JP7636317B2 - Contact output device and monitoring device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a contact output device that monitors switches used in electric power systems, and in particular to a contact output device and monitoring device that can detect the startup state of a connected device, the presence or absence of a cable connection, and switch failures.

[Prior Art]
Conventional communication equipment includes switches that transmit isolated signals to notify the status of equipment such as rectifiers.
In recent years, there has been an increasing need for devices that automatically monitor the operation of switches for these communication facilities from the standpoint of improving the reliability of these switches, improving ease of installation, reducing maintenance work, and preventing accidents.

One of the devices for automatically monitoring the operation of switches that notify the status of such communication facilities is a switching time sensor that measures the operation time of a switch.
However, in cases where the destination device can monitor, or where the destination device can monitor by a server that manages the destination device, an opening/closing time sensor is often not implemented.

Furthermore, even conventional devices that monitor switches do not distinguish between and detect the startup state of the connected device, whether the cable is connected, or a switch failure.

[Conventional monitoring device: Figure 12]
Next, a conventional monitoring device (actual contact interface unit) will be described with reference to Fig. 12. Fig. 12 is a circuit diagram of the conventional monitoring device.
In the conventional monitoring device, as shown in FIG. 12, a contact input device 1 and a contact output device 3' are connected by a cable 2.

[Contact input device 1]
The contact input device 1 includes a photocoupler 11, and a power source 14 of an applied voltage (VccI1) to an external terminal is applied to the cathode of a diode of the photocoupler 11 via a limiting resistor (R), and the output of the photocoupler 11 is output to a logic IC (CMOS Logic-IC) 12.
The logic IC 12 receives the output from the photocoupler 11 and judges whether the contact output device 3' connected thereto is normal or abnormal.

Furthermore, a logic level power supply (VccI2) 13 is connected to the output of the photocoupler 11 via a limiting resistor (R).
The cathode of the diode of the photocoupler 11 is connected to a terminal 15 via the diode, and the terminal 15 is connected to a contact output device 3' by a cable 2.
Furthermore, the contact input device 1 is provided with a terminal 16 connected to ground, which serves as a lead-in terminal from the contact output device 3'.
The contact input device 1 is of a dry input contact specification.

[Contact output device 3']
The contact output device 3' includes a real contact relay circuit 31 having a coil, one end of the coil of the real contact relay circuit 31 is connected to a logic level power supply (VccO) 33 via a limiting resistor (R), and the other end of the coil is connected to a logic IC (CMOS Logic-IC) 32.
The input terminal of the logic IC 32 is connected to a power supply 33 via a diode. The power supply 33 and a limiting resistor (R) form a power supply and a limiting resistor at a logic level.

Here, the real contact relay circuit 31 controls the ON/OFF of the switch by opening and closing the relay circuit. Under normal circumstances, terminal (B) 30b and terminal (C) 30c are connected, and a signal from an external device connected to the switch is input to terminal (A) 30a. If an abnormality occurs in the input signal, the logic IC 32 connects terminal (A) 30a and terminal (C) 30c and outputs an alarm.

The output of the photocoupler 11 of the contact input device 1 is input to the contact output device 3', and a path is formed that returns to the contact input device 1 via the real contact relay circuit 31, so that the detection result of the photocoupler 11 is obtained by the logic IC 12 and becomes an alarm output.

The logic IC 32 uses, for example, a low voltage CMOS (LVCMOS) or a low voltage transistor/transistor logic (LVTTL), and if the amount of current drawn by the coil is insufficient, additional transistors are implemented.
Here, the terminal 30a is an output terminal, and the terminal 30c is a common (COM) terminal.

[Conventional lightning protection monitoring system: Figure 13]
A conventional lightning-protected monitoring system, as shown in Fig. 13, is basically similar to that in Fig. 12, but includes a lightning-protected circuit shown in the dashed block. Fig. 12 is a circuit diagram of a conventional lightning-protected monitoring system.
Arrester, varistor, etc. are used as lightning protection circuits.

