Source: https://patents.google.com/patent/US6169451?oq=6%2C108%2C703
Timestamp: 2018-03-19 11:02:43
Document Index: 251166210

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 100', 'art 200', 'art 100', 'art 100', 'art 100', 'art 200']

US6169451B1 - System for sensing operating state of tower top amplifier for mobile communication system and method of sensing the same - Google Patents
System for sensing operating state of tower top amplifier for mobile communication system and method of sensing the same
US6169451B1
US6169451B1 US09203339 US20333998A US6169451B1 US 6169451 B1 US6169451 B1 US 6169451B1 US 09203339 US09203339 US 09203339 US 20333998 A US20333998 A US 20333998A US 6169451 B1 US6169451 B1 US 6169451B1
US09203339
A system for sensing the operating state of a tower top amplifier for mobile communication system, includes a plurality of tower top amplifiers each connected to communication antennas; and an operating state management part monitoring the operating state of each tower top amplifier. The operating state management part monitors the operating state of each tower top amplifier by the use of a single power supply line connected between itself and each tower top amplifier. In a method of sensing the operating state of a tower top amplifier for mobile communication system, the operating state of each tower top amplifier is monitored by using an amount of consumed DC power applied to the respective tower top amplifiers. This method includes the steps of measuring a potential difference of a given section of the DC power applied to each tower top amplifier; and comparing a result obtained by the measuring step and determining the normal or abnormal states of the tower top amplifiers.
Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a system for sensing the operating state of a tower top amplifier for a mobile communication system and a method of sensing the same that substantially obviate one or more of the problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.
Referring to FIG. 2, the inventive system includes a signal amplifying part 100 having a plurality of tower top amplifiers 1 a to 1 n in each connected to communication antennas AT1 to ATn, and an operating state management part 200, including a monitoring unit 25, sensing the operating state of each tower top amplifier 1 a to 1 n.
Signal amplifying part 100 includes a band-pass filter 11 which removes a band of radio frequency signals applied through its receiving antenna; a low-noise amplifier 12 that increases the amplitude of the overall output signals with maximally suppressing the amplification of noisy signals contained in signals output from band-pass filter 11; a bias tee 13 which prevents a surge and separates the DC power and radio frequency signals from the input signal; and first and second switches SW1 and SW2 each provided to both terminals of low-noise amplifier 12 and turned on when the DC power is applied thereto from the base station, and turned off when low-noise amplifier 12 is out of order.
Each tower top amplifier 1 a to 1 n distributes radio frequency signals applied through respective antennas AT1 to ATn by using a 90° 3 dB coupler, and increases the amplitude of the respective distributed signals thereby producing a single output signal by the use of 90° 3 dB coupler. Accordingly, each of the applied radio frequency signal has two paths within the tower top amplifier, and if two paths all fail, it is transmitted to bias tee 13 without passing through the corresponding one of tower top amplifiers 1 a to 1 n.
The DC power driving each tower top amplifier 1 a to 1 n is applied thereto through corresponding power supply lines S1 to Sn by using bias tee 14 of base station 5. Each tower top amplifier 1 a to 1 n receives the DC power, and applies it to bias tee 13 of signal amplifying part 100, low-noise amplifier 12, and switches SW1 and SW2. If the DC power is applied to second switch SW2's input terminal al, their contacts are a0-b0 and a1-b1 each so that switches SW1 and SW2 are turned on. If not so, their contacts are a0-c0 and a0-c0 each, and switches SW1 and SW2 are turned off.
Thus, the amount of power consumed by a radio frequency (RF) device placed within low-noise amplifier 12 in signal amplifying part 100 depends on the operating state of each tower top amplifier 1 a to 1 n. The operating state of each tower top amplifier 1 a to 1 n is easily monitored by measuring the amount of power consumption in operating state management part 200. A very small resistor R0 (about 0.1 Ω or 1 Ω in this preferred embodiment) is connected in series between the DC power and bias tee 14, and the amount of power consumption can be found from a potential difference V1 of resistor R0's both nodes. That is, according to Ohm's law (V=1×R) potential difference V1 between resistor R0's both nodes is big as the consumed electric current is more increased than a threshold value. As the consumed electric current is more decreased than potential difference V1, potential difference V1 of resistor R0's both nodes becomes decreased, and the amount of power consumption is obtained by computing a value of potential difference V1.
If the DC power applied to tower top amplifiers 1 a to 1 n is smaller than (R2×5)/(R1+R2), an output voltage of OP-AMP C becomes 5V, and if the applied voltage is larger than (R2×5)/(R1+R2), an output voltage of OP-AMP C becomes 0V. On the contrary, if the DC power, applied to each tower top amplifier 1 a to 1 n, is smaller than (R6×5)/(R5+R6), an output voltage of an OP-AMP D is 0V. If the applied voltage is larger than (R6×5)(R5+R6), the output voltage of OP-AMP D becomes 5V. When adding outputs of the two voltage comparators having two features by the use of diodes D1 and D2, the final output voltage is as follows:
(R6×5)/(R5+R6)≦input≦(R2×5)/(R1+R2: Output voltage=0V; (R6×5)/(R5+R6)≧input, or input≧(R2×5)/(R1+R2): output voltage=5V.
