Practice of Vertiv Technology Module Anti theft Solution

The theft and loss of power modules is currently a common and very troublesome problem faced by operators and tower companies. Criminals often steal the rectification modules of communication station power supplies and sell them to other regions or customers for use through online sales and other channels

 

 

The theft and loss of power modules is currently a common and very troublesome problem faced by operators and tower companies. Criminals often steal the rectification modules of communication station power supplies and sell them to other regions or customers for use through network sales and other channels, which can cause huge losses such as asset loss and load power outage. In response to the problem of frequent theft of rectifier modules mentioned above, Vertiv Technology has developed a software based anti-theft technology solution, which prevents the stolen rectifier modules from being used normally in other areas or customers. If thieves find that they cannot use them normally, they will no longer steal the modules, thereby reducing the probability and losses of module theft.

 

The current power supply systems, such as high-frequency switching power supplies for communication stations and base stations, and HVDC power supplies for data centers, all integrate many power modules inside the system. These power modules can be adapted according to the load power, and maintenance personnel often disassemble and replace power modules according to maintenance needs. In order to meet the needs of later maintenance and adaptation based on load power, the current approach is to use a detachable and replaceable design for power modules, which is commonly referred to as modular design.

 

 

Figure 1.1: Communication base station and supporting high-frequency switching power supply system

 

Modular design brings great convenience to the expansion and maintenance of power systems, but this feature also leads to the problem of power modules being arbitrarily stolen, and stolen power modules can be used in other power systems, creating a gray profit supply chain that leads to losses for the direct owner of the power system. During the theft process, it often leads to greater losses such as load power outage and battery undercharging. For example, in July 2020, some 5G base station signals of a communication company in Shandong were interrupted. After investigation, it was found that the power rectifier module was stolen. After police intervention to solve the case, it was found that the thief had stolen a total of 187 rectifier modules in the area, which were sold to other provinces or regions through online sales methods.

 

The anti-theft solution of Vertiv Technology Module is a pure software solution, which does not require any changes to the hardware of the monitoring unit and rectifier module. For actual on-site power supply operation, only software upgrades are required. The basic logic diagram of the solution is as follows:

 

 

Use the Vertiv dedicated platform and upgrade tools to upgrade the software of the original monitoring unit and rectifier module. Customers can make corresponding settings in the monitoring unit according to their own situation. It should be noted that only one setting can be completed after the monitoring upgrade. This is to prevent others from arbitrarily modifying information; After completing the setup, the module anti-theft function can be manually activated. After activation, the monitoring unit and rectifier module will be deeply bound and enter the module anti-theft protection mode.

 

In April 2023, Vertiv Technology completed the pilot of the first communication power module anti-theft solution at a customer base station in Sichuan. The pilot product model is Vertiv Netsure731 power system (equipped with 1 M530S monitoring and 4 R48-3000e3 modules).

 

Power module anti-theft pilot site

 

After completing the on-site deployment of the "Power Module Anti Theft Pilot", further technical exchanges and on-site demonstrations of related functions were conducted with the customer, which received high recognition from the customer.

 

Demonstration site of anti-theft function of power module

 

The Vertiv technology module anti-theft solution is suitable for upgrading and renovating the stock combination or embedded power supply of the Vertiv brand for all wireless base stations and fixed network branches, especially tailored for customers such as iron towers, telecommunications, China Mobile, and China Unicom. It can be considered a blessing for millions of high-frequency switching power supply systems operating in the network.

 

5.1 Program features:

Quick deployment: The solution only includes software upgrades, with simple and fast operations, and can be quickly deployed in batches;

Low operational risk: It does not involve changing the hardware parts of the system and modules, and there is no need to consider the risk of module damage;

Online upgrade: During the upgrade process, the module works normally and will not affect the normal operation of the system;

Low cost: No need to add any hardware equipment, only software upgrade is needed, saving material and labor costs;

Software deep binding: After the module is stolen, there is no need to consider the failure of the anti-theft function (the reliability of the GPS anti-theft solution is limited by the battery life of the GPS module), and the anti-theft function is immediately activated when the enabled module is powered on;

Low risk operation: The newly added anti-theft function will not increase the module's heat generation, resulting in high safety.

 

5.2 Scope of application:

The anti-theft upgrade and renovation plan for this rectifier module adopts a pure software solution, which is currently only applicable to Vertiv brand power systems. For example, there are already complete solutions for configuring M530B/S+R48-3000e3/4300e3 combination power systems or plug-in power systems