JP7528833B2 - Hot water supply control system - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to a hot water supply control system. More specifically, it relates to a hot water supply control system capable of controlling multiple storage-type hot water heaters in a target area.

For example, Patent Document 1 describes a hot water supply control system that controls multiple hot water heaters in a target area. This hot water supply control system divides multiple hot water heaters in a target area into multiple groups and controls the operation of the hot water heaters so as to shift the peak power consumption times of the hot water heaters between different groups. Patent Document 1 describes methods for shifting the peak power consumption times, such as shifting the operating times of the hot water heaters between different groups, shifting the phases of the increase/decrease cycles of the operating frequency of the hot water heater compressors between groups, and periodically starting and stopping the operation of the compressors.

JP 2014-126351 A

In a method of shifting the operation time of the water heater or the operation phase of the compressor, such as the hot water control system described in Patent Document 1, it may not be possible to sufficiently reduce power consumption, for example, when there are multiple water heaters. In this case, the power demand may exceed the power supply in the target area. Also, when the water heater compressor is operated by periodically starting and stopping the operation, it may not be possible to complete the heating of the target amount of stored heat.

This disclosure was made in consideration of the above problems, and provides an improved hot water supply control system that can ensure the required amount of heat during boiling operation while suppressing increases in peak power consumption of multiple storage-type hot water heaters in a target area.

The hot water supply control system according to the present disclosure includes a group determination unit that divides a plurality of storage type hot water heaters installed in a target area into a plurality of groups, and an operation control unit that controls the operation of the plurality of storage type hot water heaters. Each of the storage type hot water heaters includes a heating unit that is driven by electricity and has a variable heating capacity, and a hot water storage tank that stores water heated by the heating unit, and is configured to perform a boiling operation in which a target amount of hot water is boiled by the heating unit and stored in the hot water storage tank. The group determination unit assigns different allocated times to each of the groups as the time for performing the boiling operation, and the operation control means is configured to start the boiling operation of the storage type water heaters belonging to each of the groups at the start time of the allocated time assigned to each of the groups, and when it is estimated that the boiling operation of any of the storage type water heaters will not be completed within the allocated time assigned to the group to which the storage type water heater belongs, to execute a first control to increase the heating capacity of the storage type water heater for which the boiling operation is estimated not to be completed , and the operation control means is configured to, when one of the groups is designated as a leading group and the group that follows the leading group's allocated time is designated as a trailing group, if there is a target water heater among the storage type water heaters belonging to the leading group that is a storage type water heater that does not complete the boiling operation by the start time of the allocated time of the trailing group, to execute a second control to reduce the power consumption of the target water heater during the time when the boiling time during which the target water heater is performing the boiling operation overlaps with the allocated time of the trailing group .

The hot water supply control system disclosed herein can prevent excessive power demand in relation to the power supply in the target area, and can also prevent a situation in which the amount of heat required for the hot water tank during boiling operation cannot be secured.

1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a storage type water heater according to embodiment 1 of the present disclosure; 1 is a schematic diagram showing a network configuration of a hot water supply control system according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. 2 is a block diagram for explaining the functions of a centralized monitoring server according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure and a connection configuration with peripheral devices. FIG. 4 is a timing chart for explaining an overview of overlap suppression control in the hot water supply control system according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. 4 is a timing chart for explaining an overview of overlap suppression control in the hot water supply control system according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. 4 is a timing chart for explaining an overview of peak suppression control in the hot water supply control system according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. 4 is a timing chart for explaining an overview of peak suppression control in the hot water supply control system according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.

The following describes the embodiment with reference to the drawings. The same reference numerals are used to designate common or corresponding elements in each drawing, and duplicate descriptions are simplified or omitted. In this embodiment, the calorific value of water is calculated as the difference in the calorific value of water at the same temperature as water supplied from a water source, for example. In addition, in this embodiment, when describing the calorific value of water, the calorific value of the water is described in principle in units of the amount of hot water [L] when converted into the calorific value of hot water at a predetermined reference hot water supply temperature. Note that in this disclosure, when simply referring to "water" or "hot water," this can include liquid water at any temperature, from low-temperature water to high-temperature hot water.

