal and to generate an error signal if the current lies above a predetermined threshold value for a time duration which is longer than a predetermined first time duration.

16. The driver and receiver circuit of claim 15, wherein the predetermined first time duration exceeds a maximum expected data block duration in information modulated on the current.

17. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in claim 16, further comprises a current measuring circuit operable to generate a current measurement signal based on the current at the at least one connecting terminal, and wherein the at least one monitoring circuit is configured to receive the current measurement signal and to generate an error signal based on the current measurement signal.

18. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in claim 17, wherein the at least one monitoring circuit has the following features:

a comparator arrangement configured to generate a comparison signal dependent on a comparison of the current measurement signal and a reference value,

a time measuring arrangement configured to evaluate the temporal duration of a predetermined level of the comparison signal and to generate a time measurement signal dependent thereon, the error signal being generated dependent on said time measurement signal.

19. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in claim 16, further comprising a first and a second connecting terminal, and wherein the at least one monitoring circuit comprises a first monitoring circuit configured to monitor a current at the first output terminal, and a second monitoring circuit configured to monitor a current at the second output terminal.

20. The driver and receiver circuit as claimed in claim 16, further comprising a control circuit that includes a decoding circuit configured to receive the current measurement signal.