JP6815464B2 - Local management device, server management device, and management method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an energy management device and an energy management method for managing the energy consumption of equipment.

In recent years, an energy management system (EMS: Energy Management System) that manages the energy consumption of a plurality of facilities has been attracting attention. Such energy management systems include a HEMS (HOME Energy Management System) installed in a house, a BEMS (Billing Energy Management System) installed in a building, and a FEMS (Factory Energy Store) installed in a factory. (Store Energy Management System) and the like.

By the way, a technique for scheduling maintenance of equipment has been proposed according to the operating status of the equipment. Specifically, the equipment is scheduled so as to avoid the period when the operation of the equipment reaches its peak (for example, Patent Document 1).

Special Table 2005-502112

By the way, it is conceivable that each of the plurality of facilities operates in cooperation with each other so as to obtain a desired operation result. For example, in the case where the equipment is an air conditioner, a desired room temperature can be obtained by coordinating each of the plurality of air conditioners.

In such cases, the operating pattern applied to the plurality of equipment is determined, for example, by the rated capacity of the equipment or the energy consumption of the equipment. Alternatively, the operation pattern applied to the plurality of facilities is defined so that the number of forced controls from the EMS to the facilities is made uniform, for example, in the current operating state.

By the way, the risk of equipment failure (hereinafter, failure risk) differs depending on the period elapsed from the timing when the equipment is introduced (hereinafter, introduction period), the history of equipment maintenance, the cumulative number of forced controls during the introduction period, and the like.

However, in the above-mentioned technique, the risk of equipment failure is not considered, and there is a possibility of inducing equipment failure.

Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and makes it possible to reduce the possibility of inducing a failure of equipment when each of a plurality of equipments cooperates with each other. It is an object of the present invention to provide an energy management device and an energy management method.

The first feature is an energy management device that manages a plurality of facilities that cooperate with each other, and an application of an operation pattern that controls the plurality of facilities so as to obtain a desired operation result by each cooperation of the plurality of facilities. The control unit is provided with a control unit for instructing the plurality of facilities, and the control unit determines the operation pattern according to the failure risk of the equipment failure. In the operation pattern, the first failure risk is defined as the failure risk. The gist is that the load of the equipment having the above is smaller than the load of the equipment having the second failure risk, which is lower than the first failure risk as the failure risk.

In the first feature, the control unit determines the failure risk based on the introduction period information indicating the period elapsed from the timing when the equipment is introduced or the repair information indicating the repair history of the equipment.

In the first feature, it is possible to apply forced control for forcibly changing the operation mode from a device different from the plurality of facilities to each of the plurality of facilities, and the control unit is said to have said. The failure risk is determined based on the cumulative number of forced controls, the cumulative period of forced control, or the type of forced control.

The second feature is an energy management method for managing a plurality of facilities that cooperate with each other, and applies an operation pattern that controls the plurality of facilities so as to obtain a desired operation result by each cooperation of the plurality of facilities. The operation pattern is determined according to the failure risk of equipment failure. In the operation pattern, the load of the equipment having the first failure risk as the failure risk is the first failure risk. The gist is that it is smaller than the load of equipment that has a second failure risk that is lower than the first failure risk.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an energy management device and an energy management method capable of reducing the possibility of inducing a failure of a plurality of facilities when each of the plurality of facilities is linked to each other.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an energy management system 100 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a server power management device 40 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the equipment management device 50 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of maintenance information stored in the equipment management device 50 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining an operation pattern according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining an operation pattern according to the first embodiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an energy management method according to the first embodiment.

Hereinafter, the energy management system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the description of the drawings below, the same or similar parts are designated by the same or similar reference numerals.

However, it should be noted that the drawings are schematic and the ratio of each dimension is different from the actual one. Therefore, the specific dimensions should be determined in consideration of the following explanation. In addition, it goes without saying that the drawings include parts having different dimensional relationships and ratios from each other.

[Outline of Embodiment]
The energy management device according to the embodiment manages a plurality of facilities that cooperate with each other. The energy management device includes a control unit that instructs the plurality of facilities to apply an operation pattern for controlling the plurality of facilities so as to obtain a desired operation result by coordinating the plurality of facilities. The control unit determines the operation pattern according to the failure risk of equipment failure. In the operation pattern, the load of the equipment having the first failure risk as the failure risk is smaller than the load of the equipment having the second failure risk lower than the first failure risk as the failure risk.

