Functional Description - Ametek UPLC CU44-VER04 Applications Manual

2.4 UPLC™ Functional
Description.
The UPLC™ has a transmitter section and a receiv-
er section on the transceiver board. If the unit is
purchased as a receive-only system, then only the
receiver logic and associated information applies.
The block diagram, (Figure 2–4), at the end of this
chapter, illustrates the interconnection of the
UPLC™ hardware.
The transmitter is made up of the keying inputs (on
the I/O board), the keying logic (in the digital sig-
nal processing (DSP) firmware on the transceiver
board) the power amplifier(s) board and the RF
interface (on the motherboard). The state of the
keying inputs will determine what output is pro-
duced, both frequency and RF power out. For
example, an ON-OFF system will be turned on
when the START input is asserted. The signal pro-
duced will be at the programmed frequency and at
the high-level power output. In an FSK system,
with no keying input asserted, the GUARD fre-
quency is produced at the low-level power output.
When one or more of the keying inputs are assert-
ed, then the appropriate signal will be produced.
The following keying tables describe the different
combinations available.
The receiver is made up of the RF interface (on the
motherboard), input filters and detect/discrimina-
tion and the logic described herein (in the DSP on
the transceiver board), and the associated outputs
(on the I/O board). The incoming RF signal is
detected or discriminated according to the program-
ming, and based on the signal received, produces
the appropriate output. For ON-OFF systems, the
outputs are simple – if the signal is detected (i.e. –
the RF signal is the desired frequency and is above
the minimum sensitivity), then the receiver output
is produced. For FSK systems, it is more complicat-
ed and there are several logic choices available.
The FSK logic diagrams at the end of this chapter
describe the choices available.
Besides the main function of the UPLC™ as a
power-line carrier channel, there are several other
ancillary functions and optional features available.
The processor on the transceiver board handles
many of the "housekeeping" functions. It handles
May 2012
Chapter 2. Product Description
the web pages that are served up when connected to
a personal computer (pc). The web pages allow you
to set up user accounts, set the UPLC™, and down-
load settings in either an XML file or a report file.
The XML file is used for re-loading settings on a
UPLC™. Upgrading the firmware is also done
through the web pages. Calibration can also be done
via the web pages.
The Sequence of Events (SOEs) reside in the
processor on the transceiver board. These track
events that occur in the UPLC™. They are viewed
via the web pages and can be downloaded into a
CSV (common separated values) file format. The
I/O programming allows for up to three external
events to be fed into the UPLC™ SOEs. For exam-
ple, you can monitor the breaker auxiliary contact
position in relationship to keying inputs or receiver
outputs. SOEs are stored in non-volatile-random-
access memory (NOVRAM) so that they are main-
tained even when the unit is powered down.
The settings files also reside in the processor on the
transceiver board and are stored in NOVRAM.
There are three sets of the file stored for redundan-
cy purposes.
Status indication is provided by the four line by 20-
character display on the front panel. The basic pro-
gramming - Channel type, function, frequencies,
RF output, receive level and margin are displayed.
It also has a 15-button keypad that allows for minor
setting changes, exercising of the PLC channel, cal-
ibration of the transmitter and receiver, and config-
uration of the Internet Protocol functions. The dis-
play turns off automatically 30 minutes after input
from the user has stopped. To turn it back on
requires pressing the DISP ON button or any other
button on the keypad. There is also a front panel
serial port (USB or DB9 connector) to connect a pc
to allow settings, etc through web pages.
Also on the front panel are several blue indicator
lights that indicate if the main and optional redun-
dant power supplies and power amplifiers are on.
Additionally, on the front panel are controls for an
optional voice feature (not available at this time)
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