[Related Technology]
As related prior art, there are JP-A-2003-308751 "Operational Characteristics Monitoring Device for Switch" (Patent Document 1) and JP-A-02-106118 "Switch" (Patent Document 2).

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-233633 discloses a monitoring device that monitors pulse switching intervals to determine whether or not there is an abnormality.
Patent Document 2 discloses a switch that monitors the rising edge of a pulse count to diagnose an abnormality.

JP 2003-308751 A Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 02-106118

However, conventional switchgear monitoring devices had the problem that they could not individually detect the startup status of connected devices, whether cables were connected, or switchgear failures, and could not even pinpoint the cause of the abnormality.

Note that Patent Documents 1 and 2 monitor by counting time and pulses, but do not describe a configuration that can identify the specific cause of an abnormality.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above situation, and aims to provide a contact output device and a monitoring device that can detect the startup state of a connected device, whether a cable is connected, and faults in a switch.

The present invention for solving the problems of the above-mentioned conventional example is a contact output device having a real contact, comprising : a terminal for a connected device connected to a switch; a first switch for controlling the on/off of the switch and switching whether or not to output a signal input from the terminal; a detection circuit for detecting a current of the signal input from the contact input device using the terminal; a monitoring section for performing contact monitoring of the signal input from the contact input device by detecting the current in the detection circuit and controlling an operating mode; and a second switch provided between the first switch and the detection circuit for switching whether or not to output the signal from the first switch to the detection circuit, and the monitoring section switches the signal input from the contact input device so that the first switch outputs a signal from the terminal, and the second switch The present invention is characterized in that the control circuit has an inspection mode in which a first switch is switched to output a signal to the detection circuit, and the detection circuit detects the signal current and judges whether it is normal or abnormal, an operation mode in which a first switch is switched to not output a signal from the terminal, and a second switch is switched to not output to the detection circuit, and an alarm mode in which the first switch is switched to output a signal from the terminal, and the second switch is switched to not output to the detection circuit and an alarm is issued, and that at start-up the control circuit switches to the inspection mode, and if the inspection is normal the control circuit switches to the operation mode, and if the inspection is abnormal the control circuit switches to the alarm mode, and the monitoring unit can detect the start-up state of the connected device, whether the cable is connected, and a fault in the switch based on the contact monitoring state in the inspection mode, operation mode, and alarm mode .

The present invention is characterized in that in the contact output device, when the monitoring unit is operating in operation mode and an abnormality occurs, it transitions to inspection mode, and when an abnormality is detected in the inspection mode, it transitions to alarm mode.

The present invention is characterized in that in the contact output device, the monitoring unit operates in alarm mode and when it recovers from an abnormality, it transitions to inspection mode, and when it is determined to be normal in the inspection mode, it transitions to operation mode.

The present invention is characterized in that the monitoring device has a contact input device and the above-mentioned contact output device.

The present invention is characterized in that in a monitoring system, the communication equipment and the higher-level device are connected by the above-mentioned monitoring device.