In the embodiment, in the energy management device, the load of the equipment having the first failure risk is larger than the load of the equipment having the second failure risk as an operation pattern for obtaining a desired operation result by coordinating each of the plurality of equipments. Instructs the application of a small motion pattern. As a result, it is possible to reduce the possibility of inducing a failure of the equipment when each of the plurality of equipments cooperates with each other.

[First Embodiment]
(Energy management system)
The energy management system according to the first embodiment will be described below. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an energy management system 100 according to the first embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 1, the energy management system 100 includes a plurality of facilities 10, a plurality of sensors 20, a plurality of local power management devices 30, a server power management device 40, and a facility management device 50.

In the first embodiment, as an example of the energy management system, a system for managing electric power will be mainly exemplified. However, the embodiment is not limited to this, and the energy management system 100 may manage energy other than electric power (for example, gas). Therefore, "electric power" may be read as "energy".

Equipment 10 is equipment that consumes energy such as electric power or gas. Equipment 10 is, for example, air conditioning equipment, lighting equipment, cold case equipment, and the like. For example, the facility 10A is provided in the facility A, and the facility 10B is provided in the facility B. Facility A and Facility B are operated, for example, by the same capital group.

In the first embodiment, the equipment 10 may include equipment 10 that can be controlled by automatic control and equipment 10 that cannot be controlled by automatic control, which will be described later. The automatic control of the equipment 10 is a process of controlling the cumulative value of power consumption for a predetermined period (for example, 30 minutes) so as not to exceed a predetermined threshold value (target value) in each facility. Alternatively, the automatic control of the equipment 10 is a process of automatically controlling the power consumption of the equipment 10 so that the total value of the power consumption does not exceed a predetermined threshold value (target value). Here, the automatic control forces each of the plurality of facilities 10 to forcibly change the operation mode from a device different from the plurality of facilities (for example, the local power management device 30 or the server power management device 40). This is an example of control.

The sensor 20 detects information necessary for managing the equipment 10. For example, the sensor 20 is a power sensor that detects the power consumption of the equipment 10. When the equipment 10 is an air-conditioning equipment, the sensor 20 is a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the outside air of the space (area) or the facility where the air-conditioning equipment is provided, or a space (area) or the facility where the air-conditioning equipment is provided. It is a humidity sensor that detects the humidity of the outside air. When the equipment 10 is a lighting equipment, the sensor 20 is an illuminance sensor that detects the illuminance of the space (area) where the lighting equipment is provided. When the equipment 10 is a cold case equipment, the sensor 20 is a temperature sensor that detects the temperature inside the cold case equipment. For example, the sensor 20A is provided in the facility A, and the sensor 20B is provided in the facility B.

The local power management device 30 manages the equipment 10 connected by the LAN 80. Specifically, the local power management device 30 is connected to the equipment 10 and the sensor 20 by the LAN 80, and manages the power consumption of the equipment 10 based on the information detected by the sensor 20. For example, the local power management device 30A is provided in the facility A and manages the equipment 10A connected by the LAN 80A. The local power management device 30B is provided in the facility B and manages the equipment 10B connected by the LAN 80B.

In the first embodiment, the local power management device 30 controls the operation pattern of the equipment 10 according to the control signal received from the server power management device 40.

The server power management device 40 is connected to each local power management device 30 via WAN 90, and manages the power consumption of the equipment 10 via each local power management device 30. Specifically, the server power management device 40 manages a plurality of facilities 10 that cooperate with each other. The server power management device 40 instructs the plurality of facilities 10 to apply an operation pattern (hereinafter, the first operation pattern) that controls the plurality of facilities 10 so as to obtain a desired operation result by coordinating the plurality of facilities 10. To do.

Here, the plurality of facilities 10 that cooperate with each other are, for example, air-conditioning facilities that are provided in the same facility and that control the room temperature in a predetermined area. Alternatively, the plurality of facilities 10 that cooperate with each other are, for example, cold case facilities that are provided in the same sales floor and that adjust the temperature inside the case in a predetermined area.

Further, the desired operation result is a result set in advance by the user or the like. For example, in the case where the equipment 10 is an air conditioner, the desired operation result is to bring the room temperature closer to a desired temperature by a plurality of air conditioners. Alternatively, taking the case where the equipment 10 is a cold case equipment as an example, the desired operation result is to bring the temperature inside the case closer to a desired temperature in the plurality of cold case equipments.