Embodiment 1.
<Overall configuration of storage type water heater>
Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a storage type hot water heater according to embodiment 1. As shown in Fig. 1, the storage type hot water heater 1 includes a hot water storage tank 10, a heating means 2, a water pump 31, a reheating pump 32, a bathtub pump 33, a hot water tap temperature control valve 41, a reheating heat exchanger 5, a heating forward pipe 301a, a heating return pipe 301b, a water supply pipe 302, a high-temperature outlet pipe 303, a temperature control pipe 304, a hot water tap pipe 305, a bathtub forward pipe 306a, a bathtub return pipe 306b, a reheating forward pipe 307a, a reheating return pipe 307b, a remote control 101, and a control means 100.

The heating means 2 is driven by electricity and heats the introduced water to heat it into high-temperature water. In this embodiment, the heating means 2 is configured using a heat pump, and has devices such as a compressor, a water-refrigerant heat exchanger, an expansion valve, and an air heat exchanger that are connected in a ring shape by a refrigerant circuit. However, the heating means 2 is not limited to a heat pump, and may be other devices as long as they are driven by electricity and can heat water.

The value of the heating capacity of the heating means 2 can be changed. In the following description, the heating capacity of the refrigerant circuit of the heating means 2 may be simply referred to as the "heating capacity". The heating capacity corresponds to the amount of heat that the heating means 2 provides to the water per hour. The unit of heating capacity is, for example, kW (kilowatts).

The compressor of the heating means 2 is driven by a drive device (not shown) equipped with, for example, an inverter-controlled DC brushless motor. In this case, the drive device can adjust the compressor frequency (i.e., rotation speed) to change the pressure and temperature of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor, or to change the value of the heating capacity. However, the hot water storage type water heater 1 is not limited to one that uses such a drive device, and may be configured, for example, to have multiple compressors installed in the heating means 2, and to change the pressure and temperature of the refrigerant discharged, or the value of the heating capacity, by switching the number of compressors in operation.

The water supply pipe 302 guides low-temperature water supplied from a water source such as a tap to the bottom of the hot water storage tank 10. The heating supply pipe 301a connects the bottom of the hot water storage tank 10 to the heating means 2. The water pump 31 is connected midway through the heating supply pipe 301a. When the water pump 31 is driven, the water in the bottom of the hot water storage tank 10 is sent to the heating means 2. The high-temperature water heated by the heating means 2 flows through the heating return pipe 301b into the top of the hot water storage tank 10. As a result, hot water is stored in the hot water storage tank 10 in a state where temperature stratification is formed, with the top being hot and the bottom being cold.

The high-temperature discharge pipe 303 sends high-temperature water discharged from the top of the hot water storage tank 10 to the hot water tap temperature control valve 41. The temperature control pipe 304 branches off from the water supply pipe 302 and directs low-temperature water to the hot water tap temperature control valve 41. The hot water tap temperature control valve 41 adjusts the mixing ratio of the high-temperature water from the high-temperature discharge pipe 303 and the low-temperature water from the temperature control pipe 304 to adjust the temperature of the hot water. The hot water whose temperature has been adjusted by the hot water tap temperature control valve 41 is discharged from a hot water tap (not shown) such as a faucet or shower via the hot water tap pipe 305, or is injected into the bathtub 6 to fill the bathtub with water or add hot water.

The reheating heat exchanger 5 heats the bath water by exchanging heat between the high-temperature water drawn from the top of the hot water storage tank 10 and the bath water taken out of the bathtub 6. The bathtub return pipe 306b guides the bath water in the bathtub 6 to the reheating heat exchanger 5. The bathtub forward pipe 306a guides the bath water heated by the reheating heat exchanger 5 to the bathtub 6. The bathtub pump 33 is connected to the middle of the bathtub return pipe 306b. The reheating forward pipe 307a guides the high-temperature water at the top of the hot water storage tank 10 to the reheating heat exchanger 5. The reheating return pipe 307b guides the hot water whose temperature has been reduced by heat exchange with the bath water from the bathtub 6 in the reheating heat exchanger 5 to the hot water storage tank 10. The reheating pump 32 is connected to the middle of the reheating return pipe 307b.

