JP7076385B2 - Combustion equipment with software update function - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a combustion device having a function of updating software for a control device.

In recent years, in various devices, software for control processing of a control device such as a microcomputer provided in the device has been updated to new software acquired from an external server or the like.

For example, in Patent Document 1, the control software related to the operation of the wireless terminal device and the update software for updating the control software are stored in the main memory, and the software for updating the control software is referred to as the control software. A technique has been proposed in which the control software is updated with the downloaded update software under the control of the update software after the download is performed under the control.

Further, for example, Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for limiting the operation mode of each component when updating the control software for each component in a system including a plurality of components including a fuel cell unit and a hot water storage tank. Proposed.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2005-100428 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2015-185352

By the way, in a combustion device provided with a control valve capable of opening and closing a fuel supply path for supplying fuel such as fuel gas to a combustion unit, a combustion operation should not be performed when updating the software of the control device that controls the operation of the combustion device. In order to prevent fuel from being supplied to the combustion portion, it is desired that the control valve of the fuel supply path can be reliably maintained in the closed state.

However, in a control device such as a microcomputer, the state of the output port of the control device (the port that outputs the control signal under the control of the software) is usually in an indefinite state during the update of the software for the control device. Therefore, there is a possibility that the control valve of the fuel supply path may be erroneously controlled to open during the update of the software for the control device of the combustion device.

For example, although Patent Document 2 describes that the combustion operation of the heat source machine is prohibited when the control software for the heat source machine is updated, this technique is a bath automatic method that requires the combustion operation of the heat source machine. It simply does not accept reheating orders or heating operation commands. Therefore, when the control software for the heat source machine is updated, if the state of the output port of the control unit for the heat source machine that directly controls the control valve of the fuel supply path becomes indefinite, the control valve is controlled to open. There is a risk that it will end up.

The present invention has been made in view of this background, and an object of the present invention is to provide a combustion device with a software update function that can surely prevent fuel from being supplied to a combustion unit when updating software. do.

In order to achieve the above object, the combustion device with a software update function of the present invention includes a combustion unit, one or more control valves capable of opening and closing a fuel supply path for supplying fuel to the combustion unit, and the control valve. A combustion device including a control device capable of controlling a plurality of controlled elements including
The control device includes a first control unit that executes control processing based on the first software, and a second control unit that executes control processing based on the second software.
The second software is configured to cause the second control unit to execute a process of updating at least a part of the first software to new software supplied from the outside, and the first software. The second control unit is configured to execute a control process for maintaining at least one control valve in a closed state during the execution of the software update process (first invention). ..

According to the present invention, when updating at least a part of the first software related to the first control unit, the second control unit is a second software different from the first software to be updated. At least one control valve is closed and controlled based on the above. Therefore, the fuel supply to the combustion unit can be maintained in the cutoff state during the execution of the first software update process. Therefore, according to the first invention, it is possible to surely prevent the fuel from being supplied to the combustion portion at the time of updating the first software.

In the first invention, the first software is configured to cause the first control unit to execute a process of updating at least a part of the second software to new software supplied from the outside. At the same time, it is preferable that the first control unit is configured to perform a control process for maintaining at least one control valve in a closed state during the execution of the update process for the second software. Second invention).

According to this, when updating at least a part of the second software related to the second control unit, the first control unit is based on the first software different from the second software to be updated. At least one control valve is closed and controlled. Therefore, the fuel supply to the combustion unit can be maintained in the cutoff state even during the execution of the second software update process.

Therefore, regardless of whether the software to be updated is the first software or the second software, it is possible to reliably prevent fuel from being supplied to the combustion unit during the update process.

In the second invention, when the combustion device includes a plurality of the control valves, the first software and the second software are attached to the first control unit and the second control unit, respectively. , The control valves of the plurality of control valves, which are different from each other, may be controlled (third invention).

According to this, since the control valve to be controlled by the first control unit and the control valve to be controlled by the second control unit are different from each other, the configuration of the first software and the second software, the first control unit, and the control valve are different from each other. It is possible to prevent the circuit configuration between the second control unit and each control valve from becoming complicated.

In the first to third inventions, the second software controls a plurality of controls during the execution of the update process of the first software and during the operation of the combustion device other than the execution of the update process. The second control unit is configured to execute a process of controlling at least one of the control valves among the target elements, and the first software executes an update process of the second software. The first control is a process of controlling at least each control target element other than the control valve among the plurality of control target elements while controlling the overall operation of the combustion equipment during operation of the combustion equipment other than the middle one. It is possible to adopt an aspect that is configured to be executed by a unit (fourth invention).

