JP2004159812A - Power source management system of ultrasonograph - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a power source management system of an ultrasonograph with which the management of the power supply to each electronic unit connected to the ultrasonograph can be performed easily. <P>SOLUTION: When an ultrasonograph operator turns on a user SW 36, a power source controller 20 of a power source managing unit 18 is driven through an on-off controlling circuit 28 of a power source unit 12. Simultaneously, the on-off controlling circuit 28 of the power source unit 12 is driven. When the power source controller 20 is driven, the power source controller 20 controls individual power sources 26a-26n so that the on-off controlling circuit 28 of the power source unit 12 turns on the power supply to individual electronic units 16a-16n in a prescribed controlling sequence . <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a power management system for an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, and more particularly to an improvement in a power management system for an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that can easily manage power supply to each electronic unit connected to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in electronic equipment, for example, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus or the like, DC ± 5V, ± 12V, ± 12V to supply a predetermined voltage to an electronic unit mounted therein, for example, an analog circuit unit or a digital circuit unit. A plurality of individual power supplies for generating 15V, 3.3V, etc. are mounted. An ultrasonic probe is an electronic unit externally connected to and driven by the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus. These require a high voltage power supply, for example, DC ± 90V, ± 60V, etc., and an individual power supply for generating this high voltage is also mounted.
[0003]
Conventionally, these individual power supplies drop AC100V or the like connected to an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus to a desired DC voltage by a step-down transformer, an AC-DC converter, or the like, and supply them to each electronic unit.
[0004]
Normally, when the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is operated, when the user turns on the power switch, the voltage supply control of each individual power supply (± 5 V, ± 12 V, ± 15 V, ± 90 V, ± 60 V, etc.) is also started at the same time and operates. Transition to the state.
[0005]
Further, there is an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that performs power off control for power saving for each electronic unit mounted therein (for example, see Patent Document 1).
[0006]
[Patent Document 1]
JP 2000-70262 A
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, since various loads are connected to the electronic unit to which each individual power supply supplies power, even if the individual power supply side starts up at the same time, the rising waveform of the power supply on the load side depends on the load. It does not turn on or off. If the rise of the power supply varies, for example, the operation of the IC may become unstable. Specifically, when the electronic unit needs a plurality of power supplies, for example, an IC that receives 3.3 V and 5 V and converts the signal voltage levels of 3.3 V and 5 V is mounted on the electronic unit. If the rise of the 5V side is delayed in the electronic unit, only 3.3V is supplied to the IC. In this case, an overcurrent may flow through the IC, and latch-up may occur. In order to avoid such inconveniences, various safety measures are usually taken such as adding a protective resistor or the like to a power supply line in order to prevent an overcurrent from flowing into the IC. These countermeasures are required for each IC and power supply line. As a result, the circuit configuration has become complicated and the design has been limited. Therefore, there has been a demand for maintaining or further improving the reliability of power supply, simplifying the circuit configuration, and easily performing power management.
[0008]
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to provide a power management system for an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that can easily perform power supply management for each electronic unit connected to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus. And
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a plurality of individual power supplies capable of supplying a predetermined voltage to a plurality of electronic units included in an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, and a power supply to each electronic unit by each of the individual power supplies. A power management unit that is activated prior to the start of supply control, wherein after powering up, the power management unit controls the individual power supplies in a predetermined order and starts on / off control of power supply to each electronic unit. It is characterized by doing.
[0010]
According to this configuration, the individual power supplies are individually controlled regardless of the state of the load connected to the electronic unit, and the on / off control of the individual power supplies is performed in a predetermined order. As a result, the power supply is always turned on and off in the same order on the electronic unit side. That is, each electronic unit can always operate satisfactorily by receiving power ON / OFF control at the optimal timing.
[0011]
In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, in the above configuration, the power management unit performs on-control of a low-voltage individual power supply, and thereafter performs on-control of a high-voltage individual power supply. It is characterized by the following.
[0012]
Here, the low voltage is a voltage mainly used for a control circuit, and is, for example, less than 20 V, preferably 15 V or less. The high voltage is a voltage mainly used for driving equipment, and is, for example, 20 V or more, preferably 50 V or more.
[0013]
According to this configuration, it is possible to use a device that functions at a high voltage after the control circuit that functions at a low voltage operates normally and reliably, thereby improving the operational safety of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus. become.
