WIRELESS TELEMETRY SYSTEM FOR THE MONITORING OF STATIC AND DYNAMIC MAGNITUDES

• US 20150172790A1
• Filed: 07/12/2013
• Published: 06/18/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas,
• Original Assignee: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas,
• Inventors: Delgado Restituto, Manuel, Rodriguez Rodriguez, Jose Antonio, Ruiz Amaya, Jesus, Masuch, Jens, Rodriguez Perez, Alberto
• Application Number:
  US14/417,291
• Publication Number:
  US 20150172790A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0024 for multiple sensor units attached to the patient, e.g. using a body or personal area network
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/758 using a signal generator powered by the interrogation signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/45 Transponders
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/73 for taking measurements, e.g. using sensing coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/77 for interrogation
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/40 using a wireless architecture
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/88 Providing power supply at the sub-station
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A wireless telemetry system is proposed based on transmission of time reference for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes. The proposed system comprises a reading instrument and, at least, a transponder which, in turn, includes the transducers associated to the variables object of observation and/or measurement. With the object of communicating the reading instrument and the transponder to each other, the system also comprises a mechanism for the transmission of information regarding the internal operating frequency of the transponder towards the reading instrument and a method for the remote determination of the internal operating frequency of the transponder. The reading instrument comprises: an antenna (11000), a communication section (12000), a signal processing section (13000), a computation section (14000), a timing unit (15000) stable with temperature, a user interface section (16000) and a data output section (17000).

Claims

1. Reading instrument for a wireless telemetry system for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes, where the reading instrument comprises:

an antenna capable of transmitting different interrogation signals towards a transponder and of receiving information signals from said transponder;

a communication section connected to the antenna, which provides the means and processes to define signal formats, a data encoding, a modulation type, transmission/reception rates, a RF envelope and parameters which establish the wireless communication with the transponder;

a signal processing section, which is connected to the communication section, where the signal processing section provides the means and processes necessary to create, in accordance with the user'"'"'s instructions, the command sequence required to select and interrogate the transponder, as well as to identify and classify the data received from said transponder;

a computation section which interprets the values representative of the internal operating frequency of the transponder and of the measurements of the variables under observation, previously classified in the signal processing section;

a timing unit stable with respect to temperature, which determines the operating frequency of the entire reading instrument and which provides the computation section with the parameters necessary to interpret the representative values both of the internal operating frequency of the transponder and the measurements of the variables under observation;

a user interface section which provides the means to activate the identification and measurement processes of variables under observation from the transponder; and

,

a data output section which provides means and processes to store the data measured by the transponder and communication means of said data with the exterior.

2. Transponder for a wireless telemetry system for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes, where the transponder comprises:

an antenna capable of receiving different interrogation signals from a reading instrument and of transmitting to said reading instrument signals representative of their exclusive identification and of their internal operating frequency, as well as of measurements of variables under observation;

an active circuit which manages communication operations with the reading instrument as well as data processing operations in accordance with the instructions received; and

,

an array of transducers, associated to the variables under observation, which convert monitored magnitudes of the variables under observation to electrical values which can be interpreted by the active circuit, so that the conversion performed by each transducer is a monotone function, known and available in the computation section of the reading instrument.

3. The transponder of claim 2, wherein the active circuit comprises:

a storage section wherein a unique identification code is registered for the transponder;

an energy generation and storage unit wherein supply voltages necessary for the transponder operation are generated and regulated;

a timing section wherein clock signals necessary to activate the transponder are autonomously generated;

a signal modulation and demodulation section wherein binary codes included in the interrogation signals are extracted from the reading instrument, and wherein the data generated by the transponder are modulated in accordance with the requests made by said reading instrument;

a processing unit wherein the commands received from the reading instrument are interpreted, the operating modes of the different sections of the active circuit are managed to carry out actions included in said commands and format is given to the binary numbers representative of the internal operating frequency of the transponder and of the measurements of the variables under observation which must be sent to said reading instrument; and

,

an acquisition and measurement section which provides the means and processes to sequence the activity of the transducers, convert the analogue signals obtained from said transducers to the digital domain and transfer said digital data to the processing unit, so that the data conversion performed in the acquisition and measurement section is a monotone function, which is known and available in the computation section of the reading instrument.

4. The transponder of claim 3, wherein the active circuit is manufactured on a substrate selected from among:

silicon, organic, silicon on insulator, silicon-germanium, indium phosphide and gallium arsenide.