According to this, the memory capacity required for the second software of the first software and the second software, or the function of the second control unit can be reduced, so that the second control unit can be an inexpensive processor or the like. It can be configured using.

Further, in the first invention, the second software is configured so that the second control unit can control the closing of the control valve only when the update process of the first software is executed. (Fifth invention).

According to this, the second software can have the minimum necessary functions for updating the first software. Therefore, it is possible to minimize the memory capacity required for the second software. Further, the second software can have a simple configuration that does not need to be updated.

The first control unit and the second control unit in the present invention described above may be configured by, for example, electronic control devices such as different microcomputers each equipped with the first software and the second software. It is also possible to configure an electronically controlled device such as a single microcomputer that implements both the first software and the second software. In this case, the single electronic control device has both a function as a first control unit and a function as a second control unit.

The figure which shows the whole structure of the combustion apparatus with a software update function of embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the control device shown in FIG. 1 according to the first embodiment. The flowchart which shows the processing of the control apparatus in 1st Embodiment. The block diagram which shows the structure in the 2nd Embodiment of the control apparatus shown in FIG. The flowchart which shows the processing of the control apparatus in 2nd Embodiment.

[First Embodiment]
The first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. With reference to FIG. 1, the combustion device 1 with a software update function (hereinafter, simply referred to as a combustion device 1) of the present embodiment is a heating cooker such as a gas stove, and the burner 2 and the burner 2 as a combustion unit are used. A fuel supply path 3 for supplying fuel gas and an igniter 7 for generating spark discharge to an ignition electrode 7a arranged close to the burner 2 are provided.

The fuel supply path 3 has a main valve 4 and a front valve 5 as control valves that can be opened and closed, and a thermal power adjustment for adjusting the amount of fuel supplied to the burner 2 (and by extension, adjusting the thermal power of the burner 2). A valve 6 is interposed. Each of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5 is composed of, for example, a solenoid valve, and the thermal power control valve 6 is composed of, for example, a proportional valve or a motor-driven electric valve.

In the combustion device 1 of the present embodiment having the above configuration, by controlling the opening of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5 while operating the igniter 7, spark discharge is generated in the ignition electrode 7a and fuel is supplied to the burner 2. Gas is supplied. As a result, the burner 2 is ignited and the combustion operation of the burner 2 is started. Then, during the combustion operation of the burner 2, the fuel supply amount to the burner 2 is adjusted by controlling the thermal power adjusting valve 6, and eventually the thermal power of the burner 2 is adjusted. Further, by controlling the closing of at least one of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5, the fuel supply to the burner 2 is cut off, and the burner 2 is extinguished.

Although only one burner 2 is shown in FIG. 1, the combustion device 1 may include a plurality of burners. In this case, each burner may be provided with a main valve, a front valve and a thermal power control valve as in FIG. 1, but for example, the main valve is shared by all burners and branched from the downstream side of the main valve. A front valve and a thermal power control valve may be provided in each of the fuel supply paths for each burner.

The combustion device 1 of the present embodiment further includes a display 11 that displays various visual information, a sounding device 12 that outputs auditory information such as an alarm sound and a voice, and various operations related to the operation of the combustion device 1. It is provided with an operation unit 13 for the user to perform the above operation, and a control device 20 having a function of controlling the operation of the combustion device 1.

The display 11 is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal display, an LED display, an organic EL display, or the like, and the sounding device 12 is composed of, for example, a speaker, a buzzer, or the like. Further, although detailed illustration is omitted, the operation unit 13 is an operation unit for the user to perform an ignition operation, a fire extinguishing operation, and a thermal power adjustment operation of the burner 2 (for example, a push operation for ignition or fire extinguishing, and a thermal power adjustment). An operation unit (for example, an operation switch) for the user to perform setting operations related to automatic cooking operation that automatically adjusts the heating power of the burner 2 and extinguishes the fire in a required sequence. Etc.) and include.

The control device 20 is an electronic circuit unit including microcomputers (microcomputers) 21 and 22, which will be described later, and is input with an operation signal of the operation unit 13 and various sensors provided in the combustion device 1 (shown in the figure). The sensing signal of) is input. The sensing signal includes, for example, a detection signal of the temperature of the object to be heated by the burner 2, a flame detection signal indicating the presence or absence of a combustion flame of the burner 2, and the like.

