JP4995378B2 - Electronic water meter - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an electronic water meter for measuring the amount of tap water used and the like. More specifically, the present invention relates to an electronic water meter provided with a liquid crystal display unit with improved visibility.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In an electronic water meter, the display unit is generally a liquid crystal display unit, and the display surface of the liquid crystal display unit is covered with a meter lid. At the time of meter reading, the meter lid is opened, and the numerical value displayed on the display surface of the liquid crystal display unit is read.
[0003]
The electronic water meter is connected to a water pipe embedded in the ground or a wall and is disposed in a box or shaft embedded in the ground or the wall.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
Here, since the inside of such a box and the shaft is dark, a lighting device such as a flashlight is necessary at the time of meter reading.
[0005]
In addition, since the display surface of the liquid crystal display cannot be seen unless the meter lid is opened, it is time-consuming to check multiple water meters, such as when there is an abnormality in tap water pressure. It takes time.
[0006]
Then, the subject of this invention is providing the electronic water meter which can read the display content of a liquid crystal display part, without requiring a lighting fixture.
[0007]
Another object of the present invention is to propose an electronic water meter that can confirm the occurrence of water pressure abnormality even when the meter lid is closed.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above problems, in the present invention, in an electronic water meter having a liquid crystal display unit and a meter lid covering the liquid crystal display unit,
An illumination unit for illuminating the liquid crystal display unit;
An illumination control unit that controls driving of the illumination unit in conjunction with opening and closing of the meter lid ;
An abnormality detection unit that detects an abnormality in the pressure of tap water flowing through the water pipe,
The illumination control unit includes an open / close detection unit that detects an open / closed state of the meter lid, and a power control unit that controls power supply to the illumination unit,
The power supply control unit supplies power to the illumination unit when the open / close detection unit detects the open state of the meter lid, and stops supplying power to the illumination unit when the closed state of the meter lid is detected. Then, when a water pressure abnormality is detected by the abnormality detection unit, power is supplied to the illumination unit by intermittent power feeding,
When the meter lid is closed, a portion overlapping the display surface of the liquid crystal display portion is transparent, or a through hole is formed in the portion .
[0009]
Since the electronic water meter of the present invention has an illumination unit that illuminates the liquid crystal display unit, the visibility of the meter in a dark box or shaft is improved. The illumination control unit that controls the lighting on and off of the lighting unit detects and controls the opening and closing of the meter lid, so there is no need to manually turn on the lighting unit, just opening the meter lid, the liquid crystal display unit Can be illuminated.
[0010]
In addition, when the abnormality occurs, the illumination unit can be blinked to clarify the water pressure abnormality display.
[0011]
The blinking of the illumination unit at the time of the occurrence of the abnormality means that the meter cover is transparently formed at least when overlapping the display surface of the liquid crystal display unit when the meter cover is closed, or when the meter cover is closed. since is formed a through hole in a portion that overlaps the display surface of the liquid crystal display unit, even in the closed state of the meter cover, it is possible to confirm the abnormality blinking of the illumination unit immediately.
[0012]
Here, the illumination unit may be a backlight that illuminates the liquid crystal display unit from the back side. In this case, the illumination unit includes a light guide plate disposed on the back surface of the liquid crystal display unit, a light emitting light source disposed on a side surface of the light guide plate, and a reflection sheet disposed on the back surface of the light guide plate. It is preferable that the reflective surface of the reflective sheet has a structure in which a luminous paint is applied. If comprised in this way, after an electric power supply stops, the illumination part can illuminate a liquid crystal display part, while the light is emitted from the luminous paint applied to the reflective sheet.
[0013]
Therefore, if the power supply control unit is configured to stop the power supply after a predetermined time after the opening / closing detection unit detects the open state of the meter lid, the illumination unit has a liquid crystal display longer than the lighting time of the light emitting light source. Since the part can be illuminated, power can be saved.