[0014]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides the above configuration, in which the power management unit includes an on-order sequence for sequentially turning on individual power supplies, and an off-order sequence for sequentially turning off individual power supplies in the reverse order. It is characterized by having.
[0015]
According to this configuration, even when the power is turned off, the power supply from the individual power supply is cut off in a predetermined order, so that it is possible to eliminate damage to each electronic unit due to connection of an unintended voltage. .
[0016]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides the above configuration, further comprising: a sensor for monitoring a voltage value immediately before the voltage of the individual power supply is supplied to each electronic unit; and a monitoring result of the sensor. And a presenting unit for presenting.
[0017]
According to this configuration, the state of the power supply voltage on each electronic unit side can be accurately monitored, and the detection result can be promptly presented to the user.
[0018]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is characterized in that, in the above configuration, the presenting unit is configured by a presenting element directly controlled by the power management unit.
[0019]
Here, the presentation element is a simple control element such as an LED or a buzzer. According to this configuration, the state of the power supply voltage can be easily presented to the user immediately after the activation of the power management unit even before the main program or the like of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus having a slow rise is activated.
[0020]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention (hereinafter, referred to as embodiments) will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0021]
FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the configuration of a power management system 10 for an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the present embodiment. The power supply management system 10 is roughly divided into a power supply unit 12 in which a power supply system for supplying power to the operation of an ultrasonic probe included in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus and related devices and boards, and the like. A host controller unit (for example, a personal computer) 14 that performs overall control of the diagnostic apparatus and performs image analysis and the like based on the acquired data, and an ultrasonic transmission that receives power from the power supply unit 12 and transmits ultrasonic waves. A plurality of electronic units 16a to 16n (shown by one box in the drawing) such as a unit and an ultrasonic signal analysis unit for analyzing acquired ultrasonic signals and the like, and supply management of power mainly to the electronic units 16a to 16n. And a power management unit 18. The power management unit 18 may be provided independently as a unit, or may be integrated with an arbitrary unit, for example, the electronic unit 16a.
[0022]
A characteristic feature of the present embodiment is that the supply of power to the electronic units 16a to 16n is managed not by the host controller unit 14 or the power unit 12, but by an independent power management unit 18, and the power of each of the electronic units 16a to 16n is controlled. Control to turn on or off in a fixed order is being performed. That is, the power controller 20 constituting the power management unit 18 is performing the on / off control of the power supplied to each of the electronic units 16a to 16n independently. In the present embodiment, the power supply controller 20 also controls the on / off control circuit 22 of the host controller unit 14 that operates independently of the electronic units 16a to 16n.
[0023]
In FIG. 1, the power supply unit 12 includes a transformer & power supply stabilization circuit 24 connected to an external power supply, for example, AC100V, performs AC-DC conversion, and uses each individual power supply 26a-26n to provide each electronic unit 16a. Power is supplied to the individual power supplies 26a to 26n so that a desired voltage suitable for −16n can be converted. Further, the power supply of a predetermined voltage is also supplied to the on / off control circuit 28 included in the power supply unit 12. The individual power supplies 26a to 26n are, for example, 5V as a power supply for a controller, ± 5V, ± 12V, ± 15V for an analog circuit, 3.3V for a digital circuit, and ultrasonic transmission for driving an ultrasonic transducer. ± 90 V, ± 60 V, etc. are prepared for circuits.
[0024]
On the other hand, the host controller unit 14 has a dedicated power supply system so that the host controller unit 14 can operate alone. That is, it includes a transformer & power stabilization circuit 30 connected to an external power supply, for example, AC100V, performs AC-DC conversion, and includes a host controller 32a included in the host controller unit 14 and other internal circuits 32b- Power is supplied to each of the individual power supplies 34a to 34n so that a desired voltage suitable for 32n can be converted.
[0025]
The operation of the power management system 10 configured as described above will be described. First, when the operator of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus turns on the user switch (user SW) 36, the on / off control circuit 28 to which the transformer & power stabilization circuit 24 is connected is activated, and the on / off control circuit is turned on. The power supply controller 20 of the power supply management unit 18 that has been supplied with power through 28 starts up. When the power supply controller 20 (power supply management unit 18) is activated, the ON / OFF control circuit 28 of the power supply unit 12 performs predetermined control of power supply to each of the electronic units 16a to 16n via each of the individual power supplies 26a to 26n. Send control signals to start in order (ON order sequence). That is, the control by the power supply controller 20 is started prior to the power supply control to the electronic units 16a to 16n.