The control device 20 has a main valve 4, a front valve 5, a thermal power control valve 6, and an igniter as a plurality of control target elements of the combustion device 1 as functions realized by the mounted hardware and software (program). 7. It has a function of controlling the operation of each of the display 11, and the sounding device 12.

Further, the control device 20 can perform wireless communication with a repeater 30 such as a router that can be connected to an external network NW such as the Internet, and is a combustion device via the repeater 30 and the external network NW. It is possible to communicate with the server 31 capable of distributing the software for 1. Then, the control device 20 can acquire (download) the software for the combustion device 1 from the server 31 through communication with the server 31.

More specifically, the control device 20 is configured as shown in FIG. 2, for example. That is, the control device 20 temporarily uses the two microcomputers of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22, the wireless communication device 23, and the update software (software for updating the installed current software) downloaded from the server 31. Includes an update software storage unit 24 that stores and retains the information. The first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 are electronic control devices corresponding to the first control unit and the second control unit in the present invention, respectively.

Further, although not shown, the control device 20 is a controlled object element of the combustion device 1 (in this embodiment, a main valve 4, a front valve 5, a thermal power control valve 6, an igniter 7, a display 11, and a sounding device 12). ) Is input to the first microcomputer 21 or the second microcomputer 22 as a drive circuit that operates in response to a control signal output from the first microcomputer 21 or the second microcomputer 22, and an operation signal and a sensing signal of the operation unit 13. The input circuit for this purpose, the first microcomputer 21, the second microcomputer 22, the drive circuit, the power supply circuit for supplying the power supply power to the input circuit, and the like are included.

Each of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 includes a CPU or a processor and a memory such as a RAM and a ROM, and software for control processing is mounted on a rewritable non-volatile memory such as an EEPROM (memory retention). Has been done. The first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 are connected so that data can be exchanged (communication) with each other. Further, each of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 is a wireless communication device 23 and an update software storage unit 24 so that data can be exchanged between the wireless communication device 23 and the update software storage unit 24, respectively. It is connected to the.

In the present embodiment, the first microcomputer 21 is a microcomputer having a function of performing comprehensive operation control of the combustion equipment 1 and operation control of most of the controlled elements of the combustion equipment 1, and is the repeater. The software S11 for communication control that causes the first microcomputer 21 to execute the communication processing via the wireless communication device 23 such as the communication with the 30 or the server 31, or the communication processing with the second microcomputer 22, and the display of the display 11. Software S12 for display control that causes the first microcomputer 21 to execute the control process for controlling the above, and software S13 for sound control that causes the first microcomputer 21 to execute the control process for controlling the output (acoustic information) of the sounding device 12. , Software S14 for combustion control that causes the first microcomputer 21 to execute control processing related to the combustion operation of the burner 2, and software S15 for adjustment control that causes the first microcomputer 21 to execute control processing related to the automatic cooking operation. There is. In the present embodiment, these softwares S11 to S15 correspond to the first software in the present invention.

In the present embodiment, the first microcomputer 21 has a leading valve 5, a thermal power regulating valve 6, an igniter 7, an indicator 11, and a sounding device 12 as control target elements, and can control the operation of these control target elements. As described above, it is connected to each controlled element (lead valve 5, thermal power regulating valve 6, igniter 7, display 11, and sounding device 12) via a drive circuit (not shown) of each controlled element. ..

Here, the software S14 for the combustion control of the first microcomputer 21 is the operation unit 13 during the normal operation of the combustion device 1 (in a state where the software is not updated in both the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22). Control of the main valve 4, the front valve 5, the thermal power control valve 6, and the igniter 7 related to the operation of the burner 2 based on the operation signal, the sensing signal, or the command generated by the software S15 for cooking control. A command is determined, the control command of the main valve 4 is transmitted from the first microcomputer 21 to the second microcomputer 22, and the control signals corresponding to the control commands of the front valve 5, the thermal power adjustment valve 6 and the igniter 7 are transmitted, respectively. It is configured to output from the first microcomputer 21 to the drive circuit of.

Further, the combustion control software S14 first outputs a control signal (a control signal for cutting off the power supply to the front valve 5) for maintaining the front valve 5 in the closed state when the software of the second microcomputer 22 is updated. It is configured to output from the microcomputer 21 to the drive circuit of the tip valve 5. Further, the combustion control software S14 appropriately gives a control command regarding the display of the display 11 or a control command regarding the output of the sounding device 12 to the display control software S12 or the sound control software S13. It is configured.