According to the present invention, a contact output device having a real contact includes a terminal for a destination device connected to a switch, a first switch for controlling the on/off of the switch and switching whether or not to output a signal input from the terminal, a detection circuit for detecting a current of the signal input from the contact input device using the terminal, a monitoring unit for performing contact monitoring of the signal input from the contact input device by detecting the current in the detection circuit and controlling an operating mode, and a second switch provided between the first switch and the detection circuit for switching whether or not to output the signal from the first switch to the detection circuit, and the monitoring unit switches the signal input from the contact input device to output the signal from the terminal by the first switch and to output the signal to the detection circuit by the second switch, The control circuit has three modes: an inspection mode in which the signal current is detected to determine whether it is normal or abnormal, an operation mode in which the first switch is switched so that the signal from the terminal is not output, and the second switch is switched so that the signal is not output to the detection circuit , and an alarm mode in which the first switch is switched so that the signal is output from the terminal, and the second switch is switched so that the signal is not output to the detection circuit , and an alarm is issued.At start-up, the control circuit switches to the inspection mode, and if the inspection is normal, the control circuit switches to the operation mode, and if the inspection is abnormal, the control circuit switches to the alarm mode.The monitoring unit is capable of detecting the start-up state of the connected device, whether the cable is connected, and whether the switch is faulty, depending on the contact monitoring state in the inspection mode, operation mode, and alarm mode , so that various abnormalities can be detected based on the state of each mode.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the present system. FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of the monitoring device. FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of the lightning protection monitoring device. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a mode management state. FIG. 11 is a process flow diagram in an inspection mode. FIG. 11 is a process flow diagram in a relay monitoring mode. FIG. 11 is a process flow diagram in an operation mode. FIG. 13 is a process flow diagram in an alarm mode. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a state table of the inspection mode. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a state table of an operation mode. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a state table of an alarm mode. FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of a conventional monitoring device. FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of a conventional lightning protection monitoring device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[Outline of the embodiment]
The contact output device according to an embodiment of the present invention (this contact output device) is provided with a monitoring unit that controls an inspection mode in which an inspection is performed to detect the current of a signal input from the contact input device to determine whether it is normal or abnormal, an operation mode in which it performs operation, and an alarm mode in which it issues an alarm, and that transitions to the inspection mode at startup, transitions to the operation mode if the inspection is normal, and transitions to the alarm mode if the inspection is abnormal, and is capable of detecting the startup state of the connected device, whether a cable is connected, and any faults in the switch.

Moreover, the monitoring device according to the embodiment of the present invention (the present monitoring device) has a contact input device and the present contact output device.
Moreover, the monitoring system according to the embodiment of the present invention (the present system) connects the communication facility device and the higher-level device via the present monitoring device.

[This system: Figure 1]
This system will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of the system.
As shown in FIG. 1, this system basically comprises a monitoring device (digital IO) 100, a higher-level device 200, and devices 310 to 340 for providing various types of station information in electric power system communication facilities.
The monitoring device 100 connects a host device 200 to each of the devices 310 to 340 .
The monitoring device 100 transmits the monitoring results obtained by the contact output device 3 (to be described later) to the higher-level device 200, and also outputs them to the devices 310 to 340.

[This monitoring device: Figure 2]
The present monitoring device will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a circuit diagram of the present monitoring device. Note that the configuration of the contact input device 1 is omitted since it is the same as the conventional configuration shown in Fig. 12, and the contact output device 3 will be specifically described.

[Contact output device 3]
As shown in FIG. 2, the contact output device 3 includes a real contact relay circuit 31 having a coil, one end of the coil of the real contact relay circuit 31 is connected to a logic level power supply (VccO) 33 via a limiting resistor (R), and the other end of the coil is connected to a logic IC (CMOS Logic-IC) 38.
The input terminal of the logic IC 38 is connected to the power supply 33 via a diode. The power supply 33 and the limiting resistor (R) form a power supply and a limiting resistor at a logic level.

As explained in FIG. 12, the real contact relay circuit 31 controls the ON/OFF of the switch by opening and closing the relay circuit. Under normal circumstances, terminal (B) 30b and terminal (C) 30c are connected and in an open state. A signal from an external device connected to the switch is input to terminal (A) 30a. If an abnormality occurs in the input signal, the logic IC 38 connects terminal (A) 30a and terminal (C) 30c and outputs an alarm.

When the logic IC 38 is started or restarted, the terminal (A) 30a and the terminal (C) 30c are connected to each other, and the logic IC 38 goes into the inspection mode.
The logic IC 38 mainly switches from the inspection mode to an operation mode and an alarm mode, the details of which will be described later.

In addition, the alarm output in this monitoring device is generated when the output of the photocoupler 11 of the contact input device 1 is input to the contact output device 3, and a path is formed that returns to the contact input device 1 via the actual contact relay circuit 31, the monitoring relay circuit 35, etc., so that the detection result of the photocoupler 11 is obtained by the logic IC 12 and becomes an alarm output.
The logic IC 38 uses, for example, LVCMOS or LVTTL, and if the current draw of the coil is insufficient, a transistor is additionally mounted.

In addition, the monitoring relay circuit 35 of the contact output device 3 has one end of the coil to which the voltage (VccO) of the power source 34 is applied via a limiting resistor (R), and the other end of the coil is connected to the logic IC 38.