Therefore, a range of a certain applied voltage can be found, thus easily monitoring the operating state of each tower top amplifier 1 a to 1 n.
According to the present invention, the operating state of each tower top amplifier can be monitored while a single power supply line is connected between the base station and each tower top amplifier. Thus, there is no need to employ a device for monitoring the operating state of each tower top amplifier, and a multiplexer and a demultiplexer for collecting the operating states of the tower top amplifiers and transmitting them to the base station and receiving the same so that the overall system is more simple in structure than the prior art and the operating state of each tower top amplifier is more reliably monitored.
1. A system for sensing the operating state of a tower top amplifier for mobile communication system comprising:
a plurality of tower top amplifiers each connected to communication antennas; and
an operating state management circuit, which monitors an operating state of each tower top amplifier, wherein each of the tower top amplifiers is coupled to the operating state management circuit by a respective transmission line carrying RF signals and a DC signal, and wherein the operating state management circuit monitors the operating state of each tower top amplifier based on at least one of the RF and DC signals on the associated transmission line.
2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the operating state management circuit monitors the operating state of each tower top amplifier using an amount of direct current (DC) power provided to each tower top amplifier by a base station through each transmission line.
4. A system according to claim 1, wherein each tower top amplifier distributes the inputted radio frequency signals by using a 90° 3 dB coupler, and amplifies the distributed signals.
a window detector to detect an amount of consumed power by detecting a potential difference of the DC power provided to the tower top amplifiers; and
an alarm generator to produce an alarm signal if the window detector determines that a corresponding one of the tower top amplifiers is in an abnormal state.
10. A system according to claim 9, wherein the window detector includes at least two voltage comparators.
a signal amplifying circuit connected to a plurality of communication antennas to amplify radio frequency signals inputted from a receiving antenna;
an operating state management circuit to sense whether or not the signal amplifying circuit is operating normally; and
a bias tee circuit to separate the radio frequency signals and a DC power signal provided on a single power supply line.
16. A system according to claim 15, wherein the signal amplifying part includes a plurality of tower top amplifiers amplifying the received radio frequency signals.
a power supply line to receive the DC power signal from a base station;
a filter to remove an unnecessary band of radio frequency signals received from the receiving antenna;
a low-noise amplifier to remove unnecessary frequency signals from the signal output by the filter and to amplify the output signals of the filter;
a bias tee to separate the DC power signal and radio frequency signals; and
at least one switch connected to the low-noise amplifier and turned on or off by the DC power signal applied from the base station, wherein the DC power signal and the radio frequency signal are carried on the power supply line.
18. A system according to claim 15, wherein the operating state management circuit comprises:
a bias tee to prevent a surge from the tower top amplifiers;
a resistor to measure an amount of the power consumed by the respective tower top amplifiers;
a window detector to detect a potential difference of the power applied to the respective tower top amplifiers and the amount of the power consumed by the tower top amplifiers; and
a low-noise amplifier to amplify radio frequency signals applied from the tower top amplifiers.
19. A system according to claim 18, wherein the operating state management circuit further comprises means for announcing the operating state of each tower top amplifier to a manager.
measuring a potential difference of a given section of DC power applied to each tower top amplifier; and
comparing a result obtained by the measuring step to determine the normal or abnormal states of the tower top amplifiers, wherein the operating state of each tower top amplifier is monitored by using an amount of consumed DC power provided to the respective tower top amplifiers.
23. A method according to claim 22, wherein the measuring step is performed by computing a value of the potential difference of the DC power applied to each tower top amplifier.
US09203339 1997-12-27 1998-12-02 System for sensing operating state of tower top amplifier for mobile communication system and method of sensing the same Expired - Fee Related US6169451B1 (en)
KR19970075436A KR100269343B1 (en) 1997-12-27 1997-12-27 Apparatus and method for sensing status of long distance amplifier in mobile communication system
KR97-75436 1997-12-27
US6169451B1 true US6169451B1 (en) 2001-01-02
ID=19528998
US09203339 Expired - Fee Related US6169451B1 (en) 1997-12-27 1998-12-02 System for sensing operating state of tower top amplifier for mobile communication system and method of sensing the same
US (1) US6169451B1 (en)
KR (1) KR100269343B1 (en)
WO2011127850A3 (en) * 2011-05-16 2012-04-26 华为技术有限公司 Method and device for positioning faulty tower top device
EP3119122A4 (en) * 2014-03-25 2017-08-09 Huawei Tech Co Ltd Control system and method for wireless base station and related device
US9813113B2 (en) 2014-03-25 2017-11-07 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. System and method for controlling radio base station, and related device
KR100269343B1 (en) 2000-10-16 grant
US5418490A (en) 1995-05-23 Failure responsive alternate amplifier and bypass system for communications amplifier
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