5. The transponder of claim 3, wherein the processing unit comprises a finite state machine installed in the transponder which detects a timing frame sent from the reading instrument, and a digital counter activated by an internal clock of the transponder which counts the number of clock periods comprised in said frame.

6. Communication method between a transponder and a reading instrument, both for a wireless telemetry system for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes, where the transponder comprises:

an antenna capable of receiving different interrogation signals from a reading instrument and of transmitting to said reading instrument signals representative of their exclusive identification and of their internal operating frequency, as well as of measurements of variables under observation;

an active circuit which manages communication operations with the reading instrument as well as data processing operations in accordance with the instructions received; and

,

an array of transducers, associated to the variables under observation, which convert monitored magnitudes of the variables under observation to electrical values which can be interpreted by the active circuit, so that the conversion performed by each transducer is a monotone function, known and available in the computation section of the reading instrument,

and where the reading instrument comprises;

an antenna capable of transmitting different interrogation signals towards a transponder and of receiving information signals from said transponder;

a communication section connected to the antenna, which provides the means and processes to define signal formats, a data encoding, a modulation type, transmission/reception rates, a RF envelope and parameters which establish the wireless communication with the transponder;

a signal processing section, which is connected to the communication section, where the signal processing section provides the means and processes necessary to create, in accordance with the user'"'"'s instructions, the command sequence required to select and interrogate the transponder, as well as to identify and classify the data received from said transponder;

a computation section which interprets the values representative of the internal operating frequency of the transponder and of the measurements of the variables under observation, previously classified in the signal processing section;

a timing unit stable with respect to temperature, which determines the operating frequency of the entire reading instrument and which provides the computation section with the parameters necessary to interpret the representative values both of the internal operating frequency of the transponder and the measurements of the variables under observation;

a user interface section which provides the means to activate the identification and measurement processes of variables under observation from the transponder; and

,

a data output section which provides means and processes to store the data measured by the transponder and communication means of said data with the exterior,

wherein the communication method further comprises;

in first place, the reading instrument selects and interrogates a transponder from among a limited array of transponders located in a coverage range of the reading instrument by the sending of an interrogation signal;

in second place, the selected transponder transmits data required by the reading instrument in response to the interrogation signal received;

in third place, the reading instrument receives and interprets the data emitted by the transponder, and transfers data corresponding to the user.

7. The communication method of claim 6, where the method additionally comprises remotely determining the internal operating frequency of the transponder selected and interrogated, by the reading instrument, using the following stages:

generation in the reading instrument of a command containing a specific binary frame of predetermined duration;

reception, demodulation and decoding in the transponder of the command emitted by the reading instrument;

activation of a finite state machine to detect the initial and final instants of the specific binary frame;

enabling of a digital counter, operated at a frequency proportional to the internal frequency of the transponder, at the moment when the finite state machine detects the initial instant of the frame;

disabling of the counter when the finite state machine detects the final instant of the frame;

storage, encoding and later sending to the reading instrument of the number of cycles counted by the digital counter;

reception, demodulation and decoding of said number of cycles in the reading instrument; and

,

calculation of the internal frequency of the transponder in accordance with the number of cycles counted, the proportionality constant of the clock used in the count and the duration of the binary frame sent by the reading instrument.

8. Wireless telemetry system for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes comprising a transponder, a reading instrument and the method of claim 6 for the remote determination of the internal operating frequency of the transponder using the reading instrument.

9. The communication method of claim 6 wherein the active circuit comprises

a storage section wherein a unique identification code is registered for the transponder;

an energy generation and storage unit wherein supply voltages necessary for the transponder operation are generated and regulated;

a timing section wherein clock signals necessary to activate the transponder are autonomously generated;

a signal modulation and demodulation section wherein binary codes included in the interrogation signals are extracted from the reading instrument, and wherein the data generated by the transponder are modulated in accordance with the requests made by said reading instrument;

a processing unit wherein the commands received from the reading instrument are interpreted, the operating modes of the different sections of the active circuit are managed to carry out actions included in said commands and format is given to the binary numbers representative of the internal operating frequency of the transponder and of the measurements of the variables under observation which must be sent to said reading instrument; and

,

an acquisition and measurement section which provides the means and processes to sequence the activity of the transducers, convert the analogue signals obtained from said transducers to the digital domain and transfer said digital data to the processing unit, so that the data conversion performed in the acquisition and measurement section is a monotone function, which is known and available in the computation section of the reading instrument.

