JP5012093B2 - Vending machine control equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a vending machine that sells canned beverages, bottled beverages, packed beverages, and the like, and more particularly, to a cooling control device that is adapted to countermeasures for peak power demand.

  Conventionally, this type of vending machine control device cools the product by circulating air cooled by a cooling mechanism that is controlled on and off by a temperature sensor in the product storage, while the timer control controls the peak time of power demand. In a certain time zone before the belt, as a peak shift operation, the on-off temperature of the cooling mechanism is shifted to be lower than that during normal operation to cool the product (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  FIG. 6A is a front view showing a state in which the inner door of the conventional vending machine described in Patent Document 1 is opened, and FIG. 6B shows a longitudinal sectional view of the vending machine. As shown in FIG. 6, in the illustrated vending machine, a product storage 2 made of a heat insulating material with an open front is divided into three chambers in the horizontal direction (A in the left warehouse, Inner B, Inner Right C), and each chamber of the product storage 2 is a so-called serpentine type bend that stores a large number of products 3 in a cylindrical can in a product path 4 meandering up and down in a product passage 4 that meanders up and down. A rack 5 is stored.

  Then, the product 3 introduced from each product input port 4a is locked by the product delivery mechanism 6 in the product delivery passage 4b below the product passage 4 and stacked up and down. One by one from the bottom one by one. In order to regulate the passage width in each product carry-out passage 4b, a passage restriction plate 7 is disposed opposite to the product carry-out mechanism 6, and a product switch 33 for detecting the carry-out of the product from the product carry-out mechanism is provided. ing. 6A, the left chamber in FIG. 6 (a) is exclusively for cold, the central chamber and the right chamber are also used for hot and cold, the left chamber has a cooler 8, and the central chamber has a cooler 9 and a heater 11A. Both the cooler 10 and the heater 11B are installed in the right chamber.

  And the refrigerator unit 12 which supplies a refrigerant | coolant to the coolers 8-10 is arrange | positioned in the machine room of the lower part of the goods storage 2. As shown in FIG. Also, as shown in FIG. 6B, a fan 13 is disposed in each of the above chambers, and the air inside the chamber cooled or heated by the coolers 8 to 10 or the heaters 11A and 11B is upward in the direction of the arrow. The product 3 in the product carry-out passage 4b is intensively cooled or heated. Cooling mechanism (coolers 8 to 10, left chamber electromagnetic valve 31A, inner chamber electromagnetic valve 31B, right chamber electromagnetic valve 31C, compressor, refrigerator unit 12, etc.) and heaters 11A and 11B are left chambers made of thermistors. The internal temperature sensor 16A, the internal temperature sensor 16B, and the right internal temperature sensor 16C are on / off controlled.

  Here, the left warehouse temperature sensor 16A, the middle warehouse temperature sensor 16B, and the right warehouse temperature sensor 16C are product temperature sensors that directly detect the surface temperature of the lowermost product 3 in the product carry-out passage 4b, and are passage control. It is attached to the plate 7. The temperature sensor 17 is an internal temperature sensor that detects the internal air temperature, and is attached to the front surface of the duct 18 that surrounds the coolers 8 to 10 and the heaters 11A and 11B. In addition, the front surface of the product storage 2 is normally closed by an inner door 14 made of a heat insulating material, and the front surface of the main body 1 is closed by an outer door 15 outside the inner door 14.

  The operation of the vending machine configured as described above will be described below.

First, the product 3 is cooled by circulating the air cooled by the cooling mechanism controlled on and off by the left chamber temperature sensor 16A, the middle chamber temperature sensor 16B, and the right chamber temperature sensor 16C in the product storage 2. By using timer control, the power demand is reduced by shifting the on / off temperature of the cooling mechanism to a lower level than during normal operation as a peak shift operation during a certain period before the peak power demand period. During the peak hours, the cooling was stopped and the power consumption was minimized.
JP-A-8-293059

  However, in the above conventional configuration, the product is cooled by shifting the on / off temperature of the cooling mechanism lower than in normal operation as a peak shift operation in a certain time period before the peak time period of power demand by timer control. When cooling, the product is cooled at the same shift temperature in the entire cabinet even though it is not necessary to cool in the cabinet with less heat absorption than in the chamber with more heat absorption. As a result, there is a problem that the power consumption increases.