The equipment management device 50 manages maintenance information of the equipment 10. The maintenance information is a history of maintenance such as replacement of equipment 10 or repair of equipment 10. Alternatively, it is a maintenance plan such as replacement of equipment 10 or repair of equipment 10. The maintenance information is registered by the maintenance company in charge of the maintenance of the equipment 10. In other words, the equipment management device 50 manages the introduction period information indicating the period elapsed from the timing when the equipment 10 is introduced, or the repair information indicating the repair history of the equipment 10.

(Energy management device)
Hereinafter, the energy management device according to the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a server power management device 40 according to the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, the server power management device 40 is an example of an energy management device.

As shown in FIG. 2, the server power management device 40 includes a communication unit 41, a storage unit 42, and a control unit 43.

The communication unit 41 is a communication module that communicates via WAN 90. The communication unit 41 receives the operating state of the equipment 10 and the information detected by the sensor 20 from the local power management device 30. The communication unit 41 transmits a control signal for controlling the operation of the equipment 10 to the local power management device 30.

The storage unit 42 stores the information received from the local power management device 30. For example, the storage unit 42 cumulatively stores the power consumption of the equipment 10. Alternatively, the storage unit 42 stores the control history (history of control signals, etc.) for the equipment 10.

The control unit 43 manages the server power management device 40. For example, the control unit 43 instructs the plurality of facilities 10 to apply an operation pattern for controlling the plurality of facilities 10 so as to obtain a desired operation result by coordinating the plurality of facilities 10. Specifically, the control unit 43 instructs the communication unit 41 to transmit a control signal indicating the operation pattern, thereby instructing the plurality of facilities 10 to apply the first operation pattern.

In the first embodiment, the control unit 43 determines the operation pattern according to the failure risk of the equipment 10 failing. In the operation pattern, the load of the equipment 10 having the first failure risk as the failure risk is smaller than the load of the equipment 10 having the second failure risk lower than the first failure risk as the failure risk.

First, the control unit 43 has a failure risk based on the introduction period information indicating the period elapsed from the timing when the equipment 10 is introduced (hereinafter, the installation period) or the repair information indicating the repair history of the equipment 10. It is preferable to determine. The introduction period information and the repair information are registered in the equipment management device 50 and can be acquired from the equipment management device 50.

Specifically, the control unit 43 determines that the longer the installation period, the higher the risk of failure. The control unit 43 determines that the higher the degree of influence on the failure determined by the type of repair, the higher the risk of failure. The degree of influence on the failure is preferably registered by the maintenance company. Alternatively, the degree of influence on the failure may be predetermined according to the type of repair.

Secondly, the control unit 43 determines the failure risk based on the cumulative number of forced controls, the cumulative period of forced control, or the type of forced control. The forced control is a control for forcibly changing the operation mode from a device different from the plurality of facilities 10. As an example of forced control, as described above, automatic control can be mentioned. The history of forced control can be extracted from the control history stored in the storage unit 42, for example.

The control unit 43 determines that the higher the cumulative number of forced controls, the higher the risk of failure. The control unit 43 determines that the longer the cumulative period of forced control, the higher the risk of failure. The control unit 43 determines that the higher the degree of influence on the failure determined by the type of forced control, the higher the risk of failure. The degree of influence on the failure may be predetermined according to the type of forced control.

For example, in the case where the equipment 10 is an air-conditioning equipment, the forced control is a control for forcibly instructing a change of the set temperature so that both the indoor unit and the outdoor unit are synchronized (hereinafter, the first control). The first control may be a control that intervenes in a remote controller or the like attached to the air conditioning equipment. Alternatively, the forced control is a control (hereinafter referred to as a second control) that forcibly instructs only the outdoor unit to perform a predetermined operation (for example, stop, etc.) without instructing the indoor unit. Alternatively, the forced control is a control for forcibly stopping the supply of electric power to the air conditioning equipment (hereinafter, the third control). In such a case, the degree of influence on the failure due to the third control is higher than the degree of influence on the failure due to the second control, and the degree of influence on the failure due to the second control is the degree of influence on the failure due to the first control. Higher than the degree of influence on.

Thirdly, the control unit 43 may determine the failure risk due to the forced control based on the correspondence between the repair history and the forced control history. Specifically, when there is a causal relationship such as the need for repair as a result of forced control, the control unit 43 has a higher risk of failure due to forced control as the number of times such a causal relationship occurs. Is determined.

