Abstract:
A circuit system includes: a master node; and a slave portion including a plurality of non-grounded slave nodes, each of which couples with the master node through a pair of communication lines. The master node and the slave portion provide a differential transmission system for differentially transmitting a signal among the master node and the slave nodes. The slave portion has a predetermined impedance. The differential transmission system has a good signal condition and a sufficient low common mode noise.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application is based on Japanese Patent Applications No. 2006-52245 filed on Feb. 28, 2006, and No. 2007-9221 filed on Jan. 18, 2007, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention relates to a circuit system.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     Conventionally, in a differential transmission system for transmitting a synchronized signal through a pair of communication lines, a magnetic flux generated by a normal mode current is canceled. Thus, a normal mode noise is reduced, so that a noise in the communication lines is mainly a common mode noise generated between the lines and a ground. Here, the common mode noise is determined by a common mode impedance. In a slave node connecting to a master node through a pair of communication lines for communicating with a differential transmission system, the common mode impedance is defined by grounding to a conductive ground plate. Thus, the common mode noise is reduced. This is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-2002-354053, JP-A-2003-18224 and JP-A-2004-96351. For example, in JP-A-2004-96351, a terminal circuit in a differential transmission line provides a center tap terminal circuit for adjusting a differential mode and a common mode to the differential transmission line. The center tap terminal circuit includes a resister and a capacitor, and is connected in series with an input terminal of a receiving side IC.  
         [0004]     A passenger protection device control system operates a passenger protection device such as an air bag system and a seatbelt pre-tensioner when a vehicle collides. In the control system, an ECU as a master node is coupled with various sensors and a starting device as a slave node through a pair of communication lines, respectively. The sensors are, for example, a collision sensor and a passenger-detecting sensor. The starting device is an air bag squib as an igniting device for operating the airbag.  
         [0005]     In the conventional passenger protection device control system, it is necessary to maintain reliability of communication between the master node and the slave node even when a part of the communication lines is broken by the vehicle collision. Thus, each sensor functions as a non-grounded slave node, which is not grounded to a body earth such as a vehicle body. Accordingly, the common mode impedance of each sensor is not defined so that the common mode noise is reduced.  
         [0006]     Thus, it is required for a circuit system functioning as a non-grounded slave node in a differential transmission system to reduce a common mode noise.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     In view of the above-described problem, it is an object of the present disclosure to provide a circuit system.  
         [0008]     According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a circuit system includes: a master node; and a slave portion including a plurality of non-grounded slave nodes, each of which couples with the master node through a pair of communication lines. The master node and the slave portion provide a differential transmission system for differentially transmitting a signal among the master node and the slave nodes. The slave portion has a predetermined impedance.  
         [0009]     In the above circuit system, the predetermined impedance of the slave portion includes a predetermined common mode impedance, which provides to reduce a noise in the differential transmission system, and a predetermined differential mode impedance, which provides a sufficient communication condition. Thus, the differential transmission system has a good signal condition and a sufficient low common mode noise.  
         [0010]     Alternatively, each slave node may include: a substrate having an electric element for the differential transmission system; a casing disposed between the substrate and a conductive ground plate, wherein the circuit system is mounted on the conductive ground plate; a first fixation member for mounting the substrate on the casing; and a second fixation member for mounting the casing on the ground plate. A structure and/or a thickness of the substrate, a material and/or a thickness of the casing, a material and/or a structure of the first fixation member or a material and/or a structure of the second fixation member are adjusted to be a predetermined value so that a common mode impedance between each communication line and the ground plate is set to be a predetermined impedance. In this case, the common mode noise is sufficiently reduced with suppressing fluctuation of a center voltage in a differential voltage and a center current in a differential current. Further, the circuit system is manufactured with low cost.  