The monitoring relay circuit 35 also has terminals A, B, and C, with terminal C connected to terminal C of the real contact relay circuit 31 and terminal B connected to the cathode of the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 via a limiting resistor (R). Terminal A is directly connected to terminal 30c.

The monitoring relay circuit 35 goes into monitoring mode when the contacts CB are connected, and goes into operation mode (bypass) when the contacts CA are connected.
By combining the switching of the contacts of the actual contact relay circuit 31 and the monitoring relay circuit 35, an inspection mode, an operation mode, and an alarm mode are realized.

The contact monitoring photocoupler 36 has a diode whose cathode is connected to the terminal B of the monitoring relay circuit 35 via a limiting resistor (R), and whose anode is connected to the terminal 30c.
An output signal of the detection result of the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 is output to a logic IC 38. A logic level power supply (VccI2) 37 is applied to the input of the logic IC 38.

The logic IC 38 judges whether the circuit is normal or abnormal based on the detection result of the contact monitoring photocoupler 36. The details of the judgment will be described later.
The power supply 34, the monitoring relay circuit 35, the contact terminal photocoupler 36, the logic level power supply 37 and a part of the logic IC 38 correspond to a monitoring section in the claims.

[This lightning protection monitoring device: Figure 3]
The lightning protection monitoring device will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a circuit diagram of the lightning protection monitoring device.
As shown in FIG. 3, this lightning protection monitoring system is basically the same as that shown in FIG. 1, but includes a lightning protection circuit shown in the dashed line block in the same configuration as that shown in FIG.
Arrester, varistor, etc. are used as lightning protection circuits.

[Mode Management: Figure 4]
The mode states managed by the logic IC 38 will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the mode management states.
When the logic IC 38 is started or restarted, it transitions to an inspection mode S1, and when normal startup is confirmed in the inspection mode S1, it transitions to an operation mode S2, and when an abnormality occurs in the operation mode S2, it returns to the inspection mode S1.
If an abnormality diagnosis is performed in the inspection mode S1, the mode transitions to the warning mode S3, and when the abnormality diagnosis is recovered, the mode returns to the inspection mode S1 again.

[Inspection mode: Figure 5]
Next, the inspection mode will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a process flow diagram in the inspection mode.
When the inspection mode starts, an inspection preparation process (S11) is performed.
The inspection preparation process involves first applying a voltage to the input port of the contact input device 1, activating an alarm at the output port of the contact output device 3, setting the actual contact relay circuit 31 to alarm mode with an A-C contact connection, setting the monitoring relay circuit 35 to monitoring mode with a C-B contact connection, and unmasking the contact information of the contact monitoring photocoupler 36. The unmasking will be described later.

Next, a process for a relay monitoring mode (S12) is performed to determine whether or not the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 is ON (S13), and if it is not ON (No), the process returns to S12. The process for the relay monitoring mode will be described later.
If the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 is ON in the judgment process S13 (Yes), a self-check is performed within the contact output device 3 (S14), and it is judged whether the result is normal or not (S15). If it is normal (Yes), the operation mode is switched to, and if it is not normal (No), the operation mode is switched to the alarm mode.

[Relay monitoring mode: Figure 6]
The relay monitoring mode will be described with reference to Fig. 6. Fig. 6 is a process flow diagram in the relay monitoring mode.
In the relay monitoring mode, as shown in Fig. 6, the actual contact relay circuit 31 is set to the alarm mode by connecting the A-C contacts, the monitoring relay circuit 35 is set to the monitoring mode by connecting the C-B contacts, the detection result of the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 is checked (S21), and the process ends. The detection result will be described in detail with reference to Figs. 9 and 10.

[Operation mode: Figure 7]
The operation mode will be described with reference to Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a process flow diagram in the operation mode.
As shown in FIG. 7, the operation mode is entered by connecting the monitoring relay circuit 35 to the C-A contacts (S31), then a self-check is performed within the contact output device 3 (S32), and the mode then transitions to the relay monitoring mode (S33).
If an abnormality occurs in the self-check or relay monitoring mode (Yes), the mode is switched to the inspection mode, and if no abnormality occurs (No), the process returns to step S32.

