Method and apparatus for reducing electrical power consumption in a machine monitor
First Claim
1. A monitor that attaches to a machine, said monitor comprising:
- a structural enclosure;
means for attaching said enclosure to the machine;
a power source disposed in said enclosure for supplying electrical power to the monitor;
at least one sensor disposed in said enclosure for sensing one or more operating characteristics of the machine and producing sensor signals corresponding to the sensed characteristic;
a microcomputer disposed in said enclosure for receiving and processing the sensor signals to produce sensor data, said microcomputer having a high-power operating mode and a low-power operating mode and being programmed to operate in the low-power operating mode when high-power operation is not needed;
memory for storing sensor data; and
a communications port for communicating with a peripheral device.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Power saving features are employed in a machine monitor to reduce electrical power consumption and increase the life of an electrical power source (such as a battery) which is used to power the monitor. The monitor includes a microcomputer having a high operating speed and a low operating speed. Power consumption is reduced by placing the microprocessor in a low-power sleep mode when full power capabilities of the microprocessor are not needed. Power consumption is further reduced by operating the microprocessor at the low operating speed when a high operating speed is not needed. The monitor also includes a communications port in electrical communication with the microcomputer for communicating with a peripheral device, and sensors for sensing machine characteristics such as speed, temperature, flux, or vibration. Power switches are employed to remove electrical power from portions of the monitor electronics that are not being used or are not needed, and a DC/DC converter maximizes the amount of electrical power available for use by the monitor electronics. Power consumption is further reduced by the manner in which the monitor processes vibration signals to compute machine speed.
56 Citations
33 Claims
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1. A monitor that attaches to a machine, said monitor comprising:
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a structural enclosure; means for attaching said enclosure to the machine; a power source disposed in said enclosure for supplying electrical power to the monitor; at least one sensor disposed in said enclosure for sensing one or more operating characteristics of the machine and producing sensor signals corresponding to the sensed characteristic; a microcomputer disposed in said enclosure for receiving and processing the sensor signals to produce sensor data, said microcomputer having a high-power operating mode and a low-power operating mode and being programmed to operate in the low-power operating mode when high-power operation is not needed; memory for storing sensor data; and a communications port for communicating with a peripheral device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An apparatus for reducing electrical power consumption in a machine monitor, the apparatus comprising:
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a microcomputer having a high-speed operating mode and a low-speed operating mode; a fast clock for producing a high frequency clock signal to operate said microcomputer in a high-speed mode; a slow clock for producing a low frequency clock signal to operate said microcomputer in a low-speed mode; a communications port in electrical communication with the microcomputer for communicating with a peripheral device; at least one sensor for sensing an operating characteristic of a machine and producing sensor signals corresponding to the machine operating characteristic that is sensed, said sensor signals being received and processed by said microcomputer to produce sensor data; and a power source for supplying the monitor with electrical power; wherein said microcomputer is operable to remove electrical power from at least said communications port when the communications port is not in use. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A monitor that attaches to a machine, said monitor comprising:
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a structural enclosure; means for attaching said enclosure to the machine; a power source disposed in said enclosure for supplying dc electrical power to the monitor; a sensor disposed in said enclosure for sensing an operating characteristic of the machine and producing sensor signals corresponding to the sensed characteristic; a microcomputer disposed in said enclosure for receiving and processing the sensor signals to produce sensor data, said microcomputer including a sleep mode for operation at a significantly reduced power level when full power operation is not required; memory for storing sensor data; and a communications port for communicating with a peripheral device. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A method for reducing electrical power consumption in a machine monitor, the method comprising the steps of:
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providing a machine monitor for monitoring an operating characteristic of a machine, said machine monitor comprising; a structural enclosure; means for attaching said enclosure to the machine; at least one sensor disposed in said enclosure for sensing one or more operating characteristics of the machine and producing or signals corresponding to the sensed characteristic; monitor electronics for receiving and processing the sensor signals to produce sensor data, said monitor electronics including a microcomputer having a high-power operating mode and a low-power operating mode; and a communications port in electrical communication with said microcomputer for communicating with a peripheral device not forming a part of the machine monitor; and programming the microcomputer to operate in the low-power operating mode when high-power operation is not needed. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28)
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29. A method for reducing electrical power consumption in a machine monitor, the method comprising the steps of:
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providing a machine monitor for monitoring an operating characteristic of a machine, said machine monitor comprising; a structural enclosure; means for attaching said enclosure to the machine; at least one sensor disclosed in said enclosure for sensing one or more operating characteristics of the machine and producing sensor signals corresponding to the sensed characteristic; monitor electronics for receiving and processing the sensor signals to produce sensor data, said monitor electronics including a microcomputer having a high-power operating mode and a low-power operating mode; and a communications port in electrical communication with said microcomputer for communicating with a peripheral device not forming a part of the machine monitor; and a communications port in electrical communication with said microcomputer for communicating with a peripheral device not forming a part of the machine monitor; and programming the microcomputer to operate in the low-power sleep mode when full power operation is not needed. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32)
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33. A method for reducing electrical power consumption in a machine monitor, the method comprising the steps of:
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providing a machine monitor for monitoring an operating characteristic of a machine, said machine monitor comprising; monitor electronics including a microcomputer having a low-power operating mode and a full power operating mode; a flux sensor for sensing flux generated by the machine and producing a corresponding flux signal; and a communications port in electrical communication with said microcomputer for communicating with a peripheral device; removing all frequency components from the flux signal except those frequency components in a range of about 0 to 60 Hertz, producing a filtered flux signal; transforming the filtered flux signal to the frequency domain to produce a flux spectrum; processing the flux spectrum to determine the line frequency at which the first line frequency peak occurs; and determining the speed of the machine based on the line frequency at which the first line frequency peak occurs.
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Specification