[0026]
The control sequence at this time is, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, 5 V (for a controller), ± 5 V (for an analog circuit), ± 12 V, ± 15 V (for an analog circuit), 3.3 V (for a digital circuit). , ± 90 V (for the ultrasonic transmission circuit) and ± 60 V (for the ultrasonic transmission circuit). For example, when 3.3 V is turned on, control is performed so that 5 V, ± 5 V, ± 12 V, and ± 15 V are turned on in advance. In this way, by controlling the order in which the individual power supplies 26a to 26n are always turned on, the electronic units 16a to 16n always supply power in a predetermined order regardless of the load state. Can receive. For example, in the case of the IC 38 which receives supply of a plurality of types of voltages (for example, 3.3 V and 5 V) and converts signal voltage levels of 3.3 V and 5 V as shown in FIG. When the supply of 3 V is performed before the supply of 5 V, an overvoltage of 3.3 V is applied to the IC 38, the current keeps flowing, and the operation of the IC 38 becomes unstable (latch-up). However, as in the present embodiment, the supply of 5 V is reliably performed before the supply of 3.3 V, so that the IC 38 is in a reverse bias state, and the current keeps flowing even when 3.3 V is applied. This can be reliably prevented. That is, it is possible to omit the conventionally used protection resistor and the like.
[0027]
As shown in FIG. 2, a low-voltage individual power supply (for example, less than 20 V, preferably 15 V or less) such as 5 V, ± 5 V, ± 12 V, ± 15 V, or 3.3 V is started in advance, and thereafter, By ensuring that a high voltage (for example, 20 V or more, preferably 50 V or more) of ± 90 V or ± 60 V rises, a high voltage is applied after the control circuit in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus that operates at a low voltage starts to operate reliably. Can be supplied to each circuit of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, so that the safety of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus can be further improved. Conventionally, high-voltage supply control has also been performed using complicated software or the like. However, in the present embodiment, as described above, reliable voltage supply control can be performed with a simple configuration. The rise timing of each of the individual power supplies 26a to 26n is, for example, 5 V for the control circuit starts rising, counting starts at a point when a predetermined threshold value (for example, Vt = 1.8 V) is exceeded, and after 2 mS, 4 mS After, after 6 mS, after 8 mS, after 10 mS, and so on. However, it is desirable that this delay time is appropriately changed according to the load state of each of the electronic units 16a to 16n.
[0028]
Further, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, as shown in FIG. 4, an ultrasonic transducer 40 for transmitting ultrasonic waves and an ultrasonic transmission circuit 42 (the transducer is connected to one of the ultrasonic transmission circuits). An analog switch 44 for switching the connection line is used. In order to operate the analog switch 44, a power supply of, for example, ± 90 V is used. However, in a state where power is not supplied to the analog switch 44 (± 90 V), a transmission signal (for example, ± When 60 V is applied, the analog switch 44 may be damaged. Therefore, it was necessary to take some safety measures for each power supply line. However, as shown in FIG. 2, by determining the control order so as to supply ± 60 V following ± 90 V, the risk of damage as described above is also eliminated. As described above, in the conventional ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, various safety measures were individually required for the power supply hardware configuration and software configuration for each countermeasure part. Simple and reliable power management can be realized.
[0029]
Note that FIG. 2 shows an example in which ± 12 V and ± 15 V are turned on after ± 5 V for an analog circuit. However, if there is no problem even if the switching order is changed for an analog circuit, ± 5 V is used. , ± 12V, ± 15V are optional. In addition, they may be grouped and controlled collectively.
[0030]
As described above, when the power supply controller 20 (power supply management unit 18) is started, the power supply controller 20 instructs the on / off control circuit 28 of the power supply unit 12 to supply power to each of the electronic units 16a to 16n in a predetermined manner. A control signal is sent to turn on the host controller unit 14 in the control order. At the same time, an on / off control circuit 22 of the host controller unit 14 is also supplied with an instruction signal for turning on the power of the host controller unit 14. As described above, since the host controller unit 14 has the transformer & power supply stabilizing circuit 30 and the individual power supplies 34a to 34n connected to the external power supply so as to be able to be driven independently, the on / off control circuit When receiving an instruction to activate the host controller unit 14 from the power supply controller 20, the individual 22 turns on the individual power supplies 34a to 34n according to a sequence determined inside the circuit, and activates the host controller 32a and the internal circuits 32b to 32n. .