[Alarm mode: Figure 8]
The alarm mode will be described with reference to Fig. 8. Fig. 8 is a process flow diagram in the alarm mode.
In the alarm mode, as shown in FIG. 8, the monitoring relay circuit 35 is connected to the CA contacts, the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 is turned OFF, and the output to the logic IC 38 is disabled (masked) (S41).
Then, the actual contact relay circuit 31 is connected to the A and C contacts to set the alarm mode (S42).

Next, a self-check is performed within the contact output device 3 (S43), and it is determined whether it is normal or has been restored (S44). If it is not normal or has been restored (No), the process returns to S43, and if it is normal or has been restored (Yes), the process ends.

[Test mode status table: FIG. 9]
Next, the state table of the inspection mode will be described with reference to Fig. 9. Fig. 9 is a diagram showing the state table of the inspection mode.
9 shows, as status items, the input of the photocoupler 11 of the contact input device 1, the cable 2, the actual contact relay output of the actual contact relay circuit 31, the mode of the monitoring relay circuit 35, the state (ON/OFF) of the contact monitoring photocoupler 36, and the determination contents of the logic IC 38. Note that these status items are also common to FIGS. 10 and 11.
In the inspection mode shown in Figure 9, (a) shows the photocoupler 11 with its power supply turned off, (b) shows a normal connection state, (c) shows the cable 2 not connected, and (d) shows an abnormal state in which the actual contact relay circuit 31 has failed.

In Figures 9(a) to (d), the monitoring mode circuit 35 is in "monitoring mode" and is connected to the contact monitoring photocoupler 36, which performs detection (inspection). Since anything other than Figure 9(b) is abnormal, the detection result is "OFF" and the judgment result is "abnormal." In Figure 9(b), the detection result of the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 is "ON" and the judgment result is "normal connection."

In addition, in Figures 9(a) to (c), the real contact relay circuit 31 outputs an "alarm" before normal startup, and it can be determined that the real contact relay circuit 31 is normal, but in Figure 9(d), the real contact relay circuit 31 cannot output an "alarm" before normal startup, so it can be determined that the relay output of the real contact relay circuit 31 is abnormal.

[Operation mode status table: FIG. 10]
The operation mode state table will be described with reference to Fig. 10. Fig. 10 is a diagram showing the operation mode state table.
In the operation mode, the actual contact relay circuit 31 is connected to the B-C contacts, and the monitoring relay circuit 35 is connected to the C-B contacts to enter the monitoring mode. However, the logic IC 38 recognizes the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 as OFF.

FIG. 10(e) shows a normal state, in which the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 is OFF, but the logic IC 38 judges the connection to be "normal."
Also, in FIG. 10(f), the actual contact relay circuit 31 is in a faulty state in which it is "unable to output an alarm", and the judgment result is "abnormal".

Incidentally, when the cable 2 becomes "not connected (disconnected)" as shown in FIG. 10(g), it is determined to be "normally connected" since it is in the operation mode.
However, in the operation mode, this is not the timing to issue an alarm (notification) about the disconnection of the cable 2, so even if it is misidentified, it does not cause a problem. The problem arises with the timing of notifying the contact input device 1 when outputting an alarm with the A-C contact connection of the actual contact relay circuit 31.
Therefore, by temporarily switching to (returning to) the inspection mode, it is possible to check whether the cable 2 is disconnected. If it is necessary to monitor the connection destination, the mode is controlled to periodically switch to the inspection mode.

[Warning mode status table: FIG. 11]
The alarm mode state table will be described with reference to Fig. 11. Fig. 11 is a diagram showing the alarm mode state table.
In the alarm mode, the actual contact relay circuit 31 is connected to the A-C contacts, and the monitoring relay circuit 35 is connected to the C-A contacts, setting the operation mode (bypass). In this case, the logic IC 38 is turned OFF because no current flows through the contact monitoring photocoupler 36, and the judgment result is disabled as OFF (masked). This is because, since it is masked, the monitoring relay circuit 35 is not in the monitoring mode, and the detection result of the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 is not useful.