Hot water storage tank 10 is provided with hot water storage temperature sensors 501a-501f spaced apart in the vertical direction. By detecting the temperature distribution inside hot water storage tank 10 using the output of hot water storage temperature sensors 501a-501f, the amount of remaining hot water and the amount of stored heat in hot water storage tank 10 can be grasped. Note that in the illustrated configuration, the number of hot water storage temperature sensors 501a-501f is six, but the number of hot water storage temperature sensors is not limited to this, and it is sufficient that a sufficient number of temperature sensors are installed to measure the temperature distribution inside hot water storage tank 10.

The heating return pipe 301b is provided with a heating temperature sensor 502 downstream of the heating means 2 to detect the temperature of the heated high-temperature water. The water supply pipe 302 is provided with a water supply temperature sensor 504 to detect the water supply temperature. The upper part of the hot water storage tank 10 is provided with an outlet temperature sensor 503 to detect the temperature of the high-temperature water discharged from the hot water storage tank 10. The hot water tap pipe 305 is provided with a hot water tap temperature sensor 505 to detect the temperature of the hot water supplied to the hot water tap. The bathtub return pipe 306b is provided with a bathtub return temperature sensor 506 to detect the bathtub return temperature flowing from the bathtub 6 to the reheating heat exchanger 5. The bathtub return temperature sensor 506 may be used as a means for detecting the bathtub temperature by periodically operating the bathtub pump 33. The reheating return pipe 307b is provided with a reheating return temperature sensor 507 to detect the temperature of the hot water returning from the reheating heat exchanger 5 to the hot water storage tank 10 (i.e., the reheating return temperature). Instead of detecting the reheat return temperature with a sensor, the reheat return temperature may be estimated from the rotation speed of the reheat pump 32, the rotation speed of the bathtub pump 33, the high-temperature water outlet temperature, and the bathtub return temperature. The hot water tap piping 305 is provided with a hot water tap flow rate sensor 601 that detects the amount of hot water used on the demand side.

The control means 100 and the remote control 101 are connected to each other via wire or wirelessly so that they can communicate bidirectionally. The control means 100 and the remote control 101 may also be able to communicate via a network. The remote control 101 is an example of a user interface. The remote control 101 has a display unit that displays information, and an operation unit that can be operated by a person such as a user (hereinafter simply referred to as a "user"). The remote control 101 may be equipped with a touch screen that has the functions of both the display unit and the operation unit.

The operation unit of the remote control 101 functions as an input means for receiving operation inputs related to commands for operating the storage type hot water heater 1 and setting values. By operating the operation unit, the user can remotely operate the storage type hot water heater and perform various settings. The display unit functions as a notification means for notifying the user of information. The remote control 101 in this embodiment is equipped with a display unit as a notification means, but as a modified example, it may be equipped with other notification means such as a voice guidance device. The remote control 101 may be installed on a wall of, for example, a kitchen, living room, or bathroom. Alternatively, a mobile information terminal such as a smartphone may be configured to have a function as a user interface like the remote control 101. A configuration in which multiple remote controls 101 are capable of communicating with the control means 100 may be used.

The control means 100 is, for example, a microcomputer or the like, and includes a storage unit including ROM, RAM, non-volatile memory, etc., a central processing unit (CPU) that executes calculation processing based on a program stored in the storage unit, and an input/output port that inputs and outputs external signals to and from the central processing unit. The control means 100 calculates the hot water tap load, the reheating load, and the amount of heat stored or remaining hot water in the hot water storage tank 10 based on the information detected by each of the above-mentioned sensors. In addition, the control means 100 controls the operation of the heating means 2, the water pump 31, the reheating pump 32, the bathtub pump 33, and the hot water tap temperature control valve 41 based on this information and calculated values, and on the commands and set values input from the remote control 101, thereby controlling the operation of the hot water storage type hot water heater 1. The control performed by the control means 100 includes control of the boiling operation in which the water boiled by the heating means 2 is stored in the hot water storage tank 10.