[0031]
On the other hand, when shutting off the power supply of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, first, when the operator turns off the user SW, the power supply controller 20 supplies an operation end request signal to the host controller 32a. After performing the operation termination processing of the host controller unit 14, the host controller 32 a supplies the power controller 20 with a termination processing completion signal. After confirming the end of the operation on the host controller unit 14 side, the power supply controller 20 instructs the on / off control circuit 28 of the power supply unit 12 to supply power to each of the electronic units 16a to 16n in a predetermined control order (off order sequence). Sends a control signal to turn off.
[0032]
The control sequence at this time is performed in the reverse order of when the power is turned on. That is, ± 60V (for ultrasonic transmission circuit), ± 90V (for ultrasonic transmission circuit), 3.3V (for digital circuit), ± 12V, ± 15V (for analog circuit), ± 5V (for analog circuit), It is performed in the order of 5V (for the controller). In this way, even when the power is turned off, the power supply from the individual power supply is cut off in a predetermined order, so that it is possible to eliminate damage to each electronic unit due to connection of an unintended voltage. .
[0033]
By the way, as described above, the loads connected to the electronic units 16a to 16n are different from each other. Therefore, even if the individual power supplies 26a to 26n output a predetermined voltage, the electronic units 16a to 16n actually output the predetermined voltage. It is necessary to confirm whether or not a predetermined voltage is supplied. Therefore, in the present embodiment, each of the power supply lines 46a to 46n extending from each of the individual power supplies 26a to 26n has a sensor for monitoring a voltage value immediately before being supplied to each of the electronic units 16a to 16n, for example, the voltage sensors 48a to 48n. Are provided, and the detection result is provided to the power supply controller 20. The voltage sensors 48a to 48n detect whether a predetermined voltage is supplied to each of the electronic units 16a to 16n, and detect whether the power supply voltage is turned on and off in the predetermined order. I have.
[0034]
Normally, when the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is operating, the power supply voltage data is supplied to the host controller 32a and processed by a monitoring program operating on the operation system of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus. A voltage monitor is performed on the panel. In addition, normal / abnormal presentation is performed as needed.
[0035]
However, a voltage abnormality may occur before the operation system of the host controller 32a starts up, or a power on / off sequence may be disrupted. In this case, monitoring processing cannot be performed on the host controller 32a side. In the case of the present embodiment, the power supply controller 20 includes, for example, an LED 50 that is a light emitting element as an element for presenting the power supply monitoring result. The LED 50 may be provided for each of the voltage sensors 48a to 48n, or one LED 50 may be provided for overall monitoring. In this case, the LED 50 may be a simple one that indicates whether or not power is normally supplied to each of the electronic units 16a to 16n, and preferably does not involve complicated monitoring processing. In other words, it is preferable that the host controller 32a functions easily even before the operation system starts up and presents the voltage supply state to the operator. Of course, the presentation means is arbitrary as long as it operates with simple control, and may be, for example, a buzzer.
[0036]
Further, in the present embodiment, the power controller 20 of the power management unit 18 controls on / off of the individual power supplies 26a to 26n in a predetermined order. That is, the individual power supplies 26a to 26n can be independently turned on and off. Therefore, in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, when some functions are stopped, that is, when the apparatus enters a standby state, on / off control of the individual power supplies 26a to 26n can be performed to save power. When shifting to the standby state, the host controller 32a issues an instruction to the power supply controller 20 to turn off the power of the unused electronic units 16a to 16n.
[0037]
FIG. 5 shows an example of a usage pattern of the individual power supplies 26a to 26n. During normal operation, that is, while transmitting ultrasonic waves by the ultrasonic transducer connected to the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus to collect ultrasonic data, and performing analysis and image processing of the ultrasonic data as necessary In this mode, all the individual power supplies 26a to 26n are turned on to drive the electronic units 16a to 16n. Further, at the time of a freeze, that is, when only the transmission of the ultrasonic wave is stopped, only the supply of ± 90 V and ± 60 V for driving the ultrasonic vibrator is stopped, and 5 V for other control controllers and 5 V for the analog circuit are stopped. It supplies ± 5V, ± 12V, ± 15V, and 3.3V for digital circuits. When analyzing data, that is, when only the host controller unit 14 operates alone and performs data analysis or the like, only 5 V for the control controller is supplied, and the others are stopped. Further, in the sleep mode, that is, when there is no access from the operator for a certain period of time (for example, 30 minutes), only 5 V for the controller is supplied, and the others are stopped.