         [0011]     Further, the casing may have an impedance defined as Zcase, a capacitance defined as Ccase, a relative permittivity defined as ε r1 , and a thickness defined as D. The signal in the differential transmission system includes a noise having an angular frequency defined as ω and a frequency defined as f. The substrate has a conductive area of a backside thereof defined as S. A dielectric constant of vacuum is defined as ε 0 . The circuit system has a relationship of  
       Zcase   =       1     ω   ⁢           ⁢   Ccase       =       1     2   ⁢           ⁢   π   ⁢           ⁢     f   ·     ɛ   0       ⁢       ɛ     r   ⁢           ⁢   1       ·     S   D           .           
 
         [0012]     Alternatively, the circuit system may further include an additional circuit for setting a frequency characteristic of the impedance of the slave portion. Each communication line has one terminal disposed on a slave node side, and the additional circuit is connected to the one terminal of each communication line. In this case, since the frequency characteristic of the impedance of the slave portion is appropriately determined by the additional circuit, the common mode noise in the system is sufficiently reduced without degrading the signal condition. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0013]     The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description made with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings:  
         [0014]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing a slave node;  
         [0015]      FIG. 2  is a circuit diagram showing an equivalent circuit of the slave node shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0016]      FIGS. 3A  to  3 C are perspective views showing various substrates in the slave node;  
         [0017]      FIGS. 4A  to  4 C are perspective views showing various casings in the slave node;  
         [0018]      FIGS. 5A  to  5 C are perspective views showing various first fixation members in the slave node;  
         [0019]      FIGS. 6A  to  6 B are perspective views showing various second fixation members in the slave node;  
         [0020]      FIG. 7  is a circuit diagram showing the slave portion in the second embodiment;  
         [0021]      FIG. 8A  is a circuit diagram showing an additional circuit,  FIG. 8B  is a circuit diagram showing one example of the additional circuit, and  FIG. 8C  is a circuit diagram showing another example of the additional circuit;  
         [0022]      FIG. 9  is a perspective view showing a device having one master node, one slave node and an additional circuit on a slave side substrate;  
         [0023]      FIG. 10  is a perspective view showing a device having one master node, multiple slave nodes connecting to the master node through a pair of communication lines, and an additional circuit as an independent node;  
         [0024]      FIG. 11  is a circuit diagram showing another additional circuit; and  
         [0025]      FIG. 12A  is a top view showing a passenger protection device control system, and  FIG. 12B  is a cross sectional view showing the slave node in the control system. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0026]     A circuit system as a slave node for a differential transmission system is shown in  FIG. 1 . The slave node  1  in  FIG. 1  is a nongrounded slave node for communicating with a master node by using a differential transmission system. The master node is coupled with a single slave node or multiple slave nodes through a pair of communication lines  2  so that the master node and the slave node  1  provide a network.  
         [0027]     The slave node  1  includes a substrate  3 , a casing  4 , a first fixation member  5  and a second fixation member  6 . The slave node  1  is mounted on a ground plate  7  made of conductive material. When the slave node  1  is mounted on a vehicle, the ground plate  7  provides a vehicle body.  
         [0028]     The substrate  3  is a single layered or multi-layered board having an electric element such as a communication IC  31 , a resistor  32  and a capacitor (not shown), which provides a differential transmission system. The communication IC  31  is connected to the communication lines  2  at a connection portion through a pair of wiring patterns  33 .  
         [0029]     The casing  4  is disposed between the substrate and the ground plate  7  so that the casing  4  fixes and protects the substrate  3 . The casing  4  is made of insulation material and/or conductive material.  
         [0030]     The first fixation member  5  is, for example, a screw for fixing the substrate  3  to the casing  4 . The first fixation member  5  is made of insulation material and/or conductive material.  
         [0031]     The second fixation member  6  is, for example, a screw for fixing the casing  4  to the ground plate  7 . The second fixation member  6  is made of insulation material and/or conductive material.  