<Network configuration of hot water supply control system>
Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the network configuration of the hot water supply control system according to this embodiment. Fig. 2 shows a plurality of dwelling units X to Z within a target area managed by the hot water supply control system. There is no limit to the number of dwelling units in the target area. Fig. 2 shows the network configuration within dwelling unit X only, but similar network configurations are also arranged in the other dwelling units Y and Z.

Each residence is provided with an optical line terminal 701, a concentrator 702, and a router 703. The optical line terminal 701 is connected to the end of the network 709. The concentrator 702 constitutes a so-called hub, and is connected to the router 703 and other devices via multiple LAN cables. The other devices may include, for example, a home server 708, a personal computer 705, and a smartphone 706. The hot water storage type water heater 1 is provided with a communication adapter 704 corresponding to the router 703. The control means 100 of the hot water storage type water heater 1 is connected to the optical line terminal 701 via the communication adapter 704 and the router 703. The communication adapter 704 and the router 703 may be connected wirelessly or wired.

Each of the storage type water heaters 1 in the multiple dwelling units in the target area is capable of bidirectional communication with the centralized monitoring server 707 via the network 709. The centralized monitoring server 707 is also connected to be able to communicate with mobile terminals such as smartphones 706 owned by the users of the storage type water heaters 1 in each dwelling unit. The users can send and receive information to and from the centralized monitoring server 707 using their mobile terminals. The centralized monitoring server 707 may also be configured to be able to communicate with the control means 100 of each storage type water heater 1 via the home server 708.

<Configuration of centralized monitoring server>
Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing the functions of the centralized monitoring server 707 and the connection configuration with peripheral devices. As shown in Fig. 3, the centralized monitoring server 707 includes a data storage unit 801. The data storage unit 801 stores various information related to the hot water storage type hot water heater 1 in the target area. For example, the data storage unit 801 stores information such as output data of the hot water storage temperature sensors 501a to 501f of the hot water storage type hot water heater 1 in the target area and output data of the water supply temperature sensor 504.

The centralized monitoring server 707 further includes a group determination unit 802 and an operation control unit 803. These do not have to exist as separate hardware, but may be realized in software when a program stored in a memory unit (not shown) of the centralized monitoring server 707 is executed by a processor. The centralized monitoring server 707 includes various functions in addition to the functions of the group determination unit 802 and operation control unit 803 described below, but these are not shown in the figures.

In this embodiment, each hot water storage type water heater 1 is set to perform a boiling operation in which hot water equivalent to the required amount of heat used in a day is boiled at a set time during the day and stored in the hot water storage tank 10. Here, the required amount of heat is determined, for example, based on data on the amount of heat used for hot water supply over a certain period of time in the past. The target amount of hot water stored in this boiling operation is determined based on the difference between the required amount of heat and the amount of hot water remaining in the hot water storage tank 10. In the following explanation, when the term "boiling operation" is used simply, it is understood to mean a boiling operation for storing the target amount of hot water in the hot water storage tank 10.

The group determination unit 802 and operation control unit 803 of the centralized monitoring server 707 manage the boiling operation of each storage type water heater 1 in the target area so that the power demand in the target area does not exceed the power supply when the boiling operation is being performed in the storage type water heater 1 in the target area. This is explained below.