Further, the cooking control software S15 issues a control command regarding the operation of the burner 2, the display of the display 11, or the output of the sounding device 12 based on the operation signal of the operation unit 13 related to the automatic cooking operation, the sensing signal, and the like. It is configured to be appropriately generated and to give the control command to the software S14 for combustion control, the software S12 for display control, or the software S13 for sound control.

Further, in the present embodiment, any software of the software S11 to S15 of the first microcomputer 21, for example, the software S11 for communication control is seconded by the update software for the second microcomputer 22 downloaded from the server 31. It is configured to be able to perform a process of updating the software of the microcomputer 22. However, the software that causes the first microcomputer 21 to execute the software update process of the second microcomputer 22 may be software different from the above software S11 to S15.

In the present embodiment, the second microcomputer 22 is a microcomputer having a function of executing only a part of control processing including opening / closing control of the main valve 4, and is wireless such as communication with the repeater 30 or the server 31. Software S21 for communication control that causes the second microcomputer 22 to execute communication processing via the communication device 23 or communication processing with the first microcomputer 21, and open / close control of the main valve 4 (in other words, to the burner 2). Software S22 for combustion control that causes the second microcomputer 22 to execute (controlling whether or not to shut off the fuel supply) is implemented. In the present embodiment, these softwares S21 and S22 correspond to the second software in the present invention.

Then, in the present embodiment, the second microcomputer 22 uses the main valve 4 as a control target element, and the main valve 4 is controlled via a drive circuit (not shown) so that the opening and closing of the main valve 4 can be controlled. It is connected to the main valve 4.

Here, the software S22 for combustion control of the second microcomputer 22 is attached to the drive circuit of the main valve 4 in accordance with the control command of the main valve 4 given from the first microcomputer 21 during the normal operation of the combustion device 1. It is configured to output a control signal from. Further, when the software S22 for combustion control updates the software of the first microcomputer 21, the second control signal (control signal for cutting off the power supply to the main valve 4) for maintaining the main valve 4 in the closed state is second. It is configured to output from the microcomputer 22 to the drive circuit of the main valve 4.

Further, similarly to the first microcomputer 21, in the present embodiment, any software of the software S21 or S22 of the second microcomputer 22, for example, the software S21 for communication control is used for the first microcomputer 21 downloaded from the server 31. The update software is configured to be able to perform a process of updating the software of the first microcomputer 21. However, the software that causes the second microcomputer 22 to execute the software update process of the first microcomputer 21 may be software different from the above software S21 and S22.

Supplementally, since the second microcomputer 22 has sufficiently few controlled elements as compared with the first microcomputer 21 (and by extension, the memory capacity required for the software to be mounted is sufficiently small), the second microcomputer 22 may be used. For example, it may be incorporated in the wireless communication device 23.

Next, the process of updating the software of the first microcomputer 21 or the second microcomputer 22 will be described with reference to FIG. With the power of the combustion device 1 turned on, the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 3 is executed by the cooperation of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22.

In STEP 1, the operation mode of the combustion device 1 by the first microcomputer 21 or the second microcomputer 22 is the update mode in which the software of the first microcomputer 21 or the second microcomputer 22 is updated, or the update process is not performed normally. It is determined whether it is a mode.

Here, the operation mode of the combustion device 1 is set as follows, for example. One of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22, for example, the first microcomputer 21 is in a standby state of the combustion device 1 (a state in which the combustion operation of the burner 2 and the operation of the operation unit 13 are not performed). Alternatively, by periodically communicating with the server 31 based on the communication control software S11, the server 31 is currently using new update software for the combustion device 1 (currently the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22). It is confirmed whether or not the software of a version newer than the installed software is distributed, and if the new update software is not distributed, the operation mode of the combustion device 1 is set to the normal mode.

Further, when new update software is distributed, the first microcomputer 21 causes the display 11 to display the notification information that the software of the first microcomputer 21 or the second microcomputer 22 can be updated. Alternatively, it is output from the sounding device 12. Then, when the user who recognizes the notification information performs a predetermined operation for updating the software in the standby state of the combustion device 1, the first microcomputer 21 sets the operation mode of the combustion device 1. Set to update mode.