         [0032]     The slave node  1  as the non-grounded slave node is not connected to the ground plate  7  with a low impedance in a direct current manner. The slave node  1  is coupled with the ground plate  7  in an alternating current manner. Alternatively, the slave node  1  may be coupled with the ground plate  7  in a high impedance manner when the slave node  1  is coupled with the ground plate  7  through a capacitor, a high impedance resistor or a floating capacitor in a direct current manner. Thus, a common mode impedance between the communication line  2  and the ground plate  7  is set to be a predetermined impedance.  
         [0033]     Here,  FIG. 2  shows an equivalent circuit of the slave node  1 . The inner impedance Zin of the substrate  3  has a predetermined frequency characteristic. In the non-grounding type slave node  1 , the impedance Zcase of the casing  4  having insulation property is much larger than the inner impedance Zin. For example, when the inner impedance Zin of the slave node  1  is 200 Ω, it is required to reduce a space transmission noise having a frequency of 312 MHz, which is suitably used for a keyless entry system or the like. To reduce the space transmission noise, it is considered that the common impedance of the slave node  1  is reduced. Here, the numeral F 1  represents a relationship among the impedance Zcase of the casing  4 , the capacity Ccase of the casing  4 , the angular frequency ω of the noise, the frequency f of the noise, the dielectric constant ε 0  of vacuum, relative permittivity ε r1 , the conductive area S of the backside of the substrate  3  and the thickness D of the casing  4 .  
             Zcase   =       1     ω   ⁢           ⁢   Ccase       =     1     2   ⁢           ⁢   π   ⁢           ⁢     f   ·     ɛ   0       ⁢       ɛ     r   ⁢           ⁢   1       ·     S   D                     (     F   ⁢           ⁢   1     )             
 
         [0034]     In the above formula F 1 , when the casing  4  has the relative permittivity ε r1  of  10 , the thickness D of the casing  4  is 3.5 millimeters, the impedance Zcase of the casing  4  can be reduced to 100 Ω. Thus, the total impedance of the slave node  1  including the inner impedance Zin can be also reduced.  
         [0035]     Specifically, (1) a structure and/or a thickness of the substrate  3 , (2) a material and/or a thickness of the casing  4 , (3) a material and/or a structure of the first fixation member  5 , and (4) a material and/or a structure of the second fixation member  6  are determined so that a floating capacitance generated between the slave node  1  and the ground plate  2  connected each other in an alternating current manner. Thus, the common mode impedance of the slave node  1  is set to be a predetermined impedance.  
         [0036]     (1) Regarding the structure and/or the thickness of the substrate  3 , the substrate  3  has one of structures shown in  FIGS. 3A  to  3 C. Specifically, the substrate  3  may be a substrate  301  having no ground layer (i.e., GND layer), a substrate  302  having a ground layer, or a substrate  303  having a ground region  3   a  without a ground layer.  
         [0037]     (2) Regarding the material and/or the thickness of the casing  4 , the casing  4  has one of structures shown in  FIGS. 4A  to  4 C. Specifically, the casing  4  may be a casing  401  made from a conductive plate, a casing  402  made from an insulation plate, or a casing  403  made from an insulation plate with a conductive coating. When the casing  402  is made from the insulation plate, the thickness of the casing  402  is determined to have a predetermined common mode impedance. When the conductive coating is formed on the insulation plate, the conductive coating may be formed on one side of the insulation plate, or on a whole surface of the insulation plate.  
         [0038]     When the ground plate  7  is connected to the floating capacitor, a distance to the ground is determined to have a predetermined common mode impedance. Although the casing  4  has a plate shape, the casing  4  may have a box shape.  
         [0039]     (3) Regarding the material and/or the structure of the first fixation member  5 , the first fixation member  5  has one of structures shown in  FIGS. 5A  to  5 C. Specifically, the first fixation member  5  may be a first fixation member  501  having a conductive fixing element, a first fixation member  502  having a conductive fixing element and an electric element such as a capacitor, or a first fixation member  503  having an insulation fixing element.  
