Modular electronic system and bus subscriber

• US 9,674,972 B2
• Filed: 10/24/2013
• Issued: 06/06/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Phoenix Contact GmbH & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Phoenix Contact GmbH & Company KG
• Inventors: Kalhoff, Johannes, Scholz, Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): HOFFBERG, ROBERT JOSEPH
• Application Number:
  US14/437,838
• Publication Number:
  US 20150289394A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,321 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H02B 1/052 Mounting on rails
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/20 using microwaves or radio frequency waves
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/70 involving the reduction of electric, magnetic or electromagnetic leakage fields
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/22 Capacitive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/24 Inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/72 for local intradevice communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/79 for data transfer in combination with power transfer
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 5/0082 specially adapted for transmission control units, e.g. gearbox controllers
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/1427 Housings

Abstract

A modular electronic system for receiving, processing or forwarding information. Devices comprise a housing including flat electromagnetically effective transfer elements in or on an insulating housing wall and at least one circuit board including flat electromagnetically effective transfer elements and electronic components.

Claims

1. A modular electronic system for receiving, processing or forwarding information, comprising:

a circuit board including electronic components and one or more first electromagnetically effective transfer elements;

a housing made at least in part of electrically insulating material and having one or more second electromagnetically effective transfer elements arranged on or in a first wall among a plurality of walls of the housing, and having a cavity adapted to accommodate the circuit board including the electronic components;

connection means adapted to feed electrical power or for information transfer purposes,

wherein the connection means are electrically or electromagnetically coupled with the one or more second electromagnetically effective transfer elements of the housing or the one or more first electromagnetically effective transfer elements of the circuit board; and

wherein the one or more second electromagnetically effective transfer elements of the housing and the one or more first electromagnetically effective transfer elements of the circuit board are arranged for electromagnetic coupling.

2. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the one or more first electromagnetically effective transfer elements and the one or more second electromagnetically effective transfer elements respectively include a first primary transfer element and a first secondary transfer element;

and

wherein the first primary transfer element and the first secondary transfer element are flat in a region where they face each other.

3. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the circuit board is a part of one of the plurality of walls of the housing, or of an element accommodating the one or more first electromagnetically effective transfer elements is produced by means of molded interconnect device (MID) technology.

4. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the housing is electrically insulative, at least in a region of the one or more second electromagnetically effective transfer elements.

5. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 1, wherein a primary component of the one or more second electromagnetically effective transfer elements is arranged in the housing and a secondary component of the one or more first electromagnetically effective transfer elements is arranged on the circuit board.

6. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 5, wherein the circuit board has a further connection means.

7. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the electronic components include a radio frequency identification (RFID) component which is accommodated in the first wall of the housing, and wherein the first wall is electrically insulated.

8. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a bus system;

a number of subscriber devices with each one connected to the bus system via a respective one of the connection means, wherein each of the subscriber devices is adapted to be mounted and accommodated side by side on a support rail;

the first wall forming a part of a respective subscriber device of the subscriber devices and including at least one first flat primary transfer element enclosed therein, the at least one first flat primary transfer element being the one or more second electromagnetically effective transfer elements; and

the circuit board which in addition to the electronic components includes at least one flat first secondary transfer element for feeding rectifier components for power supply of the electronic components, the at least one first flat secondary transfer element being the one or more first electromagnetically effective transfer elements, wherein the first flat secondary transfer element is arranged facing towards and, adjacent to, the at least one first flat primary transfer element in the respective subscriber device for interaction by being coupled through a first electromagnetic alternating field.

9. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the respective subscriber device includes the housing and housing parts, one part of the housing being the first wall, which is an energy transfer wall.

10. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the first wall includes a second primary transfer element facing and adjacent to a second secondary transfer element of the circuit board for interaction by being coupled through a second electromagnetic alternating field and used for signal transfer, the second flat primary transfer element being another of the one or more second electromagnetically effective transfer elements, and the second flat secondary transfer element being another of the one or more first electromagnetically effective transfer elements.

11. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 8, wherein each of the at least one flat first primary transfer element and the at least one flat first secondary transfer element is connected to respective associated feed electronics encapsulated in the first wall, which is an energy transfer wall.

12. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 11, wherein the support rail supports power supply lines and signal lines which belong to the bus system and which are connected to the respective subscriber device via the respective one of the connection means;

and

wherein the connection means of the respective subscriber devices comprise plug-in connectors and lines leading to the respective associated feed electronics.

13. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the support rail supports power supply lines and signal lines which belong to the bus system and which are connected to the respective subscriber device via the respective one of the connection means.

14. The modular electronic system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the connection means comprise an inductive or capacitive transformer.

15. A bus subscriber device for a modular electronic system, comprising:

a housing made of electrically insulating material, comprising an energy transfer wall;

a circuit board including electronic components, the circuit board inside of the housing, and the housing adapted to be mounted to a support rail;

wherein the energy transfer wall includes a first flat electromagnetically effective primary transfer element encapsulated within the energy transfer wall for power transfer purposes, and a second flat electromagnetically effective primary transfer element encapsulated within the energy transfer wall for signal transfer purposes; and

wherein the circuit board includes a first flat electromagnetically effective secondary transfer element for power supply purposes and a second flat electromagnetically effective secondary transfer element for reception and transmission of signals, wherein the first and second flat electromagnetically effective secondary transfer elements are arranged facing towards and, respectively adjacent to, the first and second flat electromagnetically effective primary transfer elements, for coupling purposes.