When new update software is distributed, the operation mode may be automatically set to the update mode, for example, in the standby state of the combustion device 1. Further, in this case, the notification information indicating that the operation mode of the combustion device 1 is set to the update mode may be displayed on the display 11 or may be output from the sounding device 12.

In STEP 1, when the operation mode of the combustion device 1 is the normal mode, in STEP 8, the normal operation control of the combustion device 1 by the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 (combustion device based on the currently implemented software). 1 operation control) is performed. Then, the process from STEP 1 is repeated.

On the other hand, in STEP 1, when the operation mode of the combustion device 1 is the update mode, in STEP 2, one of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22, for example, the second microcomputer 22 is the software S21 for communication control. The new update software is downloaded from the server 31 by the control process based on the above, and the update software is stored and held in the update software storage unit 24. The updated software may be either the entire software of the first microcomputer 21 or the second microcomputer 22 or a part of the software.

Then, in STEP 3, the second microcomputer 22 (or the first microcomputer 21) confirms which of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 is the target microcomputer of the downloaded update software.

At this time, if the target microcomputer is the first microcomputer 21, the second microcomputer 22 executes the processes of STEPs 4 and 5. In STEP 4, the second microcomputer 22 outputs a control signal for keeping the main valve 4 in the closed state to the drive circuit of the main valve 4 by the control process based on the currently implemented software S22 for combustion control. Then, the main valve 4 is controlled to be closed.

Next, in STEP 5, the second microcomputer 22 is seconded by the update software stored and held in the update software storage unit 24 based on the currently implemented communication control software S21 (or update software). The software of the first microcomputer 21 is updated by executing the process of rewriting the software (software corresponding to the update software) stored and held in the memory of the first microcomputer 21. Then, the process from STEP 1 is repeated.

In this case, since the main valve 4 is controlled to close by the second microcomputer 22 which is not the software update target, the fuel gas is not supplied to the burner 2 during the software update of the first microcomputer 21. Therefore, even if the state of the output port of the first microcomputer 21 becomes indefinite during the software update of the first microcomputer 21, the fuel gas leaks from the burner 2 or the burner 2 is ignited. It is possible to prevent such a thing from happening.

Further, in STEP 3, when the target microcomputer is the second microcomputer 22, the first microcomputer 21 executes the processes of STEPs 6 and 7. In STEP 6, the first microcomputer 21 outputs a control signal for keeping the front valve 5 in the closed state to the drive circuit of the front valve 5 by the control process based on the currently implemented combustion control software S14. Then, the valve closing control of the tip valve 5 is performed.

Next, in STEP 7, the first microcomputer 21 is subjected to the update software stored in the update software storage unit 24 based on the currently implemented communication control software S11 (or update software). 2 The software of the second microcomputer 22 is updated by executing the process of rewriting the software (software corresponding to the update software) stored and held in the memory of the microcomputer 22. Then, the process from STEP 1 is repeated.

In this case, since the front valve 5 is controlled to close by the first microcomputer 21 which is not the software update target, the fuel gas is not supplied to the burner 2 during the software update of the second microcomputer 22. Therefore, even if the state of the output port of the second microcomputer 22 becomes undefined during the update of the software of the second microcomputer 22, it is possible to prevent the fuel gas from leaking from the burner 2. ..

As described above, in the present embodiment, the main valve 4 or the front valve 5 is controlled to be closed by the other microcomputer while the software of one of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 is being updated. , It is possible to surely prevent a situation in which fuel gas leaks from the burner 2 or the burner 2 is ignited.

In this embodiment, the update software is downloaded (acquired) before the main valve 4 or the front valve 5 is closed and controlled in STEP 4 or 6. However, for example, when the target of the update software is the first microcomputer 21, the main valve 4 is closed and controlled by the second microcomputer 22, and then the update software is downloaded by the second microcomputer 22 to obtain the update software. When the target is the second microcomputer 22, the update software may be downloaded after the front valve 5 is closed and controlled by the first microcomputer 21.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the control target element of the second microcomputer 22 is the control target element of the combustion device 1 (main valve 4, tip valve 5, thermal power control valve 6, igniter 7, display 11, and sounding device 12). Although only the main valve 4 of the above, the controlled element of the second microcomputer 22 may be, for example, a front valve 5 instead of the main valve 4, or both the main valve 4 and the front valve 5. You may. Further, the control target element 4 of the second microcomputer 22 may include a control target element other than the main valve 4 and the front valve 5.