         [0040]     (4) Regarding the material and/or the structure of the second fixation member  6 , the second fixation member  6  has one of structures shown in  FIGS. 6A  to  6 B. Specifically, the second fixation member  6  may be a second fixation member  601  having a conductive fixing element, or a second fixation member  602  having an insulation fixing element.  
         [0041]     In the slave node  1  having the casing  402 , the substrate  301 , the first fixation member  503  and the second fixation member  602 , each distance among the substrate  301 , the casing  402  and the ground plate  7  is determined to have a predetermined floating capacitance connection so that the common mode impedance is adjusted to be a predetermined impedance. Alternatively, a ground region for grounding to the ground plate  7  on the substrate  301  is formed in the wiring pattern of the substrate  301 , so that a capacitor connection or a floating capacitor connection is formed.  
         [0042]     In a network topology such as a bus type, a tree type and a ring type for a parallel connection, the common mode impedance of each slave node  1  is adjusted to reduce fluctuation of the common mode voltage and/or the common mode current in the communication lines  2 . Further, the common mode impedance of the master node is adjusted independently. Thus, the common mode noise in the network introduced from the node or an external circuit to the communication lines  2  is reduced.  
         [0043]     In this embodiment, since the total impedance of the slave node is adjusted to a predetermined impedance, the common mode impedance is set to be a predetermined impedance for reducing the noise, and a differential mode impedance is set to be a predetermined impedance for communication. Thus, the common mode noise can be reduced without affecting a communication signal.  
         [0044]     Thus, the structure and/or the thickness of the substrate  3 , the material and/or the thickness of the casing  4 , the material and/or the structure of the first fixation member  5 , and the material and/or the structure of the second fixation member  6  are determined so that the common mode impedance between the communication lines  2  and the ground plate  7  is adjusted to be a predetermined impedance. Accordingly, the fluctuation of a central voltage and/or a central current in the differential voltage and the differential current is reduced, so that the common mode noise is reduced with a comparatively low cost and simple construction without any additional element.  
         [0045]     Next, although the construction and thickness of the substrate  1 , the material and the thickness of the casing  4 , and the construction and the material of the first fixation member  5  are appropriately determined so that the impedance of the slave node is adjusted in the above embodiment, an additional circuit may be connected so that the frequency characteristic of the total impedance of the slave portion, which includes one ore more slave nodes  1 , is determined.  FIG. 7  shows a circuit of the slave portion.  FIG. 8A  shows the additional circuit  50 .  
         [0046]     The slave node  1  is a non-grounding type slave node for communicating with the master node by using the differential transmission system.  FIG. 7  shows an equivalent circuit of the slave portion. Specifically, in the equivalent circuit, two impedance elements  11  having an impedance of Zx are connected in series between a pair of communication lines  2 . Further, a floating capacitor  12  having an impedance of Zxc between the slave portion and the ground plate  7  is connected in a middle point between two impedance elements  11 . The additional circuit  50  is connected to one terminal of the pair of communication lines  2  on the slave node side.  
         [0047]     The additional circuit  50  sets the total impedance of the slave portion including one or more slave nodes  1  to have a predetermined frequency characteristic. In the additional circuit  50 , as shown in  FIG. 8A , two impedance elements  51  having an impedance of Zs are connected in series between the pair of communication lines  2 . Another impedance element  52  having an impedance of Zsc is connected in the middle between two impedance elements  51 . The other impedance element  52  is grounded practically. As shown in  FIG. 8B , two impedance elements  51  may be two resistors R, and the other impedance element  52  may be a capacitor C. Alternatively, as shown in  FIG. 8C , two impedance elements  51  may be two capacitors C, and the other impedance element  52  may be a resistor R.  