The group determination unit 802 classifies specific times in a day into a plurality of boiling time groups for each assigned time. Here, the "specific times in a day" are times suitable for performing boiling operation in each storage type water heater 1. The specific times are set, for example, to time periods when the power consumption of other electrical devices other than the storage type water heater 1 is low. For example, the specific times may be late night hours. The "late night hours" are low-cost electricity hours when the unit price of electricity is cheaper than other times of the day. By performing boiling operation during late night hours and storing the required amount of hot water in the hot water tank, electricity charges can be reduced. Information on the start time and end time of the specific times for performing boiling operation and other times is stored, for example, in the data storage unit 801.

The allocated time is the time for each storage type water heater 1 to perform boiling operation. Therefore, the length of the allocated time is determined based on the average time required for boiling operation at the rated heating capacity of each storage type water heater 1. The allocated time is determined by a start time and an end time, and each allocated time is set so that it does not overlap with other allocated times. Although each allocated time does not necessarily have to be consecutive, in this embodiment, a case will be described in which the allocated times are set consecutively, with the allocated time for one boiling time group starting at the end time of the allocated time for the next boiling time group.

The group determination unit 802 further divides the storage type water heaters 1 that are placed in the target area and are to be controlled into a number of groups equal in number to the boiling time groups, which are regarded as water heater groups. There is no limitation on the method of classifying the water heater groups, and the storage type water heaters 1 in the target area may simply be classified in the order of registration. In addition, for example, the classification may be configured so that the total value for the power consumption for each water heater group that is expected to be used by the storage type water heaters 1 during boiling operation is similar between different water heater groups.

The number of boiling time groups, the length of the assigned time, the classification of water heater groups, and the allocation of assigned time to water heater groups may be configured to be freely set by the user via a user interface such as a smartphone 706.

Water heater groups and boiling time groups are paired one-to-one. That is, one group is paired with one boiling time group, and other water heater groups are paired with other boiling time groups. Therefore, storage type water heaters 1 that belong to the same water heater group are assigned the same assigned time, and that assigned time does not overlap with assigned time assigned to other water heater groups.

The operation control unit 803 has a timer function and can determine which hot water heater group's assigned time the current time falls in. The operation control unit 803 also controls the boiling operation based on future weather forecast information (weather, indoor temperature, outdoor temperature, humidity, etc.) for the target area and output data from the hot water storage temperature sensors 501a to 501f and the supply water temperature sensor 504 of the hot water storage type hot water heater 1 for the target area stored in the data storage unit 801. Note that the control of the boiling operation described below may be configured in whole or in part to be performed by the control means 100 of the hot water storage type hot water heater 1.

<Operation of duplication suppression control>
Furthermore, the operation control unit 803 estimates whether the boiling operation in the storage type water heater 1 belonging to each water heater group will be completed within the allotted time allocated to each water heater group. Then, when it is estimated that there is a storage type water heater 1 in a certain water heater group that cannot complete the boiling operation within the allotted time, the operation control unit 803 executes the overlap suppression control described later as the first control.

Figures 4 and 5 are timing charts for explaining an overview of the overlap suppression control of the hot water supply control system of this embodiment. Figure 4 shows an example when overlap suppression control is not executed, and Figure 5 shows an example when overlap suppression control is executed. In the example of Figures 4 and 5, the group determination unit 802 divides the hot water storage type hot water heater 1 into hot water heater groups A to C, and combines boiling time groups A to C with each of the hot water heater groups A to C. Note that Figures 4 and 5 show the boiling operation of one hot water storage type hot water heater 1 belonging to each of the hot water heater groups A to C as a representative, but multiple hot water storage type hot water heaters 1 may belong to each of the hot water heater groups A to C.

The operation control unit 803 acquires from the data storage unit 801 the recorded information of the storage water temperature sensors 501a-501f and the supply water temperature sensor 504 of the storage type water heater 1 belonging to the water heater group to which the assigned time is assigned at a time a predetermined time before the start time of any of the assigned times of the boiling time groups A-C. Furthermore, based on the recorded information and future weather forecast information for the target area, the operation control unit 803 predicts the boiling completion time at which boiling of the set target stored water volume will be completed for each storage type water heater 1 belonging to that water heater group when boiling operation is performed at normal heating capacity. The predicted boiling completion time is shown in Figure 4.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, the completion time of boiling of the storage type water heater 1 belonging to water heater group A is predicted to be after the start time of the allocated time of water heater group B. In other words, it is predicted that the boiling operation will not be completed within the allocated time in at least one storage type water heater 1 in water heater group A. Similarly, it is predicted that there is a storage type water heater 1 in water heater group B that will not complete the boiling operation within the allocated time.

