System and method of detecting and locating intermittent and other faults

• US 9,423,443 B2
• Filed: 04/25/2014
• Issued: 08/23/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Howard University
• Original Assignee: Howard University
• Inventors: Kim, Charles J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Jacob, Oommen
• Application Number:
  US14/261,642
• Publication Number:
  US 20150008938A1
• Time in Patent Office: 851 Days
• Field of Search: 398/9, 398/10, 398/13, 370240-242
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/50 Testing of electric apparatus, lines, cables or components for short-circuits, continuity, leakage current or incorrect line connections testing of sparking plugs H01T13/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/0771 Fault location on the transmission path
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/243 at the transmitter, using a loop-back
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2001/0094 Bus
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/0266 Arrangements for providing Galvanic isolation, e.g. by means of magnetic or capacitive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/0268 with modulation and subsequent demodulation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/02 Amplitude-modulated carrier systems, e.g. using on-off keying; Single sideband or vestigial sideband modulation H04L27/32 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/10 Frequency-modulated carrier systems, i.e. using frequency-shift keying H04L27/32 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/18 Phase-modulated carrier systems, i.e. using phase-shift keying H04L27/32 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0677 Localisation of faults
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/00 Systems for electrical power generation, transmission, distribution or end-user application management characterised by the use of communication or information technologies, or communication or information technology specific aspects supporting them

Abstract

Data associated with at least one building condition or status is sensed by one or more sensors. The data from these sensors may be sent over a data bus and received by the central computer. In addition, a modulated signal may be transmitted by one or both of the transmitters across the data bus. The modulated signal is received at the receiver, which analyzes the received modulated signal, and determines whether an intermittent fault has occurred on the data bus based upon the analyzing. For example, the receiver may compare the received signal to an expected pattern and when a discrepancy exists, an intermittent fault is determined to exist. The receiver may also determine the location of the fault based upon the analysis.

Claims

1. A communication network disposed in a vehicle, the network comprising:

a data bus;

a power bus;

a first transmitter for sending a first modulated signal along the data bus;

a second transmitter for sending a second modulated signal along the power bus;

at least one sensing device coupled to the data bus and the power bus, the at least one sensing device configured to sense data associated with at least one condition or status associated with the vehicle;

a data processing module that is connected to the data bus and the power bus, the data processing module being configured to receive and process the data from the at least one sensing device;

an error determination apparatus spatially separated from the first transmitter and the second transmitter and that is coupled to the data bus and the power bus, the bus error determination apparatus being configured to receive the first modulated signal and the second modulated signal, analyze the first modulated signal and second modulated signal and determine whether an intermittent fault has occurred on the data bus or the power bus based upon the analysis and not based upon any reflection of the first modulated signal on the data bus or reflection of the second modulated signal on the power bus, wherein the analysis compares the received first modulated signal to a first expected data pattern and the received second modulated signal to a second data expected pattern.

2. The network of claim 1 wherein the vehicle is selected from the group consisting of a car, a truck, a ship, and an aircraft.

3. The network of claim 1 wherein the at least one sensing device is selected from the group consisting of:

a temperature sensor, a radioactivity sensor, a motion sensor, a pressure sensor, a humidity sensor.

4. A method of determining the existence of an intermittent fault in a network in a vehicle, the method comprising:

sensing data by at least one sensing device disposed in the vehicle, the data being associated with at least one condition or status associated with the vehicle;

receiving and processing the data from the at least one sensing device;

transmitting a plurality of first modulated signals across the data bus from a first transmitter, receiving the plurality of first modulated signals at a single receiver, analyzing the received plurality of first modulated signals, and determining whether an intermittent fault has occurred on the data bus based upon the analyzing and not based upon any reflection of the first modulated signal on the data bus

transmitting a second modulated signal across a power bus from a second transmitter that is coupled to the at least one sensing device, receiving the second modulated signal at the single receiver, analyzing the received second signal, and determining whether an intermittent fault has occurred on the power bus based upon the analyzing and not based upon any reflection of the second modulated signal on the power bus, wherein the analyzing compares the received first modulated signal to a first expected data pattern and the received second modulated signal to a second expected data pattern.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the analyzing comprises comparing the received modulated data signal to a predetermined pattern.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the at least one sensing device is selected from the group consisting of:

a temperature sensor, a radioactivity sensor, a motion sensor, a pressure sensor, a humidity sensor.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein the vehicle is selected from the group consisting of a car, a truck, a ship, and an aircraft.