In the first embodiment, the control unit 43 has a failure risk based on one or more parameters selected from the introduction period information, the repair information, the cumulative number of forced controls, the cumulative period of forced control, and the type of forced control. It should be noted that it is sufficient to judge.

(Equipment management device)
The equipment management device according to the first embodiment will be described below. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the equipment management device 50 according to the first embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 3, the equipment management device 50 includes a communication unit 51, a storage unit 52, and a control unit 53.

The communication unit 51 is a communication module that communicates via WAN 90. The communication unit 51 receives maintenance information from the terminal of the maintenance company.

The storage unit 52 stores maintenance information. The maintenance information is registered by the maintenance company in charge of the maintenance of the equipment 10. The maintenance information is a history of maintenance such as replacement of equipment 10 or repair of equipment 10. Alternatively, it is a maintenance plan such as replacement of equipment 10 or repair of equipment 10. In other words, the equipment management device 50 manages the introduction period information indicating the period elapsed from the timing when the equipment 10 is introduced, or the repair information indicating the repair history of the equipment 10.

For example, the storage unit 52 stores the information shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the storage unit 52 stores the repair history including the cause of the abnormality (see the “request title” column). The causes of the abnormality are, for example, "cooling failure occurred" (A-1 shown in FIG. 4), "water leaked from the hose", "filter replacement message" (B shown in FIG. 4), and "outdoor unit error". "Display" (A-2 shown in FIG. 4) and the like can be mentioned.

In such cases, the causes of the anomaly A-1 and A-2 are likely to be the anomalies that occur as a result of forced control. Therefore, the server power management device 40 (control unit 43) described above performs forced control based on the correlation between the occurrence date and time of the causes of the abnormality A-1 and A-2 and the execution date and time of the forced control. It is preferable to determine the resulting failure risk.

On the other hand, the cause B of the abnormality is unlikely to be an abnormality that occurs as a result of forced control. Therefore, the server power management device 40 (control unit 43) described above does not have to determine the failure risk due to the forced control.

The control unit 53 controls the equipment management device 50. Specifically, when the server power management device 40 requests the transmission of maintenance information, the control unit 53 instructs the communication unit 51 to transmit the maintenance information.

(Operation pattern)
The operation pattern according to the first embodiment will be described below. 5 and 6 are diagrams for explaining an operation pattern according to the first embodiment. In FIGS. 5 to 6, a case is considered in which control (rotational control) for turning on a plurality of facilities 10 belonging to a group in order is applied. Further, the air conditioning equipment will be described as an example of the equipment 10.

(Operation pattern A)
In the operation pattern A, the rotation control of the air conditioning equipment # 1 to the air conditioning equipment # 3 is illustrated. The failure risk of air conditioning equipment # 1 to air conditioning equipment # 3 is similar. In the rotation control of the operation pattern A, the period during which each air conditioner is turned on will be described with reference to FIG. In the operation pattern A, as shown in FIG. 5, the server power management device 40 sets the air conditioning equipment # 1 to the air conditioning equipment # 3 so that the air conditioning of any of the air conditioning equipment # 1 to the air conditioning equipment # 3 is turned on. Set the period to turn on. Here, the period for turning on each air conditioner is about the same as each other.

(Operation pattern B)
In the operation pattern B, the rotation control of the air conditioning equipment # 1 to the air conditioning equipment # 3 is illustrated. The failure risk of the air conditioning equipment # 2 and the air conditioning equipment # 3 is similar, but the failure risk of the air conditioning equipment # 1 is higher than the failure risk of the air conditioning equipment # 2 and the air conditioning equipment # 3. In the rotation control of the operation pattern B, the period during which each air conditioner is turned on will be described with reference to FIG. In the operation pattern B, as shown in FIG. 6, the server power management device 40 sets the air conditioning equipment # 1 to the air conditioning equipment # 3 so that the air conditioning of any of the air conditioning equipment # 1 to the air conditioning equipment # 3 is turned on. Set the period to turn on. Here, the period for turning on the air conditioning equipment # 2 and the air conditioning equipment # 3 is about the same. On the other hand, the period for turning on the air conditioner # 1 is shorter than the period for turning on the air conditioner # 2 and the air conditioner # 3.