In this state, if boiling operation is performed at normal heating capacity, as shown in Figure 4, it is expected that the peak value of power consumption in the target area will increase significantly while boiling operation overlaps between water heater group A and water heater group B, and while boiling operation overlaps between water heater group B and water heater group C.

The operation control unit 803 executes overlap suppression control to prevent such an excessive increase in power consumption. Specifically, overlap suppression control is started by outputting a control signal to the control means 100 of the hot water storage type water heater 1 that is estimated to be unable to complete the boiling operation within the allotted time, instructing the execution of overlap suppression control.

When the control means 100 of the storage type hot water heater 1 receives a control signal instructing the execution of overlap suppression control, it adjusts the heating capacity of the heating means 2 so that the maximum heating capacity of the heating means 2 is exerted. Specifically, for example, when the heating means 2 is configured using a heat pump, the heating capacity is increased by increasing the frequency (rotation speed) of the heat pump compressor by inverter control.

As a result, the total power consumption of the storage type water heaters 1 in the target area is higher than in the example of FIG. 4 where overlap suppression control is not performed. However, in the storage type water heater 1 where overlap suppression control is performed, the heating capacity is increased, shortening the boiling time required for boiling operation and accelerating the boiling completion time. As a result, the boiling operation of water heater group A (or water heater group B) is completed before the start of the assigned time of the succeeding water heater group B (or water heater group C). Therefore, it is possible to prevent the boiling operation from being performed overlappingly between water heater groups A to C. This makes it possible to prevent the peak value of power consumption in the target area from increasing, as shown in FIG. 5, and to prevent the demand power in the target area from exceeding the supply power.

<Peak suppression control>
Furthermore, when any of the storage type water heaters 1 belonging to a certain water heater group among the water heater groups A to C is performing boiling operation and the next allocated time arrives as the allocated time for the assigned water heater group, the operation control unit 803 outputs a control signal to the control unit of the storage type water heater 1 to execute the operation of the peak suppression control, which is the second control. For the sake of simplicity, hereinafter, the water heater group whose allocated allocated time will be first is referred to as the "leading group," and the water heater group that is assigned the next allocated time after the leading group is referred to as the "following group."

Figures 6 and 7 are timing charts for explaining the outline of peak suppression control. Figure 6 shows an example of continuing boiling operation without executing peak suppression control, and Figure 7 shows an example of executing peak suppression.

In the example shown in Figures 6 and 7, the allocated time of the following group (e.g., water heater group B) starts while one of the storage type water heaters 1 belonging to the leading group (e.g., water heater group A) is performing a boiling operation. Here, if peak suppression control is not performed, the operating state of the storage type water heater 1 of the leading group is maintained until the boiling operation is completed, and the boiling operation of the storage type water heater 1 belonging to the following group is started with normal heating capacity. As a result, as shown in Figure 6, power consumption is significantly high during the overlap time when the boiling operation of the leading group and the boiling operation of the following group are performed simultaneously.

In order to suppress the increase in the peak value of power consumption, in this embodiment, the operation control unit 803 outputs a control signal to the target water heater, which is a storage type water heater 1 whose boiling operation will end later than the start of the assigned time of the following group, to instruct it to execute peak suppression control.

When the control means 100 of the target water heater receives a control signal instructing the execution of peak suppression control, it reduces power consumption by, for example, reducing the heating capacity of the heating means 2 so that power consumption during boiling operation is minimized. Alternatively, instead of changing the heating capacity, it may be configured to reduce power consumption by stopping anti-freeze operation or reducing the standby power of other control components. It may be possible to both reduce the heating capacity and reduce power consumption by other methods.