  The present invention solves the above-described conventional problems, and provides a vending machine control device that reduces power consumption of a vending machine in a certain time period before a peak time period of power demand. With the goal.

  In order to solve the above-described conventional problems, the control device of the vending machine according to the present invention controls the on / off temperature of the cooling mechanism as a peak shift operation in a certain time period before the peak time period of power demand by timer control. Each chamber has a peak shift control means for shifting to a lower level than during normal operation, and the peak shift control means for each chamber shifts the peak shift control in the chamber with a small endothermic amount to a chamber with a large endothermic amount. It was decided to relax from the inside.

  As a result, by reducing the cooling of the product in the warehouse with a small amount of heat absorption compared with the warehouse with a large amount of heat absorption, the total time for the cooling operation in the entire warehouse can be shortened, and a certain amount of time before the peak time of power demand can be reduced. This will reduce the power consumption of the vending machine during the time.

  The control device of the vending machine according to the present invention can reduce the power consumption of the vending machine in a certain time zone before the peak time zone of power demand.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the cooling mechanism for cooling and circulating the air in the vending machine, and the peak shift operation in a certain time zone before the peak time zone of power demand by timer control A chamber-specific peak shift control means for shifting the on / off temperature of the cooling mechanism for each interior to be lower than that during normal operation, and the interior-specific peak shift control means comprises a small amount of heat absorption. By relaxing the peak shift control from the inside of the warehouse with a large amount of heat absorption, the cooling operation time during the peak shift is reduced, and the power consumption of the vending machine is reduced during a certain time period before the peak time period of power demand. Can be reduced.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, wherein the internal peak shift control means is a control temperature determining means for determining a control temperature in a peak shift time zone for each internal storage. By relaxing the control temperature in the cabinet with a small endothermic amount at the time of peak shift from that in the chamber with a large endothermic amount, the cooling operation time during the peak shift can be reduced and the power demand peak time The power consumption of the vending machine can be reduced during a certain period of time.

  The invention according to claim 3 is the invention according to claim 2, wherein the control temperature determining means is configured to set the peak shift temperature in the chamber having a small endothermic amount to be higher than the peak shift temperature in the chamber having a large endothermic amount. By adopting a peak shift temperature determination unit for increasing the temperature, the cooling operation time in the warehouse with a small amount of endotherm is made shorter than the inside of the warehouse with a large amount of heat absorption, and the cooling operation time in the whole cabinet is shortened. It is possible to reduce the power consumption of the vending machine in a certain time period before the peak demand time period.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the invention, the control temperature determining means may be configured such that the on / off temperature differential of the cooling mechanism in the warehouse with a small endothermic amount is a difference in the amount of the endothermic By using a differential determination unit to make it larger than the differential, the number of operation / stop cycles of the cooling mechanism will be reduced, and by reducing the number of inrush power generation immediately after the cooling operation, the peak time period of power demand The power consumption of the vending machine can be reduced during a certain time period before the time.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the internal peak shift control means is a peak shift count means for determining the frequency of peak shift for each internal storage. By reducing the frequency of peak shift control in the warehouse with a small endothermic amount at the time of peak shift from that in the warehouse with a large endothermic amount, the cooling operation time during the peak shift is reduced, and the peak time zone of power demand is reduced. The power consumption of the vending machine can be reduced during a certain period of time before.

  The invention according to claim 6 is the invention according to claim 5, wherein the peak shift counting means is configured such that the peak shift time in the warehouse having a small endothermic amount is longer than the peak shift time in the warehouse having a large endothermic amount. By using a peak shift time determination unit for shortening the peak shift control time in the chamber with a small endothermic amount at the time of peak shift, and by reducing the time for peak shift control in the chamber with a large endothermic amount, the cooling operation at the time of peak shift Time is reduced, and the power consumption of the vending machine can be reduced during a certain time period before the peak time period of power demand.

