Pepperl + Fuchs Gmbh

Pepperl+fuchs Se

Analog Devices International Unlimited Company

Steffen Graber

Renato Kitchener

Gunther Rogoll

Philip Curran

Denis M Poirier

Jan Ringkamp

There is provided a power conditioning circuit including positive and negative power input nodes. An inductor includes a first terminal connected to a positive power input node and a second terminal connected to a positive power output node, the inductor allowing the voltage at the positive power output node to be modulated by data that is sent through a communication interface. A first node is present between the second terminal of the inductor and the positive power output node, and a clamping circuit is connected at the first node to a second node. The clamping circuit is configured to clamp a voltage increase across the inductor to less than a maximum increase. The second node is configured to be continuously held at a voltage higher than the voltage of the first terminal of the inductor.

Power conditioning circuit

There is provided an interface circuit, a network switch or network device coupler incorporating the interface circuit, and a network incorporating the network switch or network device. The interface circuit has a data bus interface () for connecting a data bus to either a first device () that communicates in a first signalling protocol or a second device () that communicates in a second signalling protocol. The data bus has two bus conductors that provide combined power and data. A voltage source () powers the data bus. The voltage source () is connected to the data bus via a reactance () and then a first resistance () connected in series. An output of a transmitter () is connected via a second resistance () to a point between the reactance () and the first resistance, to modulate the data bus.

Interface circuit having a data bus interface

A segment of a two wire combined power and data network for automation has a trunk, a spur mounted thereon and a fault protection device. The fault protection device includes a controller adapted to monitor the spur current, and isolation means to fully or partially isolate the spur from the trunk upon receiving of an activation signal from controller. The controller comprises a failure status determination algorithm comprising an intermittent fault count over time step and a fault duration step. The intermittent fault count step is satisfied if a pre-determined number of separate faults are detected over a first time period. The fault duration step is satisfied if a fault is detected which persists for longer than a second time period. The controller issues the activation signal upon determination of a failure status on the spur which satisfies the intermittent fault count and/or the fault duration step of the algorithm.

Two wire combined power and data network system segment with fault protection device

A fault protection circuit for use on a spur of an IEC 61158 Fieldbus network comprising a fast acting current limiter adapted to limit the spur current to the level of a reference current when the spur current reaches said reference current, control means adapted to monitor the spur AC and/or DC current and/or voltage, and isolation means adapted to apply a shunt short circuit isolation to said spur upon receipt of an activation signal from the control means, in which the control means is adapted to control the level of the reference current, and in which when said control means detects one or more pre-determined fault conditions on said spur it activates the isolation means and lowers the level of reference current.

Fault protection circuit for IEC 61158 fieldbus spur and method of using the same

A data signal generation device comprising a microprocessor and a digital potential divider, in which the microprocessor is adapted to generate a square wave output signal, and in which the digital potential divider is adapted to receive said square wave output signal, and to ramp up and down an output signal voltage and/or current according to state transitions in said square wave output signal.

Square waveform shaping device

An electrical communications circuit comprising a power supply, a trunk section, a spur section, isolation means disposed between the trunk section and the spur section, diagnostics apparatus connected to the trunk section and a field device connected to the spur section, in which the field device is adapted to send data signals over the communications circuit, which data signals comprise one or more core functions, in which the communications circuit and/or the data signals function under one or more pre-determined normal operating parameters, in which the diagnostics apparatus is adapted to detect one or more pre-determined breaches of said normal operating parameters, in which a spur diagnostics module is connected to the spur section and is adapted to monitor electrical characteristics of the spur section, in which the spur diagnostics module comprises interference means adapted to interfere with the communications circuit and/or the data signals sent thereon such that said one or more pre-determined breaches of the normal operating parameters are detectable by the diagnostics apparatus, but such that said one or more core functions of the data signals are not effected, and in which the spur diagnostics module is adapted to activate said interference means when it detects one or more pre-determined electrical events in the spur section.

Electrical communications circuit with spur diagnostics

An isolator, such as a common-mode-reactor, and power-conditioner network is utilized to provide at least one of adequate segment impedance, cross-talk or adequate high-frequency-interference attenuation on, or between, participating segments. The participating segments comprise adequate power conditioning, and are supplied by an isolated or non-isolated common power supply. At least one of the segments may have one of two poles in resistive and/or capacitive and/or inductive contact to ground, as well as having one of the segments, in resistive and/or capacitive and/or inductive contact to another of one of two poles of other segments. The power-condition and common-mode inductor provide adequate two-wire Fieldbus communication impedance, by use of series passive reactance, where each reactor may comprise one, or more, separate reactors, intersected and/or shunted by one, or more, n-order passive dampers, having damping characteristics adequate to curtail provoked signal bias and/or jitter and/or distortion and/or resonance using a minimal amount of series-resistance.

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Mannheim, Germany

Steffen Graber