As a result, as shown in FIG. 7, the time during which the boiling operation of the storage-type water heater 1 of the leading group overlaps with the boiling operation of the trailing group becomes longer compared to when peak suppression control is not performed. However, the increase in the peak value of power consumption during the time when the boiling operations overlap can be kept small compared to when peak suppression control is not performed.

In addition, in peak suppression control, if the heating capacity of the target water heater is reduced, there is a risk that the boiling operation time will become even longer. In this case, the boiling operation of the preceding group may be stopped midway even if the target water heater has not reached the target hot water storage capacity. Alternatively, the boiling operation may be continued until the target water heater completes boiling the target hot water storage capacity. In addition, when peak suppression control is executed, the heat capacity of the hot water storage tank 10 may be insufficient, causing a hot water shortage. In order to suppress the occurrence of a hot water shortage, for example, the control means 100 of each hot water storage type water heater 1 may be configured to predict whether or not a hot water shortage will occur based on the current remaining hot water volume, data on the heat amount used for hot water supply, and the current heating capacity, etc., and not to execute peak suppression control if a hot water shortage is predicted.

Furthermore, when overlap suppression control and peak suppression control are being performed, the hot water supply control system may be configured to notify the user that the heating capacity of the hot water storage type hot water heater 1 is being increased or decreased by a notification means that the user can recognize, such as a display on the display unit of the remote control 101 or a notification on the smartphone 706, that a boiling operation is being performed. This can prevent the user from mistakenly believing that a malfunction has occurred in the hot water storage type hot water heater 1, even if the rate at which hot water is increased in the hot water storage type hot water heater 1 is changed by overlap suppression control or peak suppression control.

The above-mentioned overlap suppression control and peak suppression control may be configured so that the user can set whether or not to execute them from an operation unit such as the remote control 101. If the setting is set to disable the execution of these controls, when the control means 100 of the hot water storage type hot water heater 1 receives a control signal from the hot water supply control system instructing the execution of overlap suppression control or peak suppression control, the control signal is invalidated so that these controls are not executed. If the setting is set to allow the execution of these controls, the control means 100 enables the signal to execute these controls and executes the instructed control. Alternatively, the operation control unit 803 of the centralized monitoring server 707 may be configured to receive a command to disable the execution of overlap suppression control or peak suppression control set by the remote control 101 of each hot water storage type hot water heater 1. In this case, the operation control unit 803 is configured not to transmit a control signal instructing the execution of the control that is set to be disabled.

For example, when the heating capacity of the storage type hot water heater 1 increases, the noise caused by the operating sound of the heating means 2 increases. For this reason, there are situations in which it is not desirable to execute overlap suppression control that increases the heating capacity, such as when it is a nuisance to others. Therefore, by providing a function that allows the user to select whether to enable or disable overlap suppression control, it is possible to ensure that overlap suppression control is executed only under circumstances in which an increase in heating capacity is acceptable.

Similarly, for example, if the heating capacity of the storage type water heater 1 is reduced due to peak suppression control, the required amount of hot water cannot be secured, and there is a risk of hot water shortages, etc. Therefore, by providing a function that allows the user to select whether to enable or disable peak suppression control, the convenience of the storage type water heater can be improved by allowing the securing of hot water to be prioritized when it is desired to secure the required amount of hot water.

If the user inputs a command to start the boiling operation of the storage type water heater 1 from the remote control 101, smartphone 706, etc. outside the allotted time, for example because the user wants to maximize the amount of hot water in the hot water tank 10, the control means 100 of the storage type water heater 1 prioritizes the user's command. In other words, the control means 100 starts the boiling operation at normal heating capacity even outside the allotted time of the group to which the storage type water heater 1 belongs. As a result, hot water can be secured according to the timing when the user wants to use it, improving the convenience of the storage type water heater 1.