  The invention according to claim 7 is the invention according to claim 5, wherein the peak shift counting means is configured such that the peak shift time in the warehouse with a small endothermic amount is larger than the peak shift time in the warehouse with a large endothermic amount. Cooling operation during peak shift by reducing the number of peak shift controls in the warehouse with a small amount of endotherm during the peak shift by using the peak shift number determination unit for shortening Time is reduced, and the power consumption of the vending machine can be reduced during a certain time period before the peak time period of power demand.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The same reference numerals are given to the same configurations as those of the conventional example or the embodiments described above, and detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a control device for a vending machine according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

  2 and 3 are flowcharts showing the operation of the control device for the vending machine according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, the main control unit 100 includes an internal determination unit 101 that determines whether the left warehouse A, the middle warehouse B, or the right warehouse C, a timer 102 that counts the current date and time, The load control unit 103 is configured to control the internal solenoid valve 31A, the internal solenoid valve 31B, and the right internal solenoid valve 31C. Further, a peak shift temperature determining unit 104a that determines the peak shift temperature for each chamber as the control temperature determining unit 104, and a peak shift temperature storage unit 105a that stores the peak shift temperature determined by the peak shift temperature determining unit 104a as the storage unit 105. Is configured.

  The operation and action of the vending machine control apparatus configured as described above will be described below.

  First, in FIG. 2, the main control unit 100 checks whether the current season is summer based on the data from the timer 102 incorporating the calendar (S0), and if it is summer, the current time is a peak shift time zone (for example, 10:00 to 13). (S1). If it is before the peak shift time, the normal operation mode is continued.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, when the operation mode determined by the main control unit 100 from the current time is normal operation (S100), if the product temperature target is set to 5 ° C., for example, The on-point temperature A of the valve 31A, the inner-compartment solenoid valve 31B, and the right-compartment solenoid valve 31C is 7 ° C. (A = 7), and the off-point temperature B is 3 ° C. (B = 3) (S300). . Then, the internal air temperature (internal temperature) X detected by the left internal temperature sensor 16A, the internal internal temperature sensor 16B, and the right internal temperature sensor 16C is checked (S301), and the internal temperature X is 7. If it rises to ° C (X = 7), it cools by turning on the left side solenoid valve 31A, the middle compartment solenoid valve 31B, and the right compartment solenoid valve 31C (S302) and lowering to 3 ° C (X = 3) The cycle of turning off the cooling in the left warehouse solenoid valve 31A, the middle warehouse solenoid valve 31B, and the right warehouse solenoid valve 31C (S303) is repeated.

  Next, in FIG. 2, if it is a peak shift time zone in S1, the operation mode is set to the peak shift (S2). This peak shift shifts the temperatures of the on-point and off-point solenoid valves 31A, 31B, 31C and 31C downward from the normal operation to cool the product 3. To do. In FIG. 3, peak shift temperatures are determined for A in the left warehouse, B in the middle warehouse, and C in the right warehouse, respectively. For example, when the number of vending machines is 3, the left warehouse A, the middle warehouse B, and the right warehouse C have different heat absorption amounts (inside warehouse C <left warehouse = right In the storage), the internal determination means 101 checks whether it is in the internal storage B (S101), and if it is in the internal storage B, the peak shift temperature determination unit 104a, which is the control temperature determination means 104, controls the internal storage electromagnetic valve 31B. The on-point temperature A is set to 6 ° C. (A = 6) and the off-point temperature B is set to 4 ° C. (B = 4), which are stored in the peak shift temperature storage unit 105a (S110). Then, the internal air temperature (internal temperature) Y detected by the internal temperature sensor 16B is checked (S111), and if the internal temperature Y rises to 6 ° C. (Y = 6), the internal electromagnetics. The valve 31B is turned on to cool (S112), and if the temperature is lowered to 4 ° C. (Y = 4), the inner electromagnetic valve 31B is turned off to stop cooling (S113). If the left warehouse A or the right warehouse C in S101, the peak shift temperature determination unit 104a sets the temperature A at the ON point of the left warehouse solenoid valve 31A and the right warehouse solenoid valve 31C to 4 ° C. (A = 4, left Inside A / right warehouse C> inside warehouse B), off-point temperature B is 2 ° C. (B = 2, left inside A / right inside C> inside warehouse B), and peak shift temperature storage unit 105a (S120). Then, the internal air temperature (internal temperature) Z detected by the left internal temperature sensor 16A and the right internal temperature sensor 16C is checked (S121), and the internal temperature Z rises to 4 ° C. (Z = 4). ) If left solenoid valve 31A / right warehouse solenoid valve 31C is turned on and cooled (S122), and lowered to 2 ° C. (Z = 2), left warehouse solenoid valve 31A / right warehouse solenoid valve 31C The cycle of turning off the cooling when off (S123) is repeated.