10. The communication method of claim 9 wherein the active circuit is manufactured on a substrate selected from among:

silicon, organic, silicon on insulator, silicon-germanium, indium phosphide and gallium arsenide.

11. The communication method of claim 9 wherein the processing unit comprises a finite state machine installed in the transponder which detects a timing frame sent from the reading instrument, and a digital counter activated by an internal clock of the transponder which counts the number of clock periods comprised in said frame.

12. The communication method of claim 9 wherein the method additionally comprises remotely determining the internal operating frequency of the transponder selected and interrogated, by the reading instrument, using the following stages:

generation in the reading instrument of a command containing a specific binary frame of predetermined duration;

reception, demodulation and decoding in the transponder of the command emitted by the reading instrument;

activation of a finite state machine to detect the initial and final instants of the specific binary frame;

enabling of a digital counter, operated at a frequency proportional to the internal frequency of the transponder, at the moment when the finite state machine detects the initial instant of the frame;

disabling of the counter when the finite state machine detects the final instant of the frame;

storage, encoding and later sending to the reading instrument of the number of cycles counted by the digital counter;

reception, demodulation and decoding of said number of cycles in the reading instrument; and

,

calculation of the internal frequency of the transponder in accordance with the number of cycles counted, the proportionality constant of the clock used in the count and the duration of the binary frame sent by the reading instrument.

13. The communication method of claim 10 wherein the method additionally comprises remotely determining the internal operating frequency of the transponder selected and interrogated, by the reading instrument, using the following stages:

generation in the reading instrument of a command containing a specific binary frame of predetermined duration;

reception, demodulation and decoding in the transponder of the command emitted by the reading instrument;

activation of a finite state machine to detect the initial and final instants of the specific binary frame;

enabling of a digital counter, operated at a frequency proportional to the internal frequency of the transponder, at the moment when the finite state machine detects the initial instant of the frame;

disabling of the counter when the finite state machine detects the final instant of the frame;

storage, encoding and later sending to the reading instrument of the number of cycles counted by the digital counter;

reception, demodulation and decoding of said number of cycles in the reading instrument; and

,

calculation of the internal frequency of the transponder in accordance with the number of cycles counted, the proportionality constant of the clock used in the count and the duration of the binary frame sent by the reading instrument.

14. The communication method of claim 11 wherein the method additionally comprises remotely determining the internal operating frequency of the transponder selected and interrogated, by the reading instrument, using the following stages:

generation in the reading instrument of a command containing a specific binary frame of predetermined duration;

reception, demodulation and decoding in the transponder of the command emitted by the reading instrument;

activation of a finite state machine to detect the initial and final instants of the specific binary frame;

enabling of a digital counter, operated at a frequency proportional to the internal frequency of the transponder, at the moment when the finite state machine detects the initial instant of the frame;

disabling of the counter when the finite state machine detects the final instant of the frame;

storage, encoding and later sending to the reading instrument of the number of cycles counted by the digital counter;

reception, demodulation and decoding of said number of cycles in the reading instrument; and

,

calculation of the internal frequency of the transponder in accordance with the number of cycles counted, the proportionality constant of the clock used in the count and the duration of the binary frame sent by the reading instrument.

15. Wireless telemetry system for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes comprising a transponder, a reading instrument and the method of claim 7 for the remote determination of the internal operating frequency of the transponder using the reading instrument.

16. Wireless telemetry system for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes comprising a transponder, a reading instrument and the method of claim 9 for the remote determination of the internal operating frequency of the transponder using the reading instrument.

17. Wireless telemetry system for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes comprising a transponder, a reading instrument and the method of claim 10 for the remote determination of the internal operating frequency of the transponder using the reading instrument.

18. Wireless telemetry system for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes comprising a transponder, a reading instrument and the method of claim 11 for the remote determination of the internal operating frequency of the transponder using the reading instrument.

19. Wireless telemetry system for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes comprising a transponder, a reading instrument and the method of claim 12 for the remote determination of the internal operating frequency of the transponder using the reading instrument.

20. Wireless telemetry system for the monitoring of static and dynamic magnitudes comprising a transponder, a reading instrument and the method of claim 13 for the remote determination of the internal operating frequency of the transponder using the reading instrument.