[0015]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of an electronic water meter to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[0016]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an electronic water meter to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an illumination unit that illuminates a liquid crystal display portion in the electronic water meter of FIG.
[0017]
As shown in FIG. 1, an electronic water meter 1 includes a meter body 2 connected to a water pipe (not shown), and a liquid crystal display unit 3 attached to the meter body 2 to display a tap water flow rate and the like. The meter lid 4 is attached to the meter body 2 so as to be openable and closable so as to cover the liquid crystal display unit 3.
[0018]
The meter body 2 includes a fluid passage 21 whose front and rear ends are connected to a water pipe, and a cylindrical portion 22 that stands upright from the fluid passage 21. The liquid crystal display unit 3 is attached to the upper end opening 22 a of the cylindrical portion 22. A meter lid 4 is attached to the cylindrical portion 22 so as to be openable and closable so as to cover the upper end opening 22a. The liquid crystal display unit 3 is covered with the meter lid 4 by closing the meter lid 4. Further, since the meter lid 4 is formed of a transparent resin, the display surface 3a of the liquid crystal display unit 3 can be seen from the outside even when the meter lid 4 is closed.
[0019]
A cover 23 that covers the external output terminal is formed between the liquid crystal display unit 3 and the mounting portion 41 of the meter lid 4 in the upper end opening 22a. A U-shaped groove 42 is formed in the meter lid 4 so as not to interfere with the output line that is covered and drawn out by the cover 23 when the meter lid 4 is closed.
[0020]
In addition, a push button switch 71 and an abnormal reset switch 81 are arranged side by side on the front end face of the liquid crystal display unit 3 in the upper end opening 22a. When the meter lid 4 is closed, the push button switch 71 is pressed by a switch presser 43 formed inside the meter lid 4. The push button switch 71 is connected to the illumination unit 5 disposed on the back side of the liquid crystal display unit 3. As will be described in detail later, the illumination unit 5 is turned on when the meter cover 4 is opened and the push button switch 71 is released, and turned off when the meter cover 4 is closed and the push button switch 71 is pushed. It has become.
[0021]
The abnormal reset switch 81 is a switch used to reset an abnormal display such as a water pressure displayed on the display surface 3a of the liquid crystal display unit 3 after normal recovery, and is configured by combining a reed switch and a magnet. Similar to the abnormal reset switch 81, the push button switch 71 pressed by the meter lid 4 can also be constituted by a reed switch and a magnet. In this case, it is necessary to keep both switches from causing magnetic interference by increasing the distance from the abnormal reset switch 81 or the like.
[0022]
The illumination unit 5 will be described with reference to FIG. The illumination unit 5 surrounded by the alternate long and short dash line is mounted on a substrate 91 inside the meter body 2, and the liquid crystal display unit 3 is overlaid on the illumination unit 5. Accordingly, the illumination unit 5 is a backlight that illuminates the liquid crystal display unit 3 from the back side. The illumination unit 5 and the liquid crystal display unit 3 are similarly covered with a frame 92 mounted on the substrate 91, and the upper surface 92 a of the frame 92 is flush with the upper end surface of the upper end opening 22 a of the meter body 2. ing.
[0023]
The illumination unit 5 includes a light guide plate 54 having a constant thickness, light sources 51 and 52 including light emitting diodes disposed on both sides of the light guide plate 54, and a reflection sheet 53 attached to the back surface of the light guide plate 54. Yes. A phosphorescent paint is applied to the reflection surface of the reflection sheet 53.
[0024]
The light sources 51 and 52 are supplied with power from the battery power source 61. This power supply is controlled by the power supply control unit 6 connected between the battery power supply 61 and the light sources 51 and 52. An open / close detection unit 7 and an abnormality detection unit 8 are connected to the power supply control unit 6, and power supply control is performed based on detection signals from the open / close detection unit 7 and the abnormality detection unit 8.