1 Storage type hot water heater, 2 Heating means, 5 Reheating heat exchanger, 6 Bathtub, 10 Storage tank, 31 Water pump, 32 Reheating pump, 33 Bathtub pump, 41 Hot water tap temperature control valve, 100 Control means, 101 Remote control, 301a Heating forward pipe, 301b Heating return pipe, 302 Water supply pipe, 303 High temperature outlet pipe, 304 Temperature control pipe, 305 Hot water tap pipe, 306a Bathtub forward pipe, 306b Bathtub return pipe, 307a Reheating forward pipe, 307b Reheating return pipe, 501a-501f Storage hot water temperature sensor, 502 Heating temperature sensor, 503 Outlet temperature sensor, 504 Water supply temperature sensor, 505 Hot water tap temperature sensor, 506 Bathtub return temperature sensor, 507 Reheating return temperature sensor, 601 Hot water tap flow rate sensor, 701 Optical line terminal, 702 Concentrator, 703 Router, 704 Communication adapter, 705 PC, 706 Smartphone, 707 Centralized monitoring server, 708 Home server, 709 Network, 801 Data storage unit, 802 Group determination unit, 803 Operation control unit

Claims (7)

A group determination unit that divides a plurality of storage type hot water heaters installed in a target area into a plurality of groups;
An operation control means for controlling the operation of the plurality of hot water storage type water heaters;
Equipped with
Each of the storage type hot water heaters is
A heating means driven by electricity and capable of changing a heating capacity;
a hot water storage tank for storing water heated by the heating means;
Equipped with
The heating means is configured to perform a boiling operation in which a target amount of hot water is boiled and stored in the hot water storage tank,
The group determination unit assigns different assigned times to each of the groups as times for performing the boiling operation,
The operation control means includes:
Starting the boiling operation of the storage type hot water heaters belonging to each of the groups at the start time of the assigned time assigned to each of the groups,
When it is estimated that the boiling operation in any one of the storage type hot water heaters will not be completed within the assigned time assigned to the group to which the storage type hot water heater belongs,
The first control is configured to increase the heating capacity of the hot water storage type hot water heater in which the boiling operation is estimated not to be completed , and
Among the groups, a certain group is designated as a leading group, and a group that is next in the allocated time of the leading group is designated as a following group.
The operation control means includes:
If there is a target water heater that is a storage type water heater that does not complete the boiling operation by the start time of the assigned time of the following group among the storage type water heaters that belong to the preceding group,
During the time when the boiling time during which the boiling operation of the target water heater is performed overlaps with the allocation time of the following group,
The second control is configured to execute a second control for reducing the power consumption of the target water heater.
A hot water supply control system comprising: An input means for receiving input of commands related to the operation of each of the hot water storage type hot water heaters,
The input means is configured to set whether or not the first control is to be executed.
The hot water supply control system according to claim 1 . An input means for receiving input of commands related to the operation of each of the hot water storage type hot water heaters,
The input means is configured to set whether or not the second control is to be executed.
3. The hot water supply control system according to claim 1 or 2 . The hot water supply control system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the second control includes control for reducing a heating capacity of the heating means of the target hot water heater. The operation control means includes:
In the target water heater, when a hot water shortage is predicted to occur due to a shortage of hot water in the hot water storage tank,
The second control is not executed.
5. The hot water supply control system according to claim 4 . Each of the storage type hot water heaters is
An input means for receiving an input of a command related to the operation of the hot water storage type water heater,
The operation control means includes:
When the input means receives an input of a command to start the boiling operation,
The second control is not executed, and the boiling operation is executed with the normal heating capacity.
6. The hot water supply control system according to claim 4 or 5 . Each of the storage type hot water heaters further includes a notification means for notifying information regarding operation,
The operation control means includes:
When the second control is executed, the notification means is configured to notify that the heating capacity of the target water heater is reduced and the boiling operation is executed.
7. The hot water supply control system according to claim 4 , wherein the hot water supply control system is a hot water supply control system.

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