FIG. 11(h) shows the normal state, FIG. 11(i) shows the abnormal state in which the cable 2 is not connected (disconnected), and FIG. 11(j) shows the abnormal state in which the power supply of the contact input device 1 is OFF.
Here, in the cases of Figures 11 (i) and (j), an abnormality cannot be detected, but as explained in the operation mode, the fact that it cannot be detected does not pose a problem, and can be dealt with by periodically transitioning to the inspection mode.

[Effects of the embodiment]
According to this monitoring device, a monitoring unit is provided that controls an inspection mode in which the logic IC 38 of the contact output device 3 detects the current of the signal input from the contact input device 1 to perform an inspection to determine whether it is normal or abnormal, an operation mode during operation, and an alarm mode in which an alarm is issued, and transitions to the inspection mode at start-up or restart, and transitions to the operation mode if the inspection is normal, and transitions to the alarm mode if the inspection is abnormal. Depending on the state of the contact monitoring photocoupler 36 and the state of the photocoupler 11 of the contact input device 1 in each mode, the logic ICs 12, 38 have the effect of being able to detect the start-up state of the connected device, whether the cable is connected, and a fault in the switch.

In particular, by having the host device acquire and analyze the judgment results between the logic IC 12 of the contact input device 1 and the logic IC 38 of the contact output device 3, various types of faults can be comprehensively detected.

The present invention is suitable for contact output devices and monitoring devices that can detect the startup state of a connected device, whether a cable is connected, and switch failures.

1...contact input device, 2...cable, 3, 3'...contact output device, 11...photocoupler, 12...logic IC, 13...logic level power supply (VccI2), 14...applied voltage (VccI1) power supply, 15...terminal, 16...terminal, 30a, 30b, 30c...terminal, 31...real contact relay circuit, 32...logic IC, 33...power supply (VccO), 34...power supply (VccO), 35...monitoring relay circuit, 36...contact monitoring photocoupler, 37...logic level power supply (VccI2), 38...logic IC, 100...main monitoring device (digital IO), 200...higher-level device, 310-340...various devices

Claims (5)

A contact output device having a real contact,
A terminal for a destination device to be connected to the switch;
a first switch that controls the on/off of the switch and switches whether or not to output a signal input from the terminal;
a detection circuit for detecting a current of a signal input from a contact input device using the terminal;
a monitoring unit that performs contact monitoring for a signal input from the contact input device by detecting a current in the detection circuit and controls an operating mode;
a second switch provided between the first switch and the detection circuit, for switching whether or not to output a signal from the first switch to the detection circuit;
the monitoring unit controls an inspection mode in which a signal input from the contact input device is inspected by switching the first switch to output a signal from the terminal and the second switch to output the signal to the detection circuit, and the detection circuit detects a current of the signal to determine whether it is normal or abnormal; an operation mode in which the first switch is switched not to output a signal from the terminal and the second switch is switched not to output the signal to the detection circuit; and an alarm mode in which the first switch is switched to output a signal from the terminal and the second switch is switched not to output the signal to the detection circuit , and an alarm is issued; the monitoring unit transitions to the inspection mode at startup, and transitions to the operation mode if the inspection is normal, and transitions to the alarm mode if the inspection is abnormal;
A contact output device characterized in that the monitoring unit is capable of detecting the startup state of the connected device, whether a cable is connected, and a fault in the switch based on the contact monitoring status in the inspection mode, the operation mode, and the alarm mode. The contact output device according to claim 1, characterized in that the monitoring unit operates in operation mode and transitions to inspection mode when an abnormality occurs, and transitions to alarm mode when an abnormality is detected in the inspection mode. The contact output device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the monitoring unit operates in an alarm mode, transitions to an inspection mode when the abnormality is resolved, and transitions to an operation mode when the abnormality is determined to be normal in the inspection mode. 4. A monitoring device comprising a contact input device and the contact output device according to claim 1 . 5. A monitoring system comprising a communication facility and a host device connected by the monitoring device according to claim 4 .

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