[0025]
The above-described push button switch 71 is connected to the open / close detection unit 7, and when the push button switch 71 that detects opening / closing of the meter lid 4 detects the open state of the meter lid 4, a signal is sent to the power supply control unit 7. . With this signal, the power supply control unit 6 supplies power to the illumination unit 5. As a result, the light sources 51 and 52 of the illumination unit 5 are turned on. On the contrary, when the push button switch 71 detects the closed state of the meter lid 4, the power supply control unit 6 stops the supply of power by the signal from the open / close detection unit 7, so that the illumination unit 5 is turned off.
[0026]
In addition, the open / close detection unit 7 includes a timer 72 for sending a power supply stop signal to the power supply control unit 6 after a predetermined time after sending the power supply signal to the power supply control unit 6. Therefore, the timer 72 causes the power supply control unit 6 to stop power supply after a predetermined time since the open state of the meter lid 4 from the open / close detection unit 7 starts power supply by the detection signal.
[0027]
Next, the abnormality detection unit 8 is connected to the abnormality reset switch 81 described above, and sends an abnormality detection signal to the power supply control unit 6 when detecting an abnormality in the pressure of tap water flowing through the water pipe. With this signal, the power supply control unit 6 supplies power to the illumination unit 5 by intermittent energization. As a result, the illumination unit 5 repeats blinking. The blinking of the illumination unit 5 is canceled by pressing the abnormal reset switch 81 in a state where the tap water pressure is normal.
[0028]
In the water meter 1 configured as described above, the liquid crystal display unit 3 is illuminated by the illumination unit 5. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a flow from turning on to turning off the illumination unit 5 in the water meter shown in FIG.
[0029]
As shown in this figure, when the meter lid 4 is opened, the open / close detector 7 detects the open state of the meter lid 4 (procedures ST1 and ST2). Thereby, the light sources 51 and 52 are supplied with power from the battery power supply 61 by the power supply control unit 6 and emit light (procedure ST11). At the same time, the time count of the timer 72 of the open / close detection unit 7 starts (procedure ST12). On the other hand, in the reflection sheet 53, while the light from the light sources 51 and 52 is reflected by the liquid crystal display part 3, the light accumulation to the luminous paint applied to the reflection surface is started (procedure ST21). The illumination unit 5 is turned on as the backlight of the liquid crystal display unit 3 by the light emission of the light sources 51 and 52 (procedure ST31). Since the liquid crystal display unit 3 is illuminated in this way, a meter reading operation or the like can be started (procedure ST3).
[0030]
Since the open / close detection unit 7 sends a power supply stop signal from the timer 72 to the power supply control unit 6 after a predetermined time, the power supply control unit 6 stops the power supply by this signal. The light sources 51 and 52 are turned off (procedure ST13). When the light sources 51 and 52 are turned off, the livestock paint on the reflection sheet 53 emits light (procedure ST22). As a result, the backlight by the illumination unit 5 is continuously turned on (procedure ST32). Therefore, the meter reading operation of the procedure ST3 can be continuously performed.
[0031]
Eventually, the light accumulated in the livestock paint disappears (procedure ST23). As a result, the backlight by the illumination unit 5 is also turned off (procedure ST33). Therefore, since the meter reading operation in the procedure ST3 is also finished, the meter lid 4 is closed (procedure ST4).
[0032]
By closing the meter lid 4, the open / close detector 7 detects the closed state of the meter lid 4 (procedure ST5). At this time, the time-up state of the timer 72 of the open / close detection unit 7 is reset. Therefore, if the meter lid 4 is opened again, the liquid crystal display unit 3 can be similarly backlit by the illumination unit 5.
[0033]
On the other hand, when an abnormality occurs in the water pressure, the illumination unit 5 blinks because the power supply control unit 6 intermittently supplies power according to the detection signal of the abnormality detection unit 8. This blinking can be confirmed even when the meter lid 4 is closed because the meter lid 4 is transparent. The meter lid 4 may be transparent as a whole, or if the light emitted from the illumination unit 5 can be confirmed, the portion overlapping the liquid crystal display unit 3 may be transparent or a through hole may be formed.