  Therefore, if the temperature A at the on point and the temperature B at the off point are high, the cooling time is shortened. The cooling time of the inside B is shortened, and the operation rate of the compressor 99 is reduced accordingly.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the control temperature determination means 104 is the peak shift temperature determination unit 104a that determines the peak shift temperature for each chamber, and the on-point temperature A and the off-point temperature B in the interior B Is made larger than that in the other chambers, the time for the chamber temperature Y to reach the off-point temperature B is shortened, and the operating rate of the compressor 99 is reduced. The power consumption of the vending machine can be reduced during the time period.

  Further, the control temperature determining means 104 of the present embodiment is provided with a differential between the on-temperature and the off-temperature of the left-inside solenoid valve 31A, the middle-inside solenoid valve 31B, and the right-side solenoid valve 31C (difference between the on-temperature and the off-temperature). The differential determining unit 104b for determining the differential and the differential storage unit 105b for storing the differential determined by the differential determining unit 104b as the storage means 105, and by making the differential in the middle warehouse B larger than in the other warehouse, The number of operation / stop cycles of the compressor 99 is reduced, and the number of occurrences of inrush power immediately after the operation of the compressor 99 can be reduced. As a result, the power consumption of the vending machine can be reduced more instantaneously in a certain time zone before the peak time zone of power demand.

  Note that the peak shift temperature and the differential temperature may be set manually by a remote controller or the like, and further, the main control unit 100 may automatically set from past data.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of the control device for the vending machine according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the control device of the vending machine in the second embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 4, the main control unit 200 uses the peak shift time determining unit 201a for determining the peak shift time zone as the peak shift counting unit 201, and the peak shift time determined by the peak shift time determining unit 201a as the storage unit 202. The peak shift time storage unit 202a to be stored is configured. The description of the same configuration as in the first embodiment is omitted.

  The operation and action of the vending machine control apparatus configured as described above will be described below.

  First, in FIG. 5, the main control unit 200 checks whether the inside of the storage B is in the storage determination means 101 (S201), and if it is inside the storage B, checks whether the current season is summer based on the data from the timer 102 incorporating the calendar. If it is summer (S0), the peak shift time determining unit 201a determines the time zone for peak shift (for example, from 12:00 to 13:00) and stores it in the peak shift time storage unit 202a (S202). Then, it is checked whether the current time is a peak shift time zone (for example, 12:00 to 13:00) (S203). If it is the peak shift time zone, the mode shifts to the peak shift mode (S2). Otherwise, the mode shifts to the normal operation mode (S3).

  In S201, if it is other than B in the middle warehouse (A in the left warehouse and C in the right warehouse), it is checked whether the current season is summer based on the data from the timer 102 incorporating the calendar (S0). The time zone during which the peak shift is performed is determined by the determination unit 201a (for example, longer than B in the middle warehouse from 10:00 to 13:00) and stored in the peak shift time storage unit 202a (S204). Then, it is checked whether the current time is a peak shift time zone (for example, 10:00 to 13:00) (S205). If it is the peak shift time zone, the mode shifts to the peak shift mode (S2). Otherwise, the mode shifts to the normal operation mode (S3).