         [0048]     By connecting the additional circuit  50  to the slave node  1 , the differential mode impedance of the slave portion is provided by a parallel connection between the differential mode impedance Zxdif of the slave node  1  and the differential mode impedance Zsdif of the additional circuit  50 . To prevent the differential mode impedance of the slave portion at the communication frequency from being reduced, the impedance Zs of each impedance element  51  is set to be much larger than the impedance Zx of each impedance element  11 . Here, two impedance elements  51  have almost the same impedance Zs.  
         [0049]     The common mode impedance of the slave portion is provided by a parallel connection between the common mode impedance Zxcom of the slave node  1  and the common mode impedance Zscom of the additional circuit  50 . When the impedance Zsc of the other impedance element  52  is small, the common mode impedance of the slave portion is reduced. Accordingly, the impedance Zsc of the other impedance element  52  can be determined so that the common mode impedance of the slave portion is equal to or smaller than a predetermined impedance at the noise frequency band. Here, the predetermined impedance is determined based on a target value of reduction of the noise and an output impedance on the master node side. The common mode impedance Zxcom and the differential mode impedance Zxdif of the slave node  1  are calculated from an actual measurement value of S parameter. The impedance characteristic of the slave portion is provided by the differential mode impedance at the communication frequency and the common mode impedance in the noise frequency band (i.e., in an AM band between 0.51 MHz and 1.71 MHz), the differential mode impedance does not affect the communication signal so that the communication signal is not reduced, and the common mode impedance is sufficiently small so that the noise is sufficiently reduced.  
         [0050]     Next, the connection between the additional circuit  50  and the slave node  1  is explained as follows.  FIG. 9  shows an example of the connection, in which one master node and one slave node are formed. The additional circuit  50  is mounted on the substrate  3  on the slave node side. In the differential communication system, the ratio of common mode impedance between the substrate  3  on the slave node side and the master substrate  63  is reduced, so that the common mode noise transmitted in the communication line  2  is reduced. In  FIG. 9 , to obtain the predetermined ratio of common mode impedance, a common mode filter  61  is inserted in the master substrate  63  so that the common mode impedance of the master substrate  63  is increased. In another example of the connection shown in  FIG. 10 , the common mode filter  61  is also inserted in the master substrate  63 . In  FIG. 10 , one master node is connected to multiple slave nodes  1  through a pair of communication lines  2 . This connection is suitably used for an in-vehicle wiring. The additional circuit  50  is connected to one terminal of the communication line  2  on the slave node side. The additional circuit  50  is mounted on a substrate  55  and provides another node. In  FIG. 10 , the additional circuit  50  sets the frequency characteristic of the impedance of the slave portion including multiple slave nodes  1  to be a predetermined characteristic.  
         [0051]     Thus, the additional circuit  50  connected to the one terminal of the communication lines  2  on the slave node side determines the frequency characteristic of the impedance of the slave portion. The common mode impedance is set to be a predetermined impedance, with which the noise is sufficiently reduced, and the differential mode impedance is set to be a predetermined impedance, with which the communication is sufficiently performed. Accordingly, the common mode noise is reduced without affecting the communication signal.  
         [0052]     Specifically, when the slave portion is shown as the equivalent circuit corresponding to the circuit construction of the additional circuit  50 , the impedance Zs of each impedance element  51  is set to be much larger than the impedance Zx of a corresponding part of the slave node equivalent circuit. Thus, the differential impedance of the slave portion is prevented from being reduced, and the communication signal is prevented from being affected at the communication frequency. On the other hand, the impedance of the other impedance element  52  is set so that the common mode impedance of the slave portion is equal to or smaller than a predetermined impedance in the noise band. The noise is surely reduced.  
         [0053]     The additional circuit  50  is determined such that the differential mode impedance of the additional circuit  50  is much larger than the differential mode impedance of the slave node, and that the common mode impedance of the additional circuit  50  is set in order to reduce the common mode impedance of the slave portion equal to or smaller than a predetermined impedance. Thus, the differential impedance of the slave portion is prevented from being reduced, and the communication signal is prevented from being affected at the communication frequency. Further, the noise is surely reduced.  