[0034]
【Effect of the invention】
As described above, since the electronic water meter of the present invention has the illumination unit that illuminates the liquid crystal display unit, the visibility of the meter in a dark box or shaft is improved. The power supply control unit that controls the power supply to the illumination unit detects and controls the opening and closing of the meter lid, so there is no need to manually turn on the illumination unit. The part can be illuminated. Therefore, meter reading can be performed without preparing a lighting fixture.
[0035]
Moreover, the illumination part used as a backlight of a liquid crystal display part has a reflective sheet by which the phosphorescent paint was apply | coated to the reflective surface which reflects the light emitted from a light emission light source. This reflection sheet can illuminate the liquid crystal display unit while light is emitted from the phosphorescent paint even after the power supply to the light emitting light source of the illumination unit is stopped. Therefore, since the lighting time of the light emitting light source can be shortened to save power, the life of the battery power source built in the electronic water meter can be extended.
[0036]
On the other hand, when the water pressure abnormality is displayed, the power supply control unit intermittently feeds the illumination unit so that the abnormality is easily determined. Open the meter lid by making the portion that overlaps the display surface of the liquid crystal display section transparent when the meter lid is closed, or by forming a through hole in the portion that overlaps the display surface of the liquid crystal display portion when the meter lid is closed And abnormal lighting of the illumination unit can be immediately determined.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an electronic water meter to which the present invention is applied.
2 is a schematic block diagram showing an illuminating unit that illuminates a liquid crystal display portion in the electronic water meter shown in FIG. 1. FIG.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a flow from lighting to extinguishing of the illumination unit in the water meter shown in FIG. 1;
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Electronic water meter 2 Meter main body 3 Liquid crystal display part 3a Display surface 4 Meter cover 5 Illumination part 6 Power supply control part 7 Opening / closing detection part 8 Abnormality detection part 21 Fluid passage 22 Cylindrical part 22a Upper end opening part 23 Cover 41 Attachment part 42 U Character groove 43 Switch presser 51, 52 Light source 53 Reflective sheet 54 Light guide plate 61 Battery power supply 71 Push button switch 72 Timer 81 Abnormal reset switch 91 Substrate 92 Frame 92a Upper surface

Claims (4)

In an electronic water meter having a liquid crystal display unit and a meter lid covering the liquid crystal display unit,
An illumination unit for illuminating the liquid crystal display unit;
An illumination control unit that controls driving of the illumination unit in conjunction with opening and closing of the meter lid ;
An abnormality detection unit that detects an abnormality in the pressure of tap water flowing through the water pipe,
The illumination control unit includes an open / close detection unit that detects an open / closed state of the meter lid, and a power control unit that controls power supply to the illumination unit,
The power supply control unit supplies power to the illumination unit when the open / close detection unit detects the open state of the meter lid, and stops supplying power to the illumination unit when the closed state of the meter lid is detected. Then, when a water pressure abnormality is detected by the abnormality detection unit, power is supplied to the illumination unit by intermittent power feeding,
When the meter lid is closed, a portion overlapping the display surface of the liquid crystal display portion is transparent, or a through hole is formed in the portion . In claim 1,
The electronic water meter , wherein the illumination unit is a backlight that illuminates the liquid crystal display unit from the back side . In claim 2 ,
The illumination unit includes a light guide plate disposed on the back surface of the liquid crystal display unit , a light emitting light source disposed on a side surface of the light guide plate, and a reflection sheet disposed on the back surface of the light guide plate. An electronic water meter, characterized in that a light-storing paint is applied to the reflecting surface . In claim 3,
The electronic power meter, wherein the power control unit stops power supply after a predetermined time since the open state of the meter lid is detected by the open / close detection unit .

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