[0038]
As described above, even after the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is completely activated, the power supply controller 20 controls on / off of each of the individual power supplies 26a to 26n, so that unnecessary power supply is not performed without performing complicated software control or the like. It is possible to suppress consumption and save power.
[0039]
The configuration of the power supply management system 10 shown in FIG. 1 is an example, and the power supply management for the electronic units 16a to 16n is not performed by the host controller unit 14 or the power supply unit 12 but by the individual power supplies 26a to 26n as in the related art. Any configuration is possible as long as the configuration is performed by an independent power management unit 18 that is activated prior to power supply, and the power of each of the electronic units 16a to 16n is turned on or off in a predetermined order. The effect of can be obtained. For example, in FIG. 1, an example has been described in which the power supply controller 20 (power supply management unit 18) activated by the user SW 36 controls the power supply by the individual power supplies 26 a to 26 n in a predetermined order via the on / off control circuit 28. However, the power supply of the individual power supplies 26a to 26n may be directly controlled by the power supply controller 20. 1, the power supply unit 12 is activated by the user SW 36, the power supply controller 20 (the power supply management unit 18) is activated via the on / off control circuit 28, and again via the on / off control circuit 28. Although an example in which the individual power supplies 26a to 26n are controlled has been described, when the power supply controller 20 has an independent power supply, only the power supply controller 20 is first activated by the user SW 36, and the power supply unit 12 is started from the power supply controller 20. Even if the power supply control by the individual power supplies 26a to 26n is started, the same effect as in the present embodiment can be obtained. The control for the host controller unit 14 is the same.
[0040]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, the on / off control of the individual power supply is performed in a predetermined order regardless of the state of the load connected to the electronic unit side. It can operate well under the off control. Conventionally, various safety measures have been individually required for the power supply in terms of a hardware configuration, a software configuration, and the like. However, simple and reliable power management can be realized by collective management by the power management unit.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a configuration conceptual diagram of a power management system of an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating on / off timing of an individual power supply by a power management system of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an operation of an IC according to ON / OFF timing of an individual power supply unit.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an operation of an analog switch according to on / off timing of an individual power supply unit.
FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an on / off pattern of an individual power supply when realizing various standby states of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus using the power management system of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. .
[Explanation of symbols]
Reference Signs List 10 power management system, 12 power supply unit, 14 host controller unit, 16a-16n electronic unit, 18 power supply management unit, 20 power supply controller, 22, 28 on / off control circuit, 24, 30 transformer & power supply stabilization circuit, 26a- 26n, 34a-34n individual power supply, 32a host controller, 36 user SW, 40 ultrasonic transducer, 42 ultrasonic transmission circuit, 44 analog switch, 46a-46n power supply line, 48a-48n voltage sensor.

Claims (5)

A plurality of individual power supplies capable of supplying a predetermined voltage to a plurality of electronic units included in the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus,
A power management unit that is activated prior to the start of power supply control to each electronic unit by each of the individual power sources,
Including
The power management system for an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, wherein the power management unit controls the individual power supplies in a predetermined order and starts on / off control of power supply to each electronic unit after startup. The device of claim 1,
The power management system for an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, wherein the power management unit performs on-control of a low-voltage individual power supply, and thereafter performs on-control of a high-voltage individual power supply. The device according to claim 1 or 2,
The power supply management system for an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, wherein the power supply management unit has an on-sequence sequence for sequentially turning on individual power supplies and an off-order sequence for sequentially turning off individual power supplies in the reverse order. An apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
further,
A sensor for monitoring a voltage value immediately before the voltage of the individual power supply is supplied to each electronic unit,
A presentation unit that presents a monitoring result of the sensor,
A power management system for an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, comprising: The device according to claim 4,
The power supply management system for an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, wherein the presentation unit includes a presentation element directly controlled by the power management unit.

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