Telematics device with input/output expansion power fault handling

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11544128-B1
Application number	US-202217865543-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Jul 15, 2022
Priority date	Aug 25, 2021
Publication date	Jan 3, 2023
Grant date	Jan 3, 2023

Abstract

A telematics device coupled to an input/output expander is provided. The telematics device includes a controller, an input/output expander interface for coupling the telematics device to the controller and a memory. The memory has machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to power-cycle the input/output expander interface by a plurality of power cycles having progressively increasing power-off durations, in response to detecting a power fault condition on the input/output expander interface.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A telematics device coupled to an input/output expander, the telematics device comprising:
a controller;
an input/output expander interface coupled to the controller, the input/output expander for coupling the telematics device to the input/output expander;
a memory, coupled to the controller, the memory for storing machine-executable programming instructions which, when executed by the controller, configure the telematics device to:
in response to detecting a power fault condition on the input/output expander interface:
power-cycle the input/output expander interface by a plurality of power cycles having progressively increasing power-off durations;
after each power cycle of the plurality of power cycles, check the power fault condition; and
permanently power off the input/output expander interface if the power fault condition is detected and a current power-off duration of the progressively increasing power-off durations has reached a power-off duration limit.

2. The telematics device of claim 1 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to power off the input/output expander interface comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to set an indication in a persistent storage that the input/output expander interface has been powered off due to a power fault.

3. The telematics device of claim 2 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions further comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to clear the indication that the input/output expander interface has been powered off due to the power fault condition in response to detecting that the input/output expander has been unplugged from the input/output expander interface.

4. The telematics device of claim 2 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions further comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to check the indication in the persistent storage upon powering up of the telematics device and refrain from powering up the input/output expander interface in response to determining that the input/output expander interface has been powered off due to the power fault condition.

5. The telematics device of claim 1 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to detect the power fault condition comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to detect one of: an overcurrent condition, an overvoltage condition, and a reverse current condition.

6. The telematics device of claim 1 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to progressively increase the progressively increasing power-off durations comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to increase the current power-off duration between two successive power cycles.

7. The telematics device of claim 1 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to detect the power fault condition on the input/output expander interface comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to receive an indication from a power protection module of the power fault condition.

8. The telematics device of claim 7 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to receive the indication from the power protection module comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to receive one of: a signal change on a pin or an interrupt signal.

9. A telematics device coupled to an input/output expander, the telematics device comprising:
a controller;
an input/output expander interface coupled to the controller, the input/output expander for coupling the telematics device to the input/output expander;
a memory, coupled to the controller, the memory for storing machine-executable programming instructions which, when executed by the controller, configure the telematics device to:
a) set an input/output expander power-off duration to an initial value;
b) power on the input/output expander interface of the telematics device for powering on the input/output expander;
c) in response to detecting a power fault at the input/output expander interface:
i. power off the input/output expander interface for the input/output expander power-off duration, and
ii. increase the input/output expander power-off duration; and

d) repeat steps b) and c) when the input/output expander power-off duration is not greater than a power-off duration limit and the power fault at the input/output expander interface is detected.

10. The telematics device of claim 9 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions further comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to permanently power off the input/output expander interface when the input/output expander power-off duration is greater than the power-off duration limit.

11. The telematics device of claim 9 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to increase the input/output expander power-off duration comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to double the input/output expander power-off duration.

12. The telematics device of claim 9 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to increase the input/output expander power-off duration comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to quadruple the input/output expander power-off duration.

13. The telematics device of claim 9 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to the detecting the power fault comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to receive an interrupt signal from a power protection module of the input/output expander interface.

14. The telematics device of claim 9 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to detect the power fault comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to poll for a signal from a power protection module of the input/output expander interface.

15. The telematics device of claim 9 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions further comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to receive a request for input/output expander data from a telematics server.

16. The telematics device of claim 15 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions further comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to send to the telematics server an indication that the input/output expander data will not be delivered due to the power fault if the input/output expander interface has been permanently powered off.

17. The telematics device of claim 15 , wherein the machine-executable programming instructions further comprise machine-executable programming instructions which configure the telematics device to send to the telematics server an indication to retry the request after the input/output expander power-off duration.

18. The telematics device o

Assignees

• Geotab Inc

Inventors

• Fox Stephen Michael

Classifications

• G06F11/0745 Primary

  in an input/output transactions management context (input/output processing in general G06F13/00) · CPC title

• G06F1/28

  Supervision thereof, e.g. detecting power-supply failure by out of limits supervision · CPC title

• G06F11/0793 Primary

  Remedial or corrective actions (recovery from an exception in an instruction pipeline G06F9/3861; by retry G06F11/1402; for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity H04L69/40) · CPC title