Further, each of the control target elements of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 includes one or more common control target elements, and the common control target element can be either the first microcomputer 21 or the second microcomputer 22. Either one may be selectively controllable. For example, one or both of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5 may be used as a common control target element of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22. In this case, when the software of the first microcomputer 21 is updated, one or both of the common main valve 4 and the front valve 5 are closed and controlled by the second microcomputer 22, and when the software of the second microcomputer 22 is updated, the software is updated. One or both of the common main valve 4 and the front valve 5 may be closed and controlled by the first microcomputer 21.

Further, for example, the display 11 may be a common controlled object element of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22. In this case, during the update of the software of the first microcomputer 21, the second microcomputer 22 controls the display 11 so that the display 11 displays the notification information indicating that fact, and the software of the second microcomputer 22 The first microcomputer 21 may control the display 11 so that the display 11 displays the notification information to that effect during the update.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, both the software of the first microcomputer 21 and the software of the second microcomputer 22 can be updated. For example, the software of the first microcomputer 21 that performs comprehensive operation control of the combustion device 1 is performed. May only be able to update. In this case, the control target element of the first microcomputer 21 may not include the main valve 4 and the front valve 5.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. The combustion device with a software update function of the present embodiment is different from the combustion device 1 of the first embodiment in the configuration of a part of the control device 20 and the software update process. The same items as above will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 4, in the present embodiment, the control device 20 includes a single microcomputer 40 instead of the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 described in the first embodiment. Further, the control device 20 of the present embodiment includes the wireless communication device 23 and the update software storage unit 24, as well as a drive circuit, an input circuit, a power supply circuit, and the like (not shown), as in the first embodiment.

Like the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22, the microcomputer 40 includes a CPU or a processor and a memory, and software for control processing is mounted (stored) in a rewritable non-volatile memory such as EEPROM. Has been done. The microcomputer 40 is connected to each of the wireless communication device 23 and the update software storage unit 24 so that data can be exchanged between the wireless communication device 23 and the update software storage unit 24.

In the present embodiment, the microcomputer 40 is provided with software for normal mode that imparts a function of performing normal operation control of the entire combustion device 1 to the microcomputer 40, and update that imparts a function of updating software for normal mode to the microcomputer 40. Mode software is implemented. With these normal mode software and update mode software, the microcomputer 40 also has functions as a first control unit and a second control unit in the present invention.

In this case, the software for the normal mode gives the microcomputer 40 a function as the first control unit in the present invention, and corresponds to the first software in the present invention. In this embodiment, the normal mode software includes communication control software S41 for causing the microcomputer 40 to execute communication processing via the wireless communication device 23, such as communication with the repeater 30 or the server 31, and the display 11. The software S42 for display control that causes the microcomputer 40 to execute the control process for controlling the display, the software S43 for sound control that causes the microcomputer 40 to execute the control process for controlling the output (acoustic information) of the sounding device 12, and the burner. The software S44 for combustion control that causes the microcomputer 40 to execute the control process related to the combustion operation of No. 2 and the software S45 for adjustment control that causes the microcomputer 40 to execute the control process related to the automatic cooking operation are included.

Further, the update mode software gives the microcomputer 40 a function as a second control unit in the present invention, and corresponds to the second software in the present invention. The update mode software includes the communication control software S46 that causes the microcomputer 40 to execute the communication process via the wireless communication device 23, like the communication control software S41 of the normal mode software, and further burner. Includes software S47 for fuel shutoff control that causes the microcomputer 40 to execute a control process for shutting off the fuel supply to 2.

Then, the microcomputer 21 uses all of the main valve 4, the front valve 5, the thermal power control valve 6, the igniter 7, the indicator 11, and the sounding device 12 as control target elements, and can control the operation of these control target elements. Is connected to each controlled element (lead valve 5, thermal power regulating valve 6, igniter 7, display 11, and sounding device 12) via a drive circuit (not shown) of each controlled element.

Here, the combustion control software S44 of the normal mode software is the operation signal of the operation unit 13 or sensing during the normal operation of the combustion device 1 (in a state where the normal mode software is not updated). Based on the signal or the command from the software S45 for cooking control, the control command of the main valve 4, the front valve 5, the thermal power adjustment valve 6 and the igniter 7 related to the operation of the burner 2 is determined, and the main valve 4, The control signals corresponding to the control commands of the leading valve 5, the thermal power regulating valve 6, and the igniter 7 are configured to be output from the microcomputer 40 to each drive circuit.