In other words, in the operation pattern B, the load of the air conditioning equipment # 1 (equipment 10 having the first failure risk as the failure risk) is lower than that of the air conditioning equipment # 2 and the air conditioning equipment # 3 (the failure risk is the first failure risk). 2 It is smaller than the load of equipment 10) that has a risk of failure.

In FIG. 6, the period for turning on the air conditioner # 1 having a high risk of failure is shortened, but the embodiment is not limited to this. For example, the number of times the air conditioner # 1 is turned on may be less than the number of times the air conditioner # 2 and the air conditioner # 3 are turned on. Alternatively, when each air conditioner functions as an air conditioner, the set temperature of the air conditioner # 1 may be higher than the set temperature of the air conditioner # 2 and the air conditioner # 3. On the other hand, when each air conditioner functions as heating, the set temperature of the air conditioner # 1 may be lower than the set temperature of the air conditioner # 2 and the air conditioner # 3.

(Energy management method)
The energy management method according to the first embodiment will be described below. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an energy management method according to the first embodiment. Here, FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing the processing of the server power management device 40.

As shown in FIG. 7, in step S10, the server power management device 40 reads maintenance information from the facility management device 50.

In step S20, the server power management device 40 reads the control history from the storage unit 42.

In step S30, the server power management device 40 determines the failure risk of the equipment 10 failing based on the maintenance information or the control history. As described above, the failure risk is determined based on one or more parameters selected from the introduction period information, the repair information, the cumulative number of forced controls, the cumulative period of forced control, and the type of forced control. It should be done. Therefore, when the maintenance information is not used, the process of step S10 can be omitted, and when the control history is not used, the process of step S20 can be omitted.

In step S40, the server power management device 40 determines the operation pattern according to the failure risk of the equipment 10 failing. In the operation pattern, the load of the equipment 10 having the first failure risk as the failure risk is smaller than the load of the equipment 10 having the second failure risk lower than the first failure risk as the failure risk.

As described above, in the first embodiment, the server power management device 40 loads the equipment 10 having the first failure risk as an operation pattern for obtaining a desired operation result by coordinating the plurality of equipment 10. Instructs the application of an operation pattern smaller than the load of the equipment 10 having a second failure risk. As a result, when each of the plurality of facilities 10 is linked to each other, the possibility of inducing a failure of the facilities can be reduced.

[Other Embodiments]
Although the present invention has been described by embodiments described above, the statements and drawings that form part of this disclosure should not be understood to limit the invention. Various alternative embodiments, examples and operational techniques will be apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure.

In the embodiment, a case where the server power management device 40 centrally manages a plurality of local power management devices 30 has been illustrated. However, the embodiments are not limited to this. For example, each local power management device 30 may instruct an operation pattern to be applied to a plurality of facilities 10 in a self-sustaining and distributed manner.

In the embodiment, the change of the operation pattern of the air conditioning equipment has been mainly described, but the embodiment is not limited to this. The above-mentioned operation pattern instructions may be applied to cold case equipment and the like.

10 ... Equipment, 20 ... Sensor, 30 ... Local power management device, 40 ... Server power management device, 41 ... Communication unit, 42 ... Storage unit, 43 ... Control unit, 50 ... Equipment management device, 51 ... Communication unit, 52 ... Storage unit, 53 ... Control unit, 80 ... LAN, 90 ... WAN

Claims (8)

A local management device that manages equipment
A local management device including a communication unit that transmits to a server management device a control history of forced control that forcibly changes the operation mode of the equipment from a device different from the equipment. The local management device according to claim 1, wherein the forced control includes an automatic control for automatically controlling the power consumption of the equipment. The local according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control history of the forced control includes at least one of the cumulative number of times of the forced control, the cumulative period of the forced control, and the type of the forced control. Management device. A server management device that communicates with the local management device that manages the equipment.
A server management device including a communication unit that receives from a local management device a control history of forced control that forcibly changes the operation mode of the equipment from a device different from the equipment. The server management device according to claim 4, wherein the forced control includes an automatic control for automatically controlling the power consumption of the equipment. The server according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the control history of the forced control includes at least one of the cumulative number of times of the forced control, the cumulative period of the forced control, and the type of the forced control. Management device. A management method in which a local management device that manages equipment has a step of transmitting a control history of forced control that forcibly changes the operation mode of the equipment from a device different from the equipment to a server management device. A step in which a server management device that communicates with a local management device that manages equipment receives from the local management device a control history of forced control that forcibly changes the operation mode of the equipment from a device different from the equipment. Has a management method.

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