  Therefore, by shortening the peak shift time in the inner warehouse B as compared with the other warehouses, the total peak shift time in the entire warehouse can be shortened, and the operating rate of the compressor 99 can be reduced.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the peak shift time determining unit 201a for determining the peak shift time period as the peak shift counting unit 201, and the peak shift time determined by the peak shift time determining unit 201a as the storage unit 202. The peak shift time storage unit 202a is used to store the peak shift time in the internal storage B, and the total time of peak shift in the entire storage can be shortened by reducing the peak shift time in the internal storage B. Since it can be reduced, the power consumption of the vending machine can be reduced during a certain time period before the peak time period of power demand.

  Further, the peak shift count unit 201b of the present embodiment determines the number of times of peak shift (for example, the peak value is determined once when the internal solenoid valve 31B is operated / stopped), and the storage unit 202. As the peak shift number storage unit 202b for storing the peak shift number determined by the peak shift number determination unit as the peak shift number in the inner warehouse B, the peak in the entire warehouse is particularly reduced. Since the total number of shifts can be reduced and the operating rate of the compressor 99 can be reduced, the power consumption of the vending machine can be reduced in a certain time zone before the peak time zone of power demand.

  Note that the peak shift time and the number of peak shifts may be set manually with a remote controller or the like, and further, the main control unit 200 may be automatically set from past data.

  As described above, the control device for the vending machine according to the present invention can reduce the power consumption of the vending machine in a certain time zone before the peak time zone of power demand. It can also be applied to applications such as devices.

Configuration diagram of control device for vending machine in Embodiment 1 of the present invention The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the control apparatus of the vending machine of the embodiment The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the control apparatus of the vending machine of Embodiment 1 of the embodiment Configuration diagram of control device for vending machine in Embodiment 2 of the present invention The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the control apparatus of the vending machine of the embodiment (A) Front view of a conventional vending machine with the inner door open (b) Vertical sectional view of a conventional vending machine

Explanation of symbols

99 Compressor 101 Internal chamber determination means 102 Timer 103 Load control means 31A Left internal solenoid valve 31B Middle internal solenoid valve 31C Right internal solenoid valve 100, 200 Main control unit 104 Control temperature determination unit 104a Peak shift temperature determination unit 104b Differential determination unit 105, 202 Storage unit 105a Peak shift temperature storage unit 105b Differential storage unit 201 Peak shift count unit 201a Peak shift time determination unit 201b Peak shift number determination unit

Claims (7)

  The cooling mechanism for cooling and circulating the air in the vending machine cabinet, and the on / off temperature of the cooling mechanism as a peak shift operation in a certain time zone before the peak time zone of power demand by timer control And a separate peak shift control means for shifting to a lower level than during normal operation every time. A control device for a vending machine characterized by relaxation from the inside of the cabinet.   The vending machine control device according to claim 1, wherein the in-chamber peak shift control means is a control temperature determining means for determining a control temperature in a peak shift time zone for each inside of the warehouse.   The automatic control according to claim 2, wherein the control temperature determination means is a peak shift temperature determination unit configured to increase a peak shift temperature in the storage with a small endothermic amount higher than a peak shift temperature in the storage with a large endothermic amount. Vending machine control device.   The said control temperature determination means is a differential determination part for making the differential of the on-off temperature of the said cooling mechanism in the said store | warehouse | chamber with little heat absorption amount larger than the differential in the said store | warehouse | chamber with much heat absorption amount. Vending machine control device.   The vending machine control device according to claim 1, wherein the intra-compartment peak shift control means is a peak shift count means for determining a frequency at which peak shift is performed for each interior.   The automatic peak shift determination unit according to claim 5, wherein the peak shift counting means is a peak shift time determining unit for shortening a peak shift time in the storage with a small endothermic amount than a peak shift time in the storage with a large endothermic amount. Vending machine control device.   The automatic peak shift determination unit according to claim 5, wherein the peak shift count means is a peak shift number determination unit for reducing the number of peak shifts in the storage with a small endothermic amount than the number of peak shifts in the storage with a large endothermic amount. Vending machine control device.

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