Further, the combustion control software S44 so as to give a control command regarding the display of the display 11 or a control command regarding the output of the sounding device 12 to the display control software S42 or the sound control software S43 as appropriate. It is configured.

Further, the cooking control software S45 appropriately generates a control command regarding the operation of the burner 2, the display of the display 11, or the output of the sounding device 12 based on the operation signal of the operation unit 13 related to the automatic cooking operation. The control command is configured to be given to the software S44 for combustion control, the software S42 for display control, or the software S44 for sound control.

Further, the fuel shutoff control software S47 of the update mode software sends a control signal from the microcomputer 40 to maintain at least one of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5 in the closed state during the update of the normal mode software. It is configured to output to at least one of the drive circuit of the main valve 4 and the drive circuit of the front valve 5.

Further, any of the update mode software S46 or S47 is configured to be able to perform a process of updating the normal mode software by the update software downloaded from the server 31. However, the software that causes the microcomputer 40 to execute the update process of the normal mode software may be software different from the above software S46 and S47.

Next, the process of updating the normal mode software of the microcomputer 40 will be described with reference to FIG. The microcomputer 40 executes the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 5 while the power of the combustion device 1 is turned on.

In STEP 11, the microcomputer communicates with the server 31 based on the communication control software S41 (or S46), so that the server 31 is currently implemented in the new update software (microcomputer 40) for the combustion device 1. Check if you are distributing a newer version of the normal mode software than the normal mode software).

When the new update software is not distributed (when the determination result of STEP 11 is negative), the microcomputer 40 operates the combustion device 1 by the normal mode software currently implemented in STEP 16. Perform control (normal operation control). Then, the microcomputer 40 repeats the process from STEP 11.

Further, when new update software is distributed (when the determination result of STEP 11 becomes affirmative), whether or not the microcomputer 40 is in a state where the update process of the normal mode software can be executed in STEP 12. To judge. In this case, for example, when the combustion device 1 is in the standby state in which the combustion operation of the burner 2 or the operation of the operation unit 13 is not performed, the determination result of STEP 12 becomes affirmative and the standby state is not obtained. The judgment result of STEP12 becomes negative.

If the determination result of STEP 11 is affirmative, the notification information indicating that there is new update software may be displayed on the display 11 or output from the sounding device 12. Then, in the standby state of the combustion device 1, when the operation unit 13 performs a predetermined operation instructing the microcomputer 40 to permit the software update, the determination result of STEP 12 becomes affirmative. At the same time, if the combustion device 1 is not in the standby state or the predetermined operation is not performed by the user, the determination result of STEP 12 may be negative.

If the determination result of STEP 12 is negative, the microcomputer 40 executes the operation control of STEP 16 (operation control of the combustion device 1 by the currently implemented normal mode software), and further processes from STEP 11. repeat.

If the determination result of STEP 12 is affirmative, the microcomputer 40 executes the processes of STEP 13 to 15 by the update mode software. In STEP 13, the microcomputer 40 sends a control signal for maintaining one or both of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5 in the closed state by the control process based on the software S47 for fuel cutoff control of the update mode software. By outputting to one or both drive circuits of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5, one or both of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5 are controlled to be closed.

Subsequently, in STEP 14, the microcomputer 40 downloads new update software from the server 31 by the control process based on the communication control software S46 of the update mode software, and stores the update software in the update software storage unit 24. do. The update software may be either the whole software of the normal mode software or a part of the software. Further, the process of STEP 14 may be executed before the process of STEP 13.

Subsequently, in STEP 15, the microcomputer 40 is currently stored and held in the memory of the microcomputer 40 by the update software stored and held in the update software storage unit 24 based on the communication control software S46 of the update mode software. The software for normal mode is updated by executing the process of rewriting the software corresponding to the update software among the software for normal mode. Then, the microcomputer 40 repeats the process from STEP 11.

In this case, the microcomputer 40 is normally in a state where one or both of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5 are closed and controlled by the control process based on the fuel shutoff control software S47 of the update mode software different from the normal mode software. Since the mode software is updated, the state of the output port of the microcomputer 40 for controlling the main valve 4 or the front valve 5 does not become undefined during the update of the normal mode software. Therefore, during the update of the software for the normal mode, the supply of the fuel gas to the burner 2 is maintained in a cut-off state, and the fuel gas leaks from the burner 2 or the burner 2 is ignited. It is possible to surely prevent such a situation from occurring.

