Method of predicting voltages in telephone line measurement

• US 5,444,759 A
• Filed: 09/20/1993
• Issued: 08/22/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Northern Telecom Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: Summers, Charles E., Vogt, John V. III
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Stephen
• Assistant Examiner(s): LOOMIS, PAUL A
• Application Number:
  US08/123,085
• Time in Patent Office: 701 Days
• Field of Search: 379/1, 379/6, 379/20, 379/22, 379/24, 379/26, 379/30, 379/34, 379/27, 324/616, 324/713, 324/429, 324/433, 324/111
• US Class Current: 379/30
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/58 Testing of lines, cables or conductors testing of electric windings G01R31/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/30 for subscriber's lines , for the local loop
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/305 testing of physical copper line parameters, e.g. capacitance or resistance locating faults in cables G01R31/08

Abstract

For measuring characteristics (resistance, capacitance, and foreign voltage) on a telephone line, source voltages are coupled via source resistances to the line in three test conditions and the parameters are calculated from steady state voltages at the terminals of the line. Each steady state voltage is predictively calculated from nine samples of the voltage at the terminal using a closed form second order solution of a circuit model of the telephone line derived from a transformation of the circuit model into the Z domain and using the matched pole-zero technique. The steady state voltages can thus be determined without waiting for transients, due to the time constants of the telephone line, to die out, resulting in much faster measurements for telephone lines with large time constants.

Claims

1. A method of measuring characteristics of a two-wire telephone line a circuit model of which comprises resistive and capacitive elements connected between tip, ring, and ground terminals of the line, comprising the steps of:

coupling source voltages via source resistances to the tip and ring terminals in a plurality of test conditions;

in each test condition, determining a steady state voltage of at least one of the tip and ring terminals; and

deriving characteristics of the resistive elements of the line from the source voltages, source resistances, and determined steady state voltages;

wherein the step of determining each steady state voltage of a terminal comprises the steps of;

sampling the voltage at the terminal with a predetermined sampling period to provide a predetermined set of sampled voltages; and

calculating a predicted voltage value, constituting the determined steady state voltage, from the predetermined set of sampled voltages using a closed form second order solution of the circuit model.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the predetermined set of sampled voltages comprises nine samples.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the predetermined set of sampled voltages comprises three sets each of three consecutive samples.

4. A method as claimed in claim 3 wherein the predicted voltage value is equal to b2/(1 a1 a2), where a1, a2, and b2 are determined by linear independent equations:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">Y3=b2-a1 Y2-a2 Y1

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">Y6=b2-a1 Y5-a2 Y4

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">y9=b2-a1 Y8-a2 Y7

where Y1 to Y3, Y4 to Y6, and Y7 to Y9 are the three consecutively sampled voltages in the three sets, respectively.

5. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the predetermined set of sampled voltages comprises nine consecutive samples.

6. A method as claimed in claim 5 wherein the predicted voltage value is equal to b2/(1 a1 a2), where:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">a1=(Y3(Y7-Y4) Y6(Y1-Y7) Y9(Y4-Y1)/Y

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">a2=(Y3(Y5-Y8) Y6(Y8-Y2) Y9(Y2-Y5))/Y

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">b2=(Y3(Y7Y5-Y8Y4) Y6(Y8Y1-Y7Y2) Y9(Y4Y2-Y5Y1))/Y

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">Y=Y7Y5-Y8Y4-Y7YT2 Y4Y2 Y8Y1-Y5Y1

and Y1 to Y9 are the nine consecutively sampled voltages.

7. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the circuit model comprises tip-to-ring, tip-to-ground, and ring-to-ground resistances and tip and ring foreign voltages, and the plurality of test conditions comprise three different test conditions which provide five equations by which the resistances and foreign voltages are derived from the source voltages, source resistances, and determined steady state voltages.

8. A method as claimed in claim 7 wherein the circuit model further comprises tip-to-ring, tip-to-ground, and ring-to-ground capacitances and the three different test conditions provide three equations in the time domain by which the capacitances are derived.

9. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the predetermined sampling period is an integer multiple of the period of a 60 Hz ac waveform.

10. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the predetermined sampling period is 100 ms.

11. A method as claimed in claim 6 wherein the circuit model comprises tip-to-ring, tip-to-ground, and ring-to-ground resistances and tip and ring foreign voltages, and the plurality of test conditions comprise three different test conditions which provide five equations by which the resistances and foreign voltages are derived from the source voltages, source resistances, and determined steady state voltages.

12. A method as claimed in claim 11 wherein the circuit model further comprises tip-to-ring, tip-to-ground, and ring-to-ground capacitances and the three different test conditions provide three equations in the time domain by which the capacitances are derived.

13. A method as claimed in claim 12 wherein the predetermined sampling period is an integer multiple of the period of a 60 Hz ac waveform.

14. A method as claimed in claim 12 wherein the predetermined sampling period is 100 ms.