         [0054]     In the additional circuit  50  shown in  FIG. 8 , two impedance elements  51  are connected in series between the pair of communication lines  2 , and the other impedance element  52  having one terminal substantially grounded is connected at the connection portion among multiple impedance elements  51 . Thus, the frequency characteristic of the impedance of the slave portion is surely and appropriately determined with a simple circuit construction.  
         [0055]     Although the additional circuit  50  has the construction shown in  FIG. 8 , the additional circuit  50  may have another construction, for example, shown in  FIG. 11 . In  FIG. 11 , the additional circuit  50  includes an impedance element  53  between the pair of communication lines  2  and two impedance elements  54 . One terminal of each impedance element  54  is connected to a connection portion between the pair of communication lines  2  and the impedance element  53 , and the other terminal of each impedance element  54  is substantially grounded. The impedance of the impedance element  53  is shown as the formula F2 of:  
             Z   ⁢           ⁢     s   2       +     2   ⁢           ⁢   Zs   ×   Zsc       Zsc     .       
 
 The impedance of the impedance element  54  is shown as the formula F3 of:  
             Z   ⁢           ⁢     s   2       +     2   ⁢           ⁢   Zs   ×   Zsc       Zs     .       
 
 In this case, the frequency characteristic of the impedance of the slave portion is surely and appropriately determined with a simple circuit construction. 
 
         [0056]     Next, a passenger protection device control system S having the slave node  1  is shown in  FIGS. 12A and 12B . The control system S operates a passenger protection device such as an airbag system and a seatbelt pre-tensioner when a vehicle collides. The control system S includes an electric control unit (i.e., ECU)  101  for the passenger protection device. The ECU  101  is connected to a satellite sensor  102  for detecting collision acceleration at a front side of the vehicle, a side collision sensor  103  for detecting side collision of the vehicle, a passenger sensor  104  for detecting existence or non-existence of the passenger in a seat, a squib  105  for the airbag system and a squib  106  for the seatbelt pre-tensioner through a pair of communication lines  110 . Here, the side collision sensor  103  is disposed on a side of the vehicle. The ECU  101  communicates with the sensors  102 - 104  and the squibs  105 - 106  by using the differential transmission system. In the control system S, the ECU  101  functions as the master node in the differential transmission system. The sensors  102 - 104  and the squibs  105 - 106  function as the non-grounded slave node, which is not grounded to the vehicle body.  
         [0057]     In the control system S, the structure and/or the thickness of the substrate  1 , on which the electric elements  31 - 33  are mounted, the material and/or the thickness of the casing  4  for protecting the substrate  1  and disposed between the substrate  1  and the vehicle body, the material and/or the structure of the first fixation member  5  for mounting the substrate  1  on the casing  4 , and the material and/or the structure of the second fixation member  6  for mounting the casing  4  on the vehicle body as the ground plate  7  are determined appropriately so that a floating capacitor, a capacitance and/or a direct current resistance generated by an alternating current connection between the vehicle body and the slave node such as the sensors  102 - 104  and the squibs  105 - 106  are defined. Thus, the common mode impedance between the communication line  110  and the vehicle body is adjusted to be a predetermined impedance, so that the common mode noise to be introduced into the communication line  110  is reduced. Thus, even when the noise in the communication line  110  is transmitted to an antenna, noise generation in a radio or a television is reduced. Further, even when the noise in the communication line  110  is introduced into various devices, reduction of performance of an actuator is prevented. For, example, performance reduction of a brakes, an ETC, an indicator or a power window are improved.  
         [0058]     While the invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the preferred embodiments and constructions. The invention is intended to cover various modification and equivalent arrangements. In addition, while the various combinations and configurations, which are preferred, other combinations and configurations, including more, less or only a single element, are also within the spirit and scope of the invention.