Further, the update mode software needs to be configured so that one or both of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5 can be closed only when the normal mode software is updated. It can be made small enough to have a large memory capacity. As a result, the memory capacity of the microcomputer 40 can be kept to the minimum necessary.

In the present embodiment, the update mode software is configured to control only one or both of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5 among the control target elements of the combustion device 1 during the update of the normal mode software. However, it may be configured to be able to control other controlled elements. For example, the update mode software may be configured so that the display 11 displays the notification information indicating to that effect during the update of the normal mode software.

Further, the present invention is not limited to the first embodiment and the second embodiment described above, and other embodiments can be adopted. For example, when the thermal power control valve 6 is configured to be able to close the fuel supply path 3, instead of controlling one or both of the main valve 4 and the front valve 5 to be closed during software update. Alternatively, in addition to controlling the closing of one or both of the main valve 4 and the leading valve 5, the thermal power adjusting valve 6 may be controlled to close.

Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, the control device 20 performs wireless communication via the repeater 30 and the wireless communication device 23, but the communication with the repeater 30 may be wired communication. Further, the control device 20 does not have to be capable of communicating with the external server 31. The control device 20 is configured so that, for example, the update software can be acquired from the personal computer of the dwelling unit provided with the combustion device 1, or the update software can be acquired from a portable memory such as a USB memory. May be good.

Further, in the first embodiment, the one including the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 is shown. For example, the software (S11 to S15) for the first microcomputer 21 and the second microcomputer 22 are provided. Software (S21, S22) may be implemented in a single microcomputer so that the single microcomputer has a function as a first control unit and a function as a second control unit.

Further, in the second embodiment, the software for the normal mode and the software for the update mode are mounted on a single microcomputer 40, but the microcomputer (first control unit) on which the software for the normal mode is mounted is used. , A microcomputer (second control unit) equipped with update mode software may be provided separately.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, the heating cooker is exemplified as the combustion device 1, but the combustion device 1 of the present invention is a combustion device of another type, for example, a combustion device for a hot water supply device, or a combustion device for a heating device. It may be a device or the like. Further, the fuel of the combustion equipment is not limited to the fuel gas, and may be a liquid fuel such as kerosene.

1 ... Combustion equipment, 2 ... Burner (combustion unit), 3 ... Fuel supply path, 4 ... Main valve (control valve), 5 ... Front valve (control valve), 20 ... Control device, 21 ... First microcomputer (first microcomputer) Control unit), 22 ... Second microcomputer (second control unit), 40 ... Microcomputer (first control unit, second control unit).

Claims (5)

A combustion device including a combustion unit, one or more control valves capable of opening and closing a fuel supply path for supplying fuel to the combustion unit, and a control device capable of controlling a plurality of controlled elements including the control valve. hand,
The control device includes a first control unit that executes control processing based on the first software, and a second control unit that executes control processing based on the second software.
The second software is configured to cause the second control unit to execute a process of updating at least a part of the first software to new software supplied from the outside, and the first software. Combustion with software update function, which is configured to cause the second control unit to execute a control process for maintaining at least one control valve in a closed state during execution of the software update process. machine. In the combustion device with a software update function according to claim 1.
The first software is configured to cause the first control unit to execute a process of updating at least a part of the second software to new software supplied from the outside, and the second software. Combustion with software update function, which is configured to cause the first control unit to execute a control process for maintaining at least one control valve in a closed state during execution of the software update process. machine. In the combustion device with a software update function according to claim 2.
It is equipped with multiple of the above control valves.
The first software and the second software are configured to cause each of the first control unit and the second control unit to control a control valve different from each other among the plurality of control valves. Combustion equipment with software update function. In the combustion device with a software update function according to any one of claims 1 to 3.
The second software is at least one of the plurality of controlled elements during the execution of the update process of the first software and the operation of the combustion equipment other than the execution of the update process. The second control unit is configured to execute the process of controlling the control valve, and the first software is used during operation of the combustion device other than during the execution of the update process of the second software. The first control unit is configured to perform a process of controlling at least each control target element other than the control valve among the plurality of control target elements while controlling the overall operation of the combustion equipment. A combustion device with a software update function that is characterized by being present. In the combustion device with a software update function according to claim 1.
The software update is characterized in that the second control unit is configured to be able to close and control the control valve only when the update process of the first software is executed. Combustion equipment with function.

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